where's the fork...

If you can find it you can stick it in me, because I am done. Completely wasted. This week was my first big week so far this year, and it lived up to all the pain and agony that I anticipated. The plan was to do 30 hours to finish my "base" pahse and get a solid week of strength in. It ended up 28.5 hrs due to a missed swim. Actually this time it was not my fault as both Saturday and Sunday evenings the pool was closed before I could make it there. Otherwise it was a really good week. I decided to load the back half of the week again and ended up with 17 hours on Fri-Sun.

Totals:

swim: 22,500 w/ a 7000yd practice and because all my swims are with a swim team there is way, way, to much intensity for my liking!

bike: 14 hours w/ group ride on Tues where for 25 miles my HR never dipped below 155 and got up to 180. Sat/Sun were 4hrs/3.75hrs of solid group rides. Hard week of cycling for me.

run: 58 miles. Didnt quite get over 60 like I hoped but it was solid. 16 miler on Sat. after 4 hour ride hurt (especially when I forgot socks....at least 5 bleeding blisters). On Sunday after ride did a really solid 6 mile run right off the bike and felt really good. It was really encouraging to nail the very last workout of the week.

hrs: 28.5 --On Sunday I had three coffees throughout the day, which is a sure sign I am tired.

As I sit here in the coffee shop after a monday morning swim that was a little harder than expected, my quads keep cramping up. It did the same thing last night as well. I am in need of an easy week and it is finally here. Time to let the body heal and recover. This week should be between 18-20 hours of maintenance training.

And in other news, I am excited to have Powerbar back for 2 more years. I just received my first shipment before this weekend. I really have missed my Powerbar stuff. It is great to have them back on board. They are a great company, provide me with great support, and I cant imagine training without Powerbars in my pocket

Until next time.....cheers!

B

motivation

This week was another solid week in the bank. I have been steady since the beginning of January and the fitness is beginning to show. I wanted to get in 26-27 hours this week but fell a little short. I skipped one swim and one bike, so the weekly total was a little lower. The run, however, which has been my focus, increased:

Le details:

Swim: 22,900 in 4 practices. Tues was 7200yds (felt like an age group swimmer again)

Bike: 7 hours-3 rides. Thurs was a really, really hard group ride again. Couldnt even pull through.

Run: 62 miles. This saved the week. I loaded the end of the week with mileage getting 39.5 miles in the last 3 days (12/15/12.5) w/6 tempo on the end of the 15 miler on Saturday, and 2 miles of 76s/100s 400's on the track on Sunday. Really tired from the running.

Total hours this week were 23.5. This next week WILL be 30 hours and then a much needed recovery week.

And finally here is some motivation. The ITU just launched there Olympic Games Page here. Nothing like pictures from Athens to get your butt out the door to keep training.

until next time, Cheers!

B

cette semaine...

This will be the first week of updates of my training schedule. Last week I got in a solid 24.25 hours of training in. It was the first of three large weeks that I will do before a recovery week. This week should be around 26-27 hours and next week around 30 hours. I am still primarily in the base phase still, so biking and running are primarily steady w/ 1 to 2 uptempo workouts per week. Swimming is always fairly intensive. I wont do anything on the track (running) until after the next recovery week.

Week specifics:
swimming: 26,800 yds -really solid with lots of intensity

biking: 8 hrs - 3 rides, with one really, really hard group ride

running: 58 miles - steady w/ one fartlek run 2x[2x90s w/90rest, 2x60s w/60rest, 2/30s w/30rest, and 2/15s w/15 rest]--yes i stole this workout from another training group, but I really like it. Legs feel good when they get up and go. Max HR got up to 181.

Hours: 24.25

Pretty solid week for me. Consistency is the key for me. Hopefully I can keep stringing solid week after week together, and get ready for the debut April 19th.

Cheers,
B

february is here

Well I decided to skip the entire month of January on the blogging front. I spent the new year in Bend, Oregon. It was a great refreshing change of pace for me. I got in some swims, runs, and a few cross country ski sessions. It was a blast and recharged the old batteries. Since, then training has been consistent, but not extraordinary. The last couple weeks have seen the weekly training rise above 2o hours, and I am slowly starting to feel strong again. I will be ramping things up to 25 hours this week and then close to 30 hours for the next 3-4 weeks. The #1 goal for me this early season is consistency. It is the major thing my training has lacked the last several years. I have decided that after my health issues at the end of last season, to start the build up slow this year and be completely fit before I race.

I have decided not to do the race in Mexico March 8th and St. Kitts on the 15th. Even writing that down makes me want to erase and decide to go race. Last year I started my season a little before I was ready, and this year I dont want to make the same mistake. As of right now, I will probably race 20 times or so this year, even without these two races added in. For once, I am going to use better judgement and not do every race just because it is there. It is now looking like April 19th will be my first race. This will be in Mazatlan, Mexico. It is the Pan-American Championships and an important race for me. It is also the selection race for the 2008 World University Games in Erdek, Turkey. I hope to qualify there for my 3rd consecutive World University Games.

New to the blog this year I will start to post more about my weekly training. I have simply used it in the past for travel and race updates, but want to start blogging more frequently. Well that is all for now. Have a great new year and safe travels!

Cheers,
B