Can an Average Runner Become an IRONMAN?

This was a full week! Had 4 on-site days at 2 different clients. And, a fairly significant amount of training to get in!

Sunday – This was originally a day off. Yet with many full work days, I thought I should pull 1 or 2 workouts up to Sunday. However, come Sunday, I was not feeling it!! After the long bike ride outside on Saturday, and going out on Saturday night, I wasn’t feeling like doing much of anything, let alone a one hour swim session. = 0 minutes

Monday – 50-minute bike ride in the cycling room. Multitasking on the bike helped me stay on task work wise with the client on-site days.  65 minute swim. = 115 minutes

Tuesday – Off, worked 7:00 am to 8:00 p.m. = 0 minutes

Wednesday – 45-minute run outside in the 29 mph wind! Was great, did strides every 10 minutes, average 9:38. = 45 minutes

Thursday – 65-minute bike ride, went to a 45-minute cycling class early to get in the extra time. (Also gave me 20 minutes of multitasking!) = 65 minutes

Friday – Swam 50 minutes. 5 x 50 alternating with backstroke, then 3 x 350. Ran 90 minutes. I was low on nutrition during this run. Didn’t eat enough beforehand and for some reason, didn’t bring a gel with me! Took it easy, tuned into how I felt and focused on running the pace I felt I could reasonably maintain throughout the 90 minutes. Although my watch crapped out 2/3 of the way through,  I felt like I kept a really steady pace throughout. I was tired after and my gut was a churnin’! = 140 minutes

Saturday – Left at about 10:30 am for 3.5 hours of biking and then 15 minutes of  running. Whew! Wore a ton of clothes – seemingly – and surprisingly it wasn’t too much! (I had actually tried to overdress!) Focused on keeping loose and not tightening up my neck. Was a long ride on the lake front. Went all the way to south end, then to the north end, then had to loop down to Fullerton and back up again.  Proud to finish this after the efforts the day before. = 225 minutes

TOTAL = 590 minutes = 9 hours, 50 minutes

• Swim – 115 minutes = 20%
• Bike – 325 minutes = 55%
• Run – 150 minutes = 25%
• Strength – 0 minutes = 0%

Cycling is improving my running! My long run this week felt great. My easy effort pace was about 20 seconds faster per mile than it usually is. Now it was a beautiful day to finally run outside, but let’s attribute it all to improved fitness due to cycling, shall we??!

What did not feel great were these stats the indoor cycling bike gave me after spending 2 and a half hours with it. 15. 8 miles and an average power of 52. I don’t think so! 🙂

Sunday – off

Monday – Swam 45 minutes: 1000m. Did the Below the Belt class. = 105 minutes

Tuesday – Swam 20 minutes continuous and then moved directly to biking. Showed up to cycling class 1/2 hour late soaking wet! Yikes, I had intended to be there on time, but a call ran later than I expected. I stayed after and got in my full 45 minutes. Later I ran 20 minutes, did all this at the gym. This day felt like a logistical back and forth, kept having snaffos and running short or tight on time. The day was frustrating and put me in a bad mood. = 65 minutes

Wednesday – Ran 35 minutes at gym in morning. = 35 minutes

Thursday – Biked 60 minutes at gym in afternoon by myself in cycling room. = 60 minutes

Friday – In afternoon was to do 1) swim + 2) run, in that order. Yet, I wanted to run outside and wanted to do so without wet hair. Plus I had an end of day client deadline and needed to keep trucking so I ran, worked, then went down to the pool to swim. The 80-minute run outside was awesome! Pretty easy effort and I averaged 9:38! I feel that usually that would be an effort that would average me 10 minute miles. Cycling is improving my running! I felt strong. Then I felt a wee bit tired in the pool as I did my 3 x 350m. = 125 minutes

Saturday – There was to be a day off before this workout, but it felt better in my Sat schedule than in my Sun schedule, so here we are! Biked 2.5 hours all in cycling studio. 1 hour am class + 15 minute, + 45 minute 9:15 class + 30 min then 20 minute run. Started off a little sluggish – yet then it exceeded my expectations. Ran 2 miles. Finished the first at 10:20 then ended up with 9:50 min average – so really picked up the pace in the second mile! Running strong! = 170 minutes

TOTAL = 560 minutes = 9 hours, 20 minutes

• Swim – 110 minutes = 20%
• Bike – 255 minutes 45%
• Run – 135 minutes = 24%
• Strength – 60 minutes = 11%

I’m proud I got myself outdoors for 2 bike rides this week. There is still a lot for me to learn and improve with my bike handling skills! And, I finished up the rides without mishap!

Sunday – off

Monday – 25-minute bike ride at home in the morning. Swim class in the evening. Then went to the gym to do a swim session: 40 minutes, did a warm up and 750m slow, focused on the timing of my breathing. = 65 minutes

Tuesday – Got out of my client sooner than I expected, so I decided – instead of doing the evening cycling class – to bike outdoors. Biked outside for 1 hour and 20 minutes. I was NOT dressed warmly enough. I should’ve had on the feet wind guards, another pair of gloves, and a windbreaker jacket. Also, didn’t thinking through the timing and it was dark during the last 20 minutes. I was lucky I happened to choose a bright blue jacket to wear. And…amazingly, I neglectged to check tire pressure before I went out! Followed up this ride with a 30-minute run. = 110 minutes

Wednesday – Skipped my swim session. Didn’t have the week’s drills from my swim instructor and didn’t feel like it. Ugh!! Don’t like skipping workouts. Yet I still had a 90-minute run on the schedule, and completing that after the work outdoors the day before felt like enough! I was tired. It was also an indoor run (it was a snowy, messy day), round and round the track. I was glad to have my friend, Christine, with me for the first half! = 90 minutes

Thursday – Skipped the scheduled swim session. Again! Not good, but here’s what I had to accept: the day before I got a headache in the afternoon and it shifted to a bad migraine. One of the worst I’ve ever had. Then I didn’t sleep well as my migraine pill wore off and left me a little shaky. So after 2 long planning meetings and a late arrival home, I decided to bag the swim session. = 0 minutes

Friday – Did a swim session! Did Thursday’s long session (instead of Friday’s scheduled short session). I worked on not turning my body too much, on reaching out tall with my arms, and breathing earlier – right away – on the stroke. = 45 minutes

Saturday – Biked 2 hours and 20 minutes and ran 20 minutes. Did this all outside. Felt good about challenging myself to take it outdoors. Thought I was over-dressing…nope! (And…I remembered! My daughter and I pumped up my bike tires.) Ate some chews on the ride. That’s tricky. My helmet felt uncomfortable on my head in the last half hour. Maybe it was bugging me because of headband, and maybe I need to look into a new helmet. (Another thing to figure out!!) I did well throughout the ride. I felt I was focused and paying attention to the people and obstacles on the lakefront. Yet, this experience was humbling! My legs felt heavier than I expected on the run. In spite of this, the tendency was to run a little fast. I averaged 9:30 on the 20-minute run, while trying to keep it slow. = 160 minutes

TOTAL = 470 minutes = 7 hours, 50 minutes

• Swim – 85 minutes – 18%
• Bike – 245 minutes – 52%
• Run – 140 minutes – 30%
• Strength – 0 minutes – 0%