I truly intended to update this more often throughout my training for the Rev3 Olympic tri, but I just didn’t make enough effort. Maybe it’s not too late. Here are the highlights of my training so far.
Swimming
Not long after I started going back to the pool, the water heater broke. This was in January. The water kept getting colder and colder every time I went. I don’t remember how long it took them to get it fixed, but it was at least three weeks. I only skipped one swimming session because of this. I decided I had to tough it out and go in the cold. Heck, the water temperature at the race is going to be in the 60s. The pool only got down into the 70s. I could take it. Honestly, just getting in and swimming that first 50 yards was the hardest. After that, I was warmed up enough so that the cold water didn’t bother me.
I have been working on building up my endurance. The main workout I have done is a pyramid (100/200/300/400/300/200/100) with short breaks in between. I start out with some quick swimming drills and then go into the pyramid. I think all that work has finally paid off. This past Monday, I swam a total of 2050 yards. The last 1600 yards were 4×400 with 20 second rests in between. That has been my goal as far as endurance. I figure if I can do that, I can do the swim in the race. Now, I’m going to start mixing in a little speed work with my endurance swims.
Running
This Saturday is the Oak Barrel Half Marathon. I’ve been training for it along with the triathlon training. I have not done a lot of speed work. Mostly, I’ve been working on building up my endurance. For my long runs on the weekends, I increased my run by about a mile a week. I took some weeks off and some weeks I didn’t go further. My last two long runs were 11.88 miles and 12.28 miles. All that is left is to go the full distance on Saturday. Because the Oak Barrel is a very hilly course, I have been running up hills whenever I can. Tracey and I talk about good hills we have found so we can each go run them. I ran over Eastview a few times, which is a monster of a hill. It’s short but very steep. Last Thursday, a friend of mine and I ran up Bankhead Parkway. This was a two mile run up to the top of a mountain, and then two miles back down. I thought the run was going well until we stopped running. I started having a lot of pain in my shin, like a shin splint. It’s still bothering me a bit, but it is getting better. I’m running the race on Saturday no matter what. I’ll load up on Advil before the race.
I figure if I can run a half marathon, then I am more than ready to run the 10k in the triathlon. I will not be doing any more long runs before the triathlon. I’ll try to do some speed work and do plenty of bricks.
Cycling
This is where I really need to work a lot. I have been riding the stationary bike at the gym for 30-60 minutes once a week. But, that’s it. I have been acquiring new equipment to help me become more efficient. I got some clip-on aero bars and some cycling shoes for using the clipless pedals that came with my bike. I’m still working on getting my bike adjusted correctly. I just need to get on it more and try different positions and get used to riding in aero position. This will be my main focus over the next month. Instead of doing long runs, I’ll start doing long rides and then running for a little while afterwards. This is the only portion of the triathlon I am nervous about. Like I said, I have a lot of work to do here.
With one month to go, I am feeling confident I will be ready for the race. The triathlon class has started back at the YMCA which is always a great workout and I always get great advice from Lisi, the instructor. This should be an exciting few weeks. This is it. The last few weeks of training. I’m looking forward to crossing the finish line this Saturday so I can fully focus on the triathlon.
Swimming
Not long after I started going back to the pool, the water heater broke. This was in January. The water kept getting colder and colder every time I went. I don’t remember how long it took them to get it fixed, but it was at least three weeks. I only skipped one swimming session because of this. I decided I had to tough it out and go in the cold. Heck, the water temperature at the race is going to be in the 60s. The pool only got down into the 70s. I could take it. Honestly, just getting in and swimming that first 50 yards was the hardest. After that, I was warmed up enough so that the cold water didn’t bother me.
I have been working on building up my endurance. The main workout I have done is a pyramid (100/200/300/400/300/200/100) with short breaks in between. I start out with some quick swimming drills and then go into the pyramid. I think all that work has finally paid off. This past Monday, I swam a total of 2050 yards. The last 1600 yards were 4×400 with 20 second rests in between. That has been my goal as far as endurance. I figure if I can do that, I can do the swim in the race. Now, I’m going to start mixing in a little speed work with my endurance swims.
Running
This Saturday is the Oak Barrel Half Marathon. I’ve been training for it along with the triathlon training. I have not done a lot of speed work. Mostly, I’ve been working on building up my endurance. For my long runs on the weekends, I increased my run by about a mile a week. I took some weeks off and some weeks I didn’t go further. My last two long runs were 11.88 miles and 12.28 miles. All that is left is to go the full distance on Saturday. Because the Oak Barrel is a very hilly course, I have been running up hills whenever I can. Tracey and I talk about good hills we have found so we can each go run them. I ran over Eastview a few times, which is a monster of a hill. It’s short but very steep. Last Thursday, a friend of mine and I ran up Bankhead Parkway. This was a two mile run up to the top of a mountain, and then two miles back down. I thought the run was going well until we stopped running. I started having a lot of pain in my shin, like a shin splint. It’s still bothering me a bit, but it is getting better. I’m running the race on Saturday no matter what. I’ll load up on Advil before the race.
I figure if I can run a half marathon, then I am more than ready to run the 10k in the triathlon. I will not be doing any more long runs before the triathlon. I’ll try to do some speed work and do plenty of bricks.
Cycling
This is where I really need to work a lot. I have been riding the stationary bike at the gym for 30-60 minutes once a week. But, that’s it. I have been acquiring new equipment to help me become more efficient. I got some clip-on aero bars and some cycling shoes for using the clipless pedals that came with my bike. I’m still working on getting my bike adjusted correctly. I just need to get on it more and try different positions and get used to riding in aero position. This will be my main focus over the next month. Instead of doing long runs, I’ll start doing long rides and then running for a little while afterwards. This is the only portion of the triathlon I am nervous about. Like I said, I have a lot of work to do here.
With one month to go, I am feeling confident I will be ready for the race. The triathlon class has started back at the YMCA which is always a great workout and I always get great advice from Lisi, the instructor. This should be an exciting few weeks. This is it. The last few weeks of training. I’m looking forward to crossing the finish line this Saturday so I can fully focus on the triathlon.
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