Road to Ironman Lake Placid Week 1

I've decided to document my journey to Ironman with the hashtag #roadtolakeplacid on instagram and thought I might as well bring the trend over to my blog as well. This journey is going to be filled with ups and downs and I want to highlight everything here. When I first got into endurance sports I used blogs to learn the ins and outs of training. I want to be able to provide insights into what training for an ironman is like, and I also want to be able to look back and relive my experience.

Monday was the first day after my wisdom tooth surgery that I was cleared to work out. As much as I wanted to run I was told the pounding would increase the risk for dry sockets. To the gym I went. Although spin class is short [45 minutes], it always gets my heart rate way up and makes my legs burn. After class I went to the weight room to #liftheavyshit. I'm an endurance athlete by nature but am working on really getting better at lifting things up and putting them back down.

Tuesday means Gung Ho trainer class. Before sweating it out on the trainer I made my return to the pool. I have to say, swimming after having my wisdom teeth out felt super weird. I had a little discomfort when trying to breathe, which made for a quite interesting 2300 yards. At trainer class we rode around 15 miles and "climbed" almost the entire time. As much as I hate the trainer, I know these workouts are going to make a difference come spring.

Wednesday. Finally, a run! My legs were still pretty tired from the previous night's workout so 3 easy miles was it. The good news was my knee gave me no grief. #progress

Thursday marked probably the first time I could honestly say I liked riding on the trainer. The class at Gung Ho was a solid workout but also fun. Being able to ride with other people brings out my competitive side and made me push so much harder than I would have by myself. Another bonus, the hour class FLIES by.

Friday. Thankfully this swim went a little better than Tuesday's. 2400 yards felt comfortable yet still a little challenging. I have a lot of work to do but could be in worse shape. I kicked off the weekend with a short but sweet run workout of 6 x 30 seconds hill sprints. These were more about form and running strong than running fast.

Saturday was not supposed to be a rest day. I had every intention of getting in a run but accidentally fell asleep on the couch instead. Given how tired I was I took it as a sign to take a rest day and keep sleeping.

Sunday. I can't tell you how long I have waited for a run like this. Winter storm Juno was starting to make an appearance so I was only planning on running for 20-30 minutes. I felt like I could have kept running forever and for the first time this year have had absolutely no knee pain. None whatsoever. Four hilly, rainy, snowy, slushy miles concluded my first week on the road to Lake Placid.

Swimming- 4700 yards
Biking- 39.26 miles
Running- 9.68 miles
Total- 6 hours 45 min