Another Big Week, Another Big Ride

Things are really ramping up around here! Last week marked my biggest week of training so far with more miles on the bike than I ever expected I would hit this year. Despite a few days of being pretty tired I am absolutely loving the higher volume of training. Oh, and remember how in my last post I mentioned that I had a pretty sluggish ride on Wednesday? Turned out both of my brakes were rubbing which completely explains why I didn't feel that bad but wasn't really going anywhere!

I was glad I figured that out before my long ride on Saturday, which quite frankly was too long. I was planning on doing the same route I did last weekend - 33 miles - but instead ended up doing 40. The added miles wouldn't have been so much of a problem except this route was very hilly. Definitely the hilliest ride I've ever done. I've been trying to do a lot of my rides and runs when it's a bit warmer out so I can get [more] used to the heat since it will likely be nearing 90 degrees during the run portion of my upcoming race.

My boyfriend and I set around early afternoon on Saturday with hopes of not being rained out or blown away by the storms that were on their way. Luckily we only had a few drops of rain but unfortunately we had a pretty strong headwind for the majority of the second half of the ride. Despite the heat, wind, and monster hills this ride rewarded you by taking you alongside a cute and quaint part of the Susquehanna River.

Once we got to the river we took a little break to refuel and enjoy a few minutes on the water before the big 2 mile climb back towards York. The way out wasn't too hilly but we went back a different way that was just unrelenting hills. There were hardly any flat sections on this ride, making my quads pretty trashed by the time we made it back.

Although this ride was a bit more than I was expecting it was something I think I needed to do. I had been doubting my abilities on the bike and was becoming frustrated that I wasn't making any progress with hill climbing. This ride was by no means fast but I was able to do hills that I never would have even attempted had I been on my own.

3875 ft of climbing over 40 miles!

With my next race - Culpeper International Triathlon - a little under two weeks away I am starting to get nervous. I have been putting in a lot of hard work and am excited to see how I do on race day. I am starting to get excited about fall marathon training too, which I am pretty surprised about. Seeing everyone starting training these past few weeks has me motivated to pay extra attention to my runs during these next few weeks of training.

More Hills

This morning I headed back up to Pinchot for some more hill work. I felt more mentally prepared this time and as a result the ride was quite enjoyable! This time the ride started out with a pretty big hill. I was dreading this hill but it ended up not being nearly as bad as I had anticipated. Don't get me wrong, it still kicked my ass, but it didn't kill me.

The rest of the ride was mostly rolling hills with one another pretty big hill somewhere in the middle. This hill was also not as bad as I had thought it would be. I still have a lot of work to do but I am starting to feel confident about this upcoming triathlon. It's amazing what a little practice will do!

After the ride I hopped off my bike and quickly changed into my running gear. I did two easy miles for my first brick of this training cycle. At the beginning of the run when things felt weird I kept telling myself to pretend I was running my warm down lap at the track. That seemed to help a lot.

Then I picked up the pace a little during the second mile to a slightly faster also comfortable pace. I payed no attention to my watch, just running by perceived effort. This seemed to work well since my second mile for was thirty seconds faster than what I thought I was running.

Never Accept Defeat

This whole triathlon thing has presented me with a lot of challenges, some more welcomed than others. As a former swimmer I only had to get over fears of swimming in dark, murky waters. Even running isn't too bad. I may not be the fastest runner but I feel comfortable during most runs. That leaves cycling. I am a complete newbie and even though I have been making progress I still have a lot to learn. I also have a lot of room for improvement.

After a tough ride on Sunday with my boyfriend I started questioning why I even cared about the sport of triathlon since I am so bad on a bike. I was angry and thought there was no point in trying since I was hopeless. Then my boyfriend said something to me that is common sense but something that I needed to hear from someone else. He reminded me that I hadn't even been riding for a year so I couldn't expect myself to keep the same pace as someone who has been riding for 5+ years.

When I was swimming I felt so at home and at peace with myself. Sure I had tough, challenging workouts but I still knew relatively how to tackle them successfully. I hadn't experienced that struggle of the unknown and doing something new in over ten years. I pushed myself constantly in the pool and I push myself on runs now, but not in the way that I have to push myself on the bike. It is pretty hard to explain but it is a real struggle for me.

After that ride on Sunday I was terrified about whether I could complete the bike portion of my upcoming triathlon. It has a lot more hills than I am used to. I knew, though, that the only way to get better at hills was to practice climbing. This morning as I was riding part of the course I experienced many emotions. At times I was all I love cycling, I could do this all day! and then when it was time to start climbing the negative thoughts would creep back in.

Once I was done the ride, though, I felt stronger than on Sunday. I started to think that with some serious hill work I can do this ride. I really have nothing left to lose by trying and I know that if I don't try I will regret it big time.

Holy Hills

Yesterday afternoon my cyclist boyfriend and I set out to do a 37 mile bike ride with way more climbing than my legs are used to. I think it was because of my lack of sleep over the weekend but my legs were pretty tired from the beginning. I tried not to think about the distance and instead just focused on what we were doing at that moment. This was only my second ride out on the road so I was still pretty nervous. I told him we needed to take the ride slowly so I could use my energy on the hills, not maintaining a fast pace.

Not far into the ride we were greeted with a closed bridge. We were able to carry our bikes over the bridge and keep going. Unfortunately, though, that was only the first of four closed roads/bridges we ran into. Soon enough we were following a map on our phones rather than the cue sheets we had printed off. Because of the road closures we ended up on some pretty busy roads with constant traffic. We made the decision to cut the ride short so we could get off those roads and not get lost.

The ride itself really wasn't too hilly, it was just the1.5 mile climb at the bottom of my neighborhood back to my house that really did me in. I made it almost the whole way but had to walk my bike a tiny section because I couldn't get clipped in. I was extremely frustrated and felt defeated on this hill. I started panicking about my upcoming triathlon and how I am supposed to handle 1,000+ ft of climbing when I am struggling with only 600+.

My boyfriend noticed how upset I was and suggested I try to ride only that hill a few times a week for practice. I am going to spend more time riding on the road and even try to drive out to the race site to practice riding on the course some. I have five weeks to become somewhat successful at climbing hills. Let's go!

Keystone State Tri Training Week 1

Monday:
Ran 6.5 miles in the morning. It was really humid out and my legs felt incredibly heavy. Definitely should have a done a shorter run as my first run since my tri. The run was terribly slow but good mental training I guess. In the evening I went to my first group ride! We rode about 28 miles in around 2 hours. I'm not sure because of stops but I was pleasantly surprised with how fresh my legs felt after a rough morning.


Tuesday:
After a long day of workouts on Monday my body was craving it's weekly yoga session. My legs were a little tighter than normal but felt a million times better afterwards. I had a track session scheduled for Tuesday night but was really nervous because my legs still were feeling pretty heavy. I decided to go anyway & just see how my legs felt. To my surprise they showed up ready to run fast. I did 1 mile warm up followed by 4 rounds of a 400 sprint & 800 recovery. My 400's were 1:40, 1:38, 1:36, 1:36, all faster than the last time I did this workout!


Wednesday:
After two tough days of workouts I gladly welcomed an easier day. I was supposed to swim but storms had the pool closed all day. I ended up moving my swim to Friday and just doing only my strength workout. It was my first time in the gym in awhile and I was definitely sore Thursday morning. I have two strength workouts that I'm alternating between but I think I still need to modify them some based on what is available at the gym.


Thursday:
More storms were in the forecast for most of Thursday so I knew if I wanted to get in any workout outside it needed to be in the morning. I did a slow 3.5 mile easy/recovery run before going to my yoga class. I felt really sluggish during the first mile of the run but then my legs started to loosen up. Despite the slow legs I have been really enjoying running lately, which is a complete 180 from how I felt about it a few months ago. Good timing considering marathon training coming up.


Friday:
Friday was yet another rainy day. I had no desire to run in the rain and biking in the rain can be pretty unsafe so it ended up being a swim day. I was surprised how off I felt in the water. I can't really explain it but I certainly didn't like it. Hopefully next time will be better.


Saturday:
Saturday was spent relaxing by the pool and enjoying summer. All in all it was a perfect rest day.


Sunday:
My boyfriend decided he wanted to take me on a ride so I could get more experience on the road and climbing hills. Despite the rest day my legs were feeling tired and heavy from the beginning of the ride. We planned on doing 37 miles but cut it down to 22 miles because of multiple road closures and my cranky legs. I still have a lot of work to do but I still have a few weeks before my next tri.




Weekly Totals

• Swimming: 1,800 yards
• Biking: 50.08 miles
• Running: 14.02 miles
• Strength: 45 min
• Yoga: 2 hours
• Weekly Totals: 9 hours 25 min

What I Learned From My First Triathlon

After all big races I like to document what I learned from my training and race experience so I can make progress in the future.  The General Smallwood International Triathlon was one of the hardest days of my life and even though I didn't meet my goals due to the heat, it was a great learning experience.

1. Safety always comes first.
With record setting temps all weekend and a heat index of 112 on Saturday it was hardly a good idea to be out doing strenuous activity. Around 50 people didn't finish the race because of the heat and three people were even taken to the hospital. Nine people in the state of Maryland died due to heat related illness. Yes, I would have loved to race my heart out on Saturday. No, it was not a smart idea when my body is nowhere near acclimated to that kind of heat. There will always be other races.

2. It is okay to walk.
Along those same lines, it is perfectly okay to walk when you need to. I was embarrassed when I first started walking because I thought it meant I was a quitter. Then I looked around and saw that nearly every athlete in sight was also walking. I absolutely hated walking but given the circumstances it was the right thing to do and I am no longer embarrassed by it. I'm just proud that I finished.


3. Don't be intimidated by all the people with fancy gear.
When my dad and I first pulled into the parking lot all I saw were athletes with really nice tri bikes. I instantly felt inadequate, like I didn't belong there. Not only do I not have a tri bike, but I don't even have a road bike;I have a hybrid. I am saving up to get a nicer bike but besides the bikes the majority of the people there had fancy, expensive gear. As the day went on I realized that I am as much of an athlete as everyone else despite my lack of a couple thousand dollar bike.

So many nice bikes!

4. Make a small rip in nutrition so it is easier to open while riding.
My hands were wet from the swim and then sweaty from the heat, which made ripping open my honey stinger waffles nearly impossible. I tried using my teeth but had no luck. Note: this only works for more solid nutrition options. Don't do this with a gel or you will have a sticky mess everywhere.


5. Start at the beginning of the swim pack.
I tried to start middle to front of the pack but ended up having to pass a lot of people. I am a strong swimmer and need to take advantage of my swimming background. This is the one place in a triathlon where I am one of the fastest. Time to own it.

6. Wear a tri top or a bike jersey without a sports bra built in.
I swam in a two-piece training bikini top and then put on my bike jersey during transition. The problem was that since I was wet the shirt rolled up and took forever to put on. The built-in sports bra only made things worse. I ordered a tri top a few days ago so hopefully I can just swim in my tri top and shorts and not worry about clothes during transition.


7. I suck at transitions.
Speaking of transitions, mine are awful. Like slowest ever. I set my transition up well but there are still things I can do to cut down on my times, like putting my hair into a ponytail before the swim, wearing a tri top, skipping socks, and speed laces.

8. Bricks are an absolute must in triathlon training.
I only did a handful of bricks during training and had I not been forced to walk a lot of the run due to the heat I probably would have struggled on the run regardless. Running with fresh legs and running after biking are two completely different things. Practice accordingly.


9. Always expect more hills.
I thought the bike and run courses were supposed to be flat. Nope. There were quite a few hills during the beginning of the bike and the run was mostly hills. I can handle hills on the run but the hills on the bike really took a lot out of my legs. Hills are no joke and need to be practiced if I ever want to get better.


10. Put sunscreen even in the places you don't expect to need it.
I sprayed my chest, arms, and legs with sunscreen before the swim and that was it. During the run when I felt like I was baking out in the sun I wanted to take my jersey off and just run in my bathing suit but I hadn't sprayed my stomach or back. I am the type of person who burns extremely easily so that was not an option. A quick two minute spray would have probably helped keep me cool on the run.