Accomplished

I am feeling so accomplished after a great week of training. Up until now I have been training solidly but have missed a workout here and there. This week I hit every key workout that I needed to do. And when something came up where I had to miss my hard run day (Thursday); I made sure to get it in on Friday. I have been motivated and looking forward to each workout. This Saturday was my first long ride of the season (3 1/2 hours). Luke and I head to do the Notch Loop. The notch is a road that runs through Mt. Mansfield. I am unsure of the exact grade but it is steep, very, very, steep.
So steep that the road was still covered in snow on some parts. The great part was that the road was still closed to traffic and we had the place all to ourselves. I really could feel the hill on the rest of the ride. My legs are still not as strong as they need to be and Luke pulled me through the headwind all the way home. I also tried Gatorade Rain which is awful. There must be nutri-sweet or some awful sugar in it that did not sit right with me. Today (Sunday), I got out and ran of 90-minutes. Feeling strong until the last 10-15 minutes. I am ok with the fact that I am feeling tired, I expect it at this time of the year. It is so exciting to be able to get all these workouts in outdoors. I was definitely not at this place last year in my training. This upcoming week will also be pretty intense with my first track workout on Thursday. I am steadily losing weight which is great and helping with the running. The feet are feeling pretty good and I have no complaints in that department.
I was talking in my sleep the other night about massages so I think I may be treating myself to a Patty massage soon!

Recovery Week

Although this past week was only week #3 of IM training it was dedicated as "recovery". Why is that? Because I got to spend this weekend in Woodstock, NY relaxing at the Emerson Resort and Spa (http://www.emersonplace.com/) and hiking with Freddie. Why did I do that? Because Luke was busy working hard at Mark Wilson's triathlon camp http://www.hvtc.net/ . This was a Christmas present that I had purchased for Luke and it was very hard not doing it myself but I passed it up because of $$$$ and I wanted to enjoy the weekend at the spa. I got an awesome treatment that massaged the whole body with these herbal bags. Envision a giant tea bag mixed with hot oil. I also got to enjoy the hot tub, steam rooms and sauna. I did get a little activity in with some Freddie walks, but nothing to consider training. During the week I did get two long bike rides in. With one tire explosion. But only 1 run day. So this week's goal is to get in all of my planned training sessions. If I should skip anything it should be swimming. The good news is I am relaxed, rested and ready to train! (the picture above was a nice gift left to use from the GM at Emerson Place, we got VIP attention b/c I was on an exchange from Trapp's)

Running Strong

Week #2--Another great week of IM training under my belt. I competed in a half-marathon this weekend for my long run training. I was hoping to hold 10-minute miles and I did. I completed the run in 2 hours and 6 minutes, felt strong the whole way and was not very sore the next day www.runvermont.org .
With the weather being rainy and cold, biking was very difficult. I only rode 1x last week so my goal this week is to get out on the bike. I'm off to a great start as I got out for a 2.5 hour ride yesterday. I also competed in a small swim meet at the Swimming Hole last Friday. Boy, do I not miss pool racing. I arrived 2 minutes prior to my 1st event (time confusion). Each race felt worse than the one before. I never warmed up and got into that racing mode. Not a big deal considering I was preping for the 1/2 the next morning. Just a fun week of racing and training.

Week #1, ASICS and Noni Juice

Week #1 of Ironman training is officially history. Although this base period is pretty much what I have been doing all during the winter it was nice to get into logging the workouts and holding myself more accountable. Highlight of the week was definitely during my bike workout where I had a moose sighting. Spring has officially arrived with rain/snow showers everyday so my long 2-hour ride was completed on the spin cycle.

I got sucked into the hype of PowerJuices. Specifically, Noni Juice. Noni is an adaptogenic herbal tonic, which means it works throughout the body to invigorate and strengthen the system. Native to the Pacific Islands, Asia, and Australia, the Noni plant is rich in health-promoting phytochemicals including antioxidants and bioflavonoids. Noni has been known to provide various health benefits, including supporting immune function. I am mostly just taking it as a preventative thing. So far, so good.

I also purchase new shoes. My other Asics have been feeling kind of hard lately and I have now moved on to the Gel Nimbus. I have tried the Nimbus before and did not get a "yes, this was worth $120". But yesterday, I got that feeling. Especially when I jumped on the treadmill after spin class. They feel amazing. I can not wait to get out and run long in them. Let's hope they keep that feeling going.

Up for this week: The Swimming Hole Masters Swim Meeting, Vermont Unplugged 1/2 (weather dependant).