Week 6: March 18-24, 2013

This week was one where the best laid plans had to take a back seat to real life.  It started last Sunday evening with Nate coming down with a fever and bad cough--and Mark and I having to trade taking days off of work all week to stay home with him--and ended with Claudia getting a violent case of the stomach flu.  After 16 straight hours of vomiting, fever, and abdominal pain Mark took her to urgent care and they sent us to the ER to rule out appendicitis (thankfully, it wasn't).  With the sick kids, juggling work schedules, and lack of sleep, I ended up missing a couple of workouts and am left feeling completely wiped out.  That being said, I am so thankful that the illnesses were nothing serious--a trip to Children's Hospital with worst-case-scenarios running through your mind is a quick reminder to count your blessings.  And sweet little Claudia, in between bouts of dry heaving and whimpering, showed Mark how to say 'thank you' in sign language and then said "for taking such good care of me when I'm sick".  I can't tell you how glad we are to see this little face smiling again...

This weekend we were supposed to send the kids up to grandma and grandpa's house for a sleepover. Mark and I were going to take advantage of being kid-free and the 50 degree temperatures and hit the road for a 50 mile bike ride, but those plans changed with the kids being sick.  I settled for a long ride on the trainer early Saturday morning instead, with high hopes that I'll get an outdoor ride or two in over my spring break in another week.  5-8 inches of snow is in the forecast for early this coming week, but it's looking like sun and 60s for spring break!

Monday: off
Tuesday:
45 min trainer ride: 10 min warm up, 20 min @175w, 5 min. cool down
3400 yd swim:
500 sw, 4x50s dr/sw one of each stroke
50 ez
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
50 ez
4x (125 IM--rotating 50/25/25/25 each stroke then 50 of each stroke sprint). 125s on 1:50, 50s on :50
50 ez
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
50 ez
4x (75 IM then 50 sprint, one of each stroke)
50 ez
8x50s kick, two of each stroke, on 1:00
8x25s, two of each stroke, on :30
Wednesday: 5 mi run; 30 min strength training and core
Thursday: 5 mi treadmill run, 1-2% incline @ 9:15 pace; skipped swim practice due to sick kiddo #1
Friday: unplanned day off due to sick kiddo #2
Saturday: 2:30 trainer ride @ 135w
Sunday: 11.25 mi trail run at Highbanks Metro Park; finished just shy of 2 hours.  A beautiful morning and a great way to end a stressful week...

Weekly stats:

Swim: 3400 yds

Bike: 4:15 hrs

Run: 21.25 mi

Strength: 30 min

Time: 7:50 hours

Training cycle stats:

Swim: 30,700 yds

Bike: 22:30 hours

Run: 114.6 miles

Total time: 57:43 hours

And here are a few "fueling" recipes from this week:

I've been trying to come up with a muffin recipe with no added sugar, and I think I've finally found a keeper:

No-sugar Oatmeal Banana Peanut Butter Muffins

1 1/4 c. whole wheat flour

1 1/4 c. oatmeal

1tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 egg

1/2 c. almond milk

1 over-ripe banana

1 c. unsweetened applesauce

1/4 c. dates, blended into a paste in food processor

1/2 c. natural peanut butter

Mix ingredients well. Bake at 350.

Tuna Tortilla

I usually eat a huge mixed-veggie salad for lunch, but have found the hard way that this is not usually the best option for my GI system when I've got a long run the next day.  So on Saturday, I had this instead:

One can of tuna mixed with half of an avocado and some chopped onion, spread on a toasted whole wheat tortilla, and drizzled with a little bit of Frank's hot sauce.

And lastly, I tried a chickpea "cookie" recipe that I found online.  I was skeptical, but they turned out to be pretty tasty.  Lydia loved them, even after I told her what was in them...

Protein-packed "Cookies"

1 can of chickpeas, drained 

1/3 c. vanilla flavored protein powder
2 T. water

1/2 tsp. almond flavoring

1/2 c. dark chocolate chips

Blend first 3 ingredients in food processor until smooth.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Bake at 350 for about 15 min until fork comes out clean.

Week 5: March 11-17, 2013

Another great week in the pool, but not so great week out on the run.  I decided to register for a half marathon that will take place in early June, the Dexter-Ann Arbor Run.  I haven't raced a half mary in almost 3 years, so I am looking forward to seeing what I can do with the past few years of marathon training miles in the bank.  This week puts me 12 weeks out from the race, so I thought I'd start to add in some hills and tempo work.  I threw in some hill repeats at the end of Wednesday's 5 miler, and then planned on a short tempo on Friday.  About a mile in to Friday's run I knew a tempo wasn't in the cards.  My legs felt heavy and my heart rate was up in high Z2/low Z3 at a 9:30 pace, which should be a warm up or recovery pace.  So, I scrapped the tempo and finished out with a recovery slog. I thought Saturday's run might be better, but that was not the case.  I think the anaerobic intervals in the pool and maybe the bootcamp class are catching up with me.  I also didn't sleep as well as I normall do--daylight savings seemed to have messed with the whole family's sleep schedule--so that probably played a role as well.  I know by now that bad weeks are to be expected, but it's hard for my type-A personality to give up on a workout once I set out to do it.  My plan is to not use my heart rate monitor or Garmin during my workouts this next week so I don't get too wrapped up in the numbers.

On a positive note, I had a great swim practice on Thursday.  We had another "sprint day" workout and I was able to better my 100 breast time from last week.  Loving my chlorine fix lately...

This just cracks me up, especially since they're Hawkeyes!

On the 'fueling' side of my training, I made a dinner dish on Thursday using kale, my new favorite leafy green:
Cook 1 1/2 cups brown rice and set aside
In 1 T. olive oil, sautee 6 cups chopped kale
Put half of the sauteed kale in a food processor and blend with 3/4 cup almond milk, 2-3 T. spicy brown mustard, and salt and pepper.
Pour mixture over the rice and stir in the remaining sauteed kale.
Place in a casserole dish, sprinkle with breadcrumbs and some mozarella cheese, drizzle with a little olive oil, and bake at 350 until cheese is melted.

I also made these homemade Almond Joy bars last night...

Not exactly on the Ironman training diet, but I promised my co-workers I'd be bringing in some treats on Monday.  At least that's my story, and I'm sticking to it.


Weekly training stats:
Monday: off
Tuesday: 45 min. Z2 trainer spin
3200 yd swim:
500 sw, 5x50s dr/sw
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
50 ez
8x125s (100 free/25 fly, then back, br, fr) on 1:50
50 ez
5x100s kick (br) on 1:30
50 ez
5x100 IM on 1:50
Wednesday: 5.35 mi. run with 5x up-and-over hill repeats. Avg HR 155, avg pace 9:10
40 min. strength training and core
Thursday: 60 min. Z2 trainer spin
2500 yd. swim:
500sw, 5x50s sw/dr
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
50 ez
2x100s sprint choice on 3:00; #1 breastroke 1:18 (2 sec faster than last week), #2 IM 1:17
100 ez
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
50 ez
2x50s sprint choice on 1:30; both breastroke, :36, :37
100 ez
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
50 ez
4x25s sprint choice on 1:00; br/fr/br/fr, :18, :14, :19, :15
100 ez
Friday: 5 mile attempted-tempo-turned-recovery-slog, avg HR 147, avg pace 9:40
Saturday: 7 mi run, high Z2, avg HR 152, avg pace 9:44
55 min bootcamp
Sunday: 2.25 hour Z2 trainer ride; avg HR 137

Weekly totals:
Swim: 5700 yds.
Bike: 4 hours
Run: 17.35 miles
Strength: 1:35 hours
Hours: 10:10

Training cycle totals:
Swim: 27,300 yds.
Bike: 18:15 hours
Run: 93.35 miles
Total hours: 49:53

Week 4: March 4-10, 2013

This week was a step-back week in terms of workout times and distances, but I added in some intensity on Thursday with a bike and swim time trial.  The bike time trial yielded a functional threshold power reading of 201 watts.  I'm disappointed in this number--I would like to be up in the mid-200s at least--but Mark assured me that the numbers would go up over the spring and summer as my time in the saddle increases.  During Thursday's swim practice we did a 100 yd. specialty-stroke time trial and another 200 IM time trial (broken down into 50s).  I was happy with my splits on these, especially given that I swam immediately after my bike ride.  My 100 breastroke time was 3 seconds under the US Master's Nationals qualifying standard and my 200 IM split was 5 seconds faster than last week.  My times are still a far cry from where they were back in my competitive days, but I'm seeing improvements every week.  Practicing with a "team" and racing the clock, something I haven't done in 17 years, is giving me an itch to swim competitively again!

The weather this week was wacky in typical midwest style, with 6.5 inches of snow and a day off of school on Wednesday and running in shorts and a t-shirt by Sunday.  I'll run outdoors in just about any weather, but the bike trainer--despite giving me time to catch up on my favorite Netflix shows--is getting old.  The taste of spring this weekend makes me look forward even more to the sunshine, warm temperatures, and outdoor riding that I'll be able to take advantage of soon.

Wednesday's snowfall...all melted by Sunday.

This week's stats:

Monday: off

Tuesday: 30 min. trainer ride; didn't wear the HRM. Legs felt tired.

Swim 3000 yds: 

500 sw, 4x50s DR/SW

3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles

50 ez

4 x (125 IM--50 fly, 25 back, 25 br / 75 free) 125 s on 1:50, 75s on 1:10

100 ez

3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles

50 ez

8x75s alt 75 IM no free and 75 free all on 1:10

Wednesday: treadmill run, 4 mi @ 1% incline, avg pace 9:13, avg HR 147

45 min. strength training

Thursday: 60 min trainer ride: 10 min warm up, 20 min threshold test (avg 201 watts, avg HR 178), 30 min cooldown.

Swim 2200 yds:

500 warm up, 5x50s dr/sw

3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles

100 ez

4x75s: 50 free (3 breaths/length)/25 sprint, one of each stroke

100 ez

100 time trial, specialty stroke. I did 100 breastroke in 1:20 (under US Master's Nationals qualifying standard!) 

100 ez

4x50s sprint, one of each stroke, on 3:00. Splits this week were: fly-:34, back-:36, breast-:37, free-:30 for total of 2:17 (5 sec faster than last week!).

100 ez

6x25s sprint from halfwa to wall and back, working on turns; treadwater w/ arms up in between.

Friday: Recovery run low Z2, 5 mi, 9:36 avg pace

Saturday: 1:30 on the bike trainer, Z2

60 min. bootcamp

Sunday: 8.1 mi run, Z2, avg pace 9:19

Weekly totals:

Swim: 5200 yards

Bike: 3 hours

Run: 17.1 miles

Strength: 1:45 hours

Total hours: 9:15

Training cycle totals:

Swim: 21,600 yards

Bike: 14:15 hours

Run: 76 miles

Total hours: 39:43

Week 3: February 25-March 3

I felt surprisingly good this whole week. I wasn't nearly as sore from last weekend's bootcamp and managed to get 8+ hours of sleep every night, which really helps my body recover quickly. My swim sessions of trying to keep up with the Masters guys were once again almost completely anaerobic workouts, but I'm already noticing improvements. Just a few weeks ago, I would've struggled with 100s on 1:20 but they are becoming more comfortable and I'm able to repeatedly hit the intervals. I try not to think about the fact that, 20 years ago, my 100s repeats would've been on 1:05-1:10, but it's a start, right?! I also looked up US Masters Nationals qualification standards and am thinking that I have a new goal to pursue next year...

I fell off of the "no eating sugar" wagon towards the end of this week, thanks to my coworker's restocked York Peppermint Patty candy jar and my daughter bringing home 2 tubs of cookie dough from a school fundraiser.  My GI system paid the consequences on Friday night, but I kicked myself back on the plan this weekend and felt better by Saturday evening.  I tried two new "keeper" recipes this week...

A thick squash and vegetable stew: a steamed-then-puréed butternut squash, chopped vegetables (zucchini, a turnip, carrots, celery, and red onion), ground chicken sausage, and a little vegetable broth in the crockpot for 5 hours...it was wonderful and was even better as leftovers the next day. All 3 kids liked it, even picky CC.

Flourless banana muffins (and no added sugar): 2.5 cups oatmeal (chopped in the food processor), 2 eggs, 1 cup plain Greek yogurt, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp chia seeds, and 2 overripe bananas. Mix ingredients well and bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 min. I'll admit that I added some dark chocolate baking chips, so this batch did have a little added sugar, but blueberries, raspberries, and/or nuts could be added instead for a true no added sugar recipe. These definitely made the kid-approved list, more so than last weekend's muffin recipe.

This week's training stats:
Monday: off
Tuesday: 60 min Z2 trainer ride
3050 yd swim: 500 warm up, 4x50s dr/sw
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
100 ez
Ladder set: 400-300-200-100 all IM, all on 1:30/100 interval
100 ez
3x100s on 1:20 w/ paddles
100 ez
4x25s fly 3 breaths/2 breaths/1 breath/0 breaths (ended up having to take 1 breath on that last one)
50 ez
4x75s IM, rotating strokes, on 1:30
Wednesday:  5 mi run, Z2, 9:05 avg pace; 30 min of strength training/core
Thursday: 60 min Z2 spin
2350 yd swim:  500 sw, 4x50s dr/sw, 50 ez
Main set:
8x25s free on :20, 4x25s fly on :30
4x50s free on :40, 4x25s fly on :30
2x100s free on 1:20, 4x25s fly on :30
1x200 free on 2:40, 4x25s fly on :30
100 ez
4x50s on 3:00, one of each stroke, all-out effort. We kept track of splits and put together time for the whole 200 IM. Mine were: :36 for fly, :37 for back, :38 for breast, :31 for free, for total of 2:22. We were told that we'd be using that 200 IM split next Thursday (uh oh).
Friday: 5.56 mi run, Z2, 8:46 avg pace
Saturday: 2 hr. trainer ride, Z2
55 min bootcamp
Sunday: 13.34 mi trail run at Highbanks, Z2 w/ some low Z3 on the flats, 10:15 avg pace

Weekly totals:
Swim: 5400 yds
Bike: 4 hours
Run: 23.9 miles
Strength: 1:25
Total hours: 11:06

I'm looking forward to a step-back week this coming week.

Training cycle totals:
Swim: 16,400 yds
Bike: 11:15 hours
Run: 58.9 miles