Wild Goose Chase Metric Century Training: Week 2

Week 2…definitely not my best. I had high hopes for this week but it was just not in the cards for me. I am not going to let it get me down. Rather, I am going to just evaluate what went wrong and change it for week 3. Here is how week 2 looked…

September 17- 23, 2012:

Monday: Swim 1700 yards

A pretty solid swim workout, despite having to share a lane with two other swimmers. I warmed up for 300 yards and then did the following pyramid: 2×50, 2×100, 1×150, 1×200, 1×150, 2×100, 2×50. I finished with a 300 yard cool down. I think I am beginning to love these afternoon swim sessions.

Tuesday: Spin Class (AM)+ Core/ Stretching (AM)+ Strength Training (PM)

My training plan called for a speed ride but we had awful weather so I was forced to take my workout indoors. I had to split this workout into two separate parts: core workout and spin class in the morning and a full body strength training workout in the afternoon. The spin class went pretty well, although my legs were still a little tired from the previous week’s long ride. I also went up on weight on some of my strength training exercises so that was a positive.

Wednesday: Swim 2000 yards

A new swim PDR!!! I seriously have no idea where this inner Missy Franklin is coming from but I LOVE it! I was completely exhausted but somehow managed to have an incredible swim session. After a 300 yard warmup, I did another 300 yards of drills and then a modified ladder set of the following: 12 laps (300 yards), 10 laps (250 yards), 8 laps, 6 laps, 4 laps, 2 laps. I ended with a very slow 350 yard cool down.

Thursday: Speed Ride- Bike 22.30 miles

This ride felt really tough. In fact, my overall pace was the slowest I have rode in a year. While the speed interval sessions were within range (16.5- 17.5 mph), the rest of the ride fell flat. I’m not sure if my slow pace was a result of being tired or my legs being unable to warm up (or maybe a mixture of both) but it was a little frustrating.

Friday: Steady Ride- Bike 20.20 miles

Another rough ride. While faster than the previous day, it was still not up to par. I had the same issue as Thursday- I was freezing and unable to warm-up the entire time. The steady state intervals (3x 15 minutes) were good, but the rest intervals were a little too slow.

Saturday: REST (Trucktoberfest)

A fun day with Sierra! I had a post written up but was having issues with Ecto so it will be going up tomorrow! Stay tuned!

Sunday: Bike 45 miles

A cold, windy, and long ride, but I got it done and that is all I can ask. Even though I had on four layers on top, I still could not warm-up the entire ride. I had some muscle cramping towards the end so that means that I still need to work on my fueling plan and making sure that I am getting in enough calories during the ride. Fueling for a long bike ride is much different than fueling for a long run that is for sure!

• Running Mileage= 0
• Bike/ Spin Mileage= 87.50 miles+ Spin Class
• Swim Distance= 3700 yards
• Total Distance= 89.60 miles

An ok week. Not fantastic, but not awful. My cycling was a bit on the lethargic side this week so I am hoping that it was just an off week and that I will be back up to normal this coming week. I am going to make sure that I am better at stretching and foam rolling this week in hopes of loosening up my quads.

While I only got in one strength training session, I kicked butt in the pool this week! I won’t be entering any swimming competitions, but I hope that I can continue to do well in the pool (and maintain it) so that I can go into triathlon season confident in my swimming ability next spring.

Last Week’s Goals:

• Continue training for my metric century (CHECK!)
• Have a good long ride (Semi-CHECK!)
• Remain positive about not running…remember the bigger goal. (Semi-CHECK!)
• Do something fun this weekend (CHECK! Recap tomorrow!)

Goals For Next Week:

• Have a more successful week with training- all rides above 15 mph.
• Foam roll, foam roll, foam roll!
• Get in another swim of at least 2,000 yards.
• Study at least 4 days for my ACSM CPT certification.

Have a great week!