Bruised knees for Valentines

Perhaps spending the whole of my rest evening cooking multiple meals for the week (and writing up my blog)  last Monday wasn't the most relaxing way to spend my rest day last Monday, but it did make me feel better about the week ahead. Plus I had some yummy soup to look forward to.

Tuesday morning dawned far too early as it always does. However the pool was relatively quiet and the drills were straight forward. 2680m later I was back in the office ready to eat a horse...

I am rapidly discovering the use of mid-morning coffee in the working day after a 5:20am start.

After work I was still starving when I got to Mascalls School after work and the weather bitterly cold. After 12 reps of 2 mins flat (7:30 minute miles!) out followed by 2 minutes recovery I was starting to fantasise about the pancakes awaiting me at home. Thank you to my personal chef for cooking such a delicious post training meal. Chocolate icecream pancakes... the food of ironmen :-)

For some reason I always approach Wednesday with some in trepidation. Its pretty much a given that KVG turbo sessions hurt. Plus they make me cough lots. However, apart from the freezing cold room it was actually a pleasant evening for once. Cadence sessions rock, definitely better than heart rate sessions!

Thursday morning saw a wet miserable sky and as I walked into the sports centre I fell down with a hard bang on both knees. By the time I got into the water 5 minutes later the brusing was already making itself know. In the water I faced sets of 400m in under 7 minutes. The drill session said spend the rest of the 7 minutes resting... what "rest of 7 minutes"???? I know I'm improving but even that is beyond my reach. Surely Bee meant under 8 minutes? I am pleased to say that since I started triathlons I have shaved about 2 minutes off of my 400m time, but that still leaves me at 7:40. A bit of a come down but then again I did 140 lengths (plus the 4 before that when my poolmate wasn't picking up but they don't count) in 63 minutes so it wasn't all bad. Roll on Friday for another rest day.

Saturday was cold but dry and after riding over to Hilden (this time I remembered that it took 45 minutes and left early enough not to need to flog myself) I took the girls out on week 3 of the 50 mile course. We did a fabulous route which I recalled well from when I did the course 2 years ago, at the time I was training for the 3 Peaks Race and had done 17 miles the day before so I was barely able to walk before I got on the bike. Before we were quite back I got a message that the beginners course was short a leader and could anyone help... my afternoon of decorating went out of the window...

On Sunday morning I was tired. Extremely so but after the first coat of paint there was no excuse not to go out for a run. With Tim riding with me I was struggling to keep my normal pace of about 10 minute miles, he was almost able to cycle faster than I can run ;-) 30 minutes in I had to admit that I needed a gel, something I generally avoid, after which I was like Tigger bouncing around Ditton quarry. Thank you to Tim yet again for looking after me.

Another coat of paint later and I was off out again on my own this time. As I was happily plodding around Laybourne Lake I realised that I was averaging about 9 minute miles, so I thought I would see how long I could keep it up for. 3.35 miles apparently. OK so I might have been pushing around Z4.4 (I know because I started to cough) going up hill at the end, but that's a good time/distance for me, especially at the end of a tough week.

Thank Crunchie I'm heading into a recovery week.....

Rest and be Thankful

Firstly thank you to all of you who have said you have read my blog, I am somewhat in shock, I really only started this as something to keep my mind focused, and to prove to the Doncaster contingency that I really am doing this (and why I can't always make it back up north), I didn't actually expect anyone to read it! I have to give my dad a special mention at this point for insult of the week when he asked if I had help writing this.... cheers dad. Glad to know my education wasn't wasted.

Last week was a mixed bag. Monday was somewhat illuminating, when the respiratory specialist advised that he didn't think I had exercise induced asthma, but exercise induced laryngeal obstruction. According to Net Doctor and Mr Google that means my voicebox closes up and restricts my breathing. Apparently it's not uncommon, but it's not well known and it might mean that I can stop taking inhalers after 15 years. I have to go back for more tests but it's given me hope.

The 5:20 alarm kicked the training week off of Tuesday morning and I sort of forgot how early it was as I was texting from the station platform at 6am. Sorry to the Veysey-Smiths.

In true muppet style I did the Thursday morning swim session on Tuesday... whoops (although it worked out quite well in the end) followed by my second session at Paddock Wood Athletic Club. 45 minutes of pyramid training sessions in freezing cold sleet. Oh what joy. However I've started to recognise the odd face, and after living in Kent for nearly 6 years I'm starting to feel part of the community.

I suspect Wednesday night's turbo session was designed to bring on a coughing fit (my Doctor asked for a video) and it was (as always) a tough slog, I pushed hard although my coughing seemed to stop me being able to get above Z4.8 no matter how hard I worked (to the extent that I thought I was going to be sick at the end of the session).

The pool was packed on Thursday morning and having completed the Thursday session earlier in the week I took advantage and maintained a nice steady pace that I thought I could do during the race without tiring myself. 60 minutes later I had covered 1.67 miles and felt fresh as a daisy which gives me hope for completing the swim element of the race (2.4 miles) in an hour and a half.

Tim "assisted" with my core session on Thursday night, which involved sitting on the sofa, counting my reps whilst holding a stop watch and telling me that I wasn't working hard enough when my press up turned into a face first splodge into the living room rug.

To get a second rest day on Friday was a novelty, but come Saturday morning I was bright and breezy when the alarm went off at 6:45. A small group of hardy KVG's started the morning off with a 10 mile loop of Powder Mills, followed by week 2 of the 50 mile course which should have been 30 miles. My garmin wasn't helpful with directions and we ended up doing 33 miles but there were no complaints (for once!) from the girls. Not forgetting the 2 miles back to the car :-)

On Sunday it was hard to get out of a nice warm bed when it was raining out, and I went out later than I should which meant that I couldn't get my second run of the day in before we had to dash off for Sunday lunch. I followed a lady who must have been in her late 70's for the first mile and she set a nice pace, so I was a bit disappointed when she turned off my route. It was a great and steady run, although cold and wet, and I managed 6.5 miles in 62 minutes.

So here we are again... Monday... and it all starts again tomorrow!

Headwinds are Hard Work for Hardware!

So this week I started my formal coaching with Bee. I don't know if I'm excited, relieved or petrified?! Probably all 3 at once.

After spending an hour and a half talking about what I was doing/wanted to get out of all of this on Tuesday the diagnosis was the same as Paula's; too much too early! Yey I get some time back in my week. Or I did until my second rest day was replaced with core work. Dam.

The training week got off to a fantastic start with a 2.5km swim (that's 1.5 miles in old money) in 60 minutes. On race day I will have to do 2.4 miles so that really gave me a boost that I stand a chance of doing the swim in well under my initial target of 2 hours.

On Wednesday I was treated to a day out of the office at a Group conference to listen to executives talk about our company's strategy. You are no doubt yawning at this point, as was I although it started with a rather cute video of a kid on a BMX starting in Edinburgh and riding through Halifax, Leeds, Bristol, and down to London to pay his £10 into the Bank. I admit even I've not thought of tackling that route. Then after lunch, major joy when Chris Hoy walked onto the stage (I was on row 4) for a 30 minute interview. Far more interesting.

Unfortunately being trapped in a dark room with flashing lights all day triggered a migraine and I had to exchange the turbo trainer for my sofa all evening with the lights turned off. If you are going to get to rest surely it's only fair that you are well enough to enjoy it?

So that meant catching up on Thursday night and I completed the most hellish turbo training session yet (when the title is "Very Hard Hill Set" you know you are in trouble), and at one pointed wondered which was closer, the bathroom or the back door if I was actually sick. Friday was a tempo run, and saw a PB for 5km in 26 minutes (2 mins less than my previous PB).

Saturday dawned bright and sunny and for the first time in months I rode over to Hilden to meet the girls. As I turned left in Golden Green I picked up 3 guys and rode to the end of Three Elm Lane with them, determined to hang on to the wheel in front of me (the guy behind was drafting off of me, so I needed all the pull I could get). The headwind was hellish and I had to fight my way over, knowing that the route also went back the same way so I had to ride it twice!

This week was the first week of the Kent Velo Girls 50 mile course which I was helping with by leading a group. It was no more than a standard Saturday ride this week but about 20 miles in (i.e. 30 for me) I realised I was shattered. The headwind was back and I was on the verge of bonking. The girls were fabulous and supplied real food (as opposed to the shot bloks I was carrying) and we all made it back in one piece.

Finally this morning I had to do 2 runs! Yes 2! After a very muddy and slippy 4.56 miles in 56 minutes (with T2 back on his bike off road for the first time since he smashed his knee) I had a lovely cuppa and put my trainers back on. Not sure which was harder the running or the will power to get back out....