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TriPathlon

I will start off with a recap of the past two weeks worth of boot camp workouts:
  • Day 8 - Down N Dirty
    • A field workout with 5 stations: Plank, Abs, Arms, Fire Hydrants, and Squats. 
  • Day 9 - Hop, Skip, Jump
    • A combination of strength and cardio moves focusing on jump rope
  • Day 11  - Airborne Ranger
    • Suicide sprints on varying degrees of elevation and various surfaces
  • Day 12 - Terror Cell
    • A field workout with a cardio/strength section and leg section.  The leg section used mini bands to add to our squats, lunges, etc...

  • Day 15 - Burn Out
    • An amazing workout led by Veda.  Each portion of the workout focuses on one body part and you burn it out. Between burn out sessions, we did cardio in the form of running
  • Day 16 - Fartlik due to the rain; pull ups, ab work, dips, push ups, stairs
  • Day 17 - Long Run
    • Exactly what is says.  We did just about 4 miles in 45 minutes
  • Day 18 - One Minute Workout
    •  4 stations, each working a different part of the body: jump rope, cones, ladder work on a hill, arm bands
  • Day 19 - Fight Gone Bad
    • 19 minutes of workouts in stations: box jump, jump rope, squats, pushups, burpees, rest
I started off two weeks ago pumped from my 5K.  I was still in disbelief that I could run that fast! Around Wednesday, my lower legs were hurting more than just being sore. While the running didn't feel as great as it did in the race, I was still going into the triathlon with a little bit of optimism regarding the run and the bike.

The Chastain Park TriPathlon:  

400yd swim -  6:10

The swim started out great.  It was time seeded, so I had entered in a 5:45 time. As we were lining up to start, we learned that there were no flip turns allowed.  This would definitely slow me down. When it was my turn, I sat on the edge of the pool deck and jumped in when I was given the OK.  As soon as I got in, I could feel the waves from all of the other swimmers going in every direction.  We swam in 8 lanes of the pool and snaked our way up and down each lane until we reached the end.

I think I did alright on the swim for me, but I was still not overly thrilled with my time.  I know I can go faster



  

15 mile bike -  1:09:48; avg 12.9mph

As soon as I got on the bike, I rode for about 10 seconds, and my chain came off!  I unclipped my shoes from the bike and quickly got the chain back into position.  The bike started out ok for me, but it quickly turned into the rolling hills of Buckhead.

During this race, I learned that I need to get a lot more hillwork in on the bike.  I was absolutely not prepared for so many steep hills!

I tried to make sure I had speed going into each hill to help me get up, but it was still rough.  Most hills, I was on the easiest gear pushing along.  It took a lot of strength and energy to get to the top.

The feeling when you get to fly back down at a top speed is amazing though and absolutely worth the hill climb!  When I finished the bike, I was definitely exhausted!

3.1 mile run -  40:36; avg 13:04 min mile

The beginning of the run actually felt great.  I was surprised! 

As I continued on, my left outer shin began to throb.  In addition, I had a side stitch on my right side that began during the bike.  This resulted in a miserable 5k. 

I tried my best to run as much as I could, but I think my body got the best of me and I didn't do as well on the run as I had hoped.








All in all, I did OK in the race.  If nothing else, I at least learned what I need to work on for next time: running and hills on the bike.  My total time was 2:01:03. I was hoping for something a little better, but I put forth 110% effort and that's all I can ask for!

I started off last week feeling pretty sore everywhere from boot camp and a triathlon.  I had no interest in pushing myself on Monday.  My legs felt like they were barely functioning!  I managed to get through Monday and Tuesday of boot camp only to show up for long run on Wednesday! 

We did just about 4 miles and I averaged a little slower than an 11 minute mile pace.  I'm thrilled at that, because I ran the entire thing with minimal shin pain!  It is workouts like that where I really get a boost of confidence.

I have 1 more week of boot camp before I hit that mile at the PT test again.  My goal is still to break 9 minutes.  I know that I can do this!!

Goals for this week:
  • Stretch during the day
  • Drink water, drink water, drink water
  • Break a 9 minute mile
"The virtue lies in the struggle, not in the prize."
Richard Monckton Milnes

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