Skip to main content

A Bump in The Road

This past week has been great!  I was still feeling great from my workouts the week before so I went in headfirst and ready to train!

Monday Night Swim
I arrived at MNS ready to get in the pool.  It had been 2 weeks since my last swim and I really haven't been focusing much on the swim.  I know that the swim is my strong part of the race, but that doesn't mean I can ignore it. 

I started off in the slower of the two advanced lanes.  After the warm up, the other members of the lane said that I really should go in the other advanced lane.  I got kicked out!  I moved into the faster of the two lanes, which was occupied by 4 fairly intimidating guys.  We did a set of 50s kicking, and I ended up moving my way up the lane from the back.  When we got to the main set, I ended up leading the lane!  I certainly did not expect to be in this position this early in the training.  I really thought that it would take me some time to build back into swimming, but I guess I was wrong.
For the main set, we did 4 100s, trying to get faster as each went on.  I definitely know, that I am not in the swimming shape I would like to be in.  My arms just felt like dead weight after pushing myself on the 2nd 100.  After the first 4, we did another 4, trying to get faster as well.  I didn't succeed, but I was satisfied with my times.
After cool down, the guys all said it was nice to meet me and they thanked me for joining them.  I thanked them all for letting me join them.  We did 2400 yds and I am still amazed at my performance.

Tuesday Night Run
I was a little nervous for my first TNR.  Looking at the forums, it looked like everyone was running at least 7 miles.  I was only ready for about 4, and that was going to be a lot.  I really haven't been running a lot yet. 
I arrived at Road Runner Sports in Buckhead for my run.  There were already about 10 or so people sitting on a curb outside the store.  I introduced myself to a few of them.  Ron, the TNR head coach came up and asked if I was new, and I said yes.  We spent a few minutes talking about my running and triathlon history before the group briefing.  At the briefing, he introduced me as new, and everyone said hi.  Once of the guys from the swim the night before blurts out, "she can swim!"  The coaches use the briefing to see how long everyone is planning on running that night.  Everyone except me was planning on 7 miles.  I picked up the 4 miles route.

I started off my run with the group, but of course in the back.  Aldrin, another running coach stayed with me until he was sure I knew where I was.  I felt bad because I started walking and wasn't running very fast.  He seemed to want to go faster, but as the coach, he stayed with me, which I appreciated.  Aldrin left to finish his 7 miles and I continued my 4.  I finished the 4 at a 12mph pace, which is much slower than I have been doing, but I ended up walking a good bit of the end.  I'm just not in running shape right now. 
I got back to the store, and there were a few people who had ended up doing 5 miles.  Slowly, everyone started coming back in.  Typically, everyone goes to dinner on Tuesdays after the run, but I hadn't prepared for that, so I headed home.  The run was ok, but I have a lot of work to do before September.

Wednesday Night Spin
I did not like the spin class this week, but I left knowing that I had a good workout.  The entire class was done on heart rate intervals.  There were no sprints, no endurance rides, and no large hills.  We spent at least 10 minutes each time trying to keep our heart rate in certain zones.  This wasn't as beneficial to me as the others because I haven't done the test to figure out what your lactic threshold is.  This helps determine your zones.  After the class, I was pretty tired and soaked!

The Bump in The Road
Thursday morning was bring a friend day at boot camp.  Since I haven't seen my boot camp friends in almost 3 weeks, I planned on going.  As I reached over to turn off my alarm at 5:30 (after about 5 or so pushes of the snooze button,) I felt a sharp pain in the right side of my neck.  I laid down on my pillow on my back, not moving, trying to figure out what was going on.  I have pulled muscles in my neck, but this felt like something else.  I managed to reach my phone and turn off my alarm so I wouldn't wake Scott, but I really wasn't able to move myself much more than that without excruciating pain. At some point, I woke Scott, because I really couldn't turn my neck.  I was stuck on my back!  There wasn't much he could do except try to find me some Advil, which he couldn't find.  Around 6:30 or so, I managed to sit up and walk down the stairs.  This was very painful.  I grabbed a few pillows and propped my neck up to a semi-comfortable position and watched tv for an hour or so before falling asleep.

I was supposed to work from home this day, but I ended up not working at all.  I spend my day moving from one side of the couch to the other, switching positions with my neck.  Once my head was on the pillow, I was ok, but it was miserable just trying to move my head.  I spent the morning on Aleve, which alleviated some of the pain, as well as a heat pack.  By the afternoon, I was better, but I still didn't have a lot of mobility.

Friday morning, I woke up and felt better, but not enough to get in the car and drive to work.  I once again spent the day laying on the couch propped up with pillows.  I had a head patch on my neck all day and I was doped up on ibuprofen as well as aleve once again.  I decided that while I felt a little better, it wouldn't be a good idea to go to the Friday swim or the Saturday morning long run and open water swim.  I missed out on the hill intervals bike on Thursday as it was. I figure that it will be much better for me to miss a few training sessions than to jump back in when I am not ready and healed.
"Anytime you suffer a setback or disappointment, put your head down and plow ahead"
"Note to self: What you think is a setback may be a blessing in disguise"

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Finding Inspiration

Help others achieve their dreams and you will achieve yours.  A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of volunteering at the Atlanta Paratriathlon Camp.  Watching a group of people who have had to overcome a lot do something that many of take for granted was something I wasn't easily going to forget.  Fast forward two weeks - one of the athletes was planning on participating in a sprint triathlon and didn't have anyone to assist him during the race.  I already had some plans for that morning, but they were easy to move around.  I was having trouble with the thought of him not being able to race when this was something I could so easily help with.  And this is how one of the most truly amazing days happened.  Cougar is a 19 year old young man who became a quadriplegic a few years back after he jumped into a snow pile with some buddies. He has worked so hard to get where he is, and he is still fighting every day.  He has little use of hi...

The Road to San Juan

"Every day you wait is another day you'll never get back again." The offseason. It is where triathletes eat, sleep in, and spend time with their friends and family. We reflect upon our most recent season, looking to see where we can improve and remembering what we did right. Amongst the weight gain, extra sleep, and too much time with family, we are also planning out our next season.  How can we do it better?  How can we take what we learned from the last season and succeed? I may not be the best at the "on" season, but I excel at the offseason! After Austin 70.3, I took some time. I knew that I had close to 5 months before my next A race, but I needed to get triathlon off of my brain for at least a month. I took off about 3 weeks in October/November, and I must say that it was wonderful! Cold Weather Night Running = Stylish Mid-November was the time for me to pick back up my run.  I was doing great until Thanksgiving.  I ate way to much over t...

Tales and Tips from a Super Sherpa

I will never forget my first triathlon. I raced with my sister (also a first-timer) and my sister-in-law (an Ironman.) My entire family came out to support me.  I saw my sisters on the course and I received cheers from my family throughout the race and again at the finish line.  On a high from being a first time triathlete, I decided that it couldn't get any better than this. Fast forward 12 months to August 2012. I was racing my first Half Ironman with a large number of Atlanta Triathlon Club teammates, many who were first timers as well. The support from my teammates, both racers and spectators, was more than I could have imagined.  As I got out of the water, there was a huge cheer crew yelling my name and cheering louder than ever. We had a smaller cheering station midway out on the bike course and a large crowd on the run course.  Their support helped make this race spectacular. This was my day and they made sure I knew it. I was the last one from ATC on t...