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Training is complete. On to the celebration!

Sheryl's Total Training Miles for August 70.3 - through September 27
Bike 697.40 miles
Swim 66,640 yds (37.8 miles)
Run 209.40 miles

This last week and a half has been interesting.  As the taper started, I felt like I was slacking off.  My workouts were shorter, with less mileage. The jewish holidays got in the way as well, so I took a few days completely off. 

The best part about the end of my training is how great I feel.  I did it!  I trained for a Half Ironman!  Other than being ready for the race, a few added benefits:
  • I dropped 3 to 4 pants sizes since May
  • I have lost 13 pounds since April
  • I have lost 2.5 inches from my waist and 2 inches from my hips since June
I feel amazing, and I still to get eat carbs and dessert.  Its awesome!

My running has been significantly improving since April, and once again, it has jumped.  Since I stopped checking my watch every 5 seconds to see how far I have gone and what my pace is, I have been running on how my body feels.  I check in every mile to see where I am at.  My running has significantly improved based on this.  I can spend my time focusing on my form and my breathing instead of my speed.  9 times out of 10, I am running faster than I think.

I did a 5k open water swim this week as well.  While my race was ok, I learned a lot during this swim.
  • I can't swim like I could when I was 15
  • I only swim about 3,000 yds per week, not 10,000 plus
  • I don't weigh in with competitive swimmers anymore
I planned to swim this race going out easy and then finishing strong.  By the time I got to 3,000 meters out of 5,000 meters, instead of pushing with more intensity, I went into survival mode.  With each stroke, I felt like I wouldn't be able to lift my arm for the next.  I won't lie---the last lap was pretty miserable. I was seriously ready to quit.  But, I kept on and I finished, very unhappy with my results.  I was hoping to stay in the 1 hour and teens, but I ended up at 1:27.  The course was also 3.39 miles on my watch instead of 3.1 if that has anything to do with it.

Robin, Daria, and Sheryl at Swim For your Life 5K

I am now finished with my training.  I have spent the last 6 months focused on this race, and nothing else.  I can't wait to see the final results and experience the emotions of crossing the finish line.


Think big, believe big, act big, and the results will be big.

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