Thursday core was all good, even the plank, though it was getting killer near the end. For whatever reason the tricep dips were the tough thing. This and stretching after the bike was 30 minutes.
Bike was short and intense. 3x10 gradually increasing intensity ending up on the edge of anerobic. First one was in time trial gear ending up about 100 rpm. The next was in one harder gear, but slightly slower rpm, and the last was same gear, but pushing hard. There were some cadence sets in between, but my legs were done so I skipped the last one and went to directly to cool down. 1.25 hrs.
Friday, zoomed off to the pool first thing. Yes Missy, I was awake at 4 (no alarm clock) ready to go. If the pool had been open I would have been in it. Felt strong in the water today, but not especially smooth. Only got the water feel when I was about half done. Most of the flip turns just sucked. There are days I think I need a refresher. Or I just need to do another million of them and I'll get the hang of it. 60 minutes. Chatted very briefly to the guy sharing my lane. He's training for the Oliver Half and makes my swim look slow. In the next lane there was a tiny woman doing mostly kick drill that was faster than most people swim, and her freestyle made me look pokey. I was in the right place at the right time to watch her flip turn, but I think I blinked or something and it was done almost before it started. I had some fast sets and was hustling to try to keep up. I can feel it in my lungs now. Good workout.
Normally I'd run, but likely won't get the time. I've been nursing the IT band, but no idea how it's doing.
Ironman Canada - DONE! What next?
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Two, two, two rants in one
The swim was good. Only 2K, 45 minutes or so. Half of it, in sets, at an 18 minute per K pace. Water ran for 30 minutes after to replace the scheduled run.
Once I got home I started fixing the bike computer. Eventually I figured out the battery in the sensor unit had died. Once that was replaced I got it going again fairly quickly, only it was in miles per hour, which is a meaningless number. My efforts to change this spawned two rants.
Miles. They aren't much used here anymore, nor much anywhere else since the sensibility of SI took over from medieval and pre-medieval confusion. To start with, which mile? Roman, British, American, Scots, Irish, Arab, Danish, German, Swedish/Norwegian, Russian, two different Croatian ones, and of course the nautical mile. All are slightly different, or were, or might still be. They don't relate well to any other unit of length, even the obsolete imperial ones. As an aside only Burma, Liberia, and one other country still do not officially use the metric system. Anyone care to take a guess which country goes with those oh so illustrious companions? I'm just assuming the bike computer was in American miles, but who knows for sure? Yes, that was a hint. Somehow, America went from being one of the initial supports of the move to the metric system in 1875, and via the Mendenhall Order in 1893 adopted the fundamental metric units. Somehow it all went pear shaped in the 20th century. Eventually they'll catch up, and then maybe Canada can finish the job and banish the few remaining reminders of an obsolete, archaic, complex, and essentially unworkable system of measurement. Until then we are shackled to an underdeveloped trading partner that thinks metrification is a commie plot. Or a gay one. Or an atheist one. Whichever plays best to the home crowd.
Engineers. At least 4 of my readers are engineers of one stripe or another, and I have my suspicions about a couple more of them. Don't get me wrong, engineers are admirable in many ways. They have been instrumental in us getting all the nice things that surround us. And in getting us mental about using them. Today is about buttons, and modes, and trying to cram as many functions as possible into a small device, even if nobody wants them or can use them in the unlikely event of being wanted. Even the method of accessing those functions is beyond arcane. I refer you to setting up my bike computer. Once I got it going again it was showing me distance in miles. (See other rant.) It took the better part of a half an hour fiddling with buttons to make it display Kph instead of Mph. There I am sitting on my bike, pedaling slowly, holding the computer and the manual, and trying to follow the instructions. Which are SHITE by the way, just in case you wanted to know. I'm still not sure how I got it the way I wanted it. I am still not sure everything else is just as I wanted it, and I've no idea what happened to any of the data it had stored. Not that I really care, as long as the tire diameter didn't change. This is a small device. The buttons take a bit of force to press. One of the buttons needed is on the back, and is a recessed spherical ball. The display element range in size from barely readable to severely microscopic. We have one of those magnifying lamps, and I was seriously considering setting it up. I nearly dropped it several times. All I can say is that lately there has been a trend for "good enough" devices. They don't do as much, but they are much, much simpler to operate. Amen to that. Where do engineers develop the mindset that lets them design devices where you have to press multiple buttons to change modes, and you can never tell which mode you are in, then use some of the same buttons to adjust the various settings, and maybe the same button to say I'm done. Or maybe a different button altogether. Who tests these little insanity generators? I believe it has to be another engineer, incubated from the same environment that produced the designers. For this sort of stuff, they should be dragging random people off the street. Give them the device, and the manual, along with any other supplies needed, like a bike in a trainer, for example. Tell them to install and set up the computer. Video tape them. Don't bleep out the swear words. The designing engineers should be required to watch, and respond to that video before they get paid. These responses are not permitted: "it works fine for us", "they aren't following the instructions properly", "they must be stupid", "they aren't the target market", and others of that ilk. (You do know what an ilk is, don't you?) Almost every other electronic device out there has the same problem. I've had my adventures with watches, cameras, video and DVD players, iPod, cable and the old fashioned modems, cell phones, and the clocks in cars and on various other devices such as ovens, microwaves, stoves, ect, and alarm clocks. Don't get me started on remotes. The problem is the human interface. Our fingers are big, and our eyes can only resolve text that is at least a certain size. We are trying to work with devices that get smaller and smaller, and every effing user interface is different!!!!! Grr. I totally understand why people get the urge to smash that device with a hammer, or throw it away as hard as they can. Why has nobody thought of giving every device a small standard cable attachment that plugs into any computer, and then you can access the operating system of the device, through the computer, using a screen that is big enough to see, and a keyboard/mouse that most of us know how to use. Don't get me started on people that can't touch type.
Once I got that out of the way I ended up having a nice ride. Short warm up, and 2 long aerobic sets, and a short cool down for a 1 hr ride. Stretched another 15 minutes after, working on Soleus, and ITB. Later tonight is yoga class, and I hope Fiona has some good stuff lined up for us. And there was! Yay! Pigeon pose, my fave! But you'll never guess which pose I had to back out of. Child pose of all things. I have trouble breathing in it at the best of times, and tonight it was making my sinuses explode.
As an aside, I think these periodic rants are good for me. I've added a label to make them easier to find, since the title doesn't always reflect the presence of a rant.
Once I got home I started fixing the bike computer. Eventually I figured out the battery in the sensor unit had died. Once that was replaced I got it going again fairly quickly, only it was in miles per hour, which is a meaningless number. My efforts to change this spawned two rants.
Miles. They aren't much used here anymore, nor much anywhere else since the sensibility of SI took over from medieval and pre-medieval confusion. To start with, which mile? Roman, British, American, Scots, Irish, Arab, Danish, German, Swedish/Norwegian, Russian, two different Croatian ones, and of course the nautical mile. All are slightly different, or were, or might still be. They don't relate well to any other unit of length, even the obsolete imperial ones. As an aside only Burma, Liberia, and one other country still do not officially use the metric system. Anyone care to take a guess which country goes with those oh so illustrious companions? I'm just assuming the bike computer was in American miles, but who knows for sure? Yes, that was a hint. Somehow, America went from being one of the initial supports of the move to the metric system in 1875, and via the Mendenhall Order in 1893 adopted the fundamental metric units. Somehow it all went pear shaped in the 20th century. Eventually they'll catch up, and then maybe Canada can finish the job and banish the few remaining reminders of an obsolete, archaic, complex, and essentially unworkable system of measurement. Until then we are shackled to an underdeveloped trading partner that thinks metrification is a commie plot. Or a gay one. Or an atheist one. Whichever plays best to the home crowd.
Engineers. At least 4 of my readers are engineers of one stripe or another, and I have my suspicions about a couple more of them. Don't get me wrong, engineers are admirable in many ways. They have been instrumental in us getting all the nice things that surround us. And in getting us mental about using them. Today is about buttons, and modes, and trying to cram as many functions as possible into a small device, even if nobody wants them or can use them in the unlikely event of being wanted. Even the method of accessing those functions is beyond arcane. I refer you to setting up my bike computer. Once I got it going again it was showing me distance in miles. (See other rant.) It took the better part of a half an hour fiddling with buttons to make it display Kph instead of Mph. There I am sitting on my bike, pedaling slowly, holding the computer and the manual, and trying to follow the instructions. Which are SHITE by the way, just in case you wanted to know. I'm still not sure how I got it the way I wanted it. I am still not sure everything else is just as I wanted it, and I've no idea what happened to any of the data it had stored. Not that I really care, as long as the tire diameter didn't change. This is a small device. The buttons take a bit of force to press. One of the buttons needed is on the back, and is a recessed spherical ball. The display element range in size from barely readable to severely microscopic. We have one of those magnifying lamps, and I was seriously considering setting it up. I nearly dropped it several times. All I can say is that lately there has been a trend for "good enough" devices. They don't do as much, but they are much, much simpler to operate. Amen to that. Where do engineers develop the mindset that lets them design devices where you have to press multiple buttons to change modes, and you can never tell which mode you are in, then use some of the same buttons to adjust the various settings, and maybe the same button to say I'm done. Or maybe a different button altogether. Who tests these little insanity generators? I believe it has to be another engineer, incubated from the same environment that produced the designers. For this sort of stuff, they should be dragging random people off the street. Give them the device, and the manual, along with any other supplies needed, like a bike in a trainer, for example. Tell them to install and set up the computer. Video tape them. Don't bleep out the swear words. The designing engineers should be required to watch, and respond to that video before they get paid. These responses are not permitted: "it works fine for us", "they aren't following the instructions properly", "they must be stupid", "they aren't the target market", and others of that ilk. (You do know what an ilk is, don't you?) Almost every other electronic device out there has the same problem. I've had my adventures with watches, cameras, video and DVD players, iPod, cable and the old fashioned modems, cell phones, and the clocks in cars and on various other devices such as ovens, microwaves, stoves, ect, and alarm clocks. Don't get me started on remotes. The problem is the human interface. Our fingers are big, and our eyes can only resolve text that is at least a certain size. We are trying to work with devices that get smaller and smaller, and every effing user interface is different!!!!! Grr. I totally understand why people get the urge to smash that device with a hammer, or throw it away as hard as they can. Why has nobody thought of giving every device a small standard cable attachment that plugs into any computer, and then you can access the operating system of the device, through the computer, using a screen that is big enough to see, and a keyboard/mouse that most of us know how to use. Don't get me started on people that can't touch type.
Once I got that out of the way I ended up having a nice ride. Short warm up, and 2 long aerobic sets, and a short cool down for a 1 hr ride. Stretched another 15 minutes after, working on Soleus, and ITB. Later tonight is yoga class, and I hope Fiona has some good stuff lined up for us. And there was! Yay! Pigeon pose, my fave! But you'll never guess which pose I had to back out of. Child pose of all things. I have trouble breathing in it at the best of times, and tonight it was making my sinuses explode.
As an aside, I think these periodic rants are good for me. I've added a label to make them easier to find, since the title doesn't always reflect the presence of a rant.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Workoutus interuptus
Started with core, and got through that pretty well. Planking and pushups are coming along, but the wall sit is from hell, especially with the fit ball. Did some extra stretches for Soleus and ITB. 30 minutes.
The bike warmup, one leg, and cadence drills went ok, once I got myself into the right gear. I was paying a lot of attention to how my legs felt, making sure to spin smoothly. At the hour mark I was was just getting settled into the main workout when the door bell rang.
We routinely ignore the house phone unless we're expecting a call or someone we want to talk to is talking to the answering machine. We've simply had too many phone calls from people we don't want to talk to. Or machines, I hate it when machines call, just to see if someone is home, or play a recorded message about your credit rating. Who don't I want to talk to? Well, it's easier to say who I will talk to. People I know personally is about it. If someone is calling from a company, they can state their business, and if it's an acceptable reason for me to talk to them, I might pick up. The only other time I'll pick up is if I'm in the mood for mischief. I'll lie to the marketers and pollsters. Or pick choices they don't offer. Or find fault with their methodology. Or I'll ask if my opinions are valuable, and when I'm assured they are, I tell them my rate is $10 per question, invoicing information provided in advance. Or, if I've got time to kill, I'll try to keep them on the phone as long as possible; the goal is to make THEM hang up. Or I'll pretend I'm calling them, and try to sell them duct cleaning services, or something.
But I haven't been broken of the habit of answering the doorbell. Even if I am hot and sweaty in bike workout gear. Too bad it was an ugly guy with a package, and what's more, he wanted COD. Sigh.
When I got back to my bike, I found the computer was acting funny. It wasn't showing cadence, time, or speed. I played with it a bit then got off and adjusted the sensors. Still nothing. Played with it more. Looks like the computer part isn't paying any attention to the sensors. Went to look for the manual. Once I found it I realized I was cold, and there were things that needed to be done around the house. So I bailed on the rest of the workout.
All is not lost. Wed is supposed to be a 60 minute run, and that doesn't seem to be the smartest thing in the world to do with a newly sensitive IT Band or some other issue causing pain. So I think I'll get my swim in like planned, then get the bike computer working again, and get the main part of the ride done. That will be an hour of aerobic activity, and much less hard on me than running. Even if it is supposed to be really nice out tomorrow.
The bike warmup, one leg, and cadence drills went ok, once I got myself into the right gear. I was paying a lot of attention to how my legs felt, making sure to spin smoothly. At the hour mark I was was just getting settled into the main workout when the door bell rang.
We routinely ignore the house phone unless we're expecting a call or someone we want to talk to is talking to the answering machine. We've simply had too many phone calls from people we don't want to talk to. Or machines, I hate it when machines call, just to see if someone is home, or play a recorded message about your credit rating. Who don't I want to talk to? Well, it's easier to say who I will talk to. People I know personally is about it. If someone is calling from a company, they can state their business, and if it's an acceptable reason for me to talk to them, I might pick up. The only other time I'll pick up is if I'm in the mood for mischief. I'll lie to the marketers and pollsters. Or pick choices they don't offer. Or find fault with their methodology. Or I'll ask if my opinions are valuable, and when I'm assured they are, I tell them my rate is $10 per question, invoicing information provided in advance. Or, if I've got time to kill, I'll try to keep them on the phone as long as possible; the goal is to make THEM hang up. Or I'll pretend I'm calling them, and try to sell them duct cleaning services, or something.
But I haven't been broken of the habit of answering the doorbell. Even if I am hot and sweaty in bike workout gear. Too bad it was an ugly guy with a package, and what's more, he wanted COD. Sigh.
When I got back to my bike, I found the computer was acting funny. It wasn't showing cadence, time, or speed. I played with it a bit then got off and adjusted the sensors. Still nothing. Played with it more. Looks like the computer part isn't paying any attention to the sensors. Went to look for the manual. Once I found it I realized I was cold, and there were things that needed to be done around the house. So I bailed on the rest of the workout.
All is not lost. Wed is supposed to be a 60 minute run, and that doesn't seem to be the smartest thing in the world to do with a newly sensitive IT Band or some other issue causing pain. So I think I'll get my swim in like planned, then get the bike computer working again, and get the main part of the ride done. That will be an hour of aerobic activity, and much less hard on me than running. Even if it is supposed to be really nice out tomorrow.
Monday, February 22, 2010
shortneasy
The swim program was complicated this morning. It took a while to figure out, but I think I did what I was supposed to do. The swim from the hips thing was weird, and very choppy. Other than that, it was 45 minutes of goodness. This is a rest week after all. Did another 15 minutes of stretches at the end of the pool because I couldn't bear to get out of the water.
Walked 10 minutes, then ran easy 40, and walked another 10. My legs felt great for the first 29 minutes then I started to get the knee pain again. Well, not really pain, particularly, more like a sharp ache just on the outside of my left knee. It came and went several times. I played with my stride a bit but that didn't seem to have much of an effect. It might be IT band stuff, Susi sent me a bunch of links to look at. So far I'm stretching that a bit more, rollering, and icing. I'll keep an eye on it.
Walked 10 minutes, then ran easy 40, and walked another 10. My legs felt great for the first 29 minutes then I started to get the knee pain again. Well, not really pain, particularly, more like a sharp ache just on the outside of my left knee. It came and went several times. I played with my stride a bit but that didn't seem to have much of an effect. It might be IT band stuff, Susi sent me a bunch of links to look at. So far I'm stretching that a bit more, rollering, and icing. I'll keep an eye on it.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Ahhhhh, and first outdoor run of the year in shorts
At last. After a couple of brutal weeks of bike workouts, or rather, the lack of them, I'm back in the groove. Within a few minutes of getting on the bike I knew things would be pretty good. I finally got through the workout listed for last Thursday, for 1.5 hrs. Spin is good, legs are feeling much better, much stronger. My heart rate is back in the expected range, and my breathing is more normal. Much better. I still didn't over do it, as I had a run right after. I've still no real idea of what was wrong, other than lingering fallout from that horrible cold I had. Or my muscles were doing things like building new cells and getting stronger, and didn't want me doing much with them in the mean time, sort of like how you can't do much in a room that you are renovating.
The run was pretty good too. I've got the lacing almost right. I got into a nice pace right off, and all was good for 25 minutes, when I started getting that knee twinge again. I experimented with a walk run for the last bit of the run. 30 minutes running altogether. Mostly it felt good. Shoes are fine, though I've got a bit of additional support on the outside of my feet, and I can feel the difference.
I looked in my Yoga Anatomy book (by Leslie Kaminoff, and highly recommended) and I think the muscles that are hurting are the top ends of the Soleus, or the Tibialus Anterior. Rollered them and other parts of my legs while stretching after the run. I have to look for stretches for them, if there are any.
It's about freezing here, a few of the ice patches are melting, but just barely. No wind and very sunny. So I wore shorts and a long sleeved tech shirt for my run. My hands were the coldest part of my body. However, I did not wear the shorts I biked in. I dried off and changed. Part of the problem is that those particular shorts are blue and orange. The least little bit of sweat and it looks like I peed myself. That's not an attractive look, even if it might be a necessary look. I'll stick to basic black shorts, thank you. No, I didn't buy them, I won them at the Canmore Oly last year.
Weekly Summary
Swim 3.25 hrs
Bike 3.5 hrs
Run .75 hrs
Walk .5 hrs
Core 4.0 hrs
Total 12.0 hrs
Lastly, some expected sad news has just this minute arrived. Linda's younger brother has passed away. He was only 38, and leaves a wife and two kids in their early teens. He found out just over a year ago that he had cancer. I'm not going to try to spell which kind, and it hardly matters. Once the funeral arrangements have been made we'll fly out to attend. So if I'm not commenting or responding to email later this week, that's why.
This is one of the reasons why I have not been upset with being either unemployed or underemployed for the last year or so. He no doubt would have changed places with me in a heart beat. In comparison Linda and I have lifestyle choices.
We're getting to the age where funerals are going to be an increasing part of our social obligations. It just reminds me that we have to make the most of each day, enjoy the people you are with, and appreciate what you have.
The run was pretty good too. I've got the lacing almost right. I got into a nice pace right off, and all was good for 25 minutes, when I started getting that knee twinge again. I experimented with a walk run for the last bit of the run. 30 minutes running altogether. Mostly it felt good. Shoes are fine, though I've got a bit of additional support on the outside of my feet, and I can feel the difference.
I looked in my Yoga Anatomy book (by Leslie Kaminoff, and highly recommended) and I think the muscles that are hurting are the top ends of the Soleus, or the Tibialus Anterior. Rollered them and other parts of my legs while stretching after the run. I have to look for stretches for them, if there are any.
It's about freezing here, a few of the ice patches are melting, but just barely. No wind and very sunny. So I wore shorts and a long sleeved tech shirt for my run. My hands were the coldest part of my body. However, I did not wear the shorts I biked in. I dried off and changed. Part of the problem is that those particular shorts are blue and orange. The least little bit of sweat and it looks like I peed myself. That's not an attractive look, even if it might be a necessary look. I'll stick to basic black shorts, thank you. No, I didn't buy them, I won them at the Canmore Oly last year.
Weekly Summary
Swim 3.25 hrs
Bike 3.5 hrs
Run .75 hrs
Walk .5 hrs
Core 4.0 hrs
Total 12.0 hrs
Lastly, some expected sad news has just this minute arrived. Linda's younger brother has passed away. He was only 38, and leaves a wife and two kids in their early teens. He found out just over a year ago that he had cancer. I'm not going to try to spell which kind, and it hardly matters. Once the funeral arrangements have been made we'll fly out to attend. So if I'm not commenting or responding to email later this week, that's why.
This is one of the reasons why I have not been upset with being either unemployed or underemployed for the last year or so. He no doubt would have changed places with me in a heart beat. In comparison Linda and I have lifestyle choices.
We're getting to the age where funerals are going to be an increasing part of our social obligations. It just reminds me that we have to make the most of each day, enjoy the people you are with, and appreciate what you have.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Trying to catch up
Saturday is normally my rest day. We like to start the day by drinking coffee and reading the papers. We can't always, of course, but it's a nice way to start the day. Normally I have no guilt about my rest day; I put in lots of workout hours the rest of the week. Today, however, I was thinking I should have a go at the missed Thursday workouts.
Lately my bike workouts have sucked slough water. My legs were not wanting to spin very well or for very long. I figured it was a reflection of working on the run during the build up to the Hypo Half, and didn't mind so much. A few days after for recovery doesn't bother me, but I'm beginning to think the bike skills should be coming back.
The core went well, so that was a good start. 30 minutes there. Then onto the bike. Warm up was fine, but I could tell there was no real gas there. Spin was better, much smoother, so that at least is an improvement. But even a minute at 120 in an easy gear had my heart rate much higher than expected, and I could start to feel my quads and calves complain, especially the left. I did a bit more easy spin, and could feel myself starting to feel the burn. Which is rediculous. Called it a day at 30 minutes.
Did I say I bought The Stick when I bought new shoes? Rollered myself with that really good, and found a few really tender spots. I also played with the speed laces. I'm sure they must be making them shorter now. My last shoes had a good 6 inches left at the top. These now have the lace tips jammed into the zipper mechanism, and they still might be a little bit tight. I'll find out on my run tomorrow. I tried taking the zipper mechanism apart again, but it doesn't seem to want to go. Has anyone had any success with this? I might need to take the laces out of a couple pairs of eyelets.
Oh, and I ran outside, in shorts and a short sleeved T shirt, at -5 C (23 F), with a bit of wind chill. Admittedly, it wasn't a long run, just to see how the shoes felt with the laces as loose as possible.
Lately my bike workouts have sucked slough water. My legs were not wanting to spin very well or for very long. I figured it was a reflection of working on the run during the build up to the Hypo Half, and didn't mind so much. A few days after for recovery doesn't bother me, but I'm beginning to think the bike skills should be coming back.
The core went well, so that was a good start. 30 minutes there. Then onto the bike. Warm up was fine, but I could tell there was no real gas there. Spin was better, much smoother, so that at least is an improvement. But even a minute at 120 in an easy gear had my heart rate much higher than expected, and I could start to feel my quads and calves complain, especially the left. I did a bit more easy spin, and could feel myself starting to feel the burn. Which is rediculous. Called it a day at 30 minutes.
Did I say I bought The Stick when I bought new shoes? Rollered myself with that really good, and found a few really tender spots. I also played with the speed laces. I'm sure they must be making them shorter now. My last shoes had a good 6 inches left at the top. These now have the lace tips jammed into the zipper mechanism, and they still might be a little bit tight. I'll find out on my run tomorrow. I tried taking the zipper mechanism apart again, but it doesn't seem to want to go. Has anyone had any success with this? I might need to take the laces out of a couple pairs of eyelets.
Oh, and I ran outside, in shorts and a short sleeved T shirt, at -5 C (23 F), with a bit of wind chill. Admittedly, it wasn't a long run, just to see how the shoes felt with the laces as loose as possible.
Friday, February 19, 2010
New shoes
Here, look at this photo. Can you tell which pair of shoes was bought July 26, 2008. Yes, 2008.
Perhaps looking at the bottoms will help.
Did you guess? The guy at Gord's running store flexed my old shoes, prodded the bottoms, and said they weren't quite done yet, but I really should start breaking in a new pair. Here's a closer look at the wear on the old shoes, in case you're curious, or a specialist in how shoe wear affects your life and you feel like giving a free consultation. Did I mention they were bought in mid 2008, and I've been running pretty regularly on them? Two half marathons, 3 half IM's, and 2 Oly's, plus the every other day or so training runs. No, I'm not about to go back through my blog to add up how many hours my feet have been in them. I do have a life, you know. Sometimes I think this buy new shoes every 3 months or 300 K is just a line put out by the shoe manufacturers. Of course they want you to buy more shoes. I want to try less shoe.
The day started with a swim. 6 x 500m. 1 being warmup with a bunch of drills. 2 free at 75%. 3 Paddles and buoy. 4 free at 80%. 5 fins at 90%. 6 cool down mix of stuff. Lots of backstroke for my shoulders. That was about 70 minutes. I wasn't wearing a watch. It's feeling pretty good. 91 seconds.
Then to yoga to catch up for a class I missed. Helen worked us hard. I used to be able to do Crane when I was a kid, and could even go from that to a handstand. Not anymore, not even close.
Ran 20 minutes to find out the following:
Perhaps looking at the bottoms will help.
Did you guess? The guy at Gord's running store flexed my old shoes, prodded the bottoms, and said they weren't quite done yet, but I really should start breaking in a new pair. Here's a closer look at the wear on the old shoes, in case you're curious, or a specialist in how shoe wear affects your life and you feel like giving a free consultation. Did I mention they were bought in mid 2008, and I've been running pretty regularly on them? Two half marathons, 3 half IM's, and 2 Oly's, plus the every other day or so training runs. No, I'm not about to go back through my blog to add up how many hours my feet have been in them. I do have a life, you know. Sometimes I think this buy new shoes every 3 months or 300 K is just a line put out by the shoe manufacturers. Of course they want you to buy more shoes. I want to try less shoe.
The day started with a swim. 6 x 500m. 1 being warmup with a bunch of drills. 2 free at 75%. 3 Paddles and buoy. 4 free at 80%. 5 fins at 90%. 6 cool down mix of stuff. Lots of backstroke for my shoulders. That was about 70 minutes. I wasn't wearing a watch. It's feeling pretty good. 91 seconds.
Then to yoga to catch up for a class I missed. Helen worked us hard. I used to be able to do Crane when I was a kid, and could even go from that to a handstand. Not anymore, not even close.
Ran 20 minutes to find out the following:
- There doesn't seem to be as much of the speed laces as there used to be. There is almost nothing left at the top, and I've still got the shoes too tight across my instep. I'll have to fiddle with that a bit. Last time it took about a week.
- Even though I ate a medium sized lunch 2 hours before the easy run, it was still too soon and not easy enough. No emesis though.
- My left calf is still unhappy with me, and I was getting some of the same twinges I had at the end of the half marathon. While getting shoes, I got The Stick, and will be applying it as required.
Did you notice I hadn't mentioned Thursday? That's too bad.
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