2/22 thru 2/28

Tuesday

Swam in the morning, but we already went over this.

Went over and ran the M then went across the street and ran up Drinking Horse. Each one took about 20 minutes of a good solid uphill. Drinking Horse is relentless and had to walk in a couple of places. Felt really nice to get outside and be in the woods a little bit. Get tired of the same routes I always do through town.

I love trail running, will that be okay to do some trails this summer for long runs rather than everything on the road?

Wed.

Ran at lunch for 40 minutes. Felt good. Felt better than I thought I would.

Swam- Big Masters swim. Had a good motivated lane with fast people I kept having to chase down. Good workout too. 4x100, 2x200, 1x400, 2x200, 4x100 etc. They kept the intervals on about 2 minutes/100. It was tough. Swam ~3400. We were all pretty excited in the end to have finished the workout.I Like those girls.

Thursday

Trainer ride post work. Did the workout. 1:30: Include 5x (3:00 HC r 1:00, 7:00 @ 1 gear easier then 40k r 3:00). Ride was fine. Felt tired and had a hard time finishing the last 7 minutes. Did some core,PT, and stretching post ride.

Friday

Swim-Went up to MSU. Did the workout. Was slower on the 100's than I think I should be. Maybe still tired from Wed. Its pretty easy to bust out these workouts at MSU.

Run- Had to get back to work so thought I would give Oula a try instead of running. Seemed quicker to get changed etc. Rolled my ankle. Walked it off and finished the 30 or so minutes so it isn't too bad. Really annoyed with myself.

Sat.

Skipped am run to keep my ankle from getting worse.

Jamie, Lawrence, Art and I rode the trainer together. The "big" storm blew in snowing about 1 inch. Did the workout. Went fast with having everybody to talk to.

Sunday

Masters swim- Ankle was sore and it hurts to kick much. We had some stroke stuff so did fly and breast. Then we did a bunch of 100's descending. I pulled the 100's. Thought it was better to be in the pool and made a good compromise with my ankle. Swim not so long. Only about ~2600.

Afternoon- Watched the newest Twilight while I rode the rollers. Got in 1:30. Solid ride but not hard.

Ankle much better this afternoon. Can sit cross legged without it hurting. Icing and elevating.

2/8/12 thru 2/21/12

Run to Pub: Likely. We were going to try for a Spring Break but it might not work out since Erik will actually have work then. I might try and fly to visit my parents again either near San Diego or in Palm Springs but that would be a long weekend.





Road Races: I called a meeting with the GAS girls so that we could discuss our schedule. I would be up for you telling me what to do a little bit too. If you think a Missoula training race would be beneficial we could come up for that. The Speedwagon Classic is March 30 and definitely on the list and the Roubaix is on the list so far.









Pool: the Swim Center pool is closing for repairs and cleaning for 3 weeks starting March 12th. I think Masters is trying to get time at MSU though and I can also swim there on my own. The hours are short though and weekends very limited with only a 2 hour time window on Saturday.

Wednesday

Took the whole day off and layed on the couch. Didn't feel very well at all.

Thursday

Did the ride. Tried doing the intervals but it felt like it was too much. Felt okay to spin though.

Mini brick- Did the run. Ran pretty easy.

Friday

Off -Flew to PHX

Saturday




Hike with the extended family. I think the total distance of the hike was only 3 miles. Not the crazy stuff my Dad usually does. Swam and did the workout that evening. The water in that pool was way too warm. Talk about being dehydrated after a swim. Think the pool is 25 meters.









Sunday




Long run. Didn't find any hills. They were all too far away and my parents had plans so couldn't take the car to find the mountains. A trail run would have been fun but just wasn't in the plan. Ran on dirt along a canal that was just outside their place. Ran for 1:30.




Swam and did one of the 2000 workouts that evening. The one with the 1000 continuous. Felt good. The water was choppy and hard to settle in, but got it done.









Monday




Got up in the am before the water aerobics class to swim. Did the workout in the cool morning air. The air on the arms was the only respite from the heat of the pool. Barely finished the workout before the pool got inundated with old people. I counted 25 there for water aerobics and of course they come early to gossip.




Ran right after the swim for 30 minutes. Just wanted to get it done.




Had a good day with Mom and Dad after that. Lots of relative visiting.









Tuesday




Went home after work and rode the trainer for 1:20. Felt good to bike. I think I'm gaining weight. My legs look big.









Wed.


Ran hills at lunch. Felt good. Went to Petes Hill and went up and down all the little side trails.


Master's- Swam with a bunch of fast people. Lots of 200 building. They would get so far ahead of me they would start their interval again before I even got back. Finally I just had to let them catch me on one lap to get a little break. Swam 3350 total. Pretty pooped.





Thursday


Did the ride on the trainer. Good solid bike workout.


3x(9minutes RI 2:00, 6 minutes RI 2:00, 3 min RI 5 min) rode at a gear easier than 40TT. (Just put that in there for looking back on this log)





Friday


Swam and ran post work. Had to get up early to read a paper for work. Also, can swim at gym and have to pay extra for the Swim Center. Also, the water is getting colder. Brrr.

Saturday
Ride outside. We got all geared up and went out for a ride. After ~30 minutes it started to snow and only got worse. Rode up Triple Tree and went down the trail. At 1:30 I was getting cold. Stopped by Rockford and got a hot shot of espresso before we kept going. Did the Erik loop backwards to get home. Lots of blowing snow in our faces. Got lost on the little wooded look at the east Gallatin. I know I could get out, it was just so strange to be so disoriented. Good solid ride and some adventure.

Sunday
Masters swim- Only got in ~2800. It seems like she keeps doing the same workout. 200's. Wish there was a little more to mix it up with. Did a couple of the 100's as IM's just because. Was pretty tired from yesterdays ride.

Rode outside again for 2+ hours. I think it was more like 2.5 or 2.75. It started out beautiful but then the sun went behind the clouds and it got cold. Further, there was lots of snow, slush, and water. I was wet and cold.
So tired. Layed down on the couch at 530 and didn't get back up. Went to bed early and slept in pretty late. I can't believe how those two rides killed me like that.

Monday
Went to gym and did a treadmill run for 30. Wanted to get some good stretching and "PT" in. Can't really do it very well at home. Felt good. Went to bed early.

Tuesday
Got up early to swim at MSU. Just dragged though the swim. Didn't even finish the workout in the time I had alotted myself (then the pool closed). Maybe 200 short? Not really feeling so hot today.

Am planning on running this pm. Going to go over the the M and Drinking Horse. Good hills!
Hopefully I will feel better than on that swim.

1/31/12 thru 2/6/12

Wednesday
Ran at lunch- Did a 30 minute easy loop from work around town and back. I have a hard time getting out on these, but once I do they are great. Feels good to get out. Hard to motivate but I never regret it.

Busted out ~2900 at Masters. Lots of descending. Descend on the 100 1-4. Then an easy 200 then Descend on the 100 1-3 then kick 25 fast 75 moderate. Swim felt good. Was not in the right lane. There were two guys who complained a lot. Next time I need to go in the other lane. They might be faster, but I can chase them down and at least they do the workout and stay on time.

Friday- You know what we did! It was a fun day. I like swimming in the morning if I can bet myself there


Saturday
Got up earlier than I would have liked to get to work to start a culture. Came home and ate breakfast and drank some coffee. Was feeling pretty tired. Went to work and infected mice. Was totally planned to run after infecting. However, I got out of there and was so tired and a little hungry. All I wanted to do was take a nap. Went home and took a nap instead of running. Didn't really think I was getting sick until Sunday

Sunday
Woke up and was tired. Almost didn't make it to Masters. Felt good at Masters. Swam hard. Swam ~2800 total. Lots of 200's. A couple of sprinting 100's. Thought about my kick. Tried a 6 beat on the 100's. I think I swam faster but man the legs got tired.

Got home and rode with Erik, John, and Lisa. Did the loop we took you on and didn't go up Story Hill but rode over to where my parents live. Then did a south of town loop. Rode for exactly 2.5 hours.

Was starting to not feel well after this ride. Got home and my nose got stuffed up. Think I'm getting sick.

Monday 2-6-12
Slept really long and well last night. Woke up feeling better than when I went to bed. Had a sore throat. That had gone away. However, as the day goes on I am feeling worse not better. Going to skip the run.

Questions: Oliver or the Desert Half? If I do Oliver I would have a better chance at my goal race time. The Desert Half is up that climb. Other thoughts are that the Desert Half is July 8th and then the Bozeman Half is July 29th. Pretty close together. I could spend the 4th weekend doing some hard training without all the travel ect. If I went in June it would be more relaxed.

Thoughts: I really think that stress and anxiety make me sick. This weekend was great and the clinics were great, but my poor management and working so much pushed me over the top. Better planning!! No big work days when other stuff is going on, or else I need to recruit help to manage it all.

I sort of made a last minute decision to go visit my parents in Phoenix this weekend. Leave on Friday at 5:30pm and get in late on Monday. Leave there at 7pm. They have a roughly 25 yard pool in their little complex with a line on the bottom for swimming laps. The water is kindof warm but its so nice to swim outside. I will also bring my running shoes. My Dad likes to hike so that might be an adventure one day?

1/23/12 thru 2/1/12

Tuesday
Ran after infecting mice. Mouse infections were a fiasco and kind of stressful so it felt good to get out and unwind a little. Did the pickups. Feel like my running is coming along this year. I feel like I can and want to run faster in general. I was stuck in a rut of being slow and think it might be getting better.
Swim- Ugh. That kind of didn't feel so hot. I felt like I was trying hard but not really moving. I think that I was still tired from Sunday. Who knew swimming straight for an hour could be so hard.


Wednesday
Did the trainer workout. Did a little bit of PT but then went to meet my Mom for dinner. Was kind of a distraced workout, but got it done anyway.


Thursday Swim practice was awesome. I felt really, really good tonight. Swam my first 50 fly ever!!! I have always gotten to the 25 and had to stop. This time I kept going and Dan and Beth were cheering for me. I couldn't let them down. We swam 2900. Some free but lots of IM's. Also, lots of 50's of other strokes. So 8x50. Odds hard, evens easy. Only 3 of the 50's could be free. That kind of workout. I like it when Dan and Beth are there. They aren't so fast I am demoralized, but I have to work to keep up with them.


Friday
That swim was hard. Breathing every 3, then going fast, and then only a 25 for recovery. Got tough. I also am sore from swimming yesterday which probably doesn't help.
Question: What is the point of breathing every 3? This is tough for me to do fast. I think it is kind of awkward to breath on my right side. Sort of throws off my stroke.
Went on a run- It was dark out and hard to see and could be very, very icy. Did the pickups when there were clear roads. Ran for a little over 30. Getting excited for Sunday!!

Saturday
Waxed the skis and got Lisa's bike functioning. It wasn't shifting very well. Her and Erik wanted to ride so I went with them . The weather was cold and windy. It was good to ride if you kept going. I didn't keep track of how long we rode, but it was probably a little longer than I should have.
Got home and checked the grooming report for Bozeman Creek. It was icy for the first 3 miles and then got better. I didn't ski. Didn't think the conditions made it worth it. Was getting antsy about the race.
Went to bed early and drank lots of water.

Sunday
Race day!!!
Up at 6:30 to get there by 8:30 or so. Erik and Mom went along to volunteer. Got my transition all set up. Rode the bike for a few minutes just to see how it felt on the snow. Then did a little loop running. Got my heart pumping a few times before the race. Kept tellling myself to go as hard as I could go and have fun! Also, stay within myself to some extent to keep from having stop. That is mostly the ski.
Gun went off and the 3 girls that got top 3. 2 olympians one for nordic skiing, the other for cycling and last years national champion were gone. I ran hard. Passed the woman who beat me last year and never saw her again. I ran so hard that I think I could have been done after the run. The transition is up on top of this hill and it was hard to run back up. I was pretty spent.

Got on the bike and felt pretty good. The first little uphill was pretty soft and I ended up having to run up it. Running in snow with a bike hurts really, really bad. Decided that I really needed to just stay on the bike. Managed to get back on and get in a better groove. After that first meadow the snow got a lot harder and it wasn't so difficult. The hard part was staying out of other peoples grooves. Tried to keep my weight back and look forward. I need to work on being a better technical rider. Went pretty slow around the corners just so I wouldn't go down. Lisa's bike was nice though because it was pretty easy to climp up some of those steep hills. I think it is because it is so light.

Ski- had food on the bike in a bottle but didn't get much of that down. Really wish I had brought a gel. Was seeing stars when I started the ski. Skiing on a tired body is really challenging. I started on this little windy downhill and sort of forgot to slow down. Everything was fine but my brain was not functioning. Took a few minutes but finally got in the ski groove. This was the first time I felt how my fitness has improved. Last year on this long uphill I had to stop and catch my breath. This year I just kept going. Had flashbacks to trying to reach Moser.

Finished fourth to those girls. For me nothing changed as far as placing after halfway through the run. On the bike I didn't even see people for most of it. Think I could have gone faster if I had somebody to catch. Should have gone faster regardless(on the bike). I was 5 minutes down on 3rd and like 15 down on 1st. Kind of disappointing to be 4th. I think I really wanted 1-3. I guess I know that now after the race more than before. It is hard for me to set those goals sometimes. I think I might be overreaching somehow. Why not overreach right?

Good day with lots of great people. The mens race was cool. Mike Wolfe getting 1st. I played soccer with him since 5th grade when we shared a homeroom together. Matt Seeley got 2nd and right on his heels was Landon Beckner. What a cool kid.

Monday
So sore. Got up and took some advil last night because I was so sore I couldn't sleep. Think I'm getting old. Will go and do the swim this evening.

1-19-12 thru 1-24-12

Tuesday
Went to the Swim Center to do the workout. Swam in the public lanes because didn't want to disrupt Masters. That was a zoo. All these people swimming in circles at all different speeds doing things like the sidestroke. Also, in the public lanes there are no lane lines so the water is really choppy. It was hard to settle in but also good practice. Felt good and the workout went by quick. My shoulder started hurting after this workout really bad though.

Wednesday
Skipped the swim. Shoulder sore and I didn't want to hurt it.
Went home and rode the trainer for an hour.

Thursday
Did the bike workout, but did it on the trainer because I didn't want to hurt my shoulder. Rollers put a lot of weight on my arms. (However, see below, I did get my bike fit and my seat is angled pretty far forward. I am going to try to level it and that might take some weight off my arms) The workout was solid. It was hard but felt good. I might be crazy but thrive off of doing structured workouts like that. Had a hard time getting the muscles to fire later that evening. Legs were tired.

Friday
Got in the water and swam a 100. My shoulder hurt a little and I really wanted to do the 1-hour swim. It was 85% better already. I could move it up and down again. When my are is straight up in the air it hurts. Anyway, did a 200 kick and got out of the water. Bought some new shoes and ran with them a good solid run for 40 minutes and then did some stretching and exercises for my achilles.

Saturday
Got Lisa's bike and went out with Angie on the town trails. It was great. Really love that bike. Dropped Angie off and rode another hour or so on my own. Total time was ~3 hours. Practiced riding up some steep hills and felt really good. The bike isn't shifting very well so need to get Erik to look at it in the next day or so. Want to ride it a couple more times before the race to get a feel for it.
Sunday swim 1 hour swim. Talked to Angie (my PT friend) on Saturday about my shoulder. She said to try to engage my scapula area when swimming if it hurts. I iced it before the swim. Swim went okay. I was really shooting for 3000 in one hour. I started out with sub 2 minute laps but that quickly became 2:10. Ended up at 2830. Better than last year (3000 in a 25 yard pool). It wasn't easy. I definitely had some laps or part of them where I was suffering. Really tried to engage my scapula region and I think that helped use my back more than my arms. Maybe a new swimming epiphany! Pretty tired when finished.


Run- Was pretty good. Basically did the Tritons Half iron run loop with a little cut off. It is a pretty steep climb for a while and then a long pretty mellow downhill for a while. Ran in the new shoes which felt good. My feet were starting to get crabby in my other shoes. It was sunny out but kind of cold. Took a while to settle in. Ran for ~90 minutes.

I was worked from this day. Slept very well tonight.

Question. Would it be good to go to the track and try to get a feel for my pacing. Figure out how fast it feels to run a 10k pace etc? I know that helped last year to do that for the sprint distance. I know how fast my legs had to get turned over.

Monday- Went to the physical therapist to get my bike fit. It was a really good experience. My seat height and foot placement were spot on. My left foot was tilting to one side so he added some spacers to level my foot. We also took out a spacer to get me a little more aero.
We then talked about some exercises to work on strengthening my back-scapula region to keep from getting back pain and also one hip strenghtener. He is a specialized run and cycling physical therapist and I think I am going to go and see him about my achilles now before it really bares it's ugly head. My insurance is really good and each visit is $15.00. Better than 40$ for the massage therapist. Really excited to have somebody really competent to go to for all my issues.

1-11-12 thru 1-17-12

Wednesday
Ran for 30 minutes right before swimming. Man it was cold out. My legs and face were so numb. Kind of ran in a state of numbness. Didn't eat before this either and think I might have been a little bonky. Kind of a surreal run.
Master's swim- forgot my suit and borrowed one that had a lot of drag. Did some stuff to get our 100 pace. Swam 3x300 and tried to keep the times within 15 seconds of each other. From that Claire calculated our 100 times and then we swam 4x100. I could swim the 300s faster than the 100s hmmm. Then on Sunday I swam the 100 20 seconds faster than the 100's this night. See Sunday for my theory on water temperature. Just makes me think that setting paces is kind of arbitrary. Anyway, it was a good workout. I think I got in 2700.

Thursday
Got to work early so left early to ensure I could get in a good workout. Rode the rollers and did the workout. Not much to say. Happy to organize my time to fit it in.

Friday
Swam in the MSU pool. 1200 straight and tried to really work on the flip turns. My new waterproof shuffle is awesome for long swims. If I am mentally there the swims are not too bad. I don't know why doing a 300 at Masters can be so torturous.
Ran on the treadmill for 30 minutes post swim. Again the music is great. I can really pick it up if the songs are good.

Saturday
Made it all the way to Moser Rd. It was ~ 9 miles of relentless uphill. Had to stop and catch my breath a lot. Felt good to get that far since a few weeks ago I couldn't make it. The snow was soft and not a lot of glide this time. Had to work a little or wouldn't go very fast on the downhill. Felt very worn out after that. Stopped and got a salty hot chocolate (we'll have to get one when you are in town) at Sola. Mmmmm. Ski took about 3 hours. Two hours up and one down.
Rode the rollers once I got home and recovered a little. Watched a movie and just tried to settle in. Try to keep my core really tight otherwise my arms sore and my pinkies go numb. Rode for ~75 minutes.

Found some new music to keep me entertained!

Sunday
Swam with Masters in the am. Lots of warm up then lots of fast. 2x200 fast, 2x150 fast, 2x100 fast and 2x50 fast. Each had a 100 easy between. Then we did a timed 500. In the long pool my time was 10:29. It was hard to really get after it after doing all those fast laps earlier. Was sore and tired from the ski the day before but felt really good in the water. Swimming muscles are not the same as skiing muscles. Also, one of the heaters is out at the long pool so the water was cooler. Usually I feel really heavy in that pool compared to swimming at MSU. Think it is the temp? MSU is usually a lot cooler.
Went on a run in the afternoon. John and Lisa went with me for ~45 minutes. It was snowing and cold. I'm glad they went otherwise I was having a hard time motivating. Felt really good and even felt strong on the pickups. It was really icy under the snow and took a pretty good digger. Lisa did the same on a giant sheet of ice. It looked painful. Once I got back and warmed up a little I was pretty worked. Something about running in the cold is very numbing. Stopped at 1:20 rather than 1:30.

Monday
Skied up Bozeman Cr. in the am. It was cold and in the shade my skis had no glide. Decided before the ski that I would get up to the bridge. It was a lot of work. Felt a little worked. Was really cold on the downhill. Am glad I went earlier than later. It is starting the get cold this afternoon.
Will go to yoga with Lisa and John in the pm

Feel pretty worked after the weekend. My back and arms are sore, probably from skiing.

Tuesday
Didn't realize I was going to have such a big day at work. Not sure if I will get the run in. Will make it to the pool regardless though.

Check out this video if you haven't already.
Good for a pre workout warm-up dance party.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_426RiwST8

1-3-12 thru 1-10-11

Tuesday Hmmm. Now I don't even remember what I did here.

Wednesday

Early to work and late at work. Ugh. The late was totally out of my control. Left work around 3 for a little bit and got the 30 minute run in. Then made it to Master's a little late. Got in ~2300 in about an hour. Did a couple of 600's. 200 at 70% and 100 at 90%x2. Plus did a good warm up and some drills. Like Masters and the people there.

Thursday- off

Friday

Tired from the week and clinic. Didn't get the run in. Swam after work. Pushed the 250s as hard as I could. Felt strong.

Saturday 1-7-11

Skied with Jenny up Bozeman Creek. We went to the lookout which is about 8+ miles up. Went at a nice steady pace with very few stops. It was cold and we wanted to stay moving to stay warm. Froze on the way down. Chilled to the bone.

Rode the rollers for an hour that evening. The hour rides seem to be going by very quickly

Sunday 1-8-12

Ran. Good run. Stayed on pavement. Trails were very icy. Did the 8-1 minute pickups. Felt good. Felt good until the last 15 minutes or so then started to get a little tired.

Did some yoga, stretching, and plank later that evening. Calves are tight from running. Need to stay on the stretching.

Monday 1-9-12

Swam after work. Felt really good swimming and 2000 goes by pretty painlessly and quickly. Practicing my flip turns and the 1k pace is good.

Question: When you say to kick can I use fins. In the short pool they are not really worth it. I like them in the long pool. Also is kick flutter. Sometimes I like to do a little dolphin. Good for the core.

Still not sure what to do about Master's. Is it worth it to go a few times a week? I like the Sunday swims.

Rode rollers. Only got in 50 minutes but rode to and from work today.