Two weeks to go

This was a big week!  This was a good week! My whole mentality about the race has really shifted.  After talking to you on Tuesday I have been doing a lot of thinking. 1) I think being sick was making me feel a little like I wasn't ready, but now that I am over that I feel much stronger. The Bozeman Half I felt worse than I realized. 2) This week was good. Long swim, long run, and long bike. I have a lot more confidence. After my ride on Sunday I lost a lot of the freaking out nervousness and now am getting pretty excited. 3) Was that a lot of work this week? I thought it was but at the same time felt like I could do everything strongly so I was probably recovering well. I really think I would call this a breakthrough week for me. Part of me keeps telling myself that this is almost over (for now) just push a little harder.

My right knee has been sore coming off these rides. I think I should go and get a look at the fit again at some point. It doesn't seem to be the knee itself, but the back of the knee where the muscle is attached. Rolling it over a foam roller helps a lot
Also, two times this has happened. Coming out of the swim onto the bike the back of my leg cramps up. It is maybe my hamstring, but is seems like a muscle more on the inside. On Saturday it took a good 30 minutes to work out and was sore for the rest of the weekend. Thoughts? Maybe I should be stretching more.

Tuesday
Long swim- Okay, I guess I can swim that far. Thanks for settling my fears. There were a few breaks but I wasn't even that worked after this swim. Even did the different intervals at faster speeds.

Wednesday
Executed exactly! How did you know exactly how long that ride would take? I was impressed. I tried to run hard. The run was hard.
Thursday
Long run. Ran up to Mystic Lake. Does a little uphill all the way there and a little downhill all the way back equal flat? Once I got to the trail to the lake I knew there was no turning back. Total time was more like 3hours. 17 miles or so including jumping in. That was so fun. Did a lot of good thinking on this run. I have been able to sort through so much stuff this year on these long runs.

Friday
Missed the swim. Huge work day. Party afterwards for the coolest couple in town. Yeah Megan and Steve!

Saturday
Swim- Thought a lot about settling in and going for a really long time. After 30 minutes I was fine. The race will be fine.
Bike- As I was riding I found Jamie. Rode with her for a while.
Run- definitely didn't eat enough on the ride etc. and was pretty hungry at this point.
Workout seemed like no big deal, but I sure was tired when 11pm rolled around. I felt bad but wasn't so into the dance party. Amazing wedding, amazing people, good friends!.

Sunday
Did the ride by myself. 1st 18 miler I went up Hyalite. 2nd came down (easier one). 3rd rode back into town. 4th went up Sypes Canyon (last one on a climb). Fell apart halfway through 4th 18 miler. I think a layer of smoke rolled in, going up Sypes I started coughing and couldn't stop. Then I ran out of water and food. Wasn't super good about eating on this ride. Made it home though. Stopped at gas station for ice and water. This was probably one of the best rides of the year. Others were hard for other reasons, but this one was really focused. I'm glad for doing a few of these last rides by myself.
Run- Did the first 35 minutes fast. I would love to run the race at that pace, but not sure how long I can hold it. Lucky for me when I slowed down my legs felt great. I can always run slow. For some reason this was a huge confidence booster. I can try and run fast but I know I can run slow.

Monday
That dang swim that just doesn't want to happen. Left work a little after 5, at 5 when I had a couple more things to do realized it would take me longer than an hour to do the swim. Got up there as quick as possible and busted it out. Didn't get through the whole second set. Missed the 400 and the 200. My arms were soo tired though. This swim did not feel good.