Nice day of training with my teammates at Stony.  Split my 1.5 hour endurance run in to 2 halves (with coaches blessing) so I could ride with everybody too.  It was great to run with Diane and John.  It's been a long time since we've run together! :)  Then we all got out on the bikes and rode the oly course.  It's a nice course!  I've never ridden out of the park there.  Drivers were getting pretty impatient on the way back in though...didn't care for that!  After we got back, it was time to do the last part of my run.  Steve only went out about 15 minutes with us due to a grumpy left foot, so Tony took me of the path and onto the mtb trail.  It was really nice back there!  Kinder on my tired legs (my shins let me know I've not run any rollers in a loooooong time!) and we had a nice talk too!  Oh, and we did a negative split.  Sweet! :) 

I didn't plan on the 1.5 hour bike, but it was ok cause I did cut a couple rides short this week.  Wow.  LONG WEEK! :)

Race report is finally up!  Now it's time to run...ugh.
 
*Run was rained out, so I left the trailhead and headed to Fraser to get my "quality" (read PAIN) workout from tomorrow in today, so I can run tomorrow.  I was warned by Coach in August that the quality work can not be skipped.  Good lord, my legs are ready to strike, but I know I'm tearing them down so they'll be stronger come 11/6.  Still....evil stuff.  Add to it that I was riding alone, and BOOO is all I can say.  I did get to chat up Chris for a few who spent the summer out at the Olympic training center in Colorado, and that was fun. 

Tomorrow is gonna suck big time, and I've a 1.5 hour run on Saturday to follow it up.  I hope it's just perfect running weather and the sunshine makes me smiley.  Yep.  That's what I'm hoping for! 

Thank goodness for my zoot compression tights, shorts and socks.  I think my legs would have fallen off by now if it wern't for the sexy garb.  Seriously.  Fallen off!*

 

Had a great time at lunch with my very first tri friend Laura today!   She brought me a gift...her chickens lay eggs, and now I've got a dozen in my fridge!   Can't wait to have breakfast tomorrow!!! 

I knew today was gonna be tough.  Yesterday was a challenge on the run, but it ended well. Today' work is one of 3 key workouts to prep for IMFL this week, so I had no choice.  To quote my husband..."this is what you wanted".  Laura told me something her 2x IM husband said to her.  You have to decorate your pain cave.  I was Martha Stewart in the pain cave tonight.  That second set was TOUGH!  No warm up like usual, no spinning out the legs like usual...just endurance and pain.  But by the time the last endurance set was over, my legs felt ok.  Considering.  Then it was off to the pool.  My wo in the email today was kick sets, but I got to do some speed work instead. Including threshold.  Yippee.  Actually, it wasn't too bad.  I worked a bit on my stroke with Andi totally eyeballing me from the pool deck, and I think I got the point she was trying to make.  Now I just have to keep practicing to make it a habit.  Pam filmed me swimming so I could better understand what I was and wasn't doing.  The we had some fun taking pictures under water with Lil Trish, and Andi stuck her face in the drink too...she didn't want to be left out of the fun!  

Holy crap I soooo did not want to run.  Quads were bitchy and I wore my zoot tights till 2.  Finally decided to put on my running skirt(in my head I run faster in a running skirt...I know.  It makes no sense!), compression socks and get my arse out there.  I did stop at lights, but holy cow...whose quads were those?  I had the most consistent neg. splits I think ever on a run.  That was cool!  And I actually felt decent the last few miles!  Yeah...the quads are still barkin' and tomorrows threshold  bike is gonna suck, but I'm pretty happy about this run!  The bike was so so.  I was hungry, it was windy and I just pooped around the neighborhood.  I cut it a bit short cause I had a meeting at the middle school to get to after dinner,  and I needed to clean up.  15 minutes short won't kill me.  Coach might though! ;)

Lap1 11:02
lap2 10:39
lap3 10:25
lap4 10:10
lap5  9:57
lap6  9:14
lap7  8:48

Ow.  My legs did not want to spin, but I knew I'd feel better for it.  And after I got off the bike I did.  The 25 minute drive home though made them unhappy again.  :( 

Drive some more and swim.  It was flippin' cold!  66.5 or 67!  So much for my nice elongating swim to stretch the body out.  We swam hard to get warm to start, then when we made the turn it was rough as hell....for like 45 minutes of the swim.  Nice.  Curt, the boat owner said it was the roughest swim he'd had out there.   A great day of training for the gulf, but not so hot that it was the day after a half and on a day with 5 hours of driving.  Ugh.  Got so cold afterwards Ranger had to give me his hoodie, and I had jeans and my compression socks on....it was COLD!!!

I slept like crap last night, and was up reading at 3 cause I was wide awake.  Then I woke early too.  WTF?  I hate this perimenopause crappola I tell ya....it stinks!  I did get to enjoy the sun coming up over lake Erie on the balcony while I had my coffee so that was really nice.  And I lucked out and saw all the Coops heading out to their cars and got to give Coop one more hug and congrats before we all headed off for home.  A very long day.  :)