Tri on my mind

Yikes! It's been more than a week since I posted; however, I promise you that I haven't been sitting on the couch eating chips!

Memphis... more specifically Germantown... what a wonderful place! I can't wait to go back. Scott & I never got in more than the one 6-mile run b/c it ended up pouring rain the other two days that we were there. No problems though. I ended up doing a 3.5 mile fartlek run the day after we returned and then a nice 5 mile easy run in the Florida drizzle the following day.

Probably the biggest news of the past week is that my husband has officially caught the running bug. I took him to Fleet Feet while we were in Memphis and they fitted him with a pair of Brooks Axiom. He ran with me when I did my fartlek run... and I would just loop back to meet up with him after each interval. He also entered himself in a 5K in Indianapolis while he's away at a work-related conference next month. Go Scott!!!

Including today, I have exactly 46 days until the Danskin Sprint triathlon. I feel confident enough right now in my ability to finish, but I know that I have SO much more in me to give yet. Admittedly, I have not swam in 2 weeks. Vacation was a problem and then the weather cooled down again. My swimming seems takes a back seat b/c it's what I'm most confident & strong in. I can already swim a mile without any issues... and the Danskin is only 1/4 mile. Still, I know that dealing with the issues that come with racing in open water will suck a lot more of my energy than I realize. I need to practice. Today will most likely be a swim day.

ETA: Today's swim was a dud! I completed a mere 400 yds when the lifeguard had everyone get out of the pool due to a chlorine imbalance! Ack! So my swim is moved to tomorrow. In lieu of the swim, I ended up completing a 6 mile hill run.

Scott & I completed a 20 mile bike ride yesterday. My 9-mile split (which is what the Danskin course is) was 31:24. Pretty decent as it has me averaging 17.2 mph (not bad for a newbie cyclist riding outdoors). I focused the final 10 miles on practicing things like drinking, aerodynamics (getting down on those aerobars), and making the most of my bike gears. As usual, I also immediately ran 1/2 mile as a mini-brick to practice my bike to run transition. I'm getting better at these and my legs are adapting more quickly. I'm glad I decided to throw these in after every ride. I think I'll be better for it in the end.

ORN 3-21-08: 3.54 mile fartlek

ORN 3-22-08: 5.16 easy in the rain :)

ORN 3-25-08: 4.43 mile combo road/trail. Felt more like a steeplechase!!!

Strength 3-25-08: strength training- upper & lower. Glutes are still sore from weighted one-leg runner's squats. LOVE these things!

OCN 3-26-08: 20.2 mile bike followed by 1/2 mile "brick" run

OSN 3-27-08: interrupted swim due to chlorine imbalance. Only completed 400 yds.

ORN 3-27-08: 6 mile hill run (well, "bridge" run in Florida since we have no hills).