Ironman UK Training Week 7

Another week done, another week closer to Ironman UK. 23 weeks to go.

Lost another 2lb this week so now back down to 13st 9lbs. This was the lowest I got to in 2012

Should see the 10,000th hit on the blog over the next couple of days. Never thought it would reach that when i first started writing about quitting smoking and buying a bicycle.

Training

Calories burnt for the year = 59,166
Training hours this week = 10 hours 27minutes

Monday

Swim. 1 hour coached swim session

400 metre warm up, 100 metres using some training fins. Did some vertical kicks with the fins on to feel the muscles i should be using when kicking. Then did some one arm drills with fins and holding a float out front with one arm. Whilst doing this, practised lifting the elbow high out the water.

 Tried it afterwards without the float, alternating sides after every 10 kicks. Unfortunately the first 25 metres was a disaster where i just sank as soon as i swapped sides. Next 25 metres went a lot better with no water consumption. Finished the session with some bog standard swimming.

Tuesday

Bike 46 minute/Run 16 minute brick session

http://www.mapmyride.com/workout/234708254 - Bike

Run was an out and back to Sainsbury. Actually ran the furthest yet on a 15 minute brick run. Just
over 2 miles.

Had a bit of a hairy bike moment hammering down a hill near Dunston Hall my bloody front light cut out & found myself  travelling at over 20mph in total darkness. Luckily i was in the middle of the road other wise things could have got a bit funky. Note to self, make sure i connect light to battery properly!

Wednesday

Run 1 hour 1 minute.

Ran just under 6 miles, down to the lake and back. Something up with my Garmin Forerunner. For some reason it's not logging my starts correctly & chopping off parts of the runs.

Calf's feeling OK today, I've managed to get the knot out of my left muscle which has made running a lot more comfortable.
In a dilemma about trainers now. I worked out Ive done 372 miles in my Saucony's so i  they are probably due for replacing. They certainly will by VLM . I don't want to buy a big chunky pair again as I'm trying to move to the more minimalist shoe. However, it's less than 2 months till the marathon & I'm not sure if i can make the transition to running that distance in the minimalist shoe???

Swim 1 hour 1 minute

‎82 lengths tonight so a bit less than last week but i had a go at some bilateral breathing. Normally i just breath on my right side every two strokes. This is what Ive got used to, relaxed strokes and breathing was my biggest front crawl hurdle.

First i did a few 4 strokes between breaths (on the right side) then a 6 stroke, that was quite hard and it took a good half a length to get my breathing back under control again.

Did some alternative  2 stroke/3 strokes for a couple of lengths, felt really awkward on the left side and found I'm lifting my head a long way out the water. Eventually managed to do about 6 lengths of bilateral breathing. Certainly easier once i got a bit more rotation going on.

Found this link tonight which talks about bilateral breathing.

http://www.swimsmooth.com/bilateral.html

Something else to keep practising
 

Thursday

Bike 1 hour 11 minutes  - http://www.mapmyride.com/workout/235255704

Bit of a chilly one, couple of days off work now so did this first thing. Now got no training for 48 hours which is quite a nice thought. May try do some pre work Thursday bike rides so i get the same extended rest period.
 Didn't go with hill training this week as it was day time, thought I'd head out to the country for a bit. Managed to find a church i couldnt find at Rackheath previously.

Friday

Rest Day

Saturday

Didn't do Park run this week as doing my volunteer bit. Quite handy really as it was snowy and cold.
Still, went out and did a little run later as part of my Newton shoes transition

Run 21 minute  - Just a little one

Bike 2 hours 4 minutes - http://www.mapmyride.com/workout/235920080

Took a bit of self motivating to get out the door for this one. Snowing, cold and breezy. First hour was a bit of a mare but after that the sun had decided to come out a bit which was very welcome.
Ticked off another few churches  http://thecyclingnorfolkchurchspotter.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/norfolk-church-count-81.html

Wrap up warm

Today made me think of a song from my favourite group of all time, AC/DC. For those of us striving for our first Ironman. Despite crap weather or other issues & knowing it would be easier just to sit at home in the warm laying on the sofa. That attitude won't get me to the finish line on August 4th!

When the cycling gets tough you just gotta  'Ride on'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNdagpIgItw

Apologise for the cheese

Sunday

Run 1 hour 45 minutes - http://www.mapmyride.com/workout/236243602

Really loved today's run even though my legs were seriously bitching after 90 minutes. Don't think it helped having a lot of uphill towards the end. Snowed a bit but nothing drastic. Quite handy that there had been a freeze overnight or the muddy bog path along the river at Eaton would have been a nightmare again.
Felt very relaxed on the run, had happy thoughts running through my head about completing the various events this year. Particularly London Marathon & IMUK.

As i posted on my FB earlier. "Ironman training. Somedays I love it, Somedays i hate. Today is a love it day".

Swim 1 hour 2 minute

Went for the 50 metre swim session tonight. Still only managed the same as last week. 40 lengths in the hour. I did do a fair bit of bilateral breathing again though.

Other

Slight setback this week although it hasn't stopped my training, yet. I've suffered in the past with an abscess under my tailbone, although i haven't had any problems for over a year I was supposed to go up the hospital next time it flared up so it could be operated on.

Problem is, the operation results in a 8-10 week recovery period as it is a pain to heal. Not an ideal time for me to have 10 weeks off work nor losing 10 weeks out of my training plan. So, hoping i can get away with antibiotics to clear it up again. Thankfully my cycle seat is a perfect mould that removes any pressure away from the painful area.

Tribars going back on the bike this week. Need to get used to them again. Also ordered an Aero Drink bottle that will fit between them. Should encourage me to drink more & also enables me to do it whilst staying in an aero position. Would have liked to fit a speedfill system but that is a bit pricey for now..

Halfords was the cheapest for bottle and bracket. They currently have a 20% discount on cycle accessory web purchases. Plus i got my Aviva 3% cash back on it.

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&langId=-1&productId=561677&catalogId=10151



Cheers

Andy

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