Comfortable swim today

Went to the pool today and swam 1200m, 48 lengths. I did it all mostly without any breaks, apart from waiting on my lane to clear as I was sharing it with 2 other swimmers. With the schools being off for Easter, the pool was packed!


I felt remarkably fresh after the swim, so much so that I doubted myself and how I counted the lengths. But, I didn't miscount and it is a real encouragement to me to be able to swim that distance and still feel like I could keep swimming indefinitely.

Trying to get out for a run later this evening.

Interval training

Headed out for a longish run this evening, and incorporated some interval training, mixing up the pace a bit. I was out for 60 minutes and it was a good workout. I also added some hill work to strengthen the legs a bit.

Bike session

Opted to do another stationery bike session rather than out on the roads. At the moment, it is more efficient because I get more of a work out in a shorter space of time. Today I did 45 minutes, keeping my heart rate between 150-160.

Will attempt to get out next week on the bike - although the weather forecast isn't the most promising.

Pool again

Just back from the pool. Another encouraging session. Swam 42 lengths, which is 1050 metres and swam it mostly in sets of 300m. It felt good and I wasn't too exhausted at the end. Hopefully this will have me in good shape for the first triathlon in a couple of months where the swim is only 750m.

I am looking forward to getting my first open water practice swim out of the way. Still not sure when that will be, but having never done one before I am a little excited/anxious about just how much different it will be from the pool. Obviously it will be cold, murky, more unsettled, etc. But to be honest, any time I've been in the pool there have been about 30 school kids in too and they make some pretty big waves with all their fooling about!

Will hopefully get on the bike later this afternoon.

Back in the pool

Met my sister today for a swim. Planned on doing 900 metres, but ended up doing 1km after a bit of goading from Beccy. Did it all in under 30 minutes which is steady but not too fast.

The good thing today was that I did 6x150m sets, followed by 1x100m. I did the last 2x150s together without a break and without feeling too fatigued, which gave me a real boost.

Hopefully bike tomorrow.

Cycle and run

Ok - so where am I with this training lark! Went out for a cycle at the weekend and did about 12 miles, split with lunch in the middle. It was just a wee introduction back after the stomach bug last week.

Work has been busy over the last week so I had to use the exercise bike last night and did 40 minutes, then headed out for a 20 minute run.

Swim today.

Stomach bug hits

I could run - but couldn't hide! After Sophie and Sam both got knocked down by the tummy bug doing the rounds, it was my turn over the weekend and beginning of the week. The doctor said it was a 5-7 day bug, and boy did it give me some empathy towards how the wee ones must have felt.

So today is the first day that I can say my stomach feels totally back to normal. Needless to say, the training took a hit, even though I was determined to make this month sickness free! I've never been hit with so many little set backs.

On the positive side, I have shed 8lbs! And I'm determined to try to keep it off.

Will try to have a light cycle/run later today.

Swimming target

Headed to the pool today and swam half a mile, 8x100m sets. Felt good, although tiring. But it is a mini milestone and I now look forward to increasing the distance.

Sophie then came in for a swim afterwards and was very good! Blowing bubbles underwater and waving at me on her own. It was fun!

Comfortable swim today

Went to the pool today and did 30 lengths, 750m. Apart from the screaming school kids who were also in for their 'learn how to thrash around in the water' lessons, it was a comfortable session. I really notice things improving and look forward to stepping up the distance over the next few weeks. The one thing I concentrated on today was pushing right through to the end of the stroke with each hand, brushing my hip on the way. It made a difference to the rhythm, which in turn helped the breathing.

First outing on the bike

Headed out this morning on the bike, which has been serviced and fixed. Just went for a short 30 minute ride so as to break my seating muscles!! I headed out the narrow (and hilly) country roads and covered about 7 miles. Not far I know, but it is my first time on a bicycle in around 15 years so I was glad just to survive.

One thing about the bike that I have borrowed is that has a full suspension frame. The guy who serviced the bike, when he heard that I intended doing a triathlon on it, sorted of laughed and wished me all the best. He said that the suspension will absorb a lot of my pushing energy and will bounce a lot. In fact, he said that in the bicycle business these bikes are called 'bouncers'.

I kind of thought 'How bad could it be?', but today I found out! When going up a hill, if you stand up to pedal hard, the bike nearly flips you off because it bounces so much. It really is impossible to stand up and pedal. So I may have to look at getting my hands on a proper road bike. If anyone has a decent one lying around unused and wouldn't mind lending it for a few months, give me a shout.

Short run

Headed out this beautiful, frosty morning for a short 3 mile run. The sky was blue and there wasn't a cloud. I was regretting putting a hat on after a while, because even though it was not much more than freezing, I was very warm with the sun beating down.

But I did it in 22:47 which I was pleased about. My calf muscles held up fine although I was a bit tentative on some of the hilly sections. It was a good workout and I look forward to another good week of training.

On another note, today is the day that I can say that I have lost 1 Stone (14lbs) in weight since starting the training. Yeah! Still another half stone or so to go, but I really made an effort last week to eat sensibly and it paid off. I have bulked up a bit with muscle from the swimming so that inevitably adds more weight than losing the same amount of fat. But this month I'll try to get the other 7lbs off and then I'll be happy.

For the stat geeks:
Average hr = 152
Max hr = 187
Total calories = 408
1 minute recovery = 168 to 134

Update from last week

I hadn't got a chance to update the blog towards the end of last week, so here is a quick update:

I went to go for a cycle on the bike, but realised that it was broken because when I went to pedal the gears went around ok, but there was no drive to the back wheel. So unless I found a hill to freewheel down, it wasn't going to do me much good! I left it in to get looked at so I will hopefully get it today or tomorrow. So on Thursday I used the exercise bike again and did 20 minutes.

On Thursday night and Friday, I had a bit of a dodgy stomach and feared I was coming down with the tummy bug that Sophie and Sam had. But I went to the pool anyway and did 700 metres (4x100m, 4x75m). It was a good swim.

On Saturday I went for a 45 minute run to round off a busy training week.

Yesterday (Sunday) was an enjoyable rest day!

Swim - back to Lurgan pool

I stopped going to Lurgan pool a few months back because it was so dirty. I was that direction today so decided to go to the pool to save some time. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it had been cleaned and the floor of the pool is now back to its original white colour. It is a bit more expensive though so I think I will still go to Lisburn, but at least it's an option again.

I swam 650m today, consisting of 2x100m sets and 6x75m. It went ok. Tiring but could have kept going.

Cycle tomorrow - on the exercise bike again as I haven't had the chance to get my bike looked at yet.

Survived the calf test

First run today in nearly 3 weeks and my calf muscles came through fine. No niggles or pains at all. I did 30 minutes and it was a good one for blowing away the cobwebs.

For the stat geeks:
Average hr = 156
Max hr = 182
Total calories = 573
1 minute recovery: 157 to 131

A swim tomorrow.

First cycle - sort of...

Well, I got the bike on Friday and think it might need a service. I also am going to look into getting road tyres on it. Plus I have to get myself a helmet. So some stuff to sort out.

So I did 20 minutes today on a stationary/exercise bike out on my garage. If I am totally honest, I haven't been on a bicycle for about 20 years!! So even though my heart rate wasn't overly high, my legs were like jelly after just 20 minutes...lots of progress to be made.

The training schedule is crammed full this month, so lots of blogging to be expected.

Triathlon dates confirmed!

Crooked Lake Triathlon : 5th June 2010

Mourne Triathlon: 7th August 2010

Half Ireman: 22nd August 2010

(There's a gap in July for one so I'll see how things are going and maybe enter nearer the time.)