Last year I tried (tri, see what I did there?) my hand at a couple sprint distance triathlons. As I was always primarily a runner, I’d never taken a swimming lesson and the only bike I had was a “hybrid” which was basically a mountain bike. Still, even though I didn’t swim “right” (freestyle is the stroke typically used) and got passed by just about every bike out there, I was hooked.
You can read my recaps here, and here.
Over the winter, I bought a triathlon bike. Starting in March, I got a friend to help me swim (it made a HUGE difference). So this year, I’m stepping up my game a little, and spending the summer training for an Olympic distance. The one I picked is a .7 mile ( a little more than 1100 meters) swim, a 25 mile bike and a 10k.
And because I like to blog and document these things, everyone gets to read (or ignore) another set of weekly training recaps! Fun!
I cheated a bit this week because I was supposed to have LASIK surgery (which if you follow me on Facebook got canceled TWICE) and set it from Saturday to Saturday instead of Sunday to Sunday. I’m following a 16 week swim heavy plan from Beginner Triathlete, but I’m starting at week 5 because I felt comfortable enough with my base to jump in a little later. These plans are a little different from what I’m used to following, which sets workouts by miles. This one uses time.
So here we go. I did a lot more swimming this week because I thought I was going to have to take two weeks off post LASIK.
Saturday: 45 mile ride (2 hours 22 minutes). Lesson learned on this ride – just commit to the 50 miles at the beginning or risk getting left behind. I didn’t quite jump in fast enough after a break and lost the 50 mile group, but was going faster than the girl who was doing 5 and turning around, and got stuck alone in the middle. Then I overestimated how far I needed to go before turning around and ultimately ended up riding 20 miles alone. The effort used to ride 20 alone I am sure was more than if I’d just done 25 with the group. You live, you learn. 🙂
Sunday: 32 minute swim, 30 minute (slow) run with the stroller.
Monday: 48 minute swim – 1200 meters without stopping. I hate sharing lanes, but only because I get paranoid about hitting someone and so end up hitting the wall instead.
Tuesday: 34 minute swim – I did a few intervals, but my asthma was acting up so they didn’t go well.
Wednesday: 42 minute run – asthma sucked again. Run sucked again.
Thursday: 15 minute run – sounds odd, but I participated in track meet against a couple local speed work teams. I actually game in 3rd place in the 400 meter (1:16) and WON the 200 meter (:34)! This was particularly surprising after 14 days straight working out (blame the LASIK cancelations) but I drank my Plexus (update on that coming) to keep hydrated and felt great – at least up until the last 400 when my legs died. 🙂
Friday/Saturday: rest
Week Totals
Swim: 114 minutes swimming, 2 hours 22 minutes biking, 57 minutes running.
Next Weeks Goals
Swim:2 hours 7 minutes
Bike: 2 hours 51 minutes
Run: 1 hour 25 minutes
Here we go!
Journey To the Finish Line 
July 3, 2015 at 7:40 pm
You rocked it out last night! I really didn’t feel that great. My mile time was 6:40 and I know I can do better, just that I’ve had an exhausting week of training and work. It was really fun watching you compete in the events and neat that you surprised yourself not knowing you could run that fast, especially with all the training and with your lasik being cancelled and the stress of that. I hope the machine is fixed so you can get the lasik soon and come back to speedwork when you’re recovered :).
July 3, 2015 at 8:02 pm
Thanks girl! We all have off days. I was surprised it was an “on” day for me. I really had a great time at the track meet – can’t wait for the next one!
July 4, 2015 at 11:58 am
Your training is really impressive! I can barely swim two laps without dying. Asthma makes it soooooo hard. I feel like my lungs might swallow me when I run sometimes. But that’s what makes us stronger. We don’t give up!! Keep rockin it girl!
July 4, 2015 at 3:21 pm
That’s how i started with swimming! Having a friend help me with my form made all the difference in the world!! I feel like my asthma has been worse lately too which sucks. And thanks!!!
July 4, 2015 at 7:44 pm
Great job! It always drove me crazy that they make tri training plans by time and not distance because the actual race is measured by a specific distance, not a certain time (so i ended up converting them). But that’s mostly because I’m slow and was worried that I wouldn’t get close enough to the race distance in the time they suggested. You’re fast so you should have no issues!
July 4, 2015 at 7:53 pm
Yeah it makes me nuts too. I end up converting to miles in my head and then adding or subtracting some minutes. It’s harder with swimming because I’m still new at it. I’d like to do a half ironman one day! You’ve done an Olympic right? Any advice?
July 4, 2015 at 7:58 pm
Yep, I’ve done one. My only advice is to enjoy it! Don’t worry about your time to the extent that you don’t have fun. 😉