February ends in cold

Ahh, wish I was here now

To say I'm sick of the cold weather would be a major understatement. I'm really, actually, tired of bitching about this every week. Got some good indoor rides this week. Got back on the power cranks and the hammy handled that well. My left heel has been the only thing slowing me this week, starting to think it could be related to the new bike fit, timing fits. Either way, I have it and have to deal with it. I had an ART and Graston treatment on Friday and that really helped. Ran Saturday after 90 minutes on the trainer and felt pretty good. I am getting to where I can push the run pace a little now although I am seriously lacking fitness after 6 months + of not running! I want to work on this so need to take care of this stupid heel pain. Good ride outdoors today and the SRM reflected that after the download. I want to start lengthening the long ride a bit now, hoping it'll be warm enough to do so. Still thinking about racing the end of March, 4 weeks away. I haven't raced really since May so I'm chomping! Celia asked me "why race, what's the hurry"......I love to race and have been on such a short leash for so long it's really hard to explain. I know I'll get my ass handed to me but I don't really care as long as I don't re-injure myself. I'm progressing with the hamstring injury so we'll see how the next few weeks go. Watching the US-Canada hockey match now so gotta go. Hoping for warmer climes!
Cheers.
'

SUP, bikes and honu

Great weekend, finally, here in West Florida. Not quite up to our so-called average temperatures but close enough. Ended up on the beach Sat and Sun and have a little sunburn on the face to prove it! Got in five bike rides this week and feel the new position on the tri bike is pretty good. New muscles being used which I'll have to build into but feel comfy overall. Running was going pretty well until Weds when my left heel was hurting. WTF. Well, I always said back in my running days that if something hurts more than your major injury issue then the major injury is probably doing ok. No big deal, just had to dial the running down a bit but the hammy is progressing well. Thinking of racing the end of March....we'll see. Got out the SUP's after many weeks of hibernation and, boy, was it worth it. I did a power paddle run first thing when we got to the beach today then did another paddle with the Dane a little later and the Gulf was glassy. I had a loggerhead turtle swim right by me, it was awesome! The Dane saw one as well then we had another turtle swim between us. The dolphins were out in numbers and I got as close as I've ever been to that, really cool. Also, saw a little sting ray and puffer fish sort of thing. My camera is inoperable so I'm saving my nickels for a new, waterproof camera so I can take photos on the SUP. All in all, great weekend and can't wait for summer! Tired of the cold and will try and get back in the pool this week without getting hypothermia! I'm not very fit now but I am feeling less injured which means the world to me right now. Fitness will come when I can train more consistently. Gonna try an up things a bit this week. Hang on....
Cheers.

Chilly Willy Duathlon

No racing for me but other multisport athletes in the area got under way this morning in the cold Florida air. The Dane was quite nervous about this race but excited just the same. I was playing spectator......again. I did manage 2 hours on the Computrainer yesterday morning so my legs were pretty toasted. I had only planned for a run today. It was, again, an unseasonable cold day in Florida and many layers had to be piled on the spectate today! I much prefer spectating in the summer. Anyhow, good showing and the Dane won his first age group race in his new age group, the "AARP" age group, as he calls it. He was also 12th overall which is a great showing, I think. We had two youngsters that ride with us, Cody and Shayne, that performed really well and they definitely have a future in the sport! I took some video so will upload that when I get to it. I'm slowly progressing. Big thing was I changed my bike fit this week. The motivation for this was a new saddle, Adamo Breakaway. This saddle, reportedly, allows the rider to sit much further forward on the saddle which, in turn, allows the rider to tap into more power. If it's good enough for Lance Armstrong, it's good enough for me! Anyway, got Retul'd again just to dial it all in and ended up with my saddle height lowered quite a bit. This feels fine when riding but the muscles will take some adjusting. I noticed that on my run today. I did manage 14 miles of running this week so it's going in the right direction. I do have to be careful with pushing the bike intensity before my legs get more accustomed the the new fit. No racing on my short-term horizon though so more spectating will be the theme. Well, at least I can record more video! Happy Valentines to all and mostly my wonderful Dane! I love you!
Cheers

Trying to get in shape is tough

Wow, you can get really out of shape when you take 5+ months off from hard training. Guess I haven't done that in so many years that I forgot how horrid it really feels. Well, making up for it now. I've had some good runs this past week which aren't fast but they are pain-free and that's what it's all about for me right now. No racing goals in the near future so just trying to get back into a routine with swim, bike, run. The winter here has really sucked. For Florida standards, this has been cold, windy and just plain ick. When we get out to ride, we ride hard to keep warm. I'm getting closer to not getting dropped on the Sunday ride which is improvement. What I really lack right now is the explosive jump to stay on the group. I can only do it so many times before I get dropped. I can go a long time at a steady pace just fine, which is all that matters for racing but it's nice to be the only girl hanging on to the group of guys. Not there yet but I will be soon. I'm also really stoked that my brother did his first brick this weekend (run-bike workout, mother) and actually enjoyed it. He has his first triathlon in 5 weeks and he is really excited about it, so am I. He is super pumped and this motivates me as well. He had some knee pain and an MRI found that he has been running around on a torn ACL, medial and lateral meniscus.... guess the mental toughness thing runs in the fam! Nice, bro! Rooting for the Saints today. Who Dat!
cheers.