Back to training

In the pool with the Ironman / soon to be Ironman crowd.  They have less than 2 weeks to go before Ironman Switzerland and are tapering so the swim wasn't too tough, but tough enough!  It was good to be back in the pool even though I don't have a swimming event till May next year but I have a lot of technical improvements to make over the summer.
I also just learned that where I train will be closing in October / November in order for preparations to start for the Commonwealth games so we'll need to find a new pool which can cater for our numbers and that won't be easy.  The weather forecast is good for the next few days so I'm going to start more regular bike training.  I have just found out about a "vertical mile" section of road which will be about 7 miles away from my house so that will become my regular route in preparation for the Bealach Mor in September.

Time for reflection

I attended the funeral of a friend's Father yesterday and as always funerals make me reflect on life.  What always strikes me is the interesting things people have done that you didn't know about.  However the question it raised on my mind was "what picture" would I choose to have on the Order of Service?  What would that say about me at a particular time in my life?  You may think I'm being a bit morbid and not my normal self today but actually this is what Mission Ironman is all about.
It's about making the most of your life, enjoying the NOW rather than putting the enjoyment off till some stage in the future that you may never reach.  It's about your family and friends and appreciating that everyone has a story, a history and we should listen to them more.  It's just a shame that we are all so busy caught up in life that we don't appreciate what is staring us in the face.
Normal service will be resumed tomorrow as I get back to training and continue on the Mission Ironman journey.  have a good one!

Heat wave

Down south for a couple of days and went out running at 6.45am, my first run since UK 70.3 .  Legs felt great but what's with the heat down here?  Sweat was pouring off me and it was early morning.  I had been reading up on heat training with Lanza in mind but wasn't expecting to find these temperatures in the UK.  So in the winter I'll be training indoors on a turbo trainer with the heating on or running outdoors with multiple layers on.  Should boost the sales of shower gel and deodorant!

Blow out

Two blow outs this weekend.  The first was when I was out with my son who is starting to cycle to get his fitness back after his ankle operation.  We were almost home when he got blocked in by a car which forced him over a pot hole which resulted in 2 punctured tires.  He was lucky that he didn't come off the bike so he's had his first introduction to the dangers that cars pose and also he'll be learning later how to change an inner tube!
The second blow out was a social affair and as I am not fully back training I had a few more glasses of wine than normal.  It seemed ok at the time but when you're popping neurofen at 6.30am and drinking water it's a sign that perhaps the wine has a different effect on me know.  I certainly won't be repeating it any time soon and normal training will resume on Wednesday.

Film shoot

This morning I listened to my body and shut the alarm off at 5.30 am on the grounds my body needed the sleep.  Next thing I knew it was 8am so my body was right.  However I had a full on day as it is now time for Mission Ironman to have its own website and I spent all day being filmed for a short promotional video.  I've done quite a bit of video before but it doesn't get any easier.  Creating a short message for a corporate client to "buy" me sort of goes against the grain as it's very much self publicity and I'm not pretending to be a top athlete.  My Mission Ironman journey is there to inspire people to "raise the bar", it's not about me, it's about the audience and convincing them to challenge their limitations.
Anyway, it was an exhausting day and by the end of August there will be a new website with some fun videos - might even include the out takes!  Back on the bike tomorrow, weather permitting.

Sports massage

Recovering from the event on Sunday will take a week but it doesn't mean I just laze around!  Yes I did have a long lie, 6.45am but I think I've earned it.  My food intake is up as my body tells me it needs calories and protein - triathlon is a bit like an experiment with your body!  I was starting to flag as the day went on but perhaps it was in anticipation of my appointment with the torturer.  I didn't realise how bad my legs were and in short the sports massage was excruciating.  He told me he was taking it easy but I need to go back next week for part 2 as it really was too sore to complete the session.
So tomorrow I will be back in the pool for 7am and another recovery swim.  The weekend weather forecast isn't good but I will try and ease my legs off with a spin session.  By the middle of next week I will have my training back to normal but with the shift in focus to cycling.  Can't wait but I'll catch up with a bit more sleep before then!

Recovery swim

5.30am start and the usual porridge to provide the required fuel.  In the pool at 7 and was going to have a recovery swim as my body was still tired.  After a 300 m warm up I tagged on to the back of the group who were doing a 300, 400, 500, 400, 300 swim and before I knew it I had completed the session with them.  I did use a pool bhoy which keeps your legs afloat and allows you to concentrate on technique which is going to be my main focus till the end of the year.
I was really pleased with the session as I didn't think I had the energy but something must be working to get me through that one.  But I'm not going to get carried away.  I will allow myself an easy 3 or 4 days and have already started discussions with my coach about my training for Bealach Mor - now that does sound painful!