Wed 23rd June 2010

Run - field circuits - 6.15pm
2 circuits jog, 6 x half circuit sprint, half circuit jog recovery

painful! Good for mental strength!

All the better for a hard ride...

Haven't been emotionally/energywise great the last few days - but have just made myself get out for a hilly ride followed by club time trial - beautiful evening...and knocked lots off my previous PB for this year, despite gusty breeze and a red light at Alnwick Gdns - where I caught up another timetrialer - so was too embarrassed to ride thru it! (as I normally do!) Which means I broke 44 mins - whoohoooo! (was aiming to break 45 min).

Went for longish run Sun - a flat one! Couldn't believe how much easier it felt! It was part of a sponsored walk my Mam had helped organise...so ran ish - from Alnmouth to Seaton Point (most of this was un-runnable, as the tide was really high, so was on rocks) and on to Boulmer (40mins)(had chat with someone there!) - then onto Howick woods bridge jus passed Sugar sands - and back to Boulmer - where met the others for a pic nic lunch (the BOulmer return took 40mins too - but for 5? miles rather than 3.) Then walked/ran with my son back to the car at Alnmouth.

Sun 20th June 10
medium run - 8 miles - 80 mins - along coast (see above)

Tues 22 June 2010
bike - to A1 and across to Lemmington bank - straight over and down the hill, left and up the steep back road passed the mill - although hard, I managed more easily than I expected. Then to Alnwick for timetrial, which did in 44 mins 18 secs, with a stop at he red light. Really pleased with that.

...bit adrift...

partly a time and energy thing - and need to sit down and plan a bit more - have some structure..

Saturday 12th June 2010

short run - 5 miles - undulating - (? 1 hr)

With sister whilst staying at Guardhouses in Lakes, for mum and dad's Golden wedding anniversary weekend...9.30pm, and stuffed with food - but did at least help relieve the stress of a very strange day looking for bikes, as son's got nicked off the back of the car on the way there...
felt quite strong! Should eat loads and drink wine before running more often!

Sunday 13th June 2010, 11am

Medium run - 7 miles - hilly - Keswick tri run route, in rain this time - much nicer! Ran alot more of it than on the actual event..(?1.5 hrs)

Tuesday 15th June 2010 -

cyclospeed circuits 1,2,3, cyclocore warm down (45 mins)
pushed harder than usual - helps being able to picture the Wensleydale hills!!

Wed 16th June 2010

run - field circuits - 4 x 1.5 circuits of footy field, with 1.5 jog recovery between each.. (30mins)
2min20
2min19
2min 15
2min 15

thurs 17th June
swim - tri lake session
met up with fairly new chap going in who reckoned he was a slow swimmer - teamed up with him, but he was quite a bit faster than me - meant I pushed on harder han might have otherwise, so that's maybe good - though also harder to settle into a rhythm. Up to top end, back down to birdshit island and back to middle - about 1 mile (? 35 ish mins)

Fri 18th June
cyclocore - circuits 1,2,3, and bonus abs - about 40 mins -

How to balance everything...???

SO hard!

Was really wobbly yesterday (not in work tuesdays) - more time in house, so aware how horrendously lacking in any attention it is - kids needing/taking more emotional attention/energy than sometimes this week - backlog of paperwork for work - and this really tough event to train for - should I really be doing it? is it taking/going to take to much time and energy?

And a new thing to balance is (partly thinking more about it as it was in a cycloclub podcast today) - the fact that I need to train harder - and longer/(more ?) - with not only available time - but the fact that my body is more tired from the higher intensity of training.

So today on my calendar (haven't got round to putting this week's training plan down here) was cyclospeed circuits and running field circuits. But I was really tired after a really tough session on the bike last night - did 10ish hilly miles followed by a timetrial (in the rain/fog) where I felt I pushed harder than I have before (although I usually do feel that!) - felt a wee bit stronger and able to push a bit harder I think...not that my time reflected - wasn't slower, but not quicker either - but then, it was difficult conditions and I slowed for the lights at the Gardens roadworks - which were on red - would have ploughed straight through, but there was a car stopped in front of me, which I dithered about overtaking in case the lights changed...and i had no-one to chase, as I was the only woman out, with a bunch of fast chaps! So what to do? Thought about a gentle run round the field - but couldn't face going out...decided on cyclospeed bonus abs - and as I had that DVD in, had a look at the PNF bit for the first time - ended up doing it - sort of an intense very specific thing..quite good.

So I think I might need more intense/longer sessions of training - but with longer recovery periods in between..

Tuesday 8th June

medium bike- 5.45pm 25 ish miles, bit less? 1 hour hilly but fairly relaxed ride, focussed on technique on hills - shoescrapers, scissors and standing. Also tried to manage in not absolute granny gear as much as usual!
Timetrial - usual club route, 12ish miles, undulating. 46mins something (hoped it'd be quicker)
cycle home - slowly - knackered! Felt a bit nauseous later - must've worked hard! (2 hrs 15ish )
cyclocore - warm down - 15 mins

Wed 9th June

sea swim (9am) - still a bit headachy after last night, but very invigorating 20mins in very choppy sea sorted me out! In drizzle too.

cyclospeed - advanced PNF - 20 mins/ bonus abs )10mins

Day at Glentress

My son couldn't quite believe I didn't mountain bike - but I didn't want to use the borrowed one, as I was actually supposed to have returned it ages ago - even though it wouldn't have been ridden by its owner anyway! Still felt wrong..and couldn't afford to hire one....so the plan was to do a long hilly run. This was sabotaged by forgetting the sandwiches i'd made - which meant i needed to meet my son and his friend at the cafe in a couple of hours...so i did 1.5 hrs, and planned to do a bit more later - but felt wiped out and headachy by then so I slept instead! (v.hot day, period...etc)

I was quite pleased with what I did do though - decided to push harder with recovery stops, rather than a constant slow plod. Thought I might improve more doing that. And I developed a new verb - to 'lib' down the hills - ie visualise being light and skippy and relaxed, like a friend who fell runs.

Sat 5th June - 12.30pm - medium run - Glentress (mountain bike centre near Peebles, Scotland) - 1.5 hrs.....'fartlek' ie push on efforts, for two half hr periods

Don't think I actually had a plan this week as such - but did 10 hrs good training, so I'm pleased. Trying to mentally 'let go' of improving at swimming at the moment - hard, as I want to keep improving - which I would if i had time to work at it - but I haven't - other things more a priority - so I'm going to have to just accept that loads of others who were slower than me, are all overtaking!

Wensleydale recky..scary

Think i might have bitten off more than I can chew with this one! Whilst attempting to climb the numerous 1 in 4 ascents, (the event website description says there are 4, but actually it is more, I'm pretty sure!), I admit to wondering whether I should just NOT enter. There's a serious chance I'll not finish the bike route before the 4pm run start cut off time...more than that, I'm not convinced it's possible for me to do that particular bike route followed by a 12 mile fell run. I know for sure I'll be walking a fair few of the steepest bits. Haven't been on the first bit out of the swim yet - but i would guess that's a bit to walk at that stage, not having warmed up yet....on to Askrigg - I'll probably walk the first bit out of Askrigg - although it's just about possible as it's fairly short, i think I counted 6 very steep sections before you get to the tops - last week I only managed the 3rd in full, and parts of the 5th and 6th. So if I attempt the first, I'll definitely have no legs for any of the others. What's my aim for that bit? - I think 1.walk, 2.walk, 3 bike, 4 walk, 5 and 6 bike.

On the positive side - I managed to stay on the bike coming down the other side into Swaledale - seriously steep and scary - I was hanging my glutes over the back of the saddle, and was full on the brakes (I'm sure my tyres must be about worn through). But it's about as hard to walk down, so you might aswell be on the bike. (I failed to get the car up here last year - had to go back down backwards).

On the psychotic personality side - Muker tea shop's dishwasher had broken down and it was shut for a few hours....I was NOT happy, having been thinking - hard - about cream scones (the best ever here) - whilst climbing...in hot sun...

Then it's the return over the tops to Wensleydale on the 'Buttertubs' road. It climbs fairly steeply (but probably possibly? I was tired the day I did this part so I walked much of it (also very hot, sunny day)- it was the 3rd day of camping/training) - maybe 14-17%? Then it gets steeper and less possible and I'll probably walk it - to a flatish section, before another extremely steep bit (with a fence alongside to stop you faling to your death!) - which I'll walk. Then lovely over the undulating moor tops again, and a 17% drop down to Hardraw. Once on the main road, it's relatively flat and fast til the Garsdale head turn, 10ish miles down the road, maybe more? Though by the standards of many triathlons, would probably still be classed as hilly!

So, UP to Garsdale station and beyond - impossibly steep again, especially the section passed the station road and just after. I did this on training day 1, but still couldn't ride much of it. Spectacular views - over to the Howgills behind, and Dentdale beyond...and another scary descent with full on brakes down passed Dent Station. At the bottom there's a pretty section through the valley before climbing - probably mostly manageably by Aug - (17%?), passed Newby Head (?) viaduct, eventually meeting the main road going back to Hawes - which seemed to go on for ages, even though it was only 7 miles. Psychologically I expected it to be easier, as it was physically - but in reality, I was knackered! And I'd not started with the Muker loop, as will have to on the event..

So the bike bits were day 1 and 3 - though I did from Hardraw up to tops above Askrigg on day 1 aswell as as 3 - turned back as i decided i didn't have the energy or time to go all round the loop.

Day 2 I attempted the run. This was a positive, because when done in isolation ie not preceded by impossible bike route - it's mostly runnable. It is a bit relentlessly up for much of the first 6 miles - but nowhere near as steep as at Helvellyn. And there is a section of flatter moorland before (I think?) a final climb up to Gunnerside. I didn't quite make it that far though, not through lack of energy, but because it got really boggy. It had rained all day, and was still drizzly, and i got a bit spooked. I started trying to detour the flooded path via peat boggy areas - but got worried about sinking down a hole. And even though i could see the top, the cloud was swirling around threatening to engulf it again - which when I looked back not too long after, it had done so....and I'd only seen one other person up there, a long time before...I did, however, have the company of lots of amazing sounding birds - I knew which were curlews and lapwings - but wasn't sure about a third, especially common on the section (unlike the bike routes - where it was mainly the curlews and lapwings) - it made a high pitched single very clear note (about a top f!) - and you could hear lots of them talking to eachother...I was hoping it was a plover, as i know a song - taught by a friend living not far from there - with plovers, peewits and curlews in it! But the pic in the bird book didn't look like it.

So the positives: - I can go down hill steeply without going over the handlebars, though I would prefer to close my eyes!

- the run is potentially manageable

- I managed 3 days hard training in a row ok - shame I'll have to do all that in a day..umm - therein lies the problem

Conclusion - I can't bring myself to not do it now! I will get better on the steep hills...there's still 9 weeks, 8 if don't include the week before. Better to do it and fail, than not to do it and have no possibility of managing it..

..but I need to plan my training, and up it loads....not quite sure how to go about it. One of the main limiting factors on the hills was endurance on really steep bits - keeping up that extreme pedalling....is that 'anaerobic endurance'? I will look up some of the cycloclub training plans and see if i can adapt them...

sat 29th May 10
Sea swim, 30 mins ish

Sunday 30th May
medium run - 1.5 hrs - first part of W.dale run route - up to cairn before get to gate at the top before the flatter section. Felt good. (evening)

Monday 31st May
medium hilly bike (8.30am) (2 hrs) - about 20miles - main road towards Sedburgh, left to Garsdale head, steep up, up etc, across tops and drop to Dentdale, up again to meet main roadm left and back to Hawes, and up to Hardraw

short hilly bike (5.30) (1.5 hr ish) - about 13 miles - over t Askrigg and up to the cattle grid and back again.

Tuesday 1st June
long run - about 2.5 hrs - 10miles ish - from Hardraw following penine way up nearly to Shunner fell and back. Felt good, even though drizzly

Wednesday 2nd June
med hilly bike - about 20 miles - to Askrigg, up and over to Muker, up and over back to Hardraw.
Tired today, and very hot. 3 hrs?

Thursday 3rd june -
sea swim 30 mins ish- tired, but beautiful evening so couldn't resist!