Weekend Recap (8/6-8/7)

Rolling hills of Santiago Canyon

What a blast this weekend was! I really needed a rewarding weekend, and I finally got one. There are so many factors in performance when training for triathlon. Sometimes I feel like I'm either tired, sore, stressed (work), fighting off a cold, babying a tender spot or just plain fat and lazy. At some point in my training, I hit plateaus and weeks go by where I feel like I'm working my ass off with no gain. Slowly, it's seemed that all my work has been adding up. I've noticed I'm picking up the pace a little on the bike and feeling more natural in my run.



This weekend we set out for our longest ride yet (60mi) and I smashed it! We did 50 miles of this course in March and I struggled really hard. We've been training hard and I was hoping to feel strong the whole ride. I set out with a negative split in mind just in case and I wound up averaging almost 3mph faster on average than last time! That may not sound like much, but on a bike, every mph faster takes a lot of power! It's a beautiful ride from our house near the Back Bay on bike trails out to Jamboree and Portola and then out Santiago Canyon and back. If you're ever looking for a good balance of rolling hills (2000' climbing) and flats, this is a great ride. There's plenty of places to refill water and you can stop and use the facilities at Jamboree/Santiago Canyon.

Lately, Adam and I have been playing a game on the bike. Either I'll turn around early or he'll add an extra lap so that on the way back home I'm ahead of him. His goal is to catch up to me and my goal is to make it as difficult as possible for him. Since we both spend most of our riding time alone, this adds in a nice reason to push harder and both of us have been picking up the pace a bit and having fun. I was determined to make Adam work hard to catch me on the way back since I was feeling strong, and I did! :)

Sunday we started the day slow. I can't hop out of bed every day before dawn and get a move on. Sometimes I have to remember what it's like to be slow and relaxed. After an enjoyable morning of lazing about with the cats, we headed out to the Back Bay for our longest run yet (10 miles). I set out at a comfortable pace that I felt I could hold for the way out and speed up on the way back. There's something beautiful about a long run, that nothing else can compare to. Long runs feel very interactive to me. I'm hyper-aware of my surrounding - I saw a huge pelican swooping along the bay, these crazy little fish jumping out of the water near the bridge, tons of butterflies and dragonflies zipping about their business and lots of other people out enjoying the day. Maybe it's a combination of fresh air and endorphins, but long runs restore my faith in the world, reduce my cynicism, and inspire a sense of connection to everything around me. With every passing mile I was pleased to check in with my body and still feel okay. I managed to hit my goal and negative split the last 5 miles (ran faster than the first 5 miles) and my 9th mile was my fastest of all!