somehow, july is over
July FLEW by! Good grief! Let's take a look at those goals.....
July Goals
Itty Bitty Teeny McTiny Tri Goal: finish. That, at least, should be a slam-dunk, but I don't want to speak too soon, so I'll say, squeee, wish me luck! Not only did I finish, I put the hammer down on the bike ride and didn't die during the run.
Run a 5K. Be healthy. Keep in mind these are not mutually exclusive. Ran 2, including a new PR!
Break the 50-mile long ride mark. I didn't break it during July, but August 1st brought a 54-mile ride.
Keep dragging friends out for bike rides. I enjoy this so so much. Did a LOT of riding with friends this month. Love it.
Continue to experiment with both cooking and my diet. Done & done!
I'm still making small strides on the running, but this durned IT band is really preventing me from making the progress I'd like to see. I did 3 races this month, a tri and 2 5K's, and I was so happy to get back into that part of the running community. But I still wouldn't call it recovery. I'm a middle-distancer, and that's always been where I've been happiest. There's an 8-mile out-and-back on one of the trails near my house with baby rolling hills by the water, and I miss it. I miss settling into the long run zone, either chatting with my running buddy or just listening to my tunes and turning over the miles. I miss the 5-mile tempo run I would do from my house, or the 4-miler with the straight stretch in the middle where I'd do 30-second pickups while dodging people walking home from the metro. I'm trying really hard to be thankful for the running that I can do, for the 3-mile runs where I feel tightness, not pain, but it's hard when I know what I'm missing.
That said, I'm still working to find balance everywhere else. As my cycling mileage ramped up, I started having a lot of knee, leg & fatigue issues. After a week or so, I was able to isolate it to some specific exercises on my leg lifting days, as well as just generally beating up my legs too much, too soon. So I backed off my lifting from 6-7 days a week to 4-5, doing legs only twice a week, and been much more careful about what I do on a "legs" day. This seems to have helped a lot - my knees have calmed down, and while my quads exist kind of in a general state of tired, I've been able to adjust what I'm doing to where I still feel like the lifting is adding value to my running and cycling. I've been swimming about once a week, which also seems to be the right balance for now. I don't have another tri on the schedule just yet, as the next one I'd have my eye on is an Oly, which requires running 6.2 miles - not something I can do right now. But I'm looking at some cycling tours, and also for some more 5K's and hopefully a 4- or 5-miler as I continue my slow but steady build.
I've also continued to experiment with my diet, and have dropped red meat completely. I've been slowly phasing out chicken (my weakness), although I'm not sure I'll go all-vegetarian just yet. I've also finally been more successful about getting more protein in my diet, and have been noticing a huge difference in how I feel, both while exercising and in the rest of my daily life.
July
Miles run: 36, for a monthly high since March.
Miles cycled: 270, for an all-time high.
Puppy hair growth: about an inch. Not enough.
Showers taken: at LEAST 6.
Bike crashes not due to clipped-in shoes: 1
Photos taken of crash injuries and not shared on the internet: 5 (you're welcome)
Laps of Haines Point: huge, overlarge number
Times I've flexed my biceps at someone: 31 (at least once per day)
Bike jerseys purchased so cyclists stop rolling their eyes at my midriff: 3
Complete rest days taken: 4
Friends who moved to Colorado: 4
August Goals
Complete a metric century (100K = 62 miles).
Another race. It'd be nice if it was a 4- or 5-miler but I'm not picky.
Keep pool running.
Try some veggies I've hated since I've been a kid. Things change.
Break 40 running miles for the month.
What are your goals for August?
July Goals
Itty Bitty Teeny McTiny Tri Goal: finish. That, at least, should be a slam-dunk, but I don't want to speak too soon, so I'll say, squeee, wish me luck! Not only did I finish, I put the hammer down on the bike ride and didn't die during the run.
Run a 5K. Be healthy. Keep in mind these are not mutually exclusive. Ran 2, including a new PR!
Break the 50-mile long ride mark. I didn't break it during July, but August 1st brought a 54-mile ride.
Keep dragging friends out for bike rides. I enjoy this so so much. Did a LOT of riding with friends this month. Love it.
Continue to experiment with both cooking and my diet. Done & done!
I'm still making small strides on the running, but this durned IT band is really preventing me from making the progress I'd like to see. I did 3 races this month, a tri and 2 5K's, and I was so happy to get back into that part of the running community. But I still wouldn't call it recovery. I'm a middle-distancer, and that's always been where I've been happiest. There's an 8-mile out-and-back on one of the trails near my house with baby rolling hills by the water, and I miss it. I miss settling into the long run zone, either chatting with my running buddy or just listening to my tunes and turning over the miles. I miss the 5-mile tempo run I would do from my house, or the 4-miler with the straight stretch in the middle where I'd do 30-second pickups while dodging people walking home from the metro. I'm trying really hard to be thankful for the running that I can do, for the 3-mile runs where I feel tightness, not pain, but it's hard when I know what I'm missing.
That said, I'm still working to find balance everywhere else. As my cycling mileage ramped up, I started having a lot of knee, leg & fatigue issues. After a week or so, I was able to isolate it to some specific exercises on my leg lifting days, as well as just generally beating up my legs too much, too soon. So I backed off my lifting from 6-7 days a week to 4-5, doing legs only twice a week, and been much more careful about what I do on a "legs" day. This seems to have helped a lot - my knees have calmed down, and while my quads exist kind of in a general state of tired, I've been able to adjust what I'm doing to where I still feel like the lifting is adding value to my running and cycling. I've been swimming about once a week, which also seems to be the right balance for now. I don't have another tri on the schedule just yet, as the next one I'd have my eye on is an Oly, which requires running 6.2 miles - not something I can do right now. But I'm looking at some cycling tours, and also for some more 5K's and hopefully a 4- or 5-miler as I continue my slow but steady build.
I've also continued to experiment with my diet, and have dropped red meat completely. I've been slowly phasing out chicken (my weakness), although I'm not sure I'll go all-vegetarian just yet. I've also finally been more successful about getting more protein in my diet, and have been noticing a huge difference in how I feel, both while exercising and in the rest of my daily life.
July
Miles run: 36, for a monthly high since March.
Miles cycled: 270, for an all-time high.
Puppy hair growth: about an inch. Not enough.
Showers taken: at LEAST 6.
Bike crashes not due to clipped-in shoes: 1
Photos taken of crash injuries and not shared on the internet: 5 (you're welcome)
Laps of Haines Point: huge, overlarge number
Times I've flexed my biceps at someone: 31 (at least once per day)
Bike jerseys purchased so cyclists stop rolling their eyes at my midriff: 3
Complete rest days taken: 4
Friends who moved to Colorado: 4
August Goals
Complete a metric century (100K = 62 miles).
Another race. It'd be nice if it was a 4- or 5-miler but I'm not picky.
Keep pool running.
Try some veggies I've hated since I've been a kid. Things change.
Break 40 running miles for the month.
What are your goals for August?