Another week is about to come to an end. Branson 70.3 is approaching and life is keeping us busy. After our hilly bike + run workout in San Antonio (Dade City), Florida this AM, I'm in recovery mode so this blog post is very random but a brief summary of the week.
First off, another pic of Campy. Doing his thing - focusing on a good night of rest.
What a workout today! Karel told me it would be tough....and it was. 58 miles in hilly San Antonio - staying on his wheel and keeping his pace. Love my new climbing cassette and enjoyed having Karel in front of me to remind me how to pace my race on Sept 23rd. Love the hills but also need to race smart.
After the bike we went our seperate ways as I can no longer keep up w/ Karel on the run. We both ran for about an hour but w/ Karel holding an average pace of 6:50 min/mile for his 8 miles, I was just glad to do my thing for 7 miles. It was blazin' hot but we both felt good when it was over.
We both practiced our nutrition for Branson 70.3 by really focusing on getting in more calories on the first half of the bike. I typically use around 220 calories an hour during my long bike rides but I've increased it a bit and made sure to drink frequently (every 10-15 minutes) while riding. For the run, I'm really paying attention to my heart rate for when it gets too high, it's hard to recover (and digest/absorb nutrition properly). All great things to consider for any athlete who is preping for a race. Pre, during and post nutrition are my main priorities on a daily basis for I am an athlete. Not an exerciser.
Campy posing for the camera as Karel and I recover in my parents' pool.
Monday and Tuesday were recovery days....Just like last week. My body has been feeling great so the intentional recovery days are working perfectly. Karel and I swam an easy 2500 yards on Tuesday morning and took Monday completely off (aside from several daily Campy walks). Wed was a really tough swim and I'm really stepping things up by swimming in the "guys" lane. I Love to be pushed and although sometimes I need to adjust the set so I don't get lapped, it is still a great workout for me. Karel is doing GREAT in the water and I'm jealous that his "newbie" status allows him to make big improvements in such a short amount of time. On Friday we did 8 x 200's as our main set and I managed to squeeze in a 2:30 for #8. By far my fastest 200 in a LONG time. I've been working so hard for those little seconds here or there whereas Karel, on the other hand is dropping 5 seconds a 100 - almost every 1-2 weeks! Jealous but proud ;)
Track on Thursday was hard....really hard. Karel came up with our set and it was a killer on the lungs. Legs felt good thanks to consistent workouts + recovery but still a challenge for the body.
Main set: 1/2 mile, 1 mile, 1 mile, 2 mile, 1/2 mile, 1/2 mile.
Each interval had a specific pace for me to hold and I walked 200 meters in between. I was sweating buckets out there but it was a great way to start the day. Above is the smoothie I made - blueberries, whey protein, peach, milk, ice cubes, chia seeds, almonds, banana, spinach, celery and carrots. And a piece of cinnamon raisin toast. YUM!
Work has been going great at the hospital and I'm learning lots. I love the balance between clinical nutrition and sport nutrition/fitness/wellness through my business. There's always something to learn and both jobs are super rewarding.
Above is a pic of my oatmeal - blueberries, chia seeds, oats, banana, sunflower seeds, cinnamon. Such a delightful (and filling) way to start my day. I'd consider this meal #1 but I start my morning w/ a pre-training snack, fuel during all workouts and then recovery nutrition (either smoothie, whey or milk). In case you missed it, here's an article I did on Oats for USA Triathlon.
Hope you enjoyed the random weekly recap! Enjoy the rest of the long weekend and be safe.