Back In The Pool!

So today started off just like any other training day. I woke up a little before 5:00 A.M. and got in a brisk four mile run around Hoboken (7:05 pace) before work. After I got home something extremely rare and noteworthy happened -- I actually did a swim workout! Yes, Virginia, my long swimming drought is finally over. The pathetic thing is there is a nice college pool three blocks from my house, so there is no good reason for my not swimming more (aside from sheer laziness). I ended up swimming ~1,600 yards, consisting of a 100 yard warm-up (probably too short I know), five 25/50/75/100 yard ladders (cut me some slack -- first time in the pool in like two years), and a 400 yard or so warm down. I was surprised that I did not feel too winded in the pool, although I am sure that my form was awful. I figure if I can consistently make it to the pool once a week between now and the end of the season, I should be in pretty decent shape for my race swims. Anyway, three workouts (and two blog posts) in two days -- not a bad way to start the week!

Good Training Week

So I had a really solid week of training last week, which was partially thanks to my sprained left wrist. I decided my weekly weight training workout probably was not the best idea given the circumstances, so I added another cardio workout instead. Thus, I ended up getting in about 60 miles on the bike (albeit, 14 of which were on a spin bike) over the course of three rides and ran three times as well (two four mile runs, and two miles on the treadmill after the spin bike workout). I definitely feel like I am getting my cycling legs underneath me, and given the fact I ran through last off-season, I am very happy with my running right now as well. I guess the true test of my fitness will come in my first race of the season next month, the Queens Biathlon. This week is off to a solid start as well -- I met up with an old colleague who is starting to really get into triathlons and did three loops in Central Park, which combined with getting there and back from the ferry was a good solid 22 mile ride. I am definitely kind of heavy right now after a weekend of eating poorly and boozing with an old friend in town -- I guess this post cannot be COMPLETELY positive...

Riding

Well the weather has finally started to be consistently nice here, so I have started to ride outside again. Last weekend I did an 18 mile bike/2 mile run brick workout, and today I did an early morning ~22 mile bike ride. I have continued riding my usual out and back along River Road towards the George Washington Bridge, and the descent just south of the bridge (the one I nearly lost my life and virtually destroyed my old bike on last year) continues to scare me. Aside from that, I am feeling really strong on my new bike and my fit feels pretty dialed in. I am definitely faster on the new bike as well--on flat roads I can pretty easily hold 21-22 MPH without really pushing it, and I am blowing other cyclists/triathletes off the road on a regular basis (not bragging, just fact). So all in all, I am pretty happy with where my training is right now. I am still carrying a few more pounds than I would like--for some reason I am having a very difficult time staying away from sweets, especially when I am at work. One other minor detail--I sprained my wrist pretty bad late last week playing soccer, which caused me to miss a workout. Not the end of the world, but I guess it just goes to show you why many serious triathletes generally avoid playing other sports...