I've been watching the forecast for today the past couple days. They've been calling for 50-60 degrees in the morning, and kept changing their mind when it was going to rain. I woke up this morning and it was about 55 degrees and sunny. Perfect, right?
Almost.
The only exception? The wind. My God the wind. I've ridden in wind before, some rides around 15-20 mph gusts and they were rough. They pushed me forward on the way out, and pushed my limits on the way back.
Today the winds were sustained at 23 MPH with gusts around 35 straight out of the south. I'll be honest, the thought of hitting the trainer crossed my mind... for about a second. The competition doesn't care of it's windy. And if they do? Well then, I just got a step ahead.
On the way out, there were flat stretches (not downhills) where I was pushing 30 MPH with the wind at my back, it was great. I felt pro, even though I knew it was only because of the wind at my back. Going east and west was probably the most dangerous, since the gusts were making it fairly difficult to control the bike, but I managed to keep control.
Going south was brutal. I was sitting in my granny gear for the majority of that stretch, working like hell just to go 10-12 MPH. Much less dangerous, though, since the gusts weren't threatening to throw me off the road or into traffic.
Finally, I got back to the school. And kept riding. Screw you, Ma Nature, I'm not done with you yet. Time to put you in your place for another 10 miles.
More of the same on the second lap. But I finally finished and really felt like I had accomplished something. Here's the numbers:
Time: 1:51:12
Distance: 31.01 miles
Speed: 16.7 mph
Cadence: 94 rpm
HR: 153 bpm
I'll leave you with this:
Why Do You Run [or Ride]?
Because you're wondering if your grandchildren will too.
Because its raining.
Because you can, and others can't.
Because its faster than walking.
Because that shaky-leg-thing is all about nervous energy.
Because you can't fly.
Because you can fly.
Because your personal best is just that, yours.
Because the pain of a blister is nothing compared to the pain of stopping.
Because you like the resistance the wind gives you.
Because you like the resistance you give the wind.
Just Because.
-NYC Marathon Ad
Showing posts with label Russell Cave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Russell Cave. Show all posts
Monday, March 3, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Conquering my Fears, Pushing my Limits
This morning my alarm decided to go off right in the middle of a REM cycle. The result? I woke up feeling groggy and slow. I checked the weather, since yesterday it was forecast to be about 40 degrees and sunny. Not so much. Try 31 degrees and cloudy. Now, normally I draw the line at 35 degrees for riding outside, but I decided to suck it up. What's four degrees?
I was loading the bike up on my car to head out to the country to ride, when a prissy looking sorority girl walked by me. She gave me a look that distinctly said "Oh my god, don't you know its totally like the arctic out here like?!"
Once I got out there, the ride started out like any other. The game plan was 21 miles, as usual. I had a strong focus on cadence, I worked a little bit on riding with one hand to learn better balance to make nutrition easier, I tried to keep my heart rate below 160. You know, the usual stuff.
Right when I was finishing up, though, something happened. The parking lot was to my left, but there was all this road ahead of me.
Forget it. I'm not done yet. Not today. I have unfinished business out here today. I have fears to conquer. I have limits to beat into the ground. I'm not turning in yet.
That decision was huge. Why? Let's recall the last time I rode 30+ miles. I bonked. Hard. At points I was debating calling someone to give me directions back to town, because my group had dropped me ages ago. After somehow finishing, I was demolished for the rest of the weekend. My legs were dead, my ass hurt like nobody's ass should ever hurt, my energy was completely drained miles before I even finished that ride.
I've had every reason to fear the distance. It left me raw and exposed to the elements, and left my limits laying all over the road. I knew the moment I decided to keep going, I might be in for the exact same mess all over again.
I was ready for it.
It never happened. I stayed strong the entire time. Not once did I feel like I was in over my head. Not once did I consider stopping.
Afterwards, my legs feel fine. My ass doesn't hurt. I've been completely functional all day; it had no effect whatsoever on my energy level. If this isn't progress, I don't know what is.
Here are the numbers for the day:
Distance: 30.99 miles
Time: 1:49:29
Speed: 17.0 MPH
Cadence: 96 rpm
HR: 157 bpm
Garmin Data
It's good to be back to my healthy self.
I was loading the bike up on my car to head out to the country to ride, when a prissy looking sorority girl walked by me. She gave me a look that distinctly said "Oh my god, don't you know its totally like the arctic out here like?!"
Once I got out there, the ride started out like any other. The game plan was 21 miles, as usual. I had a strong focus on cadence, I worked a little bit on riding with one hand to learn better balance to make nutrition easier, I tried to keep my heart rate below 160. You know, the usual stuff.
Right when I was finishing up, though, something happened. The parking lot was to my left, but there was all this road ahead of me.
Forget it. I'm not done yet. Not today. I have unfinished business out here today. I have fears to conquer. I have limits to beat into the ground. I'm not turning in yet.
That decision was huge. Why? Let's recall the last time I rode 30+ miles. I bonked. Hard. At points I was debating calling someone to give me directions back to town, because my group had dropped me ages ago. After somehow finishing, I was demolished for the rest of the weekend. My legs were dead, my ass hurt like nobody's ass should ever hurt, my energy was completely drained miles before I even finished that ride.
I've had every reason to fear the distance. It left me raw and exposed to the elements, and left my limits laying all over the road. I knew the moment I decided to keep going, I might be in for the exact same mess all over again.
I was ready for it.
It never happened. I stayed strong the entire time. Not once did I feel like I was in over my head. Not once did I consider stopping.
Afterwards, my legs feel fine. My ass doesn't hurt. I've been completely functional all day; it had no effect whatsoever on my energy level. If this isn't progress, I don't know what is.
Here are the numbers for the day:
Distance: 30.99 miles
Time: 1:49:29
Speed: 17.0 MPH
Cadence: 96 rpm
HR: 157 bpm
Garmin Data
It's good to be back to my healthy self.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Progress Across the Board!
Yeah, thats right! I used an exclamation point in the subject line, you know you're in for it today!
These past few days have spelled progress in all three sports. All of them! Remember the Driven post I had a few days ago? Yeah, the engine is going full steam! Here's the breakdown:
Swimming
Thursday night we did a bike-swim session with TNT. I rode my ass off on the trainer for about an hour, then headed straight for the pool (don't worry, I rinsed off!). I got in. It was just another day. Then my coach said five extremely obvious words that completely made things click: "relax your arms on recovery." Duh. Perfectly obvious, right?
Relax when you recover, so you can recover. As soon as I started doing this, it knocked my stroke count down to 14-15 per lap, even when I was swimming hard! The real kicker? Swimming got a lot easier. Its amazing how 5 words can change your life!
Running
This morning I headed out to Todd's Road to run with everybody. Once again, a new post-injury milestone: 8 miles, 100% pain free. I finished feeling completely fresh. I could have kept going, easily! However, I'm increasing nice and steady just to make sure I don't have a relapse, or cause some new injury. This was also my first run that lasted more than an hour (barely). Here's the numbers for today's run:
8:22
8:02
7:57
7:24
7:27
7:12
6:57
6:57
Avg HR: 163
Garmin data
Biking
I also had a new high average speed for biking! The kicker? I did it just a few hours after an 8 mile run. I set out with the intention of just riding really easy. The result? I paced myself better because I was focusing on high cadence rather than high speed! The wind was killer on the way back in, too, but I managed! Here's the stats:
Time: 1:12:24
Distance: 21.23 miles
Speed: 17.6 mph
Cadence: 93 rpm
HR: 160 bpm
Garmin Data
Needless to say. I'm revved up. Progress feeds the engine, right?
These past few days have spelled progress in all three sports. All of them! Remember the Driven post I had a few days ago? Yeah, the engine is going full steam! Here's the breakdown:
Swimming
Thursday night we did a bike-swim session with TNT. I rode my ass off on the trainer for about an hour, then headed straight for the pool (don't worry, I rinsed off!). I got in. It was just another day. Then my coach said five extremely obvious words that completely made things click: "relax your arms on recovery." Duh. Perfectly obvious, right?
Relax when you recover, so you can recover. As soon as I started doing this, it knocked my stroke count down to 14-15 per lap, even when I was swimming hard! The real kicker? Swimming got a lot easier. Its amazing how 5 words can change your life!
Running
This morning I headed out to Todd's Road to run with everybody. Once again, a new post-injury milestone: 8 miles, 100% pain free. I finished feeling completely fresh. I could have kept going, easily! However, I'm increasing nice and steady just to make sure I don't have a relapse, or cause some new injury. This was also my first run that lasted more than an hour (barely). Here's the numbers for today's run:
8:22
8:02
7:57
7:24
7:27
7:12
6:57
6:57
Avg HR: 163
Garmin data
Biking
I also had a new high average speed for biking! The kicker? I did it just a few hours after an 8 mile run. I set out with the intention of just riding really easy. The result? I paced myself better because I was focusing on high cadence rather than high speed! The wind was killer on the way back in, too, but I managed! Here's the stats:
Time: 1:12:24
Distance: 21.23 miles
Speed: 17.6 mph
Cadence: 93 rpm
HR: 160 bpm
Garmin Data
Needless to say. I'm revved up. Progress feeds the engine, right?
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Productive Saturday
Unlike most Saturdays, this one turned out being crazy productive. I'll save you the BAM!'s, but I got a ton of stuff done both with working out and school.
My alarm went off at 6am. I swore at it, but managed to crawl out of bed without hitting snooze. After the morning routine, and scraping ice off my car, I was en route to Todd's Road to meet up for a run; my first group run in four months!
Surprisingly, at 7am on a Saturday morning on a day with below freezing temps and really thick fog, around 40 people showed up to run at Todd's Road! I got to catch up with some old friends and put in six miles or so at a pretty good clip. Since nobody at my pace was running the six mile loop, I just ran 3 out with Jim, and 3 back on my own. Here's the splits:
8:13
7:41
7:33
6:56 (Later Jim!)
6:58
7:00
0:26 (0.07 miles)
Average pace: 7:23
Average heart rate: 167
Garmin data
This run had me worried about my hip. Last night after stretching, there was a little pain in my hip on occasion, but it didn't hurt to run or walk 99% of the time, so I toughed it out. After the run it felt fine, so I'm not too worried. I did a few stretches I don't normally do, so I'm attributing it to those, and they aren't happening again! Also, this was my longest run in over 3 months!
Later this evening, I jumped out on the bike for a little bit. I decided beforehand I was only doing 10 miles since I already ran today. The result? I was completely fresh at the end; I should have gone 20! Next week, I'll know better! Here's the (growing) list of stats:
Distance: 9.89 miles
Time: 32:31
Speed: 18.2 mph
Heart rate: 162 bpm
Cadence: 89 rpm
Garmin Data
This was my first ride with my cadence sensor, and I'm a whole lot better with cadence than I thought I was; unless I'm just behaving myself now that I have a number to keep me in line! One thing I'm disappointed in is that MotionBased doesn't show the cadence data. It appears in the Garmin software, but not online. Bummer!
Ryan - The spill actually came closer to mile 11; the HR spike you're talking about was a hill, I think.
Marcy - Oh, its not that bad. You see, its my job to convince you to get a bike and clipless pedals. You know why? Because your average post is pretty entertaining, but the world will be an even funnier place once you get clipless pedals and tip over! I mean.... *cough* when you get clipless pedals and are able to brag about never falling!
My alarm went off at 6am. I swore at it, but managed to crawl out of bed without hitting snooze. After the morning routine, and scraping ice off my car, I was en route to Todd's Road to meet up for a run; my first group run in four months!
Surprisingly, at 7am on a Saturday morning on a day with below freezing temps and really thick fog, around 40 people showed up to run at Todd's Road! I got to catch up with some old friends and put in six miles or so at a pretty good clip. Since nobody at my pace was running the six mile loop, I just ran 3 out with Jim, and 3 back on my own. Here's the splits:
8:13
7:41
7:33
6:56 (Later Jim!)
6:58
7:00
0:26 (0.07 miles)
Average pace: 7:23
Average heart rate: 167
Garmin data
This run had me worried about my hip. Last night after stretching, there was a little pain in my hip on occasion, but it didn't hurt to run or walk 99% of the time, so I toughed it out. After the run it felt fine, so I'm not too worried. I did a few stretches I don't normally do, so I'm attributing it to those, and they aren't happening again! Also, this was my longest run in over 3 months!
Later this evening, I jumped out on the bike for a little bit. I decided beforehand I was only doing 10 miles since I already ran today. The result? I was completely fresh at the end; I should have gone 20! Next week, I'll know better! Here's the (growing) list of stats:
Distance: 9.89 miles
Time: 32:31
Speed: 18.2 mph
Heart rate: 162 bpm
Cadence: 89 rpm
Garmin Data
This was my first ride with my cadence sensor, and I'm a whole lot better with cadence than I thought I was; unless I'm just behaving myself now that I have a number to keep me in line! One thing I'm disappointed in is that MotionBased doesn't show the cadence data. It appears in the Garmin software, but not online. Bummer!
Ryan - The spill actually came closer to mile 11; the HR spike you're talking about was a hill, I think.
Marcy - Oh, its not that bad. You see, its my job to convince you to get a bike and clipless pedals. You know why? Because your average post is pretty entertaining, but the world will be an even funnier place once you get clipless pedals and tip over! I mean.... *cough* when you get clipless pedals and are able to brag about never falling!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
TIIIIMMMBERRR
Okay. I'll admit it. It finally happened. I fell today. I accidentally completed the cyclists "Rite of Passage," and here is how it happened:
Besides that, today was a great ride. Nearly every driver I saw today gave a friendly wave, every dog was completely uninterested in me, and the weather was perfect! I really need to bring my camera along with me one of these times, but I think I'm going to wait until Spring when its really beautiful out there.
I was a little bit slower than Monday, my legs were a little tired and just not feeling it, but here's the stats:
Distance: 21.16
Time: 1:17:06
Speed: 16.5 MPH
Average Heart Rate: 158 bpm
Garmin Data
In other news I taught my First. Class. Ever. tonight! It definitely could have gone better, but it was my first time so I'm not being too critical on myself, just thinking about what I can do for improvement. I covered a huge amount more than I thought I would; 75 minutes is a long time! I also need to slow down and elaborate more. Live and learn, right?
Bill - If you became an ex-runner because of me, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. At worst, get a bike and use cross training to replace your easy days. Do you even have easy days? :)
Marcy - Don't be a big sissy, or I'll steal your lunch money! Also, you really don't want to call me Emeril, that would imply that I didn't screw up a frozen pizza and noodles back to back a few weeks ago!
- Approach intersection
- Unclip both feet to stop
- Stop successfully with both feet on the ground
- Drink Gatorade. Ahhhh, thats the stuff!
- Clip in left foot
- Wait for the only car on the road to go through intersection
- Tip over
- Start laughing so I can tell myself the driver is laughing with me, not at me
Besides that, today was a great ride. Nearly every driver I saw today gave a friendly wave, every dog was completely uninterested in me, and the weather was perfect! I really need to bring my camera along with me one of these times, but I think I'm going to wait until Spring when its really beautiful out there.
I was a little bit slower than Monday, my legs were a little tired and just not feeling it, but here's the stats:
Distance: 21.16
Time: 1:17:06
Speed: 16.5 MPH
Average Heart Rate: 158 bpm
Garmin Data
In other news I taught my First. Class. Ever. tonight! It definitely could have gone better, but it was my first time so I'm not being too critical on myself, just thinking about what I can do for improvement. I covered a huge amount more than I thought I would; 75 minutes is a long time! I also need to slow down and elaborate more. Live and learn, right?
Bill - If you became an ex-runner because of me, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. At worst, get a bike and use cross training to replace your easy days. Do you even have easy days? :)
Marcy - Don't be a big sissy, or I'll steal your lunch money! Also, you really don't want to call me Emeril, that would imply that I didn't screw up a frozen pizza and noodles back to back a few weeks ago!
Monday, January 7, 2008
Whoooosh!
Thats how I felt at the beginning of my ride today, flying like the wind! Whooooosh! I had a strong wind behind me and was cruising along around 20-25 MPH for the first part of my ride, it was great!
At one point I was on a really secluded stretch of road, the scene looked as though it came straight off of a post card. Rolling hills, huge grassy fields with horses running around on either side, and thousands upon thousands of birds connecting the two fields. When I got fairly close, the entire mass of birds rose up and took off, whooooosh! Times like this really remind me why I love riding in Kentucky!
Then I turned. Whoooosh! That was the sound of Mother Nature trying to knock me into traffic with an insanely strong wind. Luckily, I managed not to get turned into road kill.
I turned again. Whoooosh! This time Mother Nature was trying to tell me "Go home, you shouldn't play with me today!" But all I could hear was: Whoooosh! So I pressed on, since its the only thing I knew how to do.
I made one last turn. And yep. You guessed it: Whooooosh! This time Mother Nature was doing everything she could to make sure I ate ditch. She saw me on my shiny red bike, with my fancy new pedals. Its obvious she was jealous, but I stayed the course; having the wind at my side was worlds better than riding straight into it!
Whooooosh! Twenty one miles in the bank! Here's the stats:
Distance: 21.05 miles (Twice as far as yesterday)
Time: 1:14:45
Speed: 16.9 mph (But held the same speed!)
All in all, the ride felt great. I still managed not to fall, although I had a really hard time getting clipped in at an intersection that was on a hill. My second foot just didn't want to get in there; I'll get the hang of it soon enough!
Finally, I've been slacking on responding to comments, so here goes:
Amy - I'm planning to do a few sprint & olympic triathlons early on in the season, I just haven't made any official yet. I started looking at them, and theres just so many I'll probably pick one the week before it happens.
Jess - Nope, the whole pizza didn't fit on the plate; that would never fill me up!
SLB - Yep, this pedaling system has some float in it so my knees should be safe. Biking is actually something that keeps my knees working right; it worked like a miracle cure when they started bothering me this summer.
Marcy - I think biking helps my running. I made a habit of riding every Monday this summer, and it helped me quite a bit; my legs just felt stronger, especially on hills! And even if that was only in my head, you can't deny that its helping my aerobic fitness.
Christine - I'm in grad school for Computer Science. Be careful with that past tense, I'm far from being done!
At one point I was on a really secluded stretch of road, the scene looked as though it came straight off of a post card. Rolling hills, huge grassy fields with horses running around on either side, and thousands upon thousands of birds connecting the two fields. When I got fairly close, the entire mass of birds rose up and took off, whooooosh! Times like this really remind me why I love riding in Kentucky!
Then I turned. Whoooosh! That was the sound of Mother Nature trying to knock me into traffic with an insanely strong wind. Luckily, I managed not to get turned into road kill.
I turned again. Whoooosh! This time Mother Nature was trying to tell me "Go home, you shouldn't play with me today!" But all I could hear was: Whoooosh! So I pressed on, since its the only thing I knew how to do.
I made one last turn. And yep. You guessed it: Whooooosh! This time Mother Nature was doing everything she could to make sure I ate ditch. She saw me on my shiny red bike, with my fancy new pedals. Its obvious she was jealous, but I stayed the course; having the wind at my side was worlds better than riding straight into it!
Whooooosh! Twenty one miles in the bank! Here's the stats:
Distance: 21.05 miles (Twice as far as yesterday)
Time: 1:14:45
Speed: 16.9 mph (But held the same speed!)
All in all, the ride felt great. I still managed not to fall, although I had a really hard time getting clipped in at an intersection that was on a hill. My second foot just didn't want to get in there; I'll get the hang of it soon enough!
Finally, I've been slacking on responding to comments, so here goes:
Amy - I'm planning to do a few sprint & olympic triathlons early on in the season, I just haven't made any official yet. I started looking at them, and theres just so many I'll probably pick one the week before it happens.
Jess - Nope, the whole pizza didn't fit on the plate; that would never fill me up!
SLB - Yep, this pedaling system has some float in it so my knees should be safe. Biking is actually something that keeps my knees working right; it worked like a miracle cure when they started bothering me this summer.
Marcy - I think biking helps my running. I made a habit of riding every Monday this summer, and it helped me quite a bit; my legs just felt stronger, especially on hills! And even if that was only in my head, you can't deny that its helping my aerobic fitness.
Christine - I'm in grad school for Computer Science. Be careful with that past tense, I'm far from being done!
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Running, Biking, and Wind, Oh My!
Today has been a pretty busy day, considering the semester doesn't start until Wednesday!
I woke up around 9 and got out for a run. The weather was pretty nice, around 50 degrees, so I ran in shorts for the first time in a while! I know to some of you, that sounds down-right chilly, but let us non-Floridians enjoy it!
This run was at least a little slower than yesterday, but as you can tell by the splits I stopped paying attention to pace for at least a little while:
7:34
7:23
6:52
7:22
2:30 (0.35 miles)
Average pace: 7:17
My hip felt fine throughout the whole run, maybe I'll even be able to forget about it soon? I've ran almost 10 miles in the past two days, which is a first in a long time!
After lunch and a little bit of reading, I got out on the bike; my first ride with clipless pedals! And surprisingly (magically, miraculously, luckily, ...) I didn't fall, not even once! I started the ride by riding around the parking lot practicing starts and stops over and over until I felt confident enough to get out on the roads. I had a few close calls while practicing, but I managed to keep myself, and my bike, upright.
I'm already loving the clipless pedals. Climbing hills is a breeze since I can generate a lot more power going up. Although its using different muscles, so I wore myself out really quick, then turned into the wind, and the last part of the ride was pretty rough. Over time, though, I'll build up those new muscles and learn not to wear myself out in the first couple miles; thats when the real benefit will come!
Bike stats:
Miles: 9.82
Time: 34:52
Avg Speed: 16.9 MPH
I woke up around 9 and got out for a run. The weather was pretty nice, around 50 degrees, so I ran in shorts for the first time in a while! I know to some of you, that sounds down-right chilly, but let us non-Floridians enjoy it!
This run was at least a little slower than yesterday, but as you can tell by the splits I stopped paying attention to pace for at least a little while:
7:34
7:23
6:52
7:22
2:30 (0.35 miles)
Average pace: 7:17
My hip felt fine throughout the whole run, maybe I'll even be able to forget about it soon? I've ran almost 10 miles in the past two days, which is a first in a long time!
After lunch and a little bit of reading, I got out on the bike; my first ride with clipless pedals! And surprisingly (magically, miraculously, luckily, ...) I didn't fall, not even once! I started the ride by riding around the parking lot practicing starts and stops over and over until I felt confident enough to get out on the roads. I had a few close calls while practicing, but I managed to keep myself, and my bike, upright.
I'm already loving the clipless pedals. Climbing hills is a breeze since I can generate a lot more power going up. Although its using different muscles, so I wore myself out really quick, then turned into the wind, and the last part of the ride was pretty rough. Over time, though, I'll build up those new muscles and learn not to wear myself out in the first couple miles; thats when the real benefit will come!
Bike stats:
Miles: 9.82
Time: 34:52
Avg Speed: 16.9 MPH
Friday, December 7, 2007
Eat. Sleep. Teach. Learn. Swim. Bike. Run.
Ah yes, my life has been the good life these past few days. I can encapsulate everything I've done into the above seven words, and I wouldn't change a thing. Luckily for me, or what would be unluckily for some, I get to keep at it this way for at least the next week, and hopefully all through break.
Last night I had what felt like a really break through swim. For the first time, my coach had me do more than drills. This means I'm going to start getting in really great workouts there too, rather than just doing my thing for an hour and leaving.
Usually with my drills, I end up swimming 25 or maybe 50 yards tops and take a little break. I'll think about how to improve my technique or just catch my breath, let my heart rate get down, etc.
Well, once we did the workout, first thing was 100 yards! It was rough, and I was panting like crazy when it was over. Whats up next? Yeah. 200 yards. I suppose I inadvertently gave an "oh sh*t" look when she said that, because she backed it off to 150; but I did the 200 anyways. Who knew I could swim that far?!
She had me count my strokes to get across the pool, too. Told me that getting down to 20 would be a great goal to shoot for. Bam! 17! Oh yeah! Eat that di-hydrogen monoxide (that's H2O)!
This morning I decided to squeeze in some time on the bike between classes. I somehow managed to get ready, drive out of the city, bike 20 miles, get back, shower, and eat lunch all in three hours. Not sure how, but its good to know I can get it done!
All in all it was a great ride. Much easier than my first one, mostly because I know a little bit more about how to pace myself. I tried to focus on trying little things on the bike. The one reason I won't let myself ride in the city is I simply can't let go with my left hand in order to signal a left turn. I wobble out of control.
Just like today when I was practicing. I decided to signal left before a turn, and then make the turn. Well, it didn't go so hot. I came pretty close to doing a face plant in the ditch, and I'm really, really glad I didn't. I'll have to come up with some way to ease into it so I don't have another experience like that one! Face plant = bad!
Running tomorrow, 4 miles on the agenda. If the rest of the world operated in base-2 like we computer scientists do, I could tell you thats triple digits. I'm confident it'll go well, my hip feels great after yesterday's 3 and change. I've set the goal to run 6 miles next weekend, which is easily in reach unless tomorrow's 4 goes poorly.
Also, don't forget the 8 on the 8th is tomorrow! Even though I get to cheat (in fact, I'm already 3/4ths done, suckers!), you can bet I'll have a race report up tomorrow. Best of luck in catching me!
Finally, finals are next week. Pretty much everybody is a great big ball of stress except for me. I crunched the numbers and I'm going into my finals with fairly strong A's. I have quite a bit of room to spare if I need it. I found out second-hand that jerk-face's A range goes down to about 65%, so I'm actually doing fairly well in that class, despite having what normally looks like a craptastic grade.
Last night I had what felt like a really break through swim. For the first time, my coach had me do more than drills. This means I'm going to start getting in really great workouts there too, rather than just doing my thing for an hour and leaving.
Usually with my drills, I end up swimming 25 or maybe 50 yards tops and take a little break. I'll think about how to improve my technique or just catch my breath, let my heart rate get down, etc.
Well, once we did the workout, first thing was 100 yards! It was rough, and I was panting like crazy when it was over. Whats up next? Yeah. 200 yards. I suppose I inadvertently gave an "oh sh*t" look when she said that, because she backed it off to 150; but I did the 200 anyways. Who knew I could swim that far?!
She had me count my strokes to get across the pool, too. Told me that getting down to 20 would be a great goal to shoot for. Bam! 17! Oh yeah! Eat that di-hydrogen monoxide (that's H2O)!
This morning I decided to squeeze in some time on the bike between classes. I somehow managed to get ready, drive out of the city, bike 20 miles, get back, shower, and eat lunch all in three hours. Not sure how, but its good to know I can get it done!
All in all it was a great ride. Much easier than my first one, mostly because I know a little bit more about how to pace myself. I tried to focus on trying little things on the bike. The one reason I won't let myself ride in the city is I simply can't let go with my left hand in order to signal a left turn. I wobble out of control.
Just like today when I was practicing. I decided to signal left before a turn, and then make the turn. Well, it didn't go so hot. I came pretty close to doing a face plant in the ditch, and I'm really, really glad I didn't. I'll have to come up with some way to ease into it so I don't have another experience like that one! Face plant = bad!
Running tomorrow, 4 miles on the agenda. If the rest of the world operated in base-2 like we computer scientists do, I could tell you thats triple digits. I'm confident it'll go well, my hip feels great after yesterday's 3 and change. I've set the goal to run 6 miles next weekend, which is easily in reach unless tomorrow's 4 goes poorly.
Also, don't forget the 8 on the 8th is tomorrow! Even though I get to cheat (in fact, I'm already 3/4ths done, suckers!), you can bet I'll have a race report up tomorrow. Best of luck in catching me!
Finally, finals are next week. Pretty much everybody is a great big ball of stress except for me. I crunched the numbers and I'm going into my finals with fairly strong A's. I have quite a bit of room to spare if I need it. I found out second-hand that jerk-face's A range goes down to about 65%, so I'm actually doing fairly well in that class, despite having what normally looks like a craptastic grade.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Our First Time
It was magical, I tell you. Simply magical.
Jess gave me some wonderful advice a few days ago: "Just don't ride 'er too hard, since she's new and you're all excited, you don't wanna get all sore :)" I read this advice, took it to heart, and then completely ignored it because, well, I was too excited.
The first time was just a quickie. I went out for a route which my map said was 10 miles out at Russell Cave. It was a nice route, wonderful scenery, and pretty low traffic. Garmin is claiming the route was only 8.3 miles. And now that I typed that (and checked my map), I just noticed I made a wrong turn. No wonder! I feel wonderfully intelligent! Not only was our first time a quickie, I also didn't know where I was going. Interpret that as you will.
Needless to say, I think I'm in love. This new bike makes riding a ton easier than the fifteen year old hybrid I had this summer. I started out with a little more gusto than I should have and averaged about 20 MPH the first three miles. All in all my average speed was 17 MPH, which I'm really happy with since I think my highest average speed this last summer was 15 or 16!
She's a good ride. Lets hope I'm not too sore to go at it again tomorrow!
Jess gave me some wonderful advice a few days ago: "Just don't ride 'er too hard, since she's new and you're all excited, you don't wanna get all sore :)" I read this advice, took it to heart, and then completely ignored it because, well, I was too excited.
The first time was just a quickie. I went out for a route which my map said was 10 miles out at Russell Cave. It was a nice route, wonderful scenery, and pretty low traffic. Garmin is claiming the route was only 8.3 miles. And now that I typed that (and checked my map), I just noticed I made a wrong turn. No wonder! I feel wonderfully intelligent! Not only was our first time a quickie, I also didn't know where I was going. Interpret that as you will.
Needless to say, I think I'm in love. This new bike makes riding a ton easier than the fifteen year old hybrid I had this summer. I started out with a little more gusto than I should have and averaged about 20 MPH the first three miles. All in all my average speed was 17 MPH, which I'm really happy with since I think my highest average speed this last summer was 15 or 16!
She's a good ride. Lets hope I'm not too sore to go at it again tomorrow!
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