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Chronicles of a fish: the days of surf and turf
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And this is why I like to post my training on a daily basis! It's just way easier for me to write in smaller increments (time increments!) than it is to write in terms of a week, especially a week that was so jam-packed with oodles of fun stuff! But, here goes...in very condensed fashion as to not bore the gentle reader into a coma.
<clears throat>
The plans for my return to Ireland started early in 2014 when I was approached by ultraman with a very generous offer to provide me with an entry into his most awesome event - Donadea 50k. If you know nothing about Donadea 50k, then know this - it's where the cool kids run - so naturally I snatched up his offer without having to think too hard about it. My interest in Donadea was more curiosity and fun, and less honest to goodness racing....and I thought it'd be a nice event to do to prepare me for Boston, which would be 9 weeks later.
Fast forward: training like crazy....run focus is on Boston in April....no taper for Donadea.....31 miles of running the weekend before the 50k....transatlantic flight with no sleep...
Donadea 50k - Saturday, February 14th, 2015
I bunked at running forum rock star Marthastew's abode Friday night after a day of visiting, shopping and eating with the artist formerly known as claralara. In retrospect, I did not do a very good job hydrating that day, and my first meal on that Friday was not until 2:30 in the afternoon. Not ideal, but my clock was all screwed up from the inherent issues of international travel. Still, a mistake I had been warned not to make.
We were up early race morning at the Stew house, and we picked up meno (of running forum fame) and cousin Joe on the way to the race. Oh, and we stopped by sister-in-law-Stew's house to secure two boxes of homemade Rice Krispy treats.
We arrived at the race and I was greeted by a smiling ultraman with a hug that lifted me up off the ground. 
I hooked up with Oryx (yay!!), and we got our food and drinks set up on the table - or rather, she plunked down her bag of jelly babies while I organized my fresh orange slices, cut bananas, gels, bloks, bars, mini bottles of water, and handheld bottles of Power-aid. Some good all that did me, but at least Oryx tapped into the bottles of water.
The course is 10 loops around, each loop just slightly under 5k, and the placement of the start line takes that into account resulting in the first recorded lap longer than 5k. The race started pretty much bang on time, and pretty much right away Orxy decided she wasn't loving the company (I swear I had deodorant on!) and she drifted behind me and meno, who was planning on running 7 of the 10 laps as a training run in prep for his London marathon. From the very first lap I stayed nice and relaxed, and meno kept me honest with the paces and looked after me a bit. I was surprised how effortless running 8-8:15 felt, and even at times when the pace picked up to sub 8, I felt it was no bother at all. On the 4th lap, there was a hint of a cramp in my left hamstring, but I kept the body super relaxed and the good thoughts flowing in my head. A cramp in my hamstring was highly unusual for me, but I figured it would either work itself out or I could mentally manage it. I passed 3 women at one time at the start of the 5th lap, and I remember my left leg buckled slightly as I passed them, and I hoped they hadn't seen it as I didn't want to give anything away. I hadn't said a word about my leg issue to meno because I worried if I mentioned it then it would be "real". By the 6th lap, the cramping and pain encompassed my hamstring, quad, knee and IT band...and for the first time I started to question what damage I was doing to my body, and I knew I had no interest in going down the self-inflicted injury route like I did last year. Towards the end of the 6th lap, the body started to fail me, and meno noticed something wasn't right, so when he asked if everything was okay, I told him "no, I'm in trouble." He ran ahead to alert ecoli (who was there to support me), and ecoli met me just before the end of the 6th lap to try and work out the cramping. He massaged, stretched, applied pressure, and manipulated my leg, but by this point I was in extreme pain and could not put any weight on it. I managed to get to the official massage tent where a lovely lady worked on me (twice, actually), but there wasn't a whole lot she could do for me to get me back out there. And, after I got up off the massage table, I was in such bad shape that ecoli ended up having to carry me around Donadea as I was unable to walk (thank you, ecoli! I hope your back is okay!). The bright spot of the day, however, was getting to cheer our local star, Oryx, on to her incredible PB run. Yay, Oryx!!!
Am I disappointed? Of course I am. This was my first ever DNF. I have never not completed a race - never! Ever! But as ecoli pointed out, I got in a very solid 19 mile training run at a respectable and comfortable pace, so all is not lost. As to what exactly caused this disaster, there are many possibilities. Travel...sleep...hydration...fatigue...weak glutes (more about that later). But what a fantastic experience Donadea was in so many ways. The course is brilliant - a perfect course for a runner's first 50k - and the organization, organizers, and supporters are among the best I've ever experienced. I will be back....I will definitely be back for either this event, or quite possibly for the 100k event. Donadea is worthy of another look from me.
That night, Oryx and I decided to stick around for the post race party that ultraman was putting on, and I made Oryx venture out of her comfort zone by not having any concrete plans or hotel reservations made in advance - we were doing this Dory-style by going with the flow (there will be one reader who will be choking on this about now
). We found a one room B&B that we squeezed into, then headed out for a nice dinner at a grand hotel (that had turned us down earlier for a room) only to realize that it was Valentines Day when we were served a complimentary glass of champagne after being seated. Ha! We had a good laugh at the thought of the staff thinking we were a couple...a couple who both were walking very oddly. The two of us could do worse.
Then we were off to da party at da local pub. Whoop whoop!! That ultraman knows how to throw a good one - free flowing spirits for all the runners, and his company at our table. Tattoos were displayed and tops were swapped. And, when it was time for us to bid our new endurance running friends a good night, car keys were passed to the designated driver (I didn't catch his name) to get us back to our B&B.
And that was the day that was Donadea 50k.
Ballyhoura Biking - Sunday, February 15, 2015
Not that I could even hop on a bike and ride due to the shape I was in, I was under strict orders from ecoli to not even attempt it. Step away from the bike! And even on our way to Ballyhoura that morning, Oryx and I had agreed we'd skip the bike part of the day and just meet everyone for a little socializing instead. But when we arrived at the car park with catweazle, bth, pointer and career move tooling around on their various steeds, I believe it was Oryx who turned to me and said, "why don't you give it a try and see what happens." So I did. In the car park. And it felt okay. But the car park isn't exactly mountain trails, now is it? Ugh. So off we went in search of the thrill of mountain biking....but along the way my leg was jarred and fatigued, and eventually broken for the second day in a row after coming off the bike and wrenching it to the sound of a snap. :eek: I tried to get back on and ride, but that wasn't happening. Not. Even. Close.
So we let everyone else go ahead, and Oryx and I started walking...slowly...painfully...with the bike as my crutch...and while Oryx chattered non-stop to keep my mind off my misery. Several other mountain bikers came past us, all asking if we were okay. Well, all except for one. Pointer came back to us (the true gentleman, he is!) and helped formulate a plan for us to use a fire road to get us back down the mountain....and it worked, thank god...because I gotta tell ya, Oryx and I were really starting to hate life out there in the cold. Once we got to the fire road and reached the point where it started to go downhill, I was able to freewheel it down most of the mountain. It felt amazing to finally be covering some ground at faster than a handicapped snail's speed.
We reached the bottom of the mountain shortly after the others had, so the timing worked out pretty well. Career move came properly prepared to feed us all (you wouldn't believe the assortment of food and drink she had with her on the bike - and then she had cookies, cake and sausage sandwiches for post ride nourishment!), so after the ride we gathered around two small tables with seats in the shape of bike saddles
and munched on an assortment of goodies. The conversation was great, the boys were clean, and we gave catweazle's friend, Declan (?), a hard time for blowing by me and Oryx with nothing more than a "I told you I'd catch you at some point" as we struggled along the path. How could he have not noticed we were dragging @ss??
If you've not been to Ballyhoura, don't go while injured. !!! But even injured I could appreciate what a great resource this mountain and the trails are to mountain biking enthusiasts. The setting is fairy tail spectacular, and the active dynamics were a thrill when I was working with them and not against them. There was no white knuckling for me, and I kept thinking how awesome it must be for the younger, more agile, generation to be skipping, shifting and reacting. Mountain biking is not for the faint of heart, but the beauty of Ballyhoura cannot be overlooked.
Meet the Beast - Monday, February 16th, 2015
Oryx scheduled me in with her scary sounding sports physio to have my bum leg looked at. Long story short: he is not as scary as he sounds, and trigger point needling can elicit uncontrollable laughter. If you've never had trigger point needling done, then you cannot understand the shock waves that shoot through your body without warning when the needle hits just the "right" spot. Wow. Crazy. But the pain was immediately different when I hopped off his table. He said I have soft tissue damage - nothing too serious - and he suggested that weak glutes could have caused/contributed to my injury. This is the second time I've been told this - ecoli has preached glute strength to me previously - so it seems I need to take this seriously, or I am probably wasting my time with this endurance stuff.
UCD Swim Session - Tuesday, February 17th, 2015
Ahhh...to meet jammer clad Kurt Godel poolside. And to potentially have a duel in the pool with him, even better. But the stars and moon conspired against me at the weekend prior with my leg injury, so I'll have to take a raincheck on the duel and postpone it until the next time I grace Ireland's presence.
I tip my hat to griffin for providing me, Oryx, Kurt and career move with passes to UCD's fabulous 50 meter pool (the floor of the pool is even adjustable in depth!), and after a quick hug and chat with the well dressed, good smelling, Oxford-man looking griffin, the four of us swimmers made a pitstop in the unisex changing room before hitting the pool for a little stroke work session. Without too much elaboration, Kurt has very good freestyle form! Now we won't discuss his backstroke or butterfly, but doggone if his freestyle isn't star-worthy! The girls are equally awesome, and both were very patient with me meddling with their strokes. Thanks, gals, for not telling me to go feck off! Fun day splashing in the pool, and we ended the 90 minutes with some hilarious tumble turn attempts in the shallow end.
The Market Bar - Fat Tuesday evening, February 17th, 2015 I'm not going to say too much about this evening other than it was a blast. Kurt was in great form taking charge of most of the food ordering, Tunney wasn't fat, Bambaata won the Valentines Day award, Zico was an incredibly nice surprise and man of his word, and Oryx and career move infused a little fun with their (mostly) under the radar date, ditch, marry, one-night-stand game they were playing. Great fun...and the dance with Tunney to James Brown's Sex Machine will go down as life altering.
As the 7 of us were sitting at the table chatting and laughing, it struck me what a diverse selection of athletes we 7 are - diverse in our focus, approach, goals, background, strengths, weaknesses, character, style, and method. Yet, we all have one very important thing in common - we are fiercely competitive individuals. And as I sat sandwiched between zico and Bambaata, I appreciated not only the talent I was amongst, but I was also reminded that there is more than one right way to go about doing something. That table was full of contrast - contrast that may be nothing more than merely interesting in nature, or contrast that may potentially highlight and teach something that would otherwise be overlooked. I, personally, think I learned something from each person around that table Tuesday night, and I appreciate that I had that unique opportunity to do so. Fantastic night in every respect! But who the hell kept buying me wine??!!
Okay....that's a wrap, folks! What a wonderful week in Ireland it was. Many thanks to everyone who contributed to the fabulousness of my holiday - it truly was one to be remembered!!! Whoop whoop!!!0 -
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While it appears to be all my fault, I do seem to recall you saying something like 'you couldn't come to Ballyhoura and not at least have a go...'
I love your comment about diversity. Its so true. Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses but beyond that we all have a passion for what we do, regardless of how good or bad we end up being at it!
And, given your drive and passion, you know you must now return to Donadea in 2016... you have unfinished business there. Just like I do in Ballyhoura!0 -
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There's not been a whole lot going on over here in the land of Dory. Thursday was a total washout due to the horrid trip home, complete with my last flight being cancelled, thus forcing me to get a little creative with 3 random strangers to get home that night. And Friday was another washout due to extreme fatigue and lack of motivation. Oh, and I guess I should also disclose that even if I had been up to training Thursday and/or Friday, my leg was in no shape to do so.
Saturday, I finally found some motivation to hop in the pool and swim for an hour at 1:30/100 yard pace. It was lovely - just what I needed. And Sunday, I tried a 20 minute recovery run on the treadmill, but bailed after a few minutes because of soreness in the knee. Boo. So, I hopped in the pool and got this done aqua-girl style instead. There was still some soreness in the knee even running in water, but I didn't feel I was aggravating anything. I immediately transitioned into swimming after the tank trot, and swam for 45 minutes at a pace of 1:27/100 yards.
Regarding the injury, it's significantly improved. My knee has been swollen this week, but that swelling is reduced (not totally reduced, but reduced) and now I'm left with bruising on and around the knee. Fingers crossed I'll be 100% in the next few days, I am not good at this hobbling around thing. !!!0 -
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Tuesday, February 24th, 2015
Run plan: 60 minutes easy on the hydro-treadie
I did this sneaky lunchtime style on a very, very cold day in my 85 degree Fahrenheit pool! My leg continues to improve, but it's not there yet...and I'm really getting tired of being injured - it is such a drain on my body and mind in so many ways. But any way...the silver lining is I have my pool to run in - thank god - and I do love running in my pool. I did this with a wave current of 2:02/100 yards, and I think the effort I put out qualified as "easy". I say I "think" only because effort running in a pool is totally different than effort running on land, so I'm still figuring out how to define recovery/easy/steady in the tank.
Actual run: 60 minutes immersed in water
Swim
60 minutes after work - and it was a lovely swim. Swimming in an endless pool (or at least swimming in THIS endless pool) seems to be all about the pull, and I really hope this type of swimming (constant, evenly paced) will translate well in the open water. I had the pace set at 1:27/100 yards, and at some point in the not too distant future I'll need to bump up the pace one notch (I think the next notch is 1:24/100 yards). It was also suggested to me that I might try some kicking with a kick board, which I might do when my leg is fully healed. I have to admit, it would be nice to inject a few things into these 60 minute swims for it can get a little boring after about 40 minutes or so and I start to get a little fidgety.
Actual swim: 60 minutes of endless swimming
It was yoga mat action in the form of stretching and foam rolling after dinner. I'm pooped - I think I'm still catching up on rest from my uber fun trip to Ireland. I also need to get my diet back to where it needs to be, but the good news is I finished off all my Cadbury chocolate I purchased at Dublin Airport yesterday, so at least that's done! 0 -
Wednesday, February 25th, 2015
Run plan: 60 minutes easy on the hydro-treadie
Another lunchtime tub trot with a wave current of 2:02/100 yards. The music coming from my little black box was particularly good today, as were the voice enhancing aquatic acoustics. I experimented with a few things - arm/leg speed/force - which reinforced the idea that increased force of my legs/arms results in a corresponding increased force of the water. Good run!
Actual run: 60 minutes in water
Swim
After 4 nights in a row of endless swimming, I've come to the conclusion that I need to inject a little pizazz in these sessions. Kick board...maybe some sprints....I don't know, just a little diversity to keep things interesting. But still, a nice swim with lots of upper body work.
Actual swim: 60 minutes in a tank at 1:27/100 yards
And....stretching and foam rolling was done on the yoga mat to finish up the day!0 -
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Dory, been wondering something for a while, and especially since Donedea
How deep is this water you are running in when you use the aqua pool? is it deep enough that you're getting a floating benefit? I'm visioning something along the lines of aqua jogging but slighlt shallower, waist height or the like. if that is the case, is there any worries that the reduced impact could be a negative? i.e. could the injury be partly at least be blamed on the pool running, great for the fitness but not great for building up the muscles due to the reduced loading?
i know you are running outside as well so it's probably not the case
Hey there! I am running in water that comes up to my armpits, so I am not floating, however impact is certainly reduced. And I am running on a treadmill in the water, so it's not aqua jogging in the sense that comes to mind. Prior to Donadea, I was on average running 45-60 miles per week on land, and running 10-15 miles in water, so I think my time spent doing impact running was sufficient. As far as the injury I am hampered with now, I believe that's from the fall I took off the mountain bike when I wrenched the knee terribly. It is my impression that any residual from whatever occurred during the race with muscle cramping (from travel/hydration/nutrition/fatigue?) has resolved, and my only issue really is with my knee. And until the knee is 100%, I'll be running in water as not to aggravate it. 0 -
Hi Dory Dory, I'm new to the forum and really enjoying following your training log. Thank you for the updates, you describe your training and races in a very witty and enjoyable way Sorry to hear about your fall off the mountain bike, sounds like you had a great rip to Ireland though, despite the fall - hopefully I can join you guys on your next trip. Your tub trotter sounds great - I've a really interesting image in my head of what it looks like which I'm sure is nowhere near what it actually looks like. Hope you're back on the roads soon 0
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Friday, February 27th, 2015
Run plan: 40 minutes recovery on the water treadmill
Sneaky lunchtime pool trot at a nice wave current of 2:02/100 yards. Not much to report on this one!
Actual run: 40 minutes recovery on the water treadmill
Swim
In my quest to shake things up a bit, I did this one a little differently tonight. The first 30 minutes I had the wave current set at 1:27/100 yards, and, as usual, the swim was nice and relaxed....and the 30 minutes flew by before I knew it!
Then, I grabbed my kick board and tried my hand legs at kicking. :eek: I decided I'd kick for 15 minutes, so, feeling rather confident with myself, I set the wave current at 1:33/100 yards. Ha!! Not. Even. Close. I kicked my little heart out but was immediately tossed to the back wall. :eek: Then I tried 1:38. Nope. 1:45, uhhhh, not exactly. Then finally I settled on 1:48 but I couldn't even hold that pace for very long....so I'd kick and kick and kick while I slowly drifted to the back wall where I'd push off and then start all over again.
Good grief, that was really hard! I sincerely hope somehow the combination of my kick board and the wave current contributed to my difficulties. Any way...
I finished off this session with a 15 minute swim at a wave current pace of 1:24/100 yards....and this actually felt very good. It was a solid, honest pace. Slightly more effort than 1:27 (of course!), but quite manageable. This was a good hour of work, and I liked breaking up the session and interjecting new things. In fact, I'm sort of thinking about trying out some fast intervals, but I don't have a watch I can wear in the water to alert me when the interval is over...so my options are to either buy a watch (who can suggest one for me????) or I can just estimate how many strokes it takes to swim "x-yards" and then count my strokes. Food for thought.
Actual swim: 60 minutes of shaking and baking in the tank
And...as is my usual thing for the moment, I hit the yoga mat post dinner for some stretching and rolling. Whoop whoop!!0 -
Saturday, February 28th, 2015
Run plan: 60 minutes easy on the water treadmill
As I have mentioned a zillion times here, I am still trying to figure out proper pace while running in water for the specified effort....and today was no different. Because I did yesterday's recovery run at a wave current pace of 2:02/100 yards, I decided that today's easy run should be done at a wave current pace of 1:57/100 yards. 2:02 is definitely easy. 1:57 is maybe pushing the definition of easy, but running in water is so gentle on my body so I figure it's okay.
Actual run: 60 minutes running gently and easily in the tank
I hit the yoga mat immediately after the tub trot for a healthy dose of stretching with my feline friend, Norris. Then I put my big girl pants on and did LOADS of evil foam rolling. :eek: I really concentrated on the areas of my left leg that are still not quite right (from two weeks ago!!)....and good god I nearly had tears rolling down my face when I put the full weight of my body on them. But, the leg felt much better a few hours later....so, it looks like I may have to inflict this kind of pain while rolling and just grin and bear it.
Swim
I swam for the first 40 minutes with the wave current set at 1:24/100 yards. I have no idea just how accurate the wave pace thingy is on my endless pool, but there is no doubt 1:24 is tougher than 1:27....and 1:24 is a solid pace to train at for me at this moment. I'm pleased with how swimming straight (no flip turns) for 30, 40, or 60 minutes is feeling "normal" to me. I know this little tank of mine isn't exactly the Irish Sea or Atlantic Ocean, but it must be closer to open water than a conventional pool is.
Okay, now some of you are going to think I've flipped my lid....but a tri friend of mine suggested I try swimming in place with ankle straps (apparently this is popular in some tri circles), so I broke out the resistance belt Kurt sent me a while back to see how swimming with that was like. It's different, for sure. And hard. The main thing I didn't like about it was that my body position was lower in the water than normal so I had to turn my head further to take in a breath. And my kick was a bit off due to trying to keep the body afloat. Maybe that's the point of this type of swimming, to force you to work harder to keep your body high in the water...I don't know. ?? And I wonder if using ankle straps is any different than using Kurt's resistance belt. Again, I don't know. Curiosity may get the better of me, though.
Actual swim: 40 minutes at 1:24/100 yards....then some not-very-graceful resistance belt work a la Kurt Godel in the tank
And....I did one more brief stint on the yoga mat with a little stretching and more foam rolling. Gah, I really did a number on my leg. !!!0 -
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I don't know if you have someone advising you on your foam rolling but I was told two things:
1) The site of the pain is not always the cause of the pain, so roll the surrounding muscle groups also.
2) Don't overdo rolling a sore spot as too much will just aggravate it and make it worse.
Maybe you have someone telling you otherwise so feel free to ignore me if they know better. I know for me that little and often works well and that even if my calves are sore it could be my hamstrings or glutes that need the work.
No, there's no official rolling advising going on, but I think your two things are spot on. I definitely always do #1....and unfortunately yesterday I may have done #2 . Thanks for your input! 0 -
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No, there's no official rolling advising going on, but I think your two things are spot on. I definitely always do #1....and unfortunately yesterday I may have done #2 . Thanks for your input!
Rule of thumb for me and what I would have usually advised people is roll 10 times over a non sore spot and 20 over a 'sore' spot.0 -
Okay, now some of you are going to think I've flipped my lid....but a tri friend of mine suggested I try swimming in place with ankle straps (apparently this is popular in some tri circles), so I broke out the resistance belt Kurt sent me a while back to see how swimming with that was like. It's different, for sure. And hard. The main thing I didn't like about it was that my body position was lower in the water than normal so I had to turn my head further to take in a breath. And my kick was a bit off due to trying to keep the body afloat. Maybe that's the point of this type of swimming, to force you to work harder to keep your body high in the water...I don't know. ?? And I wonder if using ankle straps is any different than using Kurt's resistance belt. Again, I don't know. Curiosity may get the better of me, though.
You used a resistant belt in an endless pool...?!? That's like needing to get you garage painted, and handing a five-inch brush and emulsion to Picasso! You're nuts! But sure we knew that anyway, plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose!
Try a pull bouy to raise your legs and overcome the lack of flow (which leads to drop, and extra work, as you find out). Or, erm, turn on your machine?... What benefit were you hoping for with the tether?
Did I mention you're nuts! Definitely on the genius side of nuts though!:D0 -
Kurt Godel wrote: »You used a resistant belt in an endless pool...?!? That's like needing to get you garage painted, and handing a five-inch brush and emulsion to Picasso! You're nuts! But sure we knew that anyway, plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose!
Try a pull bouy to raise your legs and overcome the lack of flow (which leads to drop, and extra work, as you find out). Or, erm, turn on your machine?... What benefit were you hoping for with the tether?
Did I mention you're nuts! Definitely on the genius side of nuts though!:D
Yes, I used your resistance belt in my endless pool. What benefit was I hoping for? I'm not really sure. I didn't know how different it would be from swimming into a current...and wanted to find out for myself if there would be any benefit I could gain from it. And, erm, I did turn on my machine to see if the wave coming from behind me (yes, behind me ) would A) keep me afloat better, and 
provide greater resistance to my stroke to make me work harder....but all it did in all honesty was stretch the cord to the point I was too close to the back wall to swim properly...not that I was swimming properly with the resistance cord to begin with. So...I think tomorrow I will look into a swim watch to wear so I can do sprint intervals - I will set the wave pace to something spiffy, then set the watch to that pace so it can alert me when that interval is over. 0 -
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Sunday, March 1st, 2015
Run plan: 2 hours easy on the water treadmill
I started out at a wave current pace of 1:57/100 yards, but it was obvious after about 30 minutes that this effort was going to be a good bit more than "easy" when all was said and done for these 2 hours. Plus, my leg/knee was feeling pretty good (touch wood) today, so I didn't want to go and do something stupid for once that would set my progress back. I set the wave current to 2:02/100 yards for the final 90 minutes.
I've never run in water for this long...and I have to say by the time I got to the final 10 to 15 minutes I was really having to work it - I imagine the cumulative effect of constant full body effort was taking its toll. But I continue to enjoy running in this manner. Fingers crossed I'll be lacing up my running shoes this week!
Actual run: 2 hours easy in the tank
I opted to skip a swim today as I have put in some pretty good mileage this week in that regard and I wanted to do some core work instead. So, this evening was core, stretching and foam rolling. 0 -
Monday, March 2nd, 2015
Run plan: 40 minutes recovery ON LAND:mad::(:mad::(:mad:
Two weeks post injury, and my leg/knee is still not ready. I tried. On the treadmill. Less than 3 minutes. F*ck. So I traded in my adizeros for my Speedo and tromped in the tank with a full-on snot-filled pathetic pity party of grand proportions. Not pretty. And as I was wallowing in all my misery, I decided I'd hang a "Temporarily Closed for Repairs" sign on this log as who in their right mind would care to read about yet more injury filled struggles. Buuuut....my misery and self pity soon turned to "f*ck this injury and anyone who dares think I can't overcome this and turn this into a positive"....and I had one hell of a recovery (oops!) session. Determination. Conviction. Adapt. Recovery. Adjust.
I. Will. Not. Quit.
Ever.
Unless I'm dead.
Actual run: 45 turbulent minutes of tub trotting
Swim
This was a fantastic swim. Nothing fancy....just 60 solid minutes of continuous swimming at a wave pace of 1:24/100 yards. This is the first time I've done a full 60 minutes in the endless pool at this pace - the first 30 minutes were pie, the second 30 minutes were at a working man's effort. There is definitely a cumulative effect that can happen when doing anything at a constant and continuous pace for a given length of time. Arms are warm and fuzzy from the work. All good.
I called Garmin today to ask a few questions about both their swim watch and their 920XT. Specifically I wanted to know if I could customize a swim workout based on time (so I can start doing spiffy intervals in my endless pool). Apparently the swim formats in both of those watches do not allow that....but I might be able to program the run format of the 920XT and use it while swimming. However, that watch is $450.....and to be honest with you, I don't see the value in that watch for me, even with all the fancy metrics and information it can provide me. So, looks like I'll be looking into a digital clock display. Thanks, catweazle, for your subtle suggestion.
Actual swim: ~3,860 meters in an hour in the tank
I finished the night off with stretching and foam rolling on the yoga mat!!!!0 -
Tuesday, March 3rd, 2015
Today was an enforced running-rest day. And tomorrow is as well.
And I am not about to attempt spinning on the trainer until I am all clear on the leg/knee.
So.....that leaves a bit of splashing about in the pool.
Swim
I decided to add a little of spice to this swim session.
The first 30 minutes were done at my new favorite long-swim pace, 1:24/100 yards. It's just the right amount of tension to require a reasonable amount of effort and still be enjoyable.
The next 30 minutes were....<drum roll>....spiffy intervals!! This was totally makey-uppy on the spot...but I decided I'd start with a fast pace, work it twice, then slow the wave pace by 1 second....and I decided to get in at least 20 intervals. Without a pace clock to time myself, I decided I'd just count strokes....and until I did the very first interval, I had no idea how many strokes I'd be counting to. Here are the results:
For paces 1:10, 1:11 and 1:12 I only got between 30 and 40 strokes in before I hit the back wall. :eek: The current was incredible...and the turbulence was rough. I thought about zico's remark about snaking in the pool.
For paces 1:13, 1:14 and 1:15 I was able to get 50 strokes in without hitting the back wall. I was losing ground less and less as the wave slowed, but I was still losing ground.
Starting at 1:16, I had no trouble getting in 50 strokes and maintaining position in the pool. Yay!
For paces 1:17, (there was no 1:18*), 1:19, 1:20 and 1:21 it was easy street to get in 50 strokes.
It was an interesting process working through the paces. I would imagine the wave paces are not perfect...and after tonight's session my gut tells me that perhaps 1:24 is actually a little slower than 1:24...and perhaps 1:10 is actually a little faster than 1:10. ?? Just a guess. The way the wave paces are configured, there is no pace option between 1:24 and 1:21 (*the pace interval option widens as the pace slows), so I'll be looking to work my way to 1:21/100 yards for my long swims in the near future.
I finished this session with 15 minutes "cool down" at a pace of 1:24. Not a bad session, if I do say so myself!
Actual swim: ~3,800 meters in 75 minutes
I've an appointment to see someone about my leg/knee tomorrow morning at the University of Virginia Sports Medicine Clinic. Fingers and toes are crossed.0 -
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Hope the appointment goes well tomorrow. Fingers crossed that it just needs some TLC and a few days rest.
I'm in awe at your swimming, well done - I can just about do the width of the pool (if I did a length, I'd be in the deep end and in deep doo doo because I can't do not touching the bottom) so I can only imagine how much effort goes into doing 3,800 meters, it's mind boggling to someone who can't swim. It's great that you can keep your training going while your leg/knee is on the mend - you'll be back pounding the roads in no time 0 -
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Wednesday, March 4th, 2015
I spent most of the day driving to and from Charlottesville, and having my knee x-rayed and examined....so I only had time for one session today. But what a good session that one was.
Swim
I hopped in the tank after work a little low on gas and not really having any sort of plan in mind....so I turned the wave current to 1:24/100 yards and just swam for 30 minutes...and I let the thoughts of the day roll through my mind. (I solve a lot of the world's problems when I train!) I noticed pretty quickly that my arms/shoulders had yesterday's swim session still in them, so I knew then that any thought of repeating spiffy intervals was out. So, instead, I grabbed the pull buoy and upped the wave current to 1:21/100 yards and had a go at this for the next 30 minutes. (Like pulling at a faster pace for 30 minutes is way easier on the arms/shoulders than spiffy intervals??) This was fab!!! I loved it - loved everything about this. Loved using the pull buoy as I honestly hadn't noticed how low my body was in the water with the wave coming across my shoulders, back and hips....and I loved the extra spark to the pace. I'm not sure I could have kept this up for 60 minutes, but you damn well know that's next in my sights. :cool:
Actual swim: ~3,929 meters in the tank
Okay...so regarding the appointment today - the x-ray showed I have a beautiful left knee (really, the bones are perfect and clean!), and the official diagnosis is "unidentified internal derangement of the knee". :eek: Sounds a bit disturbing and like my knee should spend some time in the looney bin...but basically this means I need an MRI (which I could have told them from the start, but we have inefficient health care protocol we must follow...), and I've got that setup for next Thursday. Fingers crossed I continue to improve...fingers crossed it's just soft tissue damage/swelling....fingers crossed it's not the meniscus tear they are looking for with the MRI. Fingers crossed.
But on a positive note, I am back to tub-trotting tomorrow! Whoop whoop!!! 0
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