Go long or die trying

9Crimes

Mon: Lunch Swim: 40min – 200wu, 12*100 off 2:00 100wd
Can’t make the club swim this evening so I snuck an extra 10mins at lunch. After only 1 session last week what little feel I had is gone. Hopefully it won’t take too long to get back to where I was.

Tue: Lunch Swim: 30min – 200wu, 4*(2*100 off 2:10 – (1 steady, 1 fast)), 50wd
Trying to get a bit of pace back, fast 100’s were all 1:45 or under.

PM: Turbo: 1hr: 10min wu, 3*( 12min hard, 3min easy), 5min wd

Wed: Run: 30min easy

Thurs: s&c: 1hr

Fri: Rest

Sat: rest (travel to Gran Canaria)

Sun: Bike: 3hr – 80km, rolling hills. First day of training camp in GC and it felt great to be cycling in the sun. After a small lie-in as I was tired from all the travelling, we went and got bikes sorted before hitting the road about 11. Plan was an out and back trip of approx. 80km of rolling ups and downs but the road was closed so we detoured a little.

Swim: 1hr 10
Run: 30min
Cycle: 4hr
S&C: 1hr
Total: 6hr 40

Incredibly busy week with family and work commitments so it was a quiet one, but in a way perfect prep for a tough training week in GC.

9Crimes

Mon 19th: Swim: 1hr: 400wu, 10*200 with 20s rest, 200wd
Did this in a beautiful outdoor pool in Gran Canaria with Daniela Ryf 2 lanes over! Class seeing the pros at work with Brett Sutton on poolside! As for the swim it felt good but I think the water was salty which may have contributed to greater buoyancy and easier swimming.

Bike: 2hr 30: 50km: Quick breakfast after the swim and 25km straight up the mountain to a village called St Bart and 25km straight back down again. Did a bit of an effort for the first 18-20km to hold the wheel of a clubmate and then just went steady the rest of the way.

Run: 30min: Run straight off the bike and it was hot but enjoyable!

S&C: 30mins – plenty of flexibility work to keep the body in shape for the week.

Tue: Swim: 1hr: 300wu, 400 with 40s rest, 300 with 30s rest, 200 with 20s rest, 100 with 10s rest, 200 with 20s rest, 300 with 30s rest, 400 with 40s rest, 200 wd

Bike: 4hr: 78km: First 25km was rolling and then into a tough climb of circa 10km, followed by circa 15km of rolling and 40km descent. Felt ok throughout.

S&C: 30mins – daily work on keeping the body moving for the week.

Wed: Run: 1hr 20: 15km – ran this fasted and felt comfortable despite the heat starting to rise towards the end of the run, great to get some long runs back in the plan.

Open water swim: 15mins: just a dip in the ocean really with 500m swim – it was beautiful!

Thurs: Bike: 4hr 50min – 100km. This was planned for the last day but swapped it as the weather forecast was for heavy rain Friday and I didn’t fancy a 50km descent in the wet.
This was effectively a 50km climb and it was all about pacing it cleverly. I got a trun with about 10km to go to the top and felt really good so upped the pace a little without going OTT. The descent was fun and I was so fresh I hit a PB up the small 4km climb near home!

S&C: 30mins –Yet more flexibility work.

Fri: Swim: 1hr – 400wu, 3*(3*100 fast, 100 easy all with 20s rest), 300wd
This was a good session and I got faster as it went on finishing the last set of fast 100’s with 1:40, 1:41, 1:40. I attributed this to the extra buoyancy I think was coming from the salty water. Daniela was in attendance again this morning and for a good while it was just her and 2 other pro’s and myself and 2 clubmates.

Bike: 2hr: 50km – bit of a longer break between swim and bike this morning as I was worried about the forecasted rain but it never really came down that hard. Still to be safe I stuck to a rolling route and did an out and back with 2*10k efforts in the middle on a quiet section.

Run: 25min - After dropping the bike back I went straight into this, 1k easy, 3k hard, 1k easy. Great way to round out the weeks training.

Sat: Rest – Travel home


Swim 3hr 15
Bike 13hr 20
Run 2hr 15
S&C 2hr 30
Total 21hr 20

A great week’s training and I still feel very fresh after it, I’m definitely ahead of where I was this time last year and I’m gutted to be back in Ireland writing this and reading about some beast of the east thing that’s gonna cause havoc with my training plan this week!

9Crimes

Forgot to include Sunday in last weeks log - run 30min easy, 30min yoga

9Crimes

Mon 26th: Lunch swim: 30min: 200wu, 8*100 with 20s rest, 50wd

Tue: turbo: 1hr 10: 10min wu, 3*(15min z3, 3min easy), 5min wd

Wed: nothing

Thur: am: turbo: 50min fasted easy

Pm: turbo 1hr 6min - 10min wu, 3*(15min z3, 3min easy), 5min wd

Fri: turbo: 1hr 25min - 10min wu, 3*(20min z3, 5min easy), 5min wd

S&C: 1hr 30min - yoga and core work

Sat: 30min: core work

Sun: s&c: 1hr, yoga and core work

Turbo: 1hr 36min: 10min wu, 3*(22min z3, 5min easy), 5min wd

Swim: 30min
S&C: 3hr
Turbo: 7hr 37
Total: 11hr 7min

Jesus, I need to swim and run again! Totally over this snow malarkey now.
Off work next week so hopefully it clears quickly.

9Crimes

Mon 5th: Swim: 1hr - 2.4k - 400wu, 3*(3*100 off 1:55), 50 easy, 4*(4*50 off 60s, desc 1-4), 6*25 off 45 every 2nd fast, 100 wd.

Tue: Run: 85min - 15.6km - long slow run, avoiding what's left of the snow.

Wed: cycle 1hr - fartlek spin

Swim:1hr - 2.7km: 300wu, 350 with 40s rest, 300 with 30s rest, 250 with 20s rest, 150 with 20s rest, 100m with 10s rest and reverse back up the distance, 200wd

Thur: swim 1hr - 2.2km: 200wu, 200 pull, 200 kick, 100 swim, 12*100 with 15s rest, 200kick, 200wd

S&C: 1hr class

Fri:run: 45min - 10min wu, 30min tempo z3, 5 min wd, really enjoyed this run.

Sat:rest

Sun: nothing - my 'rest' day got away from me and I couldn't do anything today.

S&C: 1hr
Run: 2hr 10
Cycle: 1hr
Swim: 3hr
Total: 7hr 10

9Crimes

Mon 12th: Swim: 1hr: 2.35km - 400wu, 16*25 off 40s every 4th fast, 3*(8*50 off 70), 50 easy, 6*50 off 70 every 3rd fast

Tue, Wed, Thur, - I got food poisoning Mon night and that put an end to training for these few days.

Thur: s&c: 10mins and I have hurt my back.

Fri: nothing but a trip to physic to assess the damage

Sat: rest: back isn't serious thank God but the sooner this week is over the better,

Sun: Rest: - still no training back is still stiff.

Swim: 1hr
Total 1hr - says it all really

9Crimes

Mon 19th: AM: Swim: 1hr - 2.5km - 400 wu, 5*200 with 20s rest, 10*100 with 20s rest, 100wd
The pool was busy and I was regularly sprinting to get past swimmers and getting stuck behind swimmers but I made the best of it and it felt great to train after the last 10 days debacles.

PM:Turbo 1hr 30min - 10min wu, 3*(20min z3, 4min easy), 8min wd

Tue: Lunch Swim: 35min -1.25k - 200wu, 10*100 with 10s rest, 50wd

PM: Run: 1hr 15min: 10min wu, 5*(1mile with 2min rest), 15min wd
Did this with the club and while I am nowhere near my best speed wise it still felt like a good workout.

Wed: Swim: 1hr 15min: 3k - 400wu, 8*(200 with 20s rest), 2*(400 with 10s rest), 200wd
Shattered for the 400's but got through them, endurance remains a problem in the pool.

S&C: 45mins - yoga stretching

Thurs: rest

Fri: cycle: 5h 15min - club training weekend to carlow. This was a long steady ride through the wicklow mountains taking in botharnabreena, the lake drive, wicklow gap, shay Elliott and sleeve maan. Starting to tire getting into Carlow but a really enjoyable day with good company

Sat: pilates: 1hr: a great class with a borrowed pilates instructor from trilogy trial club
Swim: 1hr 10min: 2.3k - A mix of drills and fast swimming including a VO2 max test of 4*100 off 1:45. I have never swam off 1:45 before and I was delighted to hit 3 of these but I had to do the last off 1:50 as I was shattered.

Sun: cycle: 3hr 30min - club spin back to Dublin via Hollywood, lake drive and botharnabreena.

Run: 1hr 15min
S&C: 1hr 45min
Swim: 4hr
Cycle: 10hr 15
Total:17hr 15min

A good week after my last 2 weeks but I remain worried about my back. I went to the club physio on Sat and it certainly helped but sitting here typing I can feel it's still not 100%. (It's also the reason there is only 1 run this week).

9Crimes

Mon 26th: Nothing, Tried to make club swim but new job with an American company has resulted in some introductory calls at odd times of the day!

Tues: Lunch Swim: 30min: 200wu, 10*100 off 1:55, 50wd

PM: Turbo: 1hr 20m: 10min wu, 2*30min tempo with 5min rest, 5min wd

Wed: Lunch Swim: 40min: 200wu, 25min of drills, 4*50 off 55s, 50wd

PM: Run: 1hr 30min: 10min wu, 70min tempo, 10min wd
This was a tough enough session and I probably shouldn't have swam at lunch and tried to be fresher for this.

Thur: S&C: 45mins of yoga

Fri: Nothing - travel to London for Family Wedding

Sat: Run: 35mins: A quick run before wedding

Sun: Nothing - Wedding Celebrations Day 2


Run: 2hr 5min
Cycle: 1hr 20
Swim:1hr 10min
S&C: 45min
Total: 5hr 20

I knew this was going to be a bad week, so I'm not too disappointed. I have several quiet weeks ahead so I'm hoping to get more consistent training done as time is starting to slip by.

9Crimes

Mon 2nd: Run: 30min: Just a leg loosener after the weekends antics before my flight home.

Tue: Run 1hr 15min: Main set was 35mins at tempo, I was in bits, I felt like the Michelin man running around.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 35mins: 1.5km: 200wu, 3*400 with 30s rest, 100wd

PM: S&C class: 1hr 15min - back to my old class and it was a nice change.

Thur: AM: Swim: 1hr: 2.4km: 300wu, 400,300,200,100,200,300,400, 200wd

PM: Turbo: 1hr 35min: 15min wu, 3*(20min tempo, 5min easy), 5min wd

Fri: Rest

Sat: Run: 2hrs: main set was 90mins z2 fasted (16.5km). This was the best I have felt for a run in quite some time.

Sun: Cycle: 5hrs: Set out from Kildare and headed for Blessington, onto Lake Drive, up the Wicklow Gap, into Laragh and up the Sally Gap via military road before heading home through Rathfarnham. This was the longest I have spent non-stop on the bike since the Ironman and I was tired at the end and close to Bonking. I'm very happy to have it under my belt though.

Cycle: 6hr 35min
Swim: 1hr 35min
Run: 3hr 45min
S&C: 1hr 15min
Total: 13hr 10min

This was a good week from Tuesday onwards, but I need to kick on now and bring some consistency to the table.

9Crimes

Monday 9th: Swim: 1hr: 400wu, 16*25 off 45s every 4th fast, 5*200 off 4min, 100 easy
This was the start of a new club block and the focus was on good stroke work rather than volume. I however have lost the little bit of feel I had a few weeks ago and while the target for the 200's was 3:45, I could only manage to do the first in that time and then had to adjust my expectations.

Tue: AM: Turbo: 50min: 10min wu, 5*4min hard, 2min easy), 5min wd

Lunch swim: 35mins: 200wu, 5*200 off 4:00, 50wd

Wed: Lunch swim: 40mins: 200 wu, 11*100 off 2:00, 200 medium, 50 wd

PM: 1hr 30min: S&C class: combo of 1hr class and 30mins on my own prior to the class.

Thurs: Swim:1hr 10min: 400wu, 8*200 with 20s rest, 2*400 with 10s rest, 100 wd
This was supposed to be before work but I slept it out. I wasn't about to just skip it though given my problems in the pool Monday, so I finished work 30mins early went straight to the pool and after this session I went straight into a run.

Run: 40mins: 1k wu, 6k tempo, & wd
Felt pretty good for this run and was holding about 5sec quicker than previously for the same effort.

Fri: rest

Sat: run: 1hr 35min: 17.7km: Long slow run and it felt really good. It wasn't a fasted run which may have contributed to the comfortable feeling throughout. It will be interesting how next weeks run goes when I get back to fasted running!

S&C 45mins: a lot of stretching and core work after the run. I feel some fitness coming and I am not about to let a niggle or injury ruin things.

Sun: Turbo: 2hr 30ish: Forgot to start the watch for about 20mins. boring as hell steady turbo that just got done.

S&C: 45mins: yoga and core work.

Cycle: 3hr 20
Run: 2hr 15
Swim: 3hr 25
S&C: 3hr
Total: 12hr

Another good week down and it would have been even better if the weather wasn't sh1te yesterday and I could have got 4+ hrs outside.

9Crimes

Mon 16th: swim: 1hr: 200wu, 4*(4*100 off 1:55), 100 easy, 4*(4*50 off 65 desc 1-4).
A better swim than last week, feeling a little bit more comfortable in the water.

Tue: AM turbo: 45min: 8min wu, 4*(6min hard, 2min easy), 5min wd

Lunch Swim: 35mins: drills and swimming steady breathing on weak side only.

Run: 1hr 30min: wu, 10k tempo, wd
Felt really good again. There has definitely been a mini breakthrough in running in the last week or two.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 35mins: 200wu, 6*200 with 20s rest, 50wd
Found a swim buddy for my wed swims so it makes it that bit easier and a great motivator when you’re getting chased up and down the pool.

PM: 1hr 30min: S&C class and some activation work.

Thur: AM: Swim 45min: This was meant to be a 1hr 15min session but I was absolutely shattered and barely moving. I lasted 45min and pulled the plug. First session in a while I have shortened.

PM: Cycle: 1hr 30min: wu, and 5*tempo repeats up a small hill near my house, wd
What an evening for it!!

Fri: Rest – got my tt position tweaked by the lads in base2race

Sat: cycle: 5hrs: Last day out on the road bike for a while and what a day for it. Probably the most enjoyable day on a bike I have had in Ireland spinning around the Wicklow hills.

Sun: Run: 2hr 15min – wu, 1hr 40min long run, wd
Run is defo improving, holding 4s per km quicker this week with average HR 1bpm lower, while adding 5mins to the duration.


Swim: 2hr 55
Cycle: 7hr 15
Run: 3hr 45
S&C: 1hr 30
Total: 15hr 25

Thursday mornings blip aside (no idea what happened, must have slept badly or something) this was a good week. Each discipline seems to be coming along well and although I would prefer to be 1.5-2kg lighter I am satisfied with where I am right now.

9Crimes

Mon 23rd: Swim: 1hr: 400wu, 16*25 off 40s every 4th fast, 16*50 off 60, 6*100 off 2:00, 50wd
I seem to be plateauing a bit, no real improvements in the last few weeks.

Tue: Run: 45mins: wu, 15min steady, 10min fast, 5min all out, wd
Was shattered this morning (second time in a week) so I skipped my turbo session and my lunch swim. Felt better for this after work and happy to fit it in between work and other engagements. I am still feeling quite good running and while I don't want to jinx it I am finishing all run sessions with a great sense of satisfaction.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 45mins: 250wu, 5*300 with 30s rest, 100wd

PM: S&C Class: 1hr 30min: usual class with plenty of stretching/ foam rolling etc before and after

Thur: AM: Turbo: 1hr 5min: 10min wu, 4*(10min hard, 4min easy)

PM: Swim: 1hr 10min: 3.1km: 200wu, 500m with 30s rest, 5*150 with 25s rest, 400m with 20s rest, 5*100 with 20s rest, 200m with 15s rest, 4*50m with 15s rest, 100m with 10s rest, 4*25m with 10s rest, 200m wd
A long session which felt harder than it should have due to sore arms/shoulders from s&c class yesterday.

Fri: rest

Sat: 2hr 15min, 15min wu, 1hr 45min long run pace, 15 min wd,
Another small improvement - 3s per km faster than last week with same hr and an extra 5min added to duration. Definitely getting the most payback from my running at the moment!

Sun: Cycle: 4hr 25min: long spin on flat roads - first day out on the tt this year and it was chilly all morning!

Brick Run: 20min: first Brick run of the year and instruction was just to run easy but after the first 5min I was feeling good so I went a little harder than easy.


S&C: 1hr 30min
Swim: 2hr 55min
Cycle: 5hr 30
Run: 3hr 35min
Total: 13hr 30min

Delighted to sign off on another successful week. I was worried on Tuesday skipping the turbo and lunch swim and having to do a short(er) run but it turned out to be the right move as I felt much fresher for every other session as the week wore on.

9Crimes

Mon 30th: Swim: 1hr - 400wu, 6*(3*100 off 1:55), 100 easy, 6*25 off 45s every 2nd hard

Tue AM: Turbo: 50min – 10min wu, 3*(10min hard, 3min easy), 5min wd

PM: Run: 1hr 20 – Main set was 2*(10* short hill repeats followed by circa 1km flat fast lap)
This was not what was prescribed by my coach but I was seriously lacking in motivation so I went to my clubs run session in order to be motivated by others around me. It worked.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 40mins - 200 wu, 250,200,150,100,50,100,150,200,250, wd
Felt good for this. I seem to be having good and bad days in the pool at the moment. I have no idea what causes either.

PM: S&C class: 1hr 30 - the usual, stretching, foam rolling etc before a s&c class.

Thurs PM: Swim: 1hr 15min - 400wu, 4*200 with 20s rest, 2*400 with 10s rest, 4*200 with 20s rest, 200wd.
One of the bad days in the pool
Turbo: 1hr - 10min wu, 3*(12min hard, 4min easy) wd.
Did turbo 10mins after swim but felt good once I got moving.

Fri: Rest

Sat: cycle: 4hr 30min - 126km – Headed to Waterford for the weekend. Took the tt and cycled into the wind the whole way down. A really enjoyable spin though especially after Carlow when the roads got a good bit quieter.

Sun: cycle: 2hr 30min (46km) - Easy spin on a rented mountain bike on the greenway from Waterford to Dungarvan. Calling this a recovery spin would be generous but I didn't get any other training done today so I am including it!!

Swim: 2hr 55min
S&C: 1hr 30min
Run: 1hr 20min
Cycle: 8hr 50min
Total: 14hr 35min

No long run this week, will be 2 next week hopefully. Apart from that, it was a good week. Not much else to say really!!

9Crimes

Mon 7th: Run: 40mins: 8.4km: 10min warm up, 15min steady, 10min fast, 5min faster

Straight into cycle: 30mins: Fartlek traffic light to traffic light out to bull wall.

Straight into Open Water Swim: 20mins: first open water swim of the year. After the first 30s dunking the head it was fab. The weather helped and we had a mini picnic after the swim in the evening sunshine.

Tue: Lunch Swim: 45mins: 20*100 with 10/15sec rest.

PM: S&C class: 90min. Moved my usual Wed class to Tue instead.

Wed: Rest.

Thurs: Lunch Swim: 35min: 200wu, 200m paddles, 1000m steady, wd

PM: Long Run: 1hr 50min: 21.1km – Long slow run, went a bit faster over the last 3km as I knew I could get a half marathon distance done if I pushed a little towards the end. This however resulted in an upset stomach when I got home, a worrying development considering my issues in Austria last year.

Fri: Swim: 1hr 15min: 3km: wu – 200m, 50m fist, 150m. 6*(200m steady, 10s rest, 200m fast, 60s rest), 200m wd.
Struggling to pace the longer sessions a bit. I am starting too slow.

PM: Turbo: 1hr 10min: 10min wu, 3*(15min hard, 4min easy), wd

Sat: Bike: Circa 4hr 40: Watch died after about 4hrs circa 40mins from home. Tough morning after last nights turbo but kept a decent speed and kept the HR under some semblance of control!
Brick Run: Circa 45mins: Battery was dead but I did a very similar loop to Mondays tempo run which was circa 8-8.25k. First 20mins of this was very tough but I loosened out a bit and the second half wasn’t half as bad.

Sun: Run: 1hr 55min: 22.1km: Did this after spending the day at wellfest and was a little tired starting but grew into it as the run went on. Stomach was better than after Thursdays run so that was comforting.

Cycle: 6hr 20
Run: 5hr 10
Swim: 2hr 55
S&C: 1hr 30
Total: 15hr 55

Another good week done. Swim continues to be hit and miss, Run is still really good (4runs this week is unbelievable for me), Bike I am unsure about. I have a mini trip to the Alps in a few weeks which will be bike focused so that might show up how the bike is coming along.

9Crimes

Mon 14th: Swim: 1hr: 200wu, 16*25 off 40s every 4th fast, 15*100 off 2:00, 50 easy, 3*50 off 60s desc 1-3. Felt good throughout this session this evening.

Tue: Run: 32min: 10min wu, 2*12min with 2min easy.
This was supposed to be 3*12min but my stomach was very upset and I had to pull the plug halfway through the second set. Worried about my stomach when the going gets tough.

Wed: Swim:40mins: 200wu, 250,200,150,100,50,100,150,200,250,wd
Felt good again, I’m not getting any faster but I am more comfortable at the speed I can swim at.

PM: Turbo: 1hr: 10min wu, 3*(12min hard, 4min easy), wd
A good hard session done quite late at night meant a very disrupted nights sleep.

Thursday: Rest – went to Physio for some maintenance as I have a few tight spots which to date haven’t impacted training but I want it to stay that way, hence the physio visit.

Friday: Swim: 1hr 20min: 3.3km: 200m, 500,400,300,200,100,200,300,400,500, 200m wd
Long Session and I couldn’t hit my targeted times but I tried.

Sat: Wicklow mountains sportive: 4hr 30: My first sportive, 108km around Wicklow taking in Sally Gap, Roundwood, Slieve Maan, Shay Elliott, etc.
Gorgeous day and I felt really good throughout, even averaging 38kph for the last 15km (with a tailwind!) on the N81. This was my first ever sportive and I really enjoyed it.

Sun: Nothing.

Swim: 3hrs
Run: 30min
Bike: 5hr 30
Total: 9hrs

A very light week wasn’t in the plan but work was mental this week. Disappointed with the run volume having cut my Tue run short and missing Sundays long run altogether.
Sundays missed long run is a real blow as I won’t be doing a long run for a few weeks now due to a few races I have entered.

9Crimes

Mon 21st: Nothing, Work got out of hand.

Tue: Lunch Swim: 40mins: 1.5km: 200m wu, 200 paddles, 10*100 with 10s rest, wd

PM: Run: 1hr 15min: 15min wu, 20min steady, 15min moderate, 5min fast, 20min wd.
A good tough session. I find these quite good, both for pacing and fitness.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 45min: 1.9km: 200wu, 8*200 with 30s rest, wd
Feeling good in the pool the last 2 days but that could be the 2 days off Sunday and Monday.

PM: 1hr 30min: The usual.

Thur: Rest.

Fri: Lunch Swim: 1hr: 2k: 100m wu, 200m paddles, 5*300 (as 100 fast, 100 steady, 100 fast, 60s rest), 200m wd.

Turbo: 1hr 25min: 10min wu, 3*(20min z3, 5min z1)

Brick Run: 25min: Started steady and built into it finishing with a fast km before warming down.

Sat: Brick/Transition training: 20min wu,
round 1: 4km bike, 1km run
round 2: 4km bike, 400m run
round 3: 400m bike, 100m run
round 4: 400m bike, 100m run
round 5: 400m bike, 100m run
round 6: 400m bike, 100m run
Just getting some transition practice in before the race tomorrow.

Sun: Lough Cutra Olympic: 2hr 32min 31sec

Swim: 33min 18sec: I hope this swim was long because as I mentioned in the Lough Cutra thread I was 4mins slower than 2 years ago when I was an even worse swimmer than I am today! There was loads of room at the start line and I didn’t get bumped at all. I started steady and kept it under control out to the first buoy and once I hit that I accelerated a little around the second buoy and kept that pace back to shore. It was a little choppy out at the island but its one of my fav spots to swim and today was no different.

T1: 1min 43: Not much to say, Got in and out without too much hassle.

Bike: 1hr 15min 42sec: Got out and on the bike quickly enough, got up to speed and tried to kept a consistent effort throughout. Some of the back roads aren’t in great shape but I knew that from past experience. There are some technical spots on the course but I like that as it tests all aspects of one’s abilities and keeps it interesting, nothing more boring than a straight out and back!

T2: 47sec: Happy with T2, Saturdays practice was worth it and I was out quickly.

Run: 41:01: Like running trails in my long runs in training, trying to go flat out in a race though is not so much fun and the surface wasn’t great. I’d say there were a few turned ankles on the day but luckily I was not one of them. Went out steady with the aim of holding it as long as possible and while I slowed a little I am happy with the run (which was about 400-600m short I think).

Summary: Could have gone a little harder in the first half of the swim and gone 30-45s faster but apart from that I had a good race and I think it’s an accurate reflection of where I’m at, at the moment. It’s a short turnaround to the Double Olympic next week in Athy so I need to nail recovery this week. That being said next week is another B race so if I’m tired on the start line I won’t be too upset.

Triathlon: 2hr 30
Swim: 2hr 25
Run:1hr 40
S&C: 1hr 30
Bike: 1hr 25
Brick:1hr 45
Total: 11hr 15

Pity about Mondays missed swim but a good week apart from that.

9Crimes

Mon 28th: Rest

Tue: Lunch Swim: 40mins: 100wu, 200 paddles, 250,150,50,150,250, wd not recorded

Wed: Lunch S&C:45mins: rather than my regular evening class I headed to the gym and did my own thing

PM: Turbo: 1hr 10min: 5min wu, 20min easy, 15min steady, 5min fast, 15min steady, 20min easy. This was indoors and was hot, hot, hot.

Brick Run: 25min: 5.2km: Just out for a run took about a km to get into it but felt good from there on in.

Thur: Swim: 1hr: 200wu, 100 paddles, 5*400 (as 100 fast, 200 steady, 100 fast, 60s rest), wd

Turbo: 1hr: 10min wu, 4*(10min steady, 2min easy), wd

Brick Run: 30min: 6km: same as last night just took it easy enough.

Fri: rest

Sat: Athy Double Olympic

Early start (5:30am alarm call) and I’m in no mood to race! I had registered Thur night in wheelworx so it was nice and easy to set up, except someone had racked their bike in my spot in error!! Eventually get the marshalls to move it and I’m set up and ready to go.
This delayed me though and I just missed the cut-off for the first wave getting into the water so I am in the second wave.

Get into the water and straight away I can feel the flow is strong (probably due to the heavy rain Friday). I decide to shun the normal advice and line up near the middle of the river for the start which is an upstream swim for 900m. I do this for 2 reasons: to get more space at the start by going under the middle arch of the bridge rather than the left where 95% of the wave are lined up to.
The second reason is to cut the corner of the river, I can swim a straight line for 300m and end up of the left bank of the river whereas everyone else will swim further by hugging the bank. I don’t know if this worked or not though!!
I keep it steady upstream 900m, 600m downstream and 600m upstream tying in with a few others and drafting for the majority of the time. I’m very worried about lasting the distance which is why in hindsight I swam this too easily. When I turned the last buoy to swim 900m downstream I open things up a bit and pull away from the group I was drafting off up to now. From here the field is well spread out but I still catch groups in front easily enough and overtake 3-4 groups in the last 900m – further proof that I went too easy in the first 2km.

Swim time : 1:03:53 (2017 time: 1:05:22, don’t think flow was as strong)

T1: 2:40 (2017 time: 4:24) Had to put socks on etc for the longer run later, 2017 time included a pitstop in the portaloo!!

Out onto the bike and I’m starting to feel good, I’m defo fresher out of the water this year. I settle into a rhythm and start to overtake a good few others. End of lap one and the road ahead is getting clearer and there is less cyclists to overtake. I’m starting to tire a little and the second lap is a little slower but overall I’m happy with the pacing.

Bike: 2:22:00 (2017 time: 2:25:59)

T2: 2:11 (2017 time: 1:55) Had a bit of an issue racking the bike which cost a few seconds.

Start the run like a man possessed and run the first km in 4:22 as my legs haven’t settled into a pace yet off the bike. I quickly realise I’m not going to make it 20k without a pitstop so I pull over to a hedge and waste 90sec. I start to feel good after this and my pace settles at around 4:50km which is my target pace. The humidity along the canal was unreal all day it started to take it out of me by lap 3. I pop my last gel about 2/3 way through the 3rd lap and plow on but the pace is starting to bite. The last lap is tough but at this stage I know I’m going to make it so its worth the pain. I cross the line and down as much water as I can lay my hands on!

Run: 1:35:33 (2017 time: 1:35:57) This years run is actually about 2mins faster if you exclude my pitstop! I’m happy with the time but I thought my running was a little further ahead than this. It may have been the humidity or maybe I just went a little too hard on the bike.

Total: 5:06:20 (2017 time: 5:13:37) Overall I’m happy enough with this, I knew I would be faster than last year and was hoping, if conditions allowed, to get close to 5hrs. The strong flow in the river, my poor pacing of the swim and the humidity along the canal on the run put paid to that idea in the end.
The encouraging thing is there is loads more room for improvement.


Swim: 1hr 40
S&C: 45min
Run: 55min
Bike: 2hr 10
Triathlon: 5hr 6
Total: 10hr 36min

Last race until mid July so I have this next block to concentrate the mind. This coming week will be easy enough to recover as I’m off to France on Sat for a mini training camp for a few days.

9Crimes

Mon 4th: Cycle: 75min, just an easy spin to loosen the legs, didn’t turn on watch.

Tue: Run: 1hr 30: long warm up and warm down to make sure everything was working well after Saturdays race. Main set was dirty 30’s – 30s hard, 30s easy, 30 times. Felt good for it and paced it well.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 40min: 1600m – 200wu, 200 paddles, 2*500m, 200wd

PM: S&C class: 90min: the usual and it was hot.

Thur: Rest

Fri: Swim: 1hr 15min: 2.8km: 200wu, 24*100 with circa 10s rest, 200wd
Paced these well and was happy with the session especially as I have not done much swimming over the last 7-10 days.

PM: Run: 1hr: Easy run to help with the recovery and this is the 1st session this week when I actually felt last weeks race in the legs. The heat didn’t help.

Sat: s&c: 30min: Just a bit of yoga in the morning before catching a flight to France.

Sun: mini training camp day 1: Cycle: 80km: 4hrs taking in Alp D’Huez, Col du Sarenne & Le Perier. Did a quick 20k warm up before doing a tempo effort up Alp D’Huez but still can’t break the hr up it!. Kept it steady for the rest of the ride which had 2 smaller climbs and a few fun descents. Altitude made this harder than it should have felt.

Brick Run: circa 20mins: Felt really good after the first km and cruised around Bourg D’Oisan for 20mins.

Cycle: 5hr 15
Swim: 1hr 55
Run: 2hr 50
S&C: 2hr
Total: 12hr

Feels like a lot for a recovery week but I was relatively fresh for most of it, save for the fri evening run.

9Crimes

Mon 11th: Cycle: 4hr 40min: 101km: Col Du Glandon, Croix de Fer, Col d’Ornon. Rain this morning delayed the start but it cleared about 10am and we set off chasing some of the earlier starters in our group. It cleared into a beautiful day and we stopped at the top of Glandon for lunch. Food wasn’t good though and my stomach went south quick. I was in all sorts of bother by the time we hit the base of Col d’Ornon and warned my riding buddy this could turn into a Tom Dumoulin event very quickly! Thankfully it didn’t but needless to say it was a long transition to my brick run when I got back to our accommodation. This is just further proof my stomach is crap when it comes to taking on food during exercise.


Brick Run: 20mins around Bourg and the stomach still feels crap but at least the toilet urges have receded.

Tue 12th:Cycle: 1hr 40min: 36km: Climb to Villard Reculas and across to Huez village before the best fun you can have on a bicycle – Descending Alpe d’Huez! Hit 78kph on the descent and had great fun on the switchbacks! My mate and I were like giddy kids at the bottom, high-fiving each other like absolute tools!

PM: Run: 1hr 30min: 17km: This was supposed to be a long brick run but my stomach still wasn’t the best so I took an hr or 2 to eat some food and digest it properly before heading out. I thought altitude would be an issue but maybe I have acclimatised a little as this was a comfortable run.

Wed: Rest – travel home.

Thur & Fri: Paying for the few days off in work, no time for anything at all.

Sat: S&C: 30mins

Run: 2hr 15mins: 26.9km: Felt good for the majority of this run, started to tire in the last 30mins, probably as I haven’t gone close to 2hrs in a few weeks what with races and travel etc.

Sun: Cycle: circa 5hr 30mins: circa 160km: Never charged my watch so I was computerless for this spin. It was just a steady spin so it wasn’t really needed. The N81 is some comedown after last weeks spins in France!!
This was supposed to be a brick but my calves were on fire after all the running this week and I thought it would be better to not risk injury, I have after all done quite a few bricks the last few weeks.

S&C: 30mins
Run: 4hr 5min
Cycle: 11hr 50min
Total: 16hr 25min

No swimming this week which is far from ideal. Back to normality next week so I will try sneak an extra swim in somewhere.

9Crimes

Mon 18th: Swim: 2.4km: 1hr: 12*25 off 40s every 4th fast, 20*100 off 2:00 desc 1-4, 100 easy
The first 20mins of this session felt like I was learning to swim all over again, but once I dusted the cobwebs off I started to feel ok.

Tue: Turbo: 1hr: 15min wu, 4*(5min hard, 2min easy) 10min wd

PM: Run: 1hr 20min: 10min wu, 8*(5min hard, 2min easy), 15min wd
This was a tough session and it was breezy but warm and humid which didn’t help. Happy to have kept a consistent pace throughout.

Wed: Swim: 2.3km: 1hr: 200wu, 10*50m with 10s rest, 10*100 with 15s rest, 10*50 with 10 sec rest, 100wd

PM: S&C class: 1hr 30min

Thur: Rest

Fri: Swim: 3.5k: 1hr 20min: 200wu, 200 paddle, 500,400,300,200,100,100,200,300,400,500, 100wd

PM: Turbo: 1hr 15min: 10min wu 3*(15min hard, 4min easy) 5min wd
This was hot, hot, hot!!

Sat: Run: 1hr 30min: 18.1km: Negative split run. I felt really good for the duration of this run. The first 10mins after I upped the pace I was breathing a little hard but that settled and I felt comfortable to the end.

Sun: Cycle: 5hr 30min: 165km: This was a hot one! I was again supposed to do a brick run but my left hamstring tightened up really badly during the second half of the spin. My training partner actually spotted it early on the ride and commented that I looked like I was protecting my left leg. I thought nothing of it at the time but she was right and clearly I was tight starting the ride. Plenty of foam rolling when I got home but its still not 100% this morning.

Run: 2hr 50min
Swim: 3hr 20min
Cycle: 7hr 45min
S&C: 1hr 30min
Total: 15hr 25min

A good week under the belt. The next 3 weeks are going to be disrupted with work trips but I am hoping I can get something done between trips/ on trips/ whenever possible!!

9Crimes

Woah, this was a bad week

Mon 25th: Swim: 1hr: 2.2km: 400wu, 16*25 off 40s desc 1-4, 8*50 off 60s desc 1-4, 50 easy, 4*100 off 2:00 desc 1-4, 100 easy, 3*50 off 50s 100 off 2:00, 2*50 off 50 100 off 2:00. I have never swam 50's in 50s so was delighted to do this and even come in on 44-46s and get a quick breath in between.

Tue-Thur incl: work trip - travelled/worked from dawn to dusk each day

Fri: Swim: 1hr 30min: 4.2km: 200wu, 500m at 6/10 30s rest, 4*150 at 7/10 25s rest, 400m at 6/10 20s rest, 4*100 at 7/10 20s rest, 500m at 6/10, 4*150 at 7/10 25s rest, 400m at 6/10 20s rest, 4*100 at 7/10 20s rest, 100m warm down. Longest set so far this year and I was knackered but happy at the end of the set.

PM: Turbo: 1hr 30min: 15min wu, 3* (20min hard, 4min easy)

Sat: Run: 2hr 30min: 28.5km: Long run in the midday sun, Did laps of the park and went back to the car for hydration every hour, felt comfortable enough and was happy for the first circa 1hr 45 but it started to pinch then and it was hell heading off from the car after 2hrs to do another 30mins in the heat. I was really satisfied that I did and that mental training was as valuable as the physical training today.

Sun: Nothing - Disaster, Felt fine after my run yesterday and stretched and fuelled properly to aid recovery but I woke up at 2am and my glute was completely locked. I could not move it. I messaged my cycling buddy about 6am and pulled the plug and went back to sleep. Got up later and foam rolled and stretched a lot at various points during the day and it helped a lot. I'm sitting in work now with a sliotar under my glute and its a lot better but its not a good sign - that's 3 weekends in a row that I haven't been able to complete my training.

Run: 2hr 30min
Turbo: 1hr 30
Swim: 2hr 30min
Total: 6hr 30min

As I said, a bad week. This week won't be much better, I head stateside for work on Wed for 9 days when there will be little training done.

9Crimes

Mon 2ND: Swim: 1hr: 2.1km: 400wu, 16*25 off 40s desc 1-4, 6*(4*50 off 60s desc 1-4, 60s rest between sets), 100 easy.

Tue: Lunch Swim: 40mins: 1.5km: 100wu, 6*200 with 30s rest, 200wd

PM: Turbo:45min: 10min wu, 5*(5min hard, 2min easy), 3min wd

PM: Brick Run: 1hr 15: 10min wu, 4*(6min hard, 2min easy), 2*400, wd.

Wed: nothing (travelling)

Thu: nothing (work all day)

Fri: Run: 45min: 8.9km: easy run at altitude (1,600m) on a work trip in Denver. Holy hell this was tough! Circa 30degrees and the thin air made this really tough!

Sat: Cycle: 2hr 30min: 72km: lumpy ride at altitude (1,600m), Hot again! (circa 35 degrees). Altitude didn’t feel as bad. Either I am acclimatising and getting over the jet lag or cycling is easier at altitude than running

Sun: Run: 1hr 45min: 17.5km: Tried to get out early before the day heated up but it was still circa 30degrees when I was finishing. I did this fasted which didn’t help either but I found it very tough again. It was supposed to be a negative split run which I managed so that’s something I suppose.

PM: S&C: 1hr: combo of yoga, s&c exercises and core work.

Run: 3hr 45
Cycle: 2hr 30
Swim: 1hr 40
S&C: 1hr
Total: 8hr 55

Not bad considering I had a long haul flight in the middle of the week and am quite busy in Denver. I’m hoping the altitude supplements the bit of training I am doing.

9Crimes

Mon 9th: Run: 1hr: 15min wu, 4*(3min tempo, 2min easy), wd
Another tough run at altitude.

Tue: Nothing - Last day in Denver and had a work do in the evening.

Wed: travel home

Thur: fitness test - Not the ideal timing for this but it was the only time I could fit it in. Some big gains vs the test I did in February so I am quite happy.

Fri: Swim: 30min: 200wu, 400 steady, 3*100 as 25 flat out, 75 steady. wd not recorded
Race tomorrow so had to get in for a quick dip to make sure I could still swim as it has been 9-10 days since my last swim.

Sat: Tribesman Half - see below for race report

Sun: Stayed in Westport last night in a hotel after the race and spent about an hour recovering in Jacuzzi and sauna today before heading home.

Swim: 30min
Run: 1hr
Race: 5hr
Fitness test: 45min
Total: 7hr 15min

Back to normal next week, thank god

9Crimes

Tribesman half distance:

5:30am alarm call is a bit early for me especially as I am still feeling the jet lag. I have zero motivation for this but I know that will change when I get to the start line, my inner competitiveness will see to that.
I have about a 45min drive having stayed with my aunt fri night and I thought I had given myself plenty of time, but by the time I get there, register, queue to get into transition, find a spot (spots were not allocated so it was a free for all), set up and get my wetsuit on and I have no time to warm up!
I stretch for a minute and then hop into the water, at least its about a 200m swim to the start line so I use that to loosen up some more.

Swim: 35:37
Having been disappointed with my start in the last 2 races I made sure to start hard here. As expected my competitiveness kicks in and I line up on the very far right at the very front and have the best start I have ever had in a race. It's about 200m upstream to the turnaround and I make it just on the back of a large front group of circa 20-30 swimmers. As we turn to go downstream they pull away but I appear to be leading a second group and I keep the lead group in sight for as long as possible. After about 1200m that group have opened up quite a gap and I am struggling to see them when I sight. This leads to a bit of crisscrossing and I lose my way a little for about 400-500m. There is a bend in the river at this point which may have contributed but I definitely add a little unnecessary distance to the swim here. About 200m from the end I spot the exit and I start kicking hard to get the blood flowing before T1.

T1: 1:42
A shocker. The lack of prep seems to hit and I can't get my wetsuit off over the timing tag. I put on socks at this point too. Prob 30s lost here.

Bike: 2:33:45 (88.2km)
Out on the bike and I lose 1.5 bananas before I even get out of NUIG and onto the main road! I am raging and eat the half a banana I have left before getting stuck in and finding a rhythm. The wind picks up pretty quickly once I get out of Galway and it appears to be helping/crosswind for the first half of the race.
A group of 4 of us end up together and I am impressed that everyone is making a good attempt at not drafting - increasingly unusual in my experience!
About 2-3km outside of Oughterard I decide to put in a surge and drop the others. This works and I am on my own coming into Oughterard but it turns out to be a complete waste as there is an unmarshalled zebra crossing and plenty of traffic and I slow to a crawl and even have to clip out at one point. One of the others guys catches me and we have a chuckle at my complete waste of energy.
The other side of Oughterard I slowly drop him again and I am on my own now for long periods as it starts to drizzle pretty steadily. Eventually I get to Maam Cross where we need to take a right and go 2k up the road before the turnaround. I take the right into what appears to be a horse fair and there is jeeps, tractors, horse trailers all over the road. it was lethal and certainly not a good spot for a race. Down to the turnaround and back to the horse fair and I meet a jeep and trailer heading for me on the wrong side of the road for the craic. I jam on the brakes, swerve around him, give him the finger and turn back onto the main road to head for home.
Its into the wind now and a tough slog with the drizzle not helping. 2 cyclists pass me on the way back which is a bit disappointing but there is not much I can do to stop it. Similar problems going through Oughterard again and although there is now a Marshall on the zebra crossing I still have to slow right down for 30s and even have to clip out a second time.
Once back in NUIG, I get my feet out of my shoes and prepare for T2.

T2: 1:36
Shocker 2.0. My quads cramp as I am putting on my runners and I have to stop and stretch. This may be a result of losing the bananas and being a bit short on nutrition on the bike. Once stretched I feel better and head out on the run. Another 30s lost though.

Run: 1:43:30
I set out with the aim of breaking 1:40 and I am feeling comfortable running roughly 1:38 pace for the first 2 laps passing a steady stream of people (who were probably back markers on the Olympic course). I take a gel at the start of lap 2 and think to myself I probably should have taken 1 at the start of the run to make up for the banana faux pas but its too late at this point!
Soon after popping my gel at the start of lap 3 I start to struggle. I am tiring quickly now and trying my best not to slow down, the inevitable happens though and my pace goes off a cliff. I walk past the water stop twice on lap 3 (despite swearing to only do so once a lap) and although I manage to throw in a 4:40km at some point here, most splits are showing 5:10 or more and the km I walked past the water spot twice is a 6:01km. I had figured early on the run I would break 5hrs so I changed my goal to break 4:55. As I pass the finish line on the last loop I know its not possible but I keep going as best I can and cross the line completely spent.

Total: 4:56:10 (22nd)
I have only ever done one half iron before (Dublin 2016), so this is a 20min pb. Whats quite telling though is my run was a min slower today. I am hoping this was the jet lag having only got back from Denver on Thur morning or it may have been down to losing my bananas. Both of these will be rectified easily on ironman day. The big fear is that it was neither and I simply ran out of steam.

9Crimes

Mon 16th: Swim: 1hr: 2km: 400wu, 16*25 off 40s desc 1-4, 12*100 off 2:00 desc 1-3
Thought I would be shattered for this but felt ok, probably as the volume was low and there was plenty of rest.

Tue: Rest: Everything from last week has caught up on me and I decided rest was a better idea than an hour turbo and hour run.

Wed: Lunch Swim: 40min: 1.7km: 200wu, 200 paddles, 3*400 with 60s rest, 100wd

PM: S&C: 90min: The usual with a bit more focus on foam rolling and core than usual.

Thur: Swim: 1hr 30min: 4.3km: 400wu, 600, 500, 400, 300, 300, 400, 500, 600, 200wd. Think this is the furthest I have swam in a session

PM: Turbo: 1hr: 5min wu, 3*(15min hard, 4min easy)

Fri: Turbo: 2.5hr: steady – I took the day off to train today and travelled to parents house thur night. The plan was for my Dad to accompany me on the first half of a long spin. When I woke Fri morning the weather was cat and I had only brought good weather gear as it hadn’t rained in 6 weeks! I went back to bed for an hour to see if it would clear but alas it didn’t. I ended up driving home and only had time for 2.5hr so I thought it best to maximise it and do it on the turbo watching the tour de France.

Brick Run: 1hr: Steady run straight off the bike.

Sat: Nothing, Weekend away with GF for her birthday.

Sun: PM: Long Run: 2hr 30min: Felt awful after 1hr 50 of this. I was hoping to do 2hr 45min but I hit the wall and rather than push through and risk future training sessions I pulled the plug and focused on recovering as best as possible.

Run: 3hr 30
Turbo: 3hr 30
Swim: 3hr 10
S&C: 1hr 30
Total: 11hr 10

Turned out to be a bit of a messy week but I am content with the volume considering I was away for the weekend.

9Crimes

Mon 23rd: Swim: 1hr: 2.4km: 16*25 off 40s desc 1-4, 16*50 off 70s desc 1-4, 6*100 off 2:15 desc 1-3, 9*50 off 70s desc 1-3.
I led out for the full hour and was happy with how I paced everything.

Tue: Turbo: 3hr steady, had a half day from work so made the most of it.

Brick Run: 1hr 30min: This felt like a short run, which is a good sign I think!

Wed: Lunch Swim: 30min: 200wu, 8*100 with 15s rest, 100wd.
I had zero motivation today and my usual lunch swim buddy was absent which didn’t help. I was quite happy to get this done.

PM: S&C class: 1hr: didn’t get the opportunity to add to this so only an hour this week.

Thurs: Swim: 1hr 30min: 4.5km: Thursday is supposed to be my rest day but the pool is to close for maintenance Friday so I got this done today. Again, I had zero motivation but persevered and got through it. I was shattered at the end.

Fri: Turbo: 1hr 30: 15min wu, 3*(20min hard, 4min easy) 5min wd

Sat: “Long” cycle: 2hr 30min: dreadful day out and my plan to go down the N81 to Carlow and back was abandoned in Blessington.

PM: Long Run: 3hr: 33km: The cost of abandoning this mornings bike is a long run in the evening. My glute and hip flexor got very sore towards the end but I was delighted to get this done. I think this is my longest training run ever.

Sun: Turbo 2hr 30min: Still crappy out but the main reason I stuck with the turbo is my glute is killing me. Loads of foam rolling and some dep heat has helped but I didn’t want to be on a road somewhere in Wicklow if my glute gave up and I would have no way home, so I stuck with the turbo. The turbo didn’t make it worse, but it didn’t make it better either. I will try see a physio tomorrow to get it loosened out a bit.

S&C: 1hr
Swim: 3hr
Run: 4hr 30:
Cycle: 2hr 30
Turbo: 7hr
Total: 18hrs

Feels like I did more this week. Might be the feeling of getting more bang for your buck on the turbo. I am a little worried about the glute but on the flip side I am delighted to get that run done. That will be the longest run before Copenhagen so I had it marked as a key session. Entering the last week of heavy training now before a two week taper.

9Crimes

Mon 30th: Swim: 1hr: 2.4km: 400wu, 16*25 off 30s every 2nd one fast,4*(3*50 off 55s, 100 easy), 50 easy, 9*50 off 70s desc 1-3
Felt tired for this and it showed in my times.

Tue: Lunch: S&C: 40min: mainly core work.

PM: Turbo: 50min: 5min wu, 6*(5min hard, 2min easy), 3min wd

Wed: Rest

Thur: Lunch swim: 45mins: 200wu, 200 paddles, 8*50 with 15s rest, 200 paddles, 8*50 with 10s rest, 50wd.

PM: Run: 1hr 10min: 10min wu, 4*(8min hard, 2min easy), wd
Did laps of the polo grounds for this and was happy with the effort.

Fri AM: Swim: 1hr 30min: 4.2km: 500wu: 600 with 60s rest, 500 with 50s rest, 400 with 40s rest, 300 with 30s rest, 300 with 30s rest, 400 with 40s rest, 500 with 50s rest, 600 with 60s rest, wd.
Had to cut wd short as the pool was closing. I was delighted as I could hardly lift my arms.

PM: Turbo: 1hr 25min: 10min wu, 3*(20min hard, 4min easy)
Sweaty session inside!

Sat: AM: OW Swim: 30min: Circa 1200-1500m out at the 40ft. Got a jellyfish sting on both hands and one foot which was quite sore for a few hours.

PM: Cycle: 2hrs: Supposed to be a brick from the swim but I had to go to pharmacy for the sting and took a few hours off until the sting wasn't as bad.

Run: 15min: This was supposed to be longer but I was running late and my stings were annoying the hell out of me so I only did 15min

Sun: Cycle: 6hrs: 180km: The usual spin down the n81. I will not miss that road when this is done.


Run: 1hr 25
Cycle: 10hr 15
Swim: 3hr 45
S&C: 45
Total: 16hr 10

9Crimes

Monday 6th: Cycle 1hr: Spin around the phoenix park

Brick Run: 1hr: easy run off the bike

PM: Open Water Swim: 1hr: Club did a 70.3 course recce and everyone was welcome. Did about 3k in total and was happy with how it went. Managed to keep with 3 guys I consider much faster than me for the whole swim. They seemed to ease off after the first turn because I found the going much easier after that & they weren't going flat out before that but I'm still calling it a win!

Tue: Rest (Physio on glute)

Wed: S&C: 30mins stretching the glute and some core work

Thur: Lunch Swim: 30min: main set was 12*100 with loads of rest.

Fri: Swim: 1hr 15min: 3.1km: 300wu, 400, 4*100, 200, 4*50, 100, 4*25, 100m, 4*50, 200, 4*100, 400, 100wd
Possibly the best swim I have ever done. I was in the zone throughout, timing wall touches perfectly, pacing was spot on, I had no problem holding 1:45 per 100. Is this what it feels like to be a swimmer? Great confidence booster, lets hope it continues!

Sat: rest - massage - back to physio for massage with emphasis on the left glute, which is my only worry at the moment. Its fine except for when I run when it starts to lock up after a while. If I can delay that locking up until at least 30k into the marathon next week I can plough through any pain and worry about the damage after the race. If it starts earlier, I may have a problem

Sun: Cycle: 1hr 30min: First spin outside on the road bike in ages (shipped the tt bike fri night). Went up the Dublin mountains and set a pb up stocking lane to the viewing point without even trying - another good sign.

Run: Supposed to be a brick but coming back into town I came upon the half marathon so I watched that for a while.
Run was just 35min, 7km easy and easy was what I found it.

Cycle: 2hr 30
Run: 1hr 35
Swim: 2hr 45
S&C: 30min
Total: 7hr 20

I am content with where I am leading into this. Obviously I would like to be 2kg lighter (who wouldn't!) and I am slightly worried about my glute but if I stretch regularly this week and use a combo of painkillers and deep heat on the day (if needed), I hope to be fine.
As I have repeatedly mentioned my goal is to go under 11hrs if the weather plays ball. I am confident that should things go to plan (i.e no punctures, crashes, weather problems, losing goggles etc.) I will be off the bike just under 7hrs so it will come to the marathon - can I break 4hrs? I will find out on Sunday.

MojoMaker

Best of luck - your prep deserves a good result.

zico10

Good luck tomorrow.