Thursday, July 5, 2007

Summmmmmmer

Today was a classic hot summer day. All I could think about all day was how good it would feel to jump in a lake. So after work we did just that. Went to Lake Mackenzie for a fantastic open water swim. It was the perfect evening to be out on the water. Had a great swim- around the perimeter for 40mins. I felt really good in the water, which was somewhat surprising as I had a very intense massage on my chest/back this afternoon. Hopefully I can get some of my neck/back issues sorted out before the bike trip. Apparently I am still dealing with residual effects from the crash I had in New Zealand :-(
Tomorrow I am off to the dentist in the morning..yipeee.
Training for the day: Swim- 40mins open water, continuous

Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Listening

I have been training well and feeling excellent as of late. However, as it turns out, my body is in need of a bit of rest. I went to see my coach today and had a sub max test. My heart rates are a bit higher than they should be which means my body is tired. As she explained it, this is an early warning sign to back off just a bit, rather than continuing to push on until my body makes me rest with illness or injury. I have had such a great season so far- no illness, no injury, and great progress and results- the last thing I want is to blow it all before IM. We also have our big bike trip coming up in a week so I definitely want to be rested and strong going into that!
So I am listening. To my coach, to my body, and the part of me that knows this is what I need to do and trusts that I will come back stronger for it.
I will test again on Tuesday and hopefully see better results! I just need to back off a bit and take care of my body.
It was really hard not to go out for the trail run tonight though. It was an incredibly beautiful evening and I love getting out for those runs. I knew it was a challenging 2hr run and I wouldn't be home until 10 though, so I decided to stay in the city. The bonus was that D and I had the whole evening to relax and hang out together. We really enjoyed sitting out in our yard, and just being with one another all evening- this rarely happens on a week night!

Tomorrow is open water swim night, I am really looking forward to it- I love lake swimming and it is going to be another beautiful evening to be outside.
This weekend is a long ride with Frank and Keri and the Stampede half. I am running the half, not racing so it is a no pressure no big deal race. Should be fun though- I love fully catered training runs!

Training for the day: Run 20mins (sub max test)