Chasing Down 90

So, this week has been a little brighter. Lots of changes happening that's for sure. New job! for starters. Back to the 9 to 5 routine I guess. One bonus was getting through the best part of winter and being able to do my training in the middle of the day and mostly when the day is at its warmest. Of course we have the August winds to contend with yet and so I'm really looking forward to stepping out into gale force winds at 5am. Not! But it has to be done.

Coach has put in a huge week on the program and I have been working through it all steadily and trying not to think too far ahead. Just one session at a time. I find if I do start thinking about what's coming I can scare myself out of action. Better not to engage the brain Sammi and JFDI. hey! And that was the approach I took this afternoon when I got home from a quick shopping spree and pulled on the bike nicks. JFDI and don't over think it. The set: 90kms maintain good form, finish strong.

I headed out into a beautiful blue day and a light breeze, though lifting. Tried to distract myself with other thoughts than what was happening with the legs and ticked over the first 20kms without too much concern. I know where the halfway point is.....right where you have the option: turn right and you continue on your way and get ever so closer to the 90 or turn left and take the easy way home and only get 55. hmmmmm Don't over think it! turn right! and so I did. Turning right takes you up the cat 4 climb. I was tired from the 40kms I did in the set the day before and so I did have to stand on the pegs rather than sit and spin over the hill but I made it up the climb without losing form and getting to puffed.

After the cat 4 there are some nice meaty rolling hills before a long flat section and then you guessed it....another option. Turn right will get another 10kms turn left will take you home with maybe 65. Hmmm TURN RIGHT!!! and so I did. Up another couple of hills and through some stunning country side. Checking the odi I find I am still chasing another 20kms. Nuts! One more time. Turn right takes me home with 70, turn left for an out and back will give me the 90. Oh crap! Left we go.

I am so lucky to have countryside like this to train in.

With the wind at my back I cruised through the beautiful countryside and in the time trial position made some good gains on the average speed for the day. At the turn - around point I braced myself, yep, the breeze had lifted and was now a nice head wind buffeting the legs just when the cookies were just about all eaten. I pushed on. Along a long straight, up a short nasty hill and down a long descent that can see you hit 60kmph. And yep, one more glance at the odometer and to my dismay I was still down 1 louzey kilometre.

Now some folk might think what's one kilometre? But us folk who work hard at this thing called triathlon know its 1km that you will never get back. It adds up over time until suddenly you're 20kms down and way down on your fitness and not ready for racing. It also is the mental game. More importantly! its the ability to push yourself and tick the box when everything on the body and in the mind is screaming STOP!!!! for crying out loud!

So, one more time, go straight gets one more km, turn left takes these tired legs home with 89. GO STRAIGHT SAMMI!!!!!! and so I did. I punched on into the headwind and by this stage I was starting to groan. My husband laughs at me when I do this but he can tell when I have reached my limit and have completely emptied the tank when I start to groan intermittently. The noise just comes out by itself. And there aint no stopping it. It's definitely not a sexy moan like Sam Stojur, it's more the death bell of an old walrus.... but hey, that's me! Finally, the 90 ticks over and I hear the Garmin on my wrist trill out the illusive last kilometer and I know all I got to do now is get home. With about 100m to go I head into a round-a-bout. I have right of way....you know where this is going hey! Yep, there's a little black car on my left heading at me. I'm already on the round-a-bout with nothing coming from the right so I'm good and yep, this little black car continues to hurtle through the round-a-bout without stopping. I slam on the brakes (luckily my head/body was still working as I was so tired) 'P' Provisional Plate young driver. She didn't even look my way. I reckon I was a metre off her open window when I screamed "HEY" right at her. She looked shocked as she saw me and then continued on her way while I directed some subtle hand signals at her tail lights.

Just get me home............ And I rolled in with my 90 under my belt. Done!

Hills Make Us Stronger

I had a top day today so I felt I needed to blog about it......

I met up with Coach this morning to discuss my goals for the upcoming 2012/2013 triathlon season.

Basically it's winter and a great time to do a reconnoiter and reassess goals and make sure we are headed in the right direction. Knowing I was having a coffee catch up with him I printed off my goals I had written in a previous blog and added a touch more detail by way of explanation of why I chose the goals etc.

But first it was a swim.

We headed in to the Uni pool and as I flopped into the water I was full of self talk. The water is going to be lovely and fresh, its going to wake you up and make you feel alive. It's great to be swimming early its a great way to start the day. In truth I was dreading the cold plunge and I was trying desperately to find a positive spin on the inevitable. And to my surprise, the water was refreshing and I was awake, but it wasn't bracing and so I feel my positive self talk had actually paid off.

Coach watched me over a couple of laps and gave me some feedback and things he wanted me to focus on with my stroke. My right arm (side I breathe to when I am swimming at speed or under load) is cutting across the front of me instead of landing in line with my shoulder and on the left although I have good rotation, I am dropping my elbow. I knew that already but I am having a real hard time finding the correct position and then practicing it until it comes naturally and is ingrained into my stroke.

After the swim set I headed for the showers and caught up with him at the cafe for a small flat white.....my attempt to cut back the coffee and watch my diet compromise.

We sat with my printed sheet and discussed each point in turn. Coach suggested a really good nutritionist he knows that I can work with to get my nutrition right, lose some weight and keep energy as well as race specific nutrition.

So anyway we discussed heaps of things so that Coach could get an idea of where my head is at. Of course this all comes down to me getting registered into Ironman 2013 Yikes!~

Anyway......after the chat I headed home full of positive talk, goals and a plan of how to move forward.

After lunch, still buzzing about the year ahead, I headed out on the road with the little Cervelo. The set was "60km ride, hilly course and stay aerobic" As the course is up to me to set I headed South for a steep hill that never seems to get any easier. Half way up I realised that the course I was planning was going to leave my legs thrashed for the weekend 90km ride that was planned. A quick re-jig of the plan in my head and I continued South heading for Kiama and another hill but not as big as the ones originally planned. As I rode the 60kms I headed for hills (or rather hefty bumps) and stayed aerobic. The legs eventually warmed up and the sting of some of the bigger hills seemed to ease a bit. Heading for home I was able to pick the pace up a little and finished with a happy time even though the hills were bumps. I was also pleasantly surprised to claim 2 QOMs on Strava and a host of other good scores. Sweet, that means I am getting stronger I hope.

Let the Healing Begin

So! life goes on and it moves forward and 'This too shall pass', as my Dad would say.

And indeed it has. I woke up this morning feeling more relaxed than I have in a good while. It was a lovely sunny day and there was nothing competing (for a change) with my training. No excuses. Sammi you are back out on the road. And so I looked at my program and Coach had written Ride - 50km aerobic/not easy, but not hard. Ok, a ride "You Beauty."

I had been on Strava and checked the segments available that other girls had ridden and picked a course that I meant I could have a crack at getting QOM (Queen of the Mountain) on.

So I headed out and very quickly found that the legs were heavy and unresponsive. Oh Dear..... Warming up didn't seem to ease the legs but the head and the determination to win a few max speed efforts was driving me forward. There is a thought that chasing Segments on Strava can de-rail your training and yeah, I can see how that could happen. But today I was chasing and rather than cut the ride short or just spin along, I was hungry for a few records. So I think it was a positive.

There were 6 segments on the course that I took and I registered top 10 on all. 2nd over one long time trial segment so I was very happy with that. A bit confused over 1 segment though. I hit 39kmph and thought for sure I would take the QOM for that but when I got home and uploaded that ride I fell a fair bit short. I will have to check again where the effort is so that I can have another go later.

The legs were still tired at the end of the ride. But overall I was happy with the effort, the results and most of all the fact that I didn't need a kick up the tush to get myself out the door today. That has been the highlight for today. The want to exercise and train is back baby.

Hell Yeah!