A few other words before I get into today's training. I originally intended to do the Tri101 training. The goal race for that is a "sprint" triathlon. That would be 200-700 meter swim, 15-20 kilometer bicycle ride, followed by a 5k run. The coaches, on the other hand, said that since I can comfortably run 5k and can ride a bike with at least minimal proficient, I should instead be in the Tri201 program. The goal for this program is an Olympic Distance triathlon. That bumps all the distances up - 1.5km swim, 40km bike ride, and a 10k run.
This is all a bit intimidating to me. I can comfortably already complete the cycling and running portions of the sprint distance, but I'm a goodly way from being able to run a 10k. The cycling is a little more in my wheelhouse - I think I could comfortably do ~ 32km right now. So yeah, I feel like I'm in a little over my head right now, especially with the swimming.
Alright, on to today's actual training! But first, a word in general about the training schedule. Right now, I'm used to doing on activity maybe 3-4 times a week. Maybe throw in a day of cycling. The 201 training schedule, on the other hand, has 2 activities 6 days a week, and a rest day on Monday. Yikes.
Ok, today, really. Today was the first training activity for 201. Wednesday mornings for the next 12 (now 11) weeks will be swim sessions. We got to choose our start times, either 5am, 6am, or 7am. I elected to go with 6am, since that didn't leave me rushing to get to work or anything. However, it also meant getting up at 5:10 so that I could have a little something to eat before driving out to The Rush. 5:10 is really early for someone who's gotten quite used to crawling out of bed at 7:00. But, I managed to make it with a few minutes to spare.
As this was the first session, we took a "test" which was really the coach watching us swim 2 lengths of the 25yd pool. We were then separated into groups based on skill level. What I didn't immediately realize, but soon became clear, was that everyone else in the 6am session has already been in triathlon training before. It also explained why I was the only guy to show up wearing board shorts (which I sorta suspected might happen). I ended up being group with a couple of other folks in the lowest group, and I am in fact the lowest of the low. That's a bit humbling for me, but I'm not too broken up over it.
It turns out that swimming properly is hard. Really hard. My technique is pretty much ... terrible if not non-existent. But hey, that's a good place to start from! Being so far behind everyone else, the coach assigned me a different routine than the rest of the group. For the time being, instead of normal freestyle, I get to do catch up drills. I've got a lot of difficulty breathing properly and keeping my head down, and this drill should help a lot with that. Aside from my semi-useless arms and head, I've apparently got a pretty strong kick.
I probably only swam 300 yards today, but felt pretty good afterwards. I've got to do a lot of work to get my stamina up, and find a proper breathing technique. Once I made it into work, I finally started to feel exhausted. Fortunately it wasn't the "I'm exhausted and I'm cranky and hate the world" feeling but the "wow, I did something out of the ordinary and now I'm tired but calm" feeling. So that was pretty good.
This afternoon's exercise was supposed to be an hour of cycling at a very easy pace. We had the option of doing a store ride with a group, but I decided not to do that. I have zero experience riding with a group, so I'm going to wait until we get a little bit of instruction in etiquette, etc. so that I don't make an ass of myself. Instead, I went to do some laps on Cherokee Blvd. On the way I stopped at the Bike Zoo and picked up a pair of cycling shorts. This whole training thing is going to be expensive! I have plenty of running gear, but not much cycling or swimming. Since we're going to be cycling 3 times a week (I think) I need at least 2 pairs of shorts so that I'm not doing laundry 3 times a week. You may be thinking "Doofus, just wear the shorts twice!" You've never ridden in cycling shorts. Generally they are worn ... commando, and you're basically drowning this nice cushiony pad in your sweat for hours at a time. They need to be washed. Trust me.
Here are the results of today's cycling workout:
You'll notice it only rode for 40 minutes. Right now I've either got a problem in my form or the setup of my bike. For the last two rides, I've ended up with a lot of soreness in my right arm and in my right hand between my thumb and palm. This could be cause by a couple of things, from what I understand:
- poor form
- my saddle is leaning a bit too far forward, causing my rear to slide forward, which in turns causes me to use my arms to keep from sliding forward
- my handlebars may be too low causing too much of my weight to be riding on my hands instead of my rear
Regardless of the cause, I stopped at 40 minutes so that I don't hurt myself more. I'll be looking at the problem over the next couple of days and get some expert advice from a friend of mine. I think endurance-wise, I could have done the remaining 20 minutes without much trouble at all.
Well, that's today's training ramble. I expect future ones will be shorter. Or longer. However the moods strikes me, I suppose. For now, I'm exhausted and in need of a good boor, or at least an entertaining mediocre book.
No comments:
Post a Comment