Doing it all Today - Family, Work & Training...

I woke up early, had my cereal and toast, and was at the pool by 6:30am.

Today was my 3000 meter tempo swim, another word for speed work.

I actually swam faster than I thought I could. For some of the 100 repeats I was as low as 1:49 per 100, others I was not so fast at 2:08 per 100.

I really did swim hard this morning. I figured if I'm going to do a speed workout, I'm going to give it everything I have, no slacking or "going through the motions".

"If it's not worth doing right, it's not worth doing" is my training motto.

As I've been swimming in the morning for the past couple of weeks, my body has been adjusting nicely, and I'm no longer tired and driving to work in "sleepy" mode.

Lately, I can't stop eating, I have constant cravings. Where I should be gaining weight, I actually think I'm starting to lose weight.

The only time my weight gets unpredictable is after I "binge" on cocktails. It takes a few days for my body to readjust.

After work, I hung up my old bike in the garage, had my nap, then dinner and did an hour of weights. I gave it all during the weight session and could feel the pain.

After working out I went to Reid's hockey game, from the weight training session, my upper body felt exhausted and tingly, like a heart attack symptom.

On the way home I started to crave ice cream!

What a difference a bike makes...

My Trek bike arrived from Florida yesterday.

It has been there since my Christmas holidays.

It took a while for my bike box to be shipped to my sisters in Florida, which meant it took a while for my bike to get back home to me.

After my evening nap, I decided to put the bike together and put it on the wind trainer.

I'm glad I did.

I could not believe the ride difference between my old Centurion and my carbon fiber Trek.

The Trek is so superior!

I would never have thought the difference would be so easily noticeable, especially as the bikes are on a wind trainer and not outside on the road.

The first thing I noticed was that the Trek was so much quieter than the Centurion. Normally Alice can hear me on the bike from downstairs, with the Trek she couldn't, it was just a nice low humming.

The feel of the Trek also felt better. When riding, the spinning is smoother, everything is a precision fit.

I did a 75 minute tempo ride at 139 bpm.

It was the only time on a wind trainer, that I had to keep it in the big front gear and continue to gear up and then down on the small rear gear just to keep my heart rate in the zone.

It felt like I was riding outside.

A busy 14 hours...

Between 6:30 pm yesterday and 8:30 am today, a total of 14 hours, I did exactly 5 hours of training.

In the past 27 hours, I've done 6 hours and 15 minutes.

This morning I got up at 5:45, had my toast and jam and drove the YMCA.

I had my 4000 meter swim, and it was an official 4000 meters in a 25 meter pool. It took me 1 hour 40 minutes. The 400 meter of kicking on the board at the end of the workout was "real" fun.

Tonight I went for an 8 mile run that I completed in 1 hour 15 minutes. It was a moderate run, with the heart rate not exceeding 134 bpm.

It started snowing today and it was not the ideal conditions for running. I decided to wait until 8:30 pm to run, as I thought there would be less traffic and it would be safer.

My neighbor, who is training for a marathon decided not to go out to run tonight because he thought it was to slippery and didn't want to fall and injure himself. He opted for his treadmill.

I decided to go anyway. I had to push myself out the door because the weather was miserable and I wasn't looking forward to going outside.

I am so "sick" of winter. The snow and the ice is just getting to me. It should be gone by now!!!

The one smart thing I did before my run was decide to use my cross country ski mitts. For the past few runs I've been using my fabric gloves and they have not been keeping my hands warm, so I went for the mitts.

They were awesome, so warm and toasty.

The run felt good, except for the wind blowing snow pellets in my eyes, having to dart away from the dangerous road clearing trucks three times, trying not to slip on ice and getting my feet wet from the areas that were melting due to the salt.

Other than that, the run was good.

Monday Monday...

I started my training right at 6:30 pm.

My bike ride was 2 hours, followed by my weight session, which lasted 80 minutes.

I decided to update my blog before I stretched, so after completing this update, I have 15 minutes of stretching before going to bed.

I figure by 10:45 pm I should be done for the night.

Hopefully I will get a good night sleep, as I need to get up at 5:45 am to do my 4000 meter swim.

Today's training went well. I found a couple of good TV shows to watch, which made the bike ride go faster. I did sweat a lot, as always!

The weights never get easier, but I love the results.

Highlight of the week...

I woke up at 7:30 am to do my long run.

It look me 1/2 hour just to get my legs to move fluidly.

Before the run, I had a large bowl of oatmeal and two pieces of toast with blueberry jam. I was now carbo loaded and ready to go.

I dressed a little lighter than normal as I thought it would be a little warmer out. Wrong. It took me at least 45 minutes to start feeling warmer. My hands were very cold.

I could tell I was having a good run, I felt strong for the entire run and even stronger on the last half.

I ended up running an 8:25 pace for 13.62 miles. It took me 1 hour 55 minutes, at or below 139 bpm. My long run was 3 seconds faster than Friday's 50 minute tempo run.

It was my best long run time of the year, it was around 30 - 60 seconds per mile faster than my last few long runs and afterwards my legs felt great, no fatigue.

At 10:45 I was home, stretched and showered, all according to my plan, as this afternoon is family time.

We're planning to go to the auto show.

A little less rough Saturday...except for the workout

Last night Alice and I went to a 40th birthday party in the Italian area of Toronto.

I had a great time, lots of beer, food, cake and dancing. It is a good thing Alice only had a couple of drinks, she was able to get me home by 1:17 am, or it could have been a repeat of last week.

Although it wasn't that far off.

When I start "kissing" people it is usually a sign that I've had a little to much to drink!

I woke up early, as Reid had a playoff game at 8:00 am. They won 2 - 0.

I was still feeling some of the effects of the night before and the Tim Horton's coffee and bagel started to help bring me back to normal.

When I got home I went to bed for a few more hours, then picked up a healthy burger and fries for lunch, before starting my Saturday super workout sessions.

I started at 2:10 pm and was finished by 7:16 pm.

I did a 3 hour bike ride and a 3000 meter swim that took me 70 minutes. In between the two workouts I did my regular stretching session.

It dawned on me that I probably spend more time stretching in a week than most people do working out. On average, in a week, I figure I stretch 1.5 to 2 hours.

After every run or bike, I stretch for around 15 minutes.

On today's bike ride I lost over 5 lbs of water, even though I drank 64 ounces while riding. Then after the bike, I drank back the 5 lbs and then some, plus my protein shake.

Right after the bike and my stretching session, I drove to the pool. The swim was tough. The water was making me sick. I was so water logged and the water in the pool was causing me to O.D. on water.

I was also physically tired and at points during the swim, I closed my eyes and had mini sleeps.

It turns out that the Burlington YMCA pool is in yards, not meters. The 4000 meter swim I did this week was actually 4000 yards.

The bummer is that I thought my swimming was improving to 1:48 - 1:55 per 100 meters. It turns out I'm really at around 2:00 - 2:10 per 100 meters. It was an ego let down.

To refuel after the training was over, Alice, Reid and I went to Shoeless Joe's. I had a craving for pasta and apple pie and ice cream. It hit the spot.

Another Super Saturday in the record books!

Tempo run day...the test

Today I woke up with the "sniffles".

Yesterday I could tell something was coming on. I planned on running in the morning, but I'm glad I forgot to set my alarm. I needed the sleep.

I'm part of a research study and I had an appointment for blood work and measurements this morning.

From two years ago my weight has went from 101.5 kg to 83.1 kg, my waist from 106 cm to 79.9 cm and my hips from 105.6 cm to 85.9 cm. Also my resting heart rate sitting down is now 41 bpm.

I'm loving it!

I ran after work and I felt like I was going slower than last week and the heart rate was always at the top end at 139 bpm. It was a 50 minute tempo run and I ran an 8:28, 18 seconds slower than last weeks tempo run.

I wasn't surprised, as I was feeling a slight cold coming on and my nose was running.

Friday is my test day, where I find out if I'm getting any fitter.

This week it didn't count!