Customized Corrective Swim Goggles

Of the many pieces of gear needed for triathlons, there's one that I tried to ignore for a while: prescription lenses. Sunglasses for the bike, but more importantly goggles for the swim. In a pool, my nearsightedness is only a minor nuisance to be not be able to read a clock; but for open water swimming I would be waaay more comfortable if I could clearly see my surroundings. 

I assumed that they would be hard to find, and super expensive. While in googling I have found some sources for truly prescription goggles, costing about the same as actual glasses. I also found ideas on pinterest to glue old glasses lenses onto goggles - presumably to save money, and perhaps needed as a cheaper option if you have a very extreme prescription (though it seems like it'd be super clunky and potentially unsafe, in my opinion), but not necessary, it turns out, for the average glasses wearer. In a forum discussion, someone mentioned prescription goggles on swimoutlet.com (I've also found them on Amazon). While not truly "prescription", these are generic corrective lenses, along the lines of generic reading glasses, and are in the same price range as regular goggles.

Awesome! However - what about the fact that each eye needs different correction, and generic goggles - like reading glasses - come with the same in both lenses? I suppose that's also where the homemade glasses lenses option might come in handy, but there's actually a really simple workaround.

I do want to acknowledge that I didn't come up with this idea, but found it in comments in product reviews of the goggles I was looking at. However, if you didn't know about this solution you might not get far enough along that path of looking to purchase to come across it, so I wanted to put it out there in another format, not just in product reviews. My eyes are close enough (-2.0 and -3.5) that I was planning to just get enough correction for my stronger eye, and it'd still be much better than nothing, but being able to get reasonably close on both sides was a great bonus.

1. Pick a model of generic prescription lenses, making sure it's of a type that the nosebridge can be fully removed. (So you can remove and replace the lense.) (Swim Outlet, Amazon.) I went with a TYR one, just because that's the brand I've been using for my regular goggles, and they've been working.

2. Determine the diopter strength you need. This page has a good explanation of how this is determined.

3. If, based on #2, you need a different diopter for each eye, order a pair of goggles in each diopter.

4. Remove a lense from each pair and swap. (Although the diopter is impressed on the side of each lense to confirm any time, take care that the brand on the nosebridge is right side up when the lenses are on the correct sides, to make it easy to put on the right way with a mere glance.) Ta da! You have a usable pair + a backup pair of lenses with custom correction for both eyes.

The Dumbest Fears

For the past several weeks, as my hours have ramped up at work, it's been difficult to fit in swimming. The pool I usually go to (near our house) doesn't have lap swim hours after 7:00 pm or so, which is about or earlier than the time I'm leaving work these days. (Yes, they have morning lap swim hours too. No, getting myself up and out of the house that early was not going to happen.) I live in a parks and rec district that has several pools, though, and realized that one that's on the way home from work has later lap swims. Plus, they have two pools, and keep one of them at a cooler temperature, better for exercising swimming (most of the pools in the district are around 88 - 89°, since they are mixed use, including leisure swimming, but the lap pool here is 85°). 

And yet... I didn't. I only went swimming once the entire month of January (when I was able to fit it in at my regular pool)! There was the aspect of finding enough energy when it involves packing a bag, driving slightly out of my way, etc. - slightly more work than just getting dressed for a run and heading out the door. But mostly, I was scared. Yes, scared to go to a new pool. A lot of my anxiety (of which I do have an excess amount in general) is about social situations, interacting with others in circumstances I'm not familiar with. 

I had similar anxiety about going swimming in the first place, last year, so I went with my friend Jessica, and she was awesome at showing me the ropes and explaining the etiquette. This time, though, was about fitting in a swim on my tight schedule, I needed to do it by myself. And really, this pool is part of the same system, so everything should operate the same. I know that they scan my card in, I know that they require sharing lanes and circle swimming (if more lap swimmers than lanes), I know that there'll be a place to stow stuff on deck. But I simply could not shake this anxiety. I even packed my swim bag multiple times, planning to go, and yet at the end of a work day just drove straight home. This is all part of my depression and anxiety that pops up from time to time; I can't get rid of it, but I can try to manage it.

Yesterday, I planned yet again, I had my swim bag packed and in the car. I was really close to not going, too. In the afternoon, though, I was chatting with a coworker and mentioned I was planning to swim that night (rather than go running with her - we're planning to tonight, instead - yay for potential running buddies!). So I had to at least attempt to go. (And she did, in fact, ask me this morning how my swim went.)

I made it to the parking lot, and realized that this (one of their newer locations) was a pretty big recreation facility. Um, where's the door? How do I know if the main door is the one nearest the pool? I almost gave myself credit for at least finding the place, and thought that was a good first step, I can go home now and do the actual swimming next week. 

After sitting for a minute in my car, I got out and went in what appeared to be the main door. Oh, look, the pool is right inside here! Got my card scanned, put on a smile and told the lady that this was my first time at this spot, could she please direct me to the locker room? (Joking that I had figured out the pool was that way - through the large nearby spectator windows - so I hopefully didn't seem like a complete idiot.) When I got on the pool deck, I did kind of stand around looking confused for a minute, but that got a lifeguard's attention. I once again gave my explanation that I was a newbie for that location, and he told me where I could set my stuff and how the circle swimming operated there. 

You know what? This pool is awesome!

The lower temp is great - it's still not as cold as the PSU pool where the triathlon team practiced when I was doing that last summer, but so noticeably more comfortable than the other leisure pools in the district. They have lockers in the locker room! The other facilities have shelves  or racks to keep bags out of the way, but there are actual gym-style lockers here, that you can lock your stuff up if you bring your own lock! (Note to self: need to find the lock I own from when I belonged to a gym a few years ago.)

No one else was in the locker room,
otherwise I wouldn't have used my camera.

They also have twice the number of shower heads, plus individual shower stalls. And huge benches to set stuff on (on which I got to completely sprawl my stuff out on since it was pretty quiet and no one else was in the locker room while I was changing afterward). This seems to be by far the best pool in the district! 

Why the hell was I avoiding it, again?

I realize not every anxiety will have an awesome ending, but a great many of my anxieties are way overblown, and this just demonstrates how great I end up feeling when I push through it and do the thing I wanted to do. 

<-- I was also nervous about these pants (they're tapered! and not plain black! and fairly slim fitting overall - almost enough to warrant wearing a thong, until I remembered I stopped wearing them because they're really not that comfortable). (But they were on clearance at Target recently, and they're sold as ankle length, which for me means I can wear them as normal pants without having to hem them.) And I really enjoyed it when I got over that fear, too!

PRC 5k Training Week 2 & Fight for Air Training Week 6 & NROLFW Phase 1 Week 5

Workouts: 

Monday am: Easy run 1.7 miles (13:27 pace)

Short little run, just to work on building a habit of exercising in the morning. Running doesn't feel as easy so early, but it's still enjoyable to get out in the fresh air.

Monday pm: Easy run 2.5 miles (13:34 pace)

Had swimming on the schedule but we're having some weird weather, clear and in the 50s, so I had to take  advantage of it with a run.

Tuesday pm: Bike trainer 15 minutes (est. 3.75 miles) + NROLFW phase 1 workout A

Wednesday am: Easy run 2.5 miles (13:45 pace)

Felt way more sluggish than I did on Monday morning, but got it done! It helped that I had this pretty new shirt from Costco ($13.99! for a sweet wool-blend cozy running shirt) to wear for the first time as motivation. 

I also am almost 30 and just got a Costco card for the first time. I've gone there with family/friends who had cards, but never figured it'd be worth it to have a membership on my own. Abe has one, and we just now got around to going together so he could add me to his account.

Wednesday pm: Track run 3.1 miles (12:21 overall pace)

Goal: 1-ish warm-up, 2 x 0.5 @ 9:30 with 0.25 recovery in between, 1-ish cool-down
Actual: 
0.85 warm-up: 13:30
2 x 0.5: 9:22, 9:24
0.25 recovery: 15:06
1.0 cool-down: 13:39

Thursday pm: Swim 1,200 yards

Friday am: Bike trainer 10 minutes (est. 2.3 miles) + NROLFW phase 1 workout B

Friday pm: Tempo run 3.0 miles (11:25 pace)

I started out planning to keep a slightly-uncomfortably-brisk pace, just for fun, but once I realized the second mile would be faster than the first, I obviously had no choice but to make it a progression run.

Mile 1: 12:04
Mile 2: 11:35
Mile 3: 10:35

Saturday am: Yoga class (75 minutes)
Saturday pm: Bike trainer 40 minutes (est. 9.35 miles)

Sunday: "Long" run 4.1 miles (13:38 pace)

Total swimming: 1,200 yards
Total biking: 15.40 miles
Total running: 16.9 miles

I started this week firmly in busy season mode, ready to get up early and not expecting to have a life, but my hours haven't quite ramped up all the way, so I had an excess of time and energy to do a lot of exercising this week! (Still totally failing on the stairs though...)

Triathlon Training with a Team

At the beginning of the summer I wrote about re-learning to swim and bike on my own (after a 15-year-ish break from them). After that, I continued to learn how to swim and bike - with a group! I joined TRI Team PDX (the name stands for Train Race Inspire); specifically, the Portland Triathlon training group) (before knowing that the group was targeting a specific race, I was already planning on doing Aluminum Man; but it was only two weeks before the Portland Tri, so at one point I figured I'd do both). 

The cost was $299 for 14 weeks of training. This was all inclusive - access to weekly workouts (swim, track, run, bike) that would otherwise have drop-in fees, with weekly workout plans designed for the group (including the group workouts and additional workouts to do on your own during the week), and coaches at the workouts to guide you.

Swimming 

The weekly swim group workout was held at the PSU athletic center. I'd guesstimate there were usually around 30 people. The pool has, if I'm remembering right, 6 lanes. People were assigned to lanes based on abilities and speed; we in the beginners group were in lanes 1 and 2, with detailed instructions on how to do the drills, especially in the first few weeks. People in higher lanes had more advanced drills and longer distances to cover in the same time.

We learned a variety of drills throughout the season, designed to improve swimming form in different ways. Things like fingertip drag, pull, catch-up, front scull, to name a few. Nearer the end of the season, we focused more on improving endurance for longer distances and intervals of harder effort. In addition to the group workout, we were supposed to do an additional swim on our own, including some of the drills and also working on endurance on continuous distance.

After developing some basic swimming skills, the group also helped us with open water swimming. I unfortunately had to miss some of those session, so I didn't feel nearly as prepared for open water as I would have liked, but really any chance to get in open water is helpful! The coaches were super helpful about making sure you were comfortable, giving tips, and staying nearby those with extra nerves. They also encouraged team members to attend free weekly open water swims sponsored by Athlete's Lounge during the summer for additional experience.

Current ability level: 

Can easily do 1,000 yards (total, not continuous) in a workout even when I haven't been consistently swimming, including up to 400 - 600 continuous without too much trouble. When I was in the habit of going to the pool a few times a week, 1,200 yards or more wasn't an unreasonable total for a workout. 

When I first got a watch with swim functions, I was around 2:30 per 100 yards; that's now closer to 2:20 - still pretty ridiculously slow, but nonetheless a consistent improvement.

Open water swimming is something that I still need to work on a lot before doing another triathlon. I ended up just doing it once without a wetsuit, and once with a wetsuit. Better than nothing, for sure, but not nearly enough to not have a near panic attack at the start of the race. Regardless of whether I train with TRI PDX again, going to the Athlete's Lounge open water swims in the river as often as possible will be a very crucial component.

Biking
There was an assigned weekly bike workout to do on our own, focusing on intervals with high effort or RPMs. I rarely ended up doing those workouts.

There was also a long group bike ride each weekend. The first week the beginners group did about 12 miles; eventually working up to about 25 miles. Depending on which coach was leading the group, there was more or less of a coming back to check on those in the back to make sure they were ok, but it does seem to be team policy for the leaders to stop at major turns on the route to wait for everyone to catch up and ensure no one's gotten lost or anything.

One note: Sauvie Island is the best place to ride a bike, especially if you're a beginner. It's a bit of a drive from most places in Portland, but totally worth it. The main loop around the island is just over 12 miles, with a little rolling hills but nothing too steep up or down. There isn't much of a shoulder, but it really is low traffic, and the cars that are out there are well aware of the bike traffic, and give you plenty of space when passing.

Current ability level: 

Longest solid ride was 22 miles (I did 27 in a day, but it was broken up by too many stops to count it as actually my longest) (did distances in training assuming I would be doing the Olympic distance at the Portland Tri, which I ended up not doing). Assuming good conditions (dry roads, minimal wind, etc.) I could go out for a 10 mile ride anytime now and feel pretty comfortable with it.

My average speed on long rides by the end of the training season was around 14.5. I easily got above 25 mph on downhills - but tried very hard to slow down to not get faster than that! On flats or small inclines, not too hard to maintain 15 - 16 mph, but difficult to keep up 10 mph on steeper hills going up. 

I still can't take my hands off the handlebars while moving long enough to do anything like eat or drink. I'm super nervous on wet roads or in the wind. I'm basically still terrified that I'll kill myself while riding. Still willing to put more work into it next summer, but I have my doubts that this will ever be my favorite sport.

Seattle Half Training Week 2

Plan: 

Workouts: 

Monday: Swim 1,200 yards + easy run 2.55 miles (14:02 pace)

Tuesday: Easy run 3.1 miles (13:20 pace)

Have you seen articles about how we have a limited amount of willpower, and that's why it's harder to stick to healthy habits when we're using our willpower up for other things? That's why I didn't do a strength workout Tuesday morning - I'd used up my willpower making myself go swimming the night power (though I am totally glad I swam, and enjoyed it, but I didn't want to beforehand). I had to skip ballet that evening due to working late, but at least still squeezed in a run!

Wednesday: Treadmill run 2.0 miles (13:03 pace) 

After meeting a friend for dinner, I got home after dark so I thought I'd go to the rec center and do this week's mile repeats workout on the treadmill. Nope. Didn't even get through the first interval before remembering how boring the treadmill is, especially at a constant pace. Just going to count it as some bonus miles for the week.

Thursday: Interval run 6.0 miles (12:38 pace)

This was also after dark, but otherwise very lovely running conditions, so went ahead and did it outdoors, with a headlamp, on some neighborhood loops I'm very familiar with.

1 mile warm-up - 13:45
3 x 1 mile - 11:08, 11:02, 11:06
2 x 0.5 recovery - 14:36, 14:16
1 mile cool-down - 14:2 

Sunday: "Long" run 6.4 miles (14:07 pace) 

Long run fail. So many reasons - not sure to what extent they're actually reasons versus excuses, though: I started too late in the morning and it was an unusually warm day, not enough recovery time since this week's speed workout, not sleeping well, etc. In any case I was tired and my legs felt heavy. Only kept myself going as long as I did so I would at least meet 20 miles for the week. Oh well, there's always next week, right?

Total swimming: 1,200 yards
Total running: 20.05 miles

A Week of Only One Early Morning

Workouts: 

Monday pm: Easy run 3.5 miles (14:03 pace)

Tuesday am: K-Fit weeks 1/2 workout #2
Tuesday pm: Ballet class (75 minutes)

Wednesday pm: Progression run 3.0 miles (12:23 pace) + bike trainer 20 minutes (est 5 miles)
Goal = 13:30, 12:30, 11:30
Actual = 13:19, 12:31, 11:18

Thursday pm: Easy run 4.0 miles (14:11 pace) + swim  1,000 yards

Friday: Rest day

Saturday: Easy run 4.5 miles (13:57 pace)

Sunday: Easy run 2.0 miles (13:48 pace)

Total swimming: 1,000 yards
Total biking: 5 miles
Total running: 17 miles

I've been trying to get up early to exercise before work, thus leaving my evening open for other activities, and to make sure I actually get in a solid workout (especially for in the near future when we switch off (on?) daylight savings time and it's dark at 4:30 in the afternoon). Last week I did this more successfully than this week. 

I also finally got back to the pool, after three weeks of skipping it!

A Boring Week

Workouts: 

Monday: Complete and utter rest day :) 

Tuesday: Easy run 3.0 miles (14:20 pace) + swim 1,200 yards (4 x 50, 4 x 200, 4 x 50)

Wednesday: Tempo run 4.0 miles (12:53 overall pace, 11:34 tempo pace)
Warm-up 1 mile - 13:44
Tempo 2 miles (goal = 11:15 - 11:30) - 11:31, 11:36
Cool-down 1 mile - 14:40

Thursday: Easy run 3.05 miles (13:34 pace) + swim 1,200 yards (4 x 50, 4 x 200, 4 x 50)

Friday: Unplanned rest day

Saturday: Bike 10.0 miles (10.6 mph)

Sunday AM: Near Boring 8k race (11:41 pace)
Sunday PM: Bike trainer 30 minutes (est. 6 miles)

Total swimming: 2,400 yards
Total biking: 16 miles
Total running: 15.05 miles

Triathlon Training Week 11

Workouts: 

Monday: Run 2.0 miles (12:22 pace) - a mini progression run of 0.4 mile laps around my block. I wanted to run easy for the first lap (rounded to 12:50), and then go down :15 each lap (12:35, 12:20, 12:05, 11:50).

Actual lap paces:
1 - 12:54
2 - 12:44
3 - 12:32
4 - 11:59
5 - 11:41

Thursday: Sightseeing run 3.85 miles (13:02 pace) - we went on a mini vacation to Seattle to meet up with my parents for a Mariners game (Wednesday's game against the Rangers, where they were basically slaughtered), and the next morning saw some of the city the best way possible - running!

Saturday: LSD run 4.65 miles (14:23 pace) + swim 1,000 yards

LSD run: LSD = long slow distance. This is what long runs are supposed to be - at least 30 seconds - 1 minute slower than race goal pace. Going beyond that, there's a school of thought that I've seen pop up a lot lately in blogs I read - MAF training. This is heart-rate paced training, where you don't let your heart rate raise above a certain amount, basically keeping it to a conversational pace. This is essentially the same as aerobic base training.

I've felt like I've plateaued lately on my mid- to long-distance paces, and also noticed how, even if I'm in shape to run 6 miles or bike 20 miles, I frequently get a bit out of breath walking up stairs or on a brisk walk. I think these are related, and I've spent far too much of my workouts in anaerobic zones. I'm so slow, I've pushed myself to increase my speed without properly building up to it. I'm not as fit as I should be aerobically, regardless of what my leg muscles are capable of pushing my body through. 

I'll do a separate post on my plan in this regards, but did my first attempt at a super slow run this week. I haven't bought a heart rate monitor, but am going on effort - slightly too hard to sing, but could easily carry on a conversation, and feel in terms of both muscle fatigue and cardio/breathing that I could keep going forever. This meant I stayed way slower than I wanted to, and than I'm used to! This really emphasized that even on my "easy" runs (usually averaging around 13:30), I'm used to working at least 80% effort - much harder than aerobic levels.

Mile laps:
1 - 13:17
2 - 13:44
3 - 14:27
4 - 15:19
4.65 - 15:36 

Swim: 4 x 50, 500 (i.e., almost race distance - slightly shorter because my pool is yards and the race is 500 meters), 3 x 100

Sunday: Brick workout: Bike 13.2 miles (14.3 mph) + run 1.6 miles (11:56 pace) - last brick before the triathlon! It's less than a week away!

Total swimming: 1,000 yards
Total biking: 13.2 miles
Total running: 12.1 miles

HTC Training Week 5 & Triathlon Training Week 9

Workouts: 

Monday: Rest day, just a couple minutes of planking (total, not continuous)

Tuesday:  TRI Team swim practice 1,500 yards + run 2.0 miles (12:34 pace)

Wednesday: Run 4.20 miles (13:27 pace)

Thursday: Unplanned rest day

Friday: Swim 1,000 yards

Saturday: Bike 11.0 miles, including feeling so great that I decided to try taking a drink of water while moving... followed by a confirmation that no, I'm still not good on the bike, as I crashed into the sidewalk. 

I was able to get the water bottle out just fine, but somehow couldn't line it up to put it back. I probably should have just tossed the bottle to the ground, then stopped to pick it up, but in the moment I panicked and didn't let go of the water bottle which meant I couldn't use my brakes or steer efficiently, and just let myself run into the sidewalk and fall. Riding home for 5 miles with the wind on uncovered, fresh wounds kind of sucks, by the way.

Not too "injured", just scrapes, bruises, and road rash on my right knee and forearm. But it kept me from the midday Saturday open water swim (which I really needed the open water practice, and I'd even gotten around to renting a wetsuit for the weekend!), due to paranoia of flesh-eating bacteria (Abe also concurred I shouldn't go to the swim, though probably not based on quite the same logic). 

Sunday: Unplanned rest day. I really could have at least gone for an easy run, but the idea of the brick that TRI Team was doing, an hour bike and hour run, was not appealing - my knee felt bruised up enough that that much repetitive motion seemed like not a good idea. And I just felt like vegging out and feeling sorry for myself.

Total swimming: 2,500 yards
Total biking: 11.0 miles
Total running: 6.2 miles

Even prior to the Great Bike Crash of August 2014, I was thinking of stepping back from the Olympic distance for the Portland Tri (debating it such that I'm still not registered for it; the plan was to do the sprint distance at Aluminum Man, using it largely as a final brick workout for Portland two weeks later). Looking at last year's results, I seriously might be in the last ten finishers.

And now, I feel like I'm not only too slow to do that distance now, but not competent enough in my skills in swimming or bicycling to even safely do them in a race setting (i.e., pushing myself on pace and trying to fuel appropriately). How can I do a race where the bike portion is going to take almost two hours as it is, and then have to make stops to fuel because I'm not capable of eating or drinking while moving?

I know part of this is missing some key workouts and build-up due to the honeymoon and other things. But even if I'd gotten in every single workout - I'm still slow, I'm still overweight, I'm still new at two of the three sports. Or maybe it's just a lack of confidence, and no matter where I finish it'd be worth the challenge anyway?

How do you tell when you're in over the head, versus just not motivated to put in the necessary work or lack a trust in yourself?

HTC Training Week 4 & Triathlon Training Week 8 & Honeymoon Week 2

Monday through Friday of this week we were still on our honeymoon; through Friday morning in fact still on the cruise. So still a bit of a challenge to fit in formal workouts around all the other available things to do, but tried to make up for it this weekend once we got home!

Workouts: 

Monday: Swim 500 yards.
Active non-workouts: Walked about 2 miles to the disc golf course just outside of Skagway (at the opposite end from the pier) (we took a bus back) + played half a round of disc golf + hiked about 1 mile on the zip line course. Also stairs (see explanation on previous week's recap). 

The swim was in one of the (two) pools on ship, which I measured with my arm span and think was about 40 feet long. Though short, obviously, it wasn't too short to sort of get into a groove before turning around. It was saline, though, rather than chlorine, and getting a taste of salt in my mouth every time I breathed was just too odd to swim any longer than I did. I'm sure one gets used to it if you swim in a saline pool regularly, but it was just very weird when I'm used to chlorine. (At least I think the swim was Monday, I'm not 100% sure. But sometime during this week I did swim 500 yards in the ship pool.)

Tuesday: Run 3.6 miles (12:41 pace) - in Icy Strait Point. 
Active non-workouts: Walked about 1 mile around town + stairs.

Icy Strait Point isn't really its own town, but more a tourist destination (not fake like Disneyland, it actually is partly educational and has museum exhibits, being the historic site of a salmon cannery, but nonetheless a bit commercialized), so there wasn't a ton else to do there (the biggest attraction was the world's longest zip line - over a mile long - but very expensive and we prioritized other excursions). We did a few loops of a trail that included the beach and the "nature loop" in a forested area; near the end we discovered a pave trail heading towards the nearest actual town (Hoonah).

Wednesday: No official workouts; sightseeing in Ketchikan. 
Active non-workouts: Kayaked for about 2 hours + walked about 1 mile around town + stairs around town (on steep hills where sidewalks turn into staircases ala San Francisco) (I'd estimate the equivalent of 10 flights of stairs) + stairs on the ship.

Among the Tatoosh Islands in the Tongass National Forest.

Thursday: Run 5.1 miles (11:07 pace!) - 32 laps around the ship track. Another cruising day, no port.
Active non-workouts: Rock climbing + stairs.

Friday: No official workouts; getting off the ship and traveling back home.
Active non-workouts: Walked about 1 mile between various forms of transportation.

Saturday am: Run 6 miles (12:22 pace) - HTC practice run 1 of 2. This run was 4 out and backs down and up two hills, entirely running down and doing 0.20/0.05 run/walks intervals up.
Downhill goal = <11:30 pace. Uphill goal = <13:59 pace.
Hill A down/up: 10:34/13:25
Hill B down/up: 10:00/14:00
Hill A down/up: 11:14/13:48
Hill B down/up: 10:52/14:57
The second hill is steeper, allowing for both faster barreling down, and a harder time coming back up. I actually felt really strong after this run, and super proud of my overall pace. Until I went out for my second run of the day, anyway...

Saturday mid: Open water swim 450 yards. The TRI Team has had a couple open water sessions that I missed while out of town, so this was my first time! I briefly panicked in my first attempt of swimming out from the shallow waters where I could touch the ground, but our coach stayed with me (while sending the others, who were more experienced, out with the assistant coach), and by the end of 20-ish minutes, was starting to feel a lot more comfortable. Still need lots of work on sighting, though.

Saturday pm: Run 4 miles (13:29 pace) - HTC practice run 2 of 2. After several hours, fatigue from the morning run had started to set in, and my legs were pretty much dead. I actually came inside a little after 3 miles, intending to quit early, before talking myself back into finishing a minimum distance (I actually initially, as in when planning out workouts earlier in the week, planned to do 6 for this run, as well, but dropped that unrealistic idea basically as soon as I started).

Sunday: Bike 5.6 miles (11.3 mph) - we intended to do our usual 20-ish mile ride in the morning, but slept in, a lot (I guess we needed it - the trip was fun, but not particularly restful). Then Abe had a thing in the afternoon, and blah blah, by the time we set out it was 7:30, and the sun was in my eyes (I don't currently have a pair of prescription sunglasses), and my legs felt soo dead from yesterday's runs. This was all I could manage, while staying on roads without much traffic (cause I didn't feel safe with the sun so low in my and drivers' eyes), and just being so fatigued.

Total swimming: 950 yards
Total biking: 5.6 miles
Total running: 18.70 miles
Total stairs: 190 flights

This is my peak training week for Hood to Coast (two weeks from this past Friday!), and I wish I'd gotten past 20 miles. I also know my low biking was a bit of a cop-out; I should have prioritized it earlier in the day to make sure it happened, and also could have done another stationary bike workout on the cruise.

Saturday's morning run was an absolutely fabulous workout - if I'd done it mid-week as a strength/speed workout, surrounded by easier runs. As part of a weekend with the intent to do several long workouts, not such a great plan. It truly did, to an extent, get in the way of other workouts. Even though my next race is just running, it is in the midst of triathlon training, and I need to be more careful to balance all the disciplines.

HTC Training Week 3 & Triathlon Training Week 7 & Honeymoon Week 1

Why, hello, there! We just got back on Friday from our honeymoon. I didn't have reliable access to internet (for the first few days we were in a part of our motel that was far enough away from the main section so the wifi signal was really weak, and then on the cruise we were in and out of international waters so my phone went into roaming and the onboard wifi was super expensive), but spending time reading or writing blog posts certainly wouldn't have been high on my priorities anyway. :) 

As Abe and I are both training for races, we tried to fit in workouts as much as we could, without sacrificing enjoyment of our trip and the beautiful sights and fun activities. We tended to be pretty active outside of workouts, too, with disc golf and walking while sightseeing and such.

Here are the workouts for the week ended August 3rd.

Workouts: 

Monday: Swim 1,200 meters 
Active non-workouts: Played half a round of disc golf and walked the second half.

After packing and running some errands, we drove up to the west side of the Puget Sound for the first leg of our trip. We got in fairly late, but on the way I did some research and found a local community pool that had an evening lap swim! It was on long course (50 meters, instead of 25 yards/meters), so that was a new experience. Amazing how just the mental aspect of going so far without a wall - even if you know you can go that distance - makes it seem so much harder!

Tuesday: Run 2.0 miles (13:11 pace) - a sightseeing run around Port Orchard, with lots of stops for photos. 
Active non-workouts: Played 2/3s a round of disc golf and walked the last six holes + walked a second round of disc golf.

Unfortunately we had to run up a hill to get this view.

Wednesday: Biked 27.25 miles (10.3 mph)
Active non-workouts: Walked/hiked a very hilly disc golf course.

After flying from Seattle to Anchorage late Tuesday night, we spend Wednesday on rented bikes, exploring the Coastal Trail and other parts of town. The total bike mileage was broken up by meals and a round of disc golf, but had some very challenging hills and totally counted for my long bike for the week!

Thank you random stranger for taking our picture! Getting a selfie with the sign, ourselves, and our bikes proved challenging.

Thursday: No official workouts; mostly riding the bus and walking around town.
Active non-workouts: At least three miles walking.

Friday: Stationary bike 7.5 miles (14.9 mph) in the gym on the cruise ship
Active non-workouts: Played a 9-hole disc golf course + at least three miles walking to/from the course and around town. Around 15 flights of stairs - see Saturday explanation.

We took a train from Anchorage to Seward, to get on the cruise ship for the remaining days of the trip. We had the afternoon free before having to get on, though, so we took the free city shuttle towards the 9-hole disc golf course near one end of town, and then walked to the port to embark. 

Saturday am: Run 3.0 miles (10:55 pace!) on the ship track - HTC practice run 1 of 2. This took 19 laps - we were told 1 mile = 6.3 laps. Pretty amazed by my pace, but it was definitely the flattest surface I've ever run on; even tracks on land I feel like tilt slightly from one end to the the other, but not on a boat deck!
Saturday pm: Treadmill run 1.5 miles (12:28 pace) - HTC practice run 2 of 2. Should have run farther, but just couldn't get into it. We'll call this a cutback week? Plus, you know, honeymoon.
Active non-workouts: Rock climbing! My first time ever doing this - scary the first time, but then started getting fun. Also, lots of stair climbing. Our state room was on deck 3, most of the bars and other entertainment were on deck 6, the dining room we went to the most was on deck 11, the gym was on deck 12, and the rock wall on deck 13. We decided to make a game of sorts trying to limit our elevator rides to one per day. I'd guesstimate we went up and down at around 50 flights of stairs in total each cruising day; maybe 40 flights on port days when we weren't going to and from as many activities on the ship during the day.

This was a cruising day, no port visit, so I tried to fit in a bit more formal exercise.

Not the worst view for running in place!

Sunday: No official workouts. The ship docked in Juneau, so lots of sightseeing.
Active non-workouts: At least 5 miles walking/hiking. Lots of stair climbing.

Total swimming: 1,200 yards
Total biking: 34.75 miles
Total running: 6.5 miles
Total stairs: 105 flights

HTC Training Week 2 & Triathlon Training Week 6

Workouts: 

Monday: Easy/active rest day - bike 6.15 miles (11.8 mph) (to/from a friend's house) + core work

Tuesday: Run 3.6 miles (12:29 pace) + TRI Team swim practice 1,200 yards

Wednesday: Unintentional rest day - slept in too long before work, busy after work.

Thursday: Run 3.6 miles (12:43 average page) - track workout
Warm-up (to track) 1 mile - 12:03
4 x 0.25 (goal = 9:30 - 9:45 pace) - 9:32, 9:39, 9:39, 9:37
0.15 recovery after each, walking
Cool-down (to home) 1 mile - 12:59

Friday AM: Run 5.0 miles (13:27 pace) - HTC practice run 1 of 2
I did a point-to-point run (to a MAX station to ride back home), so as to maximize the uphills without also getting the corresponding downhills. Also played with run/walk intervals, which I think I'm going to have to do on my second HTC leg to survive it at all (see elevation profiles of my HTC legs here).
Mile 1: warm-up, net elevation loss 138 ft, 13:13 pace
Miles 2 - 4: 3:1 run:walk intervals, net elevation gain 354 ft/total elevation gain 777 ft, 13:53 pace
Mile 5: cool-down, net elevation gain 62 ft, 12:41 pace

Friday mid: Bike 11.1 miles (12.4 mph) + swim 1,650 yards (1 swimming mile!) (adapted from 0 to 1650 week 4) - 4 x 25, 600, 300, 4 x 100, 5 x 50

Friday PM: Run 4.0 miles (13:02 pace) - HTC practice run 2 of 2

Saturday: Semi-deliberate rest day - was hoping to fit a swim in, and maybe a short run but just didn't happen.

Sunday: Brick workout - bike 20.4 miles (14.5 mph! fastest ever ride, even shorter distances!) + run 1.15 miles (10:54! Also a really great pace for me!)

Total swimming: 2,850 yards
Total biking: 37.65 miles
Total running: 17.35 miles

No strength training this week, just cause I knew I'd be busy and hard-pressed to fit in enough swim/bike/run workouts as it was. Not quite the volume I'd like to be at right now - for running in particular, with Hood to Coast coming up, and for the other disciplines as well. But for everything going on currently (you know, that little event coming up this afternoon where we're getting married), not too shabby. 

HTC Training Week 1 & Triathlon Training Week 5

Workouts: 

Monday: Bike 10.0 miles (11.4 mph) + core work + K-Fit weeks 1/2 workout #1

Tuesday AM: Run 2.0 miles (12:46 pace)
Tuesday PM: TRI Team swim practice 1,200 yards

Wednesday: Run 4.55 miles - track workout (12:52 average pace) + K-Fit weeks 1/2 workout #2
Track workout: 
1.15 mile warm-up (to the track) - 12:49, 12:20
4 x 0.25 (goal = 9:30 - 10:00 pace) - 9:25, 9:53, 10:21, 9:52
0.25 recovery after each interval 
1.40 cool-down (back home) - 13:18, 12:07 (mostly downhill, weeee!)

Thursday: Bike 6.15 miles (11.3 mph) + swim 1,450 yards (adapted from 0 to 1650 week 3, plus 3 extra laps) - 4 x 25, 400, 200, 4 x 100, 4 x 50, 3 x 50

Friday AM: Run 4.0 miles (12:53 pace) - HTC practice run 1 of 3 + yoga class (90 minutes)
Friday PM: Run 3.0 miles (13:18 pace) - HTC practice run 2 of 3, with hills

Saturday AM: Run 3.15 miles (12:55 pace) - HTC practice run 3 of 3
Saturday PM: Bike 6.5 miles roundtrip to/from pool (9.2 mph) + swim 1,350 yards (same workout as Thursday, with just one 50 after the 4 x 50)

Sunday: Bike 20.4 miles (13.8 mph)

Total swimming: 4,000 yards
Total biking: 43.05 miles
Total running: 16.7 miles

I did my first HTC training of multiple runs in 24-ish hours... dang, my legs were tired! I actually meant to make the second and third ones closer to 4 - 5 miles, but it just wasn't going to happen. The second run was hilly, since the second leg in the race will be basically 900 feet straight up. Perhaps I need to practice/race with run/walk intervals for that kind of climbing?

Triathlon Training Week 4

Workouts: 

Monday: Core work

Tuesday AM: Run 3.0 miles (13:24 pace) - well, not completely horrid for un-fueled, un-caffeinated, first thing in the morning.
Tuesday PM: TRI Team swim practice 1,100 yards

Wednesday: TRI Team track practice 3.05 miles

Saturday: Swim 1,300 yards (0 to 1650 week 3, plus an two extra laps waiting for Abe) - 400, 200, 4 x 100, 4 x 50, 2 x 50

Sunday: Bike 27.9 miles (12.8 mph)

I thought we were going to be in the middle of a heatwave (90+ degrees = a heatwave in these parts), but apparently that got pushed out til tomorrow. Instead, there was a lovely downpour in the middle of my longest bike ride to date. Plus hills, and riding in parts of Portland I'm not familiar with, trying to keep up with the group so I wouldn't get lost. Basically the worst conditions to bike in I could possibly imagine.

And I went across a wet traintrack at the wrong angle and completely crashed. Not crashed crashed, like truly injured myself or the bike, but fell down hard enough to knock the chain off the gear. Fortunately I'm less scraped up than I would have expected - one knee took the brunt of it, with scraps and what I'm thinking will be a significant bruise by tomorrow, but nothing all that bad.

Total swimming: 2,400 yards
Total biking: 27.9 miles
Total running: 6.05 miles

I intended for this week to be a bit of a break, to recover from the half marathon and psych myself up for Hood to Coast. Also had a lot of social stuff going on, so I didn't prioritize as many bike and swim workouts as I normally do. 

At track practice on Wednesday, I was feeling my ankle a little bit - this is a recurring sorta-injury (happened the first time around the time I was doing the couch to 5k program), and has most recently been acting up for a couples. It didn't hurt terribly, though, and I didn't think I was adjusting anything for it - but once I finished the workout, the coaches immediately asked if I was injured, as I appeared to be limping during it.

They think it's tendonitis, so I need to rest, ice, epsom salt soaks, compression, etc. I can't take too much time off running - I have Hood to Coast coming up! But I nonetheless took off the rest of the week form running. I attempted a run this morning, and though I think my ankle would have felt better once I got warmed up, I turned around after 100 yards, and plan to continue to abstain from running until Tuesday.

FT Flat Half Training Week 8 & Triathlon Training Week 3

Workouts: 

Monday: Core work

Tuesday: TRI Team swim practice 1,250 yards

Wednesday: Run 2.45 miles (13:01 pace) + bike 4.25 miles (9.2 mph)

Thursday: Swim 1,000 yards (adapted from 0 to 1650 week 2) - 4 x 25, 200, 4 x 100, 4 x 50, 4 x 25

Friday: Foot Traffic Flat half marathon - recap post to come. The gist - it wasn't my worst half marathon time ever.

Saturday: Bike 22.0 miles (9.7 mph) + swim 1,250 yards
Bike - rode with Abe to practice a potential bike commute to work. I'm not sure I'm inclined to use it.
Swim - same as Thursday, plus 5 extra laps while waiting for Abe to finish his longer planned distance.

Sunday: Run 2 miles (13:07 pace) + TRI Team bike ride 24.5 miles (13.6 mph)

Total swimming: 3,500 yards
Total biking: 50.75 miles (!)
Total running: 17.55 miles

I know I'm improving on the bike - this week's ride was two loops of Sauvie Island. A couple weeks ago we did one loop, and I was almost 1 mph slower than I was today on twice the distance. Still not super comfortable, though, but getting there.

I think I might be done with longer distance running races (i.e., half marathons) for a while. For whatever reason I'm not focusing on training enough to get substantially faster, and running them at my current pace has stopped being fun. I'm sure I'll get back to them eventually, but for now going to focus on triathlons and improving on 5ks and 10ks.

I think Abe and I are going to do a 5k together the morning of our wedding. I got the idea from a couple (and a good chunk of their bridal party) that was running the half on Friday, with customized t-shirts and wedding accessories (the groom had a bow tie, the bride wore a mini veil). Despite not wanting to be the center of attention for a prolonged period of time around our loved ones at the wedding itself, the idea of momentarily attracting attention from strangers by wearing wedding shirts in a race on our wedding day is oddly appealing.

FT Flat Half Training Week 7 & Triathlon Training Week 2

Workouts: 

Monday: Bike 4 miles (10.0 mph) + run 3 miles (13:03 pace) + core work

Tuesday AM: Run 1 mile (13:12 pace)
Tuesday PM: TRI Team swim practice 850 yards

Wednesday: TRI Team group run 2.8 miles (11:32 pace)
This was closer to my tempo pace than my easy pace, despite Coach Molly's instructions, but it allowed me to keep up with part of the group! And it actually wasn't nearly as hard an effort as I would have expected for that pace (fortunately it was a nice flat route along the waterfront).

Thursday: Swim 1,000 yards + run 1 mile (10:30 pace!)
Swim workout (adapted from 0 to 1650 week 1) - 4 x 25, 4 x 50, 4 x 100, 4 x 50, 4 x 25

Friday: Run 1 mile (12:24 pace)

Saturday: Swim 1,000 yards (same workout as Thursday)

Sunday: Run 6.2 miles (13:27 pace) + bike 9.7 miles (9.7 mph)

Total swimming: 2,850 yards
Total biking: 13.7 miles
Total running: 15.0 miles

I gave up on the running streak on Saturday - last summer when I did a 30-day streak it was actually quite motivating, but I think because of all the tri training it was just too much. It's not like I'm not already doing some form of exercise every day anyway, you know? This streak did last for 33 days.

I'm still loving swimming - it's so soothing and relaxing! Especially when the pool isn't busy and I get a lane to myself. To build up my endurance, I've started doing workouts from 0 to 1650 (the swimming equivalent of Couch to 5k), to build up to swimming a mile straight without resting.

Biking is still a bit frustrating, though always improving. Molly adjusted my seat forward as far as it will go, so it's easier to reach the brakes, and I don't have the hands going numb issue anymore. I'm still not super steady, though - letting go of the handlebars to signal is still a touch nerve-wracking, and reaching for a water bottle while moving is out of the question.

FT Flat Half Training Week 6 & Triathlon Training Week 1

Workouts: 

Monday: Run 1 mile (12:41 pace) + swim 750 yards + core work

Tuesday: TRI Team swim practice 850 yards + run 1 mile (11:25 pace)

Wednesday AM: Run 3 miles (12:18 pace)

Thursday: Run 5 miles - tempo (goal = 11:30) (12:09 overall, 11:33 tempo pace) + swim 800 yards
1 warm-up: 12:00
3 tempo: 11:20, 11:23, 11:56
1 cool-down: 14:05 

Friday: Run 1 mile (12:01 pace) + bike trainer workout 40 minutes (est. 8 miles)

Saturday: Run 10 miles (13:57 pace) + bike 5.65 miles (8.8 mph)
Did my long run at the Tualatin Hills Nature Park - some paved trails, but the majority is dirt/gravel. Nothing too technical or steep. I had to do some duplicate loops to get in the total mileage I needed, but a pretty place to run, and I definitely appreciated being on tree-shaded trails considering how I always end up delaying my run until later in the morning after it starts warming up!

Sunday: TRI Team bike ride 12.2 miles (12.8 pace) + run 2 miles (12:37 pace)

Total swimming: 2,400 yards
Total biking: 25.85 miles
Total running: 23.0 miles