Ironman Training Week 5 – Started Off Shaky but Finished Strong!

I started this week of training with a terrible sore throat. I woke up around 3 a.m. on New Years Day with a sore throat so fierce I was convinced I had strep. It seemed to be concentrated on one side which is a sure sign of strep. However, after looking at my tonsils the next morning and feeling my lymph nodes, I decided it probably wasn’t but I should get plenty of rest. 11 hours of sleep that night combined with a nap helped a lot and after another day of rest on Tuesday, I was feeling good enough to get on the bike that evening for an easy spin. I know I only took 1.75 days off but I can’t help it – I’m addicted to sweat! Plus I’ve read that you’re ok to do an easy workout if you are feeling ok from  your neck down (i.e. no aches or chest congestion).

Below were my workouts this week. This week was luckily scheduled as “recovery” week meaning that I would have no speed work, which worked out well with my illness. The long run wasn’t that short this week though due to the fact that we skipped our long run the week of Christmas (I did a 10 mile run which unfortunately in marathon world is really not a “long run” although it does sound long…).  Also, after this week we have one more 20 miler and then we begin marathon taper.

• Monday: Rest
• Tuesday: 50 minute easy spin
• Wednesday: 5 mile easy run on treadmill,  15 minutes of core/abs (3 sets of holding low plank, 30 plank mountain climbers, 20 plank punches, 10 push-ups, and 30 Mason Twists), plus 1,500 meter swim (200 warm-up then 16 x 50 of alternating closed fist drill, breathing every 3rd stroke, catch-up drill and focusing on the pull, then 3 x 100 hard effort, then 200 cool-down). It was nice to get all my workouts done before work at the gym and have the evening free!
• Thursday: 9 mile mid-week long run AM; 60 minute “Fight Club” Sufferfest workout – medium intensity, focusing on staying in aero bars for all 6.5 minute intervals.
• Friday: 45 minute easy spin on trainer plus Ab Ripper X.
• Saturday: 18 mile run
• Sunday: 40 mile bike plus 3 mile run

Totals:

• # of Miles Run: 35
• # of Minutes Biked: 335
• # of Yards Swam: 1,500
• Total Hours: 12

Despite being sick, I ended up completing nearly all my workouts. The only workouts skipped were 2 swims (I PROMISE I’m going to swim 3 times next week!!!) and yoga. My main goal this week was to get 4 bike sessions in and my key runs (ie mid-week long run and long run) and that was achieved! This week was probably the highest volume week of my life with a total of 12 hours spent training (not even including warm-ups or stretching or bathroom breaks on the bike/run – this is just time I spent actually moving).

Highlights of the Week

The weekend was by far the highlight of the week. On Saturday Asia and I had an amazing 18 mile run – coming in with an average pace of 8:58. This is by far the fastest long run (over a half marathon) that I’ve ever done. At the end of our marathon training for Rock n Roll we ran 17 miles at 9:15 and that was the fastest run we did. It was very encouraging to run a sub 9 minute mile for 18 miles because I’m pretty sure that at the very least I could maintain that pace for 8 more miles during the marathon (on rested legs).  And then of course there’s the hope that we’ll run even faster!

Another highlight was riding my new Cervelo P2 for the first time! I rode it on the trainer 3 times but the real highlight was riding it out on the road today. We did a 40 mile ride up the coast and then out and back on a 9 mile bike path in Oceanside. Although there was a lot of traffic at parts, I could tell a significant difference in my speed on the P2. I have been riding my dad’s aluminum frame Cannondale that doesn’t quite fit me correctly and switching to the P2 was like a whole new world. It feels much more smooth and it’s much easier to shift gears. I was even able to practice getting aero on the bike path and it was surprisingly comfortable. I think my new bike is going to pay huge dividends not only during the Ironman and 70.3, but in training as well.

Nutrition

Nutrition was good this week. We didn’t eat out on the weekdays and had healthy salads or sandwiches for lunch every day. I cooked healthy meals each night as well. The weekend wasn’t quite as healthy but we find it hard to satisfy our immense hunger with home cooking after long runs and rides, mostly because we don’t have a lot of high calorie foods in our house.I felt SO much better getting back into the routine of 90% healthy 10% treats this week.

Nutrition on the run went well. I’ve started the practice of taking in 1 Gu every 40 minutes and it seems work well for both me and Asia, despite our size difference. I plan to continue this strategy during the marathon. On the bike, however, I got really hungry toward the end of the ride and finished the brick workout completely ravenous. I took in more calories/hour during the bike than on the previous days run but I was still ravenous. I’m sure it had something to do with residual hunger from the run.

I started a log this week that includes lots of valuable information about each of my workouts, including a lot of information on nutrition. I need to figure out what kind of nutrition and how much I need on both the bike and the run prior to the 70.3 on March 31.

Week 6 is a BIG week for me. Luckily it starts with rest tomorrow morning and a techinque focused swim tomorrow night.

‘Do you find that your nutrition needs on the bike changes workout to workout? Do you follow a certain plan or do you eat more or less depending on how you feel that day?