Day 44

Today was the first run in quite a while and it actually felt quite good to be back. Only being for 30 minutes, it wasn't that testing but it was after a 30 minute bike.

Day 39

Another turbo session completed, and hour this time though.

Day 38

50 minute turbo completed, the legs are feeling surprisingly good.

Day 37 - Turbo Time

Another session done (45mins) but I'm beginning to get a little bit worried about my running legs and doing enough training.

I know that it's still early days but it's going to be another week with no runs and plenty of bike rides n order to try any get the legs on the mend.

Day 24 - Full House

Have just about covered everything during this Wednesday. Started of with a 2k swim first thing in the morning which was followed up this evening with a tidy little brick session. The bike was obviously on the turbo again but it all felt surprisingly good.

Bring on tomorrow.

Day 23 - Back to running

Fantastic stuff, back to running today and the 30 minutes turned out 3.5 miles. My average heart rate was 156 which means the training effort was pretty good.

The route was a pretty good one as well that included 78m climbing. A good little session.

Day 21 - Just how much training can you fit into one day

Due to the sheer lack of training yesterday I had to complete a two hour bike session on top of the hour run I already had to do. This all went according to plan although the bike was amazingly cold on the feet (I really must make sure I get something to keep them warm). The run was great because Sian was also with me and  it's always great to be running with her whilst chatting away.

Once the 5.5 mile run was out the way and I'd defrosted from the 30 mile bike, I realised that I'd also planned to attend a masters swim session  with the Halstead Swim Club. So, today was a very full day and it was also the end of my third week of training. My achilles is good to run on and I'm finding some good stretches to complete after running and cycling.

Time to hit the sack now and get some rest.

Day 20 - Just a whole lot of pain

Being a Saturday , today was meant to be a long bike day (1hr45 to be precise) but I had also organised for CJ from Total Sports Therapy to take a look at my achilles. The appointment was at 11:30am and originally I had thought that I'd be able to go for the bike before we went there. I hadn't really thought about it properly though, as after getting up nice and early, I realised that I wouldn't make it back to the house till about 10am and that would just not leave enough time to have a shower, get ready and pop into the local bike shop (Lobbs) to talk new steeds. Needless to say then, that there was no bike ride for me today. Instead I figured that I would be able to do a nice slow hour run with Sian and then head out for a gentle two hour ride on my own. On top of this, I also want to go swimming with Halstead SC tomorrow as well.

Back to the physio though, after having a brief chat with CJ she took a look at my legs and other than being a bit tight they are okay. I was starting to get a bit on the worried side about them, worried that I would not be able to run 26.2 miles on its own let alone after a 2.4 mile swim and a 112 mile bike. Thankfully though, CJ explained that as long as I stretch after running and general training, as well as completing some exercises in between I should be fine. That is as long as I do the training properly and don't go too hard or too fast too early. Just to be on the safe side, I'll also be making other appointments to see her once a month, especially as my quads and IT bands are tight, along with achilles.

Big day tomorrow and it's almost 10pm, time for me to hit the hay.

Day 19 - Turbo and Swim

Today all started at at 5am, the alarm went off in order for me to complete a 60 minute turbo, instead of a 60 minute run (I still don't want to run too far with my Achilles feeling a little bit dodgy) but like the lazy arsed triathlete I am, I snoozed it until it was too late. Therefore I had to try and fit it in after school and before the swim session. I pretty much managed to do this (45 minutes at about 12mph on the turbo) and then I went straight onto the swim session.

The swim was a coached session by Born2Tri and was really just focussing on the arms and legs. Once my legs were sorted it was straight onto the arms. They were teaching about having your hand enter the water a lot sooner. In fact, pretty much just after your head. It feels kinda unnatural but I'm guessing it makes it more efficient. The other part is about entering the water slightly wider. I really must ensure that I keep going to the pool and practise this in the pool and hopefully the first chance for this is going to be at another coached swim set at Halstead Swim Club on Sunday.

Enjoy everyone. Train hard and race easy.

Day 18 - Love Thy Turbo

Today was another turbo bike session due to the time I got back from work and how dark it was.

I feel that I've been spending a lot of time in there recently due to the achilles issue but I'm sure it'll all stand me in good stead for IMUK.

Anyway, the bike session was good, 45 minutes and just over 9 miles.

Day 17 - lessons learnt

Today was an early start with a great swim session. The pool wasn't too busy, in the hour and a quarter I almost made it through the entire swim set (I completed 2.2km) and I managed to get some good footage on the GoPro.

After work it was straight to cooking and then onto the turbo for the beginning of another brick session. This was not so good though, training so soon after dinner just did jot agree with me and to make matters worse, the HR monitor wasn't working for some reason.

I struggled through the 30 minute bike session, averaging just over 12mph, but whilst on the 1.8 mile run I blew chunks.

I think this session was more about mental training in order to keep going rather than anything else.

Day 16 - Turbo No Run

Being a Tuesday I was meant to be having a run but I have really been feeling my Achilles getting worse recently. As a result of this I kinda felt it was prudent to give the running a rest for a while (the longer runs at least) and instead jump on the bike instead. The only real issue I have with this is the fact that it is far too dark to cycle in the mornings before school and by the time I get home it is also far too dark.

Now then, yes I know that I could put lights on. And yes, I know that I could cycle to school. And yes, I know that I could just go for a bike straight after school and do my school work some other time but this just doesn't work. I don't have any lights that are actually good enough and I don't want to get into school all sweaty and horrible. There is an obvious solution though, even though it isn't quite the same as going on the road... TURBO.

The turbo I have is in the garage and can be a little bit noisy but it works, it efficient, as far as I know, and will do the job. As soon as Siân and Rosy went to swimming I was in the garage peddling as if my life depended on it. After doing a very short video for the vlog and plugging in the music I was on my way. I mixed up the tempo of my cadence in line with the chorus and verses of the rocking playlist (mainly 30 Seconds to Mars and Lenny Kravitz) and tried to keep my heart rate as close to 146 as I possibly could. Bizarrely, it was the fastest turbo session I've done and never once did I really want it to end before the time was up, in fact I went over the 45 minutes I had wanted to do.

In total I was spinning my not so little legs for just over 47 minutes at an average speed of 11.9mph that meant that I would've traveled 9.32 miles. This in itself is not that good a speed but on the turbo for me it is great and I'm sure it will stand me in good stead for later on in the training program.

If you hear strange noises coming from my garage, please just walk on by... I'll be getting all hot and sweaty with my bike. See you all soon.

Day 14 - Long Run

May have gone a little fast but the hour went by quickly and the miles were good. Admittedly, my legs are aching more than usual but I do have a rest day tomorrow so I'm sure/hoping that the time will heal them up a treat ready for week 3.

Thinking about it, they're probably aching because I was stopping to take photos/videos of the sunrise and then going slightly faster to catch up with where I should've been. This isn't helpful, I know but the sunrise really was good and I haven't seen one in ages.

Despite all this (59 minutes worth of running during a 61 minute session) I still managed 5.9 miles at an average pace of around 10:22/mile. Obviously, there is no way I could keep this rate up for the full 26.2 miles (especially after a 2.4 mile swim and 112 mile bike) but it is almost a quarter of the distance and I still have another 28 weeks worth of training to go. I read somewhere today that racing the ironman will not be the hardest achievement of your life, but training for it certainly will be. I can definitely see this one coming true, Train hard, race easy.

No swim training for me tonight, instead there was a lovely curry and three beers that meant I was way too full to enjoy it. Next time I must remember not to order so much... I don't need it.

Day 13 - long bike (2nd Jan)

Well, the longest bike of the week and in-fact of my training so far.

90 minutes equated to 21 miles at 13.7mph and a back that was aching after 60 minutes. I guess I've just got to get out there more.

Day 12 - New Year's Day Run

A new year and a new training session. Today was just a 45 minute run but it ended up being just over an hour as I also ran up to Colne Engaine, where the party was last night, in order to help tidy up a little more.

Pace wise, I think it was pretty good, under 11 min/mile and I still felt fresh afterwards.

Day 10 - Brick Session

Just a straight forward brick session today, 30 minute bike followed by a 15 minute run. Both sections were pretty straightforward although when I eventually put the bike away I discovered a lovely puncture in the front wheel. Looks like I'll ve fixing that in the morning before going out again.

Day 8 - Rest Day and Sorting Routines

It's a Monday so that can only mean one thing... A REST DAY!

Day 7 - end of the first week

That's the 1st week of 30 now completed with an early morning swim set (my first with fins) and a 45 minute run.

Once again, the swim took longer than expected, it was always going to be longer (as it was going to be 3000m) but this session was almost 2 hours. The pool was more crowded than I would've liked but all in all it was a good swim made even better by trying out the new GoPro.

The run came much later on in the day when it was also q lot darker. Not much can be said about that one though other than, I'm glad I've got my first full week under my belt.

Day 6 - Boxing Day = Rest Day

Absolutely no training today due to heading down to Portsmouth for a second Christmas. Once again, I feel that I've managed to consume more than my fair share of food and wine but I'm sure I've convinced myself that it'll all be fine as, after all, it is a 'rest day'.

Present wise, there has been lots to think about and use... I'm now the proud owner of a set of fins, paddles and a kitbrix bag to put/store it all in. I desperately need some sort of netting bag to keep the swim toys in but the kitbrix will most certainly do for the meanwhile.

The wine and rum can be saved for a celebration later on at some point and I've already started to read the ironman book Sara and Pete gave me. All in all, another great Christmas.

I had planned for today to be a rest day all along by training Monday through to Friday, but it means tomorrow I'll have a nice swim and a long run to complete. I'm just hoping that I haven't eaten and drunk too much.

On a slightly different matter, Rosy has begun to design some motivational posters for me so I just need to print those and get them on the bedroom door to motivate me in the mornings. Am I ready to swim in the morning? Hell yes.

Day 4 - Double Bubble

Another good day today, a lovely early morning swim (90 minutes - 2500m) followed by a 30 minute run, but then again... they are always good days in the holidays. I mean, when else do you have the luxury of when to fit in your training? When else can you say halfway through the day "You know what, I might just head out for a cheeky swim!" Today was a good example of just how good it is to train during the holidays.

Rosy had a couple of friends over the night before and so normally I think I would have been a little on the stressed side due to giggling girls and what-not. This morning though, I woke up to my alarm to everything I needed for the swim. It just made it easy to get out there and do the training. Being the holiday I don't actually have that much school work to do and therefore I wasn't limited to time. Normally I would've got out of the pool after an hour but I did the full set and almost 90 minutes there. I actually felt quite refreshed for it. If this had been in school term time I'm pretty sure that the run wouldn't have occurred due to the planning and/or marking that would need to get done. Realising and understanding this now is good though, it means I can start to plan ways to fit the training in... Maybe even cycling to work.

Well, that is Christmas eve coming to a close now. Tomorrow I want to go for a 60 minute bike ride so I can have a rest day at the weekend.

Wish me luck now.