It's Getting Harder
Sorry, still no Malibu race report yet. I'm still waiting for some photos!
I have been pretty wiped-out since Sunday. I guess it took more out of me than I thought. More on that in a bit, but first I have to say that I don't consider my triathlon adventure over, not by a long shot. I am still considering whether I should do another local triathlon, or just wrap up the season and start planning for next year. I guess this is rather silly, but the main motivation for doing another this season is so that I will have done three USAT events. When you do three in one year you get a national ranking. Now, I have to admit that I am a little embarassed to admit this since I think it is rather shallow. But for some reason I think it is cool to have a national ranking, even if I am number one million!
But I don't think that I have the time to improve much more this season, and if I start now I can start working on a solid base for next year. For some reason the idea of building this base fitness sounds really appealing to me right now. I don't have next season mapped out, but I do have some ideas of what I want to work on over the winter. Mostly I think I need to work on my running. My swimming and biking both need a bunch of work too, but I think there is the most room for gain in my run, so I think that should be my focus. Secondly I should take the opportunity to throw in some exercise that I don't really have time for in the regular season such as weight training.
So that is my general plan. Either way I am not taking any significant time off. I ended up taking a week off after Santa Barbara and that was just too long. I took Monday off and was back training on Tuesday.
Actually an embarassing thing happened on Tuesday. I forgot my dress shoes. It would have taken me a few hours to go back home and get them, and I really wanted to do my swim workout, so I talked myself into the idea of going to a store and buying a pair after my workout. But after my workout I thought about it more, and the more I thought about it, the more I didn't like that idea. I am rather particular about what I wear, and I didn't want to have to spend my hard earned money on a pair of lousy shoes that I don't love. So I just wore my running shoes to the office. I was embarassed as my Asics really don't go with my pinstripe suit very well, but figured I would just hide in my office most of the day and perhaps no one would notice.
Uh -- No. The first thing that happens when I get in is that I get an e-mail from the law partner in charge of my department to come into his office for an assignment. Ugh. Well, he didn't say anything, and I know he is a runner, so perhaps he understands. We talked a bit about my doing triathlons and running, so I guess it was ok. Just a bit embarassing.
After work I did a spin class. I haven't done one of these in a while because there really is no substitute for getting on your bike, but I have been having to work later and the sun has been going down later so I figureed it would have to do. One thing I noticed is that my heart rate was relatively low, around 130-140 range (70-75%), but I was still really tired. I was ok with that because this is really a recovery week, and it is very natural for your heart rate to be lower when biking compared to running.
But then this morning I went for a treadmill run, and I had basically the same senario. My heart rate was only around 130-140, but I would get really tired. I had to start walking around 30 minutes, when I normally run for at least an hour. I guess I am just still recovering from Malibu and shouldn't worry too much about it. I'm just concerned that it is flagging motivation. A weak spirit concerns me much more than a weak body.
I have been pretty wiped-out since Sunday. I guess it took more out of me than I thought. More on that in a bit, but first I have to say that I don't consider my triathlon adventure over, not by a long shot. I am still considering whether I should do another local triathlon, or just wrap up the season and start planning for next year. I guess this is rather silly, but the main motivation for doing another this season is so that I will have done three USAT events. When you do three in one year you get a national ranking. Now, I have to admit that I am a little embarassed to admit this since I think it is rather shallow. But for some reason I think it is cool to have a national ranking, even if I am number one million!
But I don't think that I have the time to improve much more this season, and if I start now I can start working on a solid base for next year. For some reason the idea of building this base fitness sounds really appealing to me right now. I don't have next season mapped out, but I do have some ideas of what I want to work on over the winter. Mostly I think I need to work on my running. My swimming and biking both need a bunch of work too, but I think there is the most room for gain in my run, so I think that should be my focus. Secondly I should take the opportunity to throw in some exercise that I don't really have time for in the regular season such as weight training.
So that is my general plan. Either way I am not taking any significant time off. I ended up taking a week off after Santa Barbara and that was just too long. I took Monday off and was back training on Tuesday.
Actually an embarassing thing happened on Tuesday. I forgot my dress shoes. It would have taken me a few hours to go back home and get them, and I really wanted to do my swim workout, so I talked myself into the idea of going to a store and buying a pair after my workout. But after my workout I thought about it more, and the more I thought about it, the more I didn't like that idea. I am rather particular about what I wear, and I didn't want to have to spend my hard earned money on a pair of lousy shoes that I don't love. So I just wore my running shoes to the office. I was embarassed as my Asics really don't go with my pinstripe suit very well, but figured I would just hide in my office most of the day and perhaps no one would notice.
Uh -- No. The first thing that happens when I get in is that I get an e-mail from the law partner in charge of my department to come into his office for an assignment. Ugh. Well, he didn't say anything, and I know he is a runner, so perhaps he understands. We talked a bit about my doing triathlons and running, so I guess it was ok. Just a bit embarassing.
After work I did a spin class. I haven't done one of these in a while because there really is no substitute for getting on your bike, but I have been having to work later and the sun has been going down later so I figureed it would have to do. One thing I noticed is that my heart rate was relatively low, around 130-140 range (70-75%), but I was still really tired. I was ok with that because this is really a recovery week, and it is very natural for your heart rate to be lower when biking compared to running.
But then this morning I went for a treadmill run, and I had basically the same senario. My heart rate was only around 130-140, but I would get really tired. I had to start walking around 30 minutes, when I normally run for at least an hour. I guess I am just still recovering from Malibu and shouldn't worry too much about it. I'm just concerned that it is flagging motivation. A weak spirit concerns me much more than a weak body.
posted by Anonymous at 10:51 AM
1 Comments:
Hi Paulie,
I was reading through your posts and what you're describing - being unable to elevate your heartrate - is classic overtraining! Are you feeling a bit better now? I hope so!
-Jessi
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