This weekend was pretty good as far as the training is concerned. And let's face it, with all of the training my weekends entail there really isn't time for much else aside from lying on the couch, eating, sleeping, and washing all of the clothes from the workouts. Yesterday was of course long ride day. I hit the road at 6am, a little later than I probably could've based on the daylight, but I wasn't in a real rush except maybe to beat the rain that was supposed to move in during the afternoon. I had my loop all picked out, knowing that it would take me less time than I had to ride, so right away I decided to take a little detour at about mile 5 to go do this really fun, long, steep hill to help add to the time and get some extra hill work in. I wish I had a camera with me for when I got to the top. The road flattens out just before you ride the last bit to the top and there are several farms up there, but beyond that you're just looking out over the scenery below. Quite beautiful first thing in the morning.
The climb was a fun way to start the ride, although I am positive that it is nothing compared to the beast I've heard so much about. Longer, but I didn't even have to stand up, which I know will be happening when I get to St. Croix. Oh, and it was also above freezing to start, warm enough for me to forgo the shoe covers and just go with leg and arm warmers, and certainly warm enough that frozen water bottles were not going to be an issue. There really isn't a whole lot to say about the ride except that it went well and I felt good and was certainly faster than the last time I rode it. I saw snow twice: once in a parking lot in the shade where there had obviously previously been some pretty impressive snowbanks, and once at Crotched Mountain ski area, where it hasn't entirely melted but was sure a lot quieter than it was the last time I rode when I was freezing and people were skiing up a storm. No moose sightings this week, but I did come across like 7 roadkill porcupines throughout the ride, an unusually high number, and a pack of wild turkeys which is pretty common.
After the ride it was time for a transition run, even though I always just love the idea of finishing a long ride and collapsing immediately to the couch, but I picked a sport where that just doesn't make any sense. So off I went. It was slow, and running still just feels awkward after my brief hiatus, but I got it done. I bloodied my sock thanks to a nice blister that has formed since I started running in a new pair of shoes, but of course that just means that I'm working hard, right? That, or my shoes don't fit right. Then it was time to collapse on the couch. Sweet relief.
After Saturday's long training, I always wake up on Sundays really amazed at what I still have to get done and seriously wondering my ability to get through it. My legs just feel tired, I feel tired, I'm thinking about regular people who will be in their pajamas most of the day, eating a big breakfast in front of the TV and intermittently napping. Or maybe going out to brunch. Not me. Not that it's anyone's fault but my own. And sorry, I've just been thinking a lot about pancakes lately because first of all, they are one of my favorite things. And second, for some reason in the midst of trying to get down to race weight I torture myself by watching a lot of Food Network, and yesterday they did a history of pancakes and I wanted them more than ever. I guess I'll have to get by knowing that I'll have some in just two short weeks. Even if pancakes should be at least a weekly occurrence, but anyway....
I got up at 6 this time, thinking maybe I'd get started early, but I moved awfully slowly, and didn't wind up heading out until almost 8. First up was an easy bike ride, which I seriously took very easy. I also visited a Burger King for the first time in a few years, but this time it was only to use the bathroom. I used to love Whoppers, and maybe someday I'll have one again. After the bike ride, I had to go and do my long run. It must be an amusing sight, me moving so slowly from bike to run, so obviously not interested in running at all. Any time I don't run for even a brief period of time, like say that 6 days I just had off, I start to dread it. It's like I completely forget how to do it and it seems ten times harder. But I knew I had to.
It wasn't pretty, but I did get it done. And it is getting better. But my legs didn't have much in them. My heart rate was too low because they couldn't keep me moving fast enough. I had some delusions that maybe after all of that I might make it to another yoga class this afternoon. But after a couple of hours on the couch, when I went to stand up to maybe change and go, my legs told me that I wasn't going anywhere. Probably not such a bad decision.
Tomorrow will be fun though. First of all, Mondays are easy swim days and the only days I don't have to bike and run. And second, I am headed down to Boston for the Red Sox game and maybe to catch a bit of marathon action afterward. The timing doesn't work out so well since they moved the start earlier, so I won't get to watch any of the elite runners or really even anyone running less than 4 hours or so, but it's still cool to watch. I still remember when I was in college and my sister ran it and I went down to see my first one. My brother-in-law jumped in to run the last four miles with her. My mother told me that maybe next year I could jump in and run the last four miles with her. "Are you crazy? I can't run four miles!" Yeah, things have changed a bit since then.
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