So remember when I bought a road bike, oohhhh…. two months ago? Well. I immediately wanted a tri bike also. Yet I showed immense restraint and avoided perusing the racks at my LBS (local bike shop). HOWEVER, I can’t say the same for my husband. He knew I wanted one, and really, he wanted another bike to tinker with (because 3 isn’t enough) so he constantly checked Craigslist looking for the perfect deal. We knew we would go the used route again because my requirements were a good brand, full carbon frame and at least Shimano Ultegra components. These things added up are expensive! So to make a long story short, I present to you my latest gift from my wonderful husband:
The Orbea Ordu, full carbon frame and Shimano Ultegra components. The story of this bike is too amazing not to share. The original owner (aka the guy we bought it from) had herniated 3 disks in his back and was paralyzed from the waist down. The doctors predicted he would never walk without a cane again. After intense physical therapy he not only walked unassisted, he trained for and completed a full Ironman! This is the very bike he rode those 112 miles on! I feel so inspired by the history of this bike and honored to be the next one to ride it. Who knows, maybe it has two Ironmans (Ironmen?) in it! 😉
Moving right along to the running addiction from the cycling addiction. Week two of training for the Space Coast Marathon went really well, I can’t wait until the long runs start getting longer, that’s when the fun really begins!
Monday– Planned: Rest; Actual: Rest.
Tuesday– Planned: 30 minute Tempo run and ride; Actual: 30 minute Tempo (3.30 miles) and 16 mile ride with my ladies group.
For the non-runners, a Tempo run is where you run for a set time or distance and gradually build up to a pre-determined speed (usually between 10K and half marathon race pace) and hold that speed for a length of time and then gradually decrease speed. So for example, I ran 10 minutes at an easy pace that gradually got faster, then 10 minutes at Tempo pace (8:09-8:31 min/mile) and then 10 minutes at a pace that gradually got slower.
Wednesday– Planned: FitCrew + 3 mile recovery run; Actual- FitCrew + 3 mile recovery run (10:10 min/mile average pace). The run was glorious! The slower (for me) pace helped dust off what felt like cobwebs from the previous days workouts and the morning’s WOD. Speaking of WOD… I really struggled with Candy, it was a very humbling WOD to say the least.
Thursday– Planned: FitCrew; Actual: FitCrew. The WOD (85lb push press, [2] 45lb plates for the farmers walk):
Friday– Planned: 5 mile run + FitCrew; Actual: 5 mile run (9:43 min/mile average pace) + FitCrew. I went for a run first thing in the morning then came home and refueled, changed and went to FitCrew. Surprisingly I felt really good and strong at FitCrew despite already having gone for a moderate paced run. The WOD (95lb front squat):
Saturday- Planned: ride; Actual: 20ish mile ride. I forgot to start my Garmin so I missed probably the first 2 miles. 18.7mph average pace.
Sunday- Planned: 11 miles with last 2 miles at goal pace; Actual: 11 miles with last 2 miles at goal pace! Most of my long runs have goal pace miles thrown in the mix. Last training cycle I ran a lot of my long runs on fatigued legs (thanks FitCrew) and found it really helpful, mentally. This time around I decided to add in goal pace miles to simulate what it would feel like to run that pace on tired legs, aka near the end of the race.
Last week I felt like I had dead legs during my long run and mentioned it to Andrew. He made some fueling suggestions and they worked like a charm! Not only are my splits awesome but I also felt strong. Thanks Andrew! [Fueling/calf stretching after miles 4 and 8]
I’m very pleased with my training for week 2. I return to the orthodontist at the end of the month with high hopes that he gives me a better window of dates for surgery. I’ve got my fingers crossed that I’ll be able to officially register for Space Coast Marathon before the fees go up!