42 weeks and counting

$150.00 for month of August triathlon training; even coaches have coaches.  Let the spending begin.  Minus my entry fee (650 USD) this is all I have spent so far for this race, but it will soon start to add up…oh wait; I also had to get a new pair of cycling shoes and clips = $135.00.  By luck I got my favorite pair (Specialized Trivent) for $90+shipping!  Oh, and I did have to get a new pair of running shoes (Saucony Fastwich) for $92.80 I will spare you the food costs throughout the months, but that is more so because I don’t do the grocery shopping or cook so I am clueless in this department.

So for the first week of ITL (Ironman Training Lanzarote) I have already spent: $1,027.80

One week since Ironman Lake Placid and since then I have done a 5k race and a Sprint Triathlon.  Both done for fun, and pulled off what I would call a pretty good performance (8th place A.G. in the 5k and a 3rd Overall in the triathlon).  I have never been more excited about my training or for racing Ironman Lanzarote.
I am tempted to race again this upcoming weekend, but I think it is best to take this week and recover.

August 4th:  Up early and to Santa Monica Beach to see one of the most beautiful sites any triathlete could imagine.  Like sea turtles coming to beach for nesting, a sea of swimmers in their slick black wetsuits were being washed to shore.  The sound of the waves crashing and the smell of the salty sea air only made vision become more alive, it was a splendid site!  How much I wanted to jump in and join my fellow swimmers as I stood there on the beach in dry clothes feeling left out and alone, unfortunately work gets in the way sometimes.

Later that day for my training I got to take two 45 minute indoor cycling classes.  First ride I took at a moderate intensity and the next I thought I would just take nice and easy…well quite the opposite.  My sprints I pushed 400 watts, recoveries were at 135 and everything in between averaged out to be about 170.   Feeling a little tired now, but that’s okay.

August 5th:  California is one of my favorite places in the country to go when I am not home, even when it is for business.  I feel more tired than what I did the week after my Ironman.  Maybe the adrenaline rush is finally over.  Still, my obsession continues; the fire was fueled today when I swam this morning with a friend in West Hollywood who is racing Kona.  Bitten by the bug earlier this year when racing Wildflower, Kona will be his first Ironman.  It is always exciting to me to find fresh blood to the sport.

AdvertisementMy body felt slow and slothish through the water as I am finally recovering, but I was still able to hold comfortable form.  I didn’t keep track of how far or do any type of specific sets.  It was just fun to get in the water with my friend and share an hour of his training with him.

August 6th:  It amazes me when your body can pull of a race of such grand distance; the following week a 5 mile run feels like the longest workout you have ever done!  I got to run Runyun Canyon this morning.  Getting to the top wasn’t the easiest, nor my strongest effort I have given.  I had to turn off my music because I found it annoying; there was something I found very comforting in the silence around me.  Two more days before playtime is over and the real work begins.

I also took a Parkour Class which was so amazing!  I think my body hurts worse from that than what it did after Lake Placid.

August 7th and 8th
I actually took off both days due to traveling back to Chicago and going to a Triathlon as a spectator.  But I did get to catch the tail end of watching Kona 2009 on TV; and still twenty-four years later it still brings tears to my eyes.

Monday – let the training begin!