Nutrition and Crosswinds... an EPIC tale....

Today was a stellar training day... although, in the end, i wish i could have run more (dinner time was fast approaching and i had to cut it short.)

Started off the day with an hour and a half gym session.  Worked chest pretty hard:

- decline press

- flat dumbbell press

- military dumbbell press

- dumbbell flies

- military machine press

It was a little discouraging since when i was last at the gym i could bench 225 and do 85 pound dumbbells... and this time around i was rocking out the 35 pounders and doing a measly 125 in the decline press.  I guess this is the biggest thing: when i used to lift, i was doing it to bulk up and get jacked... this time around it's specifically to make me faster and strengthen specific muscles for swimming / biking / running.

After the gym and a quick lunch, set out for my cycling for the day.  HOLY HEAD AND CROSSWINDS!  There is nothing more frustrating than going downhill where you usually go 30-35 mph, and even with pedaling, only able to pull off around 20 mph.  I HATE HEADWINDS.

But even more so than headwinds... i nearly died in my first experience with a strong crosswind.  I was about 15 miles into my ride when the road suddenly became lined on either side with field rather than the woods and trees that had previously been the case.  oh. my. god.  The wind literally threw me to the left side of the road and if i hadn't gotten my foot out of the pedal, i would have bit it... hard.  The next 5 or so miles were spent leaning to my right side, into the wind.  No, seriously... i was leaning into the wind to keep upright.  

Overall the ride was frustrating since after a day off, i was feeling good and fast, but turned in a time 4 minutes slower than my best and .8 mph off my best average speed.  Damn winds.

Came home, ate a snack to recharge, and headed out for a quick 3.3 miles on the cross-country course.  Felt great, and i wish i could have done more. (see initial sentence.)

Today is the best i've felt training-wise in a long time, and it was the first day i've kept track of my calorie intake.  It really is unreal the amount you have to eat when you're trying to accomplish what i'm doing.  I just finished dinner and my daily total is up to 5,062.75 calories... so far.

For a taste of what i'm eating (no pun intended) ... here was my dinner for tonite:

- GNC vanilla protein shake mixed with L-Glutamine and milk

- Salad with Italian dressing

- Cauliflower

- 2 ears of corn with butter

- 1 grilled chicken breast

- 1 cheeseburger

- 1 Ribeye steak

... and the weird thing is... i'm still not what i would call "full."

The rest of my intake for the day included 3 bananas, 4 packets of oatmeal, and 3 ham and cheese sandwiches.  I'll tell ya... bananas are a godsend.  172 calories, light, and perfect before running for some extra energy.

It's crazy how much of a science this all really is.

Back to the grind tomorrow... planning on a 10+ mile run in the morning, arm day at the gym, cycling in the afternoon, and a "cool down" x-country run at night.

God i feel good.