Today i decided to hit the trifecta with training. Cycling, running, and then swimming this evening. Initially, i went outside without checking the temperature and only going off the fact that there were blue skies and sun sun sun.
Bad idea.
I quickly found out that cycling shorts, no socks, and a beater was NOT sufficient enough to get me through a training ride. Time to revamp the training wardrobe. After about 15 minutes of trying to find a make shift cold weather cycling outfit, i emerged from the house wearing my knee high black nike soccer socks, my black cycling shoes, black nike cycling shorts, and long sleeve tri shirt. Even with all that, it couldn't keep me warm and the wind cut through everything when going 30+ mph on my bike. With the air temperature being in the upper 40s / low 50s, the wind chill must have been at least the low 40s / upper 30s. Absolutely freezing.
After a ride in which i was thoroughly chilled, i grabbed some water and headed out for a run.
But before i get into that, lets rewind to yesterday.
Yesterday. Cold, rainy, miserable yesterday. I had the brilliant idea of putting to use the treadmill we've had for YEARS by putting it outside on the porch so that on those rainy days, there is no excuse for not running. Also, i put a stand in front of it so that i could watch movies on my laptop and partake in Facebooks MOB WARS while running!!!
I. Hate. Treadmills.
I put on the movie Boiler Room, set the treadmill for 9 mph, and went at it. God, its boring, and even though i was mildly distracted with Facebook and Boiler Room, i really couldn't deal with it. Every 2 miles i had to stop because the constant bouncing and noise annoyed me. I ended up doing only 7.5 miles, but it was the worst 7.5 miles i have ever run. Treadmill running will only be a last resort thing from now on.
Hell, I'll even run in the rain / sleet / hail / snow / hurricane katrina to avoid that blasted machine.
So back to todays run. I set out with every intention of running at least 10 miles. I mean, i DO have a marathon in a week. About a mile into my run, my ankles and knees began to hurt like hell and the pain only escalated with each step and each mile. By mile 3 i knew that 10 wasn't going to happen today. In fact, i had to stop at 3.5 because it got so bad.
Not a good sign.
I haven't hurt like this since i was playing soccer in Italy. The only change i've made in my training was the treadmill... so now i know how my body reacts to that.
Tonight swam a nice 2,400 yards and i'm finally feeling great about my swimming. I feel fast, fluid, and comfortable in the water. A far cry from what i was only a short month ago where i would drown after a quick lap!
So the enormity of the race i'm about to take on is finally hitting me. I'm quite certain that i'll be laid up for quite a few days afterwards and i'm having doubts that i'll even be able to finish in the 3:25 that i set as a goal. My longest continuous run thus far is 17 miles, and i was struggling towards the end of that. I guess finally the nerves are hitting me and the uncertainty of what i'm about to take on makes things worse. I'm sure the marathon in Philly will be a little better seeing as i'll know what to expect.
Anyways... this weekend (tomorrow) i am planning on running at least a 20 miler to get a taste of what it will be like. I've heard and been told that the race doesn't actually really start until after the 20th mile... so i guess we'll just have to see how strong my resolve is.
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