[10 mile ride - 30 minutes]
[2 mile walk - 30 minutes]
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To work
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To home

Everything's feeling good this morning. It's amazing though, how I can push harder on the ride, get up to an 20+ average speed and not really go that much farther in 30 minutes. My last ride was 9 miles and I rode very casually. Hmm...

[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To work
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To home

Last nights volleyball game wasn't too bad - we won one game! We play rally scoring to 25 and we lost something like 14 - 25, 17 - 25, 25 - 18. No worse for the wear this morning, except a minor groin pull. Went down for a dig and pulled some muscles I'd never pulled before. Worked on the computer last night after the game with a nice ice pack of frozen peas - don't worry, they were a little on the old side and went in the trash after I was done.

Stayed up too late to ride / walk this morning...

[9 mile ride - 30 minutes]
[2 mile walk - 30 minutes]
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To work
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To home

Ahhh.... to feel good again! My legs are back and it feels nice to get out and ride and walk again. I'll have to remember not to be stupid and train faster than I'm ready for in the future.

Bought a nice watch this weekend - a Timex Ironman 100 Lap Sleek:



It does multiple interval timing which will help with my jog / walk training. For example, it will count down 5 minutes [beep] then countdown 2 minutes [beep] and then repeat.

...plus, having it strapped to my wrist all the time reminds me of my goal.

[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To work
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To home

Still stiff. I'm worried I'm not going to be able to jump when our first volleyball match arrives next Monday. Joni and I signed up for a city co-ed V-Ball league. We've played in the league a few times (winning it twice and coming in second last year).

Here's a bad photo from last year's team:

[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To work
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes] To home

I'm still suffering from my little run. What a wimp!

I'm walking funny at work, but no one's asked me about it yet, so maybe I'm just grimacing on the inside.

[2 mile walk - 35 minutes]
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes]
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes]

Went with Catherine on a nice walk this morning before work/school. My legs are pretty sore from yesterday, but at least I have a better idea about what I need to do over the coming months.

[3 mile run/walk - 30 minutes]
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes]
[4 mile ride - 12 minutes]

So I just started the running part of my training program - and I stink! Well, I guess that was to be expected. I haven't run at all for almost 15 years and cycling is NOT running.

I just got some pretty shoes last night (some Saucony Grid Stabil MC). If only my running form looked as good.



I ran this morning for the first time and tried to do a 2 minute run / 2 minute walk for 30 minutes. This turned into a 1 1/2 minute run 1 1/2 minute walk and then to a 1 minute run 1 minute walk fairly quickly. I did run/walk, however, about 3 miles in 30 minutes.

Here's the plan I'm going to follow for the running portion. More about my cycling and swimming exploits later.

10-WEEK TRAINING PLAN
Walk for 20 minutes a day for the first four days, then increase to 30 minutes a day for four more days. Now you're ready to begin with week 1.

Each week of the program, do your run/walk workouts on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and take Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday off.

10-WEEK TRAINING SCHEDULE:

Week 1 Run 2 minutes, walk 4 minutes. Repeat 5 times.

Week 2 Run 3 minutes, walk 3 minutes. Repeat five times.

Week 3 Run 5 minutes, walk 2.5 minutes. Repeat four times.

Week 4 Run 7 minutes, walk 3 minutes. Repeat three times.

Week 5 Run 8 minutes, walk 2 minutes. Repeat three times.

Week 6 Run 9 minutes, walk 2 minutes. Repeat twice, then run 8 minutes.

Week 7 Run 9 minutes, walk 1 minute. Repeat three times.

Week 8 Run 13 minutes, walk 2 minutes. Repeat twice.

Week 9 Run 14 minutes, walk 1 minute. Repeat twice.

Week 10 Run 30 minutes. Note: After completing week 9, if you feel tired, repeat this week of training before moving on to week 10.

I've decided to do a triathlon before I turn 40 in September 2004. An olympic triathlon consists of a:

- 1.5 k (.94 mile) swim
- 40 k (24.8 mile) bike ride
- 10 k (6.4 mile) run

This is much more reasonable than an Ironman competition, which is what I always thought a triathlon was. Those distances are a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride, and a 26 mile marathon run. Yikes!

Why have I decided to do this? I'm not sure. I've really been working to become more fit and have really enjoyed my cycling. I do regular 20 - 35 mile road bike rides in the hills around town and it doesn't kill me. I've started lifting weights a bit, and hope to do more weight training. My diet has been improving and I think it's starting to verge onto the wacky side (grinding my own flax, making my own soy milk, making my own whole wheat bread, starting to do seed sprouting). Freaky!

Anyway, this blog is a way for me to keep track of the training I do and show progress over time. It also provides pressure for me to follow through on this goal and not let it drop due to discouragement.

I hope to do my triathlon in the spring or summer of 2004. I'm just looking for one near home, that's not too hard, and isn't on a Sunday. We'll see...