Whoever invented triathlons did me a huge favor, but if someone ever gets a bright idea to reverse the order to run, bike, swim, they will be on my short list of enemies. I was rudely reminded of just how painful starting with the run can be.
Wasky ran over to the house (he was two miles in when we started) and we just took off in true Wasky fashion.* I woke up exactly 21 minutes before he showed up and we galloped along at a 8:15 pace right from the start. I knew it was a mistake, but I actually felt good . . . for a while.
We hit the greenway, then made an awesome discovery (which I have sworn to secrecy) that lifted my spirits in sort of a paradise meets the burning fires of hell sort of way. A new training spot that will be a game changer.
Then more greenway and more 8:15 pace. Six miles later we’re climbing out of Shelby Park and my legs start screaming like a raging bear that’s been jostled from hibernation.
A fierce run that is my longest since Ironman. Up and down Riverside until we exchanged a very low five and went our own ways. He ran close to 13 and I probably got in around 10. Ten miles and I literally feel worse than I did after 140.6 in Madison.
The point here is that swimming first is a godsend. Tired or not, it always wakes and warms me up in just the right ways and this whole thing reminds me to remind myself of the goals I set for the off season:
1. Get to sleep earlier. (Challenge of a lifetime)
2. Wake up earlier. (Mainly so I don’t go from the bed to the pool, bike, or road . . . oh and just so you know, this morning’s run started at 9 am)
3. Strengthen and balance mind, body, and life. (meditation, weights, writing, a social existence)
4. Hit the pool hard. (Now is the time to build swim confidence, which I really think translates into overall race confidence for me)
5. Hit the trainer hard. (Biking is my strength, but I am far from a strong biker in these races)
6. Increase flexibility and pliability (long, strong muscles that recover faster).
7. Increase (regain) running speed. (explosive muscle training)
* Wasky truly knows one speed, “all out.” Not many know this, but he was so fired up at Ironman Louisville he swam the entire length of the upstream channel underwater. And coach Robbie has acknowledged more than once that Wasky’s walk is a sub-8 pace.