Recovery is my friend.

Well I have hit the middle of a recovery week and I am feeling really good. This isn't a full on recovery week as there is still quite a bit of volume but minus the intensity.


Monday: Recovery/rest day
Lunch: 25 min spin on stationary bike/15 min stretching

Tuesday:
AM: swim - Master's - 4000 yards
PM: run - 60 min easy run

My swim was really solid yesterday but I probably pushed it more than I should of during a recovery week. I can just defintely tell I am getting a lot stronger in the water and am really motivated to go hard in the pool. There was nothing eventful about the run, 60 minutes easy and I was kind of tired.

Wednesday:
AM: swim - Master's - 3500 yards
Lunch: weights(still to come)
PM: ride - 2:30 - easy effort (still to come)

I did a good job of holding back in the pool this morning. It also helps to have two really good Masters coaches. I told Chris (the main coach and leads the workout on m/w/f) that I was in a recovery week and that I was going to take it easy. Usually he pushes my and I like that, but today he really helped me take it easy and helped me work on my form. I usually lead or swim second in my lane but today I just hung on the back (4th). I didn't have to think about laps or intervals and I just cruised. I made all the intervals without even really trying and most importantly after 3500 yards I got out of the pool feeling fresh. I have a good long easy ride this afternoon and light weight session at lunch.

On Gordo's blog he just put up a link to an outline for his presentation on Maximizing Athletic Performance. There is a really good quote in the outline:

"Until you can “do consistently”, worrying about “what you do” is pointless"

I agree completely with this statement. I believe consistency, when it comes to traing, is by far the most important thing. A lot of people can throw down some big/intense workouts every now and then but getting out there day after day, week after week, month after month and doing what it takes is going to make you better. I believe consistency is why I have been successful and have been getting faster in all 3 sports, especially when it comes to swimming.

I saw another quote that I really liked. It was from Bjorn Anderson who just won the Timberman 70.3.

"If you feel in control you are not going fast enough"

I know this does not apply to all race distances, especially IM. This relates to what my coach has been trying pound into my head, and that's to "commit" and to have confidence in my ability. He thinks I can go even faster and push a lot harder in races than I have so far. I just need to get over a mental barrier and know that I can push the pace and will not blow up. It's a fine line but the fact that I keep finishing races feeling like I could have kept going or went harder shows me that is still have some work do.. mentally.

Finally, here the official results from my XC race this last
weekend:

3rd Annual Bake At The Lake XC 4 Miler
AG: 5/12 - 10th overall
time: 22:11
pace: 5:33/mile

Here's photo taken from the last 1/2 mile. You can tell I am hurting.