#TBT ~ 2012 Backyard Olympics

 
I don't follow the Olympics very closely but I do know they are going on right now.  Major kuddos to Kristin Armstrong for winning her third gold in the cycling time trial.  She won in 2008 and 2012 and she rocked it this year the day before she turned 43!  And in case you're wondering, she is not the ex-wife of Lance Armstrong, she just shares the same name!

Four years ago Les' brother, Lance, came to visit us while the Olympics were going on.  He brought his youngest daughter, Hannah, along and she and I had our own Backyard Olympics.  We were awesome, scoring only gold and silver in diving, swimming, pool float running, cannon balling...

As our Olympics continued I was reminded that I am no longer 11. We were discussing different dives and flips when I told Hannah how is use to be able to do a cartwheel off the diving board. We don't have a diving board, so Hannah headed for the grass. Unfortunately, so did I. My cartwheel was executed perfectly until I started the descent. My left hamstring went one way while the rest of my leg went another!

Do you follow the Olympics closely?  I'm pulling for all the US marathoners, especially Meb!

Do you remember when the Summer and Winter games took place in the same year and then you waited four more for the next Olympics?  Do you prefer them every 2 years or every 4?  I think I prefer the old way, it seemed like they took up so much of the year with the winter and summer games. Now it feels like they just happened.

What Now, Week 1 Results

I didn't follow my plan this week at all.  I ran when I scheduled a ride and rode when I scheduled a run!  We had high (for us) humidity that made me really glad I don't live where it's humid all the time.  I'll take the dry heat any day.

Sunday - Easy recovery ride
Result:  Rested

Monday - Easy run
Result:  Rode 8.2 miles in 44:27, 11.1 mph

Tuesday - Trail ride
Result:  Ran 6.16 miles in 1:02:13, 10:06 pace

Wednesday - Rest
Result:  Rode 10.52 miles in 1:14:07, 8.5 mph
This was a trail ride.  Les had a 7:00 a.m. conference call that he was going to take at home, so it meant we needed to get moving!  We went higher up the trail than I had in a long time.
Water aerobics in the afternoon, too.

Thursday - Easy run
Result:  Ran 5.01 miles in 59:18, 11:50 pace

Friday - Easy ride
Result:  Rode 8.22 miles in 43:21, 11.4 mph

Saturday - Long run
Result:  Rested
Sometime yesterday morning I started having ear problems.  I feel like I've been on an airplane and they need to pop, kinda like I'm in a cave or tunnel.  Very annoying, but also keeping me feeling a little off balance.  A long run was not going to happen.  It was still a great week.

Total miles for the week:
Running:  11.17
Cycling: 26.94
Total:  38:11

Marathon Recovery, Week 4 Results

This is the final week Hal Higdon's Marathon Recovery plan.  The complete details for this week are here.  I did not follow the plan at all, but I had a great week!

Sunday: An hour of cross-training.
Result:  Rode 7.26 miles in 35:43, 12.2 mph

Monday:  Rest
Result: AquaJive, 30 minutes

Tuesday:  Five miles.
Result:  Rode 13.12 miles in 1:23:55, 9.4 mph 

Wednesday:  Five miles.
Result:  Ran 8 miles in 1:28:49, 11:06pace.
I thought about doing a half marathon this morning, but my legs said otherwise.  They weren't quite recovered from Tuesday's ride.  So I ran hills, lots of hills...

Thursday:  Three miles.
Result:  Rested

Friday:  Two miles.
Result:  Rode 7.65 miles in 42:40, 10.8 mph
Les and I took it really easy.  We both had ambitious plans for Saturday.
In the afternoon I also did 30 minutes of AquaJive

Saturday:  Rest
Result:  Ran 14 miles in 2:28:36, 10:37 pace
This was my first LSD since my marathon a little over a month ago.  I had planned to do a half marathon, but after yesterday's ride my total miles for the week was 36.  A 14 miler gave me a 50 mile week!  I was going for distance, not speed, but I was pleased with my pace. This was an extremely hilly route ~ something I wanted to do to build strength and endurance.

It was also a pretty warm morning, with high humidity.  Well, high for us - 88% humidity.  I was drenched by the second mile.  As soon as I got home, I jumped right into the pool ~ great way to bring my core temperature down.

Ave HR 148
Max HR 160
Calories burned 1,402

Totals for the week:
Running:  22.00
Cycling:  28.03
Total:  50.03

I'm A Triathlete, Sorta

Anyone reading this blog will recognize that I am a runner.  Perhaps the "Marathon" part of the title gave it away.  Or all my gabbing about marathon training, long runs, easy runs, and marathon recovery.  One of my first posts on this blog is one I copied from my other blog - it's called "Running - How I Began."  I've been at it for over 15 years now and finally have my first marathon under my belt.

A little over two years ago, in the middle of some serious running burnout, Les and I went to Catalina Island for our anniversary.  We rented bikes while we were there and I found a new activity.  I kept running, but I added mountain biking to the fun.  It really made a difference, switching up from running to cycling.

Now that summer is here, I've added one more activity.  Swimming.  Actually, spending time in and around the pool.  I'm not really much of a swimmer.  I can make it across the pool, but I've never gotten the breathing technique down.  But there is one activity that I really enjoy - water aerobics!

Several years ago Les bought me an AquaJogger.  I have the most basic model - just the belt (it can be found much cheaper here.)  It came with some exercise explanations, but what really made it work for me was when I bought the AquaJive cassette tape (it's now available on CD).  This is a 30 minute workout.  The instructor reminds me of an 80s aerobics instructor, but it's fun and I get my heart rate up, without stressing joints and tendons.  Today, I used it for the first time this year.  My plan for the rest of the summer is to do this 2-3 times a week on days when I have an easy ride or run in the morning.

I won't be registering for any triathlons, but it's fun to have other activities to supplement running.  What do you do to mix up your activity?