After a scorching March and getting out on the bike practically every day, the start of April has been really hard to motivate myself with training. The best part for me about this time of year is the fact that race season is but a whiff of May blossom away. Training in this rain and wind and grizzly weather is starting to wear thin, but I keep thinking ahead to those races and the intensity of the training sessions.
I have upped the miles running and have really progressed (in my opinion) but only the races results will tell! I have yet to don my wetsuit and join the fools rushing off into the open water sessions. I want to feel warm air on my skin first before diving into that water! I have however had to change to swim early mornings. The pools where Will and I normally swim on Tuesday and Wednesday nights have been closed for maintenance and Easter. I can really see now how training with a club or group of people for a swim session is much more enjoyable. I have had my fair share of bruises from our local pool. They also fail to put out any lane ropes, and then you feel a bit like it’s a free for all. I smacked right into one guy this morning and it really does get quite annoying. I think that there should be some kind of rule system in place…… if you swim at a local pool like me then I expect you have the same grumbles! I have to be pleased though, my swim times are consistently dropping, and assistance last week from Mary and her endless pool analysis gave me some good pointers for the season ahead and some more things I can work on to improve my speed and results.
Cycling hasn’t been too bad up to now either, I have still managed to get out at least 3 times a week, which when I compare this to last year, I am really pleased with. I have been out on the racing machine only once (the Felt F5), and the rest of the time my trusty Monoc is always there. Having a spare winter bike has been awesome as the weather and all of the rubbish on the roads inevitably ends up on your bike and then you tirelessly spend ages cleaning it, only to go out on it then next day and end up dirty again! A thankless task but one that certainly needs doing. Getting to know your bike and some small self-maintenance is crucial for all people using bikes. If you don’t know how to change a tyre or to use a chain breaker these are some things I suggest you learn quickly!
Running has really become my passion again of late. I found myself running through the hurricane like weather last week and then even went for two runs on Friday. I felt pretty good and managed to clock up around 22kms of running- which when you consider I wasn’t even running a couple of months back, then that is really good! I just hope that I can produce some good results this year and qualify for the Worlds again! Putting the whole package together I am starting to feel really good about the coming season. All of my races are booked, I have plenty of time in-between each race to recover and train. My weight has pretty much dropped away to my ideal racing weight (56kgs- my lightest in YEARS!) which will certainly help even more. I just cannot wait to get going and Lincoln Sprint Triathlon is less than two weeks away!
Finally it is at this part of the year that things start getting really exciting. The elites are all starting to up their game ready for the races that they will compete in this season. This part of the year is especially important for them as it is Olympic year and the selection races for the teams are nearly upon them. I would like to wish them all good luck and hopefully we will have some fine GB triathletes to support this year.
Hopefully everyone is training well and keeping on going for just that little bit more before we start to race.
Also if anyone has any race they would like to review I can add it to my page or links to other blogs.
Happy training!
Kerry
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