Lousy Training Week, Great Training Month

This week hasn't been a good one. After the Seattle Half (see very long, and probably boring, report below) on Sunday, I had a regular rest day on Monday. Tuesday was supposed to be a swim but because of the chafing I experienced during the half, I didn't think I could do it. Then I had a lightbulb moment. I covered the chafing with a bandage and wore my tri shorts instead of my swimsuit and actually got in the pool. And I loved it. I almost felt the oneness coming back, so I was very happy about that.

Wednesday was supposed to be a trainer ride and core work, but I spent most of the evening rubbing my tummy, which was starting to hurt, and re-arranging my office so I had room to put my new CompuTrainer up. I didn't get the CompuTrainer up, but I did get the office re-arranged. That was a huge job and it took quite some time. By the time I was done, it was time to hit the sack and go to bed.

Thursday was supposed to be another trainer ride, but I had been so miserable at work, that I just came home and vegged out. I was tired, my stomach hurt to the point of making me nauseous and I was cramping, so I took some pain medication and just watched TV until it was time to go to bed.

On Friday, I felt better, but still not 100%. Couple that with working a little longer than normal, and I just couldn't get to the pool or get my run in. My coach is going to be very disappointed with my training this week, but sometimes, we have to go with the flow and listen to our bodies. Mine was telling me to back off.

The good news is that I had a stellar month. I almost did more in the month of November this year than I did between September and February of last year. Okay, not quite, but certainly I did more in terms of my bike training and for that, I'm very proud of myself.

Totals for the month of November look like this:

Swim = 10,150 yards
Bike = 124.9 miles (last year it was 65 miles in 6 months)
Run = 52 miles

Maybe those aren't the totals some of the rest of you do, but they are good for me. Especially the bike miles (some of which are guesstimated, on the low side, for trainer work). Last November, my totals looked like this:

Swim = 19,700 yards (obviously swam more)
Bike = 16.9 miles (big miles there, eh?)
Run = 103.4 (I was training for a marathon)

So, bike miles have improved significantly while the other two disciplines suffered a little. I expect those to pick up in the coming months, however.

Today, I'm still not 100%, but I am better and I'm much closer to having my CompuTrainer set up. I hope to get it up and going here very quickly as I still need to do a 2 hour ride today (too much slush and snow on the road, not to mention colder than I'd like, to risk going outside) before my company's Christmas party tonight. And I still need to shop for something to wear! Eeeek! Oh, well. Good thing I have a back up plan for something to wear.

December's training will be interesting as I'm slated to do a three hour trainer ride on a Thursday. My coach slid this in in an attempt to keep Christmas free and to help me be "fresh" for my bike testing with her the day after Christmas. I have a feeling that is not going to be pretty. I just hope that whatever happens, I hope she will be able to get me into Ironman shape by next August. I'm going to have a lot of work in front of me though.