Returning to Running..kinda sort of...

Well yesterday, New England was hit by a big ol' ice storm, unlike Judi, I decided not to risk it on the ice and instead went to the Y and got on the dread...I mean treadmill. I decided to take it easy for the first 15 min. going 7 mph or 8:34 miles after 15 min I cranked it up to 7.5 mph or 8 min miles, I held this pace for the next hour. My ankle started to ache again at this point and after talking to the guy running next to me it seems to be a common aliment from using my gym's particular brand of tread mill. I managed to get in just over 9 miles in an hour and 15 min. Not bad for a first day back. I got the trigger point roller and unlocked my left leg... one of my training partners suggested I get a massage but right now I don't have the dough so my little brother and his skillz that killz will have to do. ( Mike I'm paying for your massage therapy school.)

I managed to get a weight session in with Alex after attempting to do regular dead lifts, it became apparent that my back couldn't hold a neutral spine, he proceeded to show me how to do dumb bell dead lifts to build leg strength, as well as planks and hyper extensions to try to get my back with the program, he also suggested some minor machine work because my back was so weak..row and lat pulls but other than than everything else was either core or free weight. including first half Turkish get ups with kettlebell...crap I'm starting to turn into Angry Runner, I'm drooling over kettlebells...

On the swim front last night was sort of a sprint night, lots of rest, lots of speed, 4600 yards of pain and goodness. Friday I have my usual pre-Ironman test an hour straight trying to give myself an estimate of what I can realistically expect for a split in Taupo.

Tonight trainer love and maybe a swim, tomorrow a run and swim. Saturday, they're predicting snow but then again don't they always. I would love to ride outdoors but' I'll see if it's feasible. Otherwise a snow run might be on tap hopefully 15 + miles but it all rests on my ankle and how it feels. Sunday if the roads aren't crap an after mass ride is up on tap otherwise it will be an aftermass trainer session. I have one week before the semester and I begin to juggle time between school, research, work, and this crazy Ironman thing...only good thing out of this Bjoern is back and I'll have someone to ride with. So for now I need to crank out the miles while I have free time. I just hope the weather will co-operate.

Praying for a freak heat wave...
R.D.

I have tasted the Deadlift...

and it tastes like chicken..
Yes last night before swimming I got a nice 3 mile run in on the ugg..treadmill... and decided to, as the Angry Runner used to put it, lift heavy things. I did some squats, absolutely pathetic numbers of pull ups, some major core work , some peck fly press with free weights, and dead lifts. Ok so my squat weight and dead lift weight were a measly 95 lbs...I know make all the weakling comments you want, but for last night's dead lifts I was trying to focus on technique instead of power. So I did an insane amount of reps at low weight, eventually I will work up the numbers and maybe even give the Angry One a run for his money... in like 5 years.

Swimming I got about 3200 yards in which isn't bad for my second time in the water this week. Papers have been hell on my training , and this "cold snap" isn't helping my lack of cycling. ( Al Gore where are you and all your global warming go green psychos* now...when it's a balmy 15F (-9 C) outside in New England....what's that Al you're full of crap...how's that for an Inconvenient Truth.)

So yeah not much new in the neighborhood except I have discovered the power of brute force and I like it...damn it I turning into Angry...

Freezing his Beans off.
R.D.












* I have nothing against people wanting to go green for their own piece of mind/ health. I do have issue against the zealots who are screaming we should give up all modern machinery and go back to living as kinship based foraging communities. What did Buddha say everything in moderation.