Staying in shape

While I do not have any races planned at the moment (due to needing my glycogen for creative work efforts), I have managed to keep in shape. I am amazed that I can continually crank out 80 mile rides on the weekend without doing a whole lot during the week. I have also put a one hour run in on the weekends and feel great. I guess there is merit to the theory that athletes' efforts are cumulative.

Family and work responsibilities have taken front and center at the moment. There is a sense of peace now that I am not tired and irritable from a huge training load or that something or someone is going to interrupt a workout.

I was laughing this week since the most high intensity workout consisted of hearing the garbage truck at 6:30AM and realizing my bin was not at the curb, putting on clothes over the pajamas and dashing to push the big beast to the curb. I got there at exactly the same time as the driver who had a good laugh with me.

Giving up racing for the moment has been bittersweet. It is the right thing to do in this economy and I have had so much more creative energy for all I have needed to do. I have also had more time and patience for family. But there is an itch to have a race schedule, even if it is just to find a beautiful HIM course and have a goal to train and look forward to such an accomplishment.

Fortunately my boyfriend has Ironman ambitions so I have been doing my long rides with him and that has been very fun for me - I love long rides on the weekend. I am amazed that I still have that much endurance in me. The ride felt easy and I was definitely pushing the watts the whole way.

USA Triathlon Life Magazine poser here

USAT was kind enough to put my pic and recipes in this month's issue of USA Triathlon Life magazine for Spring 2009 - see page 46. 

Recipes featured:

Pineapple Mahi

(from our food blog)

Chicken Cutlets, Salsa, Cornbread

8 ounces chicken breast cutlets (4)

1 can no-added-salt tomatoes

Dash hot pepper sauce

1 tsp granulated garlic with parsley

2 tsp chopped cilantro

4 cups frozen corn kernels

2 tsp light margarine

4 cups ready-to-eat romaine lettuce

1 cup sliced cucumber

1 cup sliced peeled carrots

1 cup sliced tomatoes

Balsamic vinegar to taste

1. Place the chicken breast cutlets in a single layer in a large baking pan. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the tomatoes, hot pepper sauce, garlic and cilantro in a food processor and then pour over the chicken. Bake the chicken until done, about 15 or 20 minutes.

2. Place the corn and margarine in a covered microwave container and microwave on high until done, about 4 minutes.

3. Make a salad with the romaine, cucumber, carrots, tomatoes, and balsamic vinegar. Serve the cutlet topped with the salsa with the corn and salad on the side. Serves 4. 

Of course if you want more of my recipes and to see what I am doing in the kitchen:

http://foodandhealth.com/blog/

The new band

Our swim coach, Bob, who worked with olympic coach Eddy Reeves, believes in the "band" as so many good swim coaches do. But with one slight twist. The band that we use is a wheelbarrow tube - with some air in it. His reasoning is that the air gives a bit of lift to the feet and encourages more rotation and correct body position. We put our feet on each side of it - on the outside - facing in - and pull with the paddles. At first it was hard and I could only do 500. But today I did 1100 with it - flip turns and all. I can feel a big difference and like it much more than a pull buoy. 

I have been doing good catching up with work and think I can go back to training a lot more as I wish and for that I am grateful. Is there a reset button around here? :-) 

Here is the set:

600 warm up

5X100 on 1:45

4X4X50 on 50

1000

500 pull

4X150 pull

swim 100

=4100