Hope To Run Again Before End Of The Year

Started out with 2000 yards of alternating 200free and 200 breast.  Felt sluggish in the beginning.  But started to pick it up over the second half.  Then added another 1000 - 300fr/200br/300fr/200br.  Overall I felt good before, during, and after the workout.

3000 - 56:37.59

Woke up and did not feel like swimming.  I am not sure why, because I felt good yesterday.  So I rode my bike instead.  The route I took had more hills than I am used to.  Also the wind was on my back the first half and in my face on the second.  Started to tire with 2 miles to go.  But still had a good ride.  Looks like another ride tomorrow because the pool is closed for the 4th.  Who closes a swimming pool on the 4th of July?  It is almost un-American.

20 miles - 1:11.07

1850 yards - mix of free and breast - 34:24.10

Had planned on an evening ride, but the cookout we had lasted until dark.  Now I wish I had eaten more.  But it was nice to have family over for the holiday.

Went to the pool in the morning.  Swam a mile.  Mix of free and breast.  32:04.38

Rode my bike in the afternoon.  It was 92 when I left and 94 when I got home.  The heat really started to effect me after 8.5 miles.  It was also windier than what I had been used to riding in lately.  Unfortunately it was in my face most of the second half of my ride.  At one point I could hear Phil Liggett in my head screaming, "Zincone's Cracked, Zincone's Cracked"  And I was saying, "No I haven't, No I haven't... I just need to recover a litttle."

Biked 12.48 miles - 43:36

Also I am noticing my heart rate monitor (Garmin 305)  seems to be cutting out more than it records.  This only happens when cycling.  Of course I have not run with it yet.  But I have worn it in the house and while taking walks and it is always working properly.  I find if I hold the watch closer to my chest it will work again.  I know the manual mentioned a limited range so it would not conflict with other monitors, but it should work over two feet.  Anyone else have this problem?

Life got in the way of today's workout.

Busch Race, Ladies Wimbledon, Live Earth, Tour De France, Nextel Cup Race.  Good sports and entertainment for me today.  Of course I had to work.  But between quick t.v. breaks at the p.d and XM Radio I got to see at least some of all of the above. 

Broke one of the Cardinal Rules of swimming again.  Swam less than an hour after eating.  I could feel the heaviness in my stomach from the get go.  But since I had missed a few swim days this week my arms and legs were fresh.

Swam 1000 free warm up.  Pace a little slower than I expected, but any faster was not comfortable.  Then did my next 1000 alternating between free and breast every 100 yards.  I have started to use this as my "standard tempo" swim.  I give a moderate to strong effort for this.  Had my second best time ever.  Less than two seconds off my PR, and had not swam a 1000 warm up before setting that one.  Then cooled down with a 500.

2500 -    44:37.30

Just started thinking about the Live Earth concerts a little more.  It has brought back great memories.  I still remember Live Aid from the 80's.  It feels much the same to me.  I have also enjoyed hearing some of the "old" songs from the 80's again.

Waited until 7:30 pm to ride.  It was still 91 at the start and 86 when I was done.  I did not really feel too hot though.  I guess it is because there was no direct sunlight hitting me.  Felt good in the begining and end.  A few of the middle miles I got a little tired.  But overall a good ride.

17 miles - 58:59

Whew! Another HOT one today.  92 when I started and as the Sun went down the temp dropped to 88 when I was finished.  And I started at 8:15 p.m.  Had classroom training all day, then had to pick up the kids.  So no swimming today.  I have been a little nervous about riding too much right now.  I still feel something in my leg afterwards.  But it is harder and harder to fit swimming into my schedule now that more people are swimming for the Summer.

Since the beginning of this year I made a decision to make a deeper commitment to my running.  Better and smarter training will hopefully lead to improved performance and fitness.  Then I got hurt.  But I have still been able to carry the same commitment through my recovery.  I am putting in more work and effort in my swimming and biking.  And the results have showed.  I have gotten stronger in both.  But I have to admit the thought of finally running again, whenever that may be, seems like a huge challenge.  I will be essentially starting from scratch.  I hope my better fitness will make the transition a little easier.  But the good news about the injury is I do not have to run in these outrageously hot temperatures.

Today I rode a route I used to ride a lot.  But only three times since October 2006.  I set a PR by 14 seconds.  I had a swimming PR in the mile last week.  These are very encouraging.  I have also managed my weight well without the running.  Gained a few in the Spring, but lost it once the Summer heat came.

12.48 miles - 42:01

A storm blew in just as I was about to get off from work.  I was so happy, because we need the rain and I knew no one would be at the pool.  When I got there I found I was right.  Got in a good swim.  Warmed up with a 1000 free.  Then did my next 1000 alternating between free and breast every 100 yards.  Finished up with another 1000 alternating between free and breast every 200 yards. 

3000 yards - 55:17.26

Worked dayshift.  Planned on a swim after I got off, but a storm blew in.  Then decided to ride after dinner, and another storm blew in.  So I blew off my workout for the day.

Rode bike to pool.  Swam 2000 yards. Rode bike home.

Bike - 6.79 miles - 25:26

Swim - 2000 yards - 35:28.71

am - Swam - 2000 yards - 36:58.92

pm - Bike - 20.14 - 1:08:42

Rode bike to the pool.  Swam 2500.  Rode home.

2500 - 44:52.77

Rode bike to pool.  Played with wife and kids.  Rode home.  Took a more direct route than usual because it was a Sunday and less traffic.

By the time I got out of court it was too hot to ride as I had planned.  And I knew I would be too busy this evening.  So I figured  I would go to the pool and hope it was not crowded.  I also decided to ride the Airdyne, which I have not been on since April.  When I got to the pool I realized I only brought my Flip Flops and no other shoes.  So the AirDyne was out.  Then I remembered my aqua jogging belt has been just sitting in the trunk for about two months now.  So I got it out.  There were only two kids swimming and they never crossed into my lane, which I appreciated.

I swam 2500 yards total which included a one mile of freestyle.  Turned out I was only 2.33 seconds off my PR.  And swam 4.xx seconds faster on the second half of the swim.  I liked that.  Finished off the day with 15 minutes of aqua jogging.

2500 - 44:09

15 minutes - aqua jogging

Rode the AirDyne today.  It was tough.  My butt was really hurting the last 15 minutes from sitting on the seat.  With this machine the more effort you put in, the more resistance you get back.  And I realized on my bike I can free wheel some, but not on this.  I was real tired when I was done.  Next I swam an easy 1000 yards.

Tonight is the first of six Midnight Shifts.  Hopefully I will not get too sleepy.  I will try to walk the streets for awhile to keep my legs loose and my eyes open.

AirDyne - 18 miles - 1hr. 33 sec.

1000 - 18:19

Worked Midnight Shift.  After waking up took the kids to swimming lessons.  Then had a cookout to go to.  No workout today.

I woke up about 3:30pm.  Jumped in the pool at 4:15pm. I really hate working out within the first two hours of waking up.  My mind and body just do not feel ready to go when I do.  Today arms and legs had no problems, but cardio was tough to maintain.  My stomach was also bothering me some.  But while it may be ok for Paul P. to take a biobreak in the landfill, it is frowned upon in the pool.  So I just had to hold it for awhile.

I was really crunched for time.  I had to be done in 45 minutes so I could get the kids to the swimming lessons.

2500 - 44:41.24

Weird ride today.  Left the house 30 minutes after waking up.  It was a little cooler today, 85f and the wind was about 9mph.  Decided I would just go with the flow and as I felt more awake I would pick it up some.  Rode a course I used to ride all the time and just set a PR on a couple of weeks ago.  About 8 miles in I was feeling fine, and I never felt as if I had been pushing it.  But then I saw my average speed pop up and realized I was close to my PR pace.  I was really suprised by this.  I knew the last 4 miles or so had a couple of downhills and the wind would be at my back.  So I started to pick it up.  Ended up beating my previous best by 45 sec.  I was definitely caught off guard by this ride.  Excluding the last 4, I felt like it was going to be an average ride.

Added 15 minutes of aqua jogging at the pool with the wife and kids later in the evening.

12.48 - 41:16

When I woke up this afternoon the first thing I noticed was the outside temperature.  It was only 84.  When I started my ride this evening it had dropped to 78.  It felt nice to be under 80 in July.  Since I may not get to the pool for the next few days, I had to ride again.  I need to be careful to do to much though.  Lately after three rides in a row I feel something in my leg.

15.20 - 49:54

Rode bike again today.  Pace was easier than the last couple of days.  2 miles to go and felt some twinges in my femur area.  I hope my biking and swimming are not making it worse.  Tomorrow is my bone scan.

17.32 - 58:55

Midnight shift + 2 doctor appointments + sleep + picking up the kids + wife getting stung by bee + the sun setting and darkness falling = No Workout today

I never was any good with math.

Had a child safety seat refresher course out of town today.  So after driving and sitting in class most of the day I finally made it to the pool.  I had not swam since last Thursday.  And I could tell.  Arms burned right away.  Rythm was off, form was sloppy, and I felt like I had to keep taking large heaving breaths between strokes.  I thought if it is this hard to swim after five days, what will be like running after several months.

Swam 1000 yards warmup.  Mix of breast and free.

Next 1000 I alternated between free and breast every 100 yards.  I decided just to go out hard and when I felt I could not hold pace any longer I would back off.  I just wanted to feel fast for a little while.  Turns out not only did I hold pace for the entire 1000, but I set a new PR (17:39.68) for this swim.  I have always used this particular swim as a guide to where I am fitness wise.  Today was a 10.06 seconds improvement.  My average pace per 100 was 1:45.96, which was 1.01 seconds better than my old best.  A lot of this had to do with having fresh arms.

Cooled down 1000 with another mix of free and breast.  Took this very easy.

3000 - 55:18.97

Almost forgot.  Went for a bone scan yesterday.  The technician could barely see the stress fracture.  She said it definitley was less noticeable than my last scan.  Go to the doctor on Thursday for his opinion.  I am sure running is still 2 or 3 months off, but I am glad to know the healing process is moving forward.

15 minutes - aqua jogging

Arms were sore, but they loosened up as I went along.  2000 free, then a 500 of breast and free mix.  Rode my bike to and from the pool.

2500 - 45:05

6.67 - 24:37

Went to the doctor today.  Scans showed healing is progressing.  It has been 95 days since my last run.  He says a femur takes 6 to 8 months to heal properly.  So at least 85 more days of no running to go.

Cut grass in the 92°f sun today for 2hr 45min.  Then went to the pool.  Everything felt good.  But when I was done I had planned on 15 minutes of aqua jogging.  But I was too drained at that point.  I think I needed more fluids, even though I swallowed enough pool water.

While at the doctor's office I saw a flyer for a 1 mile open water swim across a local lake.  I have never swam outside of a pool before.  But I am going to try it.  Unfortunately I will be going on vacation next week, then the race is the following week.  I will miss several days of swimming, then get in a few before the race. 

2500 - 44:51.33

Went to the pool this morning.  Still do not like early workouts compared to afternoons.  Swam 2500.  Took some time to get going.  Had to wake up.  Did not sleep for long nor very well last night.

Going to the Outer Banks of North Carolina tomorrow for a week.  The kids are very excited.  I dread the packing.  Thankfully my wife is organized enough to take care of just about everything.  I will be taking my bike.  Three or four rides would be great.  But they will have to be done very early in the morning.

2500 - 47:04.81

Travel day. Arrived at Southern Shores in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Got up and rode much earlier than I am accustomed to.  The Sun had probably been up about an hour and it was nice to ride with it just rising above the ocean.  The wind was little or nothing on my ride out.  And picked up a little riding back, which helped.  The humidity was extreme and the temp was about 78ºf.  I am not used to seeing so many runners and other cyclists.  It was nice to have the company.  I just rode 10 out and 10 back on the beach road.  This was the flattest course I have ever ridden.  I pedaled probably 98% of the ride. 

20.06 - 1:06:59

After being on my feet most of the day in the sand and surf on top of my bike ride my legs were tight this morning.  I am trying to ride every other day, as every day seems to hurt my leg.  So I jumped in the pool and put my swim fins on.  I have only used them once since getting the stress fracture.  The last time it ached my leg.  I just freestyle kicked and held a kickboard against the wall to keep myself afloat.  The pool probably is 20 feet in length, so no laps.  After 10 minutes my quads burned a little.  Next I aqua jogged for 20 minutes.  This pool is 5ft at its deepest.  So I had to use my arms more to raise my body in the water so my feet would not scrape the bottom.  The deeper water only had an area of a few feet.  I felt like a prisoner pacing back and forth in a small cell.  But I am happy to get in some type of workout.

Woke up and found there was a Northeast wind and humid.  So I rode North into the wind on the way out, so it would be at my back on the way in.  The coolest thing I saw was as the Sun rose over the ocean in the East, a full moon was setting over the sound in the West.  They were about equal distance above the horizon and the Moon almost appeared to be as large as the Sun.  I am sure this is not an uncommon event.  But I never get up this early and do not have a 360º view of the horizon where I live.

Good ride overall.

15.1 - 49:57