The first part of the week I was feeling pretty stressed out and sad. I was making arrangements to go to Montana for my grandfather's funeral next week and work was stressing me out and I'm worn out from training and I'm pms-ing. It was a struggle. I got my workouts in but wasn't enjoying any part of it. I finally talked to my boss and decided to take a couple of much-needed personal days off later in the week (actually going to Montana next week, but I needed these days NOW). As the week went on I pulled it together and managed to really enjoy my training and social time. I'm still a little moody but the events of the late week really helped perk me up.
Thursday Zach and I went for our long ride up on Sauvie Island north of Portland. It is FLAT as a pancake and very little traffic. It ended up being absolutely amazing. It was my second-longest bike ride ever (62+ miles) and it was my FASTEST training ride ever. I've only ever ridden faster in sprint-distance races. Holy crap! What a boost. All the hills are paying off. I was so excited I allowed myself to sprint the last 3 miles and really pushed my limits. It felt great. After the ride Zach and I went to one of the farms on the island and picked fresh peaches right off the trees and raspberries from the bushes. They had so much more- fruits, veggies, flowers, but we tried to only take what we would use. And boy did we use them- Zach made a delicious peach pie!
Friday we drove out to Hood River and ran the Historic Columbia River Highway trail. I didn't bother bringing my camera since I have taken pics out there several other times. It was a tough run due to VERY strong winds- at times I was barely moving forward, and even on a downhill! Winds had to be at least 50 MPH at times. We headed home and I got ready to go meet all the PBR girls and a few others for Emily's bachelorette party. First we went down the street to watch some of the Twilight Crit which was amazing. The speed these dudes corner at gave me chills. I was actually kind of scared, haha. It was amazing to watch. Anyway, the girls night out was more fun than I could have imagined! Emily was such a good sport and it was great to spend time with Alisa, Amy, and Sarah, along with meeting some great new friends. Pics below (the "bad" ones are being saved for future blackmail purposes)
The actual weekend was nice too, I got in a shorter bike ride Saturday at an embarrassingly slow hangover pace, and then today I pulled out an awesome long run. All in all, a very strong week and my highest volume to date. I reeeeally loved that the weather has cooled way off and I know that helped me complete the workouts with energy to spare. Here is the recap of the whole week and then there are tons of pictures. Let's get to it:
Monday: rest
No strength training, I have officially fallen off that wagon. Whatevs.
Tuesday: Run
7.0/59:07/8:27 average pace
Waterfront. It was a little warm but compared to last week I can't complain.
Tuesday: Swim
2000 yards/1:00
Masters. We had a random substitute coach who showed up about 10 minutes late but she gave me some great tips and drills to work on my pull.
Wednesday: Bike
1:00 spin
No Alisa this week! :( She had a puppy emergency. I missed her!
Wednesday: Run
4.35 miles/37:43/8:40 average pace
Brick run down along the waterfront after spin class. I felt good!
Wednesday: Swim
2200 yards/1:00
Masters
Thursday: Bike
62.2 miles/3:45:15/16.5 MPH
Sauvie Island
Hell ya.
Friday: Run
9.0 miles/1:18:36/8:44 average pace
Hood River/Columbia River Highway trail
Saturday: Bike
26.2 miles/2:06:00/12.4 MPH
Tired/Hungover. The victory here is that I didn't throw up or pass out.
Sunday: Run
13.0 miles/1:53:31/8:44 average pace
Longest run since the Eugene Half marathon back in May! Good pace too. I started off pretty slow but picked it up about mile 5. Fastest mile was 8:06.
totals for the week
Swim: 2:00 (4200 yards)
Bike: 6:50 (88.4 miles road + 1 spin class)
Run: 4:55 (33.35 miles!)
total training volume: 13:45
Right on track!
Well this next week will be a little unplanned "taper" week.. I'm flying up to Montana Tuesday and coming home Wednesday, and will probably not get in any training either day. That is ok though because next Sunday I'll be racing the Lake Stevens 70.3 up outside of Seattle. I'm really excited- I want to test my fitness and I can't wait to see Zach finish his first half iron distance tri! Should be an awesome event. I will post again before I head up there. Thanks for all the support and condolences about my grandpa, I really appreciate it. You guys are the best! I really feel bad about not ready any blogs lately, and I hope to catch up soon. Thanks for reading everyone!
Enjoy the pics below. Oh, and check out my new haircut! Zach was pleased that I decided against shaving it off. Hopefully the shorter cut will be easier to manage.
Sauvie Island bike ride
Fruit Picking
special color effect
veggies we did not pick, but they sure were pretty
raspberry bushes
Our pickins
Twilight Crit
Emily's Bachelorette Party
Emily's Bachelorette Party
the beautiful bride-to-be
Emily, me, and Alisa
the whole gang after dinner
she hated the tiara!
I love this shot of Amy
Alisa, Sarah, me
me, Sarah, Emily
Love this picture. We were having so much fun.
getting creative (drunk)
Our girl made us proud
Emily, me, and Alisa
the whole gang after dinner
she hated the tiara!
I love this shot of Amy
Alisa, Sarah, me
me, Sarah, Emily
Love this picture. We were having so much fun.
getting creative (drunk)
Our girl made us proud
15 comments:
Awww love the pictures. I can't believe any of you got out of bed on Saturday! I wasn't hung over but I was TIRED. We went to Hagg Lake to ride, it was embarassing but I had to walk my bike up one hill--YIKES.
Missed you at spin on Wednesday, sounds like I'll miss you this week too. Can't wait to read all about Lake Stevens--YEAH!
P.S. How did we get so lucky to find guys that BAKE!?! Mmmmmm.
great pics of the party! I need to get mine uploaded & posted, too!
that is such a great ride - wow! 16.5 for 62 miles! you're fantastic! I can't wait to see you at the finish line at lake stevens! you & Zach are going to be fantastic.
Great pictures! Lots of color- the training looked amazing, the fruit looked delicious, the flowers were gorgeous, and the party looked FUN!
I'm sorry the week started off rocky, but I'm glad you were able to rebound and finish strong. I'm sorry to hear about your Grandpa. Have a safe trip.
PS: My "word verification" is "bloated"... quite fitting!!! :)
Oh dear Jen I've been away for 2 weeks and I am so sorry to hear about your grandfather. I hope that the trip is safe and good.
As far as your workouts are concerned - you're doing fabulously. You're coping with the rough and wow - when it's smooth you're flying! Allow yourself a bit of a taper and eat some more peach pie..
Love and strength, Petra
You're doing well Jen. Sauvie Island sounds like a good venue for a few more big rides before Arizona. I like the tongue out photo - you're having too much fun! Beautiful fruit too.
It'll be interesting to see how you and Zach go in the 70.3. I'm predicting a big PR for yourself, but by how much?
Oh yes, the hair looks good (I've been told to always say that).
Love the updates and pics! I had so much fun @ the party - thanks for organizing!
GREAT haircut. I love it!
We all have our moments and yours is obviously understandalbe. I'm glad you aren't beating yourself up over it. Take care of yourself and get some good face time with the family.
Good luck with the training this week too.
it seems to be the common theme around blog land for last week... started off crappy and finishing stronger. looks like an amazing week to me and glad you were able to finish it so strong, i know it really helps mentally.
have a safe trip to montana (((hugs)))
you look so purdy with your new haircut!
and awesome job maintaining a hardcore workout schedule AND social life :)
your peach picking pictures are amazing. you should frame them!
Huge week. Way to power through it. Your pictures are always such fun to look at. The pictures from the ride look so nice! Great job on it by the way.
Sorry to hear about your grandfather. My thoughts are with you and your family.
I am so proud of your "strong finish" this week -I know it was a tough one for you... but YOU DID IT! Good Job!! I love that you added some of my new flower pics :) They look awesome on your blog! AND I especially like the candid Zach and Jen on bikes photo b/c we only get to see just you or just him - together is fun! Anyway - this is more of an email than a post... You are doing great in your IM training... Good Luck next weekend!
Again, so sorry we missed getting together with you & Zach last weekend. We were actually in the Stevenson area riding along 14 on Fri & Sun. And, yes, the wind was incredible at times. Guess that's why the Gorge is such a hotspot for windsurfing and kite boading.
Anyway, hope you have a safe trip to MT!
Great photos - as always. I hope you enjoy/ed your personal days. I just really like you. Sending thoughts your way regarding MT.
Hope you're holding up, Jen - sounds like you're doing great on the training end of things. You're going to love IMAZ - I did it in '07, and it was an amazing event. Can't wait to follow along on your IM journey.
Man, I just read your comment about you being here in 3 months and I got butterflies! it's SO CLOSE!! OMG! I'm nervous and excited for you already and I can't wait to cheer you on. I have a lot of prep to do before then to- there's signs I gotta make, noise-makers I need to find... I better get on it! =]
I looked up the Ironman Arizona and in case you weren't sure, you're registered :) There's a lot of "jennifers" b/c I didn't know your last name, but you're the only one from OREGON! lol
Kelsalynn
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