Monday, March 18, 2013

My March Madness 2013

March is busy but I love it.
Leah, Jonathan and Seth have birthdays, the boys are home from school for March break, and I am usually preparing for the Around the Bay 30 km. And this year we'll have Easter.
Last week was a great training week because my wonderful husband started his work day a little late (9am) so that I could train in the morning and be back for the kids since there was no childcare at the gym. I was up by 5:00 am most days to hit the road, treadmill, pool, bike and/or elliptical machine for a good 2-3 hours. Then, once getting home it was breakfast and recovery for the day. It was great because I could spend more time with the kids and get more done around the house. One thing I'm trying to plan is my summer training schedule when the boys are out of school. Micah will have hockey at least 3x/wk and Seth is registered for a weekly track program (his choice!) but it will be in the evenings. Also, I will have monthly races that will take me out of town/province. It will be great and I look forward to it. Hopefully, like last summer and March break, I can get most of my training complete in the mornings and beat the heat!
I finally got to 100 km of running last week. It was a combination of road and treadmill with hills, tempos and speed, averaging somewhere between 3:50-4:25/km with my longer run slower in the snowy, icy and windy weather. Like my rainy and windy tempo run last week, it was a character-builder. You ignore the pace and get through it with lots of effort and determination. Saturday's long run was great because 1) at 28 km, it was my longest yet, since injury and 2) it was with my good friend, Clayton, also returning from injury and hoping to complete the Bay in one piece! I continue to enjoy the cross training and am regularly stretching, working on core and using various methods to keep muscles in good form. I'm excited to be meeting with Naomi at Therapeutic Massage Counsel this week. I think this could be another great partnership and it sure is handy that the office is at the same corner as the kids' school and the gym, 1 km from home! Time to get regular massage for this body! I have another interview with a local paper/cable so that too should be fun.
This morning I've already done a tempo with some pick-ups. We plan to hit 120 km of running, which includes the Bay as a tempo.
As for my phase II diet, all is well. I hardly even think about the foods I used to eat. As for changes, I may have a bit more energy but also have a mild cold.  It's so hard to tell since there are so many other factors that play into energy and performance.
Rick and I are going to meet later this week, after my second workout to assess training and racing plans, and discuss realistic goal time for the Bay. Hopefully I'll have a decent race report after Sunday!