There is about 4 1/2 weeks until my first race of the season and my training is coming along great. I had a breakthrough 1/2 marathon 2 weeks ago in a surprise performance that really snuck up on me. I did not taper and in fact had some pretty hard workouts in the days leading up to the race, leading me to believe I would have had another minute or two in me if I was fully rested and tapered. I hit my 2013 goal of breaking 1:20 for the half marathon distance so early in the year I think I might want to set another time goal for late 2013. Getting the the pace to under a 6 minute mile would be my most likely goal so 1:18 is a natural target. This won't be a focus until the fall, but if it happens naturally before then I won't be upset!
I've gotten back to riding outside for almost all of my rides as spring has come, but I am wondering if I am giving up quality for quantity. I am getting in more volume, but my power numbers for my overall workouts have gone down as my workouts have nearly doubled (which is to be expected) and my focus has shifted to building endurance. I am certainly still doing intervals but I am still getting used to doing them while dealing with traffic as I've been on the computrainer for the last 6 months. That being said I can already tell I'm riding faster than last year on the same routes, and feeling very strong on the bike! My swimming continues to slowly improve, but it is still way behind my bike and run. I started to play with some strength sets using paddles and a pull buoy and noticed that my times are starting to drop, but also noticing that I am much faster when swimming with the buoy which means I need to focus on my body position when swimming without it.
My weight has been steady as I allow myself to eat enough to ensure adequate recovery for my workouts. I am pushing my hard days hard and sometimes that leaves me a little more hungry than normal. If my body tells me it needs food, I am certainly not going to be depriving it. I've got one more half marathon this weekend and then its go time in 4 short weeks down in TN!
Summary Stats
Weight on 9/24 184 Lbs 12% body fat (start of "off-season" break and gluten free eating)
Weight on 11/5 176.6 lbs 9.6% body fat
Weight on 12/5 174.0 9.6% Body Fat
Weight on 1/8 /13 171.8 8.8% Body Fat
Weight on 2/8 /13 171.8 8.8% Body Fat
Weight on 3/8/13 172 8.0% Body Fat
20 min Power on 10/2- 295 watts 3.55 watt/KG
20 Min Power on 11/23- 324 Watts 4.08 Watt/KG
20 Min Power on 2/27- 345 Watts 4.49 Watt/KG
5k Time 10/28-18:05
5k Time 12/16- 17:51 (5:45 Pace)
5k Time 1/6/13 17:30 (5:38 Pace)
1/2 Marathon Time 11/11- 1:25:34
1/2 Marathon Time 3/24- 1:19:54 (6:07 pace) 10k Time 1/6/13 36:51 (5:56 Pace)
100 SCY Sprint 1/3/13 1:15/100
100 SCY Sprint 3/30/13 1:09/100