AZ Training Camp Days 3, 4, & 5

Keeping up with this blog was not a priority at camp, but now that I'm home sweet home I can wrap it up..mostly with pictures :) 

Day 3 was a tough day to get started mentally.  Anthony and I both had different schedules and I was fighting allergies (or a cold?) Bad.  The day started with pancakes and then a 4600yd swim.  This ended up feeling fantastic and put me in a much better mood than I woke up in.  

Day 3 swim workout:

WU: 400

Pre set: snorkel, buoy, band

4 x 100's

4 x 75's

4 x 50's

4 x 25's

All with 10-15 sec rest

Then, paddles only:

20 x 25's (in sets of 4 as smooth, steady, fast, EZ) w/ 5-7 sec rest

MS: 3x's:

300 swim w/ buoy and snorkel

30 sec rest

3 x 100's (75 smooth, 25 fast), no toys w/ 10 sec rest

60 sec rest

6 x 50's fins and paddles (odd build to fast, even fast to EZ w/ 10 sec rest

Rest 60-90 sec then repeat 2 more times.

After swimming, I refueled and had some good Brutus time in the yard before having a small snack and driving to Sabino Canyon for a run.  

Sabino canyon was beautiful - I started with a warmup on the trails which led me to a paved hill... a monster hill.  That hill tried to chew me up and spit me out, but I wouldn't let it.  I had 10x2minute repeats of the hill with a jog down and a bit extra recovery at the bottom before repeating.  I bargained with myself a lot on this run.  "Just make it to six and see how you feel.  Ok, you made it to six try two more.  Ok, you've done eight, just get it done.. two more."  There was a bit more going on in my mind...like..DAMN IT'S HOT~  Why are my coaches so mean? Well, I guess they are awesome because they believe in me. Ok, I'm feeling strong.  I got this.  And, I did have it.  I focused on running strong, not fast.  I focused on good form.  The few comments I got from hikers that saw me go up and down and up and down helped.  I got a:  "Hang in there!" and a "Pretty hardcore."  

I ran nice and easy back on the trail.  The run was supposed to total 1:30, but it ended up being just a bit short at 1:20.  Again, it's been nice having the recovery fuel recommendations from my coach for each workout - I've been following that and it's been great!  

The evening of day 3 called for a 75-90 minute very easy flush out ride on flat terrain.  I didn't quite make it that long as there was rush hour traffic and the roads were hilly so I wasn't quite able to get out of the spin the recovery that it was intended for.  It would have been nice to have a trainer with us to use for this flush ride.  After this short ride, I took Brutus for a much needed walk. 

Day 4... the day I was so looking forward to!  Riding Mt Lemmon has been on my bucket list for a long time.  I was a bit cautious going in to this ride because a) my body was a bit fatigued and b) I wasn't sure how hard the climb really was...you hear "you may not make it to the top your first attempt..." and all different kinds of mixed reviews.  

Anthony and I got on our bikes and he said "Alright, head that way and don't stop until you see cookies!"  I could not wait to make it to the cookie cabin at the top!  Mt Lemmon goes on my top 3 all time favorite rides list!  It was absolutely fantastic.  I would not say it is an easy ride, but it wasn't nearly as difficult as I anticipated, just LONG.  25 miles is a long time to be climbing, but wow were the views amazing!  The cookie and ice cold coke at the top were pretty great too. 

The descent down was so much fun.  Descending isn't always my favorite, but Mt Lemmon is pretty gradual - you can still get going, but it never gets really crazy.  SO. MUCH. FUN!  After we got back to the car, I headed out for a 20 minute brick run.  My run was 5 minutes easy/set up form, 10minutes build to half ironman effort, 5 minutes hold half ironman effort.  It was HOT, but I really surprised myself with how strong I felt.  My legs just wanted to move... it felt great :)  After my run, I drank some CLIF recovery powder in milk and tart cherry juice that I packed.  

After some recovery fuel and a tiny bit of lounging with Brutus, we headed to the University of Arizona rec center.  I had a 50-60minute easy run and I knew I didn't want to do it in the heat so I headed to the treadmill and Anthony had a little 1500yd splash in the pool.  I was so happy that the rec center had Woodway treadmills...THE BEST.

The final day.... Beyond Mt Lemmon, I was second most excited for my day 5 swim: 6100yds!  Anthony had a bike ride while I swam.  This swim felt amazing!! I had so much fun and if you told me I had to do another round of the main set, I would have happily done it.... I am just loving the water lately and swimming short course yards instead of meters made it even more fun! :) 

Day 5 Swim Workout:

Over distance swim.

400 swim

400 with snorkel

400 with buoy and snorkel

400 with buoy, snorkel and strap

Pre-Set:

Kick/Swim with fins ( 50 kick on back, 50 swim)

4 x 200

All with 10 to 15 sec rest

MS:

1200 smooth pull with paddles, buoy and strap at 75 % every 4th 100 strong.

then:

4 rounds of:

4 x 50 at 90% strong swim with no toys w/ 10 sec rest

into: 400 smooth swim with buoy at 80%

1 min rest in between the rounds

100 back stroke as a cool down.

(400yds of kicking not shown)

After a light meal and short recovery, I headed out for my final workout.  This workout was the one that scared me the most.  2 hours of running on super fatigued legs on the hottest day of camp.  I visualized the night before and before I left the house to run.  I visualized feeling tired, but STRONG and STEADY.  I visualized feeling hot, but handling it well.  I went into this run ready.  After 40minutes of light running, my legs just never felt like they were warming up, I was so HOT, and I felt like I had two paces: walk or jog.  It was a tough run.  I stopped to splash myself with water a few times, I did everything I could think of to try to make it through this run - short out and backs, ice water, mantras...I eventually ended up calling it at 1:20.  The longest and loneliest hour and 20 minutes! 

I did get some horse kisses at the end of this run, so it wasn't all bad.. :) 

After finishing our final workouts, we did laundry...so much laundry.

We made it home in one day of driving and we were SO happy to sleep (hibernate for 8.5 hours) in our own bed last night!  And it's so nice that our laundry is all done!  I am really pleased with how my body responded to the overload of training. 


Wrap up:
   -Day 1: 3200yd swim, 2.5hours riding
   -Day 2: 4 hour ride + 30minute brick run, 3150yd swim
   -Day 3: 4600yd swim, 1:20run w/ hill repeats, flush out ride
   -Day 4:  5 hour ride (w/25mile climb) + 20 minute brick run, 52minute easy PM run
   -Day 5: 6100yd swim, 1:20 HOT run