Week 4: Taper – by design and by default!

I have found the last few weeks training quite hard on my muscles – I guess I just haven’t been training this hard…..ever!  Cardio wise I am fine (relatively speaking) but my quads ache quite a bit so when I heard it was a taper week in the pool as some of the club were participating in Derry Swimming Gala this weekend I was really relieved! I managed Wednesdays run relatively ok but couldn’t do the last 400m as I had to be home to take over babysitting as my hubbie swims on a Wednesday night! I thought I would get a rest when he took the kids to Dublin for the night on Thursday but I ended up working late on both Thursday and Friday nights. I didn’t want to rush out when the Sean and the kids just arrived home on Friday evening so I missed Fridays run on the track. I forced myself to go for a 10k run on Sunday however I had only eaten about an hour beforehand so it wasn’t so pleasant. I can usually only eat 2.5 to 3 hrs before exercising and I never eat before I swim in the morning. More about my new wheat & dairy free diet in due course! Hopefully this weeks rest will have worked wonders for my legs and I won’t feel aching for another while…..dream on!

Monday: Rest

Tuesday:

Swim: 1800m total

Main Set (800m)
	4 x	50m drills (your choice)
	3 x	50m (15m sprint off a diving start)
	3 x	50m "B" (15m sprint off a diving start)
2 x	4 x	12.5m sprint	30" SI
	1 x	100m Easy

Wednesday

Swim 1990m total

Main Set (990m)
	6 x	15m sprint turn (5m/10m)	1' SI
	1 x	100m Easy
	8 x	50m ( 2 x swim, 2 x "B" Stroke,  2 x swim, 2 x "B" Stroke)	1'/1' 15" SI
	1 x	50m (15m sprint / 35m recovery)
	1 x	50m (25m sprint / 25m recovery)
	1 x	100m Easy
	1 x	50m (15m sprint "B" Stroke/ 35m swim recovery)
	1 x	50m (25m sprint "B" Stroke/ 25m swim recovery)
	1 x	100m Easy

Run: 7.5km total. 8 x 400m at 85% with an extra cool down (i.e approx 400m extra rest) after 4. 

Thursday:  Rest

Friday

Swim: 1055m total

Main Set (455m)
	4 x	50m drills
	2 x	12.5m Sprint with dive start
	4 x	50m drills
	2 x	15m sprint turn (5m/10m)

Run: Missed

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: Run 10k loop from house at steady pace.

Week 3: Where have my bike legs gone?

This was definitely a tough week. I was still feeling tiredness in my quads after the Sunday spin on Monday evening and when I woke on Tuesday morning. I was also mentally fatigued so when my little girl woke before I left the house and asked me not to go swimming it was an easy call! Wednesday and Friday workouts both in the pool and on the track were very hard. On Friday morning we did a hard speed session in the water and I was hoping we would be doing a nice tempo run that evening but the coach had a Fartlek session in mind. I never did Fartlek before and I had never done 2 sessions in one day until last week and now I was about to do two speed sessions in one day….probably not to be recommended! I managed fine but was pretty wrecked by the end of it. I rested Saturday (well if you call resting swimming with the kids and lugging them about the city!). Sunday I felt pretty good and was looking forward to my cycle with Predator Triathlon Club.  Apart from a minor tumble after trying to cross railway tracks near Craughwell and having to push it to catch the group. My legs were burning from the hard week so I had to turn for home and only managed about 38k. Taper next week in the pool at least so my legs will get some rest!

 Monday:        Rest

Tuesday:          Swimming: Missed set of 2435m mainly drills

Wednesday am

Swim: total 2800m

Main Set (1,100m)  - Main focus of the session - Keep your form
	1x	200m @ 90%
	1x	200m easy
	1x	200m broken into 100m with 20" RI
	1x	200m easy
	1x	200m broken into 50m with 10" RI
	1x	100m easy

Wednesday pm

Run: Total 7.35k. Main set 6 x 400m at 85%

Friday am

Swim: total 2000m  

Main Set (600m)
	1 x	100m broken into 25m with 10" RI
	1 x	200m easy
	4 x	50m swim 90% - 95% with a dive start	2'30" SI
	1 x	100m easy
Secondary Set (300m)
	6 x	50m hard "KEEP PERFECT STROKE"	1' SI

Friday pm

Run : total 7.3km 20mins of Fartleck

Week 2 of training....2 sessions in one day..ahhh!

Week 2:

This week I did two run sessions with Craughwell AC; three swim sessions with Galway Bay Masters and a cycle with my hubbie. 4 training sessions last week to 6 this week….a good improvement.

My two hardest days of the week are Wednesday and Friday which involve a morning swim and an evening run. I honestly didn’t think I would be able to do two sessions in one day as I never did more than one training session a day but I surprised myself and even I managed to perform on the evening runs way better than I had expected. Using different muscles and an improved cardiovascular state as a result of my swimming last week both played a part. Sundays traditional long cycle was shortened somewhat as we were in Sligo and between the trip, the kids awake etc we were wrecked! But thanks to my very kind sister who minded our two kids Sean and I managed to get out on the bikes for a short spin of 36k. It was a cold day on the bikes but the scenery from Rosses Point to Strandhill is just breathtaking and keeps the mind off any pain! 

Here is a quick outline of what I did last week: A big jump from last week but well able for it and looking to build!

Monday: rest day

Tuesday: Swim 2,450m (mainly drills)

Warm up: 600m

Main Set (1,750m)
	4 x	50m drill - 6 beat change-over (side-glide)
	1 x	200m concentrate on body balance
	4 x	50m drill single arm (in front)
	1 x	200m concentrate on body rotation
	6x	12.5m sprint	20" SI
	4 x	50m drill catch-up
	1 x	200m concentrate on length of stroke
	4 x	50m drill flex-flex push
	1 x	200m concentrate on power & high elbows
	6x	12.5m sprint	20" SI
	1 x	100m easy

Cool down: 100m

Hard enough session - I thought doing drills was going to be an easier set than the other days of endurance and speed work…NOT!

Wednesday:

Swim 3000m (Endurance)

Warm up 400m

Main Set (2,500m)
	1x	400m swim	6' 45" SI
	3x	200m swim	3' 20" SI
	6x	100m swim	1' 50" SI
	12x	50m swim	55" SI
	6x	50m 25"B"/25 swim	1' 10" SI

Cool down: 100m

Run: 1km warm up followed by 3 x 400m and 2 x 800m:  Total about 7km

No problem running after the endurance swim set – I actually felt good! I thought we were going to be doing a 5k at 60% heart rate so the speed work threw me a little!

Thursday:  Rest Day

Friday:

Swim 2100m Speed work

Warm up: 900m

Main Set (1,100m)
	1 x	200m Swim 85%
	1 x	150m Easy
	3 x	100m Swim 80% - 85%	1' 30" RI
	1 x	150m Easy
	2 x	50m Swim 85%	1'         RI
	1x	100m Easy
	4x	25m sprint	45" SI

Cool down: 200m

Run: 7.35k in total; Warm up followed by Tempo run of 5k.   

Saturday: Rest Day

Sunday;

Cycle 36km slow n easy from Rosses Point to Starandhill and back (Co Sligo)

Week 1 over and complete....and loving it!!!

This year I have decided I need to be constructive about my training or else it just isn't going to happen. Although pretty fit going into my pregnancies (in 2008) I let it go after that. With two children under two my life was busy never mind trying to train!

In 2011 I competed in 3 sprint triathlons and the swim and cycle part of the Half Ironman here in Galway (didn't run due to a running injury). I even won my age group category in one of the sprints which really surprised me! I was thrilled as my training had, in my opinion, been the bare minimum going into it. Having a new business and two young kids played havoc on my training never mind a husband that loves to train and compete at triathlons also!!

2012:  Wednesday 4th January I joined Galway Bay Masters Swimming Club. A great start with a 3000m training session!! Okay so I sat it out for about 150m of that but I was told it was an endurance session and you are not supposed to stop and give your body a chance to recover! Thursday was a long easy run with Sean my husband of 7.35km. Forgot to wear my heart rate monitor but I felt good!  Friday back in the pool for some speed work - a long warm up of about 900m followed by 200m at 85%; 150 easy; 100m at 85%, 150 easy & 2 x 50m at 85% with a minute rest in between followed by a cool down (still a 1800m session).  A rest up on Saturday followed by a spin with Predator Triathlon Club on Sunday of about 40km....well I got two punctures - front and back at about 40km and when the front burst again I decided to call my husband to come and rescue me! Rest again on Monday.

So 2 x swim sessions; 1 run and 1 cycle in week one…..by my standards a very good start! At least something to build on!