The body has been feeling good this week after the Footstock Duathlon on Saturday...asides from some tender knees. I had a strong brick session at Tri Club on Monday and our final basketball game of the season on Tuesday with no ill effects. So I'm definitely happy to see the recovery is going as planned. I have really been paying attention to nutrition this week (once again trying to cut out dairy as I race again Saturday) and have been working my legs with our new "Stick" that we bought at the Footstock expo.
I was a bit apprehensive and a bit excited about squeezing into my wetsuit and hitting the open water for the first time since IMC 2009. Mike Bock (Chinook race director) arranged for us to get a practice swim in this week at Midnapore Lake prior to Chinook so I took advantage. Those first few strokes are always a shock to the system, but after 7 or 8 breaths I settled into my stroke. I just tried to visualize all the things Grant & Ellen (Talisman swim coaches) have been telling me over the past few months. Admittedly it's much easier to do in a pool where it's a relatively controlled environment and I can follow the big black lines on the bottom. But I felt pretty good about swimming an estimated 800m tonight. While stripping out my wetsuit, I was chatting with a lady who had just finished her swim too. She just took up triathlon last year and is competing in the Chinook Oly tri on Saturday...at age 56. Her goal is to do an Ironman before she turns 60. I never got her name, but best of luck to her.
Once out the wetsuit and into my running shoes, I snuck in a quick run before the rain got really heavy. I'm trying to fight off a cold, so I didn't want to spend too much time in the cool, wet conditions. Rest day tomorrow and then an easy bike-run on Friday before the half on Saturday. I'm feeling confident.
I was a bit apprehensive and a bit excited about squeezing into my wetsuit and hitting the open water for the first time since IMC 2009. Mike Bock (Chinook race director) arranged for us to get a practice swim in this week at Midnapore Lake prior to Chinook so I took advantage. Those first few strokes are always a shock to the system, but after 7 or 8 breaths I settled into my stroke. I just tried to visualize all the things Grant & Ellen (Talisman swim coaches) have been telling me over the past few months. Admittedly it's much easier to do in a pool where it's a relatively controlled environment and I can follow the big black lines on the bottom. But I felt pretty good about swimming an estimated 800m tonight. While stripping out my wetsuit, I was chatting with a lady who had just finished her swim too. She just took up triathlon last year and is competing in the Chinook Oly tri on Saturday...at age 56. Her goal is to do an Ironman before she turns 60. I never got her name, but best of luck to her.
Once out the wetsuit and into my running shoes, I snuck in a quick run before the rain got really heavy. I'm trying to fight off a cold, so I didn't want to spend too much time in the cool, wet conditions. Rest day tomorrow and then an easy bike-run on Friday before the half on Saturday. I'm feeling confident.
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