After a long day on the bike on Sunday I started the week feeling good.
My long run on Tuesday morning went really well. I have been running the same route every week. My first few weeks had me reaching for a gel after only about 30 minutes as I hit the first hills through Ashgrove, however this week I got through 21 kms in 2hrs 10 (avg pace about 6:16min/km). My first couple of long runs my avg pace was closer to 6:35min/km and I covered about 16kms in 1:45.
Despite my running going well, I started to notice a few niggles in my feet, which if my past experience had anything to go by signalled more trouble in the way of plantar facitis. I have averaged about 50kms per week over the past 2 weeks. I have been careful to get back into my trigger point therapy. This stuff works really well in treating areas of tightness.
I decided to do a windtrainer session instead of Cootha's on Wednesday morning so I had a bit more time at home to do some stretches. 1hr:15min on the windtrainer in the big ring on the front and smallest ring on the back is a tough set. I did 3 mins on, 2 minutes off 10 times through followed by warm down.
On Thursday morning I got through another 10kms at Robson's run session and also put in a good session at the pool on Thursday night. Coach Brad had told me to focus on pulling through further in the last part of my stroke. Thursday was a good opportunity to practise this as I wasn't feeling as tired as I was on Tuesday nights swim.
It was nice to have a bit of break from work with the easter long weekend. I did an easy river loop on Friday morning, then headed up to Mum and Dad's at Maleny.
Brett and got up early and did 2 hours of riding around Maleny on Saturday morning finishing in town with coffee and fruit toast. It was a glorious day to be up in the hinterland, the weather was mild and the view of the glasshouse mountains was stunning. As I was feeling like I was coming down with a cold, I abandoned my plans to do an open water swim in the dam at Maleny on Saturday afternoon and slept for about 3 hours. ( I must have needed it).
Brett and I spent the day with Dad, whilst Mum and my sister Megan went out for the day. Unfortunately Dad can't really be left at home on his own so it was nice for Mum to have a few hours out of the house without having to worry.
Dad was in pretty good sprints and we all went out for lunch to a nice winery just outside of Montville. It is not until you have spent sometime with someone needing wheel chair access that you realise how difficult it is for people with disabilities. We turned up at the restaurant to find that the only disabled park was taken ( by an able bodied person who happened to walk out just as we were unloading Dad from the car). They did look mildy embarrassed when they saw us there.
It was nice to see Dad in a more positive place. My past few visits have been very emotional and weigh heavily on my mind. At least Dad is starting to come to terms with his situation and hopefully looking for the highlights in his life.
My Sunday ride was supposed to be 5.5hrs, plus 30 min run off the bike. I had been feeling a bit off with a cold, so decided to set out and see how I went. Brett dropped me down the range outside Bli Bli and I rode to Coory via Noosa then back to Maroochydore on the David Low way. I felt like the stuffing had been knocked out of me so I decided to stop on 4.5hrs and still do my run off the bike. I still managed to cover 120kms.For those who have done the Noosa tri course, coming down the Noosa hill is way more fun than going up. The hill is about a 10% gradient, challenging enough but not unbearable. As I was passing through Noosa I spotted Belinda Granger and her husband out for a training run. That was a nice bit of motivation. Belinda looked like she was running well.
After I finished my ride/run Brett and I had fish and chips and then headed back to Brisbane. I love the sense of achievement I feel on Sunday afternoons. I regard the long rides on Sunday as the toughest session of the week ( mainly just the mental focus to sit on the bike for that amount of time). I always allow myself to indulge in a treat of gelati and few pieces of dark chocolate after one of these sessions (don't tell Sally Gerrard my dietitian...) Although over the Easter weekend I did have quite a bit of chocolate which I sure will be a great source of fuel for the half IM at Port Macquarie next weekend. Thats what I keep telling myself anyway!!!
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