Training Log: 3/14 to 3/20 (Week 3 / Power Down)

I spent the week looking for answers.  Coming off two tough training weeks in a row, I reached a level of exhaustion that was simply not productive.  The time change didn't help.  Changing to Daylight Savings Time threw off my sleep cycle, and I'm sure that this contributed at least a little to the way I felt the rest of the week.  On top of that, the week itself was grueling, and there you have it.

I needed rest and wound up taking almost the entire week off.

Swim, Bike, Run

Reality is that this is sometimes necessary.  People say "no pain, no gain", but the truth is subtler than that.  In the long term you're much better off listening to your body.  That's what I tried to do this week, and it helped.  Even so, I still didn't start to feel like myself until Saturday afternoon.

• Monday: Off
• Tuesday: Weights with Hannah
• Wednesday: Commute Ride
• Thursday: Commute Ride
• Friday: Off
• Saturday: Swim / Weights
• Sunday: Long, slow distance run

Swim

I took Friday off from work to help my wife prep the house for our daughter's eleventh birthday party, and I intended to hit the pool once we got everything set Friday afternoon.  However, Thursday night marked the first decent nights sleep I got all week, and I wasn't quite ready to start working again Friday, even later in the day.  It was therefore no surprise that I felt stiff in the water on Saturday, but I'm nevertheless certain that I made the right decision.

I wrote up Saturday's workout in a separate post.  The swim portion wasn't terrible, but it wasn't super-exciting, either.

Swimming Total: 1 x swim (2400); 24 pts


Bike
I rode my commute twice, mostly because the weather sucked.  I didn't mind the break on Monday, but Tuesday's subway ride was a drag.

Cycling Total: 2 x commute rides (21.4 miles) 21.4 pts


Run
I took running clothes to work on Wednesday but never made it out.  They're still sitting in my desk drawer.  I then made a conscious decision to wait until Sunday's long run before hitting the road again last week.

Good decision.  Despite lifting on Saturday, I felt like myself out there on Sunday.  I put in 5.65 miles at a comfortable 9:04/mile pace.  I had to resist the temptation to pick it up in the back half of the run, but having spent the week recovering from over-training, cautious pacing seemed a better idea.

Running Total: 1 x run (5.65); 22.2 pts

Aerobic Total: 67.6 pts

That's roughly half what I did last week.  This week is a scheduled Rest Week, and I'm going to try to take it easy again, but I'm sure I'll put in more effort than I did this past week.


Weights

Tuesday's workout was short but intense.  We did a mix of weights and body weight calisthenics, and I thought we both got something out of it despite its brevity.

My goal for the night was to work chest and shoulders.

Tuesday Warm-Up
3 x sunrise salute
general stretching
10 x push-ups
10 x body weight squats

Tuesday Working Sets
4 x seated DB military press / goblet squats
3 x push-ups / walk the planks / tuck-ups

This was quick but effective.  We got in and out in half an hour.  If you're wondering, I did my heavy set on the military press with 45 lb dumbbells.  That's not too bad.

We did the push-ups and walk-the-planks as a single set.  Hannah did sets of 10 push-ups on her knees, came up to her toes, and did 10 walk-the-planks from the full-on front-leaning rest position.  I did sets of 15 push-ups, followed by 10 walk-the-planks.  We alternated that with the tuck-ups, with Hannah doing 12 and me doing 20.  Overall, this was a terrific set, and it was an excellent way to follow the military press on a quick night with a specific focus.

As note, I wrote about Saturday here.


Looking Forward
I feel good in the gym, and I think that if I cut down my long runs and ease into the more serious distances, I'll feel better on the road.  That's the plan, anyway, though I'm not going to try to put it to the test until another week has passed.