Father's Day Run

Today is Father's Day and all is right with the world. The kids are acting as if today is Christmas, ah to be 2 or 4 years old again. A little thing like making a present for Daddy and keeping it a secret seems like the most important thing in the world. Emily (age 4) and John (2 next month) do a great job of keeping a secret, though I am pretty sure that John didn't know he was keeping a secret. They gave me my gift, a hand print mold with their names on it. They are both very proud of themselves...as well they should be. I am a lucky guy.

By the time we I get myself moving it is close to 8:30. It seems each workout is more daunting then the next. This is definitely one of my longer scheduled workouts thus far but will be considered a light day by the time the dog days of summer roll around. I tell Missy that I'll be home around 11:30 or 11:45 and she looks at me like I have two heads. I need to start getting out of the house earlier. If it ever gets hot this summer, I will pay a steep price running around the blacktop at 12 noon.

The sky threatens to open up at any moment but at this point I am indifferent. There is a workout to be completed and it will be regardless of the weather. To be safe I will not ask Chris for his weather forecast. I follow a similar routine as last week. Bike over to the local high school track, change into my running gear and pound out 50 or so laps. This will be the last week for me at the track but as a matter of convenience I was left with no choice. I simply don't have time to drive to a park to complete my training today.

I take it nice and slow at the start of the run today, running a 10 minute mile followed by a 9 minute mile. The legs are loosening up quite nicely so I decide to pick up the pace. I can't believe it but it looks like the rain may hold off? I run between 8 and 8 minute and 30 second miles the rest of the way and finish having completed 12.5 miles in 105 dry minutes (8 minute and 20 second average pace). Surprisingly, I feel strong and ready to tackle the 1 hour bike leg.

I transition quickly and begin my bike ride. The legs aren't feeling quite as good as I thought they were. I battle the urge to ride straight home. This urge haunts me during every long workout and is why I do all of my training in a single loop, out and back fashion. A lot of the books that I have read on training recommend completing multiple loops on a single course but this is not for me....to much temptation to cut the workout short

My legs begin to feel better after about 15 minutes on the bike. I focus my energy on an even cadence ride, keeping my bike in higher gears. This limits the additional pounding put on my legs and actually refreshes me. I finish the hour with a little over 16 miles covered and am ready for the rest of the day....a great afternoon with my kids and the best Dad the a guy could ask for...my Dad.

With the conclusion of this workout I am now 20 weeks away from the big day. This sounds like a lot of time but will pass in the blink of an eye. In this next stage of training I will focus on race day nutrition and heartrate zone training (more detail in coming posts). My next race will be the Delaware Diamondman Half Ironman in mid September. This race will be a dry run for the big day...a practice race if you will.

Tomorrow's workout is a 45 minute swim and a an upper body lifting session.