Drizzle, but No Excuses

This morning was one of those days that was just made for lying in bed, unless you're an athlete with a couple of upcoming races on the calendar. I slept in to a comfortable 6:45am when the alarm sounded. As per usual, the cat had taken his place on my back (I'm a stomach sleeper) and as soon as the alarm went off, he began chiding me to wake up and feed him. My goal was to be in the water at Barton Springs Pool by 7:45am to swim for at least a mile. I'd follow that up with a 1hr 30min mile bike ride with Tracy and others I didn't really know. Tracy called first thing this morning to let me know she was recovering from a tough run and decided not to ride today afterall.

I looked out the window and it was slightly drizzly. Man, I wanted to just make some coffee and relax this morning. It's not that I dreaded the workout. I didn't, but it was just one of those days where you weren't sure if it was going to clear up and just pour down rain. I didn't want to be 1/2 way into my swim and get called out of the water if it started lightening. Or, get 15 miles into the ride and get stuck in a downpour. I immediately started going through different scenarios...I could swim at the YMCA later and then hit the 2pm swim class at the gym, I could hop on my trainer at the house and then swim later. In the end, I stuck with the original plan and headed to Barton Springs. I swam 4 laps in Barton Springs (each lap is a 1/4 mile). My form was definitely better than last week, but not great. My splits: 9:31, 9:51, 9:36, 9:55. I did the last two with gloves to help with my catch. By the end, I was definitely tired and my form was horrible. I followed it up with about 5 minutes of cool down and drills. I saw Tracy at the pool for a moment and she had the quote of the morning. "My legs may be sore, but my arms aren't." In true athelete style, she didn't give herself a total reprieve. That's the beauty of triathlon. If your legs hurt, a swim feels good. If your arms hurt, nothing beats a run or bike. There are no excuses. At this point, I'm glad I didn't make any either.

I decided that I was going to ride by myself. However, at this point, the weather was deteriorating. Again, I negotiated. Maybe it will clear up this afternoon...There's always spin class....In the end, I decided to head home and hop on the trainer for 1:30...not fun at all, but at least I was on my bike in my saddle. It did start raining harder as the morning wore on so I didn't regret not being outdoors at this point. I popped a movie in and stayed in the big chain ring. Every 10 minutes or so, I'd alternate between aero position and normal riding position. The new saddle seemed better. Maybe a few more adjustments still, but better. I was drenched with sweat by the time I was finished. I actually rode in my bike shorts and sports bra only. (something I would NEVER do in front of people). I finished up and felt incredibly proud of my accomplishments today. By 11:45am, I was finished with my workouts for the day.

Nutrition:
7:15am cup of oatmeal, small amount of egg beaters scrambled with 1/2 slice of veggie cheese, can of Minute Maid Lite Lemonade (5 cals)
12:30p-12:45p finished 2 pieces of beef jerkey, 1/2 whole wheat tortilla with Morningstar Veggie Burger, 1/2 slice of veggie cheese...leftover cup of whole wheat pasta with no sauce...small apple...diet coke.
4:00pm cup of Kashi Go Lean, yogurt, blueberries
6:00 pm My standard Sunday meal of Firebowl Cafe...chicken stir fry, ginger white wine sauce, pick my own veggie mix, brown rice on the side. 1 Spring Roll. 1/3 of a small Mint Oreo Blizzard