Last weekend was my first century I've ever done. It was a training ride, lasted just over 6 hours and had me feeling so trashed afterwards that I had to really muster up all my energy to do my run workout the next day. Speaking of which, Jo scored another PR with an 18-mile run....while I put in a slightly inferior 16.5 miles that day. Good excuse though, since I rode my bike across damn near the entire East Bay Hills: As Mr. West said "Whatever doesn't kill me makes me stronger...". This is so true. Tomorrow I will ride approximately 70 miles, and I have a feeling that my body will feel like it's an easy breezy workout, now that it has experienced the full toll that a century ride exacts upon it.
In other news, while my "A" races for the year were Ironman California 70.3(half-iron distance), and the upcoming Ironman Florida(full iron distance), I've also decided to participate in a team event as a "training race". This Saturday, my sister Jackie and friend Jenny will be teaming up as Team WTF in the Clif Bar Team Triathlon Challenge. It's a relay race, so we split the triathlon duties three ways. More to come regarding the event as it unfolds. Wish us luck!
Last weekend was my heaviest workload to date. Saturday, I rode a 72-mile bike ride across damn near the entire East Bay I-680 corridor. I nearly cancelled my workout due to the rain and thunder we were having, but seeing that it was not raining cats and dogs, and knowing that weather-wise, anything can happen on a race day...I decided to suck it up and ride out the storm.
It was a great decision, as the rain cleared up after the first two hours of the ride, and so I was left with 2.5 hours of sunny, yet cool weather. For good measure I ran for another hour(5.5-miles) immediately after the ride.
Sunday was Nike day as usual, whereby I overlap my ironman training with Nike, since I am also running that race as a training event. PICTURE LINK For Team Abisia, it was another big hit as old distance records fell and new PRs(personal records) were set!
Josephine
Jackie
Mom
Old PR:
14 miles
10 miles
10 miles
New PR:
16 miles
12 miles
11.25 miles
And of course, a hard day's work deserves a FREE massage. One of the benefits of attending a Nike run training event, which is also free of charge! (in case you were thinking of joining us for one of these Sunday parties) hehehe.
Pictures and videos from Nike training Sep 13 For your viewing pleasure:
Way to go ladies! Your training is spot on and you're definitely gonna rock at Nike. Stay on track, keep up the great work, and make sure you commit to your nutrition and your recovery/rest just as seriously as you take your run workouts. There's no stopping you now!
Last weekend, Labor Day Weekend to be exact, featured my usual long days of training on both the bike and the run. The big news for the weekend was a checkpoint race for a couple of "Team Abisia" runners who are training to complete their first Nike Marathon. Jo and Jackie both ran the UC Davis Golden Harriers 10K as a tune-up as Nike is a mere 6 weeks away. They both did great, and will definitely make a strong showing in October. Way to go ladies!!!
I'm 10 weeks out from the big day, and while my training has been going steady (no injuries...yay!).... I felt such that this past weekend was such a big deal that it bears mentioning in some detail. I did my usual routine of a long ride on Saturday, with a short swim and short run on each end of it. This time I rode from Dublin to Pinole, as Jo and I had a friend's lunch party to attend there right after.
By now everyone knows Jo also has a big goal this year of completing the Nike Women's Full Marathon in October. By all measures, she is definitely on track to complete this monumental achievement. This past Sunday morning, she ran her longest distance yet....14 miles....a personal best !!! I am so proud of her, and I just know that she's going to totally amaze all of us on race day.
Also...something new developed over the summer that is truly amazing and truly inspirational. Somewhere between racing at Ironman California 70.3 and today, our family racing team grew 100%. That's right folks, Team Marv.n.Jo is now Team Abisia as far as the Nike Marathon is concerned. Call it a spark, call it serendipitous inspiration, whatever it is....my sister and my MOTHER have each decided to register and participate in the 13.1 mile half marathon at Nike! The truly amazing thing? Mom did 10 miles this past Sunday. Now I know where I get my endurance genes from ! Way to go Mom and Jackie!
This past weekend was characterized by quite a few firsts...
My first bike ride through Collier Canyon in Livermore, which happens to also be my first time exceeding a distance of 60 miles on a ride. I rode with the Cyclepath club again, as I've lately been wanting to explore some newer routes in my area. This is week 11 of Ironman training program, which called for:
And while this clearly ate up a big chunk of my time on Saturday, I was thankful to come back and see Jo at the end of the day. After this workout, I was famished as all I had eaten the whole day were energy bars and gels. To refuel on carbs we decided to go to Sweet Tomatoes. Yes! Carb heaven !!!
Another first, Jo ran 12 miles on Sunday....a personal best for her! I am so proud of well she is doing, as she trains for her big dream of completing the Nike Women's Marathon this October.
She's already done two triathlons...so this young lady is no stranger to endurance sports, but the commitment she's made to do this marathon stands as the current "MOUNTAIN" that she wishes to turn into a "MOLEHILL". Great job honey, you're almost there...so proud of you!
And the final first...the first Ironman 70.3 race to held in the Philippines this past Sunday. The men's pro division was won by Terrenzo Bozzone, while the ladies champion was Lisa Bentley. More about the Inaugural Ironman 70.3 Philippines.
Kicked off a big week of training this past weekend. On Saturday, I rode with the Cyclepath club. We started in Pleasanton at the Main Street store, and went up through Sunol and past Calaveras Reservoir just a few miles short of Milpitas. A 43-mile endeavor with about 1000 feet of climbing.
In all, about 3 hours worth of riding...not too shabby to say the least. There were about 30 or so riders out there, and all kinds of bikes. The best part of the ride was that there was very little vehicle traffic as this route is not commonly used.
The next day, I joined up with the Nike Marathon training club in Danville and ran a 10-mile easy-paced run. Needless to say, it was an exhausting weekend. Par for the course, if you want to become an Ironman.
I'm 13 weeks out, and next week starts the "peak" phase where my distances in each discipline will increase dramatically. Thankfully this week was a much needed "rest" week. I limited most of my riding to about 20 miles or less, and the longest swim was 2500 yards. Easing back into running, as I still have a little bit of tenderness from a calf strain from a 2 weeks ago. So I haven't pushed much more than about 6 miles three times since Sunday.
I'm enjoying the calm before the storm, which is just about to arrive...
