Patience pays off

Well, it's back to the working life again after a nice, relaxing week off.   We did a few day trips to science museums in Syracuse and Buffalo and got the squeeze in two trips to Moe's for burritos- yum.  I felt a little antsy when relaxing around the house because I didn't have to go to school and didn't have any projects to do around the house since the kitchen is done and the family room got a fresh coat of paint two weeks ago.  I felt like I should have done double or triple workouts everyday but held off because I know it is too early for that yet. Hopefully patience will pay off there.

When I tried to go on my long run two Sundays ago I pulled a calf seemingly out of nowhere.  As far as runs go, I skipped my Tuesday run and replaced it with a session on the Nordic Track which always gets my heart rate up pretty easily and leaves me feeling tired but not beat up.  My calf felt tight still but was definitely getting better.  On Thursday, I went out for an easy five-miler and still felt some tightness but, again, it was definitely getting better.  By the time Sunday rolled around, I was ready to go out and do a twelve-mile run with no troubles.  I made sure to keep super hydrated after my long bike ride on Saturday, took salt tablets before and during the run, stopped to drink water and ensure twice during the run, and stretched liberally during the week.  I am going to repeat all of these actions to hopefully stay craMp free.

Cycling was no problem last week due to the basement getting consistent weather in the low 60s but I was concerned as to how I was going to get some swimming in because the regular pool schedule was halted due to the school break.  Luckily, I bumped into the swim coach at the pep rally before break and he invited me to swim with the kids who qualified for states.  So once after a ride and once after a run (and shoveling the driveway) I ran over to the pool to get some laps in.  In case I didn't feel slow enough in the water before, swimming with the speedy kids made me feel glacial.  All in all, it was a pretty good week.  I keep adding time and distance and am starting to get excited for the race which is only 150ish days away.