Day 3

Totals after day 3:
Swim: 4200m
Bike: 90 miles
Run: 20 miles
Total Time: 9 1/2 hrs
After three days i have still not completed even completed an ironman. Its amazing to think that just a few short months ago I did more that this, IN ONE DAY. Well this is now, and it's not that easy. When I woke up today I was sore, tired, and hungry. My legs were so stiff I had to spend 15 min stretching before I could head in to work. I had wanted to do hill repeats today, but I got through one and was down for the count. It felt like I had lead weights hidden inside my cycling shoes. The run wasn't much better. The only thing that made the workout note worthy was that it was done as a brick workout. I finished off the day with a swim. This was the first day I feel I actually can say that I actually had a workout swimming. I would call the past two days warm up for today. Still, mentally my mind was checking out for the day and left earlier than I would have liked. I made myself another great dinner to reward myself for another hard days work. I made a fresh salad with mixed greens, tomatoes, sunflower seeds, broccoli, carrots, and fat free cheddar cheese. The main course was a kashi margarita pizza and I added fresh mushrooms and green bell peppers. This was the first time I had tried this type of pizza. At first I was skeptical, but it had a very rich and tasty flavor. As an added bonus it is high in protein and fiber, and for desert I made a big bowl of honey nut cheerios (my favorite cereal right now). I'm hoping this good meal and a good nights rest help me recover for tomorrows workouts. Till then.

Day 2 of 7

Again, I slept in this morning (until 8:30) and when I woke up I was starving. I made a huge bowl of oatmeal, strawberries, and cup of coffee. I've realized very quickly that if I'm going to make it through the week, I've got to keep my body fueled. After breakfast, I headed down to town lake where I did a 10 mile progressive run. This great weather really helped me get out and train. I believe that nice weather always makes it easier for people to get out and exercise and it was no exception today. I don't know if anyone else has noticed the large buildings down there, but apparently its for new years, and did anyone else realize that there is a new years parade? I guess I know where I will be for new years. Following the run, I did an easy 2hr ride out to Mountain City. I say easy but it turned into a difficult ride since I forgot to bring enough food for the ride. After being sick, I noticed my metabolism slowed down drastically, but not anymore. My metabolism has been kicked into overdrive in the past two days and its only going to get worse. All was going good, I recovered from my run and bike and was off to swim, so I thought. After only 25 min of swimming, my calf locked up every time I kicked off the wall. What a pain. I decided to call it a day and head to the hot tub. For dinner I made some red beans and rice that really hit the spot. Now its off to bed to recover for tom.

New Year Boot Camp

After a trip to Vegas, an illness, and the holidays I've been slowly coming back around to training. Going back and forth between Katy and Austin has also taken its toll, but I am back now for good. So this week starts a boot camp from Hell. It will be seven days filled with three workouts each day. I invite anyone to join me in one of my daily workouts. I must have been excited to start my own boot camp last night because I could not get to sleep. It was a slow start today, but I accomplished my first day. It started with an easy swim at LTF, followed by a 5 mile jaunt, and finished off with a 30 mile ride to ease me into the training, and to top it off, I made a great stir-fry. Not a bad day, but it definitely wore me out. More to come tom.

To Vegas and Back

As an early Christmas present my mother-in-law gave my wife and I a trip to Vegas. Luck seemed to be on our side throughout the week, starting with our flight. We almost missed our flight because they changed the time. Luckily I just happened to check the flight time early in the day. Then, we were one of the last planes to land before they had to close the airport due to snow. My first impression of Vegas was that everything is about image and living large. We had a hotel room at the Bellagio. When we walked into the entrance, everything was decorated for Christmas. They had a botanical garden in the atrium with over 3 million flowers done in a Christmas wonderland. When we made it to our room, the view was amazing. We had floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the fountains and the Eiffel tower. Everything was over the top and detailed down to every small detail. We even had chocolates left on our pillows. We were only there for 4 days which was not nearly enough time to see everything. We saw two shows, gambled at Paris, walked for hours through underground malls, and barely hit the ice burg of the town. My favorite way to loose my money, i mean gamble, was playing roulette. I actually won about 100 dollars but spent around 200 dollars. Not too bad consider I was willing to loose about 300. The only downfall was that I got sick the last day with a nasty little cold and lost my cell phone. I guess that's what happens when you stay out all night and drink all day. Not my normal routine, but when in Rome. No regrets. Pics will be posted later.

The Dark Knight

As the days continue to get shorter, I find that more and more of my workouts are being performed at night. I feel like some sort of nocturnal creature coming out either early in the morning or late at night(hence the dark knight, which probably one of the best movies of the year). In the mornings I wake up before sunrise to head on my morning bout. Then its off to work. All day I stare out the window at my dental office. I see the sun rise and watch as the beautiful day turn to dusk. By the time I strap on my running shoes it is already dark. It feels great to run through the night. As my eyes adjust and I ease into a smooth rhythm, I feel connected with everything around me. I guess that's all we can do right now. I can't wait for Dec 22 which I believe is winter solstice and the start of longer days.