Training goes on and on and on....

Well I achieved my first goal of swimming 400 metres in a month last Friday. All thanks to Peter from PB Coaching. Swimming every day has been tiring, mostly because it involves getting up at 6am but I can always go to bed early to make up for it, which is exactly what I've been doing since acquiring a cold. :-(
The only reason I'm able to train for this ironman is simply because I've given up work. I don't know how someone could train this hard and hold down a job. I know fostering kids is a job too, and a stressful one recently at that, but I still have time now that they're at school to get training done. My day is usually like this; swim at 6am, return home by 8am, kids to school at 9am and then either cycling or running till they get home. Blogging, shopping, cooking, racing and everything else gets fitted in around all that!
Tony heads off to China next week for his big run across the desert so hopefully I'll be able to fit all my training in with him gone.
The foster kids will be with us a year in July and we're trying to think of a good way to mark that milestone. Any ideas?

Training....

I had a look on paper at what I'd been doing lately, training wise, and it looks like a lot when written down. I've probably not taken enough complete rest days recently. I think checking back over my training diary it has only been the last couple of weeks that were too much. Like instead of rest days I would swim or go to the gym or cycle, thinking they don't count as much because I'm not running. I suppose people who know me would say I never miss out on a training session, but for a few months I've been adding in other elements like the gym and not easing up on the running at all. It hasn't showed much in my long runs but when I run with other people or race I've noticed I'm not running as well.

This is all of my own doing. It's not part of any training plan by anybody but me. But really I think I just need a few "easy" days. With the kids being off school this week it'll probably mean an enforced easy week anyway.

I'm probably making much more of this than it actually is. I think that's because you always end up on a bit of a downer when running's not going as well as usual. I'll probably wake up tomorrow and wonder what I was on about...

Training and blogging...

I haven't felt much like blogging here lately. I don't want to write about the kids because this blog's not anonymous and because the kids are fostered there are other privacy issues I suppose.
I'm still training extra hard to build muscle, that's what I was told to do after the physiological tests. I average 3 to 4 days per week in the gym and that's including a little bit of swimming (plus all the running!). If I didn't have to breath the swimming would be going eh....well swimmingly. I'm trying to keep injury at bay by getting regular massage which is painful but I keep telling myself it has to be good for me!

Met some more of the 4nine£ gang last Saturday in Jo's house. Great night, I haven't laughed so much in ages. Great to put some faces to the names especially Jo's little girl!

This weekend I'm doing the Women's Cycling Event in Blessington. Never having even sat on a road bike I hope I don't get left behind....

Blog stuff

I'm taking it easy today. It's one of those days when I'm not able to run, go to the gym and none of my friends are available for coffee. So I have a morning at home, blogging (over at TGU and 4nines).

I've signed up to be a judge at the blog awards, thanks to Damien, Midget Wrangler and Someone Living for the prompt. I know I don't blog that much myself but I read lots of 'em and thought it would be fun to get involved.

Training is underway for Rotterdam Marathon. Well one long run down anyway. The reason I can't excercise today is because I'm having some physiological tests done in Trinity tomorrow and you're supposed to be rested for those. I've heard words like "you run till you drop" so I'm suitably worried. There's needles and blood tests involved too apparently. I'm told that what I'll get from the tests will be that "the heart monitor will become my best friend". I've never been a runner who used a heart monitor. When I race I just run as hard as I can and when I train I just jog. So it will be interesting to see if the heart monitor changes any of that. If I improve then that will be a bonus.

24 hours of flickr

I decided to take part in the 24 hours of flickr (May 5th) and document my day on Saturday from getting up, driving to Wicklow, running up lots of mountains for 8 and a half hours, car getting broken into, dinner at the mother in laws and home to Grace. That just about sums it all up.



The 8 and a half hours running was the best bit! Bits of walking/ navigating/ stopping in the pub in Drumgoff for a lucozade (trying not to stand too close to ordinary folk as I was pretty stinky at that stage).



Anyway I took tonnes of photos. The mountain ones will all look the same to most people but the idea was to document for ourselves the various summits we had to reach so that when we apply to do the Wicklow Round attempt we have an idea of the splits (times between each summit).
The rest of the weekend was spent decorating, oh how unbelieveably shite that was. I am so sick of painting. It looks like our 'new arrivals' will be coming at the end of June (not January, as typed earlier!). (Here and here is what that's all about). At least now the house is finally coming together, with the major rooms all ready for occupation! Now all I have to do is give up work.....

Back to Work

There's been lots happening but nothing really worthy of a blogpost. We were in Wexford for Easter, great time really, but lots of hassle with the noisy neighbours. Turns out the landlord, who said he had given them a months notice, hasn't actually, so we intend going to the gardai ourselves to make a complaint. Bit of a pain but we have nothing to lose and a street free of vodka and beer bottles to gain.

Lots of mountain bike training has been done in anticipation of the Adventure Race this Saturday and of course I've been blogging about that over at Wednesday Night Runners.

Canoeing for us all this Wednesday in Blessington, I better remember the camera this time.

We got tonnes of work done in the house. All the kids bedrooms are more or less sorted and Grace is now settled in hers with a few minor items to sort. The skip is full of junk, the new shed is ordered and so is the new carpet. It'll be a new house before the new arrivals get here! It feels good to be a bit more clutter free but I have a lot to do yet. Grace in fairness got rid of lots of clothes and freed up lots of space.

If we get a few more good weather weekends we can get the garden into a suitable state for kids to play in and if we can afford it, a deck.

Wow I'm tired after typing that never mind doing it all.