Base 1

I’m thinking of changing the title of my blog. As much as I would like my life to be as it describes it couldn’t be further from my daily routine! I’ve been squeezing training between daddy duties, renovating the house and working my second job to pay for renovating the house. If I could just work out how to squeeze another 5-6 hours into a day it’d make life a whole lot easier! I’m hoping that come April when Katie goes back to work and the twins start full time at nursery things might get a little easier, It’s certainly unrealistic to continue spreading myself as thinly as I am now. Anyway enough excuses, this is how my first block of training in prep for this years outlaw has gone.

Swim

Some consistency returning with my swim and I’m starting to feel a little form returning . Total of 20k over the three weeks mainly focusing on endurance. I’m getting pretty fed up with being back at my local pool having had the luxury of the lido last summer. I think I'm going to struggle to get myself back to 4k in an hour shape without it. Planned re opening is April so fingers crossed! I did want to complete a swim test set at the end of this block but just couldn't fit it in. Will do one towards end of next block. 

Bike

Total of 620K over the 3 week block. Considering the way the weather has been (i.e. bloody cold!) I'm really pleased to have been consistent and dragged myself out the door. Pretty much all riding is in Z2 (c.200w) for now and fairly hilly. Ashamed to say I've not got on the turbo once in the last 3 weeks :-/ Will make it my goal to do at least 1x turbo p/w in next block.

Run

153k in total. Since returning to SBR training I've noticed a decline in running performance . I'm putting this down to the reduction in run volume and body just adapting to stress all three sports again. My long easy aerobic runs are currently at 4:30-4:40/k so I know there's a reasonable level of fitness there. Over the last block I've tested myself over half marathon (Tunbridge) and a 10k (Greenwich). Bit more blurb about these below. 

Tunbridge Wells Half Marathon. 

Pretending to look comfortable

My third time doing this race and this year I decided to make it part of a big work out. So to ride there, run race, ride back was the plan. Katie was also racing so she was going to bring along my run kit. We'd arranged for a friend to look after the twins and Annie came along and went to the sports club the race puts on. It was a bloody freezing on the bike heading down to Tunbridge. Kept it all fairly easy and my ride took me around most of the course which was a useful reminder of the main big climb at mile 7 of the race. So arrived and Katie had forgotten to bring my running kit. I managed to borrow some trainers (a size too big) used my race T shirt and stayed in the rest of my cycling gear- not ideal. I made it to the start line pretty much as the gun went off and settled into a steady pace. During the first 5K I decided I was going to try and hold things back until the top of the big climb then pick up the pace a little. Conditions were pretty grim, I cant ever remember being so cold during a race. Even the climb while pushing my HR right up didn't seem to warm me up. Into the last 8K or so and I picked off a few guys heading back into town and felt reasonably comfortable. I wanted to cruise the last 5k but I was aware of the very real prospect of being 'chicked' by the first lady who seemed to be pacing herself behind me for the last third of the race. I pushed the pace as I entered the last couple of K and managed to move far enough ahead to come in just ahead of the first lady in 1:21:42. My best time on the course fresh is 1:18:46 so 3mins down on that, all things considered reasonably happy.  After a recovery hot chocolate and catching up with Katie and some other friends racing I jumped back on the bike and made my way home. I'd planned to ride easy but somehow got caught up in the Hell of Ashdown sportive and ended up trying to pick off as many riders as I could for much of the ride back. In all a good training day, but damn cold!

Greenwich Meridain 10k

Again this was to be part of a long run. I did 20k down to the Thames Barrier and back at ~4:30's and arrived at the start line just in time for the gun of the race. The course was changed this year due to works taking place in the park but I don't think it made too much difference. I'd still consider it a hilly 10k and relatively comparable to the usual course. I settled at ~3:45/k this fell off a little up until the last kilometre which I ran pretty hard and fast ~3.20 which makes me think I didn't spread my effort particularly well over the distance although my RPE was up there for the duration. I ended up with 38'45" my slowest 10k for some time, but again a soild training run and a nice way to finish off my first block of training.

Family/Work/Training balance 

Stretched is an understatement! Luckily I've had some leave from work which freed up a little time to fit in the training. If it wasn't for Katie being so unbelievably supportive I'd not have managed half as much. People don't realise but every session I do means Katie has to deal with the three Kids (Annie 5, and the twins 7mths) on her own. Whether that be an early swim session at 6am or a 5hour ride at the weekend, If you haven't experienced the demands of young children yourself its difficult to understand. I'm also doing more sports coaching and PT as well as trying to refurbish some of the house. With all this going on I've not spent as much time with the girls as I'd have liked.

Ahead

I've had to adjust the next block of training to 4 weeks to allow for a tricky week when Katie will be back at work full time and Isla and Lizzi won't have started nursery. Won't do my fitness any harm though I guess. At the end of March I'll be heading back to the human Performace unit for lab testing and a bike fit. Looking forward to that :-) I'm just starting to feel a good level of fitness returning, and hopefully I can continue the consistency through base 2. My biggest concern is whether I'm going to get the rest required to do this.