Memorial Day
What a glorious weekend here in NYC!
Instead of our normal go-go-go to the beach or DC or wherever else, we had a little “holiday in the City” as one of our friends called it. In the end, we did a whole lot of nothing and the three day weekend felt like a week. We saw a bunch of friends, walked all over the Village, read, played, relaxed, and of course, trained. Charlie decided to become a little political active and support his favorite presidential candidate.
The weather was really great. Today was the warmest day of the weekend, and it was hot!
Saturday and Sunday were beautiful days, but more reasonably warm, which worked out well for my long ride in New Jersey on Saturday morning and a long run to and in the Park on Sunday. This morning I got up and ran, but even at 9:30 it was getting hot. All my training sessions went really well and I’ve been feeling great all weekend, with very little pain in either my knee or my butt. I was worried that between the 60 miles on the bike on Saturday and the 12+ miles running yesterday, I would be bed-ridden today, but I feel remarkably good. That’s not to say that my back/butt are pain-free, but if it felt like this all the time, I wouldn’t even think twice about any of my training or racing plans.
It did get me thinking that maybe sitting on my rear at work all day has something to do with my problems. Both the doctor and the physical therapist have mostly ruled out spine issues (discs or my tumor) and that’s made me less concerned about my chair or how I sit at the office. But since after just 3 1/2 days away from my desk, I’m feeling this much better – and I’ve been training my tush off – I probably should look and think a little more closely about my desk and chair. The first things I’m going to do are to try to sit up a little more straight and to make a better effort to regularly get up and walk around throughout the day. If in a couple days I’m hurting again, I’ll have to take some more drastic steps at the office.
My training is really picking up now. It has to. It’s now less than eight weeks until the race. Coach John has put me on a five week build and then I’ll get a three week taper. The next five weeks are going to be pretty tough – physically and mentally. But you know what, I feel ready. As much as my little “break” from training in March and April bummed me out, it helped me think about my training and racing in a different light and I’ve come back fired up and ready to go. I feel refreshed and excited, instead of tired, bored and pessimistic. Thank goodness I didn’t throw in the towel. I’m definitely not ready today and I’ll need every single minute of the next eight weeks to get there, but I’m confident that I will get there.
p.s. BPA is short-hand for Bisphenol A. This article from WebMD explains it well, but in summary, Bisphenol A is a chemical that is used in certain types of plastics, including drinking containers such as Nalgene bottles, many popular brands of plastic baby bottles, and the liners of certain canned food and drinks. In tests on lab animals, exposure to small amounts of BPA has been linked to prostate problems, hyperactivity, obesity and other health problems. However, it is still up for debate whether exposure to BPA has similar effects on humans and whether drinking out of products made with BPA can “expose” people to BPA. Some scientists are particularly concerned about the effect on children and pregnant women. As I said in my last post, I’m not sure what I believe – or am worried about – at this point, but if I can avoid it by buying a new $10 bottle, I guess it seems silly not to do so.
Bike – May 24
Distance: 61 miles
Time: 3:46
Average heart rate: 125
Course: West Side Highway, GW Bridge, 9W + hill repeats on Alpine Road
Conditions: Mostly sunny, low and mid-60’s, breezy
Run – May 25
Distance: 12.5 miles
Time: 1:40
Average heart rate: 148
Course: West Side Highway to Central Park, bridal path/reservoir
Conditions: Sunny, warm (low 70’s)
Run – May 26
Distance: 4.75 miles
Time: 40 minutes
Average heart rate: 138
Course: Greenwich Village, Soho, Tribeca, East Village
Conditions: Sunny, 70
Strength – May 26