Fall Training Plan - Let's Get it Together

This has been a good summary of me lately.  With the triathlon season over, my daughter starting kindergarten, work ramping up, car issues - you name it, it seems like it is happening.  I had some vague thoughts about what to do with myself in this, the "off season", but alternating between manic bouts of race registration and hard core training and collapsing into exhausted puddles for days at a time isn't really a training plan.  There was comfort in my triathlon training.  Swim twice, bike twice, run 3 times per week.  I didn't always MAKE it, but at least there was a goal for each week, and the Title 9 sprint triathlon as the light at the end of the tunnel (whether it was the end or a train is debatable - depends on the day).

Unfortunately, this is ALSO what I feel like.  My kids activities become mine, and suddenly I have work, being a grown-up (cooking dishes laundry cleaning WHAT?) in addition to all of their dance lessons, swim lessons, soccer practices to coach, etc.  There are trick words to read every night, bags must be filled every night with items starting with a certain letter (I'm sure that his teacher giggles when she assigns "X" and "Q"), and many many PTO meetings, fundraisers, and announcements to ignore.  I mean, participate in and file.  Ahem.

My training schedule was my crutch against the anxiety and the crazy for most of the summer.  Now.. no crutch.  No specific goals in the immediate future.  Drifting.  I'm like a giant version of a newborn that needs to be swaddled in a specific blanket, bounced a certain way, and put down with all the light turned off.  If it's not a routine, I don't sleep.

So, it's time to get serious and make a schedule and goals for the fall.  My goals for the fall are:

• Strength train 2x per week
• Work on building an injury-free base for running
• Spend more time with friends and having fun
• Play outside as much as possible (I love fall)
• Calm the heck down.  (this goal is the over-arching goal of my life, not just the fall)

To that end, here's the new training schedule for the Cupcake Triathlete:

Sunday - Crosstrain (bike), races for fun, hiking, or rest

Monday - Rest.  Mondays are good rest days

Tuesday - Early morning 5:45 Boot Camp workout at the gym

Wednesday - Run (lunch or morning - outside if possible)

Thursday - Zumba/Boot Camp in the evenings with friends

Friday - meet the family at little guy's swim lesson and either swim or run

Saturday - run in between the 2 kids soccer practices, preferably with a buddy

This plan has plenty of built in time for friends, for the family, maximizes outside time while still using my wicked expensive gym membership at least twice a week.  And only one day a week of getting up a dark o'clock.  Now, about the running: 

I do solemnly swear to lose the chip on my shoulder about "short" runs and stick to my 10K training plan.

Let me say that again....

I do solemnly swear to lose the chip on my shoulder about "short" runs and stick to my 10K training plan.

I started following the Pearsports 10K training plan a couple of weeks ago (I swear I'll do that product review any day now).  Meaning that I did the first workout, a 25 minute run in Zone 2 with a warm-up and cool-down of 5 minutes in Zone 1, and decided that I was light years ahead of that (I've raced 10ks and am a triathlete for crying out loud!) and discarded it, running four milers instead.  Well.  You know how that turned out.  

Resistance training

So today I grabbed my Pear system and my best training buddy and did the 10k "1.2" workout.  25 short minutes, just like before.  I ran exactly 1.5 miles.  Pushing a stroller with a 4 year old, but still.  It hardly felt worth getting sweaty for.  BUT this kind of plan is what will get me to a solid base, so lose the attitude, sister!

I will be as chill as my little guy.....

Runs will not be longer than 6 miles.  Workouts will not be longer than an hour.  I will have plenty of time for self torture come the winter and half-marathon and half-ironman training.  Fun, aerobic base, maintaining the fitness and weight loss I earned this summer, and sanity are the goals here.

Besides fall is gorgeous, and you can stop to take nice photos during Zone 2 runs