June 3-9: I Swam Across the &^%$ Chesapeake Bay

Although Ironman Mont Tremblant is rapidly approaching, and we have way, way less than 100 days to go, I wasn’t running or biking much last week. Instead, I had a little bit of rest to prepare for the 4.4 Mile Great Chesapeake Bay Swim on Sunday.

I didn’t meet the loose goal time I’d set, and will talk about the swim more later this week, but it was absolutely awesome to swim across a body of water like that.

It was so much fun that after I finished, I asked if I could swim back, but was told that I would have to drive. Rude.

Monday: Rest day.

Tuesday: 3100 meters of swimming, with a few fast 100s, at the YMCA in Goodyear, AZ, before a day of meetings and then a late-night trip home.

Wednesday: In the morning, 45 minutes of race-week targeted strength training – in other words, a few lunges and squats and some core work, followed by a ludicrous amount of foam rolling/trigger point work/stretching. In the evening, a 5.75 mile fartlek run with no watch, because the one I brought to the track didn’t work.

I probably didn’t want to know my pace anyway.

Thursday: A 1:15 bike trainer workout, with two longer zone 3 intervals, in the morning. Then 2400 meters of swimming in my building’s outdoor pool in the rain. The lifeguards couldn’t  believe I was actually swimming, but, hey, I was going to get wet anyway, right?

Friday: An easy 5.4 mile run in the morning (9:15/mile), through the rain brought on by Tropical Storm Andrea.

Saturday: A 25 mile bike ride up to Potomac in the morning, then chilling out before splashing around in the pool for 15 minutes to loosen up at night.

Sunday: Great Chesapeake Bay Swim! 4.4 miles of swimming (WITHOUT a wetsuit, in a field that was 85+% covered in neoprene) in 2:27:40.