Week 2 Recap

So much for keeping up with this daily! Admission: I usually have a little slow time at work in the morning or even over my lunch break. But this past week marked the start of 6 straight weeks where I'll be non-stop from 6:30am to 5pm every day. It'll be a weekly update from here on out - between work and training, there's just not enough hours in the day. Here's a brief recap of the week.

Monday, Day 8
RUN 40min - I actually ran 41:22 minutes so I could hit 5 miles. I like round numbers. Training called to also do Strides, which is short effors of running fast by slowly accelerating allowing fast, quick footstrikes and an efficient form on the upper body. They only last 20 to 30 seconds, but it's not 'sprinting' - it's more like being swift. Anyway, I did it every 5 minutes and felt very good. Averaged an 8:12.

SWIM 40min - Mental toughness day. Did 4x500, alternating between taking it steady and pushing it a bit more. Finished in 37min.

INSANITY - Started Phase 2 today. Workouts got longer and a lot harder! I was kinda cruising through some of the workouts the the first half, but man - my ass got kicked today! 1 hour of cardio and plyo, and my legs were jelly. But I fought through and finished, reminding myself that I sucked on Day 1 with the lesser-intense workouts.

Tuesday, Day 9
BIKE 60min - Not too bad at all. The nice thing about being on a spinning machine is you can watch videos on your phone if you get bored. That's what I did today, because I think it's worse than being on a treadmill. I really can't wait until I get my tri-bike and trainer so I can set them up in the basement and at least have my TV down there.

RUN 30min - had to do this after work. Being a short run it wasn't too bad at all. I took a relaxed pace, averaged 8:22. I know I'm capable of much faster splits, but those will come later. Right now it's all about getting the muscles used to the workload and building up strength.

INSANITY - Another day of kicking my butt. I have to stop more frequently to catch my breath, but I'm not stopping!

Wednesday, Day 10
SWIM 30min - Race-specific day today, between w/u and c/d, did 3x400s, each faster than the last. averaged 1:48, topped out at 1:24!

INSANITY - They aren't getting any easier. I'm sure they will in time, but man - these are killer workouts. I still wonder if I'm going to see any appreciate difference in my physique when this is all done. So far I'm not seeing much (if any) difference. Glad I took 'before' pics.

Thursday, Day 11
RUN 60min - I really do enjoy running. It's interesting introducing Strides into them. I started out very easy, very relaxed, with a first split of 8:49. Each split afterward was faster, with my fastest coming in at 7:55. I thought that was a good sign, since every split was faster than the previous. Finished doing 7.2 miles in 1 hour.

INSANTIY - Perfect day for a recovery day. Still 1 hour of lower-impact cardio and plyo. Still tough, but better than the previous theee days.

Friday, Day 12
BIKE 45min - I didn't feel as strong today as I have previously. I attribute that to not only the tri-workouts, but doing Insanity as well - not much recovery time in-between. But I can do this - professionals push themselves much harder, all day long.

SWIM 30min - Speed day today. This was one of my toughest swim workouts ever. I had to do 20x50s, alternating between strong and fast laps. After the first few laps I wasn't sure if I could make it to the end. But I pushed on through and did it!

INSANITY - Back to 1 hour of cardio. Didn't hurt as bad as Monday, but it still hurt.