October 2013 Workouts

Well here we are, month 10 in 2013...man how the time flies! I have staggered workouts for this month. I competed in the Mighty Magnolia Triathlon and the Gulf Coast Spartan Sprint this month...and let me tell you...it was FANTASTIC! Here is how my month shook out...

October 1st: I had a softball game. These always get my intermediate muscles going. Ya know, the ones you forget you have until you have to use them!

October 2nd: SPIN CLASS! for 45 minutes I love this class. I found after my Triathlon it helped to shave off 6 minutes from my time!

October 7th: SPIN CLASS! for 45 minutes

October 8th: One softball game

October 9th: Swim time :) I logged 900 yards in 17:56. I incorporated several 50 yard sprints and two 300 yard swims. I averaged 2 minutes per 100 yards. This was my last swim before the Tri. I did the swim portion of the Tri (including running to transition) in 12:13 and in this practice swim my two 300 yard swims totaled 12:04 for just the swim. So, I think I did pretty good!

October 10th: I was having the best run of my life...or so it seemed! I ran 3.25 miles in 30:22. I could have run 4, which I was aiming for, but I did not plan on the grapes I had for lunch to "interrupt" my workout! I HAD to stop...and that ended my run for that day :( I averages 9:20 per mile...man it felt good! 

October 12th: Mighty Magnolia Triathlon. An additional post was made for this workout.

October 14th: SPIN CLASS! for 45 minutes

October 16th: I ran for 15 minutes on the treadmill to warm up. I went 1.57 miles and averaged 9:33 per mile. Then I did some strength training to help prepare for Spartan. I did the following: 
Squats 2 sets of 10 with 15 pound dumbbell
Dumbbell swings 2 sets of 10 for going straight out, then to one side, and then the other
Military Press 2 sets of 10 with 5lb weights
Tricep kick backs 2 sets of 10 with 5lb weights
Dumbbell butterflies 2 sets of 10 with 5lb weights

October 19th: SPARTAN!! There will be a separate blog about this one! ;)

October 21st: Scott just had to come to a spin class before he went back to work. Well, Ok I thought. At first there was a new instructor. She was quiet and not very energetic. Scott said, "This is easy...I like this". Well...she got sick (aw shucks) and Abby had to take over the class. When she got on the trainer bike, I leaned over and said, "Now the class can begin". After about 10 minutes he screamed, "Why did you make me do this!" Haha it was great, and the class ended well! I decided it was time to take off after that...I needed to let me body rest!

One thing to remember...after a race of any kind that is out the normal realm of your workouts you must let your body rest. Since I had Spartan the next weekend after the Tri I kept going to maintain my endurance. But, once it was all over...I had to let my body rest. I was beat up from Spartan and several of my muscle groups felt as if they had been frogged! 

I will take the rest of October off and see you again in November :) Here's to the next workout! Until then...

April

Gulf Coast Spartan Sprint 2013

There should always be a before picture when there is mud involved!! Here we are Team MSB!

WE ARE SPARTA! Yes, this is what we scream before they say GO! This year, just to be extra special at the start line we had to climb this to even get into the race...

Yes, we had to scale a 7 foot wall to even start the race! This was definitely different from last year! Then, after a few chants we were off!

They say the race is 3+ miles...well this year the plus was 1.65! The whole course totaled 4.65 miles. It was brutal, but fun! We made a vow to stay together as a team...and we did! 

There were numerous walls, crawling in the mud under barbed wire, running through mud and rain, jumping hay bales, and obviously from the picture above...wading through water!! We also did the Hercules pull, cinder block carry, rope climb, and sand bag carry. 

 

It took us almost 2 hours and 50 minutes...but for me, the end result was worth it! I got to strong arm the "Gladiator" at the end and take is stick from him! It was a great ending to a great race! 

Overall our team was tired, restless, and ready to EAT and SLEEP! But, we maintained the qualities of being on Team MSB and in the end we knew what being a Spartan meant! And below...here we are clean...well as clean as a hose of water can get you while about 300 other people are trying to get clean next to you!

If you haven't done a Spartan, or Mud Run, or Tough Mudder...I highly recommend it! It is more about mentally preparing yourself than actually "running". You have to strength train and be prepared to endure the time it takes to finish. The plus to it all...having a team to help you though! 

Here's to the next workout! Until then...

April

Mighty Magnolia Triathlon 2013

Well, here it is...another glorious year of Triathlon training! I, however, did not train as I should have. But, I still did excellent :) I finished 7th out of 28 beginner female participants. Last year I was 19th out of 27. Here are some statistics from last year:

2012
Swim: 12:44
Transition 1: 2:11
Bike: 1:05:01
Transition 2: 0:59
Run: 35:51
Total time: 1:56:48

This year my goals were as follows: 

Swim: take off 1 minute
Bike: take off 5 minutes
Run: take off 3 minutes
Total: take off 9 minutes
And/Or: finish in 1:45:00

First I want to say that I am shocked at my bike time. I did not bike but twice in a year! I did, however, start taking the spin class here at Southern and I seriously will attribute my bike time to that class! Here is how I did:

Swim: 12:13
Transition 1: 2:02
Bike: 59:01
Transition 2: 0:45
Run: 33:32
Total time: 1:47:43

I did not meet the swim goal, but did do better; I blew the bike goal out of the water; I did better in the run but did not meet the goal; and, I did over 9 minutes better this year (9:05 to be exact) even though I did not finish in 1:45:00. I will say this though, I did do the swim in 11:38 so it took me 35 seconds to reach transition (your time does not stop until you reach the transition area). Last year I did the swim in 11:41 and it took me 1:03 to get to transition.

Here is how the day went...it was beautiful! The water was 75.7 degrees and nice when I jumped in...even though I landed on a stick right at the start! I guess I put it out of my mind because it didn't even phase me until after my shower at home! 

I felt good the whole swim. I did not seem tired when I got done, but I did feel worked! I couldn't even feel where I had stepped on a stick right when I jumped in the water...until later that is! I wholeheartedly feel that my bike time can be attributed to the spin classes I have taken lately. I remembered things like keep your feet down and level, use both legs, push through the hill, keep some resistance on your bike, etc. I also didn't pay attention to how far I had traveled, but instead I paid attention to how long I had biked. 

Triathlons are a great transition into other events. It is a great cross trainer for your body too! It also melts my hear to see people participating like the guy who only had one leg, or the 75 year old man who finished...he finished!! It should show others that even when life seems tough, you can still accomplish your goals!

Remember to keep pushing and never quit! Here's to a great workout! Until next time...

April