4 Months To Go!

Ironman Arizona is just 4 months away and boy does it feel more imminent than ever when I look at my training schedule. 

Shit’s getting real, y’all.

I’m once again reminded why that having such a solid base phase for my year pays off.  Because even though it ended 3 months ago, cranking out my longest workouts of the year doesn’t feel nearly as difficult as I would expect.  And that makes me less nervous about the upcoming weeks where – holy cow – I’ve got some long work to do.

*squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee*

That was the sound of me jumping for joy at getting to ride long.

I’ve made a few changes to things to get myself into full-bore IM training mode in the healthiest way possible and will talk about that a little more in another post.  Anyway, sitting here on the cusp of big training, and buoyed by a morning where I nailed my key brick of the week, a short list of things I am grateful for when it comes to training for this Ironman:

• As always, I’m grateful to my husband for not only not telling me I’m crazy and should stop doing this stuff but helping me do it in all the ways he can (anything from going along for Molly’s Crazy Ride of the Weekend to feeding the dogs while I’m at the pool).  He puts up with a lot when it comes to the fast pace life with me seems to run these days!
• I am grateful for so many friends for support, well wishes, training companionship, jokes, commiseration, and product recommendations!
• I’m grateful for my coach for getting me so much further than I ever imagined when we first started together.  She had her work cut out for her with me!
• I’m grateful for my brand new iPhone, for allowing me to download TV shows that I’m too tired to watch by the time evening rolls around and instead watch them on my bike trainer, where it nestles perfectly into my aerobars.
• I’m grateful for my not-so-secret weapon Recovery e21 that keeps me bouncing back from every tough training day to face the next.  I’ve got some more samples to share so if you haven’t tried it yet, ping me and I’ll send you some.  And if you’ve already discovered how awesome it is, don’t forget the coupon code on the right side of this blog.
• I’m grateful to Concept Cyclery for helping me get the bike and fit that makes riding so much more fun (and fast!).  I can’t believe how much better the long distance mileage (and my butt) feels this time around.  THANK YOU, Bruce!
• And for now, I’ll end by saying I’m grateful to summer, for finally showing up.  ~60 degrees for morning dog walks, masters swim, and runs, ~80 degrees in the afternoon.  I love me a Northern California summer.