Mon: unscheduled rest day due to (stoopid) work
Tue: after last Friday's run, my *good* hip was sore (WTF!). I decided to go back to my mini walk/shuffle (25mins) loop. Then lunch saw a 2km swim to make up for the fact that I missed swim squad last night
Wed: Back on the windtrainer (for the last time in a week) for Spinervals Uphill Grind DVD (45mins)
Thu: rest (travelling to Queenstown)
Fri-Sun: spent 3 days at a PT mentorship program run. Amazing, amazing time. It has really changed my whole view about how I see the body & how I can use the tools I now have to help clients make the changes they want to make. I've basically been learning how to read the feedback the body gives us & how to feed it intelligent movement; the movement it needs to function optimally. Unfortunately few of us - myself included - actually listen to it. A big lesson for me personally is not just the importance of rest and recovery but why from hormonal
level and how lifestyle stress (sleeping, nutrition, mental & emotional stress) can completely undermine our best (training) intentions & efforts. I think the hardest part is now going to be practising what I preach. It has been a brilliant time spent surrounded by passionate people whose brains I picked incessantly between sessions.
Friday was spent largely in the board room of the beautiful resort hosting it learning about the systems and science behind why & how we do things (with some practical 'challenges' thrown in). Saturday morning was another morning spent on the theory. Then after lunch it was off on a short drive to the local sporting grounds 'playing' for 1.5hrs in the sun with reaction, agility, quickness drills (amongst many other things) before heading inside to the pool for a 45mins rest and recovery session
Sunday was spent applying the tools we learnt over the weekend before heading to the 'beach' by the lake for a play with the ViPR
Mon: one spare day in Queenstown & there was only one thing to do; head to the hills. I had organised a climb to the summit of the Remarkables which tower over Queenstown-
The weather didn't look promising when I woke on Monday morning. The lake and mountains were blanketed in low clouds & rain had settled over the town so we made the decision to push back our start by 2 hrs until 10am; as the sun didn't set until 10pm we weren't likely to be short on daylight. I must admit that part of me was hoping it would be cancelled as I was feeling very tired after a big weekend. But by the time 10am rolled around, the weather had started to clear so we set off.
After a spectacular drive up to the ski field, we had about 700m in elevation gain to get to the summit. This took about 4 hours of rock hopping, rock scrambling, ice climbing up a narrow chute & then traversing a narrow ridge to the summit. I took a little bit of a tumble at one stage which seems to have upset my dodgy ankle (ie, the one I just about destroyed before my o/s travels about 2 years ago) but otherwise it was a great day.
The low cloud remained all day obscuring any view except for a short window about 20mins after we arrived on the summit so I could get the obligatory summit photos.
It was great to get my 'mountain fix' and start making plans for a return in the not too distant future.
Tue: rest (travel home)
Wed: rest - 9hrs sleep, day off work spent unpacking, tidying up & writing business plans :-)
Thu: up at 5am for a 70min windtrainer session in the garage. It was nice to get back on the bike after not having ridden it for a week. 27.19km.
Fri: R, Mini Mango & I were up at 5.20am to head down to the Regatta Centre for an open water swim with the Panthers Tri Club. Covered about 1.2km in total, slowing increasing the distance ahead of my next big 'swim' event; the 2km Cole Classic swim in February.
Sat: after Ma's baked dinner on Friday night, I was up early in order to meet Tiger Angel at Hornsby at 6.30am for a 4.5 hour long ride. It was cool in the shade when we started but quickly warmed up. A tough, hot & hilly ride. I can't say I feel more confident about the Alpine Classic after the ride but at least I don't feel less confident :-O 89.3km in 4:27
Sun: another day, another ride - this time 95mins. I really struggled with the decision about which way to go; whether to take the flatter (easier) route or ride up Lapstone Hill to Blaxland. In the end my bike steered itself in the direction of Lapstone Hill; it seems the prospect of the Alpine Classic being only 6 weeks away is making Tenzing, my bike, nervous too. Finished with 33.01km in 1:33 making a total 1,353m in elevation gain on the bike this weekend. No wonder my legs are tired today!
With the silly season ahead, it's going to be a tiring week. But I have 2 weeks off work from Christmas Eve to look forward to :-D
November total
Swim: 15.5km
Bike: 402.1km
MTD:
Swim: 1.2km
Bike: 168.1km
3 comments:
Jen, the view from the top of The Remarkables is spectacular isn't it! We were there in the last school holidays for 2 days and had 1 day of skiing, I took the opportunity to take the chair up towards the summit and then climb up in the snow for some great views and self portraits!
PT training sounds like a lot more fun than a "normal" day job!!!!
Jen, this Alpine Classic is going to be a breeze.
You've been busy! Not as tardy as Ruth in keeping your blog up to date (she let it go for a month).
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