Race Month! WooHoo! It is here, y'all. The month that I have been training for. The month that was so very far away when I clicked the "submit" button to register for this event. I'm ready. Let's do this.
Last week I rearranged some things and even omitted some things in order to have a weekend at Grandma's house with the girls. I hit it hard Monday through Thursday, swam on Friday morning, and then took the rest of the day, along with Saturday and Sunday off. It was wonderful. I do not feel any guilt over that decision. Now I am fresh and ready to take on these last two weeks before taper.
It was another week of all trainer miles. That makes two full weeks. I was a wind/rain weeny and stayed in doors, but I tried to keep the effort level high as I would outside. The workouts went well, and I enjoyed some runs out in the fall rain.
I got an email this week from IM Cozumel. Some athletes went and did a training session on the official route for the race and had some interesting things to report:
When describing the swim they said you have to see it to believe the beauty. Crystal clear for the entire loop with lots of marine life. There is a current that you face heading out that you have at your back to the finish.
When they started the bike portion, the temperature was 79 degrees with 80% humidity and 5-10 mph winds. At the 20k mark to the 40k mark you are out at the end of the island that is undeveloped and open. The temp had risen to 87 degrees and 90% humidity with a 15 mph "front wind". I was assuming this is a head wind, but they talk about a strict policy of no disc wheels due to frequent strong cross winds, so I guess it is mainly a side wind. For this section of the ride they describe riding side by side with the Caribbean sea and deserted beaches, calling it "very impressive". We will loop through this area 3 times. Heading back into town the wind dies down again and the temp and humidity remained the same.
When they started to talk about the run they began by saying that "physical performance in such challenging weather conditions as in Cozumel is a concern." They go on to stress the importance of nutrition and hydration that include carbohydrates and sodium to avoid excessive blood dilution. By the time they had reached the run portion of the training session, humidity was at 100% with the temp hovering near 90 degrees.
This is very valuable information. I knew that it would be humid, but because our weather has changed here and I am training in cool conditions, I might have been less concerned to plan for such extreme conditions. Now I have made it top priority in planning my nutrition and hydration.
Totals for last week:
Week C10
swim:1:45 6000
bike: 7:30 138 miles
run: 4:35 32.55 miles
total: 13:50
This week's schedule:
swim: 3:00
bike: 8:00
run: 4:30
total: 15:30
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