Sunday, March 3, 2013

Arizona Training Camp Day 6 & 7

The weekend has come and gone and it was a fabulous one! The highlights: my 26km run along the sunny Tucson roads, a relaxing hour and half massage, spending some quality time with Mamma and Papa and just enjoying being some place warm.

I was pretty exhausted when I woke up on Saturday morning. I guess I was getting used to the feeling though, because I still hopped out of bed at 6am to do a round of my core routine. Then I made some coffee, had a small pre-run breakfast and relaxed for a little bit. Before too long, I was on the computrainer for a 30' easy spin at high cadence/low power to get my legs ready for my long run. I can't say I was too excited for this particular workout. Past run injuries still haunt me and I still get nervous before a long run. I started out nice and easy and under control. I hadn't run this distance in the past few years so I didn't want to burn out too early. The first 13.5km were a net downhill, but still included a few ups and downs. My legs did not like the ups that's for sure, but I did get rewarded on the downhills. From km 13.5 to 17 it was pretty flat and along a nice path that ran parallel to the used-to-be-river-turned-sandbox at the base of the Catalina Mountains. A few of the cyclists that went by me even commented on my "fast pace" and this helped to motivate me :) When I got to km 17 I knew that the rest of the way was pretty much uphill. There would be a few downhills, but I had to climb about 200m in the next 9km. At least the route was scenic :) As I approached the last 4kms I was on pace for a 2hr run (4'38/km) which is a little slower than my base pace, but considering all the hills and how tired I was this made me happy. Soon enough I was back home and eating a big post-run breakfast. I was officially in "recovery mode"... with no training till Monday!


Pre-run


How did I start of my recovery? With a nice 90 minute massage...I found a massage place about 2km away that offered deep tissue massage. This was just perfect. I guess I needed it, because the RMT said I should have booked 2hrs! However, he was able to get the tightness out of the most crucial spots: low back and the legs. I felt so good afterwards: nice and light. Next on the agenda was some relaxing at homee. I made a caeser (with extra celery salt) and some lunch and played Dominoes with Mamma and Papa. After just 2 rounds I was losing by about 50 points :( I did make a bit of a comeback, but Papa was the overall winner. The rest of the day continued with some champagne, watching the sunset and a nice dinner.


Dominoes



Water (to rehydrate) & a ceaser (for the anti-oxidants!)



Bunny came for a visit



Walking to dinner



Sunset in Tucson



Me enjoying the sunset in Tucson


Sunday morning I was up to say goodbye to Papa...and a few hours I was saying hello again! Papa's flight had been cancelled and he wouldn't be able to leave Tucson until the next day. I can't say I was disappointed :) This meant another day to spend relaxing with him and Mamma...and, even better, was that this called for a sushi lunch. After some sashimi and spicy salmon rolls we headed back to the house and just relaxed all afternoon. I read for a bit, wrote this blog and now I might have a nap. Tomorrow begins with a early swim, a bike and then all out efforts on the treadmill!

No comments:

Post a Comment