end of taper wk 1

Wanted to wrap up what I did last week for the sake of complete-ness!

Thursday was an hour z2 run, nice and mellow, just cruised out towards Pololu and back. My leg was feeling pretty good. Heat wasn't an issue because there is a nice breeze here in the afternoon! There are a few hills on this run so I took those pretty easy. Ran about 5.5 miles.
Friday was supposed to be an easy swim at the pool, but Todd decided he was going to swim 42 laps, which was almost exactly the race distance, (1.2miles) so I thought I'd do it too. It was great to get an idea of exactly what that distance feels like. It took me 44:10, which I would be happy with in the race. I was swimming with less effort than I assume I will at the race, but I was also in a lane where there was no chance I'd swim off course, and conditions were nice and flat, obviously. We'll see how it goes! Swimming that distance felt fine, though, not especially exhausting.
Saturday was our last brick. Compared to the previous weeks, this one felt like nothin'! We were supposed to ride 1:45, but I ended up going for 2 hours. First went south towards Mauna Lani, turned around, and headed north, through Kawaihae and then towards Mahukona. Turned around about halfway between mm10 and 11. I think I went a little over 33 miles total. Everything went smoothly, and when I timed particular sections I was right on track. Next time I'm on that course it will be in the race! EEeee!
Next was a 50 minute run, again at a fairly mellow pace. It was hot but not terribly so, and I had enough water and gu and felt fine the whole time. My hamstring ached a little but stopping to stretch seemed to help.
Sunday we took it easy and went snorkeling at Kapa'a near here. No intense swimming, very mellow. FIVE TRAINING DAYS LEFT!

Last week of intense training! Wed, Thurs, Fri

Wed: First thing was 1:30 bike ride with 35 minutes at z4. Rode down to Mahukona and past. I knew something was up because it took me about 5 minutes longer to get to Mahukona than usual, and it's all downhill. Well, so guess what -- I turned around to climb back up, and NO WIND! That's why it took so much longer to get down -- I wasn't getting a push. I have never gotten back from Mahukona so fast. It was so quick I was only 25 minutes in to my 35 minute z4 when I got to town, where it's no longer safe to be in z4! I slowed down, rode to the other end of Kapa'au, and completed my z4 interval out on the other side towards Pololu and back. Did about 25. 5 miles and about 1:30.
Later, 'master's swim'. It was really still and muggy all day, and maybe that was why I felt so lethargic after the ride and getting into the pool, I don't know. It took me a while to get going, but eventually I did. Swam a total of 2350 yards, with a grueling but invigorating main set of 6x200 high intensity intervals. Whew!
Thurs: run at Puako 1:40 all z2. This time I wore a camelbak to make SURE I had enough water. It sure is great to have as much water as I want! Wearing the gear was somewhat annoying but overall it was a nice strong run. Ran 9.5 miles in 1:39, which is a bit faster than Tuesday. My leg didn't bother me at all until about 40 minutes in, and when I stopped to stretch it cleared up again. Started to get tight again during the last 15 minutes or so of the run, but still, getting SO much better!
Friday: easy swim. 35 minutes or so at the pool, about 1500 yards, some pull buoy, kickboard, and single arm drills between laps. Felt great to swim because it's STILL so muggy and wind-free here!