Well, week one of IMCDA training is in the books! It was a chilly week one for California, but nothing too crazy. In fact, I must admit that it didn’t feel so much like Ironman training, but rather a week of completely manageable, yet scheduled, workouts. They were all short in distance and time as I get my ankle (and body) back up to speed.
It’s frickin’ freezin in California!
Week 1
Monday, 1/14: Swim & Long Run
Hot damn it was cold that morning. Shivering on the ledge I took the plunge and just jumped in. Soon I realized that I have a lot of swimming work to do to regain my old fitness and I need to take it easy on my ankle. A majority of the 1,400 yards used the pull buoy.
Also, Mondays (for now) are my long run days to ensure that I have at least one weekend day to spend with Chicken Face. But this “long run” was just 3.5 miles.
Tuesday, 1/15: Indoor Ride
Simply 40 minutes on the trainer, all at 90+ RPM. It still got me nice and sweaty.
Wednesday, 1/16: Swim
Lola is not impressed with these workouts.
1,400 yards with the a mix of regular swimming and the pull buoy. Pretty standard.
Thursday, 1/17: Indoor Ride & Run
Another 40 minute ride on the trainer at 90+ RPM and a 2.5 mile run on the treadmill. Like I said…the turtle wins this race.
Friday, 1/18: Run & Core
With the approval from my PT earlier this week, I got the approval to run outside for the first time in 10+ weeks! I was nervous and frightened that I’d slip and eat in on secret, evil black ice, but alas, I survived 2.5 outdoor miles. But hot damn do I have a lot of work to do. What the hell happened to my speed?
Saturday, 1/19: Long Ride
If only all “long rides” could be an hour on the trainer at 90+ RPM.
Sunday, 1/20: Long Run
As mentioned earlier, all of my long runs are scheduled for Monday. But it was finally a beautiful day and Chicken Face said he’d go with me, so I couldn’t pass it up. We ran 4.2 miles outside, together, very slowly. It was lovely being with him, but the mental games I’m playing on my lack of speed are quite frustrating. Le sigh…patience young one, patience.
I closed out week 1 with:
5 hours and 14 minutes of training:
2,900 yards swimming
35 miles cycling
12.8 miles running
How do you prevent getting frustrated when coming back from an injury?
Happy Running!
Great week!!! You are officially Ironman training ! Keep up the weekly updates, I like reading them!
Congrats on week one! It’s frustrating to have to ease back into something. After I had abdominal surgery in August and wasn’t allowed to even lift anything heavier than my purse, much less workout, I went crazy. Then at the 6 week mark I got clearance and decided to jump into Marathon Training! Because, why not?! And my runs were slow, but they got faster. And they were what I needed at the time. And looking back, I’m glad I didn’t push myself to injury at that point, because I did run my marathon! And you’ll be the same way! You’re such a speedster; you’ll gain that back in no time. Just remember that it’s the end result that you’re working towards, and there’s no one holding a gun to your head to be fast right now. Nice start Page! I’m excited to follow!
Good luck with the training!
I do think that the beauty of tri-training is that, even when coming back from an injury and dealing with a loss of stamina/fitness, you can usually do 2 out of the three sports. That has helped me feel less frustrated than if I were totally sidelined.
I think it’s helpful to keep your frame of reference in check. Like, don’t compare yourself to your pre-injury self, but think about how far you’ve come since your injury. You’ve already come SUCH a long way from the sprain, both physically and emotionally. Just keep on the up-and-up. You’ll get there eventually.
Good luck on your comeback! You’ll do great! I’m not coming back from injury but had to take a lot of time off due to my health reasons. Iv’e gotten so much slower which is so sad and humbling. I think we just have to be diligent and it will all come back!
YOU’RE OFFICIALLY TRAINING! WOOHOO!
In theory I would love to make my post-injury workouts all social ones so I could just enjoy the friendship and not care about speed, but in reality I get stressed out that I’m slower than normal and that I might have to turn around early, so I usually end up going alone. My actual motivation ends up being loading up all my favorite podcasts (or TV shows, if it’s inside)!
Yay! It`s a comeback! Congratulations! I`m looking forward to the race report already, and of course following you every step along the way on your journey to the Ironman! Stay focused, stay healthy, stay safe
Yay for a successful week if IM training!
I’m feeling you on the frustration front. I had the flu weeks ago and still struggle with my breath.
All I can say is a slow or short training session is much better than no training session at all!
Woo hoo! Nice work Page
I have a love hate relationship with pull buoys, but they REALLY help your upper body strength and your body will thank you on IMCDA race day! and YAY for CF running with you 
Try not to be frustrated by lack of speed, it will come back so fast! Plus YOU ARE RUNNING! OUTSIDE! This is so great. It just takes time to get it back, but it WILL be back. <3 <3 <3 and YOU are back my friend!
Don’t focus on what you “used” to be able to do. Just focus on what is happening now. You will get there eventually…You just have to give yourself some time!!
Congrats on the outdoor run!! So exciting!!!
Thank you! Slow and steady wins the race I suppose
Awesome – you are doing it! Frustration aside – you are making it happen!
You can’t really prevent getting frustrated, I don’t think. Instead look at it as diverting the frustration when it comes up. “Looky! I’m not injured anymore!!!! WOOO HOOO!” Good luck to you!
Thank you!! It’s still a struggle but gotta try and stay positive.
Hooray for running outside again! It was rough when I was coming back from injury…I was soooo slow and distances that used to be a warm up felt so long! Multiple people reminded me that there is joy in the journey, and I always reminded myself how happy i was just to be out running again. The speed and endurance will come back sooner than you think!
You’re so right, Susan. But it’s a matter of telling my mind to connect with the heart
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