For the first time since I really started working out this summer, I feel absolutely exhausted. I think it is not entirely physical exhaustion as it is more sleep deprivation. Despite waking up at 7am or earlier every weekday morning, I still only go to bed around 1am or later. This level of exercise must be met by a similar level of rest, which means 7-8 hours of sleep every night, which I have not been getting. I think the lack of sleep has finally caught up to me this week.
Aside from that, I feel really pretty spectacular about my fitness level right now. I honestly think that this is the most fit that I have ever been. Back when my mom used to make me swim 1000 meters every day at the pool, I was fit, but I could only swim breaststroke at a pretty moderate pace. No running, no nothing. High school was a bit different in that I was playing basketball and doing a little bit of swimming, but never at the intensity that I am doing now.
This morning, I did a few 100m time trials at the pool, and completely shocked myself. Just yesterday, I was telling my friend Kristen that I would be happy if I could bring my 100m time below 2 minutes. My fastest 100m this morning was 1:41, and this is after only about 3 weeks of swimming regularly with no coach. It made me pretty happy thinking that with this as a starting point, I can improve my stroke efficiency with a coach this fall and hopefully get to a point where I can keep a 1:50/100m pace for 500-1000m.
On the cycling front, 12 miles for the sprint distance should be no problem at all. I need to focus on training to keep my cadence high, especially when I am already very tired.
And finally running, my weakest. I have come to realize that running is mentally challenging for me. First off, I have this mental barrier that I can’t run more than a mile, and second, I just can’t push myself as hard in running as I can cycling or swimming. I give up much more easily running than I do the other two sports.
With that said, Hector and I ran about 2 miles yesterday morning at a 10min/mile pace. That for me is such an accomplishment, even though I felt that I was holding him back. What is even more amazing is the fact that I ran those 2 miles cold. The last time I ran was about 3-4 weeks ago, and then I could barely complete 1 mile. What made the difference? I serioulsy think that my endurance (lung & cardiovascular capacity) has significantly improved over the past month due to the regular swimming. That makes me pretty happy because I enjoy swimming a whole lot more than running, so even as I dodge running to go swim, I can feel that I am still remotely contributing to my running fitness.
The ultimate short(er)-term goal is the Boston Triathlon on Labor Day. Hector, Phil, and I plan to do a relay, though I think that I am ready to do the whole sprint distance by myself. Never in a million years would I have ever imagined myself ready for a triathlon at this point in my life.