Game's on!

I did make up a provisional training schedule last night, and so I had a satisfying feeling as I did this run that it was my first 'real' focused workout of the season (I've been exercising quite a bit but just with general 'get back into shape after particularly taxing school year' vibe).  It's very muggy outside - I was subjectively overheated as soon as I started my intervals.  Looks like we're expecting a heat wave over next few days; if it's horrible on Thursday, I'll do my run on the track inside at Chelsea Piers...

1hr run with zone 3 intervals (15min warmup, 6 x 4min Z3, 1min recovery, 15min cooldown)

Beast/spin!

This past week has been a hard one for me - really I do best at home doing my own thing, and trips to Cambridge and Philadelphia were exhausting!  Back here now till I leave to see B. on Friday the 29th.  Need to sit down later this evening and make a training schedule; trying to figure out work deadlines too...

1hr boot camp
1hr spin

+ 10 miles round-trip bike

Spin/yoga!

Particularly good spin class.  Three sets: (1) 10 x 1min hard, :30 easy (seated, gear medium-hard, cadence 95-105 for work interval); (2) 5 x 1min hard, :30 easy (standing, hardest gear sustainable); (3) 10 x 1min hard, :30 easy (standing, cadence 60-65 for work intervals and 35-40 for rest, starting medium-hard and raising gear to hardest possible by end of set).

:50 spin
1:00 restorative yoga

Short run

Home in NYC.  42:00, c. 4 miles

Short run!

Rainy pleasant running weather, though perhaps a bit muggy.  Kept it short due to anxiety re: time, but back is much better.

32min, c. 3 miles

Beast/spin!

Thoroughly satisfactory pair of workouts.

1hr boot camp
1hr spin

Trial run!

That was great - my back is now noticeably worse than it was before I started, but not actually painful, so we will consider that a win.  (I would say it's about 60-70% better - will be careful not to compound it with reinjury or overuse.)

10 minutes warmup, then 6 x 3min hard,* 1min recovery, then cooldown jog home

43min total (c. 4 miles)

*I took out my Garmin for the first time this week in a while, and it doesn't seem to be working properly - I think it's probably just at the end of its lifespan.  Have ordered a simpler Suunto monitor that I can use for HR zone training on runs and that is compatible with the system at the cycling studio.  Hopefully that will suit my needs - I don't really need the GPS as such, but if this one turns out to be too minimal I may replace the Garmin next year.

Spin/yoga

Spin class was great - Saturday morning trip to Chelsea Piers is one of my favorite points in the week.  Did restorative yoga afterwards, also very good.

1hr spin
1hr restorative yoga

Beast/spin!

I had a painful but effective sports massage on Wednesday afternoon and took Thursday off to let it 'settle' - I need to get rid of this back injury, it's making me very grumpy not to be able to run at a prime time of the running year! It felt a lot better this morning, but I think boot camp may be contraindicated for another week or so, as there were several things that really triggered discomfort.  Spin class was excellent.

1:10 boot camp
:50 spin

Strength/spin

I skipped the Beast because I thought my back would do better with a strength workout not involving any running or high-intensity intervals; this was sensible.  I'm not crazy about the Wednesday midday spin class; I think I will start using that slot to do something else, maybe swim or run.

1hr strength
:50 spin

Yoga!

About 10 yards of running told me my back would prefer it not to, so I listened to reason and stopped and went to 5:45 yoga instead.  Yoga's slightly intense too, and I was cautious on twists and backbends.  Hope this back thing is thoroughly better soon - seems like the two things to avoid are sitting at desk (I've set laptop up at standing height instead) and running, other stuff is OK, don't feel it when walking - it must be said that 5 hours post-yoga, this is the best it's felt all day, so that's something...

1.25hr yoga

Beast/spin!

I was the sole attendee for boot camp, which makes the time pass a bit more slowly (no banter/camaraderie!) but isn't inherently bad.  Spin class very good - my legs had more vim in them than on Saturday.

1hr boot camp
1hr spin

Elevation

A postscript on training thoughts.  I'm going to be doing most of my bike training for the Shawangunks inside, I suspect - might try and get out to do hill repeats at Alpine (can take bike on Lamont Observatory bus so as to avoid having to ride on the dreadful path over the bridge - coming back it's not so bad, for reasons having to do with the way the approach is set up), but am not going to sweat it if that doesn't really happen.  (The surface on that road was so bad last summer that I almost couldn't deal with the downhill, but the IMNYC course includes that route and I know they either have already or will soon resurface the road.)  But the elevation profile for the Shawangunks bike leg is pretty insane. It's not a long ride, only about 28 miles, but the last five miles include over a thousand feet of elevation gain.  So I should do a two-hour trainer workout that starts easy/steady and then includes a 30- to 40-minute climb in the last part, followed by at least 30 minutes running off the bike...

Spin...

Did Joanna's 10am class, which featured - insanely - a 27-minute climb as the main work interval!  Back wasn't painful as such but felt extremely tight towards the end of the hour, so I decided to skip the second spin class and instead go to restorative yoga.  Makes me feel sheepish to log that as exercise, it is not really, but Thursday's yoga brought home to me that I really need to let my back muscle recover for some days before trying strenuous yoga again - this one was well suited to current needs.

1hr spin
1hr restorative yoga

Beast/spin

It was very good - the boot camp is just really challenging, but when it's over you feel a huge sense of accomplishment.  Spinning also good. 

I do not like massage - I am one of those who only resorts to it on very rare occasions when I actually have an injury! - but I did get an "express" sports massage at Chelsea Piers once I was done working out.  I've scheduled a longer one for next week: it's my best guess that I slightly pulled a muscle in my back early last week from overuse, and that now everything else in there is too tight and slightly out of whack.  Pain had mostly gone away by Wednesday but is back again now, due to some combination of exercise and (most likely) sitting too many hours in the chair at the computer.  Am going to move chair actually away from desk so that I'm not tempted to sit in it for many hours reading things online!

1:20 boot camp
:48 spin