August already?

I complain about the heat and humidity quite a bit, but the truth is I LOVE summer.  I get so excited about seeing my training volume grow to 12-15 hours a week, spending hours at a time on my bicycle, logging double digit Sunday long runs, and eating pretty much all of the ice cream in the greater Triangle area.  

June
Swim - 18.6 miles
Bike - 384 miles
Run - 83 miles
Total time - 46:47:44
Total distance - 495 miles

July
Swim - 8.9 miles
Bike - 293 miles
Run - 117 miles
Total time - 42:07:22
Total distance - 429 miles

It seemed like I was doing comparable volume to last year, though I was training for a full and this year only have half iron distance races on the schedule.  I decided to look back, and sure enough my totals were quite similar.  

June 1 – June 30	2015	2016
Total time	46:05:44	46:47:44
Total distance	505	495
Swim distance	11.7	18.6
Swim speed	1.8 mph	1.9 mph
Bike distance	382.3	383.5
Average power	139 W	140 W
Run distance	100.9	82.7
Average speed	7.5 mph	7.1 mph

 If that was a solid base for a strong 140.6 in October, hopefully that is a good sign for what's to come in this fall's 70.3s.

July brought a shift to running and a break from swimming and cycling thanks to a lovely two week vacation in the Pacific Northwest, so I filled the gaps with lots of trail walks and mountain hiking.  It was fantastic to run in pleasant weather rather than the hot, humid, miserable North Carolina summer, so I definitely enjoyed that while it lasted.

Raleigh RunDown Downhill Mile
8th female in 5:08
(A new mile PR with an asterisk)

First female and 2nd overall in the Maggiano's 5K
And kudos to Margaret for winning her age group!

Second female in the Point 262
Short races are so much fun!

Found some inspiration watching
US Olympic Track Trials at Hayward Field

When in Eugene...
Added a 5K to the schedule at the last minute
and surprised myself with a new PR (20:07)

Several of my runs in Oregon included steps...what?!

Exploring trails in Eugene

Trail running with Jenn

More lovely trails

Hiking with Jeannelle

Logged several beautiful miles in Vancouver

Unfortunately a crash during a group ride at the end of the month left me with bruised ribs, a bone bruise on my elbow, and a lot less skin than I started with.  Though I missed a couple of days of workouts and the rib pain kept me out of the pool for a bit, I am thankful that it wasn't worse and that I was able to resume training fairly quickly.  And though the injuries made it impossible to push on the swim or run, I was able to finish second overall at the UNC Wellness Super Sprint just four days after the crash.  Despite the injuries, my time was only 26 seconds slower than last year, so hopefully that's indicative of progress across the board.   In any case, I am grateful to be healing and can't wait to see what August will bring!  

8 weeks and counting!