Posted by Shawn
on May 20, 2008
After what started out to be a fantastic start to the triathlon season, I’m beginning to wonder whether I’m going to hit my races this year. Plagued by a strained hamstring and entirely too much ‘life stuff’, I can’t seem to keep my training consistent. The Hy-Vee Triathlon is a month away and while I think I could probably pull it off with a minimal amount of training, I’m concerned that I may end up sitting the rest of the season out and potentially miss Ironman Wisconsin.
On the other hand, maybe it’s for the best with everything else that’s going on…
- Heading to St. Louis in a couple weeks for a USAT Coach Level 1 clinic which will result in being a certified triathlon coach
- Rina and I will be in San Francisco next month finalizing living arrangements, so that we can get the hell outta Chicago
- Starting in June, I’ll be working on a special personal project (again, more on that later)
So much fun…so little time
Posted by Shawn
on May 09, 2008
I went for my first run in almost 6 weeks yesterday! I’ve been nursing a strained hamstring that just wouldn’t seem to cooperate with my training regime but yesterday I was able to squeeze in a 45 minutes run. It was a bit longer than I probably should have gone but I couldn’t help but push it a little. I went to bed last night wondering whether I would wake up regretting having went so long but I feel surprisingly good. Although I’ve been somewhat active through the recovery, I can definitely tell that I’ve been on the bench…45min is usually an easy run for me but yesterday it was challenging.
Happy to be back…now all I have to do is take some time to ramp up and not re-injure myself.
Posted by Shawn
on May 04, 2008
Rina and I have been feeling a bit sluggish as of late. Too many long work days, travel, dinners, drinks and too few training days. Awoke this morning to plenty of sun and nearly 70 degrees, so we headed to the park with our bells. 
A Kettlebell workout, simply put, is a great way to combine cardio and strength without needing a bunch equipment. Rina’s using a 10lb bell that she calls “my cute lil bell” and I have a 25lb which has no name. Rina is my newest (only:o) convert and was amazed at how ’strong’ she felt after a few workouts. Maybe next time I’ll grab the cam and have her give a demo of her new skill.
It’s gorgeous outside…time to fire up the grill!
Posted by Shawn
on March 30, 2008
Solid ride yesterday but boy was it cold. I ended up calling it good at 2hrs because it was so cold and I had run out of trail. Lakeshore path is good but it can get quite irritating navigating the strollers, bladers and running groups. Such is life…I’m just happy to have it so close to home…it could be worse.
Today’s Training Goals:
- Run: 1:15hrs @ 145-155 BPM
Personal Projects
In addition to logging some miles, I’ve took a few miutes to create a new option to Subscribe to my blog. It’s probably beneficial to the masses i.e. my mom and yah, that’s about it. We’ll see. I’m not sure it really merits a full page but for now that was the quickest way to get it up and running. Nonetheless, I learned couple things while doing it, so it was worth the effort.
I also, set up the Video Projects page which is where I plan to post some personal footage. I picked up a Canon HV20 last year and have taken several hours of footage but have yet to post/share a single snippet. The cam was just the beginning, then I “had” to get a new computer with more power, followed by Final Cut Express for editing and now I “need” a bigger external hard drive and tripod… I could go on but you get the point.
Professional Projects
On Friday I received the USA Cycling study guide and test for my Level 3 Coach certification. Honestly, I was a somewhat unimpressed with the depth of information was provided. I guess since there are 3 levels you have to start somewhere but I was really looking forward to plowing through a bit of detailed information. However, after about 20minutes of thumbing through the study guide, I decided that I can wrap it up in about a week which meant that I needed to begin scheduling the Level 2 clinic. After dashing off an email to USAC I felt better…I just hope the clinic is worth the time/money/energy. My goal isn’t to neccessarily become a cycling coach…I’m more interested in learning as much as I can this year about the swim/bike/run.
Posted by Shawn
on March 29, 2008
It’s a beautiful spring day in Chicago! The sun is out, it’s a little on the cool side and I get to go for a long ride. Honestly though, as I sit here munching on my apple…I’m a bit apprehensive to hop on my bike but the thought of spending 2.5hrs in the spin room is too much to bare. I have to get outside for this one. No excuses. Yesterday’s run was a good because I was able to dial in a pace, albeit on the slow side, for the duration. Today’s Training Goal:
