Status update

It's officially official: I am registered for the Graniteman Triathlon on July 9th! This is for real now. And since it's for real, let me update y'all on the triathlon situation. My group of friends doing the tri has been slowly dwindling; so now only one other guy and I are registered. How does that phrase go again--the few, the proud? ... I wonder if I can apply that to non-Marines. 

I am spending a fair amount of time in a marine setting (like that segue? Nice, yes?) as I still attempt to learn to swim. I feel more and more confident and relaxed in the water, which is exactly what I need to be feeling. On Wednesday, I swam a ladder (in 25-yard lengths: 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1) over my lunch break and it was fabulous. I think that 5 lengths (2 1/2 laps, 125 yards) is the longest I've gone so far--but today I'm planning to squeeze a set of at least 3 laps (150 yards) into my workout once or twice. My Wednesday ladder totaled 625 yards, which is getting close to the 750 I'll need to get to before the tri. So the distance begins to seem manageable--I just have to figure out how to do it without stopping! Killer.

As far as the other two sports involved in the triathlon go: My biking habits are sadly lacking at present. I popped my rear bike tire just before the first big snow last fall; and since that snow never went away, not to mention that it's been snowing every 36 hours since then, I just haven't gotten around to fixing it. (I am not yet hardcore enough to bike all winter long--next year though!) That's high on my to-do list. Once I get a new tire, I'll be biking everywhere again, and I'm really looking forward to it. Yes, it's still cold. But I would rather bike 20 minutes in the cold than walk 45 minutes in the cold, especially now that the snow is starting to melt during the day and turn the sidewalks into long, skinny skating rinks. I also plan to take a spin class or two at my gym once training "officially" starts. I'm still in the pre-training, I think. Now that I mention it, though, I'm not entirely sure when I actually do start real training. Better look into that...

And what about running? you ask--How's that going? Well, my friends, it's going. I have been running at the gym occasionally; I'd guess once or twice a week. I've generally only gone a mile or so, because I tend to run after lifting weights. After about an hour and a half at the gym, I start to feel like a gym rat and need to leave immediately. But enough excuses--I ran just over 2 miles the other day and started to remember that I sometimes do enjoy runs in the 20-to-40-minute time range. I'm even thinking about the 5K at the end of the triathlon; should I try to increase my speed some on this run? It'll be at the end of the event, so maybe I will want to die. On the other hand, it'll be at the end of the event, so maybe I'll have crazy amounts of adrenaline and will just fly the entire run. But I ran the Twin Cities 10-Mile at well over a 10-minute mile pace, maybe 10.30 or so. I'd like to do 3 miles (5K) at a faster pace, I think. And if I want to go faster, I better set a concrete goal so I can train with that in mind. I think a 9-minute mile is feasible... What about 8? Or 7:30? Any thoughts on this one?