20 weeks and counting...

12 weeks down and 20 to go to Ironman Germany. Leaving only 33 weeks to Kona (if we qualify) since we started our blog!!! Time is whizzing away and with 12 solid weeks of base training under my belt, culminating in a 80-90 mile ride today I'm hoping to go into week 1 of 20 ready for action.

It looks like 'the foot' is coping well surviving a 16 mile run on Thursday evening (the longest I've run on it since last September) and two consecutive runs in a row :) I'm still strapping it and have another appointment at the podiatrist this week so I'm still being very cautious, I can do without it becoming a recurring injury throughout the season. So if I can just maintain my running I'll be pleased as I don't expect much in the way of speed out of them just yet.

I've managed to get some great miles in on the bike and some hill sessions to try and strengthen those legs of mine (god I hate hills!) The proof of my cycling improvement I can only gauge in a race but I really hope the work I've put in so far is going to make a difference.

I'm swimming better than I ever have too. Solid 15-16km weeks with a good mix of speed, endurance and technique sets are seeing me swimming strongly.

Ironman training is relentless. No sooner have you finished a session you're already fuelling and recovering for the next one, either that afternoon or the next day. This year we've managed to get to bed a lot earlier than we used to and it's more often than not that we're actually asleep before 8.30pm. Going to bed so early makes the 5am alarm calls seem normal now.

I'm not far from race weight too. We both made a conscious effort to try and get the majority of weight off while we were base training as we didn't want to start the 20 weeks having to watch our food intake so carefully when the intensity will be going up. So things are good in the world of Ironman. All I have to do now is survive this next 20 weeks.

Racing starts in March with a duathlon called The Ballbuster. It's an 8 mile run, 24 mile bike, 8 mile run. It's hard and it's hilly and last year I did really well. This year I don't expect the same out of my runs due to 'the foot' issues but I'm hoping to see an improvement in the bike, that's my aim for this year, hopefully my running will eventually catch up to where I was but if I can just consolidate that and not get too bogged down with how I was running last year then things should be just fine.

Who knows what the next 20 weeks will have in store but it's time for the hard work to begin.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. Aristotle

See you out there.

H. x