After Week 20

Week 20 is the last full week before Ironman Arizona (each week beginning on Monday, thus next week includes Ironman Arizona on Sunday).

What started off as a good week quickly went to hell in a hand basket.  It was already scheduled to be a relatively light training week.  I got to use one of my new toys, and it proved even more effective than I would have imagined.

I looked forward to testing my shoulder, now with the aid of ibuprofen, on a schedule Sunday morning open water swim.  It was also to be a test to see what kind of swim speed I can maintain on a slightly-bum left shoulder.

But alas.  Come Saturday, shortly after my cycling/run session, I quickly deteriorated to a heaping, curled up ball of pain on my bed for the majority of the rest of the weekend.  The culprit? Stomach flu.  Robbed me of one last weekend of training (even if not heavy), as well as upsetting my sleep schedule and meal schedule.  Though I was pretty much out of the woods by weekend's end, the effects of the virus is still evident - a bit less appetite and a seemingly more fragile gastrointestinal system.

Even with all of that though, I do feel fairly prepared.  Months of training is not going to be derailed by a few days' illness - and thank goodness this did not happen on race weekend.  Each passing day I get a little bit better, so hopefully by the time I leave for Arizona, I'll be back to 100%.

Bike: 50.6 miles + 120 min on the trainer

Run: 5.5 miles
Swim: 4375 meters (2.71 miles)

Total Time:  7:41 hours