Stayin' Alive, in Week Twenty-Five

The IronMaiden has completed her maiden ride on the trainer, and I think she's gonna be a great bike. I had a 2 hour ride on Friday night and while the time didn't exactly fly by, it was better than the 2 hour ride I had last Sunday. I looked at the forecast for the week and it looks like spring is starting to creep into Iowa. The highs for next weekend might be close to 60, so if the winds are less than 30mph, I may get to venture outside for a ride! Along with the new bike, I also bought a new helmet and pedals (but no shoes to use with the new pedals...). When I've got everything, I'll post a picture of me in action!

My running group (Team 12.4) started this Tuesday. It was a rather exciting start as the heavens opened late Monday night and dropped about 6 inches of snow. I almost thought I was going to have to cancel the first night, but in true Iowa form, it warmed up throughout the day and we had a really nice evening for our first run. I have about 20 people signed up this year - wide age and ability ranges. We met again on Saturday morning for our first "long run:" 4 miles. That was the upper limit for at least half the group; some of them will be setting PR for distance on every weekend for the next 10 weeks. It's exciting to be helping people do something they never dreamed they could accomplish. However, for me, 4 miles is just a start, especially for a long run... so I got to run home after the run to get another 2.5 miles.

The Parks and Rec is also putting on a triathlon training group for beginners this spring. Although I am not leading this group, it is great for me because I can get a little extra pool time on Tuesday mornings and help spread the love of the sport at the same time! Three people showed up on Tuesday morning this week, even with all the snow coming down. I think it will turn out to be a very good program, but this is the first year and it's hard to get something like this started.

Sparkle and I were trying to get out of town as soon as possible on Saturday to get to Kansas City for a show put on by the big distributor we use at the shop, so the week's training schedule had to be rearranged a bit. Sunday's long ride was done on Friday night and that makes Sunday a rest day! Probably one of the only times that will happen until September.

I bought another ticket to Colorado to see Lauren & Sophie and Steve & Tina. I'm gonna head out on April 15th and come back home on the 18th. It will be a really quick trip, but I've got it timed that I won't miss any of the Team 12.4 group runs and can still fit in most of my training. I'm so glad that I get another chance to see the girls in person as they are growing SO fast! I just got some new pictures today and there is such a change in them. Here are a couple of the new ones:

Lauren and Sophie waving at Aunt Julie

Lauren lounging with her friend, Cooper

Sophie lounging with her friend, Mr. Bear

Weekly Round-Up (Sunday thru Saturday):
Swim: 5500 yards
Bike: 5 hours, 10 minutes - all on trainer
Run: 19.5 miles
Cross-Training: 12 minutes on Elliptical Trainer and about 30 minutes of lunges, squats, and core with various clients throughout the week.