Next up: Florida 70.3

It’s been a week since the Colorado Marathon and I'm loving the fact that I ran that race slower. No residual aches or pains. My legs felt great on the 51 mile bike ride I did on Saturday and the 7-mile run on Sunday.

Earlier last week, however, I had a terrible headache from all the brush fire smoke in the air. I’d wake up with a headache and it’d get worse after swimming and doing a bunch of flip turns. Then I’d spend the rest of the day feeling nauseous. Thankfully, the air cleared up on Thursday. I was seriously considering getting one of those masks to wear.

So now it’s the week before Florida 70.3, a half iron tri consisting of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride and a 13.1 mile run. Last year it was my second-ever triathlon and coming down with the flu just before the race and lack of experience made for a very challenging day. I had no appetite and didn’t eat much before the race. I swam most of the way by breast stroking (I’d just learned to swim freestyle but not well enough to do so in open water and while coughing). I didn’t eat/drink much on the bike (still no appetite), yet I pushed the pace pretty hard because I just wanted it to be over so I could go on to what I thought would be my strongest event. Boy, was I wrong (bonked!).

Swim 57:12, T1 6:22, Bike 2:53:55, T2 4:04, Run 2:38:20
Total race time: 6:39:51

And then I was sick for another two weeks after the race. Bleah!

This year will hopefully be different. I decided not to go to Germany with my husband this week in order to try to stay healthy before the race. I am much more comfortable in the water and can swim freestyle better, though still not fast and I need to breast stroke to sight. I now know a lot more about nutrition and pacing after having trained for an ironman.

My main goal this year is to finish Florida 70.3 feeling stronger than I did last year. It’s a so-called “C race” for me, meaning more of a training day rather than a race. I’m looking to swim a bit faster, bike a bit slower, and run much stronger. Knowing that it’ll probably be in the mid to upper 80's by noon, here’s what I think I might be able to do time-wise if all goes well (i.e., no goggle problems, no flats, no sprained ankle, no GI issues, etc.):

Swim 50-55:00, T1 5:00, Bike 3-3:05:00, T2 5:00, Run 2-2:15:00
Total race time: sub-6:30

I also hope to meet up with fellow bloggers Brent and Eric, who will be at Florida 70.3 as well. If the smoke stays away, it should be a great day!