Please don't cancel the swim.

Really found my stride Tuesday night on my hour run. I had to stop a few times to stretch my hamstrings out but the legs felt great. It’s been awhile since I’ve felt like that during a run. It’s probably because I missed a few workouts over the weekend and they were more recovered than I typically am. Or maybe it’s because I switched back to running in Brooks Adrenaline? (joking… sort of).

I hadn’t raced a triathlon in so long. (about 50 weeks and the swim was canceled). That I didn’t have a pair of run shoes laced up with stretch laces. I took care of that problem but I don’t think I can run in these shoes sockless without blistering. I have some other ideas on how to address this problem but I haven’t tried them. I think I’ve run out of time in terms of trying new things tho’.

I did some weight lifting after my run. That also went well. Tuesday turned out to be a good day.

Wednesday morning I went to the pool early. It wasn’t pretty. Anytime I lift the night before a morning swim, I know I’m not going to be happy with the times I see on the clock. It’s not race day, just knock out the distance and move along.

After work I was a trainer ride. I made a point of making this a really good session. Steady effort the entire way. There are times where I really would like a power meter. Tonight was one of those nights. I couldn’t help but wonder if I was actually doing a bit too much considering I’ll be racing Sunday. Not a big deal, it’s just where my brain went while spinning.

Thursday, back in the pool in the morning. Shorter set today, I really wanted things to fall in to place. It took awhile but I think I pieced the stroke together into something I felt good about. I guess it’s good that I had to think about my fixes. I’ll just keep those things in mind on race day and work on staying focused on them.

I think one of my problems when I swim is that my “easy” stroke is not anywhere as good as my focused/fast stroke. I think I turn easy into lazy, which means I’ll practice bad habits. Something to work on, for sure.

I just saw an update about Sunday's race on Facebook (Columbia Tri). They are concerned about the bacteria levels in the lake. I really hope we get to swim. I can bike and run outdoors anytime. I don’t get to open water swim often tho’. It’s always my strongest event in terms of placing. (not that it gives me much of a lead). But more importantly, without the swim it’s just not a triathlon. Obviously I’ll deal with whatever happens but I really want to swim.