2007 in Review

Since it is almost February, I thought it might be about time to ruminate on the year that was 2007.

Workout summary
Running - I ran 547 miles in 2007 compared with 698 in 2006. It was a conscious decision to cut back on running as I added volume in other activities. And it was better for my body as I sustained fewer injuries.

Swimming - swam 58,050 meters versus 15,050 in 2006. A pathetic effort both years, but still an improvement.

Cycling: 1642 miles versus 280 in 2006. The year of the bike, baby!

Weights: 62 versus 73. I didn't mean for this number to decrease. But dropping Friday weight workouts in favor of strong Saturday rides took a toll.

Yoga: 23 versus 28. Whoops. I love yoga and need to fit it in more regularly.

I have to recognize that breaking my finger impacted all of these numbers somewhat, since I couldn't swim, lift weights, or do yoga without pain for six to eight weeks. Overall, I'm okay with these numbers and they are a reasonable benchmark for future training.

Races and Events
I participated in a lot more races/events in 2007 than in years past, including:

• Monument 10k run
• Capital to Capital (half-century bike)
• Power Sprint triathlon
• Luray Olympic triathlon
• Heart of Virginia two day cycling event
• Giant Acorn sprint triathlon
• Smithfield duathlon

My best events were the Heart of Virginia, where I felt strong, and Giant Acorn where I loved the bike and felt good in each event. I have a bone to pick with Luray and/or the Olympic distance after freaking out on the swim, flatting on the bike and losing a bunch of time.

Goals

My stated 2007 goals were:

• Maintain an appropriate balance of training/exercise and family time.
• Continue with TriGirls. Get to know the team better and have fun!
• Improve strength, form, and speed on the bike. Goal: 18 mph average speed over 20 mile distance.
• Improve run form and increase speed to 8:15 minute miles over 10k distance.
• Be more consistent with swim and bike workouts - 1x/week minimum swim; 2x/week minimum bike.
• Strength train 2x/week for one hour each.
• Yoga or pilates 1x/week for 45 minutes.

Hmmm, not so sure about that balance of training and family time. I always feel guilty about leaving my kids and I did it pretty much every Saturday morning for the whole year. I'd also like to get to know more TriGirls which was seriously hampered by the fact that I rarely go to the team workouts. The few that I did get to hang with and get to know better - including the Lane girls, Annnnn, Deanna, Megan, Susie Q, Lesley, Margo and others - totally rock the house.

I definitely improved on the bike. Frankly, there was no other direction to go. I didn't get any faster on the run and I didn't gain consistency on the swim. Strength training and yoga were hit or miss.

So all in all, not great but not horrible. I'm really happy with my time and improvement on the bike and satisfied that I was reasonably consistent in other areas. If I ever get serious about triathlon, I'll have a lot of work to do learning to love the swim... or at least forcing myself to do it! Weights and yoga I love but tend to sacrifice for other things.

On to thoughts of 2008!