Working on my running

Yesterday's run at Discovery Park

Having a coach is great. I decided for my second season of triathlon to give it a try to see how it worked out and I'm completely sold. It nudges me to do things (like speed work) that I probably wouldn't do on my own. I'm not competitive in my age group, but it's still nice to see improvement for the time I put into training. My coach sets out the plan that works within my time constraints and makes sure I'm training smart - no wasted workouts - each has a specific purpose.

She also suggested I do a running race before my Oct. 18 date with the surgeon to give me a mini-goal and also to spend some time on run-focused training. I was thinking 10K, but she suggested I do a 5K and work on speed rather than endurance. So, I've got these great new speed and strength-focused workouts. I spent some time yesterday entering these in my Training Center software and then uploading them to my Garmin 305. I haven't used the "advanced workout" entry function before, but it's really slick. With the GPS, I can enter interval distances, duration segments, and heart rate zone targets and my little wrist-mounted computer will guide me through the whole routine. It's geeky, but fun.

Yesterday, I did a hilly trail run at Discovery Park. I used to run there regularly years ago, when we lived a bit closer to it. Amazingly, very few people were out on the loop trail. Discovery Park is such jewel - an urban forest and also spectacular views of the Puget Sound.