More progress.

I went to Cochiti yesterday with Cindy. I cut a couple slits in the neck of my wetsuit, and took some advice: I stood in the 58 degree water and let the water fill my wetsuit, and then waited for the water to warm up inside the wetsuit, and then stuck my face in the water and blew, to get over the shock of the cold. And then, I was fine. Holy cow, that wetsuit is snug, but I can move in it. Baboo asked if I needed a larger-sized wetsuit, but I told him what I really need is a smaller-sized me.

I'm planning to try to go out there twice next week and do the full swim each. I feel what I can only describe as about 1000% better about the swim at CDA.

I did my long run today using the Galloway method, which I've been practicing on my intervals. I had read an article a while back that suggested that based on my current ability, I should run 1 minute/walk 1 minute. I never did this because I figured, I already walk 5/run 5, so what's the difference? Well, the difference is that I can run much faster for 1 minutes intervals that I can for 5, with means that the proportion of time that I spend running will have a lower overall pace. Also, I'm finding that my pace on my running intervals is coming down.

My average pace for 15.3 miles was --tada-- 12:46 per mile.

BOOya!! I have NEVER gone under 13 at that distance before!

This is what the Galloway method looks like on a Garmin readout:

I figure at least part of it is the interval training, and the other part is the ten pounds of jiggle I've lost.

With regard to my feelings about Ironman CDA in THREE WEEKS there is a continuum from "feelings of impending failure" and "very optimistic." I have now moved past "freaked out" and and more toward the "Cautiously optimistic" about finishing comfortably before midnight.

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