This weeks Stats:
- Swim: 14,400m
- Bike: 310km
- Run: 34km
- Training Time: 19 hours
After starting to dial it up last week, this week was all about testing to see where I am at, and if all the hard work has paid off. I kicked off the week a little fatigued too so I swum a little easier than usual on Monday and held back a little on Australia Day’s hill repeat brick session. Easing back a little at the start of the week yielded some nice dividends later in the week. I felt back to my usual self for Wednesday’s swim set and was primed to hit the test sessions in the back half of the week with intent.
The inclement weather cleared up and we were presented with beaming sunshine and a truck load of humidity to boot at Thursday afternoon’s run fitness test. The course has been shifted out from 1km to 1.5km which made it all the more challenging. We were to do 4 to 5 sets on a short 200m recovery jog getting faster each lap. Starting at around half marathon pace I opted for a slightly conservative 5:00 pace for the first lap with the aim of getting 15 seconds per KM faster each rep. The 4:45 and 4:30 laps were solid and I still felt ok, even with the humidity, but I knew the real challenge was still to come. There was no shame in failure going into the 4th and 5th set so I pushed a little harder and got through the 4th in 4:13 and wasn’t sure how much I’d have left for the final effort. Despite the energy sapping humidity I got through the final rep in at 3:55, leaving the tank completely empty. It was my best run to date with my improved form holding up well.
Saturday was a little more challenging with a brick test set. This included a 40km time trial bike with 10km tt run. The bike was split into two sections with the first 20km to be at half ironman pace with the final 20km flat out. I had my race set-up and was expecting a positive result utilising my race wheels and aero helmet. I was stoked with the end result, getting through the 40km with a PB which I wasn’t really expecting given that the first 20km was at around 80%. The run TT was a similar format, half marathon pace as opposed to half ironman pace for the first half then flat out for the second. After Thursday’s fitness test I really wanted to 
see where I was at, so I went out at 4:45 pace for the first half. It felt comfortable but I knew the second half was really going to hurt as the fatigue from the bike TT and humidity started to bite. I went after it and was getting along at a 4:28 pace knowing full well I was pushing my limitations. Sure enough with just over a km to go I blew! I just could not hold onto it. I still managed to limp home for a small negative split. Despite the blow up it was still a great indication of how far I have come and gives me some good insights ahead of next weekend.
Finally, Sunday was a long ride with TT efforts at race pace. The course was around 140km including 80km of efforts at race pace (2x15km and 2x25km). It was a far cry from the 2xflat laps and hill loop from the 40km TT. It took everything I had to get through the entire ride holding race pace for the TT efforts. The rolling hill course was made for a great tune up one week out from race day.
I’m not one for a huge taper and prefer to keep the body active in the week leading up to the race. Saying that, the week will be a combination of solid but not flat out sessions, some easy sets and some short fast stuff to limit fatigue. Now all that is left to do is sit down with the Mad Scientist, Coach Spot, where after a few home truths and a reality check or two, we will devise a race plan for Geelong 70.3.
davidjflanagan 