Today’s team practice went great!
Since I planned to bike out to practice for the first time, I left the house at 7:20AM. It was a little chilly out, but I was prepared for it. Despite living in Philly my entire life, I’m not too familiar with the Schuylkill River area. I took a quick look at a map before leaving the house and thought I planned out a good route in my head, but alas, I still got lost in West Philly. Well, lost isn’t the right word. I have a really great sense of direction and had a good idea where I was, but I just couldn’t find the streets I wanted to be on. I’m fond of getting ‘lost’. It really helps me learn my way, more so than if I were driving. In any case, I made it to swim practice just in time.
I’m really improving with swimming. In the beginning, I was just trying to focus on too many things at once. So I would be thinking about my head position and my stroke and if my hips were at the surface… all while neglecting my breathing. Oops! I think I got it under control now. I hope to perfect my breathing techniques soon.
On my way home I got a little turned around too. I found myself down on Drexel’s campus at 34th and Chestnut and I couldn’t get my bearings. Being downtown has that effect on me. I consulted google maps and figured it out. Hopefully by next weekend I’ll have a good direct route to and from St. Joe’s and just better familiarity with the area.
Today should have been a 22 mile bike ride round trip, but I added 8 miles worth of being lost! I didn’t mind my 30 mile day, especially with the beautiful weather. That plus an hour of quality time swimming with my teammates. I should have stopped by the local track to run a mile before coming home! Although, that may have been too much. I have a bad habit of overtraining.
It was my first long ride since October and I feel really great. I feel strong and my stamina is through the roof. My body feels like it’s ready for more, but with only 8 hours of sleep in the last 2 nights my brain needed more rest so I took a nap.
Tomorrow is going to be another beautiful day and I’ll be up bright and early running with my team followed by a shoe clinic at the Bryn Mawr Running Co. I can’t wait!
I also can’t wait to gain my extra hour of daylight! Wahoo!
