March 29, 2024

Pre Ironman: Almost Like Being on Vacation

Today, I slept in until 8AM. Wow. It’s amazing how I’ve been getting caught up on my sleep; I didn’t really realize how tired I actually was until I started the taper. I mean, I knew I was tired, but I didn’t think it would take me as long as it has to feel like the batteries are recharged. I’ve been napping during the day, going to bed regularly, and sleeping relatively late. It’s heaven not to have to rush around to multiple workouts.

Week 23: Ironman Training Totals = 8:17 (2:00 swim, 2:56 bike, 3:21 run)

Week 8 was the last time we were under 10 hours. I bought my bike that week and we did our first team time trial out on South MoPac. I swam 2000 yds in 55 minutes and was very tired that night; a highlight of the week was “…got my wetsuit on the best ever!” That seems like such a long time ago.

We had a nice Father’s Day yesterday. It was a grand slam of father celebrating, as first we went to the hubby’s Dad’s house, then my Dad’s, and ended up with taking my hubby/our Dad to see the Indiana Jones movie at Alamo Drafthouse. He also got a special breakfast after I got back from my workout with Cathy (we had a nice run and a very relaxing “swim” afterwards).

Packing Transition Bags for Ironman

Today I will begin packing. I decided to print out my lists for my bags (swim to bike, called T1; bike to run, called T2; and both my special needs bags, one for the bike and one for the run), tape them on giant plastic bags, and put the stuff in them.

I have quite a few lists.

I hate to make lists.

Necessity forces it, but it is like drawing fingers down a chalk board to me. Yuck.

I prefer to be a minimalist, but since this is my first I realize I’m overpacking, preparing for every contingency. It’s like the first few trail races/trips. Man, it was a TON of stuff and then, the more I did it, the less stuff there was and the more efficient I became in pulling it all together. That’s happened a lot over these 23 weeks of preparation, but it could be much better.

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Leah Nyfeler

I'm a writer, content marketer, and adventurer who is always looking for the another story, exciting adventure, new trail, and good meal/book/movie. I love sharing things I'm curious about, what I know, and how I've come to learn it. Read my blog, "Enjoying the Journey: Observations on the Fit Life" (leahruns100.com) and find my articles in a variety of print and online magazines.

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0 thoughts on “Pre Ironman: Almost Like Being on Vacation

  1. I go the minimalist route too. But take all your options with you from Austin, whittle it down only on Saturday or so, when you\’ve again got a feel for what non-blistering-hot weather is like.

    Heehee, a vacation 🙂

    1. Non-blistering-hot weather…what a concept!

      Thanks for all the tips along the way; I\’ve appreciated benefitting from your experiences (and enjoyed reading about them).

  2. I can\’t wait to see you in Idaho!!! I\’m so happy to hear that you\’ve had some R&R!! I always over pack for myself and my kids….it makes me feel better!! I\’ll be in trouble when the airlines start charging for bags…this may be the last trip that I can over pack and not worry :)!!!

    I\’m ready for the vacation part of my vacation!!!

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