Mix It Up

    I am nothing if not consistent. I have been maintaining some pretty specific training sessions repeatedly over the months (and years). The downside of this is that I can fall into a rut if I am not careful. Yes, I know that it is better to be steady and consistent than it is to be random. But it is also detrimental to be too repetitive. I am such a creature of habit that I fall into set patterns very easily. Too easily. With this in mind I make sure to mix up my workouts a bit. I am always conscious of this when I swim or cycle. I break my week's sessions into 3 main categories: speed work (sprints in the pool, Tabata on the bike), strength (hand paddles in the pool, high gears low cadence on the bike), and endurance (going long, with some speed tossed in). This also helps break the monotony a bit.
    For the last few months I have been doing about 30 minutes of leg work in the pool after every swim, in an attempt to strengthen hips, knees, pelvic girdle, etc. I am hoping to avoid the injuries that have been sidelining my running for the better part of 11 months. Damn. Has it been that long? Yeah, sadly, it has. My water workout is a nice balance of high knee running and dryland training done with the added resistance of the water. I get the benefits of the muscle movements with resistance and none of the high impact. So far, this seems to be a good combination. I've been doing it long enough that I was starting to worry I would fall into too static of a routine. I've since added about 50 yards of side stepping, and 15 yards of "MonsterWalk" (walking forward with feet more than shoulder width apart) to each set. In addition to my concerns about recurring Runner's Knee and IT Band issues, I am also trying to shore up my hips which have been giving me grief the last few months. I am hoping that by addressing IT Band and pelvic girdle strength and flexibility, as well as potential pelvic tilt, that I might manage to run with minimal pain. I don't ever expect to run pain-free, that is unrealistic, but hopefully I can avoid injury.
    I've also been mixing up my strength training. I have a solid upper body workout that is fairly specific for triathlon, especially swimming. Using resistance bands, hand weights, kettle bell, and barbell. I tend to do large supersets of about 8 exercises, repeating the set 3 times (I don't know why, but 3 sets has always kind of been my magic number), and working through about 16+ different exercises. Lately I am doing smaller supersets, mixing up the order, and tossing in a few extra exercises like pushups with one hand on a weighted ball. I've also done a few nights here and there when I have done fewer exercises, but increased the number of reps and sets, so that time spent is about the same, just more focused. Another of my favorite things to do is top off my Saturday evening swim with a pretty tough upper body workout. I really feel this on Sunday, believe me.
    I still haven't signed up for any events this year. I am waiting to see if I will be able to run again. I admit, I am almost afraid to lace up my running shoes and hit the trail. I have done almost everything I can think of to prep my body to run again, and if I still wind up injured I think that will be the end of it. I don't know if I can mentally cope with the thought of never being able to do triathlon again. It would break my heart. But I will keep training anyway.