Wildflower

Finally registered for Wildflower Olympic distance. No turning back now.

Running Through the Wall

Here's a quote from the book "Running Through The Wall"

"In the process of completely exhausting myself, I connect with an inner part of me ordinarily veiled by the everyday distractions of life. During that short time spent on a trail in the mountains, my life is reduced to its simplest terms. Most ultrarunners are people who find goodness and joy in difficult times, who see beyond the misery to the beauty of nature, and who truly realize the elemental and important aspects of life. Going for a run always clears my head, but running 100 miles distills my soul."

Sounds like a great book. Running 100 miles is incomprehensible to me. Pretty sweet.

Sunday Recap

Training this week felt natural. I didn't have to force myself to get to the gym or out on the bike. It was pretty smooth sailing and actually a lot of fun. I especially enjoyed my Saturday AM bike up Mandeville. It was apparent we are improving with a 1mph increase in average speed up the canyon. Maybe it was the spin class :)

I went swimming twice this week and felt the benefits. I was more comfortable in the water tonight and I had moments where I didn't have to think about my form which allowed me to really enjoy being in the water.

Just want to briefly write about a personal experience I had today. I had the pleasure of having lunch with an old family/church friend of ours who is back in the U.S. briefly visiting from China. I had an awesome time with their son Levi (4yrs old) who has one of the most amazing life stories I've heard. I've heard stories about people overcoming crazy stuff, but I rarely get to meet these people much less get to spend time with them.
Today, I had a unique experience of getting to know Levi and for some reason he really took a liking to me. He's a serious handful, very smart and very open. You can actually read about his life and what his parents went through to adopt him and what they're still going through to try to help with his physical needs.
His mom is an amazing woman. She was one of my first babysitters when I was probably a 1 or 2 yrs old.
Here's a link to her book on Amazon. I started to read our signed copy - by Levi and Lisa - this afternoon and it's a very easy and powerful read.
Saving Levi

Training Peaks

i've been using this website: www.trainingpeaks.com to track my workouts so this blog isn't much of a priority now. I'll try to update at least once a week for a recap.

You can check out my public profile here. www.trainingpeaks.com/djjacobs

One interesting experience I had this week was my first spin class. I thought I was improving on the bike but this class killed me. We were 20 minutes in and I felt so winded and my heart-rate was spiking like crazy. I somehow endured the remaining 40 minutes, but it seems like a horrible dream where sweat and bad dance music combine in some sort of cruel Ludovico experiement. Needless to say I'll be going back next week.

Olympic Distance

A bit of an update: I've been riding my bike a lot and going to the gym periodically. I did a great ride on Saturday up Sepulveda to Mulholland. It's great to realize you can actually bike to the Valley from West LA. I don't know if I'd necessarily want to, but it's a liberating feeling.
Overall, I've been taking it pretty easy. I haven't done a run over 5 miles since my half marathon and my swims are pretty low-key since I haven't gone back to SMC since the holidays.

So next week I will begin a training program designed to prepare for an Olympic distance Triathlon.

I got a free olympic distance training program but realized it cuts off after 3 weeks, then you're supposed to pay for it. I'm saving up for a new bike and for tri registeration fees. Can't really afford a training program. Blah.

Oh I interviewed at a different studio for a position that pays significantly more than my current job. So if I get the job I might be able to afford such luxuries. :)