An Unexpected Twist - Cycle 5

Everything was going just fine, great actually.  I was getting into a routine and really focusing in on what I needed to accomplish within each individual workout.  My nutrition/diet were starting to become a habit.  I hadn't touched a drop of alcohol or a ounce of refined sugar.  That was, until Monday, January 21st.  I was scheduled to do my second Critical Swim Speed (CSS) test followed up by a strength session.  I was in the middle/end of my work week.  I was starting to get sick.  Normally, I don't get sick.  Every once and a while I'll get a sore throat or a runny nose, but nothing like what I had coming my way.  I completed my CSS test with times slightly faster (relatively) than my first CSS test.  But, I just wasn't feeling right.  I was congested, but it was a head congestion, it was more into my chest.  I had a difficult time taking breaths during my swim. Every now and again, I would find myself holding back a cough under water or just flat out coming up out of the water to cough.  I didn't think anything of it and sucked it up to finish both my CSS test and my strength session.  I took some Cold-Eeze along with some cold medicine with hopes of knocking this thing out before it gets the best of me.

Then Monday night came, my last day of my work week and I felt like garbage.  My body was more sore than usual from my swim and strength workouts and I could not take a full breath with out hacking up my lung.  I was planning on getting in an hour bike ride in on Tuesday morning after work.  However, when I got home from work, there was no way I was going to do anything besides rest.  I went directly to bed.  I woke up around 10:30 as I usually do on my first full day off from work in order to be able to go to bed at night.  I was a mess, my chest hurt, my body hurt and I had a 102* fever.  I had the chills one minute and the next minute I felt like I was sitting in a sauna.  My chest was congested, which is a illness I have never experienced.  As someone who strives on a low respiratory rate and relies on my efficient breathing, being congested in my air ways left me feeling like a fish out of water.  It hurt to breath and I honestly struggled just to get a full breath of air in.  I laid on the couch with hopes of feeling better the next day.  I took a hot and steamy bath with some Vick's rubbed on my chest.  I then went to bed in sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt with hopes of producing a self induced fever to help kill off what ever was keeping me down.

I woke up on Wednesday feeling better, but still in no shape to train.  I got several things done around the house that I have been meaning to get done, but have just been putting off.  At the end of the day I did the same procedure of a hot bath with Vick's and over dressing to go to sleep with hopes of burning off this illness.  I woke up almost feeling worse than I did on Wednesday but better than Tuesday.  I decided to try and workout.  I was scheduled to run 12 miles on Wednesday and it was my highest priority workout.  The hour long bike ride I missed wasn't that critical and my relatively short brick workout I had scheduled for Thursday also didn't carry the weight that my 12 mile run did.  There was no way I was going to do my run outside as I normally would have, so I went to the Heart of the Valley YMCA which has an indoor track.  My plan was to not count laps, but just run comfortably for 96 minutes.  When I started, I knew it was going to be a LONG run.  I couldn't run a full lap with out a raspy cough.  I could only imagine what the other runners were thinking.  I was fatigued just 30 minutes in and I needed a short breather.  I walked a lap and started running again.  I made it another 15 minutes before I conceded.  I should have never even attempted a workout.

I guess I should confess and explain what probably, if not most likely, led to my sickness.  On Sunday we had some of our coldest temperatures of the year.  I thought I would be tough, suck it up and get outside to  complete my 5 mile run with 2, 1 mile sprints built in.  The air temp was 7*, which really isn't THAT cold, but the wind chills were at -12*.  I dressed warm, went out, and ran.  I ran a 1 mile warm up, did a 1 mile sprint followed by an easy mile, then another 1 mile sprint, finished with a 1 mile cool down.  I totaled just over 5 miles in just over 35 minutes.  As much as I want to deny the fact that running in the extreme cold had nothing to do with me getting sick, it just seems too ironic that the very next day my immune system fell apart leaving me the sickest I have been in years.

The worst part about being sick, is my diet completely fell apart.  I ate like crap the last couple days.  I'm not sure if it ultimately was due to being depressed about missing workouts and being sick, or if it just made me feel "better" eating "cheat foods."  I was over eating and eating foods that I vowed to not touch.  I had a ice cream parfait with cookie dough chunks on Wednesday night, along with chocolate, and other snack foods we had around out house.  My weight continues to be my most difficult goal to get a firm grasp on.  I have gotten myself into a routine/habit of unhealthy eating habits, such as unnecessary eating late at night, constant snacking, and eating when I'm bored.  It will continue to be at the forefront of my goals moving forward as I try to get back to full strength and rid myself of this virus/flu/bug/infection/whatever it may be.

Brief Recap

 All things considered it was a decent week.  I missed 3 full workouts and only 2 days of no training.  I fit in all my scheduled workouts prior to getting sick.  It may not sound all that impressive, but considering how the weather has been lately here in Wisconsin, it's definitely not something to look past.  Each of my runs were done in cruddy weather.  One morning was cold along with heavy snow fall and the other morning was just bone chilling cold (see above).  Skipping run workouts or forcing myself to do them indoors rarely happens.  Oddly enough, my run in the sub zero wind chills is actually not even my coldest run.  Back in January of 2010 I ran with normal temperatures at -3* and wind chills near -21*.  So running in 7* and -12* wind chills wasn't THAT crazy.  But hindsight is always 20-20 and I honestly really regret forcing that run that morning.  I also still managed to complete a successful CSS test right at the start of my sickness.  My first CSS test was completed in a yard pool and this one was done in a meter pool, so naturally my times were slower.  I did the 400m test in 6:35 (6:00 in yard pool) and the 200m test in 3:07 (2:47 in yard pool).  These times result with a calculated CSS time of 1:44/100m (1:36/100y) which is the exact same calculated CSS time when you convert meter times to yard times.  So, all things considered I am happy with my test results and ultimately feel that I have improving considering I was sick during that test.

Favorite Workout

Tough to pick out a favorite workout from this past week.  I guess if I were to pick one workout from this cycle as my favorite, it would be day 3's run and strength workout.  I drove to the YMCA and ran outside in a heavy snow fall which was peaceful.  I ran a total of 5 miles on the CE Rec Trail.  After my run I had a good strength training session in the weight room.  It was a great workout.  I liked getting outside in the snow fall and hearing the snow crunch under my feet.  There was something about it that made it feel relaxing and made me not even think about the cold air.  

Moving Foward

I'm not 100% sure when I am going to get back on the horse and start following my plan as scheduled.  I plan on doing a light strength workout in the morning on Friday before I leave for training.  It won't be anything exhausting and won't put a lot of stress on my respiratory system.  After that, I will be playing it by ear.  Ultimately, I am hoping I am back to feeling normal no later than 2-3 days into this cycle at the latest.  I have my first race of 2013 coming on in a little over a week.  I registered to do my first indoor triathlon this year.  It's relatively easy and short in duration.  It starts with a 10 minute swim for distance with a 10 minute transition period.  You then go to a 20 minute bike on a preset spin bike with a speedometer measuring distance covered.  After the bike you get a 5 minute transition before finishing with a 15 minute run on an indoor track for distance.  The athlete that covers the furthest total distance wins.  Pretty simple really. It only takes a full hour which isn't bad at all.  It's the complete opposite of what I am used to for the standard triathlon where the distances are set and you race for time.  This time I will be going all out for a set time trying to cover the furthest distance.  With the triathlon being a small local race, I am going in with the lofty goal of placing overall.  I have never finished in the top 3 overall in a triathlon, so we'll see what I can manage to do in this race.

Be fast, be strong, and carry on!