Training for Ironman Wisconsin has begun.

After a couple of months of sporadic training, overindulgent eating, and rapid weight gain, I kicked off my Ironman Wisconsin training this week with a couple of hard bike sessions, a swim session, and a few runs. Here's the quick rundown:

Monday, January 8, 2007: I did a nice 25-mile, hilly bike ride with a couple of friends at lunch today. We rode Southwest Parkway to Barton Creek Drive to Bee Caves Road to Hwy 360. The hills weren't too bad, though, and it was a nice way to get back into the cycling.

Tuesday, January 9, 2007: Today, my friend Jason and I rode Lost Creek Blvd. It's a pretty hilly ride. The first part is nice because it's all downhill into a canyon. That's when it gets rough. We had a tough climb from Barton Creek Road up to Bee Caves and then promptly turned off and went right back down into the canyon. We finished up by climbing Lost Creek out the way we came in. It's not horribly steep, but it's a pretty long, steady climb. My legs were tired, but that's good. I need the work. Total mileage was about 30 miles. When I got back to the Bicycle Sport Shop, I put on my running shoes and did about 10 minutes of easy running for my first foray back into "brick" workouts. My legs were jello. It's gonna be a long spring.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007: I did a very short, 12-mile ride with my work friend, Shelley. We went pretty easy because today is my first day back to swimming after missing a bunch of workouts due to holiday travel and some weather cancelations. I only did 3/4 of the workout, though. I was suffering from the lingering effects of a winter cold, so my coaches suggested I take it easy getting back into the flow. I wasn't going to complain about that! It did feel good to be back in the water, but my stamina is gone. Hopefully a few more sessions will fix that right up.

Thursday, January 11, 2007: I brought the bike to work, but didn't end up going out. The weather was threatening all day and I didn't want to get caught up in any rain in the middle of the day. I did a short 25-minute easy run instead.

Friday, January 12, 2007: The plan today is to ride another hill workout with Jason. I need to contact him to see if he's planning to go. The temperature here is perfect -- low 70's -- but it's very overcast and there were some light sprinkles on the way to work. Weathermen say we have a 40% chance of rain, so we might be SOL for a ride today. If so, maybe I'll do another run. I wonder if I remembered to bring my running shoes today. I bet not.