Start 3rd month training/Staying in the Green with MIO Link

This week has been the beginning of the 3rd month of training. According to http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=730, the 3rd month adds swimming to  the bike. However since I have already been doing the bike and I added run to it plus I have not been able to join the Y yet to start swimming, I have decided to just stay with the last week of the 2nd month increasing the resistance and I will gradually increase the time in the seat over each 2 weeks. I will also increase the resistance every month.

Man what a difference it was from resistance 4 to 5!! It was like I was pedaling uphill the first time on Monday. I had a 40 minute ride and by the end of 40 mins, I could definitely tell that I had pushed my legs more than I have. Wednesday was my 50 minute ride again at level 5 for right now. I always do a 5 minute warmup usually at level 1 just to get the blood flowing thru my legs. However after Monday's session, I found out that level 1 warm up isn't enough of resistance to get my legs ready for the level 5 constant ride. So Wednesday I did my warmup at level 3 to help with the change. Now I am checking my ego at the door, the http://www.lifefitness.com/commercial/grouptraining/lifecyclegx.html has up to 20 levels of resistance so I have many many levels still to go. At increasing the resistance at 1 level per month, I will be at level 14 by the time the 2015 Triathlon season begins in March. I just can't tell you how great I am feeling before, during and after each workout.

I know I go on and on about the MIO Link but I could not even imagine training without the use of a Heart Rate Monitor. And the Link is so great cause you can keep track of what zone you are in just by the color of the flashing light on your wrist. Don't have to slow down cadence, take hands off bars or any other unsafe practices to be able to see what you heart rate is. You set the training zones using MIO GO App then you don't have to worry about anything after that. The good thing about increasing the resistance is that it now is putting me in my Zone 2 or my MAF zone almost for the whole time in the seat. So I am training my body to burn fat first before using my glycogen storage for energy.

Speaking of MAF zone, it is also a great feeling to be in the Zone 2 the whole time now during my "run" LOL. Now I put run in quotation marks and added the LOL cause it really is a super fast walk. I am right there on the edge of a fast walk and starting to run. If I go to running then my heart goes to red, so I am walking fast as hell. It is an ego check for sure cause I so enjoyed running however the benefit is my Plantar Fasciitis has not been bad at all. I just keep saying to myself "I am building base and doing it the safest that I can to keep injuries to a minium.

Friday is my long ride. 5 minute warmup, 80 minute ride, abs then my run\walk. I just got down with yesterdays training and I am already looking forward to Fridays!! I AM ADDICTED!!!!

Again, thank you so much for taking your time out of your day and reading this posts. It does many a lot to me. If you would like please subscribe to that it will come to your email with every post I do.

My first workout with Mio Link and X2 performance/Call of Duty Ghost/iRacing

What can I say! The Mio Link is a great heart rate monitor to have. It feels so natural and comfortable to wear on your wrist while you workout. It sync up with a huge majority of training watches. Wear both your watch and Link on the same arm for the best accurate reading. Yesterday was my mid ride training. So I did 5 min warmup then 35 minute ride plus 5 miles again to make up for running. There are 5 different heart rate zones that you can set on the Link. This was the first time I used heart rate as a guide to my training. I set my target zone on the Link for my running target heart rate.  After about 10 minutes on the ride and the light that changes color as you enter different zones on the watch never changed from the bottom zone (blue warm up and recovery zone) I did some Googling and realized your target cycle zone and running zone are different lol. Well that is what training is for to learn. So today I will calculate my cycle target zone and see how that goes. It was very interesting watching Mio Go on my Note 2 display my heart rate. It would increase when I would up my cadence but then once I stayed at that cadence for a while it would go back down to a stead beat. At the end of my riding I do a brutal ab workout that always leaves me breathless in the mid then at the end. Both times when I would get done with an excerise and be winded I was in the running target zone. One very neat feature was the light as you get closer to the different zones gradually change color, so you could set the zones on the Link using your smartphone application then leave the phone at home and you would know which zone you were in and how close to the next one you are. I just love forward thinking companies like Mio Global. Please look them up and get this great non chest chaffing wrist heart rate monitor. ( I wish I had a discount code for something to offer but even if I don't trust me you won't be disappointed at all). More on come each and everyday.

X2 Performance is a pre workout supplement that I have been wanting to try out a long with many others and hydration products. I plan on doing ad many reviews on here as I can with as many products that I can do to help people decide on what will work for them. I got the 4 bottle sample pack like I said from the Dave Scott webcast. They come in 2 oz bottles that are very convenient for carrying with you on the way to the gym or on rides. I popped one open and downed it as fast as I could. The taste is not the best I would say but you don't take supplements always for the favor. It isn't the worst that I have had but it isn't the best either. I workout kind of late compare to what other people do and I don't drink caffeine so the natural caffeine that is included had me a little concerned about it keeping me awake.  I could tell I had more energy during training and was more focused than usual. The best news was it didn't not interfere with me going to bed last night at all. I will be training again tonight for a shorter ride but with more intensity.  I will give another update tomorrow as well. So far so good.

Played about 2 hours of Call of Duty Ghost and again like with anything that you want to so better or get better with you have to practice practice.  And it was like a switch just was flipped and things that I have been working on just came together. Went even many times and DOUBLE once while still playing for the Drop Zone objectice. Makes the game so much more fun once it starts gelling like that.

Going to do some iRacing and more Ghost tonight. Skippy is at Brands Hatch and Indy Fixed Oval is at Texas!