After 4 consecutive hard training weeks, it was finally time for a recovery week. Well-deserved, badly needed, and hopefully enough to regenerate and come back stronger. What do you do in a recovery week? Monday: 1h swimming Tuesday: 45min easy running Wednesday: 90min easy cycling Thursday: 1h easy running Friday: 30min easy swimming Saturday: 45min running and 75min swimming Sunday: 3h easy cycling

Quick summary of this week: produced a lot of broken gear, fitness is improving … I already wrote about the equipment issues, so here’s the athletic side of the last training week: Monday: 1h swimming with longer intervals at race pace Tuesday: 1h running (with 8 hill sprints, 3x30sec sprints, 3x3min threshold run and 1x8min threshold run), 75min cycling with 6x90sec at threshold Wednesday: 1h swimming with longer intervals at race pace Thursday: 3.5h cycling with 4x30min at race pace and a 1.5h brick run. OK, it turned into more like 2.5h straight above race pace on the bike — thanks to the Kraichgau hills. I was pushing hard with no sign of fatigue at all … then 1h easy brick run at 4:25 min/km, pushing the last 30 minutes to 4:00 pace. That session was absolutely awesome — things are moving forward Friday: 2.5h continuous run. A few weeks ago I never would have thought to tack on 2.5h of running after that kind of prior load. I felt pretty good and just wanted to try it. It went well up to about 2h, then it got really ugly toward the end. Somehow I fought through — still managed 4:29 min/km overall. After that I was properly wrecked though Saturday: I was planning 1.5h swimming, but it turned into just 50 minutes. Nothing clicked from the start — completely empty Sunday: somewhat recovered again, 5h on the bike through the Kraichgau to check out the bike course for the City Triathlon Heilbronn. Back home, still 30min easy running on the schedule

Something’s gone wrong lately … one by one, my cycling gear is failing or not holding up to the load. Last week’s parade of failures: started with the broken derailleur jockey wheel on my winter/wet weather bike quickly followed by a cracked rear wheel rim on the same bike the velcro on my right cycling shoe is also done — I need new shoes and then today, this A clean break of the right extension — great!!! And on top of that, in a spot I never would have expected … Fortunately you’re well-equipped for these situations, or at least have something with you so you can at least make it home. ...

I only wanted to change the derailleur jockey wheels on my winter/wet weather bike …. I’d successfully destroyed one of them on my last ride. That’s when I noticed this: Congratulations on joining the exclusive club of those who’ve ridden a wheel rim to death! I have no idea how long that thing had been cracked. Fortunately it didn’t break completely and I noticed it early enough. On the other hand, you have to give the rim some credit — after 6 years and thousands of kilometers in terrible conditions (winter, rain, snow, dirt, etc.), it’s allowed to call it a day. ...

This week saw the first faster sessions back on the schedule. A bit later than last year, but unavoidable given the training deficit. The priority over recent weeks was laying the necessary foundation for exactly these sessions. Monday: 1h cycling with 4 short high-intensity intervals Tuesday: 1h running with hill sprints and three short threshold runs, ending the day with 1h race-pace swimming Wednesday: 3.5h cycling with 4x30min at Ironman pace, finishing with a 1.5h brick run (1h easy, 30min aerobic). The Wednesday session was really good despite the severe shoulder pain that had come on overnight. At the start of the session I could barely hold the handlebars with my right hand and could barely brake at all. Fortunately it got better over time, so I ended up pushing the 30-minute intervals at 3-4% more power than planned — and it felt almost effortless. The brick run was also good: first hour easy at 4:40 min/km, last 30 minutes at 4:10 pace (including some climbing hidden in there). Coming home brought another shock — my right shoulder was suddenly hanging 2 cm lower than the left, probably from compensating for the pain. And since I couldn’t fix that myself, Tobi had to step in again. Thanks again for the quick help!! Oh, one more thing: if an over-60 couple insists on having sex outdoors — why do it right on a busy bike path? And in front of rather than behind their car? OK, maybe they wanted to be seen … Thursday: rest day, or 14h of work, depending on your perspective Friday: rest day, or 13h of work … Saturday: a 2.5h run that had been postponed from Friday, this time with 600m of elevation (as a small act of self-punishment). In the afternoon 20x200m swimming — and I nearly drowned on number 19 … nothing left at all Sunday: 5h easy aerobic cycling and 0.5h brick run ...

23 hours of training this week, a lot of cycling and running miles stacked — that could be the short summary. Not much exciting happened. OK, on May 1st I stumbled into a neo-Nazi march and the counter-demonstration in Speyer — but that was about the most exciting thing. By now the long sessions are showing their effect — 2.5h of running and 5h on the bike without nutrition (besides water) are working well again. ...

After the last exhausting weeks, there were several rest days at the start of the new week, before a small 5-day training block kicked off from Friday: Monday: complete rest day Tuesday: 1h swimming, technique focus Wednesday: 45min run, legs still feeling pretty rough Thursday: power test on the bike — not quite the result I wanted, but honestly not much more was to be expected Friday: long run, 2:20h. The first 75 minutes were awful — technically rough and uneven. After that the legs opened up and it rolled really well until the 2h mark. Then the missing running miles started showing … Thankfully that threshold shifts back by about 10 minutes each week Saturday: 1h strength training to wake up, 1h swimming after that, and in the afternoon 2.5h easy cycling Sunday: 4h cycling with 3x aerobic intervals on Königstuhl, finishing with a 30min brick run

The title says it all — the man with the hammer showed up at just about every session … sometimes earlier, sometimes later, but always right on time. A very loyal and reliable companion… The high running mileage is still getting to me somehow — I’m nowhere near absorbing it as well as last year, or as well as before my forced one-month break. Monday: 1.5h easy spinning to roll the legs out and shake them loose — unfortunately didn’t work as hoped Tuesday: 80min continuous run with some short aerobic intervals, 1h aerobic swimming Wednesday: 3h aerobic bike session (3x Königstuhl, 1,100m of elevation total) with a 1h brick run afterward. Mentally and physically very demanding since my body was already pretty wrecked before the session. Downed a magic potion afterward and felt like new Thursday: 1.5h easy aerobic swimming Friday: 2:15h continuous run, this time without nutrition and really suffering toward the end Saturday: 1h swimming and an easy 1h run Sunday: 4h cycling, brick run was cancelled since I simply had nothing left All signs point to a rest week — or at least a few rest days — since a bigger training block is coming up from Friday through Tuesday. Until then I’m hoping for good and fast recovery.

Stacking miles was the plan this week, in all disciplines and always plenty of them … Not super exciting, but it’s delivering the hoped-for progress. My longest run is now up to 2:20h. It felt terrible — technically beyond bad — but the result was still satisfying. I can’t say exactly why; possibly it was the hydration vest I was carrying. It sits pretty well and nothing wobbles, but running with it is still a bit unfamiliar. Why I had it with me I won’t reveal just yet — that’ll get its own post at some point. ...

Finally being a triathlete again … I’ve really missed that over the last few weeks!!! Now I’m allowed to be one again, and I have this device to thank for it: Basically nothing more than a retainer for the lower jaw. It makes sure my bite is straight again, or rather puts my jaw in a different position. That means no more tension in the jaw muscles — which can no longer functionally radiate anywhere — and I have no more pain and can go full throttle again. ...