Not as easy as I thought

A quick background before I launch into this blog properly. Having done various forms of exercise over the years and recently completed a couple of 'fun' runs I decided that distance running is definately not for me. I did a 12km run and that was ok but I really am not built to run any further, I may be 30 kgs lighter than I was a few years ago but I'm still 10kgs heavier than I'd like to be and my legs are just too short! To be honest I've got a great build for a rugby player, but as I can't catch and I throw like a girl I'll just have to find something else!
Anyway I bought a bike with the intention of maybe, possibly one day doing a triathlon. This was based on the fact that I used to do a lot of swimming and was quite good at it, I'm already doing the running thing, and anyone can ride a bike, can't they?
Not wanting to be over ambitious I signed up for a duathlon at the end of January. The distances were short (3.5km run, 10km cycle, 1.5km run) so I reckoned it would be a great way to start off and I would hardly need to do any training apart from the cycling.
I'm cycling to work a couple of days a week, which is 15km so gives me time to do some speed work as well as build up my endurance, and I've been getting on well with it. I've also done a couple of 10km cycles aimed solely at increasing speed. In addition I'm running at the gym on a treadmill a couple of days a week, including one session with speed intervals, and doing lots of abs and core stability work. It was all going so well. So this weekend I thought it was about time I tried my first dummy run for 'the event', rather than go all out straight away I thought I'd do a shorter version (2km run, 10km cycle and 1 km run) to see what my times were like and use that as the basis for my training for the next 6 weeks. The 2km run went well at what for me is a good pace (just over 10 minutes), I certainly felt the effects of this on the cycle, but again was able to keep up a reasonable pace (although I think my revs were just below 90 for most of it) and I finished the 10km in just over 23 mins. The problem came with the last 1km run - I was absolutely buggered by now and ended up shuffling up the road like someone twice my age, I really could barely manage it and finished in a less than impressive time of 6 mins 20 seconds! And I was really really shattered.
So much for it being a doddle! I guess I'd underestimated the effect of the cycle which took more out of me than I'd expected.
I guess the next 6 weeks are going to require some more serious training - I'm planning on cycling to the gym and then doing a couple of km on the treadmill, just to get used to that feeling of a hard cycle followed by a run. Also I think this weekend I need to do a full length version as with Xmas the following weekend that only gives me 3 more weekends before the event! Gulp.
Watch this space and I'll let you know how it's going.

On a slightly different note I went swimming today - first time I've swum seriously for years and I was totally crap. It was such a let down as I had images of getting into the pool and ploughing up and down with the same speed and ease as I used to. What in fact happened was I spent the first two laps coughing and spluttering as my goggles filled up with water and I failed to get my breathing and strokes in sync. It did get better, but speedy I was not! Just goes to show that being reasonably fit means nothing when it comes to swimming if you haven't been working in the pool for a number of years. Something else I need to work on then - sigh. And what is it about swimming that makes me want to eat chocolate? I came out of the pool with a monumental craving and had to have a chocolate biscuit with my cup of tea and a snickers bar. And while I'm whingeing I'd just like to point out that the cup of tea was a very poor substitute for the coffee I'd been planning as the coffee machine was out of order AGAIN! Gah!

Well if the weather improves a bit tomorrow (i.e. the strong winds drop off) I'll be able to cycle in so that will be the first chance to try my new long cycle, short run training, watch this space and I'll let you know how I get on.