Lightweight Eats

It's been a while since I posted about my training. The season is broken up into a few major chunks. The first chunk was from January through NSR1 (or NSR2 for those people who raced in it, which was this past weekend).

Now that some of that selection has been completed, plans are starting to fall into place for the summer season, which lasts through the World Championships at the end of August. (Last summer, Canadian Henley marked the end of the summer season for me, as I wasn't vying for a spot at Worlds.)

It's been just over a year since I started training with CRC and I'm starting to see some real improvements—physically and, more importantly, mentally.

One of my big goals for the past year was to become a better athlete. I have always struggled with pulling back when the going gets tough. When I'm tired, I give 90% instead of 100%. This is especially true when I'm training by myself. I'm beginning to see that change. I'm completing more workouts, pushing the boundaries of my heart rate zones and increasing weights when I lift.

Having training partners and coaches that really care about your individual progress is really helpful. It was also helpful having such a positive experience at NSR1—at that race I felt like I was in the mix, which was encouraging, but not quite where I need to be, which was motivating.

I'm not sure I'm quite ready to call myself an elite athlete, but I certainly feel that I've made progress in that direction.


This summer season, I want to capitalize on that athleticism. It's really starting this week and next. I've got two hard weeks, back-to-back. Most mornings start off with extensive endurance work: 75-100 minutes meant to push the limits of the anaerobic threshold. The afternoons follow up with a "short and easy" 60' run, or a challenging (but not impossible) weight lifting session.

It's a great opportunity to shift my mindset. Previously, I would approach these weeks warily. This time, I'm ready to attack the workouts. I've completed three of the five hardest workouts this week. I'm starting to make the connection between training like this consistently and being really, really fast. I know that the fitness I've built up over the past year has allowed me to get here, but I think it's going to be a lot of fun going forward.


As summer starts, I can also expect more wind. I've been on land every day this week because of it, and I expect a lot more weeks like it. As we get more lightweight women in the club, bigger boats (doubles and quads!) become a possibility; bigger boats can handle rougher conditions. It's also good for me to reconnect with the erg and the weights; and running certainly helps me stay at weight.

Like last summer, it will be over before I know it; and then we'll be down to three years before Rio.. every workout, I'm chasing down my dreams.