Day 5...The beginning.

Today was the start of the "real" training on the island.  With time specific training and boxes to tick.

I headed to the pool this morning to do a solid 3.5km set.  Not sure how my arms would be feeling after a double swim yesterday and 3k worth of paddles, I thought that I would be conservative this morning but still get some quality in.

The set went like so:

1k w/up included free and some drills.

10 x 100m paddles/buoy on the 1.30 cycle coming in on the sub 1.20.

100m easy

Then this is where it started to hurt.

10 x 100m paddles/buoy on the 1.30 cycle coming in on the 1.20.

Well that was the plan.  the first five were low 1.20's and then the last 5 becoming closer to the cycle until the last 2 were just continuous.

200m easy c/d.

Arms smashed, but sessions complete and successful.

Back to the room for breakfast before a solid hit out on the bike.  4hrs with some pretty solid efforts.  This meant that I was going to reacquaint my self with the climb to Hawi (pronounced Harvee) or part of it.

Loading my bike up with Shotz nutrition, both electrolytes and gels.  Body caked in 50+ sunscreen and off I headed.

A slight tail wind on the trip out and things were going well, getting in plenty of nutrition and hydration.  Starting to climb to Hawi, I was feeling really great, remembering different parts of the climb.  Turning at 1hr 50min to account for the slight head wind return.

I made sure that I stopped to fill up my bottles, all 4 of them to ensure the return trip was also a success.  Catching up with a local one the return trip and having a good chat to him about the race etc and he re-confirmed what I had already been told by a few locals.  This year is bound to be hotter and windier than the previous 4 or 5.  Exciting news.

Off the bike into a 30min solid run....maybe I didn't have enough nutrition on the bike.  15min in after running 4min/k's and feeling really good...then it hit me.... instantly...back into a shuffle home at 5min/k's and feeling like I had been hit by a truck.

Sometimes you just forget how much you need here to keep you going, so much more than back home, so much more than what you think you actually need.

Below are a few photos of the sun burn I encountered out there today...Remember that I had 50+ sunscreen on...That sun is so brutal.

Left arm, had sunscreen all over it and still copped it.

The burn through my Garmin band!

 Post run, I drank my way through a few litres of Shotz Electrolytes and have pulled up really well.  A cold water (if you can call the water here cold) soak and I have pulled up a treat.  Nothing like getting used to the conditions that the day might actually throw up.

Tomorrow sees a double run, and a morning swim, most likely a ocean soak in the afternoon also.

For Now....Dinner time

X-Man