Iron Christmas 70.3- or "Why I Spent 2.5 Hours on a Spin Bike"

Want to hear something funny?

This guy, whose blog I have never viewed until the other day, put out a challenge to complete a half Ironman in a 4 day time period- December 20th to the 24th. The legs can be done in as many segments and in any order, and recorded on a spreadsheet. The one to complete the full 70.3 miles in the best total time wins! Prizes are TBD, something about a gift basket or something with a value of $70.30. But prizes are not important! What is important is that somebody challenged me to do something, and I can't say no to that. Even if I have never really swam before.

Here is my strategy:

Swimming- Get through the best I can. I had never done a pool workout until this challenge. I did take a few lessons with a friend who is a swim coach and triathlete, so relying on the few things I learned from her and basic instincts of not drowning, I think I'm doing okay.

Cycling- Spin bike, low tension, and watch a movie. 20 mph pace easily. Wish I had rollers...

Running- I can hold a 8:30 minute mile, but only for 1 or 2 miles. Because I can break up the running in however many segments I need, it is beneficial to do fewer miles per session to achieve a faster time.

So, to complete this challenge, I must swim for 1.2 miles, bike for 56, run 13.1. Over 5 days. Actually, 4 and a half because I started it midway through day 1.

Day 1 (Mon): 2 mile run, 800 meter swim
Day 2 (Tues): 56 mile bike (in two sessions), 2 mile run
Day 3 (Wed): 2 mile run, 1129 meter swim (in two sessions)
Day 4 (today): 3.1 run
Day 5 (Christmas Eve): 4 mile run (in two sessions)

Not too bad, huh? Finishing in plenty of time.

While we're speaking of accomplishments, I stepped out of the pool at 8:30am and was at my desk fully showered, clothed and makeupped at 9:00am. Boo yah.