Another Week Begins
Activity: Swim
Distance: 1km - 100m warm-up, 600m then 300m warm down
Comments: Very tired and it was a cold morning. Fortunately the water was quite warm so I was comfortable swimming. I practised breathing to both sides and sighting.

Had a dreadful day at work - far too much to do and the deadline for our tender is drawing closer. We have until 4pm Friday and there's still heaps to do. I couldn't manage to leave in time for training in speedygeoff's group tonight. I didn't leave the office until 7pm and sadly I won't make it tomorrow night either as we have our AGM dinner. It's like winter here at the moment - really cold and wet - not very pleasant weather at all. Where has that lovely spring weather gone?

It was very exciting to find lots of comments on my blog tonight - a nice surprise when I went in for an update. Thank you everyone.

WAG Triathlon


Activities - swim 400m, cycle 14km,
run 4km

Yes, after a terrible night's sleep waking hourly to hear the rain and the thunder I rose at 6.30am to peer out the window at a dismal looking Sunday knowing there was no way I could chicken out now! Today was my first triathlon for the season and it felt like a winter's day. It definitely called for a wetsuit for the swim leg. As I was securing my bike to the rack on the back of Mr B's car an hour later my neighbour came over for a chat. At that stage I was feeling decidedly negative about the weather and the event. I am not a confident swimmer but I'm an even less confident cyclist if the roads are wet and I had a dreadful feeling in the pit of my stomach. However determination took over and we made it to the start in spite of the churning stomach. The water felt cold but the wetsuit was a godsend.

Swim leg - 400m

Now 400m may not sound far but believe me it usually feels like 2km in the open water of the lake with several other bodies kicking and flailing arms whacking you in the face. However with a wetsuit I felt amazingly buoyant and could have swum it twice. Yes, I was still hit on the head, and pushed and shoved but I just kicked harder and kept swimming. I felt confident and non-drownable. I didn't panic once. I wish I could swim in a wetsuit for every triathlon I ever enter. It made all the difference to how I felt. For one thing I actually passed people, I even passed people in the wave ahead of me. My wave was the last to leave and I was in fear of being last out of the water and therefore last in the entire event but it didn't happen. I was well in with the bunch and with such a good start felt really good throughout the entire event.

Cycle leg - 14km

I spent far too long in transition. I put on a bike jacket cos it was pretty cold, dried my feet before putting on my shoes, had a drink, put on my number belt, my helmet and my sunnies (even though the weather was decidedly bleak) and ran out to mount my bike. It was a good ride. The road remained dry and the rain held off. I didn't become too hot even with a jacket on but I didn't freeze either. At times the head wind made it a bit of a battle and there was a scary moment crossing a bridge when a bus drove past and my bike wavered a bit but on the whole the cycle leg was pretty comfortable and there were lots of different sorts of bikes out there.

Run leg - 4km
Again I definitely am out of practice with transition. I even stopped to tighten my laces and then I lost my bearings for a moment and stood there trying to figure out where the run leg started! However I set off at last to find my feet felt like solid blocks and didn't want to run properly. It took me more than a km to get into my stride and the turnaround point felt a long way. However, after the halfway point I began to enjoy myself and ran much more comfortably. I even managed a sprint down the finishing chute and finished with a smile on my face. Yes, I had finished the first triathlon of the season and actually enjoyed myself. Now that's a first!

CJ and I hung round for a while waiting for the barrel draws and the results to be announced. CJ won first in her age group and I came second in mine so we both received awards which was pretty exciting. CJ did a great time of 58minutes. My time was nearer 70minutes but one of the joys of being in my age group is that there's not too many competitors after a certain age. The winner in my age group is an Australian champion so pretty much unbeatable but I was very happy to be second even if there may have only been two in my age group!!

We decided to use the run leg of our tri as the run for Rae's Turkey Run in the US so we wore the Turkey Numbers which I had printed off and these photos are taken with our trophies after the tri was over so that we could wear Rae's numbers. See CJ's blog (froggie61) for more reports on the WAG Tri.

Last Day of the Working Week!

Activity: Swim
Distance: 1.2km
Comments: 2 x 400m and 1 x 300m

Still extremely tired and very stressed. Couldn't get motivated to go to the lake after a very full-on day at work. Besides the weather was not warm and didn't encourage me to attempt that lake. It will be a busy weekend and at registration tomorrow arvo at the lake CJ and I plan to try out the water probably in wetsuits by the look of the expected temperatures! I think we are running first thing in the morning in the Turkey Run organised by Rae to celebrate thanksgiving in the US via her blog.

All Worn Out!

I had all these plans to go to the lake after work and go for a practice swim and a run but it was a bleak cool day and very windy near the lake and it didn't take a lot for Mr B to convince me that it wasn't such a good plan. I didn't want to drown on my own so came home after work instead and as I keep nodding off in front of the computer it was probably a good idea not to attempt a lake swim today! We have one week tomorrow to complete our tender at work - could be a few late nights next week.

Morning Activity: Cycle
Distance: 16.24km
Time: 48:33
Location: Ginninderra Drive hill repeats
Calories: 312
AHR: 129bpm
MHR: 192bpm
Max speed: 42kph
Av speed: 20kph

Comments: Cycled to Ginninderra Drive where I rode 4 x hill repeats along Ginninderra Drive to the AIS and back to Ellenborough Street against a head wind. On the last repeat I kept cycling and cycled home via the cycle track past the AIS and Kaleen. The hills were hard work - just a steady incline but felt it. There were lots of cyclists out there and I do prefer road cycling to cycle tracks providing there's a shoulder on the road. It was a pretty cold morning but I warmed up pretty quickly. Three sleeps to the WAG Tri - scary! Hope I can try a swim in the lake on Saturday.

Wednesday looks both ways to Sunday!

Why oh why did I enter the Women's and Girls' Triathlon on Sunday? I don't feel at all prepared! I will probably drown!

Morning activity: Killer abs and weights at home

Evening activity: Yoga

Comments: After another stressful day at work (it'll be like this for another two weeks!) it was great to go to yoga. We had a relief teacher tonight and she was excellent, different from our Polly but it was good to do some things a slightly different way. Some of the stretches hurt, especially the calf stretches after the hill runs I've had lately but it's a good sort of pain! At the end of the session we had a good ten minutes of relaxation. I even heard someone snore! We had to lie there and blank the mind and concentrate only on our breathing. Every time the mind wanders we have to concentrate on bringing it back to our breathing - difficult at times because my mind definitely tends to wander - to things I need to do at work, to the triathlon on Sunday, back to work, to what to have for dinner, back to work - ahhhhh - just breathe, in, out, in, out - eventually it almost worked. I almost blanked my mind. I just needed another ten minutes. The hardest part is being told to slowly open the eyes and gently wake up - damn. I just wanted to stay there on my back. That end bit is the best - the stress just floats away, even temporarily is good. We only have three more sessions this year - that's so sad.

Tuesday Trials

Firstly I have an addendum to Monday's training session at Parliament House as speedygeoff reminded me tonight. How could I possibly forget this bit? After our warm-up lap we had to do as many sit-ups as we could do in 90secs by speedygeoff's watch. I managed 56 and was quite proud of that. Somebody managed 20, someone else 70 so there definitely is a variance there. It was certainly a different way to start the hard stuff!

Tuesday Morning Activity: Cycle 6am
Distance: 18km
Time: 50mins
Location: Cycle track from home to Gungahlin Lakes Golf Club and return
AHR: 120bpm
MHR: 148bpm
Calories: 334
Av speed: 21.3kph
Max sp: 32kph

Comments: Definitely a slow ride. Parts of me were hurting and I discovered later that I had a large red bruise on my inner thigh probably caused by hitting the bike seat when I stopped suddenly on Saturday.

Evening Activity: Run with speedygeoff's group
Location: North Lyneham
Distance: 10:02km
Time: About an hour (with breaks)
AHR: 144bpm
MHR: 218bpm (and I believe that this time!)
Best km: 5:38kph
Calories: 630

Comments: Phew! There I was at North Lyneham with speedygeoff's fast runners - Maria, Griffin, Tony, Colin and speedygeoff of course! Oh boy I knew I could never keep up with them but I also know that if I don't challenge myself I will never improve so here goes nothing! We started with a warm-up lap of that challenging hilly circuit and it was HOT! Then we ran 1500m in a route that included what I call the "killer" hill - worse than last night's hills in my opinion - longer and steeper. Then we ran 1500m again faster. They all waited at the top for me and clapped as I arrived at the end. They're such a great group of runners - all very talented and also very tolerant of this slow coach! I had a great chat to griffin. So many runners have such interesting stories to tell. Griffin - you need a blog! We next ran 4 x 30sec sprints on 90secs which translated means we ran fast for 30secs then jogged back to the start and did it again 3 more times. Gee, that 90secs came round very fast. We finished with the full loop of the course again (3.1km of dusty hills) and this time ran it quite gently and at chatting pace. I ran with speedygeoff who is quite a movie buff and told me about the last three movies he has watched - they sound good too.

So there we have it, two tough running sessions in a row. I came home, ate, showered and changed colour from brown to skin colour again (yes, that course was definitely dusty) and now I'm ready for bed. Work is so stressful at the moment and the run was tough but I am always glad I make the effort. It makes me feel human in spite of myself - an exhausted human I might add!

Just another Manic Monday!

Activity: Swim 6.45am
Location: Civic Pool
Distance: 1km
Time: 27:23

Comments: Just a short swim. There was no slow lane so I just swam in a lap swimming lane and there were only two of us in it so it was great. It was a stunning day weather-wise and I think more people chose to swim outdoors which suited me fine. I also started a wee bit later as I knew I wouldn't be sharing breakfast this morning as CJ is swimming with Bilby's on Monday evenings instead so I took cereal from home and just bought a coffee to take with me to work. At least I had an early start in the office. It was a full-on day and looks like being awfully busy for the next couple of weeks. Inbetween interviewing and selecting staff we are writing a tender for our contract for the next three years - very intensive stuff and mentally exhausting.

Photo shows me with Mr B after the Canberra Marathon in April. Next year I hope it will be after the Ultra!!

Activity: Run with speedygeoff's group 5.30pm
Location: Parliament House
Distance: 7:06km
Time: 41:54 approximately
Calories: 421
AHR: 138bpm
MHR: 204bpm
Fastest km: 5:13
Pace: 5:56kph

Comments: Very hot and sunny. Warm up lap of Parliament House in and out the little tracks then one hill loop to show us the course of our hill sprints. We ran 4 x 700m hill sprints with a stop for 3 pushups on the route - did each of these on 5 minutes including a rest then we did a warm down lap of Parliament House and attempted some chin-ups. Some people can do these, some people struggle - I am definitely in the latter category! It was a good session and my calfs were a bit tight walking back down the steps to the car. North Lyneham tomorrow could be interesting! I have to say that running is a good stress release when work threatens to overwhelm me!

Catch up time
Dear me, where does the time go? It's the end of the weekend already!

Back to Thursday
Activity: Cycle
Distance: 11km
Location: Past Lake G and home via Giralang
Comments: Av sp: 21.6kph
Max sp: 36kph
Calories: 210
AHR: 120bpm
MHR: 137bpm
Comments: Just a short cycle as I didn't have much time

Activity: Dancing

Comments: Last dancing session for the season and it was 2 hours with a very short break for supper. We tried every dance we had learnt in the 7 weeks plus more. The intermediate and advanced class joined us. I don't think these dancing lessons were a good way to spend quality time together - they caused tension and sore feet instead! I don't think we will continue them next year somehow!

Friday
Activity: Swim
Distance: 1km
Time: 27mins
Comments: Could only squeeze in the basic km as had to conduct an interview in the office at 8.30am so had to be through brekkie by 8.15am. We managed it comfortably. That night I attended an awards night for apprentices in the building and construction trade. It was a very enjoyable 3 course meal in a lovely venue but was somewhat spoilt by the lack of manners of the young apprentices who managed to talk loudly right through the presentations even after being remonstrated by the compere several times!

Saturday - Battling the elements!
Activity: Cycle
Distance: 18:67km
Location: To and round Lake Ginninderra
Calories: 353
AHR: 127bpm
MHR: 151bpm
Av sp: 21.3kph
Max sp: 35kph
Comments: Rode out against a strong head wind and had to really push hard to make any leeway. On the return trip the wind eased a bit and I detoured to a friend's house for a while as I was lending her visiting daughter a couple of our bikes. By the time we left for our house to collect them it had started to pour with rain and as we were pumping up the tyres in our garage down came the hail and the thunder roared. It only lasted about 15mins but wow, it was sudden and very heavy. However when they left with the bikes the sun had returned - a very strange day weather-wise. The wind stopped and late afternoon was calm and sunny. In the evening I went out for dinner with a friend.

Sunday
Activity: Run 8.25am
Distance: 13.87km
Location: From home to and round Lake G
AHR: 161bpm
MHR: 201bpm
Average pace: 5:46kph
Best km: 5:30kph
Calories: 824
Comments: Ran from home and met up with JD at Black Pepper where we continued running round the lake at a comfortable pace. It was a stunning day today - a little cloudy initially but it turned out to be a warm, sunny, gorgeous day. Afterwards we had a fantastic coffee at Black Pepper - perfect froth and a great taste - so good I had two and the second was as good as the first which is unusual. Maybe they have a new barrista - I'm impressed! JD dropped me off home and later I visited the Kingston Markets where I picked up the Italian print I had framed there. I'm delighted with it. I also went to Belconnen Mall - lots of shopping to do including the supermarket shopping (oh joy) before driving home just before my son and family arrived for dinner. I can't believe how quickly this weekend disappeared! And I still have the ironing to do!!

Tomorrow is swimming and running with speedygeoff's group at Parliament House. It's also decision time for the people we interviewed on Friday and more 'tender' application writing - another fun day in the office!

Middle of the Week Already!

Gosh, it's Wednesday already and I'm three days behind with my blog!

Monday
Activity: Swim at Civic Pool
Distance: 1.3km

Comments: 2 x 500m then 300m cool down followed by brekkie with CJ & Mr B and a mediocre coffee!

Tonight I had complimentary tickets to a special screening of Flight Plan with Jodie Foster so I had to miss speedygeoff's training session at Parliament House. It was a very exciting movie - I was on the edge of my seat!

Tuesday
Activity: Run
Location: Kaleen block
Distance: 6km
Time: 33:42
AHR: 157bpm
MHR: 170bpm
Average pace per km: 5:36

Comments: I had to run this morning as again I missed speedygeoff's training group, this time at North Lyneham, as I took Mr B to see Joe Cocker in concert. It was a great night. I preferred the second half of his program as we knew all the songs. He had three encores and the Llewellyn Hall was packed. The average age of the audience was "old" to say the least - a bit different from when we went to see Jewel some years ago when we would have been the oldest by about 20 years! This time we fitted right in - similar to when we went to Neil Diamond - even saw people we knew. Mr B kept bumping into friends of his age group from work and squash during the interval - a sad reflection on our choice of music. I'll rephrase that. I bought the tickets as a surprise for Mr B as he really likes Joe Cocker - I certainly enjoy some of his music and he was a great performer last night with a very responsive audience.

Wednesday - Success with the shoulder stand!

Early this morning I struggled through all CJ's killer abs but I had to stop between each set - no way can I manage all five sets without a break. It kills! I also lifted a few weights. Tonight I went to yoga and we finally did our shoulder stand - woo hoo. It was a great feeling lifting those legs above my head. It was a great session. Tonight was our sixth session and we have ten in this series. I will be really sad when we finish and will definitely sign up for Beginners 2 next year.

CJ & FlashDuck studying gadgets!











CJ, Flashduck, Strewth, Mrs Hare (behind) & H








Tour de Femme

Activity: Cycle
Distance: 20km
Time: 48:17
Average sp: 26:30kph
Max sp: 45kph
Calories: 477
Forgot to wear heart rate monitor

Comments: Lovely sunny day. After a wobbly start, when I had trouble finding the pedals, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride with more than 500 women of all shapes, sizes and abilities. It was quite inspirational seeing so many women out there giving it a go. I felt comfortable and didn't even struggle up Hopetoun Circuit today. I just stood up on the pedals and found the hill relatively easy. After the ride I met up with Mr B, CJ, H, The Hare & Mrs Hare, Flashduck & later Flashdrake and we sat on H's picnic rug, drank coffee and waited for the barrel draws and results. It was a lot of fun and very relaxing in the sunshine.

Later in the day Mr B & I went to the Kingston Markets then on to Manuka for a great coffee before coming home to sit in the sun where I spent an hour going through job applications and I even managed to short list them for interview. It was that sort of day - beautiful!

Belconnen Community Festival Run

Activity: Run
Distance: 6km (6:05 according to Gandalf)
Location: From CISAC round Lake Ginninderra
Time: 32:23
AHR: 167bpm
MHR: 206bpm
Calories: 358
Average Pace per km: 5:20
Fastest km: 5:02

Comments: Start was at 10am for a 6km run/walk round Lake Ginninderra finishing opposite Benjamin Way. This run was held in memory of Ben Donohoe who was only 9 when he died of a brain tumour. There were 1,300 competitors and over $7,500 was raised for paediatric brain tumour research. It was a sunny day and a pleasant run. CJ won the female veterans' category and Flash Duck came 2nd - wow - a medal each! Mr B ran it in 27:17 which was a great time. Aki finished in under 30mins which was also fantastic. I think I need to work on my time! Later FD, PRB, CJ & Mr CJ, Aki, Mr B & I had lunch at Musica e. It was very pleasant and great company but sorry FD, I don't agree with you about the coffee - it tasted bitter! The company and the food more than made up for the coffee however!
Later in the afternoon I went to collect my number for the Tour de Femme tomorrow. The "show bag" included a t-shirt, which is very comfortable, a drink bottle and a wrist timing strip which is a bit upmarket! Hmmm, it's all a bit scary!

Friday
Activity: Swim with CJ 6.30am
Distance: 1.2km
Location: Civic Pool
Time for 1km: 27:20

Comments: The pool was really busy this morning and there wasn't a "slow" lane so I had to share a side lane with a number of swimmers with interesting styles and a number of breast strokers. However the brekkie later was yummy and Mr B came into town to join us.

One more day to Friday

Activity: Cycle 6.15am
Distance: 11km
Time: 32mins
Location: Past Lake G and home via Giralang & Kaleen
Average Speed: 20.3kph
Max speed: 35kph
Calories: 200
AHR: 113bpm
MHR: 218bpm

Comments: Gentle ride to keep my legs moving. Slower than the other day but had to push against a head wind. Started too late to fit in much distance. Flash Duck has suggested we wear our CR cycling top at the Tour de Femme Sunday - great idea. I had been trying to decide which Italian top to wear so if I wear the CR one I won't have to make that decision and we'll be able to find each other afterwards! Mind you, CJ, FD, H & N will have to wait patiently for me after they finish!! Wonder if CJ and FD plan to wear the CR singlet at the fun run on Saturday? Will check!

Activity: Dancing 7.30pm
Location: Danceway Belconnen

Comments: Tonight we spent a lot of the evening going over the Tangoette - so many steps in that but going over it several times is certainly a help. We also danced the Rumba and learnt the Jive which we haven't done before. Next week we have a two hour session and we go over every dance we have learnt - now that could be interesting! I have to say the feet certainly have a good workout on the dance floor!
Tomorrow morning I meet CJ for a swim and then that lovely muesli brekkie! Aaaaah - Friday is nearly here.

Yoga night

Today was a lovely sunny day - 27deg - a beauty. This morning I did a few sit ups and weights before going off to brekkie with friends at RBB. It was quite a stressful day at work with a few HR issues I could do without. Such are the joys of being a Manager - not ever easy!
However yoga was wonderful. Our instructor tells us we should concentrate on our breathing and forget the outside world using that 1 1/4 hours as complete self-indulgence. I have to say that, although I find it very difficult to block out all those life happenings, it is a great feeling especially the relaxation at the start and end of the session. Some of the stretches are difficult and some exercises hurt but it feels so good when I achieve them that I only ever feel good afterwards. I am completely hooked!

Tiring Tuesday

Activity: Cycle 6.15am
Distance: 13.29km
Time: 43:18
Location: Ginninderra Drive repeats
AHR: 119bpm
MHR: 156bpm
Max speed: 42kph
Calories: 241

Comments: Managed to drag Mr B out of bed to join me on an early morning cycle. Cycled to Ginninderra Drive via the cycle track then cycled up the road to Bruce uphill all the way then crossed the road at the AIS, cycled back down the hill (lovely) then did it again doing 3 repeats in all then cycled on Ginninderra Drive to meet up with the cycle track and cycled home via the track from the AIS and through the Kaleen streets. On the third repeat I tried to cycle the uphill in a tougher gear but gee, it was hard work!

Activity: Run 5.30pm
Location: North Lyneham hills
Distance: 8.55km
Calories: 535
AHR: 154bpm
MHR: 211bpm
Fastest km: 5:35

Comments: Back to those tough hills. Fortunately there had been so much rain last night and this softened the ground a little. As a road is going part of the way through there a lot of road works had been taking place since CJ and I last ran North Lyneham. We didn't spot a single kangaroo tonight, unlike last time.We ran the entire loop of 3.1km then ran a 1km sprint, 1km easier then 1km sprint again which took us up the killer hill. I was lagging a bit and on the first sprint I was following Tony who kept going up another very steep hill (wrong move). It was so tough to follow that by the killer hill a km later - ouch! Mr B & I were going to attend the social dancing class tonight as extra practice but when I arrived home he was nowhere to be seen. He turned up a while later having had a puncture on his bike and he had just walked home. He was tired, I was stuffed and although I did shower and dress in the appropriate clothes we decided not to go on to dancing tonight. I was not at all sorry. I'm so tired. In fact I'm nodding off as I write this! Tomorrow morning I have brekkie so it will be an easy day with only yoga in the evening.
Not sure if anyone out there can help me but I'm having trouble downloading blogger maps all of a sudden. I haven't been able to download one for ages and it's most frustrating. Am I doing something wrong? It used to work!

A Tough Day

Activity: Swim 6.30am
Location: Civic Pool
Distance: 1.5km

Comments: Met CJ at pool and I swam pyramids as follows:
1 x 50m, 1 x 100m, 1x 150m, 1x200m, 2 x 250m, 1 x 200m, 1 x 150m, 1 x 100m, 1 x 50m
Swam in the slow lane but felt fine.

Activity: Run 5.30pm
Location: Parliament House
Distance: 8:27km
Time: 48:37
Average pace per km: 5:52
AHR: 154bpm
MHR: 210bpm
Calories: 488
Best km: 5:11

Comments: Ran with speedygeoff's group at Parliament House. We did an interesting loop round Parliament House in and out the little side tracks and down to the grassy track. We then did 7 loops which included a nasty little hill and when we returned to the track ran a 200m sprint. The loop became more difficult as we ran more especially when speedygeoff made us include the second part of the nasty little hill which made it twice as tough! After the 7 repeats we did a cool down back to the start winding in and out the little tracks again. An interesting session and a good work out.

The toughest part of the day was when Mr B telephoned me in the morning at work to tell me that our poor old border collie, Rascal, had died. When I let him out last night he seemed fine but he was deaf and very slow and he found a little spot behind the banksia rose and just curled up there during the night. Mr B found him this morning when he didn't turn up for breakfast or return to bed last night. My daughter picked me up from work and we went home to say goodbye. I brushed his hair and he looked so beautiful and peaceful. I guess he had a heart attack as he didn't seem unwell at all yesterday. Rascal was 15 and had grown up with the children. He was part of our family and will leave a huge gap. I will miss him sitting on the other side of this French door watching me in the evenings as I write my blog! There's a thunder storm going on tonight. I think it's happening in sympathy!

A Sunny Spring Sunday

"Spring has sprung
The grass has riz
I wonder where the birdies is
The birdy's on the wing
But that's absurd
I always thought the wing was on the bird!"

That about sums up the day. It was a beauty. I started it off with a comfortable middle distance run from home at a comfortable time in the morning!

Activity: Run 9.30am
Distance: 10.97km
Time: 61:55
AHR: 167bpm
MHR: 222bpm
Fastest km: 5:27
Average pace: 5:38 per km
Calories: 652

Comments: Bit muggy and I was dripping wet when I arrived home. I then did some stretches and lifted a few weights before showering. Canberra looked so green today. I ran the same course as I cycled on Friday evening. It was a pleasant run and there were lots of dogs, walkers, cyclists and magpies about. Fortunately the magpies were interested in their babies and not me. In fact I think some of them were babies themselves and they were walking rather than flying about. Today was a good day. Dave was playing in a squash tournament all weekend and I went to the Kingston Markets with a girlfriend and we actually did some Christmas shopping then we had lunch outside in Manuka before going on for more retail therapy at Westfield. It was lots of fun - a successful day. I must add that we had lunch at My Cafe in Manuka. The service was excellent and the coffee was fantastic - at last I've found a great coffee and good food combined - woo hoo. I'll definitely revisit there. I used to go there years ago after the movies in Manuka but obviously it deserves reconsideration now. I will be back! It was really really busy but the service was still very efficient and fast.

Sunshine and Good Company

Activity: Cycle 7.20am
Location: Tour de Femme Course
Distance: 21:23km (odometer reading)
Time: 59minutes
AHR: 127bpm
MHR: 216bpm
Av speed: 21.5kph
Max speed: 42kph
Calories: 401

Comments: Turned out to be a lovely sunny day but started a little cloudy early in the morning. NH collected me and my bike and we met up with CJ, H & T at the yacht club where we rode the Tour de Femme Course in training for next Sunday. The start is on a hill but it was mostly ok and very social although towards the end there was a nasty uphill on Hopetoun Circuit - ouch, I had forgotten about cycling hills! I felt comfortable most of the time and H and I discussed CJ's amazing calf muscles as we rode behind her. They're certainly impressive as are her stunning new bike shoes! My brakes are very tight which is a bit scary on the downhills but I managed ok considering my lack of training. We had to avoid lots of little pieces of glass and other rubbish on the road shoulders which was a bit annoying. There was a surprising amount of traffic for so early in the morning. After our ride we drove to The Deck for a coffee and a bite to eat. We were also given some disgusting water which had obviously been left in the fridge too long and had a nasty taste. We warned them about it before they subjected other customers to their water. It was definitely undrinkable. However, the company was great as is the outlook up there overlooking the lake and it was a most enjoyable morning.
Tomorrow in the morning I'll go for a run and hopefully it will be another lovely sunny day.

Friday - Yippee!

Forgot to set the alarm this morning and woke with a start at 6.10am. I need to rise at 5.30am to make it to swimming so rang CJ and organised to at least meet her for brekkie after her swim - Mr B met us there too which was good.

Activity: Cycle 6pm
Distance: 11km
Time: 30:14
Location: To and past Lake Ginninderra and home via Giralang via cycle track
Av speed: 21.8kph
Max speed: 32kph

Comments: As my bike is now back from being serviced I thought I should give it a test run so Mr B joined me for a short ride. It was a stunning day and the weather was still beautiful at 6pm so it was very pleasant except that my brakes are extremely stiff and hard for me to use with my sore wrists. My friend is collecting me and my bike at 6.40am tomorrow and we're off to join CJ, H & T at the yacht club where we are going to cycle the Tour de Femme route for practice. Here's hoping I don't hold them up too much. I'm not exactly up to their pace!

What a hot day!

Activity: Run 6am
Locality: Kaleen block
Distance: 6.07km (Gandalf varies this every time!)
Time: 33:57
AHR: 159bpm
MHR: 193bpm
Calories: 350
Average pace per km: 5:35

Comments: Phew, suddenly the temperature zoomed today. It was even humid running at 6am. I know it won't last but it happened suddenly all the same. Bit slower than last week but felt a bit sluggish this morning.

Activity: Dancing 7:30pm

Comments: I think finally we are improving. Tonight we managed not to trip over each others feet all night and parts of the evening could actually be called fun! We learnt yet more steps and started learning the Tangoette. Next week we learn the Jive. So now we have been taught the Modern Waltz, the Cha Cha Cha, the Rumba, the Quick Step, the Fox Trot, the Evening Two Step and the start of the Tango - I think that about covers it but it's very confusing. I can never remember which one's which! We certainly did a good work out tonight. It was hot and quite exhausting. We didn't stop for the full hour. Tomorrow morning is swimming and it's Friday - yippee!

Last night I registered for the Tour de Femme so there's no turning back now. I'm a tad worried about it as I haven't cycled at all lately. I think I'm joining HK & CJ for a ride in the weekend - hope I can keep up with them!

After over indulging yesterday at our Melbourne Cup celebrations and sleeping like a baby I rose early to start the new day with some nasty killer ab exercises given to me by CJ. I could only manage half them - ouch. They need considerable work. I then lifted some dumbbells on the swiss ball and several other weights exercises for about 45 minutes.
After work I attended a good yoga session with lots of stretches and more practice towards shoulder stands. At lunch time Mr B and I collected my bike from servicing so this weekend the plan is to go for a proper bike ride as there's only a week after that to the Tour de Femme which will be a very slow event for me!