I just recently ran some reports from my training log to check on my average training volume for the year so far and here are the results by year for Swim, Bike and Run:

These numbers represent the averages over the first 30 weeks of each respective year.  This obviously doesn't give the whole picture since my training has been more intense this year than it was in 2007 for example but it does give a good indication of what I might need to focus on during the 2nd half of this season as well as in 2010.  My favorite equation for success is:

CONSISTENCY + PROGESSIVE OVERLOAD == CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT

In 2008, my consistency suffered because I was injured and so far in 2009 my consistency has suffered because I've been racing more often and have been spending a lot of time freshening up for races as well as recovering from races.  I've also turned up the intensity a notch this year so I've been missing workouts here and there due to excess soreness.

I've started to plan out the remainder of my season and I keep thinking about how I can be CONSISTENT and PROGRESSIVELY OVERLOAD my body with stress.  Here are some of my thoughts:

* I'll only be racing two more times this season: Augusta 70.3 and Clearwater 70.3.  I won't be spending as much time freshening and recovering from races.
* I think the high octane intervals on the bike and run really took their toll on me.  Maybe because I didn't have the foundation necessary or maybe my body just doesn't handle that work well anymore.  I'm planning on doing more hill repeats, steady state, and LT work over the 2nd half of the season since these workouts don't dig me so deep and I bounce back from them more quickly.
* I am going to join Tim Kerr's swim group at the Aquatic Center to get my swim training up where it needs to be.  I get more out of my workouts and am more likely to put in more time in the water when there are others around me to be competitive with.
* I'm pretty excited because it shouldn't be too tough to surpass these numbers in 2010 so I know that I've still got a lot of untapped potential ready to bust out of the seams.

Here are some specific aspects of my training that I'd like to focus on during the second half of this season:

* Improve force on the bike.  I'll be more focused in the weight room and will be hitting the hill repeats and going to the mountains.
* Improve muscular endurance on the bike.  I tend to struggle towards the end of my 56 mi bike leg and feel like I need to improve my sustainability.
* Increase run cadence.  I feel like my body gets too damaged by the run and I think it's due to my slow, bouncy cadence.  The increased turnover should help with muscle fatigue as well as keeping me in a better horizontal plane.
* Swim volume and consistency.  I don't plan on missing a M, T, T, F swim session with Tim's group once I start in two weeks.  My swim needs to improve by next spring if I want to have any chance of breaking into the top 3 at 70.3s next season.
* I've gotten a bit soft looking lately so it's time to get "gorilla shredded" again.  Hitting the weight room and cutting a few calories during my mid-season break and rebase period should do the trick.  Muscle retains more H2O and CHO so turning the extra fat into muscle should help on race day.