I spend a good chunk of time here

I'm a creature of habit. I like consistency, I like to plan ahead, and I like sticking to a regular training schedule.

Sundays tend to be long run days, no matter the season. Almost every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning you can find me at the pool. For much of the rest of winter you can find me here – in what I call my “woman cave.”

We've managed to pack an elliptical, treadmill, weight bench, and and old bike on rollers in a bit of space in our living room. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays are bike days -- two hour-long rides during the week, and a two-hour ride on the weekends. For fun, let's talk about my "professional" set-up:

• Steel Huffy that is older than I am, on rollers. I actually raced on this thing for two seasons; it helped me take home my first-ever age group award. You can see the intricate bungee cord finagling to keep the front wheel from flapping around. Notice also the folded-up blanket covered by a towel for arm-resting comfort, the pedal cages, and the old beach towel protecting my hardwood floors.

• Ikea chair borrowed from our dining area with the Taboo game as a sturdy surface for my glass of water. We don't have many extra shelves laying around, so this is what I use to keep my water within arms' reach. I usually have my phone in front of the water glass with the stopwatch feature going, but I needed that to take this picture, of course.

• Reading and listening material to keep myself occupied. I keep my sports-themed magazines -- Triathlete, Runner's World, Women's Running, and Tennis -- as well as my National Geographics close by. I usually listen to comedy podcasts for further distraction. I don't normally watch TV in the early mornings (condo living + loud rollers = I have to turn the volume way up to hear it) but I might watch a movie during my Saturday afternoon rides. Sometimes I'll watch a show or movie or play on the iPad to change it up.

Will this set-up be enough to build that bike engine? We'll find out when the triathlon season officially starts.