Spalsh & Dash #3 Report

or "All Kinds o' Sucky"

PRE-RACE
Alarm went off and I popped out of bed after only hitting the snooze button once.

Made my way to the kitchen to make coffee. Then went to the bedroom to get dressed. Came back to the kitchen and there was coffee everywhere. I don't know why, but about once out of every 10 times that I make coffee, I do something wrong and we end up with a coffee mess everywhere.

To have it happen on this particular morning wasn't so good. I found myself cleaning up the coffee mess when I should have been drinking coffee and eating breakfast. I managed to get everything cleaned up well enough the the rest of the family could make coffee when they woke up. But I was now running out of time. There would be no coffee for me and my breakfast was reduced to whatever I could find to grab and go. Which turned out to be a strawberry milk chug and a small POM Wonderful.

I also wasn't able to rewrap my finger. Somewhere in the midst of the coffee disaster, I misplaced the tape. Couldn't find it anywhere. Time was ticking, and I needed to go.

This time the event was at a location a bit farther from my house. The drive over stressed me out a bit, but I made it on time. Got body marked, signed a waiver, and then went back to my car to rummage through my first aid kit in search of tape.

Found some white tape that seemed like it would work. Taped my finger to the one next to it. Went over to the pool and tested it out. I found that it didn't hurt too much if I bent my two fingers in toward the palm of my hand. My swim was definately going to be compromised, the entry and pull on the left was messed up, but I could do it.

Got lined up and waited my turn to start...

The SWIM (400M)
The swim was up and back in each lane, then under the rope to the next lane, and so on until the 400M swim was complete. The were starting us 30secs apart. I had estimated my swim at 8:15, a pace of 2:04/100 based on my last month's splash & dash result.

I turned to the person behind me and apologized in advance. I expected to be swimming slower than my estimated time. She said "no worries" the lanes were wide enough, she'd just pass if she needed to.

My watch says that I finished in 9:20, a pace of 2:19/100. Definately slower than my estimate, but not as bad as I expected with the compromised left hand. And while the lady behind me made ground on me, she never got close enough to pass (in the water).

TRANSITION
There isn't too much to set up in transition for a splash & dash. I set up my shoes, socks, hat, and small handheld full of Nuun.

All I had to do was throw down my goggle and cap, put on the shoes, grab the hat and bottle and go. Somehow this took me 1:01.

The RUN (5K)

The run course consisted of going up and over a highway on a pedestrian bridge, then running along side the highway on a bike path. Possibly one of the least scenic courses ever. The first part was on a gradual incline, then after the turn around, it was a gradual decline.

I knew I was in trouble about 100 yds into my run. The combination of lack of coffee and decent breakfast, extra energy spent in the pool trying to make up for issues with my left hand, and the sloshing in my stomach of strawberry milk and pomagrante juice was not doing good things for my body. My stomach was upset and I seriously contemplated if puking might make me feel better.

Struggling the whole time, I was passed on the run by many participants who started well after me in the swim. Run time ended up being 33:45, an 11:12 pace. For a 5K?!?! Ugggh. I think that's the slowest 5K I've run in 3 yrs, possibly ever. The only exception was the 5K at the end of the Patriot Tri last year which I mostly walked due to my knee, so that doesn't count.

My total combined time ended up being 44:06. While I wasn't the last to cross the finish line because of the seeded swim start, I think there is a good chance that I had the slowest combined time and will be listed in the results as the final finisher.

What can I say? It definately wasn't my day. I expected a slower swim, but never anticipated having such trouble on the run. Sometimes it just isn't meant to be.

But that isn't a good reason to give up, right? I thanked the race director on my way out and told him that I planned to be back for the next one...

[Edited several hours later to thank you all for your comments so far! I still can't believe just how sucky this was, but I like to think it was more a situation gone awry than a reflection of my ability. The next one will surely be better!]

First Impression of New Shoes

Earlier this week, my new shoes (courtesy of the onlineshoes.com giveaway on Wes's blog) arrived at my doorstep. I decided to debut them during my Thursday morning long run.

Before I get too far into this, let me back up a bit. I'm a neutral runner that runs on mixed conditions (trail, track, pavement). I typically run 3 days a week, shortish runs, but plan to ramp it up to 4 days and a little more mileage as I prep for a HM in October. Because of the shape of my feet, I prefer shoes with a wider toe box - narrow ones cause blisters on my big toe. For the past year, I've been running happily in Nike Zoom Vomero +3.

I originally thought that I'd use the gift certificate toward some trail shoes, but they didn't have the shoes that I wanted to try in stock in my size. So I decided to go ahead and look for a possible alternative to my Nike's. I decided on the Saucony Progrid Triumph 5. Here is what they look like:


My first impressions are generally favorable. I'm really only able to compare them to my Nikes, so that is what I'll do.

They seem to weigh about the same as my Nikes. They offer shock absorption, but in a more supportive way. That makes these a bit more suitable for the trail, in my opinion. Toe box isn't as wide as the Nikes, but it seems to be wide enough. At least I didn't notice any rubbing on my big toe the first time out. They have decent traction. One gripe I have with the Saucony shoes is the laces. They are really thin/flimsy and will need to be replaced.

For now, I think I will continue to run in these new shoes on my trail runs, and use my Nike's for pavement and such.

Thanks Wes and OnlineShoes.com!!

Long Run Thursday Morning

Plan:
Get up at 5am. Be out the door by 6am. Stick with Run/Walk. Stay hydrated. Try to have fun. Test out new shoes. Run 7 miles. Don’t Bonk. Don’t be (too) late for work

Actual:
Alarm went off at 5am. Holy smokes, how do people get up this early?! Made friends with snooze button. Twice. Up at 5:18. Yawn. Thought about going back to bed. Looked for new shoes. Ate a small breakfast. Found the shoes. Got ready. Slowly. Finally out the door twenty minutes behind schedule. Ran until my first scheduled walk break. Okay, it’s not so bad. Took a swig from handheld at each walk break. Smiled and said good morning to everyone encountered. Wondered why some didn’t reciprocate. Decide they must not be morning people. Smiled. Tried to be cognoscente of my new shoes. Enjoyed the cool morning temps. Felt good. Finished the distance as planned. Wow that took a long time. Crud, time to leave for work NOW. Shouldn’t have dawdled so much. Stupid snooze button. Quick shower. Off to work. In time for first meeting. Whew.

One Thing and Long Run Plan

Looked into weight watchers point system and it seems too complicated to me. But in the process, I did some research on nutritional content of some of the foods that I eat and it is clear that I eat wayyyy too much at lunch when I'm at work. Not good when I have two other meals in the day plus two snacks. Similarly, some of my snacks are too big.

For the past several days I've tried to make one conscious change and focus mainly on portion size. That's it. One thing each day. That's how habits are formed right? Here's how it played out:

* Got a smoothie Sunday afternoon for a snack. Had them add a protein scoop. Drank half and froze the other half for another day.
* Had the other half on Monday.
* Chose a garden burger over a regular burger Tuessday for lunch. Ate about 2/3 of it. Tossed the rest.
* Ate 2/3 of my roast beef and provolone sub for lunch. Also ate only about 6 of the chips that came with it.

In running news, I've decided to target tomorrow morning for my long run (7miles) rather than Saturday with the hope that I am able to do the Splash&Dash on Sunday. That leaves Friday and/or Sat to test out swimming with taped finger and will put me in a better place energy-wise on Sunday. While this all sounds good on paper, I doubt it will seem like such a good idea when my alarm goes off at stupid o'clock in the morning to make it happen.

And! My new shoes arrived. I'm not sure if running 7 miles in them straight away is a good idea, but I'm seriously considering it...

This, That, & the Other

First off, thanks tyou for all the great comments and suggestions on my last post. You gave me a lot to think about! One of the first things that I will do is take a more scrupulous look at my snacks - make sure they aren't too many calories and included a reasonable amount of protein. Next is learning to say no to second helpings. And tryng to be more reasonable about the size of the first helpings. And of course keeping up with the exercise.

Today I went out for a 4 mile run/walk this morning. S-l-o-w as molasses, but got it done. It is beyond me how I managed to eek out a 9:38 pace a week and a half ago at a 5K when a 12min pace about did me in this morning.

Not sure how I'm going to work out my training for the next few weeks. We have vacation travel plans starting Monday. next week. Have the flights and car worked out, but need to work out hotels and such. Nothing like waiting til the last moment!

Which may end up not being such a bad thing. Plans just might be changing. Dad is in the hospital again, this time worse than when I went to see him in May. Things aren't looking good, but who knows...

On a different subject, I've decided that I need some sort of cargo partition/pet barrier to keep Bandit confined to the back-back of the car when he comes with me on short car trips. 75lbs of dog that occasionally decides he wants to jump in the front seat just isn't safe. I think I found what I want to order, but will wait until closer to when we leave so that it arrives closer to when we get back.

Oh, and Son's Senior photo proofs came in the mail the other day. A few of them really captured his personality. I just can't believe he's a senior already! It really struck me how much he's grown up when he was taking me to urgent care a few weeks ago.

Which brings me to the stupid finger. Couldn't take the wrapping any longer. My hand was cramping. So I took it off. A week and a half early. Yes, I know that I need to remember that broken finger is still not healed even though the wrap is off. Shouldn't be too hard to remember, since it still hurts!

Not sure if/how I'm going to pull off the Splash & Dash on Sunday. This stupid broken finger seems like it will interfere with any attempt at swimming. Later this week I will see if re-wrapping my hand gives it enough support to swim. If not, guess I'll be a no show again. Sigh.

Running Shorts

I really need to post a photo of the orange Nike Pacer shorts that I picked up at Marhsalls a few weeks ago. I *heart* these shorts...sooooo comfortable. Today I wore them on my 6 mile run/walk with Hubby.

And as of this afternoon, I have a 2nd pair in a lavender-ish color.

It gets better. I just discovered that in addition to a little pocket for my key, they have a 2nd pocket in back. Presumably for an ipod. Didn't even know it was there until I took them out of the dryer inside out the other day. So it's like a bonus pocket. Woot!

I'm also enjoying my two pairs of Nike-some-other-model-that-I-haven't-figured-out shorts. Not as much as the Pacer shorts though. Those are far and away my favorite.

What I'm *not* loving this season are my Running Skirts. Last year I was all about the Running Skirt and didn't really have any running shorts.

So what changed? Well, it's not the Running Skirts' fault.

I've got this issue with an ever expending midsection. And thighs. And butt. Basically the entire section of my body that the Running Skirt is supposed to fit has gotten bigger. And trying to shove a bigger body into a Running Skirt that is now too small and then run?! That's a recipe for all kinds of trouble. Trust me on this.

I started out trying to lose 5 lbs. That was such a resounding success that I found myself upping the number to 10 lbs. Now it's more like 12-15. I basically suck at losing weight. I'm good at finding it though.

In the simplest sense, it's a matter of Calories In vs Calories Out and I'm fairly certain that my issue is on the Calories In side of the equation.

I've been doing the whole Eat-Less-More-Often thing. To a certain extent, that helps keep me from totally pigging out at dinner. But it's not sufficient to get my weight to move in the correct direction. Probably because my version is more like Eat-Less-a-Whole-Lot-More-Often.

I've also tried writing down everything I eat. It hasn't helped me decrease my food consumption. It just makes me feel bad when it comes time to write it all down. So now I probably need psychological help too.

Just kidding.

Sort of.

Here's my serious question to you all. Who out there that likes to eat has been successful at losing weight? How did you do it? What specifically have you done that helped you eat less? No logging tools or tricks are going to work for me if I'm still hungry. I need to figure out how to kill my appetite and do better with portion control more than anything else.

Small Handheld Bottles

I frequently find myself wanting to carry hydration on shorter runs at times when a fuel belt seems like overkill. Especially in the heat of the summer. So, I decided to search for a small handheld bottles to see if I could find one that might be an effective solution for this situation. I wanted it to be small. For reference, my fuel belt holds four 8-10 oz bottles, I figure that anytime I need 16oz or more (2 small bottles), the fuel belt is a good idea.

Went shopping at my local REI and found two solutions that seemed like they would work. Couldn't make up my mind between the two of them, so I bought them both!

The first one that I found was the Nathan Sprint Handheld. This is a 10oz flask. A few nice features include the reflective material, easy to use velcro adjustments, and a nifty race cap with a one way automatic closing valve.

The second one that I found was the Amphipod Hydraform Handheld Lite. This one is a bit larger at 12oz and has a pocket built into the strap.

I have used each of them a few times and found them both to be quite effective. They are small enough not to interfere much with arm motion. They are easy to hold onto. I almost don't notice that they are there. And they do just what I wanted - provide hydration on those shorter runs when a fuel belt seems like too much. Definately money well spent. How on earth did I manage before?!?

A few of you have inquired as to which I like better. I'm honestly not really sure. I like them both for different reasons. I prefer the cap on the Nathan model. I also feel that the reflective detail is a nice feature. However, the Amphipod seems to fit my hand better, holds a bit more liquid, and has a pocket that may come in handy sometime.

If you're in the market, you probably won't go wrong with either one!

Five Happy Things

1) My schedule calls for rest or cross training today. I'd be all over cross training if it weren't for the pesky fractured finger. So I've opted for a rest day. Slept in a little bit, got some extra coffee, no rushing. Ahhhhhh. Mid-week rest is niiiiice. Who knew?!?

2) Remember my post about Nuun? Well, apparently the Nuun folks found out about it and decided to send me some unsolicited thank-you Nuun, which I received yesterday. How cool is that?!?!

3) I was the lucky recipient of a $75 onlineshoes.com gift certificate courtesy of a giveaway on Wes's blog. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about that. Anyway, I picked out shoes and put the order in this morning. Woot! I'll be sharing a review after they arrive and I get a chance to try them out.

4) Checked out the official results from the race on Sunday. I was 4 of 14 in my age group and 60 of 134 overall. I''m rather pleased with the thought of being solidly middle of the pack. I've come a long way, baby!

5) I've run twice with my Nathan Handheld and once with my Amphipod Handheld. I promise to post about my experiences with them in detail after running a few more times, but I'll tell you right now that I'm liking them both.

"Jumping for joy is good exercise." ~Author Unknown

Paces and such

I apologize in advance for all the numbers. I know it's boring, but it's what's on my mind as I try to work out my training for the week.

This morning I did a one hour easy/long run on the ditch bank. It was lovely. The plan was 5 x 10:2 min walk:jog. I ended up going 5.04 miles for an overall avg of almost exactly 12 min/mi (11:55 to be exact). That's within McMillan's calcualtions for my target easy/long pace, but I think the actual running pace was about 11:15 min/mi when I wasn't walking. Not sure if that's too fast or not. In any event, I think a run/walk is a good strategy as I try to ramp up distance toward a half-marathon while protecting the knee. Yes, I realize 5 miles isn't all that far, but I've missed enough long runs that I'm starting over. No worries though, I have plenty of time.

Tomorrow's schedule calls for w/up, 2x10mins steady with 4min recovery between, then c/d. McMillan says my steady pace should be 10:38-10:52, so I'll target 10:45 and hope for the best! Normally, I would meet Tuesday evening with the group for this run, but I think it's best if I go solo and run in the morning. So that's what I intend to do.

I think Thursday is a tempo run. My tempo pace is currently somewhere around 10min/mi, and Coach wants me to start running this progressively faster week on week as the month progresses. Eek!

Women's Distance Festival 5K Race Report

As the name implies, this is a women-only race. I found myself amidst a sea of pink "Women in Training" shirts from a local running group. It made me smile to see so many women in all shapes, sizes, and ages out there running.

Despite my grumbling about the 7am start time the night before, it turned out to be a good thing. It was a comfortable 66 deg when the race started and quickly began warming up to the high near 95deg as the morning went on. Early running is good thing this time of year.

I don't have too much to say about the race itself except that I went out too fast and faded at the end. Garmin says my finish time was 29:54. While that's not anywhere close to my personal best 5K time, and is also slower than my time last year at the same race, it *is* the fastest 5K I've run in 2009 and works out to a 9:38 min/mi pace. I'm counting it as a PB for 2009.

I didn't have to dig too deep to find a way to enjoy the experience. At the finish line, they gave each woman a flower, a little bag of chocolates, and an orange flavored drink. They also had a table set up with muffins and stuff. What's not love about that?!?!

Enjoy the remainder of your weekend, folks!

PS. I bought two handheld bottles this weekend and will share my experiences in a separate post after having a chance to try them both out. This morning I carried the Nathan Sprint Handheld which is just the right size for half a tablet of Nuun. Tomorrow I'll run with the Amphipod Hydraform Handheld Lite Pocket. Stay tuned!

A Dog's Perspective

A few weeks ago, I took Bandit with me to drop off the recycling. It was a short trip, but to him it was paradise. He was *so* happy to go for a car ride, *so* happy to get out of the car and walk back and forth between the recycle bins and the car as I sorted and dropped things off, *so* happy to jump back in the car to go home, etc. He enjoyed everything about it.

After a few days of wallowing in self-pity, I've realized (once again) that I need to start living more like my dog. He has truly mastered the art of enjoying every moment of every day. Taking simple pleasure in a long walk or a car ride or the fresh wind blowing on his face.

Thanks, buddy. I'll try harder to follow your example.

"Don’t let your life pass you by, focus on the present and enjoy today!" - Glen Hopkins

finger update

Okay. I'm a lot less freaked out about my finger, but remain equally frustrated.

After seeing me yesterday, the hand doc doesn't think it's anything to be concerned with. She removed the splint and simply 'taped' the finger to it's neighbor for support. She wants me to practice making a fist many many times a day. And be careful not to bump it.

I'm doing the best that I can, but it's harder than it sounds. The finger is still tender, badly bruised, and swollen. Really swollen. It's currently the fattest finger on my left hand, with the exception of my thumb. And it just doesn't want to bend down very far. Not to mention that it hurts.

Here is my attempt at a drawing of what I saw on the x-ray:When I was talking to the hand doc, she asked if I've ever injured that finger before.

Why Yes, I have. Three times. Once as a very young child, playing dolls, a cradle rocked over my finger. Once in grade school playing softball. Once as a teen playing volleyball. Fractures each time.

Unlucky finger or clutzy me?

Knowing that, she said she wasn't 100% sure that this little fractured piece is a new injury. It might be. Or it might just be leftover from a past injury.

The main thing is that she wants me to keep it moving. Take ibuprofen to control swelling. Be careful with it so it can heal.

I think I can do that.

Of course I wanted to run this morning, but Husband intercepted with some other ideas.

Something about taking care of myself, that doesn't seem like such a good idea, what am I in a hurry for, just take a few days and do what the doctor says and be careful, and go ahead and make a fist and shake it at him. Whatever.

I still plan to run the 5K on Sunday, though.

Tough Break - literally

Yesterday I had a terrible awful no good very bad experience with my run group. (To the point that I think I might need to break up with them) But that's not what I'm here to blog about.

Instead, I wish to share what will soon be my excuse for at least a few weeks for not going to the gym, cycling, or swimming.

This morning I somehow managed to smash (the doc used the word crushed, but that truly makes it sound worse than it is) the little finger on my left hand (of course, becuase I'm left handed and people usually injre their dominant hand) with about 85lbs of weight at the gym.

It occurred so fast that I can't exactly recall the exact details of what exactly happened. One minute things were fine, the next minute I heard a crash, and realized that my finger was purple, swollen, and bleeding.

Immediately went home put ice on it. (I hardly ever cry, but I started sobbing on the way home from the gym because I was in so much pain) Then had my son take me to urgent care.

Xrays confirmed broken bone. No stitches required, luckily. They splinted it, wrapped it up, made an appt with the hand specialist for Friday afternoon, gave me a shot of pain meds and a script for more, and sent me on my way. (All wrapped up, it doesn't look so bad. But trust me, the finger itself is rather grotesque right now.) Bummer, eh?

I wasn't home more than an hour and the hand clinic called. They want to see me tomorrow morning instead of friday afternoon. Apparently they are concerned about nerve/tendon damage bcause while my finger will bend, I am unable to bend it (I can straighten it though, and that uses differnt tendons, muscles, whatever). Guess my piano career is over (that's a lame attempt at a joke. I'm not a pianist!)

I'm not sure what to make of this right now. (perhaps that's cuz i'm jacked up on pain meds at the moment) but if this messes up my ability to do the splash&dash at the end of the month i'm going to be ticked.

Nuun

[No, Nuun didn't send me samples to test out and review. I just felt like sharing recent personal experience.]

I've been using Nuun on and off for a year or so, but started using it more regularly since the tight quad incident a few weeks ago. I'm using it at times that I previously would have just had water, not when I would have used Accelerade. For example, still taking Accelerade with me on longish bike rides, but adding a Nuun tablet to my water bottle when I go to the track.

Each Nuun tablet contains four essential electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium). Drop one into your water bottle and they fizz up a bit. Two minutes later, you have a slightly flavored, sugar free, electrolyte drink.

My observations. I've had zero muscle cramping issues since using it more regularly. And I'm feeling less "thirsty" which I assume is because it's working well to hydrate me.

Nutrition/hydration seems to be very personal. What works well for me might not work well for you. Having said that, this is one product that I'm keeping in my bag of tricks.

Santa Fe Wine Festival

This afternoon, Husband & I drove up to Rancho de las Golondrinas for the annual Santa Fe Wine Festival. This is my favorite of the local wine festivals, because of the scenic location. This one is held on the grounds of a historic living history museum.

Admission price includes the annual wine festival glass. I like the one they gave us for this year.


It was a nice afternoon, not too hot, with several tents set up for sampling wine & local foodstuff. There were a few artisans present as well. We shared Carnitas for lunch - yummy!

Came home with two bottles of wine. The first is Milagro vineyards "Corrales Red" which is a dry red table wine. The second is Gruet Syrah. Gruet is known locally for their Champagne. I was pleasently surprised to discover that they also made a few red wines, and the Syrah was quite good.


It probably goes unsaid that I will not be running this afternoon.

Which would be okay but I also didn't run yesterday. Or the day before. And for that matter, I've consistently missed my long run for the past 4 weekends. I'm pretty much back at square one - 5K distance.

Yeah, not so good.

BUT...weather permitting, I will run tomorrow morning before work. At least 4 miles. Because, I've decided to start ramping up my mileage over the next month to test my knee to see if Duke City Half Marathon might be in the cards for me this year.

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

[Edited to add - I did indeed get in a 4 mile run this morning before work. Took it at a leisurely 12 min/mi pace. Followed by some yogurt and fresh berries. Not a bad way to start off the week if I do say so myself!]

Making Plans

FYI - I've made a few small but meaningful changes to my blog header to shift focus a bit, otherwise decided to maintain my blog identity and keep it as is.

Yesterday Husband & I finalized dates for an upcoming trip. We're flying to northwest OH to visit my mom, then driving east to Cedar Point, then to Niagra Falls, then up and over to Toronto, and back around to OH before flying back home to NM. If anyone has any ideas of fun things to do along that route, please drop me a line!

In the process of firming up the dates, I realized that we were going to be out of town for the Socorro Sprint Tri. D'oh! Sent an email to the race director asking if I could have a refund or have my registration forwarded out a year. Seems I only manage to do that race in even calendar years. Oh well.

I was able to confirm, however, that I will be in town for Splash & Dash #3, and officially signed up for that. In addition, I signed up for the Women's 5K next weekend. Woot!

Whatever your plans, I hope you enjoy your weekend.


"If our country is worth dying for in time of war let us resolve that it is truly worth living for in time of peace." ~Hamilton Fish

Change of Focus?

Received the Splash & Dash results in my email. A few observations.
- My swim was solidly middle of the pack. Woot!
- My run and overall finish was back of the pack. Third from last, to be exact.
- Most of the participants were under 30.
- Only one person older than me showed up.
- I believe that it would be understandable if this makes me feel old and slow.
- But it doesn't.
- I feel alive and happy!

I've been thinking that it might be time to modify the theme of my blog. I find myself relating more to the words of Jon Blais than to the story of the Tortoise and the Hare. That's not to say that I don't relate to the tortoise at all, but I'm finding that my focus is less about getting to the finish line and more about enjoying the life that I've been given.

"Live more than your neighbors. Unleash yourself upon the world and go places. Go now. Giggle, no, laugh. No...stay out past dark and bark at the moon like the wild dog that you are. Understand that this is not a dress rehearsal. This is it. Your life. Face your fears and live your dreams. Take it all in. Yes, every chance you get. Come close. And by all means, whatever you do, get it on film." - Jon Blais

Hill repeats tonight, if we don't get rained out again. I can't wait!

Track Workout and Monthly Totals

~TRACK WORKOUT ~

Tuesday is track day. I never look forward to track day, but I always show up. Today we were scheduled for 1 mi warm up followed by 3x [1000M @ 10K pace with 600M walk/jog]

I did my first 1000 in something faster than 10K pace, not necessarily intentionally, and then my pace and energy level really faded off somewhere between 600 & 800. That's not at all what was prescribed. Drat.

Coach walked over and told me he wanted me to run 600 for the next one instead of the 1000. He instructed me to push it beyond my comfort zone, but hold a steady pace throughout. And, he added "you're going to surprise yourself"

At first I felt like I was getting a remedial workout - I had failed at the 1000s so now I was getting shorter intervals. But then I reminded myself that he's there to help each of us do the best we can. He probably had something specific in mind.

So 600s is what I did.

And boy was he was right, I did surprise myself. I found myself holding onto the pace that the rest of the group was doing for their 1000s rather than my usual going out to hard and then falling off to the back. Amazingly, I felt strong throughout. I was pushing it, but not to the point of failure.

Looking at the numbers, my 600s came in at 3:02 and 3:07. I think that's something along the lines of 8:10-8:20min/mi. Shazam!

Coach was very pleased with how this worked out. For the next month or so, he wants me to focus on shorter intervals at the track with a faster pace vs longer intervals with a slower pace, continue with the hills, and long slow runs on the weekends.

~MONTHLY TOTALS ~

numbers
- ran 36.8 miles
- cycled 70.3 miles
- swam 4450 yds
- did strength at the gym 12 times (clearly, I'm still lovin' the gym)
- events: one half century ride, one splash & dash

thoughts
- I had fun with both events and had a more 'balanced' training month.
- My training volume isn't all that high, but I'm focussed on short stuff at the moment and trying to stay injury free, so I think I'm right where I need to be.

plans for July
- keep on keepin' on. :-)

Random Thoughts

• Sometime last week I lost my purple sport watch. It's the one I use at the pool and also for days when I don't care for data overload from my garmin. I'm bummed. I guess I can look for a new one at Target or something, but I'm mad at myself for losing a perfectly good watch for no good reason. D'oh!

• I bought a new pair of BRIGHT orange Nike shorts from Marshalls the other day. Super comfy and in a you-can't-miss-me color. What's not to love about that?! [Hey, if you know me on facebook, please try the how well do you know me quiz just to make me feel loved and oh by the way Marshall's is an answer in case you haven't figured that out by now. ]

• I feel compelled to share why my rockin' swim from the splash and dash is particularly awesome (for me). As I've mentioned before, I didn't learn to swim until just before my 40th birthday. Some of you may remember that; others may not have ever known it. Anyway, it amazes me how comfortable I am in the water now. My swim just gets better and better. [I wish I could say the same for my running, but alas, that's an entirely different story.]

• The local Women's Distance Festival races are coming up weekend after the 4th. Last year I took third in my AG and got a cute charm bracelet. Might do that again, although I truly don't expect to place.

• We had a lot of rain on Thu and Fri. No big deal, right? But then on Fri and Sat nights the family was kept awake by the annoying loud croaking of frogs/toads. In the freaking desert!! Where the heck did they even come from and why are they so annoyingly loud?!?!? [I was ready to hunt them down and relocate them last night, but they were smart and kept quiet. I'm on to you, stupid frogs!]

Splash & Dash Race Report

This morning I got up early for the 2nd in the series of four local splash&dash events. I missed the first one and wasn't sure what to expect.

Showed up at the location and discovered that this would be a VERY SMALL event. Maybe 25 participants. Guess it is a bad weekend for them. There's another local race this morning, one this evening, plus the serious local triathletes are in Lubbuck for BSLT 70.3.

No worries, I like small events.

The format was 250yd pool swim with a seeded start. Up and back in each lane, then over and so on until you make your way to the end. Out to transition on a patio area. Then a short run over to the Bosque trail with the bulk of the run on dirt.

Set my transition area up and chatted with the other participants as we waited for the start. Got comments again on my too cute Turtle bag.

Seems that most of the people were nervous about the swim. Not Me. I was actually nervous about the run. I've missed my long runs the past few weekends for various reasons, our hill repeats were cut short by a thunderstorm, as was my 'make-up' run on Friday. Just wasn't sure how this was going to work out for me today

They lined us up by number (based on estimated swim time) and started us 30 seconds apart. I had estimated 5:25 based on my past few swims which put me at #11. It looked like most everyone was lined up in a reasonable order except for one lady who seeded herself way too far in the front. Plus the 30 secs between starts provided plenty of room.

The swim was comfortable and I felt strong. I noticed that I was gaining on the guy in front of me and losing the lady behind me. I was surprised and happy afterwards with my actual swim split which works out to 2:01 per 100 yds. That's smokin' fast for me. I'm very happy with my swim.

swim (250 yd) : 5:05

Removed the swim cap and goggles as I was getting out of the pool. Jogged to the transition area to put on my socks and shoes and grab my hat. I hadn't remembered to put my fast laces in, so I had to take time to tie my shoes (vs slip them on). Still, my transition time wasn't too bad.

transition: 0:59

Then it was time to run. Uggh. Right from the beginning, I could tell it was going to be a struggle. Luckily it was a short course. My favorite part of the run was seeing the other participants out on the course. Everyone was encouraging to each other which made me smile. My run time wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either. It worked out to a 9:49 pace which is just a bit off my 5K pace. Coming off a swim, it's basically what I should have expected.

run (3 mi): 29:28
total : 35:32

Here I am shortly after finishing. Still breathing hard and squinting from the sun, but happy.


I hung around the finish area to cheer for the final participants as they crossed the line. Everyone seemed to be happy and was talking about whether or not they would be able to do #3 and #4 in the series. If they work out with my schedule, I'm in!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend folks. :-)

Eenie Meenie Miney Moe

My hamstrings were screaming at me Wednesday after my three-rer on Tuesday. Not in a bad way, more in a man-i-really-pushed-it kind of way. I opted not to cycle commute, in favor of stopping at the pool for a short swim and a dip in the hot tub after work.

Mission accomplished, but not without being hit in the head a few times by wild arms in the pool. [Note to self, stick to morning swimming. Apparently everyone and their brother, cousin, sister, aunt, and neighbor have the same idea about using the pool in the late afternoon/early evening.]

Came home an mulled over some options for this weekend.

option 1 - free memorial 5K sunday morning.
option 2 - 5K sunday evening
option 3 - splash & dash #2 sunday morning
option 4 - skip the races all together, just run/bike on own

I have chosen option 3. Why? I missed the splash and dash in May by sabotaging myself with a long bike ride the day before. Swim/Run still sounds like fun to me. Hopefully I'll be motivated to get to the race this time!

Resting this morning. I'm scheduled for hills this evening. Yipppeee!!

Two-fer (or maybe it was a Three-fer)

For some reason, I woke up early this morning. Since I was up, I figured I'd head out for an early swim before doing my scheduled strength workout.

I got to the pool and found an open lane. Nice. Decided to time my first 400, and then do the rest of the workout without a watch. Here it is in 100 increments

My 100 splits for the first 400

1:51 <- always go out fast
2:13
2:14
2:12

For me, that's pretty darn good. I enjoyed my time at the pool with the expection of some creepy guy in the lane next to me who seemed to want to strike up a conversation while I was swimming. Bleck!

After swimming, I headed off for my lower body strength work and a little bit of abs and with some stretching. It was a good workout and my quad was still doing okay.

I was feeling pretty good about my swim/strength morning, but wasn't looking forward to the track workout with the group this evening: 1 mile warm up, then 3x800M HARD with 400M Walk/Jog in between. Ick. Nothing about that sounds appealing, but I did it anyway.

My 800 times surprised me.

4:17
4:37
4:31

While the last two are close to my pace target, that first one was smokin' fast for this body. What amazes me is that I was able to pull this off after the swim/strength work this morning.

All in all, a solid good workout day. I expect to sleep well. :-)

Addressing my Quad Issue

I tried everything I could think of:

* massage
* "sore no more"
* ibuprofen
* foam roller
* a tennis ball
* rest (vs running/cycling)
* hot tub
* nuun

That last item (nuun) came as a suggestion from a cyclist friend at work who felt that the knot was brought on by muscle cramping caused by dehydration/electrolyte imbalance. After reviewing my training/nutrition/hydration for the past few days, I decided he might be right. I believe that I do a decent job of hydration/nutrition when I'm cycling/running. But on gym/swim days - not so much. I distinctly remember commenting after my gym session with Trainer on Friday that I was sweating, yet I did nothing to replace fluids or electrolytes for some reason. Woke up the next morning with the quad issue. There could be a connection.

I've also ordered "the stick" because several of you use that and it seemed worth giving a try.

Anyway, at this point, the quad is feeling mighty fine. Not sure which of the thing(s) that I did are responsible, but for now I'm back to normal - whatever that it!

Injury Avoidence

Just the other day, I was talking with someone about my goals for this year. Two years ago I wanted to go farther. Last year I wanted to go faster. This year, I just want to remain uninjured.

It's a good thing to remember, the wanting to remain uninjured part, because I learned last year just how NOT fun being injured is.

I woke up early Saturday to join my run group in a scheduled 6 mile run. Got up, fed the cats, made coffee, putted around the kitchen a bit, looked out the window, and contemplated my situation. Not sure how it happened, but my right quad was very sore and tight, enough to make me limp around a bit as I mulled things over.

I was concerned that running through this type of pain would cause me to hurt something else in the process. So I went back to bed and skipped the run.

Later in the morning, after sulking around for a while, I decided to head to the pool for some laps. I also thought the hot tub at the gym would feel good on my leg. And it did.

But by early afternoon, my quad seemed to be getting worse and I was limping when I walked. I asked Husband to massage it and he confirmed that it was VERY tight like a giant knot. It hurt so much when he tried to help work out the tightness that I was nearly in tears.

Today it's still bothering me. Again no running or cycling. However, I did return to the pool. At least that doesn't bother my leg.

We've also tried massaging it a few more times. Also some new tennis balls to roll on it. It finally seems to be getting better, but I'm not sure what exactly is going on. I can't figure out what I did that caused this.

Seems like no matter how much I try, I just can't avoid injury. Sigh.

Bike Jersey and Such

First, my contribution to photo friday - me looking all cute in my new bike jersey for my commute!


The backstory is that I found the "postcards" jersey on clearance online at velowear.com. It's one of the jerseys that has the potential for custom or semi-custom work because of the big white space. One of the semi-custom options was the "save the planet bike to work" logo which I though matched the jersey nicely color-wise, fit the theme because of the postcards from various places around the world, and would be perfect for my bike commute! And now that I have it, I think it makes me look thinner as well, always a good thing!

Went to the gym Wed after commuting into work. Returned to the gym Thursday for upper body and then met with the running group for hill repeats. YAY! Love hill repeats. The prescribed workout was 1 mile warm up, 8x20sec HARD/sprint uphill with REST/walk downhill between each, then 1 mile cool down. I try to make it a game whereby I try to hit or better my mark each time. Oddly, about half the group opted for an optional workout (tempo run). Guess the hill love isn't shared by all.

This morning I was scheduled for lower body "torture" with Trainer. I casually mentioned to him that I was tight in my hips and hamstrings and Boy Howdy did he loosen me up. Wasn't fun in the process, but admittedly I feel much better after being "pretzeled." Also did several lower body strength exercises while I was there. I'm beginning to love squats. I'm strange that way.

This afternoon I have a lunch date with Daughter. We're going to have Indian food. Doesn't get much better than that. I am also returning to the salon in attempt to "fix" a cruddy haircut. Wish me luck!

Updated to add self portrait in car on way home from 'do-over. This single length, slightly angled bob is much better than the weird choppy layers from my latest cut, at least in my opinion!

This and That

* There's another 50 mile ride this weekend with a similar climb to the albq century. We seriously though about doing it, but it just seems too soon. We might have missed the registration deadline anyway. I do wish to do another, but want to spread things out a bit to keep them all special in my mind.

* Had a track workout with the group tonight. We did a 1 mi warm-up, 4x600 at 10K pace with 400 walk/jog in between. Let's just say that was not my favorite workout. However, we're doing hills on Thursday and I'm looking forward to that.

* Thinking about maybe doing an evening 5K next weekend. Evening isn't my favorite race time, but it does mix things up a bit.

* Not sure if I mentioned that I got daughter a student special gym membership for the summer and she *finally* used it for the first time yesterday. My hope is that she gets in the habit of going 2-3 times per week, but I'm not pushing it.

* I'm excited about my newest cycle jersey. Rather than try to describe it, I'm hoping to get a photo - maybe tomorrow morning if I can get my lazy butt out of bed to cycle commute in as planned.

* Something about this time of year always zaps my energy. Was tired/yawning all day. What's up with that?!?!

* Finally got the paperwork that I needed to title/register/license my new car. Glad that's all taken care of. Celebrated by taking it to the car wash. Still lovin' my diesel Jetta Wagon.

Breathin' EASY

I've been very slug-like for the past week, minus one hot humid run and a short lap swim in Texas. This moring I had hoped to cycle commute to work, but it just isn't happening. But that's not what I want to post about...

I want to ruminate on my little Texas run for a bit.

Not sure what the elevation was exactly, but it clearly wasn't up at a mile above sea level like it is where I live.

I was scheduled for 4 miles easy. I didn't have my garmin, but I had my sport watch. We were running around a park on a course that was 1/2 mile long. I made note of the time on my watch at 3 miles which was 29:15. Now this works out to a 9:45 pace which is fairly close to my normal 5K pace, only this was an EASY run. Even if the route was a bit short, I was definately moving faster than I would on an EASY run at home.

I define an EASY run by the ability to hold conversation or talk while running. It's all about breathing easy.

Up here at altitude, it doesn't take much speed to push me past EASY. But down there, EASY was just easier.

I've always known that I *should* be able to run faster in an oxygen rich environment, and now I'm more interested in actually finding a race down at sea level and see what this body can do.

Out of the Loop

Back home and feeling very out of the loop.

Daughter & I had fun visiting relatives in Texas, but neither of us can imagine living in a hot/humid environment like that.

I am in awe of those of you who run in that weather. I ran 3.5 miles on Thursday. I did appreciate the oxygen rich air from a lower altitude and found myself moving faster, but the humidity about did me in.

Son is back with stories and photos from his week and will be sharing them with me later after dinner. But his short version is that it was "AWESOME"

I'm hoping Husband enjoyed a few days of peace and quiet without the family. He's making a roasted chicken dinner for us now. House smells yummy.

I've got lots of catching up to do (including laundry!).

Not Quite Algebra

Spicy Mexican food for both lunch and dinner = yummy at the time, but tummy trouble the next morning. Note to self, don't do this before an important event.

(Son out of the house + no cell phone) (while working with underpriveledged kids for a week + camped out at a church downtown) = proud, but sad mommy. I miss my boy.

(Mom + Daughter) -> Texas to visit (Neice + husband + Sister) in Texas for a few days this week = Excited, but wonder if it's too late to lose 5 lbs by Wednesday?

Tuesday track workouts on schedule = mixed emotions. Love/hate track workouts.

Plan to get back to the pool = FAIL! *sigh*

Tearing down planted aquarium + frustration = rethinking it.

--> cleaning up aquarium + betta + cherry barbs = happy again

What's Next?

It's a good question, actually. Right now I honestly don't know.

The only thing definately on my schedule is a sprint triathlon in August. There's another one in September that I'd like to sign up for (and better hurry before they sell out). Nothing else is really inspiring me at the moment.

I guess that's okay. But without something out there to work toward, my motivation will likely wane over the next few weeks. I need try to find something interesting to do.

Oh, and the century ride had event photographers. I found two photos of husband, one of me, and one of us together. Please do me a favor and look at the one of us together . I need your help deciding if I should order this one.

* Pros - We're riding together, we're in process of passing someone, the look on my face captures how I felt the whole time (determined).

* Cons - I appear to have no neck, my hair looks stupid, event photos are pricey.

Albuquerque half-Century Finishers

Turned out to be a nice day to ride - overcast in the early morning. Much better weather than last year which was all kinds of hot & sunny.

Husband looked all spiffy in his new Illinois jersey -an early father's day prezzy from yours truly :-)

Did better this year and didn't need to stop going up that stinking hill. Lived up to my Slow & Steady moniker. Wasn't moving fast, but I kept on moving. Average pace for the whole ride was 14 mph. Top speed was 29.2 - brave for me not to grab the brakes at 25mph coming down the other side!

At the rest area, I noticed that there were lots of men, but not many women. Took a photo because it seemed so odd.

Right now I'm exhausted. And hungry. And stinky. And sweaty. Food, Shower, Nap required. in that order.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend folks!

Recovery Day

I'm determined to take it a bit easier this wee, a pseudo-taper for the upcoming cycling event. I didn't go to the gym this morning and I opted for walking today in lieu of running.

Anyway, my exercise for the day was walking around the zoo! It was actually a work-sponsored thing. We were there for a good 3.5 hrs in the afternoon. Part of the time was standing looking at animals and part was sitting eating lunch, but I'm sure we got in *at least* 5 miles of walking.

FYI, this is the profile I captured last year from the bike event we're doing this weekend. It's not so much the distance that I'm worried about, but the climb in the middle. Yikes!

Money-Pit Drama

Remember the automobile reliability drama that eventually led me to the decision to buy a new car? Well, because I bought the new car out of state when I flew to KY to visit my dad, I ended up not able to trade in the money-pit that is my old vehicle.

And with Daughter days away from getting her provisional license, somehow I was talked into keeping said money-pit and just "fixing it up a bit" so that it is reliable enough for her to drive around town.

Remember that first day of cycling less than two weeks ago when I included dropping off a car at the shop and riding my bike home? It was the money-pit that needed to go in.

And guess what? The money-pit needed to go back to the shop again on Monday. Sigh.

Somehow, despite buying a new car (which continues to amaze me with it's awesomeness, I might add) I haven't been able to rid myself of the money-pit drama. Somehow that just doesn't seem fair.

Same routine. Tossed the bike in the back, dropped off money-pit, rode the bike to fitness center at work. Did upper body workout. Rode bike from fitness center to work in street clothes after cleaning up. Rode back to pick up money-pit in the afternoon, drove home.

On the bright side, it has been providing extra incentive/opportunity to get on my bike.

At this point, we've replaced practically everything on the money-pit. What else could go wrong?

Don't answer that.

Seriously. Just don't

Recent Workouts:
Sun: Yoga
Mon: 7 mi bike, core+upper body strength
Tue: lower body strength, track/drills run (~4 mi)

May Tally

Numbers
- Ran 36.4 miles
- Cycled 112.7 miles (all within the past 8 days!)
- Did Strength at the gym 10 times
- Did Yoga 6 times
- Races: One 5K, One DNS*

Thoughts
- I just might be able to pull that rabbit out of my hat afterall. :-)

Plans for June
- Alb Half-Century next Saturday!
- Get in the pool again
- Decide on next running event.

*As it turns out, a 43.7 mile bike ride as the 5th ride in 8 days after taking a 6 mo cycling hiatus was enough to wear me out completely. And having done this particular ride 18 hrs in advance of a splash & dash, turning the alarm off & getting extra sleep seemed like a *much* better idea than waking up early for said event this morning. Who knew?!?!

5 Things I'm Happy about Today

1) My favorite women's Novara bike shorts with the crossover waist band. Everything about these shorts makes me say "ahhhhhh"

2) Polar Bottles that kept my liquids sufficiently cold for the duration of the ride.

3) A brand new pair of Novara gloves that fit nicely and have enough gel padding to keep my hands happy.

4) Injinji socks. This is the first time that I've worn them. So far, I'm liking them!

5) A shady rest spot at mile 30 (of 43.7)

Making Progress

Tuesday I rested in the morning, and did drills with the run group in the evening.

Wednesday I cycle commuted to work and spent a little time at the gym doing stretches and strength work. The commute was all kinds 'o sucky, so I resolved to do it again the next day.

Which I did. I also spent a decent amount of time doing upper body and core at the gym. And met with the run group this evening for a 30min easy trail run. Yeah, it was a busy day.

Tomorrow I have an appt at the gym with my Trainer, then head off for a chiro appt. If all goes well, I'll also get daughter signed up for the gym (that turned out to be a no-go a few months ago, but now that school is over it seems more feasible). Other than that, I'm resting.

I have a 40 mile ride on deck with Husband for Saturday in preparation for the half-century ride the following week. That is a key workout; don't want to miss it.

And then there's a little Splash & Dash event Sunday that I signed up for but haven't trained for at all. I actually haven't been in a pool since Splash-Dash-Push! Oops! I'm not concerned about it though; my goal is to have fun and get motivated to put swimming into the mix again.

Feels like things are coming together. I hope it's not an illusion!

Half Century Thoughts

I signed us up last night. Decision made.

It's a tour not a race. It doesn't matter how slow we go or how many times we stop. What matters is that we get through it and (hopefully) have some fun in the process.

Made it through a 28 miles ride yesterday with Husband. Sure it was mostly flat and my body aches all over today, the point is that I survived. And I think I can go further next weekend.

We can probably modify the course a little bit, start from home instead of the heart hospital, and join up about 10 miles into the ride. Then cut back to home instead of the heart hospital and still get in the 50 miles.

I got my commuter bike back, so I'm on for cycle commuting Wed and Fri this week (weather permitting). Every time I do that, I get in some good hill training.

We're going to aim for a forty mile loop on Saturday. The next weekend is the century event.

I really need to find a slow cycling buddy to train with after this. Trying to keep up with Husband is exhausting. It's also a bit depressing when I'm working my tail off and he casually says "I think I could go forever at this pace"

Slow Six

I was supposed to run 6 yesterday, but it was raining in the morning and then on & off all afternoon. All I could get motivated for was Yoga.

My "alarm cat" went off at 5:45. She has grown accustomed to a 4:30am feeding (Husband gets up crazy early on weekdays) and having not been fed by the time the sun came up, she was concinved she was starving to death. After ten minutes of being jumped on, nudged, and meowed at, I figured I should just get up and go for a run.

It wasn't raining, but still wet outside. The skies were overcast and it was about 55 degrees. Nice conditions for running, if you ask me, so that was the plan.

It's about three quarter miles from my front door to the ditch bank. It was a bit muddy due to the rain, but still a decent surface for running.

My plan for the day was 6 easy miles with short walk breaks every mile. I wanted to put in the distance, but take it easy on my body so as not to further aggravate the hammy.

I was hoping to get an interesting picture every time I took a walk break, but for the most part it all looks the same! The only somewhat interesting photo that I got was this pair of horses.

Left my muddy shoes on the front patio when I got home and looked at my watch. That was depressing! It took forever to complete my 6.2 mile loop. I'm sure my body is thanking me for the easy pace with walk breaks, but my mind is still coming to grips with how slow I was moving.

Have a good rest of your weekend, folks!

When there's a will, there's a way

Since my commuter bike is still in the shop, I can't commute to work. That takes out a significant opportunity for getting in some miles to prepare for the upcoming half-century.

However, there was no good reason for me not to ride my race bike to the gym this morning - I simply needed to workout in my bike clothes.

One of our cars needed to the shop today as well. Since I was already dressed in my bike clothes when I got home from the gym, the perfect plan was to shove the bike in the back, drop off the car, and cycle back home. No need to arrange a ride!

Granted, it's not the perfect training scenario, but with a little creativity I found a way to get 15 miles in the saddle this morning, including one challenging climb.

On top of that, I had a solid lower body workout with the Trainer today.

Not bad, eh?

Workouts this week:
* Monday morning - upper body strength
* Tuesday morning -Yoga
* Tuesday evening - Run drills with group.
* Wednesday - unplanned rest - bike commute NO-GO due to rear wheel
* Thursday - Tempo run with group
* Friday - Bike to gym, Lower body strength with Trainer, Bike to home, Car to shop, Bike to home - Booyah!

Hey Rocky...

Bullwinkle: Hey Rocky, watch me pull a rabbit out of a hat.

Rocky: Again?? That trick never works!!

Bullwinkle: This time for sure.

Lion: ROARRRR!!

Rocky: Wrong hat!

Who watched Rocky & Bullwinkle as a kid and remembers this running joke? Right now I'm pretty much feeling like Bullwinkle. Let me back up and explain.

I mentioned on Monday that I wanted to put a few events on the calendar to help me out of my funk. Put a few things out there including a 250M swim/5K Splash&Dash on the 31st. I also talked to Husband about things he might like to to do together.

As it turns out, he was under the impression that we were already planning on doing the Albuquerque Century Ride on 7-Jun, less than three weeks away.

Ummmm. Small problem. I haven't been on my bike for awhile.

Like.Since.December.

Given that he's done every event I've ever asked him to do with me, I rather not disappoint him and bail on this. So, I told him that I'd work really hard for the next two weeks to try to position it so we can do the half-century which includes 1250 ft of climb over 10 miles. If that doesn't seem feasible, we can do the quarter century which is basically flat.

Get ready in roughly seventeen days for a half-century with climb?!? I pretty much need to pull a rabbit out of my hat to make that happen.

I looked at the calendar and tried to devise some plan to get there. I counted six opportunities to bike commute to work. Each of those gives me 12.5 miles round trip including a hill climb on the way in that replicates the tour climb (just a lot shorter). I also have two friday afternoons available to get some riding in. And we can take advantage of the Memorial Day holiday for a long ride this weekend.

There's really no time to spare, so I got all geared up to commute in this morning only to find that the rear tire on my commuter bike is horribly out of true. Spent 30 mins trying to adjust it so that it wouldn't rub on the rear brake and finally gave up.

Loaded it up in the back of my Jetta to take it into the shop. Luckily, they expect to have it back to my by Friday afternoon.

However, this plan to pull a rabbit out of my hat is clearly not off to a good start.

Monday Miscellany

* I haven't been able to find my new favorite running shorts in the local stores, but found a taupe colored pair on ebay in my size. Happily used "buy it now" to get them on their way to me. Yes, I sometimes buy running clothes on ebay. What does that say about me?

* Bailed at mile 5 of my 6 mile run on Saturday due to the return of hamstring tendonitis pain. Walked the final mile back in. Not happy about that, but trying not to get to discouraged. I think the hill sprints on Thursday were too much too soon. Simply need to back off a bit and make sure I'm 100% healed before pushing myself too hard.

* Did yoga on Friday and Sunday for the first times all month. I need to conciously make more time for yoga. I like how it makes me feel. Intending to do it again tomorrow morning and then run in the evening.

* Can't put my finger on it but I'm lacking motivation and I don't like how that feels. Put a few events on the calendar to try to keep the lazies at bay.

Sharing Small Wins

In the spirit of celebrating what I CAN do and not berating myself for what I CANNOT, I wish to share some recent victories. I've learned that positive self-talk can significantly affect my mood and I choose to be happy today.

* I can now do 3x15 ab curls unassisted. When I started, I couldn't do a single one without help. On a related note, I've upped the weight on rope crunches. Clearly my ab strength is improving.

* While doing Yoga today I was able to hold a few poses for the entire duration. Previously, I needed to stop, take a break, and restart on those.

* Last night the scale returned a number that I haven't seen in a very long time. It was a bit crankier this morning, goal weight is within sight.

* Did well with the hill sprints workout last night. One of my fellow runners even commented at one point "wow, you're good at these hills"

Share with me and be happy with yourself! What small wins are you celebrating?

Drills & Hills

Got a call yesterday afternoon from Coach reminding me that we were meeting at the track that evening. Eek. The track?!? I do not like the track. He assured me it wouldn't be so bad - we were doing run drills, not intervals. Phew!

Arrived to find that we were actually running on a grassy field near the track. He had cones set up. We did all kinds of drills. Butt kicks, high knees, hopping, running backwards, pickups, short sprints, running backwards up a hill (tricky!), high cadence high knees, etc.

Interesting observation #1 - Most of the runners were complaining that they felt it in their calves or their hamstrings, or quads or whatever. As for me, I really didn't feel sore muscles at all. Maybe because I've been pretty diligent about going to the gym and doing strength stuff that's more taxing than these drills? Or maybe I was just doing them wrong...

Intersting observation #2 - Similar to when we do hill intervals, my short sprints put me solidly in the center of the pack. When we run longer, I'm generally the last to come in. Too bad the 200M dash isn't as popular as the local 5K/10K. LOL.

Clearly I do better on drills and hills than distance running. What do you think that means? I'm seriously wondering if maybe the heart arrythmia is somehow responsible by not permitting sufficient O2 transfer to my muscles. Your thoughts?

Lighter Side of Life

First off, wanted to Thank you for the kind words, prayers, well wishes, vitural hugs, warm vibes, and everything else. I have found the blogging community to be highly supportive and it has really helped. I truly appreciate each of you. :-)

We ate breakfast at Denny's on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. Had the same waitress each time. We have no idea what she said to us when we sat down. "Hah Do" or "Har You" or something like that. Figuring that out became a game. If any of you can translate that for me, i'd appreciate it!

I ended up buying a car* Saturday afternoon while we were there. The original plan was to have them ship it to us, but my amazing-awesome-supportive-wonderful husband decided to drive it back instead. I told him that it had that new car smell when I last saw it on Sunday morning. Now, not so much. Guess 1450 miles in 28 hours will do that. Here's a photo that I took with my cell phone Sunday morning in Louisville.

The hotel we stayed at had a fitness center with a 25 yd indoor lap pool. I thought I would get up early and swim, but when the clock said 5:30, my body said 3:30 and refused to budge. That's a new one for me. I guess I need to add "time difference" to my list of excuses not to exercise.

I think I was called "darlin'', "honey", "hon", "dear", "sugar" more often in one weekend that in the entire last year. It took me aback the first few times. It must just be something about the south. :-)

Today is running group day. It will be good for me to get back on track after taking an extended break (Fri-Mon). Happy Tuesday everyone!!

*It's a Jetta SportWagen TDI - clean diesel, a green alternative. It has the utility of a compact SUV with the fuel economy of a small car. Plus it is fun to drive. It averaged 35.5 mpg on the last tank. Sweet, eh?

Visiting Dad

preface: I don't want to get into the whole back story but the short version is that my dad left when I was maybe 6 years old and I never really spent much time with him. I'm home now after traveling to visit him this weekend and need to write this for myself..

Arrived Sat morning at the rehab center where they had just moved my Dad the day before. A few nurses were in with him when we arrived so we waited outside the room for 10 mins or so.

Haven't seen my Dad since 2005. If it wasn't for his voice, I wouldn't have recognized him.

Apparently he told all the caregivers that he was expecting us that day. They let him postpone his rehad exercises so we could wheel him to the sunroom to talk That might not have been such a good idea, he hardly had the strength to sit up.

We took him back to the room, but it was time for rehab exercises. We went with him. Attaching clothes pins to a post was too difficult, so they tasked him with putting pegs in holes. He told me that it was difficult today but he wasn't giving up and there would be no stopping him when he got stronger.

Took him back to his room and they pu him back into bed where he was more comfortable. That's where he was the rest of the time we were there.

Cut up his meat for him. Helped him order food for the next day. Tried to find the channel he wanted on the TV. Brought him water. Got the nurses when he wanted to shift positions.

He spent a lot of time talking about memories of his live. He said that it seemed he had some important things to say to me when he asked me to come, but he couldn't remember what they were.

It was okay.

Tuesday miscellany

* I alternate between two pairs of running shoes. The past several runs in my blue shoes (which are older) have resulted in icky blisters on my left front toe. I think they are breaking down and my foot is sliding forward. It's not happening in my orange pair (newer). Retired the blue ones and adding a brand new pair of red ones into rotation. Swapped out the inserts from blue to red, but maybe that's not a good idea. I think I should buy new inserts when I find time.

* Son's provisional license turned one year old on Saturday. Took him to the DMV yesterday to obtain his unrestricted license. He's a happy boy. Me, not so much. Why? Because he's grown up too fast. Seriously - where does the time go?!?

* Think I've finally decided on what car to purchase. There is one and only one in the state of New Mexico at this time. And it's really not optioned the way I want. Told them I'd be willing to put a down payment on it if they get the price to the figure I have in mind otherwise I'm in no hurry to pay too much for a car that's not optioned the way that I want. Will hear back today. I expect it will be too high. But it doesn't hurt to ask.

* Went to the gym yesterday for upper body. Trainer has kicked it up a notch in the past few week on my upper body work and it leaves me sore every time! But sore in a good way...

* Our travel plans and related arrangements (kids, pets, etc) are finally coming together wrt the trip to see my Father this weekend. Not looking forward to this, but I'm doing okay.

* On a whim, checked online and found at least *two* of the vehicles that I'm interested in at a dealership in Louisville - optioned as desired and in the right price range. Seriously considering the feasibility of purchasing out of state if I can figure out how to get it back home.

* As much as I love running skirts, I bought a pair of running shorts (nike something or other) at Marshalls a few months ago and they are now my favorite of all things to run in. Need to figure out what they are so I can get another pair...

* Daughter woke up sick. Stuffy head, pink eyes, sore throat, head ache, coughing, didn't sleep well. Normally I'd make her go to school (I'm pretty sure it's just a cold) but with all the brew-ha-ha about swine flu, I'm keeping her home. Don't want the village to come after me with pitch forks for sending sick kid to school.

* Running group tonight. Yippeeeeee!!

Run for the Zoo 5K Race Report

I had originally planned to do the 10K targetting a PR, but backed off to doing the 5K for fun. For me, this was a good decision. This is a huge event and really not a good one to test yourself at because of the crowd. But I'll get more into that later...

We arrived at 7:45 for our 8:30 start time. We thought that would be early enough, but apparently not. By then it was already difficult to find a place to park. We eventually found a parking space a good mile away. No worries, still plenty of time before the scheduled start.

The temp was 48deg when I left the house so I was wearing shorts, a short sleeve shirt, and a long sleeve shirt over it. Walking in, I realized that it was warming up and I didn't need the long sleeve shirt. The car was too far away to put it back, so I tied it around my waist.

They ask folks to line up by estimated pace. If people would actually do this, I think it would be a more pleasant experience for everyone. Instead, people seem to ignore the pace markers and just try to get in as close to the front as they can. Grrrrr.

No Garmin today, just my sport watch. I hit start when the gun went off, hit the split button when we crossed the start mat, at each mile marker, as I crossed the finish mat, and eventually hit stop when I was off to the side.

It took 40 seconds from gun time to cross the start mat. Even then, the crowd wasn't moving much faster than a slow jog. I spent the entire first mile looking for holes to get through. Generally, I had luck getting through on the inside near the sidewalk, but I still found myself wasting energy darting left and right and trying to get through. Very frustrating.

It was a little better for mile 2. I stayed to the inside and occasionally went up on the sidewalk to get around the crowd. After the 2 mile marker, I found space. By then I think I had worn myself out with all the darting around trying to get through the crowd. When I saw the finish line, I kicked it up a notch and started passing folks. I am pleased with myself for being able to finish strong.

I'm not sure what the official time will be. If it was gun timed, it will be close to 30:45. However, my watch says start line to finish line took 30:06. I would have liked a finish under 30mins, but I'm not too disappointed. I put in good effort, had some fun despite the crowds, and went into it uninjured. That equals success in my book. :-)

[updated - official results are in and they have me at 30:02. I missed my target of sub 30 by just a few seconds. That's closer than I expected, and I'm okay with it!! Additional stats include 387 of 1037 women and 35 of 113 F40-44.]

Enjoy the rest of your weekend folks!

April Tally

Numbers
* Ran 44.5 mi
* Swam 500 yds
* Gym sessions - 8
* Yoga sessions - 3
* Races - 1 (DSP)

Thoughts
* Lots of personal "stuff" this month and race plans were adding to the stress. I'm glad that I backed off so that I could have fun again
* I'm uninjured at the moment. This is a very good thing.

May Plans
* Run for the Zoo
* Take it one day at a time
* Stop and smell the roses whenever possible :-)