Run for the Zoo

This morning Husband, Son, & I participated in the Run for the Zoo 5K. Daughter stayed home, sleeping in, so there was noone to take photos.

This event is always packed, with thousands of participants showing up for one of four races: timed 10K, timed 5K, 5K fun run/walk, 1mile fun run/walk.

Because of the crowd, I didn't have any performance goals, just wanted to have fun.

I brought my Garmin and decided to hit start when I made my way to the start line, rather than when the gun went off.

At mile 1, Garmin told me that I had hit an 8:45min/mi pace. Holy Smokes!!The guy at the mile marker called out something like 9:12. The 25-30second difference made sense given how long it took me to cross the start line.

At mile 2, I heard the guy call out something like 18:35, my garmin says 18:10. That's a 9:24 pace for me on mile 2. Yesssssssss.

I got a chuckle out of some of the signs that volunteers were holding up. "Almost there!" Yeah, right, there is a still a mile to go!! "Exercise is fun!" Easy for you to say, you're just standing there holding a sign!! LOL.

I couldn't see the clock at the finish line, but my Garmin says that I finished in 28:34, which would be a personal best by about 14 seconds. However, I'm guessing the official time will probably be right around 29:00 +/- a few seconds and won't end up being a PR after all. That is still a very good 5K time for me. It is better than I expected to do this morning, and I'm happy!

I asked Husband what his time was. He doesn't know. He couldn't see the clock when he finished and wasn't wearing a watch; will find out what his time was when results are posted.

Son knocked a good two minutes off his last 5K time, and finished right around 31:40. He was running with me up to the half-way point when he told me he had a cramp and stopped to walk for a bit.

After the race, we had popsicles, bagels, gatoraide, water, and energy bars. Yummy stuff. All in all, it was a fun morning.

Sabrina

Sabrina is the name of the color that has been chosen for our bedroom walls. Sabrina has been pushed aside for months, waiting for her turn in the spotlight.

When I woke up yesterday, I felt like this weekend needed to be different. I went for a swim in the morning and decided to forgo a long run in the afternoon so that I would have time to get Sabrina out of the garage and into the bedroom where she belonged.

The conversation I had with Husband when he got home sounded like this:

"Don't go in the bedroom until I get back home, the walls need to dry."

"What do you mean, need to dry?"

"I started painting and the walls by the door are still wet. I need to go out to get a few things. Wait until I get back home before you go in there."

"You started painting?!?! I thought you were going for a run."

"Yeah, well I figured if I got started today, we could probably get it finished this weekend. And that would be one thing off our list before the tiling project"

"Wow. Thanks."

You know what? I think I made the right decision. I'm happy Sabrina finally made her debut.

Are we there yet?

It's May. Time for the rubber to meet the road.

Here's what the month looks like for me:

• This weekend - Run for the Zoo 5K - Running with husband and son. Daughter has declared "running isn't fun!!" and is staying home. There are a lot of folks running this event and it takes a half mile or more to get into a decent pace. No performance goals. GOALS: Have fun; cheer wildly for son; enjoy husband cheering wildly for me!!

• Next weekend - Jay Benson Sprint Tri (a reverse tri) - First time for me to do a reverse tri. Have plans to meet up with ShyTriGirl which is actually the highlight of the weekend for me!! Goals: Have fun; meet up with ShyTriGirl; figure out how reverse tri's work; finish; don't get hurt!!

• Following Thursday - Arrive in Lubbock for two-day half-iron distance Tri camp (Oh.My.Gosh.What.Have.I.Gotten.Myself.Into) immediately followed by my first ever Oly Tri on Sunday. Goals: Have fun, finish, don't get hurt, and try not to be dead last.

• I'm really hoping to be in for a FUN ride over the next few weeks because...

• Upon return home - Kiss family. Promise to take a break, and spend more time with them. Work like mad to remove furniture from kids rooms, rip out carpet in anticipation of tiling project that got delayed because of my extra-curricular activities, and resume previously interuppted daily life including half finished room painting endeavors and disregarded yard and garden work. I owe them BIG TIME for letting me indulge myself recently.

I don't know how any working full-time mothers with busy kids and other family obligations and home improvement projects can keep up the training and racing demands of anything more than what I've tried to do. I realize that I simply can't sustain it, and really need to devote more time to my family this summer.

End of Month Totals

APRIL Totals:

indoor cycling - 0.5 hrs

outdoor cycling - 121.0 mi

swimming - 10,800 M

indoor running - 0.0 mi

outdoor running - 42.5 mi

core/strength - 500 reps

Thoughts:

Running and swimming volume similar to March, but I really took cycling up a notch. My outdoor cycling is almost double the volume from last month and a sizable amount happened in the last week when I discovered how to make it FUN. WoooHooo!!

I'm still way under what I want to be for core/strength work. I don't forsee much improvement there unless I get a breakthrough on how to make THAT fun too.

Commute to work - Week 1 Reflections

I did ride my bike to work on both Wed and Thu.

Earlier this week, I wrote: "My plan is to leave 45mins before I need to be there, take 20-25mins (hopefully) to arrive, leaving 20-25 to park bike, change, etc. I think that is sufficient time with some slack since this is a new thing for me. I'm carrying laptop, cord, change of clothes, shoes, etc in a back pack."

The 20-25min estimate to arrive was perfect. I ended up wearing capri length pants and only needed to change to a fresh shirt and shoes, so it took more like 10-15min to park bike, change, etc. Next week, I'll have farther to ride, walk, etc, and another 10 min will probably be appropriate. Overall, the estimate was good.

Backpack management is an issue worthy of more consideration. I need to figure out how to minimize what I carry because the extra weight caused my balance to be off. This week I needed to carry a power cord, normally, I don't need to do that because I have one at my desk, but I wasn't at my desk this week. I also think it would help to keep a few extra shirts and a pair of shoes in the office so I don't have to carry shoes with me. The shirt isn't too heavy, but no reason not to stock up on clean shirts at the office when I drive and take home dirties at that time as well. I'm also considering a bike trunk or pannier bag to get the weight off my back with the hopes that my balance would be better. Anyone who has experiences with this, I'll all ears...

The ride to work starts off mostly flat, but the last 1.5 miles is uphill all the way. It's a nice workout, and since it is cool in the morning, it is tolerable.

I got a tip from a fellow commuter on how to avoid a particularly nasty (traffic wise) road and take a safer alternative. This results in a section where I have to get off and walk my bike across a dirt path and through an opening in a fence. It wouldn't be a lot of fun if it were raining and I had to walk in the mud...

The downhill on the ride home includes some very BuMpY sections of road so that proved to be 'interesting'. I am also questioning if my brakes are sufficient. I think I may take the bike to the LBS and see what they think might be good to do about that...

The scariest part is an intersection at the top of the hill. It is difficult to see cars coming from one direction until they are pretty close to the intersection. I was fortunate to have a colleague ride part of the way home with me this week (two heads are better than one for determining 'is it safe yet?'). It will be a bit unnerving when I have to navigate that by myself in the afternoon.

All in all, it was a good experience and a successful venture. I learned a few things about what to do differently, and I plan to ride at least twice next week as well.

Commute to work - Planning

Check this out - perfect conditions for testing out the commute by bike to work option

For the next two days:
I have meetings that are on the closest side of our work campus to my house (plus!) that start 30mins later than most of my work meetings (plus!) with a bike rack right next to the door (plus!) .

Normally:
I have an extra mile to travel, a longer walk from bike racks, and an earlier start time.

Also the weather forecast for tomorrow says high of 7odeg, and I expect it to be about 48 when I head out to the office.

My plan is to leave 45mins before I need to be there, take 20-25mins (hopefully) to arrive, leaving 20-25 to park bike, change, etc. I think that is sufficient time with some slack since this is a new thing for me. I'm carrying laptop, cord, change of clothes, shoes, etc in a back pack.

I'll let you know how it goes. I'm excited!!

Oh, also, Son arrive safely yesterday afteroon (YAY!!) and had a good time on his trip. I'm so glad to have him back home. :)

Commuting by bike - Is it for me?!?

My 25-35mile training ride isn't happening today. Short story - other commitments, bad weather, blah, blah, blah. Basically life got in the way of my training plans.

I didn't want the day to be a total waste, so I decided to commute by bike to and from a 2 hr meeting that I needed to attend at church this morning.

Thoughts and observations from my first commuting attempt

• First and foremost, I had a BLAST riding this morning for some reason. Maybe because I left the Garmin at home and had no training expectations from the ride.
• I had planned my route so as to avoid too much traffic. I only had one traffic light to contend with, and cut through several parking lots to get off the road where it made sense. That was a success.
• It only took me about 5-7 minutes longer to ride there, than to drive (speed limit is 25-30mph most of the way there).
• Bike spedometer says it was 10.25 miles round trip, 15.6 MPH avg speed. Is it possible that focussing on fun (rather than speed and distance) is a critical piece that I've been missing?
• The sling backpack we got from a baseball game a few weeks ago was perfect for carrying my books, paper, pens, etc. Would be good for going to pick up a few light groceries too.
• Good thing it's a 'come as you are' church...I showed up in tights and had forgotten a change of clothes. OOPS!!
• I did remember a head band to try to disguise helmet hair as an intentional hair style.
• I brought a lock, but ended up parking the bike inside the building.
• I enjoyed riding to/from my meeting soooo much that all I could think of when I got home was riding my bike to/from work one day this week to see how that goes.
• I better not forget a change of clothes though!!
• Also, it will be a little trickier because I'll have to bring my laptop which is heavier/bulkier than what I was carrying today.
• And there will be no parking the bike inside the building, it will have to be parked and locked on a rack outside.
• What if... I like it and decide I want to ride to work more often? My current bike was really intended to be a commuter bike, not a race bike. Maybe after my races in May I can set it up better for commuting if I get serious about using it that way.
• And maybe, just maybe... I might be able to justify getting a better bike for racing for next season...

Bright spot

Tuesday morning I headed out for a quick 2.5 miles run with Bandit. I was pleasantly surprised with the results after uploading it to SportsTracks and creating this graph.

Why? Well, lately it seems that I have lost the ability to run under a 10min mile, but looking at this graph in half mile increments, I think maybe all is not lost. The second half mile was up a hill. The last .15 mile was slowing to cool down because I had passed the targetted 2.5 mile mark. The rest of the time, I hit <=10min miles....maybe about 9:4o average. Yeah, it isn't FAST and it was a short run, but it was speedier than my normal slow-n-steady 11+min mile pace on mostly flat terrain and I feel like celebrating. Yahooooo. :)

Oh, and for the record, why is it that the half mile down the hill is only slightly faster than my other times but the half mile UP the hill is soooo slow.???? I'm convinced that hills are pure evil.

This morning was swimming. It went okay. 2000M covered overall.

Oh yeah, and I reached a milestone today on the personal front. I watched my 15yr old son get on a charter bus and head off for a 5 day trip to California. He comes home Monday evening. It was one of those monumental "Mom moments", kind of like the first time he hopped on a bus and headed off to Kindergarten for a half day...only this one stings of the reality that he's really growing up too fast. I miss him already.

Living up to the moniker

First off, thank you all very much for comments to my last post. I really appreciate each and every one of you for taking time to give me the encouragement that I was needing!!

I've internalized everything and decided that I'd rather be last than not finish at all. I'd even rather start and have to give up than give up without trying. So my races are on in May, including the Oly that I am feeling particularly ill-prepared for.

Friday's goal: Rest. I've been having some pain in my left hamstring, and I wanted to rest and let it heal.

Saturday's goal: Bike 25miles, average speed 15+mph. I made the distance, but not so good with the speed, a disappointing 14.3mph. I attempted three hills which basically kicked my rear; you can figure out where they were by looking at the splits graph. So what am I planning to do about it?!? Go back next weekend and try again!! Those hills haven't seen the last of me yet!!

Today's goal: Run 8 miles, 11min/mi. Once again, I made the distance, not so good with the pace. Average ended up being 11:49min/mi. My average was at my goal pace at the turn point at mile 4, but was getting slower and slower each mile, so the overall average ended up being 11:49min/mi. It's okay, I knew it was a stretch to hit 11min/mi for a full 8 miles, but I wanted to give it a shot.

I may continue to live up to my Slow and Steady moniker, but it really isn't all bad. Remember:

"Slow and Steady went on and on and never ever quit until getting to the finish line. All the animals who were watching cheered loudly for Tortoise."

Mind Games

I composed the following 2007 Fitness Goals on 18Dec2006. I really needed to revisit them today. I've been second guessing my preparedness for upcoming races in May and was considering cancelling because my performance isn't going to be 'up to par'. Looking at my goals, the races in May are NOT part of my 'go faster' goal. If I complete them, I make strides toward my goals; if I cancel because of my lack of speed, I don't. Seems simple, so why is it messing with my mind?!?!

I know most of you are competitive, but if you have any favorite quotes or words of encouragement to help me recapture the 'finish and have fun' spirit that I had when I wrote these down, please share!

Go Farther!

1. complete 10K race

2. complete Olympic triathlon

3. complete half marathon

Go Faster!

1. under 27:35 min stand-alone 5K – just under 9min mi/hr

2. under 01:30:00 at Socorro Chile Harvest Tri

Have fun!

1. Do 3 races of any sort just for kicks - not as stepping stones to farther or faster

2. No races because I feel “I have to” – only because “I want to”

3. Rockin’ race photos :)

Happy Easter

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter.

If you follow my blog, you know that I gave up coffee for Lent. As of today, I can drink coffee again and be right with God. But I chose not to this morning. Yet another thing to be thankful for; I am no longer a slave to caffeine. We'll see how long this lasts...

We had nice weather today after yesterday's snow/sleet fiasco. I once again attempted my "1:25 or 7miles whichever comes first" out-and-back run. This time I had success.

These are my splits in half mile increments. You see a marked slow down at mile 4. I really dropped the pace at the turn point from slow to slower. The whole thing was slow-n-steady, but I kicked it up a notch at the end to finish strong. It felt good and was a confidence booster. I intend to try this again next weekend and will push harder for a better result.

To shamelessly steal something I read from RunBubbaRun and then put in a whole other context - You finish, you win - and I won today (By the way, please drop by and leave Dennis some comment love - he's doing a 50miler next weekend!! WootWoot!!).

I can't end my Easter post without giving a shout-out to Jesus. I run not because of what I can do for myself, but what He has done for me.

One of those days

Ever have one of those days when things just don't go according to plan??? Well today was one for me.

My plan was a 2-2.5mile bike ride while Husband and Daughter were reffing back-to-back soccer games. Afternoon was dedicated to more painting of Daughter's room. Cycling is my weak link, so it was important to me to make this long ride happen. And, yesterday the high was something like 76deg. I was expecting nice weather for a ride.

When I left the house, however, it was 38deg and cloudy skies. No problem, I just dressed warmer. I was hoping to get in 35miles today and I was planning out how to do it. I filled up my new camelback and added some air to my tires and was on my way.

About 3 miles out, it started to snow. Yes, you read that right, SNOW.

At first it wasn't snowing too hard, so I figured I'd keep going, but I changed my planned route to be three loops of 12miles each, staying close to home just in case...

It started snowing harder. I realized there were no other cyclists out on the road. I really didn't want to turn and go back in yet, but I started second guessing my sanity out there.

Then the snow turned to sleet. Ouch! Sleet actually hurts when it hits your face. After a few ice cubes in the eye balls, I decided enough was enough and headed home.

After reading a few blogs and checking email and generally sulking and feeling sorry for myself, I decided to get up off my rear and put the bike on the trainer. That lasted about 20min until I was just too bored with it. After being on the road, I just couldn't get exited about a ride on the trainer.

More blog reading, more email, more feeling sorry for myself. Bandit was bugging me because he wanted to play, so I changed to running clothes, got the hands-free leash and took him out on a short 2mile run 'up the hill' and back.

On my way back, I saw Husband and Daughter returning from soccer, so I headed home for good. I knew she was looking forward to working on painting her room.

So we've painted, I need to head out to the store, and it's dinner time already. Sigh.

By the numbers:

Planned: 2.0-2.5 mile bike ride hoping for 35miles
Actual: 40min bike ride (9.5miles), 20mins indoor cycling, 2mile jog with dog, + 'bonus' 1.5 hrs painting walls

Estimating - The Swim

Don't know where the time has gone, but I have two events coming up next month, a sprint and an oly. YIKES!! I'm getting really nervous about the oly; I'm still not sure I'm going to be ready for that. For some reason, trying to break it down and start estimating times seems like it will calm me down. My goal is to finish with a smile, and preferably before all the volunteers go home. I expect to be pretty slow, but the longer I'm out there, the more likely I'll be grimacing at the end rather than smiling...

This week, I worked on estimating the swim. Being the slow-n-steady water turtle that I am, I expect the swim to be the best leg of the three for me.

The sprint has a 400M swim, and for that distance, I will swim 'hard'. On Thursday, I included 2x200 'hard' and my times were 4:10 & 3:51. I think 00:08:20 +/- 30 seconds for a 400M swim is a reasonable estimate for the sprint.

I believe the oly swim is 1500M, and for that distance, I will swim 'easy'. This morning, I included 1x1000 'easy' and my time was 24minutes and I felt like I could have kept on going at the same speed no problem, so 36min +/- 3min seems like a reasonable estimate for the oly.

Accountability time...

MARCH Totals

indoor cycling - 1.8 hrs
outdoor cycling - 62.4 mi

swimming - 10,150 M

indoor running - 5.6 mi
outdoor running - 37.6 mi

core/strength - 500 reps

other - 4 mi hiking

Thoughts

What went well: swimming, outdoor cycling
What could have gone better: outdoor running, core/strength

Photo Collage

Home now. Long travel last night. Tired.

We had fun.

A picture is worth a thousand words? Then I'll let the photos speak 6000 words worth for me...

¿"Training"? - No comprende

¡Buenos dias! Hola amigos y amigas. Just a short post to let you know that I'm still alive and well.

I had a great training plan outlined for this week which included swiming in the ocean (red flags are up, so that isn't happening), running around the resort grounds (it's too hot and humid), possibly running on the treadmill at the fitness center (just plain too lazy to do that), and swimming in the pool (BINGO!! - one outta four ain't bad!).

Kids have discovered Montezuma's revenge first hand after consuming some suspect strawberries. ¡Aye Chihuahua!

Other than that, life is good.

Pics and more will be forthcoming in the next few days. For now, I have a lounge chair under a palm tree with my name on it...

¡Hasta la vista!

Stupid Human Tricks & Swimsuit Shopping

PART 1 - STUPID HUMAN TRICKS

Saturday morning weather didn’t cooperate for my planned 2-2.5 hr bike ride. Plan B – running in pursuit of 7miles or 85minutes whichever comes first

Mile 2, first look at my Garmin. Pace is good. I rock!! Maybe I'll even get in eight today.

Mile 3, I begin to feel... nauseous. I hope the feeling passes quickly. Hmmm...I didn’t drink as much water in the morning as I usually do. I also haven’t brought any with me. I reach into my pocket and grab a gel.

Mile 5, I thirsty and a little dizzy; this cannot be good. I remind myself that it me against the course. I win as long as I get from the starting point to the ending point on my own no matter how long it takes.

Mile 6, I reach in my pocket again, this time grabbing my cell phone. I contemplate calling husband to come retrieve me. I don’t want the course to beat me, but I also don’t want to end up in a really bad situation. I'm feeling lousy, but I'm still moving. I decide to take it one step at a time...

Mile 6.88(?), Home at last. Straight to kitchen, guzzle down 2 huge glasses of ice water.

Husband - “You were out for a long time; I was getting worried about you”

Me - “Yeah, me too…”

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PART 2 - SWIMSUIT SHOPPING WITH TEENAGER

When my daughter got home from school on Friday, we headed out for some swimsuit shopping. She needs a new one for our trip to Cancuun because she has outgrown her old ones. I need something appropriate for a resort (sport top and DeSoto shorts that I wear to the gym won't cut it).

Like most women, I have body image issues. Choosing a swimsuit is a horrid experience; wearing one in public is worse. My 13 yr old daughter, on the other hand, has a cute figure and thinks this is great fun.

First mission, swimsuit for me. We settle on an appropriate tankini for a forty-something mom - modest, yet contemporary. Daughter gives it two thumbs up. Whew. I'm done.

Her turn. She models about ten suits in all. Some I veto because they are WAYYY too skimpy. My favorite is grey with pink and white polka dots and agree to buy that one. She likes a multi-colored stripe one too. I agree that she can have that one also if she will pay for it. Mission accomplished.

We're heading to the cashier when a smokin' hot red and black print bikini on the sale rack catches my eye. I decide to try it on thinking maybe it can replace the bikini I wear in our hot tub (in the privacy of our own backyard at night when nobody can see me). I cautiously step out of the dressing room and show my daughter.

"Oh, Mom, that looks nice! Get it!"

So there you have it, one of the intangible benefits of triathlon training. Smokin' hot bikini doesn't look half bad. Who knew?!?!

Week in Review

Workouts Mon-Fri:

• Mon - 12 mi bike
• Tuesday - 16x200 run intervals. These are my results (time per 200):
  00:59, 00:54, 00:54, 01:00,
  00:55, 01:00, 00:56, 01:01,
  00:58, 01:00, 01:05, 01:01,
  01:04, 00:56, 01:01, 01:00,
• Wednesday - 45 mins Indoor cycling, short 500M swim
• Thursday - 40min run, 30 min bike
• Friday - 2400M swim
  

Other:

• This week I discovered Teeccino (caffeine free herbal 'coffee') while browsing the tea aisle at a local natural food store. Brewed it in my 2cup plunger pot (makes one mug) and so far, I think it's pretty good. I really like how I am feeling since giving up coffee for lent, and am not sure I want to go back to my coffee addiction/habit come Easter.
• Been busy closing loose ends at work, shopping, and doing errands because we're getting ready for spring break vacation!! WoooHooo!! Leaving on Monday...can't wait.
• Despite my slow Sunday run, I'm pretty happy with how my training is going. This time last year I could not swim 2400, spent less time on the bike, and never would have made it through 16x200M run intervals or lasted on a run over 60min. Sometimes it is good to reflect back at where we've been to appreciate where we are. :)

Have a good weekend everyone. Hopefully I will have one more post before vacation.

Monday Miscellany

I was was all set Sunday morning to head out and run 7 miles or 85 minutes whichever came first. I figured even if I ran a 12min mile, that was plenty of time to get in seven.

Unfortunately, my legs were still screaming at me for what I put them through on Saturday. Apparently they were not as elated as I about the bike ride and were in no mood to be running. The run started off slow and got slower by the mile. When my time was up, I had only managed a disappointing 6.5 miles. Blah! However, If my legs think one slow Sunday morning is enough to make me throw in the towel, they've got another thing coming. I'll give it another go this upcoming weekend.

Husband & I also celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary yesterday. So what did I do? I went out and bought him two new pairs of running shoes, of course! At first, that may seem like a weird anniversary gift, but as I explained to him - my hope is that running keeps him healthy so that we'll have many more years together. :)

Today was a planned 12 mile bike ride which went well by my standards, and I even managed to enjoy it. Maybe there's hope for me yet...

Have a good week, all!!

Make it happen (part 2)

Exhibit A


The bike is my weak link, and it has been frustrating me for some time. It's embarrassing, but I have a hard time keeping my speed over 14.5mph. I took off today ready to prove something to myself and shake that monkey off my back. I had 20miles scheduled (mostly flat, slight rolling hills) and was ready to make them count!

Did I succeed in my quest? I think so, and I'll tell you why.

• Never before has 25% of my ride averaged over 16mph
• Never before have I had a mile near 17mph !!
• First time I've not recorded at least one mile below 12mph on a 20mile ride.

My short term goal is to be able to maintain an average speed of >=15.5mph over 20miles. I'm not there yet, but after today's ride, I think it's achievable. My strategy for the next month is to be more consistent by pushing harder during those sluggish periods. I'm going to try to make the second ten miles look more like that first ten. And if I can manage to maintain that for another ten miles on top of that, I'll be stoked.

So there you have it. I've set another goal. Now to make it happen!

Making it happen

Training continues to go mostly according to plan. Slept in Wed morning, but got my swim in during the afternoon during what was scheduled to be a core/strength workout. Indoor cycling this morning, ran this evening. Tomorrow is swim (maybe add back the missed core/strength as well). Sat bike. Sun run. I think I can get it all in.

Bigger news for me is that I've started laying down some $$ for a upcoming events. As I sign up, I will add them to the sidebar.

I have a huge week planned in May. The Jay Benson Sprint Tri is on one weekend, followed by a half-oly training camp Thu-Sat, followed by my first Oly tri that Sunday. Which, by the way, will also be my first open water swim except for practice the day before at the training camp. May not sound like much to many of you, but it will be quite a challenge for me to maintain that kind of volume and intensity over just a week's time plus learn to swim in open water and immediately turn around and race in it.

I was debating not signing up for all this madness. I am fairly certain that I will be last or darn near last at that Oly especially immediately after a training camp that will likely kick my novice butt. Howver, I was given the following words of wisdom by trusted friend:

Q: What do you call the last person to cross the finish line at a triathlon?
A: A Triathlete

A Triathlete, indeed. BRING IT ON!!!

Too fast for my own shoes!

Today I intended to warm up, do 8x400 intervals at an 8:30min/mi pace, cool down, stretch.

Let's discuss the intervals. Normally, I do these on the dreadmill so that I can set and maintain the pace. Today I decided to estimate 400m with .25miles per my Garmin and do these in the great outdoors. As it turns out, I overshot my pace repeatedly. The results (in min/mi)

1. 7.04 Holy Smokes! Did I do that?!?!
2. 7:40
3. 7:41
4. 10:42 Trail turned to sand. Yuck!
5. 7:57
6. 8:06
7. 7:52
8. missing - miscounted and only did seven!

Before anyone dares suggest that I'm a speed demon, let me tell you that I was totally ready to stop when my .25miles were up each time. The pace that I can maintain over distance is WAY slower. But that is why they call this speed work, right?

And yesterday, 55min outside on the bike, 12.5miles. Not bad for a Monday after work with other commitments.

Tomorrow, planned swim unless the sleep demons get to me...

Coffee Beans

Mmmmmm...I can almost smell it.

Okay, so there there is a man somewhere in this picture. Can you find him?

Supposedly...

• If you find the man in the coffee beans in 3 seconds, the right half of your brain is better developed than most people.
• If you find the man between 3 seconds and 1 minute, the right half of your brain is developed normally.
• If you find the man between 1 minute and 3 minutes, the right half of your brain is functioning slowly and you need to eat more protein.
• If you still can't find him, keep looking; the man is really there! Once you find him, it will seem obvious.

Now for keeping me honest.

• Yesterday I ran 6.3 miles. That's pretty good for me. I've decided that I'm going to start increasing my 'long runs'. I'll target 7 miles next weekend, then 8 the week after. We'll see how that goes and adjust from there.
• Today I only managed to get in an 8.5 mile bike ride, though, and that is not so good. I was a little messed up this morning by daylight savings time. I also opted to do some over-due yard clean-up work this afternoon rather than go out again to reclaim the missed morning miles. Next weekend, I'll once again target a 20-30mile ride.

According to my notebook...

I keep pretty simple training records. Nothing more sophisticated than a few notes in a notebook. But it works for me, and it's telling me that March is off to a good start.

My daily training volume hasn't been as high as I woud like, but I haven't logged any missed days. That's huge. By this time last month I was already beginning to log the first of what turned into a long stream of zeros with the note "Sick." I've learned that (for me) doing something is always better than doing nothing, if for no other reason than to maintain a positive attitude.

Great suggestions about doing functional at the hotel. That was my plan B on Wednesday. Plan A was to get down to the gym at 5:50am and hope to be the first to show up for the treadmill. Plan A actually worked!

Got back home late Wed evening, so I didn't get up early yesterday to go for my scheduled swim, so I swapped it with a bike ride after work (which was on the schedule for today). So today I will swim... [update : and swim I did! My swim workout totalled 2650. Now my shoulder is a bit sore]

Weekend has longer running and biking sessions planned, and it looks like the weatherman is no longer holding a grudge against me. Highs around 70 are forcasted both days. Yesssssss!

March is off to a good start, indeed.

Travel Exercise Woes

Travelling really hurts when trying to establish a routine. I have something to log to my training records, but it has been far from stellar, but at least SOMETHING to keep momentum going this month. I can't wait to be home.

Preface - Reading this, you may wonder why the exercise room is such a constraint on this trip: Husband was concerned about me running outside in an unknown area (safety, getting lost, etc) so I promised him I would stay inside.

Monday, I didn't have to show up at the office until 9am, so I went to the exercise room at 7am and found it empty. There are two treadmills (one functional and one not), an elliptical trainer, and some kind of cycling motion machine. There is also a weight machine crammed in the corner. The temp in this little room has been set at 72 deg and there is no fan. I hopped on the treadmill and lasted about 35mins until I felt like I was overheating. The hotel has a little pool, so I jumped in to cool down. I made it a point to stop by the front desk to ask them why there is no fan in there and could they please turn down the temp. They scrambled around like maybe they were going to do something, but I don't think they made any changes.

Okay, so the little exercise room officially opens at 6am. This morning, I had to be in the office at 8am, so I showed up to the exercise room at about 5:55am. All the machines were already occupied. D'oh! Apparently early bird gets the worm and the official start time isn't enforced. Plan B. I happened to have goggles in my suitcase, so I decided to try to do something in the little pool. That turned out to be nothing more than frustrating. I tried swimming diagonally in the pool to make it worth my effort, but it mostly felt like a waste of time. 30mins later, I gave up and went back to my room. Sigh.

I have one more morning here. At this point, I'm thinking that I'll just do some core work in my hotel room and bypass any expectations of using the exercise room.
And if anyone has tips/pointers about what works for them when they travel, I'd be happy to hear about it. As you can tell, the situation on this particular trip just hasn't worked for me...

Have I angered the weather man?!?!?

The weather man is being so cruel to me!!

I'm leaving on a business trip tomorrow returning late Wed. Please note the difference between the current weather and the forcasted weather while I'm gone.

Not fair, is it?!?!?

Despite a cold windy start, the first two days of the Month have been okay from a training perspective. I ran 3.5miles on the 1st and then swam yesterday for the first time in weeks. Had been thinking about getting out on my bike today. However, looking at the weather it seems like that would be sooo much more enjoyable tomorrow. But, of course, I can't do it tomorrow because I'm heading to the airport right after church.

So...I'll wait a little longer until it warms up some and then make the decision to either get out on my bike, or head out for 5-6 mile run. If I make nice with the weather man, maybe he'll give me some ejoyable cycling conditions when I get back.

Enjoy your weekend, everyone!!

So ends the month

I'm not even going to bother with taking a tally of Feb workout stats because I already know it was a wasted month. And in wasted month style, it ended with a bang. It was way too windy for me to walk/jog or whatever with my dog after work, I was too tired to get up early, and I just plain don't feel like doing weight/core work right now so you know what that leads to in my training log for today...

However, tomorrow we start a new month! New beginnings are always good.

I hereby declare my intention to ensure that my March training will be on par or better than January.

Changing topics slightly, I need to thank Lia for mentioning that she has seen several folks running with dogs on a hands free system. That led to me doing a little internet 'research' and ordering something that will probably work for me. I expect it to be here next week when I get back from my business trip.

I'm actually pretty excited about the prospect of running with Bandit. We've three dogs in the past who for several reasons would never have made good running companions. But Bandit has the enthusiasm, athletic ability, and good health to be a great training partner. He's probably better than a human in this regard because he doesn't care what time of day I decide to head out - early morning, lunch, evening, whatever. Plus, he doesn't care what pace I choose. He just wants to be at my side and join in the fun.

If only I could teach him to swim and bike and maybe lift weights...

Intervals with Dog

Maybe I should have waited a few more hours before my last post. I came home from work and it was LOVELY outside and I'm feeling so much better (just not 100%) so I took the dog for a walk/jog. I'm logging this one as "Intervals with Dog - 31 min, 2mi" Looking at my Garmin, the 'jogs' were at about an 8:50 min/mi pace. Normally, I try to do my intervals at an 8min/mil pace, but I'm happy with 8:50min/mi given I really didn't intend to do intervals, I just wanted to take him for a walk and jog a bit as I felt comfortable. We also stopped so he could pee on a few bushes, but I digress...

I'll need a different solution if I want to continue trying to run with Bandit. The leather leash isn't working well for that. I'll need something that attaches to my body and is mostly hands-free. I also need to get him to stop chasing bunnies...

Good/Bad/Ugly cont.

Where to begin? I guess I'll start off where I left off last time.

The Good gets Better

Bandit is officially ours now. This weekend I decided to crack down and get serious with obedience training. We're currently working on Sit, Down, and Stay. I'm pleased with his progress.

The Bad continues to haunt me

I was feeling even worse on Thursday than I had been earlier in the week and finally succumbed to another visit to Urgent Care. They verified that I do in fact have a sinus infection. A few days of antibiotics and I'm already feeling better, except that I am extremely tired. This translates to sleeping in and continuing to miss workouts. It's gotten to the point where I decided to log 'walked the dog - 2.3 miles - 47 min' as exercise. How sad is that?

I'm concerned that all the effort I put in from Nov-Jan has effectively been thrown out the window. However, I'm hoping that at least the base training will 'stick'. Hopefully I'll be back on track this weekend. Next week I'm traveling on business again and I've made arrangements to meet a coworker at the hotel gym in the mornings. That will keep me accountable!

The Ugly isn't so Ugly anymore!

One blessing from being sick was that I hardly noticed the caffeine withdrawl headache on top of the other aches/pains and general malaise from the sinus infection. 7 days down...

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good

Remember several weeks ago when I mentioned we were trying out a dog? Well it is going on about 4 weeks now and he's doing a lot better with the cats. We will finallize the adoption on Sunday. We have named him Bandit. It seems fitting as he is quite the kitchen thief at dinner time if we don't keep an eye on him. Yeah, I know he looks very innocent here; looks can be deceiving! Actually, he's a great dog. We're glad to have him join our family.

The Bad

Remember a few days ago when I was running again and life was good? Well, I got three days in a row with training instances and then things took a turn for the worse. I am convinced that I now have a full blown sinus infection. The whole left side of my face hurts, I can't breathe out of my left nostril, and my previously cleared lungs are getting refilled with gunk. I'm so sick of being sick!!! I decided that I will go to Urgent care within 24 hrs if this doesn't get better or gets worse. Maybe a round of antibiotics will clear it up?

I really need to completely recover from whatever has invaded my body so I can move on with my life. Sigh. From a training and fitness perspective, this is pretty discouraging.

The Ugly

I decided to give up coffee for lent. Lent started today. 'nuff said.

Happiness is...running again

Yesterday I ran for the first time in almost two weeks. It was a very short run and I was slow, but I was happy.

Today I ran again. It was awesome. My Garmin had been off the charger, so I was running 'blind'. I think I went about 5miles and ran for about an hour.

It is awesome to be well enough to run again. Life is good. :)

Insomnia

First off, thank you all so very very very much for the b'day wishes. What a blessing.

I didn't have access to email, but I checked online occasionally this week and read your comments. Then I got home and they are all there in email. It really meant a lot.

Now let's get to the issue at hand. What on earth am I doing awake, much less posting at this time of night?!?! Am I not queen of the early morning, who's chariot turns to a pumpkin at about 9pm each evening?

Funny you should ask...

Well. I was traveling on business this week and the whole time I was in California, my left ear hurt like crazy and I couldn't hear out of that side. I'm the victim of cold virus gone bronchitis gone ear ache. Yesterday, I signed my life away to get some sudafed look-alike thinking this would help clear up the congestion that must be causing the ear problem somehow. It says "non-drowsy formula". Apparently it would be more appropriate in my case to be labeled "anxiety formula"

I am finally back home, but I.can.not.sleep. Not only can I not sleep, my mind won't stop and all I seem to be dwelling on is the negative (which is so not like me). In my current state of sudafed-enhanced-anxiety, I could easly create a list upon list of 42 reasons why I shouldn't do just about anything.

Updated: In all fairness, the warning label does say that SOME PEOPLE might experience side effects including: Difficulty sleeping (insomnia), Restlessness, & Anxiety. I guess I am officially SOME PEOPLE.

And for the record, my ear didn't stop hurting until I got back home. I think being back at the same altitude (5000-ish feet) made it happy. The air pressure outside is back to matching what the inside of my ear wanted.

I guess it is all good.

Except for the fact that I still can't sleep...

Forty two

Yep, another year older.

I wanted to do something cool like ride 42 miles, but it became apparent that wasn’t going to happen when I got sick, so I'm posting 42 things about me instead.

Oh, and I’m on my way to the airport for a business trip. Not my first choice on how to celebrate a birthday, but I figure resting and recovering on the plane beats a day in the office.

Here's the list:

1) Since the year 2000, I’ve had opportunity to travel to France, Ireland, China, India, Australia, and New Zealand
2) I got really sick after visiting India. For a year I was in pain. The bacterial infection I picked up in India triggered an autoimmune disorder with a myriad of symptoms. I struggled with daily activities during this time.
3) It’s in remission now! A renewed appreciation of my health is what inspired me to TRI
4) I started running in August 2005
5) I often pray (praise and thanksgiving) when I’m running
6) I learned to swim in December 2005 - I was excited when I swam all the way across the pool for the first time.
7) I bought a road bike in February 2006
8) I completed my first Sprint Triathlon in August 2006
9) I’m hooked. This year I have Olympic distance in my plans
10) I’m not very fast
11) I’m okay with that; I finish with a smile anyway.
12) When I’m *really* frustrated, I say things like “Golly Neds!”, “Good Golly!”, or “Oh Flip!”
13) Several years ago, I tried to drive my car, with mountain bikes mounted on the roof rack, into my garage
14) Couldn’t figure out what kept the car from entering, backed up and tried again – then realized what I had just done
15) I think I might have said all three phrases that day
16) Don’t take it personally if I don’t recognize you if you wave while I’m out running or cycling
17) I wear glasses…but not during sports
18) I don’t have depth perception
19) I’m afraid of heights
20) I had a rollover car accident when I was in college (it wasn’t my fault, though)
21) I don’t like to drive
22) I don't wear make-up
23) I’ve broken the pinky finger on my left hand 3 times
24) I’m left handed
25) I’ve been married for 17yrs to a wonderful man and my best friend.
26) Before meeting him, I melted two tea-kettles by forgetting about them on the stove
27) He taught me how to cook and use the kitchen timer. And now I have a tea-kettle that whistles when the water is boiling so I don’t forget about it for too long.
28) We went skiing on our honeymoon
29) I discovered that I don’t particularly like skiing
30) We have two teenagers
31) I discovered that I don’t particularly like teenagers…just kidding…but they sure know how to turn daily life into an endurance sport
32) I worked part-time for 7 years when they were little
33) I decided to take up piano lessons in 2002 with my daughter
34) She plays much better than I do
35) I’m allergic to tree nuts…and tetracycline…and have large localized reactions to bee stings
36) I have a degree in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in microelectronics.
37) For the past ten years my job hasn’t required the use of either
38) I don’t drink soda
39) I drink waaayyy too much coffee
40) I quilt for charity (Project Linus) in my ‘free time’
41) I truly feel incredibly blessed and thankful for all the good things in my life
42) Today I turn 42 and its gonna' be a great year!!

Want some cheese with that?

Get some cheese, I've got plenty of whine.

Today is the Sweetheart Run and as it turns out I am DNS, and not very happy about it.

I actually set the alarm, got up, made coffee, and started getting my running clothes out. Husband sat up in bed and asked "What on earth do you think you are doing?!?!"

I responded "Getting ready. I want to go for it."

"That is a very bad idea," was his response. Then he proceeded to lecture me on various points including the fact that I woke up coughing again in the middle of the night. And reminded me that I only managed to get up and move around the house slowly for about 8 hours yesterday before becoming exhausted and heading back to bed. And how nothing good will come from running this race while having bronchitis. And it's just a little local 5K that we were doing for fun, nothing important in my race calendar, and it should really be no big deal if we miss it. And will I please slow down take care of myself for one more day so that I can get healthy.

"Okay, fine, I get it. Go back to sleep, I'll just sit here and sulk."

For some reason I have always had a hard time with missed opportunity. But I guess he's right. And if it were anybody else, I would tell them the same thing.

Now, would you pass me the cheese? And my inhaler? And the cough medicine? Thanks.

Friday Follies

I was tagged in the nicest way by Sharon and I will get to that in just a moment.

I have nothing to report on the training front - I am still sick. Husband insisted on taking me to urgent care this morning. I woke up coughing at 2:30am, my chest was burning, and it felt like someone was standing on me. They nebulized me so I could breath better and sent me off with three different prescriptions. Just woke up from a great nap. Not sure if I slept so well because one of the meds made me stop coughing or if it was related to the "Caution: Do not operate heavy equipment" warning. Either way, I'm glad to have gotten some much needed sleep! I sure hope to be on the mend soon. Until then, at least I have a good reason to be lazy. :)

Anyway, back to the tag:

A — Available or Married? Happily Married to a wonderful man. :)
B — Best Friend? See above.
C — Childhood memory: Sitting on my grandpa's lap :)
D — Drink of Choice? dark coffee with half-n-half in the morning, water or iced tea (no sweetener) in the afternoon.
E — Essential Item? Sadly, it is probably the coffee with half-n-half in the morning. I just cannot start my day without it. This can be a problem when travelling. I've been known to bring a plunger pot, my own coffee, and half-n-half (or make a trip to the store upon arrival somewhere if carrying half-n-half isn't feasible)
F — Favorite Color? I love rich browns, but I'm actually quite fond of all warm colors
G — Gummi Bears or Worms? I really don't care for either.
H — Hometown? Toledo, OH
I — Indulgence? I've gotten pretty fond of clif honey peanut mojo bars and peppermint stick luna bars and eat one or the other almost daily as a snack. I also recently discovered dark chocolate MnMs; it's best if I just stay away from those all together.
J — January or February? February
K — Kids and Names? Stefan (15) & Marie (13)
L — Last Lipid profile results? Cholesterol - 186, triglycerides - 75, HDL - 74
M — Marriage Date? March 18, 1989
N — Number of Siblings? 1 older sister, Sue
O — Oranges or Apples? McIntosh Apples!! I love them. Why were they so hard to find this year?!?!?!
P — Phobias/Fears? I'm terribly afraid of heights. I also don't like driving in traffic.
Q — Favorite Quote? "I can to all things through Christ who strengthens me"
R — Reason to Smile? I have been so incredibly blessed, there no good reason NOT to smile.
S — Season? Fall
T — Tag 3 People! Sorry, I'm too sick to figure out who hasn't done this already so I am going to pass on tagging this time around.
U — Unknown Fact About Me: I have a hummingbird tattoo on my left shoulder
V — Vice? Red wine.
W — Worst Habit? I tend to leave my dirty gym clothes all over the house as I start taking things off when I get home - if anyone else in the family did that, it would drive me nuts.
X — X-terra or regular tri? Regular Tri for sure
Y — Your favorite food? Sea bass is mighty tasty as a main course, but hard to find here in the desert. Green Chile Papas (potatoes) is pretty tasty for any meal.
Z — Zodiac? Aquarius

Have a great weekend everyone!

The Present

Yesterday is History
Tomorrow is a Mystery
Today is a Gift
That's why its called the Present

Today it is absolutely beautiful outside. Sunny and 62 Deg. Nicest day we've had for months. I would love to be outside running or cycling, but instead I'm stuck inside with a cold virus. It doesn't seem fair, but I'm not going to complain (Really!).

Tomorrow afternoon I'm going to a funeral for the husband of a co-worker. He was only 44 years old.

Makes you think, huh?

My advice to myself and whoever is reading this - Go hug someone you love. Take time to thank the One who gave you the Present in the first place. Stop complaining about what you don't have or can't do and enjoy what you do have and can do. And examine your heart to make sure you're ready for the day when your time on earth is History...

Miserable Monday Morning

Woke up today with a headache, sore throat, etc. I feel yucky. It is hard to maintain a positive attitude while feeling cruddy. Sorry in advance for the whining that is about to occur...

Saturday I got in a 1.5hr bike ride. It was windy. Just for once, I would like to go out on a ride and come back feeling good about how I did. Maybe next weekend will be better.

Sunday I went out on a 50min zone 2 run (actually jog is more appropriate). Seemed short, but this was supposed to be a recovery week, so I guess I did what I was supposed to do. Husband ran with me. More appropriately, he left when I did, passed me,took off into the distance, then caught up again when I was about 100M from home. Oh well.

I'm really hoping that I can keep up with him next Sunday for at least half the 5K. A lot will depend on how I'm doing with this cold virus that is trying to take over my body. This morning I attempted spinervals with said cold virus. It was pretty sad. Cold virus:1, me: 0.

In other news...apparently my teenage son made a bet with a friend over the superbowl game and now needs to have a horseshoe shaved into his hair. Normally, I really wouldn't care about this one bit. He's a teen and the least of my worries is how his hair looks. However, I just took time out of my busy schedule on Thursday to pick him up from school and take him for a haircut (and I paid for it) because he was bugging me to get his hair cut. Is he trying to make me crazy?

Tagged

I was tagged by the soon-to-be UlTrA CrAzY Bubba

1) Describe a memory from your first triathlon ever.

“Holy Smokes! Who replaced my legs with jelly?!?!”

We’ll pretend that the mini-tri brick at the newbie clinic last July counts so that I don’t spend the whole post talking about a single event. The little mini-tri sounded pretty easy. The point was for us to practice transitions and get a feel for how the real event would play out a few weeks later. But alas! The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Hence the benefit of training bricks. Who knew?!?!?

2) Describe a memory from your most recent triathlon.

"Oh.My.Gosh. I'm actually doing it!!"

My first and only real event was the Socorro Chile Harvest Sprint Triathlon last August. I was elated when I came out of the swim. At that moment I had conquered what could have easily been the deal-breaker. I had only learned how to swim a few months earlier.

3) What's the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to you in a tri?

I was in such a happy place coming out of the swim that I failed to use common sense while running barefoot on wet pavement around a corner into T1. Down I went. Hard. Breaking the fall with the left side of my body. And my face. I split my chin open, scraped up my hip, arm, chest, and got a few nice bruises. Not sure what hurt worse, my pride or the injuries. I would have liked to go hide under a rock at that point, but that would have prevented me from finishing the race, so I got up and just kept going. I was glad to find out that I didn't need stitches when I finally got medical attention after the race.

4) What's the most thrilling thing that's happened to you in a tri?

I crossed the finish line!! I can hardly believe I did it. I want to do it again. and again. and again.

The very talented Jenny made me an awesome pillow from my race t-shirt (and for a good cause - read about it on her site).

5) What is something you discovered about yourself by doing triathlons?

I learned that I am incredibly blessed. I have good health, a wonderful husband, awesome teenaged kids, a beautiful location, etc. God has shown me a way to enjoy life in this body and get across the finish line with a smile on my face no matter how long it takes.

6) What is The Big Goal that you're working towards?

I’m hoping to complete an Olympic-distance Triathlon this year; maybe half-Iron in '08. But above all, I want to carry out my life in a way that gives glory to God.

And so begins a new month...

First off, thanks everyone for the comments on my last post. The more I think about it, the more I realize that I might have asked the stupidest question ever. Why would I not follow my heart, whether that leads me to a 5K or a 10K or something else? If it isn't fun, there is really no point doing it! Anyway, I think we'll sign up for the 5K for this particular run. Sometime in the near future, I'll do my 10K. It's all good.

Now for record keeping. January was my first month to keep halfway decent training records. It is all scribbled in my handy-dandy notebook, so I had to go back and do the calculations by hand. Here is what I've come up and my thoughts about each category:

My January Totals

Indoor Cycling = 7.25 hrs
Outdoor Cycling = 3.5 hrs, 45miles

Thoughts - Indoor cycling isn't fun. I would prefer more outdoor time and less indoor spinning, but I'm proud of myself for getting on the trainer rather than sitting on the couch complaining about the road conditions during the icy/snowy start to this month.

Swimming = 2000M

Thoughts - UGGGHH. I am not a happy camper about this! I would have done a LOT more swimming if the stupid pool hadn't been down all month.

Indoor running = 0
Outdoor running = 9.5 hrs 46.2 miles

Thoughts - Yay for me for running outside in the cold and snowy weather! This is about the mileage that CrAzY RunBubbaRun (who will do a FREEZING COLD 50K this weekend) does in a single week, but it was probably my highest volume running month ever! I'm happy with this.

Core/Strength = 1340 reps

Thoughts - I have a hard time getting motivated to do these types of workouts and should have done more. However, this is once again probably my hightest volume month. I hope to see this trend up rather than down over time.

All-in-all, I am pleased with myself except for the swimming (which really wasn't my fault).

However, I'm off to a bad start for February. I spent my training time adding up last month's accomplishments and may end up recording a big GOOSE EGG for today. D'oh!! Live and learn!!

Logic vs. Heart

Husband reminded me that on Sunday, 11-Feb, there will be a little local race called the Sweetheart Run. They have both a 5K and a 10K course. I have to make a decision, enter the 5K or the 10K?

He says "Do whatever you want. I'll run too."

Now, if I let Logic rule my decision, it would clearly be the 10K. What was supposed to be my first 10K turned into a snowy 8K. Also, a 10K is more aligned with my goal of doing an Olympic distance triathlon.

On the other hand...

Husband and I entered this as a team last year and ran the 5K. It was my first chip-timed event. Ever. Yeah, I'm THAT new at this. While Logic tells me to run the 10K, Heart suggests that I run the 5K to see just how much I've improved in a year's time. And I can probably keep up and run with Husband for about half the 5K distance...how cool would that be?!?! Afterall, it *is* called the Sweetheart Run.

Decisions, decisions, decisions...

What do you think?? Should I follow Logic or Heart on this one??

Saturday Ramblings

This morning I was planning a bike/run brick and actually looking forward to it.

Woke up to what the weather report calls areas of dense morning fog. Or as I described it "Hey! Where did all the houses in our neighborhood go?!" Definately not safe conditions for an early morning bike/run brick.

Plan B. Wait for fog to lift, and go for an abbreviated bike ride, skipping the run. I just don't have all day for this, and the later I get started, the shorter my available workout window becomes.

The weather eventually cleared up, and I decided to ride on the bike path along the Rio Grande.

As stupid as this sounds, this is a new discovery for me. I've lived in this area for about 17 years, and until someone talked to me about it this week, I was completely oblivious to the fact that this city has a network of bike paths. Apparently *everyone* knew about this, but nobody bothered to clue me in. Or maybe I'm just a moron.

Anyway, I drove to a parking area, unloaded my bike, and had a really enjoyable ride. I really wish I hadn't been pressed for time, I could have continued on for another hour and would have enjoyed every moment of it.

After coming home, I found a map to the bike paths and can't get over how brilliant the whole network is! I actually can't wait for my next long ride. :)

Changing subjects...

I haven't updated on progress with dog because I am not sure what to say.

I'm exhausted.

I worked from home all week so that he would have some consistency in training. He's having a hard time ignoring the cats.

Last night, I had just had enough. Husband took over with the dog. That turned out to be a good thing for all of us.

The dog has a lot of potential and good qualities, but he simply must be able to coexist peacefully with our cats if he is going to live here. That point isn't negotiable. The big question is whether he can learn this fact and act on it before I completely run out of patience.

"An Easy Six"

Pool is still closed. As a result, Wednesday's scheduled swim turned into "sleep in", but today's scheduled swim turned into an adhoc "run with co-workers".

Normally I run alone. At my own pace, my own trail, my own distance. But yesterday afternoon, I was invited to run with some colleagues who had travelled in for work training and since the pool was down, I figured it was better than sleeping in again.

New trail. In the dark. With people I have never run with. Sure, why not?

So who are these people who have invited me to an early morning run? I found myself in the company of an multi-year ironman triathlete who also qualified for Kona in 2006, a woman who maintained an 8min mile pace at the Boston Marathon, and a local marathon runner (and new triathlete) who completed marathons this past Dec and Jan with paces around 10:15mi/mi.

They decided this morning to go out for an easy six.

Let me just say that their idea of an easy six and my idea of an easy six don't quite line up. I should have seen that coming, ya' think?

(Take a look at my sidebar again to get a notion of my inexperience and lack of blinding speed.)

So we got started and I look down at my Garmin and we've at about a 9:45min/mi pace. Holy Smokes!!

Let's put this into perspective. When I do 'speed work' I try to maintain about an 8min mile pace for short distances. This is difficult, but doable for me. My fastest stand-alone 5K was at a 9:15min/mile pace. This was also difficult for me. My body thinks this is 'running hard'. My idea of an easy run is somewhere in the 12:00-13:00min/mile range. And six-seven miles is 'long' for me.

Being the generous people that they are, they slowed down when they realized that while they were staying aerobic and having a nice conversation, my breathing was a bit more labored and I was starting to fall back.

In the end, it was all good. I think we averaged an 11:30min/mi pace overall - faster than I would have run on my own, but not too fast.

Aye Carumba!

I won't bore you with the details of what I did or didn't do this weekend per my training plan or how much snow we did or didn't get this weekend or even mention that the Bears are going to the Superbowl. I won't do any of that.

Instead, I will rant a bit about the dog we have taken out on a trial basis. Somehow, I managed to bring a dog home without adopting him. We are truly trying him out. Maybe because I have such a concern about how a dog will interact with our cats and/or maybe I just seemed particularly trustworthy. Whatever it was, I came home with a dog on Saturday, he could be ours, but he isn't ours at hte moment.

WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?!?

Okay, it isn't that bad. There are some good things and some bad things.

Good:

1) Dog is proving to be an incredibly fast learner on the leash. He's getting in some good miles (I should strap the Garmin to him!) and quickly figured out that we decide where and how fast we are walking. Smart dog.

2) Dog likes the toys we got for him and hasn't chewed or shown signs of thinking about chewing our stuff.

3) Dog loves people..or....as it turns out, he particularly loves me. This shows up in the not so good list too - and I seriously think he has me confused with someone else. Not that I'm not worthy of his love, but I haven't earned it either. Anyway, being attentive to a human means he will work hard to 'learn the rules' and should make someone a good pet.

4) Dog spent the day with me in my home office (today I was able to work from home all day) and was happy and well behaved. I think this is related to #2 above.

Not so good:

1) Dog isn't cohabitating well with our cats. Most concerning, he seems to be hunting one of our cats. We're trying to nip this in the bud, but we realize that while we had three dogs that did great with cats, some dogs just have a high prey instinct when around cats and really need to remain separated for the safety of all parties.

2) Dog seems to have separation anxiety. This is coupled with him loving me just a little too much. He isn't 'happy' with anyone else in our family. I left him at home with Husband and Son this evening while Daughter and I were at women's group at church. Apparently he was lonely and uneasy the whole time I was gone. I came home and he was notably excited and happy. Now that I'm sitting on the couch, he's laying content at my feet. Anyone else leaves the room, he just lays here. If I get up, he follows. It's nice to be loved, but this might be just a little over-the-top.

3) Dog is a 70+ lb bundle of puppy energy. First thing Husband said was "I hope he doesn't get any bigger". Yikes! I failed to notice just how big he was. And if I'm not mistaken, he's still getting some of his adult teeth in. He might not be full grown yet. Oops.

Not sure how long we have to decide if we want to adopt him or if he needs to be returned to his rightful owners. But if I'm delinquent in posting in the next few days, its probably because I'm trying to redirect a large puppy's energy so he can live successfully in our house or am bummed out about taking him back. Its a coin toss right now...

Conspiracy Theory

Ever feel like everything is conspiring against you?

First there is the bathroom scale, who obviously is in cahoots with the dishwasher. My theory: Dishwasher was tired of washing pots and pans and such from all the holiday goodies and decided to put an end to that by convincing Scale to produce higher and higher number until I finally stopped making the holiday goodies so that Dishwasher could take it easy.

Next, the Pool at the gym. First it was closed due to pump failure. Then the pump was fixed, but the heater wasnt working. Now the whole thing is closed down due to electrical failure. I showed up bright and early for a 6am 2500m swim workout, found the pool closed, grumbled, came home, grumbled some more, then proceeded to fill up time with a functional core and upper body strength workout. My theory: The Weights, Physioball, & Elastic Bands have been feeling left out. Week after week they appear on my schedule, but often sit in the corner untouched. Unsure how to get my attention, they somehow got in contact with Pool, who has been seeing a lot of me lately, and simply wanted a break.

A warning to Bike, Running Shoes, & Alarm Clock - don't even think about it! I'm keeping close eye on you...

How much is that doggy in the window?

Yesterday I did my ride and run workout that was supposed to be today with intentions of doing my swim workout from yesterday today.

This morning, however, I did not get my swim. Instead, I went across town to a dog shelter to look at a specific dog per the request of my husband.

I guess we're officially in the market for a new dog. If you've followed my blog for a while, you might recall that we said goodbye to the last of our three old dogs this past November. I really miss Charky, Bosco, and Boots. It was hard watching each of them get old and frail at the end of their lives (at ages 14, 16, and 13 respectively). I wasn't sure I wanted to go through that again, but time heals all wounds and now we're ready to look for another furry friend.

It's not easy finding a new pet. For us, the dog can't be too big or too small; 40-60lbs would be good. It has to get along with our two cats. One cat would like to play with a non-agressive dog, the other just wants to establish boundaries and just keep her distance. A young dog would be great (7-24mo); we'd prefer no babies or older adults. In my mind, a running partner would be awesome. Most of all, it has to be an affectionate and friendly animal.

Well, that particular dog didn't seem like it would work out, nor did the other few dogs we looked at. I eventually became overwhelmed and gave up for the day. It broke my heart to leave empty handed, not knowing the fate of the dogs we passed up.

Sigh.

Running Accels

I'm doing well with my training plan this weeks as far as sticking to my workouts, but encountered some trouble with my afternoon run. I was supposed to do some speedwork - running 16x100 accels (starting slower and ending fast). I compared the output on my garmin to my last run of similar distance where I basically tried to hold a steady pace....there is no discernable difference!!! I think the problem for me might be that 100 is just too short a distance to do a decent job of increasing speed....maybe next time I should try 200s?

Or should I just not be concerned what my Garmin says?

The photo has nothing to do with running accels, but I believe the person for whom it is intended will understand :)

Tag! You're It!

I was tagged by RunBubbaRun.

This is how it goes

1. Find the nearest book.
2. Name the book & the author.
3. Turn to page 123.
4. Go to the fifth sentence on the page. Copy out the next three sentences and post to your blog.
5. Tag three more folks.

The nearest book is Pathway to God's Plan, by Lenya Heitzig and Penny Pierce-Rose. It is a study on Ruth & Ester. I'm heading out the door to facilitate discussion from this book and it is within arms length at the moment.

The first four sentences on p 123 were questions...I count the fifth one as an answer that I had written in. Here are the three after that:

"As I was walking in the Sandia Mountains one spring day, I stumbled across a cluster of fragrant flowers thriving among the rocks and weeks, unnoticed and untended. I breathed in their sweet scent. It made me think about some of the women attending our women's Bible study who live beautiful and fragrant lives but often go unnoticed."

So now ShyTriGirl, Chad, & RunLiaRun, consider yourselves tagged and let us know what you're reading!

New Shoes - Paolo Nutini

If you have your sound on, you will notice that i have added a song to my blog - New Shoes by Paolo Nutini. For some reason, this song reminds me of the mental transformation that happens when I put on my running shoes.

Anyway, doesn't this song just make you want to get out and run?!?!?

If I could make a few lyrical changes as suggested in red, the song would go like this:

woke up cold one tuesday,
i'm looking tired and feeling quite sick,
i felt like there was something missing
in my day-to-day life,
so i quickly opened the wardrobe,
pulled out some shorts and a t-shirt that seemed clean,
topped it off with a pair of old shoes,
that were ripped around the seams,
and i thought these shoes just don't suit me.

(chorus:)

hey, i put some new shoes on,
and suddenly everything is right,
i said, hey, i put some new shoes on
and everybody's smiling, it so inviting,
oh, short on money, but long on time,
slowly strolling in the sweet sunshine,
and i'm running late, and i dont need an excuse,
'cause i'm wearing my runnin' shoes.

woke up late one thursday,
and i'm seeing stars as i'm rubbing my eyes,
and i felt like there were two days missing,
as i focused on the time,
and i made my way to the kitchen,
but i had to stop from the shock of what i found,
a room full of all my friends bloggin' round and round,
and i thought..
hello new shoes, b'bye blues!

(chorus)

take me wondering through these streets,
where bright lights and angels meet,
stone to stone they take me on,
im runnin' to the break of dawn. (x2)

(chorus (x2))

take me wondering through these streets

Spinning

Still can't run or cycle outside due to snow and icy on the roads, so this morning I opened my newest Spinervals - Big Gear Strength and hopped on the bike trainer.


Now, I realize that I am a below average cyclist, but this one is REALLY hard. He lost me in the middle when he had us hop off the bikes and start doing lunges. I simply couldn't keep up and maybe got half the lunges in. I was happy to get back on the bike after that.


These things used to discourage me, but I know that if I keep at it, I will get stronger and be able to keep up. :)


I intended to head to the pool after that, but discovered my rear passenger tire to be completely flat. Bummer! Put some air in and went to get my tire repaired. An hour and a half later, I'm home, but now I have work and other obligations. Blah!


If I'm lucky, maybe I can get some core/strength work in later this afternoon.

Oh good! I'm not the only one!

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: What! You too? I thought I was the only one." - C.S. Lewis

About this time last year, I created a blog to track my progress toward my first sprint triathlon. It was so boring, and nobody read it, and I was sure nobody would want to read it...so I deleted it after a few months. Several months later (after the Triathlon), I decided to start blogging again because I simply needed an outlet.

My friends and family are supportive, but they really can't relate to latest run or swim or cycling attempt. I might as well be speaking a foreign language if I mention aerobars, a pull bouy, 200 core, or an LSD run. To them, a training schedule is what baseball teams have during the spring and gel is something you put in your hair.

And so, I just wanted to stop and say THANK YOU to those that occasionally read and give supportive comments on my blog. I really appreciate it. It is good to know that I am not alone in this new language that I speak and in my goals and aspirations. I'm feeling sane again.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Tenacity pays off

Tenacity (n): persistent determination
Synonyms: doggedness, perseverance, persistence, persistency, tenaciousness, pertinacity

That was insane! It was cold. The course was uneven. My ankles hurt. My back hurt. My hips hurt.

I told Husband to come back at about 50min after the race started and try to get some photos of me finishing. He waited and waited. He walked out to look for me. He walked back thinking maybe he missed me. And waited some more.

I was slow. In fact, I was slower than slow. I hiked part of it and only went a tiny bit slower than when I tried to run. But I got it done.

Are you ready for the best part? I placed first in my age group and came home with a medal.

Don't even think about bursting my bubble by asking just how many females 40-49 got up on a cold snowy New Years Day morning to do such a foolish thing. I was out there, I finished the course, and nobody in my age group finished before me. We'll just leave it at that.

Now I'm ready for a nap.