DoubleD Athlete

My 2012 Plans and Goals

2012-01-17T11:14:00.000-08:00

After a talk with my coach I finally have my Annual Training Plan. An actual plan that lays out over the year about how many hours I will be training each week and all my races. So as for the race plan TWO 70.3 are on tap for this season. The rest of the season is planned out nicely .... Race Plan 2012 I just signed up for Rev3 Quassy for 3 June Half Rev! So one registration down :) A few more to go. I hope I get into the BAA Medley to do the 5k, 10k and Half Marathon. We will see next week.... For now this is the plan and I am off to start training!

Other than races my other goals are:
1. Swim/Bike/Run my way to 2000 miles+ again this year
2. Stay healthy- read: Injury Free
3. Get weight issues checked by an endocrinologist
4. Have a sub 7 hour 70.3- 2 chances this year!
5. Be Happy and Positive!

Swim Pre Treater/Shampoo/Conditioner- Reflect H2O Review

2012-01-09T07:50:00.000-08:00

I have been a swimmer as long as I can remember, competitively since Age 6. I took a break following my college career- hence how I got up to 200+lbs- but for the most part always been in the pool. I have always had super sensitive skin. Since high school I have been dying my hair so I have tried everything to be sure to take care of my skin and my hair in the pool. As anyone knows a swimmer can be known to have green hair. I have had my issues with brass blonde over the years.

Reflect Sports sent me a bunch of samples of their pre-swim, shampoo and conditioner called Reflect H2O. Since lately my local pool had me itching like a drug addict before I could even get home, a 5 min drive, I was willing to try something new. My skin was crawling from the pool lately and I couldn't imagine what it was doing to my hair. I got up last week for my early morning swim snipped off the top of the pre-swim and ran it through my hair. It kind of left that leave in conditioner feel as I went to the pool.

I always swim with a cap, even with shorter hair. The pool was particularly murky this morning- the chemicals were all out of whack. I did my swim popped my cap off and my hair wasn't straw. I headed home to shower. The new Reflect H20 shampoo and conditioner- coupled with the pre-swim left my hair soft and I was missing the good old chlorine smell. I guess it is better to smell of my lotion and perfume than Eau du Chlorine anyway.

I have to say this combo worked better than any other swim shampoo/conditioner combo I have used before. I have even bought the expensive stuff at my salon. I have to say I love how Reflect Sports uses natural ingredients to achieve the desired outcomes in all their products! I put enough chemicals in my hair with the fact that I change color just about every time I get it done. I am excited to now have a set of products that can help keep my hair from being destroyed by the pool! Especially when the chlorine levels at this pool seem to be SUPER high!

I have a few more samples and I am doing a contest for a sample pack of the pre-swim, shampoo and conditioner. There will be 3 winners. I will do a contest leave a comment about your swimmer hair issues for an entry and for an additional entry tweet "I entered to win the @doubledathlete contest for the @reflectsports #noeauduchlorine #nomoregreen" with a link to this post. I'll throw all the entries in a random number generator and pick 3 winners on 31 Jan!

This is the samples I will send out :)

2011- Athletic Year in Review- 10 Things

2011-12-29T08:12:00.000-08:00

Two years ago, in Dec 2010, if someone had sat me down after just having hip surgery and said you would have a fantastic 2011 season I would have told them they were nuts! I had just had my hip surgery and was in the midst of training for my second half marathon- Hyannis 2011- running was slow. Miles on the bike were purely for recovery from a long run and swimming was a filler for days when I didn't feel like running or cycling. As you can see from my New Years Blog from last December there wasn't much written down for goals. I am not one for resolutions but I do like to use the New Year for trying out new things to see if they stick and generally like to use it to set new goals.

That being said and since I didn't set any outright last December I am really amazed at some of the things I did this year. My 10 things I learned blog and my 2011 season: how to learn from your season blog wrap up some of the accomplishments and lessons learned. But lets get some of it down here:

1. I DID IT! I managed to log over 2000 miles for 2011- actually finishing 2011 with 2003mi. Since I didn't ultimately plan this for the year I was psyched that it happen.
2. I DID IT! I finished an Half Ironman. Yes that is I trained for and finished the 70.3 miles! I can't wait to try again and see if I can get under 7 hours
3. I got a new bike! DAMN SHE IS SEXY! Can't wait to get her out on those roads when it gets warm. I also got an aero helmet for Christmas- Thanks D!
4. I did 2 Half Marathons this year! Not bad after having hip surgery in 2010.
5. I did my first Olympic Distance Triathlon. I learned a lot about racing at this race. I did 3 sprint triathlons. A mile swim! and LOTS of 5ks and 10ks!
6. I learned a ton about fueling and nutrition this year.
7. I am getting faster this off season! The time I am spending running hill repeats and doing plyo runs is really adding up to great new PRs!
8. I am hoping to get faster on the bike still! Time in the saddle this off season compared to last year will help!
9. I still struggle with finding my balance- training/everyday nutrition.
10. I just want to figure out why I can't seem to lose weight! PLEASE! anybody?!

3 Straight Weeks of Racing- Not So Much...

2011-12-22T10:48:00.000-08:00

This past sunday was supposed to be the 3rd straight weekend of racing- Hot Chocolate 15k , and Double 5k weekend with PR!. But last week I spent battling a monster cold and then to add insult to injury as my cold feels better I get a stomach bug on Saturday night. That meant to racing the Yulefest on Sunday. I spent all day in bed and D did a great job taking care of me. I am bummed to miss it though. Looks like everyone had fun!

I am wrapping up my holiday tasks. I wanna do a bit more baking stuff and I NEED to finish wrapping. Merry Christmas!!!

My training plan this week is light with enjoy the holidays. I am trying to get myself to the 2k mark by the end of 2011. I have 47 more miles to go. Need to get running and riding! I have a ride tonight and a long run planned this weekend and I've got next week- I think I'll make it.

What are your end of the year goals?

Off season? New PR :)

2011-12-15T05:01:00.000-08:00

After coming home from a great vacation in DC- lets just forget aboutHot Chocolate 15k Race Recap the horribly executed 15k I ran down there. We signed up for a indoor bike time trail at the Trek store in Portsmouth. My coach runs it so I kinda had to go. I also went to pick up my new bike... SHE IS GORGEOUS but that is another post for another time.

So the indoor TT sires works like this- you get on your bike warm up and then the group goes all out for 20 min. Hard as you can to get the best power reading. Power meaning working the hardest for the 20min not going the longest distance or getting there fastest. It is an interesting concept. I actually was in my hardest gear with another 5 min to go and after we got off learned I could have changed the trainer to get higher power... oh well. Next time.

On Saturday I told J I would run a SANTA 5K with her. The whole premise being you sign up get a Santa suit and everyone runs the 5k in a Santa suit. Okay I'm down this is a total fun run. Who can run fast in a Santa suit?! I went with Santa hat, jacket, and stuck to my trusty team sparkle skirt. I am really enjoying wearing that. J and her friend Laura and I ran a fun race. We ran and sang Christmas Carols.

Sunday was the Winter Classic. The course is pretty flat. Last year I ran to pace a friend and this year I wanted to see what I had. I did a little warm up since coach wanted me to- usually I just toe to the line and go. It was FREEZING as it always is for this race so the warm up felt good. As I stood waiting for the start I had that I might be getting a cold feeling- which I was and now currently have!- and I thought I'm not sure how this is gonna go I did a 15k, a time trial, and a 5k yesterday. Its been quite a week. I set my watch for a 8:40 pace and hoped maybe I could hold on to PR but didn't have much expectation. Mile 1 was a 8:55, Mile 2 was a 9:02- my legs started to really feel all the racing. I decided might as well bear down and see what I can get out of this. I also started to pick off each person in a costume that was in front of me. Christmas Fairy- down, gift bag girl- down, santa suit girl- down. Mile 3 was a 8:48 pace. I didn't hit the 8:40 pace I was looking for originally but I did end up with a PR of 27:33. The pace was 8:53- this was my first sub 9 min pace 5k! The look of shock on D's face as I came close to the finish w 27 min up on the clock was great. I'll take a 30second PR especially after all I did all week!

The power of the team sparkle skirt wins again! So for the count that is 1 bling 5k with a course PR, a 10k PR, a new 15k PR (first ever 15k), a santa run, and a shiny new 5k PR! That purple skirt is makin for a ROCKIN WINTER season!

We had a fun Sunday D had a course PR by a min and half, almost had a PR and had a great run. My friend Danielle got a nice shiny new PR out of the race too. We all went and had a great brunch and stuffed ourselves to capacity.

Hot Chocolate 15k- Race Recap- Logistics/Course Nightmare

2011-12-09T11:36:00.000-08:00

(pre race on the bus heading to the race)

To be honest I have been holding off on posting this race report because I didn't know how to write this. Lets start with this- I had hoped to finish around 93 minutes- that would be a 10min pace. Figured that would be pretty good for me. Finished in 1:34 so pretty close and I am happy with that given the race issues.

Lets get into that. We flew down Friday to do our packet pickup- took a very expensive cab ride (thanks D!) out to National Harbor. The jacket sizing was a mess and we finally got the right sizes then realized even though we had received a corral assignment they were not on our bibs and had to go back in and fix that. Spent Friday night with my Aunt and Uncle who graciously hosted us at their house. My Aunt spent the night trying to convince us that a run along the Patomic would be so much better than getting up at 4:45. (we should have listened!)

Since we signed up for a shuttle from Crystal City to get us to the Harbor start line we arranged for a 5:15 cab. The cab driver was a lovely gentleman, by which I mean I was subjected to an early morning death metal concert in his cab where he told me he would die if he tried to walk 15k. This is where the day started to go wrong!

We loaded a shuttle quickly and she headed us toward the harbor or so we thought... after getting lost 2 times and 2 u-turns and some very interesting driving we arrived at the "plateau". The start area. It was about 6am at this point. The race was supposed to start at 8. The wind was howling and there was really no where to stand to get warm. Warming tents would have been nice!

Since we got up early and I know myself with fueling I had planned to eat oatmeal w almond butter at 5. A protein shake at 6 and at 7 shoot a hammer gel before the start. I followed that plan.

We met up with some friends and all hung out talking about the mess that things seemed to be this morning having no clue how bad it was going to get. We heard announcements about traffic issues and heard the 5k start about 40 min late. No one told us what was going on with the 15k. With it becoming obvious we were not going to start at 8 somewhere around 8:15 they moved us to corrals.

We stood in corrals till 9! No updates- no planned start time. NO NOTHING! I knew my stomach was not going to cooperate with the new start time and I was down to the pack of chomps I had for during the race. I figured wait it out eat the chomps as you run. At 9 ish we started- the course was awful down and back for 3 miles with hairpin turns on one lane of an open parkway! Anyone else read that as- NOT SAFE?! At about mi 3 the lack of fuel kicked in. My brain went okay don't usually eat this early but today we are gonna... slowly eat the chomps so you a have enough and over the next 3-4 mi I ate the package. I grabbed gatorade and water at the aid stations that actually had it- yes some had no water or gatorade!

The hills on this course were awful. I had no idea the first 2 or so mi were downhill until I was looping back on it- going up! We all then realized when we came back down that we were going to have to go up a hill to the finish! OMG really?! finish on a hill? We then looped out to a part of the harbor- again HILLY- and then hit 2 off road sections, one was a loop and the other a 2 person wide path for close to a mile of the race. My hip doesn't deal well with running on unpaved paths- its similar to sand- the running is like me being on a balance ball and I have to work twice as hard to stabilize. Guess I should get back to some PT exercises to help this if it ever happens again.

At this point my hip is hurting and I know I have to go back up that hill. My heart rate sky rocketed but I just wanted to be done and I knew I was close to my goal time even with the logistics/course mess! When I came to the finish I couldn't even cross b/c there was a backlog of people. I found D and my friends and just shook my head they all burst out laughing because they felt the same way.

We headed to get our promised TONS of chocolate- we were only allowed one container with a little dipping chocolate and 5 things to dip. One coco. Not a SINGLE chocolate bar to be had! Every time we tried to stop to enjoy our fruits of our labor (running 15k) we were yelled at by volunteers to keep moving! Finally we had had enough. Our friends headed home and we tried to get in the shuttle line. The line was at least a couple hour wait. We decided forget it lets get on a metro bus. Unknown to us the metro suspended service to the area. Now it was 1pm we were cold tired and hungry. We got in a cab and headed back to the house. It ended up being a mess of a day.
(post race photo- notice the half hearted smile)

After taking a nap I quickly realized how outraged the other runners were, there was a facebook page created, and a post on the Washington Post just to name a few. People's blog recaps explain a lot of the issues. A email from the race director followed on Sunday filled with excuses and shed light into issues I didn't even know happen- like the lead cyclist of the 5k took them in the wrong direction resulting in a 3.3mi-5k. I will never again sign up for an event by RAM racing- and I don't suggest anyone else reading this does. As of 5 Dec 30 complaints have gone to the better business bureau against RAM for this race. Everyone is demanding a refund- there's even a petition on change.org. I'd like my 65 bucks back please- you did NOT provide the services you said you would!

(D and I while getting ready to find an alternative way home- shuttle FAIL!)

We did have a good vacation down in DC following the race- here's one of our touristy photos ;)

New Challenge- No OFF season Just Winter Training

2011-12-01T07:40:00.000-08:00

To quote my coach "Remember there's no OFF season, just winter training ;)" So I finished out the DVD challenge current weight 180.6 <- ended up down about 5lbs. Can't fight with that. I figure with today being Dec 1st- Its time for a new challenge. I was going to try another DVD or another something. But to be honest- I just don't really have an interest in that right now. So- new thoughts a twitter friend, www.thefitbee.com, has a challenge #backtobasics for the month of December. I think my #backtobasics focus and challenge will be to make sure I am eating ENOUGH good foods!

I am going to continue my workouts as planned for the month. Soon I enter my "unstructured training" with my coach. I am going to have my runs I need to keep up since I have Hyannis Half Marathon in Feb to get training for but I will be having a bit more time for yoga and fun workouts. This is at least my hope- I have not done an "unstructured training" time yet with my coach so we will see what it brings :)

This weekend we head to DC for the www.hotchocolate15k.com. I am excited for the jacket we get for our swag bags and of course for the chocolate at the finish! Coach and I still haven't talked pace plan for the race. But I am looking forward to this one a lot. Never done a 15k before- so automatic PR! Tons of friends are going to be there! And another race in my sparkly purple skirt from www.teamsparkle.com. I will keep you posted on the weekend in DC should be a good time- Keep you posted on the #backtobasics plans :) Happy December Everyone!

New December Challenge:
1. #backtobasics - make sure I am eating ENOUGH good foods!
2. "unstructured training" plan- enjoy the time with unstructured workouts add in more bikram and just have fun with training.
3. Get my 2011 mileage to be 2000 total miles! I am at 1909 right now... I think it is do-able. Follow me on http://www.dailymile.com/people/DoubleDAthlete#ref=tophd

10k Turkey Trot- New PR!

2011-11-28T12:59:00.000-08:00

Every Thanksgiving since 2009 D and I have done the Thanks-4-Giving race in Lowell. The first year I did the 5k last year was 10k and this year 10k again. I have gotten to know the course very well since I have run these races on it and the New Years 10k and all the Lowell Triathlons are on a similar route.

Earlier in the week I wrote down my course PR and my 10k PR on a post it in my office and calculated the pace I would want to go if I wanted to break either. First goal: beat course time of 1:05:14 Goal 2: beat PR of 1:03:05 Goal 3: go for an hour or under.

Like I said I know this course pretty well- I know where the hills are and where to kick it in. We hit the first hill and the not so often 5k runners started walking like crazy. I think I should for my next turkey trot put myself further forward- not do my usual start farther back. Did a bit of dodging and weaving around folks for the whole 5k route. Since it is a double loop course the 5k runners peal off and the 10k'ers continue on. I crossed the timing mat at the 5k feeling pretty good. Mile 1- 9:50, Mile 2- 9:31, Mile 3- 9:40

The only change on the second pass is there is a jump into a neighborhood. It is on the hilly part of the course and it is through very winding roads so my time for this mile dropped. Mile 4- 9:58

I had seen my other paces and knew I was going to be able to beat goal one, and I was getting close to being able to beat goal two. Okay time to be sure to kick it in- only 2 miles left come on.... Back on pace with mile 5- 9:33. Miles 5 and 6 are the flat stretch of road on the course so I knew if I could get comfortable and cruise I would be okay. Somewhere in mile 5 it hit me not only was I going to beat goal two now but I was possibly going to make it for goal three. Okay Juls put your head down and get this done.

Mile 6- 9:39. I honestly have no idea where the mile marker was or when my watch went off but I knew it was time to finish strong. D came out and finished with me. I told him I couldn't talk. I just wanted to put my head down and finish. I wanted to finish in 1:00 or under. He helped push me through to a strong finish. As I crossed the line a friend who had finished around the same time as D was cheering and taking photos. I looked down at my watch when I crossed 1:00:48. I DID IT! Goal One, Two and Three done! I couldn't have been happier.

The last lil bit was at 8:42 pace. The course was 6.3 mi according to my garmin and 2 other people's also- so 6.3mi 1:00:48 works out to 9:39 pace. Race results with 6.2 mi course say 9:49 pace.

I knocked 5 minutes off my time on the course from last year and knocked 3 minutes off my PR! Not a bad Turkey Trot morning! D PR'd too! We both had a great Turkey Trot and definitely deserved our deep fried turkey that night! Goal 3 for the next 10k: under 1:00

For the record: that's 2 PR's in my new Team Sparkle skirt.... maybe the thing has magical powers?!

DVD Challenge Week 3- 30 Day Shred

2011-11-21T07:08:00.001-08:00

I have been remiss in my blogging of this past week's challenge. Sorry all I was on the road. But I did do my photos and I did do my DVD and I did weigh myself- so let me get down to it. It was an interesting week or so... hard training week w 5:30 planned hours from coach then the week after was my recovery week. And- being that time of the month with a rough training week made me exhausted and of course didn't help with the scale! I stuck with level 2 but I think it might be time to get ready for the jump to Level 3! :) Thinking I won't be losing the "up to 20lbs in 30 days" like the tagline says

I am not overly impressed with the photos this week but maybe the same thing as the scale... that time of the month?! who knows!

yes diff background because I was traveling and wanted to be sure to take my photos :)

And the Stats:
This week's workouts- Tues- hill repeats, DVD#12, Weds- bikram yoga, Mon- Cycling 6.52 mi, DVD#13, Fri- off not feeling well, Sat- Cycling 18mi, DVD #14, Sun- run 3.06mi, DVD#15, Mon- yoga, Tues- cycling 9.58mi, DVD #16, Wedns- off from training but did DVD #17, Thurs- short run on the beach in FL 1.6mi, DVD#18, Fri- day off from training but did DVD #19, Sat- Cycling 15.4 mi, Sun- run 3.06mi, DVD #20

Weight Tuesday Morning- 182.6lb (up assuming this is water weight from that time of the month~ we'll see next week?!)

Nutrition- Example: Breakfast- Apple w honey spices and granola- 247cals
Lunch- stir fry chicken w veggies and brown rice- 350cals
Dinner- lasagna home made with meat and veggies- 469cals
Snacks- cereal- 160 cals
Total: 1226 cals <- NEED to get this up!

Thoughts- Still low on the calories... counting seems to always do me in. So only 10 more DVD days left to get to 30. Hopefully the scale and the pictures show some progress. Starting to think what my next challenge may be....

Review: Marathon-Photo

2011-11-15T10:43:00.000-08:00

For those of you that follow me on twitter you saw my tweet about this but here's the story. I ordered my 5x7 photo from the Army Ten Miler on 19 Oct. On 31 Oct I was told they shipped and it would be 2 weeks for the picture to arrive and in just under 2 weeks I received my picture. I promptly went out and bought a 5x7 frame for my new race photo got home and IT DOESN'T FIT! I spent 23 bucks on a picture that I can't frame?! In order to frame it at the size it is at 5x7.5 I would have to buy a custom frame.

Frustrated I turned to contact the company, . They don't even have a number or email I can contact them in the US! WHAT?! So I entered into their automated system my frustration.

======== COMMENTS/QUESTION =========
I am very disappointed with the service of this company. It took almost 3 weeks for me to receive my photo. The photo I received was supposed to be a 5x7 and when it arrived it will not fit in a 5x7 frame and is actually 5x7.5. I would like a refund given the fact that the photo is not what I ordered! I am so unhappy I will gladly send the image back (if you provide a shipping code- I will not be charged to send back a photo I am not happy with). I look forward to your response.

Thank you,

Julia

And this was the response I received:

Hi Julia,

To have our quality control check this photo and possibly offer a replacement or refund, we need you to post back this photo.
Please enclose a note of explanation - a print out of this email would be good - and post to:

Marathon-Photos.Com
Global-Pix.Com
PO Box 60
Hamilton 3240
New Zealand

You might try writing "Return to Sender" on the original packaging to post back to us - please check the address is clearly as above.

Or post to:
Chris Parry, Dean Lodge, 16 Frieth Road, Marlow, Bucks, SL7 2QT, England

* Also, in case of a refund, please give a Visa or Mastercard number ( WITHOUT the expiry date).

Kindest Regards, Sheryl

Sheryl Laurie
Customer Services
Global-Pix.Com
Marathon-Photos.Com

Which prompted me to return this message:

Sheryl,

You have to be kidding me? I have to pay to ship back a photo that you obviously printed wrong and now you want me to just send you my credit card information. You have to be joking send your credit card number to a foreign country with a package. This is rule one in protecting your identity. I am appauled that this is the way you treat customers and I have sent a detailed email to the Army Ten Miler support staff explaining my issues. I will not be returning the photo and I will not be sending my credit card information for a POSSIBLE refund. I will never be ordering a photo from your company again and plan to let all my friends know that are athletes too to keep an eye out for your company in future events.

Thank you. And best wishes in the future!

Julia

I am awaiting a response from them. I will keep you posted with any further developments. I have sent my issues to the race directors of the Army Ten Miler, also.

Just an FYI companies out there- you need to realize that customer service is bigger now than ever! In a second I can say don't use this company and my 800+ followers on twitter read it and one of them retweets it (@trirunner302) and you have your name disgraced to over 2000 people. Then add in the fact that @runteamsparkle put the comment in their newsletter and the reach goes exponentially. You just need to take the time to realize what you are saying and whether you want that out there in public because it is no longer I tell 2 friends I don't like you and it stops there. To be quite honest I didn't even realize how far my reach is but it is really worth while for companies to keep in mind especially with the economic times when people are worried about spending money and not having it be a worth while experience.

5k for Pre-K Race Report- #sparkle

2011-11-09T13:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday 5 Nov was the second year I put my toe to the line of the 5k for Pre-K. This race is TINY! They allow no registration online the only pre-registration is to drop off at the church where the preschool is that they run the race for in Holliston, MA. So obviously registration day of is popular. It is a cheap race at only 20 bucks for registration. There is no race shirt just a simple number no chip. Kinda nice. And super local.

I grew up pretty close to the start line so my parents were up for racing too. Mom did it last year and won her age group. D raced last year and placed in his age group too but this year a duathlon rescheduling caused him to decide against a double race weekend. Dad decided to join us this year even though he was doing the same duathlon as D (his first) the next day.

Last year my time on the course was probably my slowest 5k. Mind you I was 2 months in to being able to run again post surgery and this course is no walk in the park. It is possibly one of the hilliest courses for a 5k I have ever done. It starts at the bottom of a hill and ends with a nasty climb. Since I knew the course was gonna be tough I just wanted to beat my time from last year and have fun with it.

Dad offered to help pace me to beat my time from last year. I wanted to be sure I had enough in the tank to make it up that last hill so I told him around 10s- knowing I could probably do better than that. And as for having fun- I raced my first race in my Team Sparkle skirt. I made a decision a couple weeks ago to buy my first skirt and join the team when I realized all I was going to be doing was running races for a few months. I am not a fan of running races. I always feel so slow so I wanted something to add a little fun to it. The #sparkle added a lot of fun. I got lots of compliments!

Dad and I ran the first mile in 9:24- not bad did I mention it starts UPHILL! The plan was to try to stay around a 9:30 now for the rest of the race. Mile 2- 9:41- well a bit off. The last mile of this course is the worst mostly up hill with a killer hill at the end managed a 9:49 pace. Worked out to a finishing time of 29:58 with a 9:36 pace. Crushing my previous course time by 3 minutes! Mom managed to stay right on Dad and I's heels so she finished 30 something also beating her time by 3 minutes from last year.

This race also has a lovely tradition that the parents of the preschool make baked goods for all the award winners. There is a table full of goodies that you get to take a WHOLE plate of cookies, brownies whatever after accepting your award. They also did a fun little raffle. The times weren't posted when they started awards we were all hoping Mom would repeat her AG win. WHICH SHE DID! GO MOM!

The 18-39 age group- I know HUGE age group- was called and I couldn't believe it when they said 3rd place- ME!? I was in total shock! I have never placed in a running race. I have never gotten a medal at a running race that wasn't the medal they gave everyone who crossed the finish line! I think my #sparkle may have helped. Coach told me it is all the hard work of the season paying off. I have to say I have worked hard and I am glad I could wear my skirt and have a little fun too!

Mom and I with our awards :)

Side note: the rest of the weekend I was support for D and Dad's duathlon. It was Dad's first and he went all in with a costume for the Halloween themed race. D ended up doing great with a new course PR and got 4th in his AG. SO PROUD! I think Dad has a new found respect for multi-sport events. Maybe we can shame him into actually training to do another next season! My friend Julia was there too- she rocked out a 2nd place OA female award- WTG Jules!

DVD Challenge Week 2- 30 Day Shred

2011-11-08T06:48:00.000-08:00

Let's start off with a bit of honesty. I was a bit lame in doing my DVD this week- was away over the weekend which turned into way longer with the snow-apocalypse, had to tend to my bridesmaid duties, and had a race to prep for and run. So I wasn't as good about my DVD this week as I had been but that is the truth and it isn't like I did nothing so anyway.... Truth be told to start off!

I stuck with Level 2. I actually like the exercises in Level 2 and need to work on my plyo moves. I am still super psyched I can do the skaters but still working on the other jump moves- squat thrusts I am OKAY at but the plank jacks need work! I am not too sick of Jillian's voice for this level yet.... but getting there.

I don't think the photos look super different. Maybe a bit of slimming in the mid section?! or I am just being optimistic this morning.

And the Stats:
This week's workouts- Sat- ended up day off by accident with the wedding, Sun- Run 3mi, DVD#7, Mon- Cycling 15mi, DVD#8, Tues- Ran- 2.62mi (hill repeats), DVD #9, Weds- Ran 3.4mi, Thurs- 1450yds, DVD#10, Friday- day off to prep for race- wanted to save my legs and body, Sat- 5k (no gas for a DVD after), Sun- Sick, Mon- swim 1600yds, DVD #11

Weight Tuesday Morning- 181.4lb (down ~2 lb)

Nutrition- Example: Breakfast- Cereal w skim milk- 267cals
Lunch- chicken sausage, tomatoes, spaghetti and an apple- 532cals
Dinner- salad with blue cheese and steak w a hard cider- 672cals (ate out after social run- still survived the calorie count)
Snacks- bar- 105 cals
Total: 1576 cals <- better but still need to get this up!

Thoughts- I have decided that Jillian just says every over used motivation in the 20 min. I think I may need to start doing it with my own music again!!

Taking Control with Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine

2011-11-07T06:31:00.000-08:00

I have gone to an acupuncturist for close to a year now. I originally went in with hopes of acupuncture helping with stress and then my hip and shoulders. It has helped immensely with my stress and I am shocked how much it has done for my hip and shoulders. I actually don't even have to have her do anything for my shoulder anymore and the hip is just when it bugs me. I find the hour of relaxation helps with stress and mood overall.

Many people who know me know I have a constant struggle with my weight. Though I feel silly saying that. I feel like I am being vein since there are so many people in the country that are morbidly obese and I just need to lose 20 or 30 lbs. I am not sure what it is but I workout a lot and eat right and I can't seem to drop any more weight! I have been to a doctor to have regular blood work done and "your fine" was the result. I need to get to an endocrinologist to have some more tests done.

Since it is something that has really been eating my lunch this off season I have decided to do something till I can get to an endocrinologist. This is where we come full circle to the acupuncture- I asked my acupuncturist if she could help following my last appointment. She said actually you are a perfect candidate, someone who doesn't medically have something wrong, who is already doing things to help the weight loss- ie working out and eating right. Ive been to a nutritionist and know how to eat well and I have to say I am pretty good about it. The only thing I am bad about is making sure I eat enough. And you all know I work out!

She offered a tradition Chinese Medicine to start the process- Free and Easy Wanderer Plus- Jia Wei Xiao Yao Wan. She said it would help with mood and overall function. In reading it looks like it helps Liver function mostly. She said it is something she often gives to women for many issues and it helps a lot. I am taking 8 of these TINY little pills 3 times a day on an empty stomach. I started last Wednesday morning with the pills and the other thing will be acupuncture once a week focused on weight loss- first appointment is tomorrow.

After my talk with my acupuncturist I looked into some research on acupuncture and weight loss. I found some great articles everything from how it works to Dr. Oz to the truth that it can't be all you do to lose weight. Essentially it appears the acupuncture is used to help your body's function, with digestion and metabolism, and help with stress to help aid weight loss. Acupuncture releases endorphins which help with weight loss also. The truth is it is like anything else it isn't the magic cure all you have to do work yourself- eat right, exercise etc. These were some of the articles I found online:
https://www.acufinder.com/Acupuncture+Information/DetailThe+Acupuncture+Weight+Loss+Solution
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/acupuncture-and-weight-loss
http://www.naturalnews.com/019552.html
http://altmedicine.about.com/od/acupunctur1/a/acupuncture_weight_loss.htm

This was my favorite http://www.acupunctureforweightlossblog.com/ with one of its article concluding in " So if you are getting tired and frustrated that your weight loss efforts do not seem to give you any favorable results, you should definitely try using acupuncture for weight loss; when combined with a proper diet and exercise, you will be amazed at how much improvement you will get from this ancient medical treatment."

So my thought is I am going to give this a shot. I am also going to keep working on getting in with the endocrinologist. I will continue the medicine and acupuncture appointments once a week for all of November- then at the end of the month re assess if I think it is working. I'll be sure to report back :)

Farm Share - Go Organic?

2011-11-01T11:52:00.000-07:00

Last year my parents had a share at a local Organic Farm, Silverwood Organic. They got some great veggies over the summer and were interested in the Winter Share, but sadly they only offer big Family shares (win for me!). We ended up splitting the Family share for the Winter Share.

Now some of you may not know this but I LOVE TO COOK! It is kind of a zen thing for me, get me in a kitchen it relaxes me and makes me feel so much better. Not to mention with my travel schedule it is nice to be home to cook! I saw the share as a great way to learn some new recipes with some new veggies I'd probably never have tried before. The other win is the farm is Organic.

Last night I made Candied Carrots and mixed up the saute greens with a shallot and some garlic (all from the share). Add some chicken and you have a meal. I am looking forward to making soup from the squash and pumpkin we got this week. Next Saturday is the next pickup- YAY more things to try!!

Since my veggies are gonna be Organic now... maybe I should make the switch to all Organic. I have been thinking a lot lately. I know it is more expensive but I just think I love supporting more local farmers, love the thought of less chemicals on my food, and I could just be making this up but the veggies taste better and I feel like I get more nutrients. Anyone out there Organic? why did you switch? is it more expensive?

Healthy food for training is my thought since as my coach just said "there is no OFF season only winter training!"

DVD Challenge Week 1- 30 Day Shred

2011-10-29T07:38:00.000-07:00

Well challenge accepted and I have kept it up. Doing the DVD has really kept me doing my strength training and to be honest I don't want to let everyone down that has read this and has seen on twitter. So week 1- I guess that's what we call it since it was the first full week- was fun and a bit of a challenge but that's the point!

By the end of this week I was sick of hearing Jillian's voice and really sick of the HORRIBLE music that goes with the DVD so I went with my own music blasting and the DVD running. I have to say by the time I reached the end of this week I have decided I will be doing Level 2 now. I am in a bit of a quandary though is it 30 calendar days? or 30 days of the DVD? I guess we will get to 30 calendar days and see... then maybe go for the 30 days of DVD? What do you guys think?

So I have to say the photos don't seem to have changed much- oh well but here ya go

And the Stats:
This week's workouts- Sat- Cycle 19.09mi, DVD #2, Sun- Run 3mi, DVD#3, Mon- Swim 1900yds, DVD#4, Tues- Run- 2.62 (hill repeats), DVD #5, Weds- Bikram Yoga, Thurs- 1500yds, DVD#6, Friday- Cycle- 10.9 (speedwork), DVD #7 (level 2)

Weight Friday Morning- 183.2lb (down 2 lb)

Nutrition- Example: Breakfast- Cereal w skim milk and Mix1- 360cals
Lunch- potato w ground beef taco meat little sprinkle of 50%fat cheese and some cashews- 537cals
Dinner- Chicken, mashed butternut squash, asparagus- 215cals
Snacks- mini Luna bar, mini cheese, mix1- 331cals
Total: 1443 cals <- better but still need to get this up!

Thoughts- Some of the exercises are easy and I was so proud when I started Level 2 and I could do the skate move with the jump. Last time I did the DVD was before and after my hip surgery and that move hurt a ton! So win! I am also shocked at how some moves are no problem and others I just must not use those muscles while training! Crazy!

My 2011 Season- How to Learn from Your Season

2011-10-27T13:36:00.000-07:00

I know I did my 10 things I learned this season but I read this article on Active this morning which got me thinkin I should try to answer these questions. So here goes
1. In hindsight, were your season goals clear and attainable?
Considering my big season goal was to finish a half iron and I did. I would say yes the were clear and attainable.

2. What were you most proud of this season?
Top would be finishing the half ironman with a close second of keeping the dedication to train for the half ironman. It took a lot of hard work and dedication to get to that finish line, not just on race day but for the months leading up to it.

3. What would you like to duplicate next year?
I am definitely going to stay with my coach, Balance Multisport. Sorry your stuck with me! I want to continue to take on new challenges like I did.

4. What frustrated or disappointed you the most this season?
I want to work on my run and cycling speed. I am starting to work on that now for the off-season with hill work and speed work.

5. What do you not want to happen again next year?
Nutrition issues! No more puking, swelling etc. I need to get this all figured out!

Here's where the questions get tough!

6. What did you learn by going through these experiences?
I really learned that it is going to take a lot to keep me from finishing a race! Not puking, not a flat tire, not even a incoming storm could keep me from crossing the finishline.

7. What decisions did you make that were empowering for you?
Deciding to change coaches to go with someone who was more similar to me really paid off. I am still working on nutrition in daily life and racing. I found I have a great support group around me now, with D being my biggest supporter!

8. What habits seemed to hold you back from achieving your potential?
My mental preparedness. I need to work on mentally being prepared for a race and going into it with a level of confidence. (I need to work on this for other parts of my life not just racing!) Along the same lines I need to learn not to rip apart my performances and see the accomplishment for what it is!

9. What decisions should you make in order to have your best triathlon year ahead?
Decide what races are A and stick to it, those are the bigger deal and the larger focus. This will help with the mental racing issues, I'd think. Every race can't be an A race some days are meant to build up to bigger things and I need to be sure to keep that in perspective. It will also help in appreciating the accomplishment of that A race or that not A race!

Cycling: Yes I have the RIGHT to be on the road!

2011-10-25T07:00:00.000-07:00

I was out for my Saturday ride just a lil hour 15 jaunt around the homestead. Lately I have been riding with D but Saturday he decided he was going to lift at the gym while I rode. I decided to take the route that isn't super hilly for a little change. And while about 2 miles into my ride I had my first fight with a passenger of a car! This is how it went down.

I was riding just to the left of the white line of the shoulder to avoid all the sand and pot holes. A car pulls out of the lot to my left turning into the lane of traffic I am traveling in. He pulled in just as I was coming by pushing me off into the shoulder. Luckily I am not a novice cyclist and I just adjusted instead of freaking out and crashing out. As they did it I screamed "REALLY?!" And we pulled up to the one light in town. The female passenger rolls down the window and goes "Really what?!"
I said "You nearly hit me."
"Well, we didn't. And you are on a F*ckin Bicycle, get off the road and on the shoulder where you belong."
"Actually, if you read the rules of the road I have just as much right to be on the road as you do."
"Actually, according to the rules of the road you have to be off the road on the shoulder."

Then the light turned green and the driver finally pipes up and he says "Well at least I didn't hit you!" and they sped off.

I was fuming! Which actually fueled a great ride. I couldn't believe how wrong they were and how they chose to fight with me about it. I couldn't believe the driver hung his hat on *not* hitting me even though he could have easily caused a crash! A crash that he would have been 100% at fault for! I know I am bound to have a lot more run ins with cars- hopefully none literally! I have done 3 and a half hour rides and never had someone be so blatantly rude or WRONG!

Just for clarification I did look it up- the basic rule in Massachusetts is "Same Roads. Same Rules." This site has some great info on the rules for cyclists and motorists in Massachusetts, "http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

And I did check with a cop on Sunday. He said I was right I am allowed to be on the road cops prefer that you stay as far right as possible to be safe but I am allowed to be on the road I don't have to be on the shoulder. Then the very nice officer asked if it happen somewhere in his area that he could do something about it. haha :)

Anyway- I just wanted to make people aware of their rights as a cyclist and make motorists aware to be careful! I have a hope that maybe my fight with the woman in the car will cause someone that saw it to think twice, or look twice, to keep cyclists safe. I know the guy that was driving the car behind them slowed way down and looked all the way over his shoulder before he made a left to be sure I wasn't coming close. Hey maybe it paid off a little?!

The Challenge is ON!

2011-10-21T06:36:00.000-07:00

The Challenge has started!!! As I said in my last blog post I decided to take on a new challenge to help combat my post season blues. I will be doing my DVD- 30 day Shred with Jillian Michaels and heading back to Bikram Yoga. So its ON! Well actually I decided to start it on Wednesday night by taking my "off day" and going to Bikram Yoga. Anyone who has done Bikram knows it is far from an "off day"- 26 postures and 2 breathing exercises in a room that is 105 degrees with 40% humidity. FUN TIMES! Actually I really like it. It helps me a lot mentally and really helps me physically too. So this is part of my month long challenge.

Yesterday before I started Day 1 of my DVD my friend Kissing_frogs read my challenge and decided to join me- virtually. Perfect another motivator! So here's the plan on the virtual challenge DVD portion: We came to the decision we will do the DVD 5 days a week MINIMUM- with the goal of 6 to 7. We will do level 1 for 10 days, level 2 for 10 days, level 3 for 10 days giving the 30 day shred!

I did my run that my coach wanted me to do yesterday then it was time to start the challenge. After much debate (since I am not pleased with what I see) I have decided I will post before (now), progress and after pictures. I guess it is the best way to gauge if the challenge works. So here we go.... please be gentle- try not to judge me too much!

The Challenge Deets:
Do my coach prescribed workouts for swim, bike, and run- generally 6 days a week and races are planned in here too. Do 30 Day Shred DVD- 5 days a week minimum with the hope of 6 or 7. I will also be doing Bikram Yoga as often as I can with my schedule- trying for at least one day a week. I will post progress photos every Friday and weigh myself on Friday mornings- hopefully it really works and the photos get better and the scale shows the hard work! I will also post a day of the week's nutrition- just so people can get a feel for what I am eating too. And of course... my 2cents on the whole thing will come along with the posts :)

The stats:
This week's workouts- Mon- Swim 1400yds, Tues- Bike 7.91mi, Wednes- Yoga, Thurs- Run 1.89mi and DVD Day 1, Fri- Swim 1500yds (still need to do DVD Day 2)

Weight Friday Morning- 185.2lb

Nutrition- Breakfast: 1 apple w 1tbsp honey, spices and 1/3c granola- 247 cals
Lunch: veggie chilli, cornbread, red fat cheese, apple- 383 cals
Dinner: ground beef taco meat on a salad w chips, NF sour cream, and cheese. dessert- GF cookie w strawberries and SF caramel- 605 cals
Snack: tortilla chips and salsa- 152 cals
Total: 1,387 cals <-not enough! need to work on this!

Thoughts- I am not going to lie- Day 1 of that DVD was not easy. I have done it before and my stamina and endurance are way better but there are some muscles I just haven't used in a long time- youch!

Post Season Blues

2011-10-19T12:31:00.000-07:00

As you may have noticed from my London blog and my other post season wrap ups the season is over here and I am lacking some motivation. I am not a fast runner- so fall running races aren't super appealing to me. I am not a fast cyclist so put that with my not a fast runner and a duathlon doesn't really sound appealing. Plus- lets be honest a duathlon takes out what I am good at- SWIMMING! So with races right now consisting of mostly 5ks and 10ks and duathlons I am kind of stuck in a rut.

The other big thing that contributes to my lack of motivation and being stuck in a rut is I seem to have some sort of health issue that keeps me from losing weight. I can workout and eat right but it just doesn't come off. So when you aren't racing and you aren't seeing results its hard to go to the gym. At least when I'm racing I have goals to keep me going everyday. This whole lack of weight loss is another whole blog story for another time but anyway- to help myself get out of this I have been trying to come up with ideas.

I started coming up with a race plan for the next couple months of a couple 5ks and a 10k and even a late winter half marathon. Okay working down the right path. But to be honest- I know even if I don't train I can finish all those races. I am stubborn enough and have a decent level of fitness. So let's see I need something else!

Last night while at home I came across my Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD. 3 different levels of 20 min full body workouts. Wheels started turning- I know I need to keep up my swim, bike and run fitness over the off season to be ready for next season but- I could add more right? I need to work in more strength workouts anyway right?

So thoughts for a new challenge are: Continue my regular workouts my coach is giving me right now- so my swim, bike and run- but now let's add doing the 30 Day Shred DVD everyday for a month. I will take some before pictures and blog about the experience to work as a review of the program and see what we get for results.

The other thing I am going to bring back to my routine is Bikram Yoga. For now starting with my "day off" from coach and possibly adding more days as my schedule will allow. So I think I've got it a new challenge, a new motivation, a new goal with any hope this will help get me over these post season blues. Hey who knows maybe if it works out in a month I will pick a new challenge.

Army Ten Miler- Race Recap

2011-10-18T07:10:00.000-07:00

After my much needed break in London I was home for a mere 3 days before heading to Washington, D.C. Now anyone who knows me knows I am in DC enough to potentially call it home if not my second home so flying there was no sweat. The plan was to fly down Friday afternoon get to the expo spend a bit of Saturday sight seeing then run Sunday. Well the best laid plans don't always work out. I have seen all the sights of DC MANY times but D in all his travels to DC hasn't seen any so I was planning on playing tour guide.

When we arrived Friday afternoon we were still fighting jet lag a bit from London. We decided not to rush to the expo and be rushed looking through it and just take the night easy. We went to what is quite possibly D's fav restaurant for dinner Chic-fil-a. It was nice to have a very low key night. We decided to get to the expo in the morning.

It was CRAZY packed. The line to get in almost reached the street. But like any good military operation things moved quickly and we had our numbers quicker than expected. While walking around and spending WAY too much money- like I always do at an expo we ran into a couple co-workers who were running. Always nice to see friendly faces.

We headed back to the hotel to relax and get off our feet. Now to be 100% honest- I didn't have much expectation for this race. I had heard it is very crowded and I honestly just wanted to take it all in- running around the mall and just being in the environment. Somewhere in my brain I came up with the idea of wanting to finish in about 2 hours seemed to make sense with my half marathon times. After a great dinner of risotto (a gluten free GEM pre race!) we picked up some breakfast options that we could do in a hotel room with no fridge and no microwave- cereal soy milk and some bars.

I laid out my race clothes after laboring over the capri, short, skirt decision- I went with capris and my new headband- "this is my race pace" and my new arm sleeves "if it wasn't for me you'd have no body to pass". The plan was to walk from the hotel to the Pentagon- I went with the follow the crowd method. It paid off and we got to the gates just as they were opening the start area. D was in wave one and I was in wave 3- slightly different paced runners huh?! D hung with me for a bit back with the slow folk and then headed up toward the start a little before 8.

As I was standing by myself waiting on my start time of 8:15 I made friends with the girl standing next to me. I know shocking huh?! We got to chatting and realized we both wanted to run about the same pace- hopes of a 1:45 with actual thoughts of being around 2 hours. She had never run a 10 mile distance before and honestly it was my first 10 miler but not my longest run so I figured this could be fun. We decided to stick together. To be honest it was great. Sometimes you worry about wanting to run a race with someone you don't really know (at all) but pacing was good a little bit but not too much conversation. We hit the 10k timing chip and I am fairly certain it was a 10k PR at 1:03- though the silly timing pad company had a different time.

On the loop back around the Air and Space museum I slapped hands and saw a co-worker. Let me just say that city isn't as flat as it looks. The long slow down hills killed my quads and the long slow up hills were crushing my calves. The 14th street bridge was a smasher! The sun was coming up and it was starting to get hot and that up hill climb was tough. Just as we hit the mi 9 marker we went by 2 Wounded Warriors both single leg amputee's. I turned to my new running buddy and said "okay that's all I needed to make it to the finish- I think this is tough on 2 legs I can't imagine how hard that is!"

With that we finished out the last mile- I was trying so hard not to puke before I crossed the finish. I crossed the finish at 1:44:50 by my watch- 1:45:50 officially. I can't believe I not only killed my thoughts of 2 hours but made it in the lower end of the time I thought. My new running buddy crossed a bit before me and was so excited to have finished her longest race. The finish line was congested and I quickly started to seize up and was desperate for water. When I could finally get some moving room and some air and water I felt like a million bucks. I had a good race.

D had a great race too when I found him around the Finisher Coins. He had a 10 miler PR by 3 min! I was happy to have a new found running buddy and to have finished in well under the time I expected. I will definitely do the Army 10 Miler again- hopefully next year. Next time I will write down a faster race time so I don't have to do so much weaving around people walking before we even hit mile marker 1. But great race awesome environment and if you want a race filled with motivators what is better than running by a ton of Wounded Warriors?

London- A much needed break!

2011-10-05T13:07:00.000-07:00

About 2 weeks ago while driving to a meeting on travel I called my coach. I had a horrible feeling- did my half ironman steal my mojo? We had a great talk. I told her I had a AWFUL break down on reach the beach the weekend before. I was running my second leg at about 1 am it was a VERY hilly 9 miler. I was so mad about people passing me and how slow I felt. During my run in my head I composed the email to my coach saying I was quitting. No more swimming, no more biking, and definitely NO MORE RUNNING! Obviously after I finished I realized it was just the run talking. But given that I had just done my half ironman then a sprint triathlon then reach the beach I had reached my physical and mental breaking point. Coach told me that was completely normal experience for reach the beach, and after doing an half iron and my mojo would come back.

On Monday I left for a much needed vacation to London for 7 glorious days. A few months ago D and I found a great deal on tickets and our friends offered to host us at their lovely home. We got on the plane with little plans for what to do when we landed- other than the booked tickets to Buckingham palace and a 5k the other 5 days were whatever we felt like.

Both of us quickly realized when there isn't anything else to stress you out sleep is so grand! We both slept like rocks. It also helps that the guest bed was SOOOOOOO comfy! We did go see everything we planned to see: Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Parliament, Big Ben, Eye, saw a show- War Horse, Piccadilly Circus, shopped on Carnaby St., and went to the British Museum. In between all the walking all over London was the 5k.

London was in the middle of a week of indian summer- temps 80-85 everyday. The race was a lunchtime 5k. It was hot and my legs were dead from all the walking. My time was slow- but I ran a race in London.

Other than the walking around everyday and the 5k all the workout clothes I packed didn't get used. I actually took a break. Mostly because by the time I got out of bed each day it was so hot and humid. I had no bike to ride for my planned training and the one day we were going to swim we slept through the alarm. I have to say normally I would feel horrible about this but right now I am starting to think it was the much needed break I was looking for.

Work had me stressed to my max. I was physically and mentally done with training and now I can honestly say I am looking forward to my next workout. I think London was just the break I needed. Hopefully I will feel the same way when I am slugging through the Army Ten Miler on Sunday. EEEK! I think I will just go out to enjoy it!

10 Things I Learned from My 70.3 and This Season

2011-09-12T08:24:00.000-07:00

I have learned a lot about my abilities as an athlete and a lot about myself this season. I had a great season! It finished far better than I could have imagined! My triathlon season is over with 1 half iron, 3 sprint triathlons, 1 olympic distance, and a couple OWS races but these are the top 10 things I have learned.

10- I LOVE the sport of triathlon- I have found my new athletic love. I enjoy the competition I enjoy the goals I enjoy the drive and I enjoy the finish! I also have found that I love how accessible the pros are in this sport. I met Cait Snow at Timberman and walked right by Chrissie Wellington setting up her transition. It is amazing how much they are just like other racers on race day and how much they appreciate age groupers.

9- Trying out your gear is key and knowing chafe spots! After spending more than one race nursing back some nasty cherries under my arms from chafe spots I now live by the train in your gear. You can't keep them from happening all the time but it sure helps- I also now put everstride under my biceps and anywhere else I tend to chafe.

8- Wet suit strippers are awesome! As I said in my Timberman Race Report they are the best. No more evident than my sprint this weekend where I wore my wetsuit but had to get myself out of it :( I missed my wet suit strippers.

7- SOCKS (and cut toe nails)!!! I learned my lesson at my first Olympic distance tri that it is worth the couple seconds to put on your socks for longer distance runs. I still have a scar on each ankle from the holes I wore into my feet. I also learned this past weekend the power of trimmed toenails. Even tho it was a short run and I didn't wear socks, I still ended up bloody thanks to a long toenail. PEDICURES are key!

6- I enjoy endurance racing. Honestly I am starting to think fast twitch muscles are just not my thing! I think I need to train more to learn the differences between going all out at a sprint and the speed and endurance for a half iron. But for now I just enjoy the longer stuff.

5- I need to work on my run speed. I am by no means a fast runner. My PR for a 5k is just under 28. I need to work on getting a faster turnover and then work on maintaining that for my runs. I plan to work this one in the off season!

4- I need to work on my bike speed. I am not a fast cyclist. The goal of this season was to make it so that I could do the distance of a half iron. I was no where near the time cut offs but I want to get faster. I am a fast swimmer- I come out of the water at the top of my age group without really having to work it. I want to work the other two parts of the race to bring them up to my swim.

3- I CAN DO IT! and I DID IT! I set my mind early this season for a goal that I didn't know if it was possible. I worked hard to train for it and I DID IT! I learned a hell of a lot about what I CAN DO! I am pretty determined and I will push myself to do it. And know this now DON'T TELL ME I CAN'T! That is what my road ID says and it is what has driven me through a lot of things in life!

2- Fuel/Food. I am apparently a freak of athletic nature. I can and enjoy working out with a full stomach. The only times I have ever had issues with racing nutrition wise- are when I didn't eat ENOUGH! I have never had a race where I said man I shouldn't have fueled that much. I thought that might happen at the half iron especially when my coach warned me about fueling with solid food but I NEED that heavy stomach feeling. I get sick without it! I guess I am just a freak in that way- sok apparently my Dad is the same way.

1- Weight/Body Image. Those of you that know me, know I am not a little girl. I am 5'10" and somewhere in the area of 170lbs. I know I do not look like the women on the cover of triathlete magazine. I also have come to realize that athletes come in many different shapes and sizes. My nutritionist actually made it akin to the dogs of the world they are all different sizes and shapes but they are all dogs. I have noticed that triathletes- mainly females- come in many different sizes even pros. Most are very well built bean poles but some are not. Even the great Macca says he can't race well when he is thin- he actually strikes a balance with his weight to get the best performance.

All that being said I know I may not look like what you think can finish a 70.3 but I know I DID IT and NO ONE can take that away from me! So I may not be a fitness model anytime soon but I think I am okay with that. I would rather have 70.3 Finisher on my resume!!

Race Report: Timberman 70.3- My First Half Iron

2011-09-06T11:01:00.000-07:00

When this season started I decided to take on the biggest goal I have attempted athletically yet- FINISH a 70.3 Half Ironman. I chose Timberman since it was local. Training became my life outside work and spending time with D. The weekend of my race quickly came and with lots of anxiety, nerves, and excitement we headed to NH. I took Thursday off from work to do final race preparation which included packing and cooking all the food I needed for the weekend. Friday we packed up the truck and headed to NH. http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

I checked in at the race expo. I was really surprised how small the expo was- check-in, an ironman store, and probably 5 vendors. Got my wrist band, packet, chip and t-shirt then I hit the ironman store. I wanted to get myself some things. I got an awesome shirt and poster from the race that had the typical ironman M-dot with all of the participants names. I also had to get a coffee mug.

I tried to sleep in Saturday but it didn't work out too well. We got up and watched my friends finish the sprint and headed to the expo again. This time I ran into my USS Swim Coach from High School. He was racing too and introduced me to Pro triathlete Cait Snow. She was really sweet and had some great words of encouragement for my first 70.3. I can't thank either of them enough for their comforting and encouraging words!

After racking my bike on Saturday and having my pre made corn pasta dinner, Saturday night I laid out all my gear one more time to be sure I was ready for Sunday. I sat on the floor of the hotel chatting with my mom, dad and D. It was a perfect relaxing night pre race. Alarm was going to go off early so off to bed.

I actually slept! When the alarm went off I went right to work- made my 2 eggs, GF bagel and packed up the rest of my food and drinks for the day. We headed to the parking lot to get a prime spot for transition to open at 5. I set up my transition area met a new friend or 2 and tried as best as I could to stay calm. I knew I needed to eat 2 PB&Js before the start and get my hammer gel in 15 min before my start time.

As I was pulling on my wetsuit and eating my gel we saw my coach and my friend Kelly. Coach had some pointers for the wet suit strippers and just like that I was giving D a kiss and heading for the water.

Now let me tell you... a race plan for just wanting to finish a race is pretty cool. There are no existing marks on the wall its just FINISH being the goal! My plan for the water was to save some energy and not try to have an insane swim split. The bike was to keep in aero as much as I could and to EAT and drink. The run was to just keep a steady pace and keep fueling.

Swim- 36:52 (official split- D said I was outta the water at 32)- I had a good swim. I felt good in the water. It was nice to pass some other colored caps and know I was keeping a good pace.

T1- 3:16- one of my slower T1's- but I wanted to take my time no need to race through it. They had wetsuit strippers this was a first for me. I did my best version of the Night at the Roxbury- you/me- and this guy ripped my wetsuit off pulled me up and sent me flying to the middle of transition area. Let me tell you I LOVE WETSUIT STRIPPERS!

Bike- 3:35 (avg 15.6mph)- I can't complain. I thought I wasn't going to make the bike cut off and I made it by close to 2 hours. The hills were tough but I was so glad I knew the course from riding it with my coach. I stayed in aero as much as I could through the straight a ways and made sure to stay on my fueling plan. I knew when I was getting close to the 1/2 way point and there was a time cut off there of 11:15, I switched my watch to time and realized it was only 10. Holy crap I was 25 miles into this and I was going to make it. I started to cry realizing that swim was done I was going to make the bike cut offs and I was actually going to finish this. Gave myself the pull it together man talk and kept riding. I was starting to have a bit of a sugar rush so I went for a banana at the 3rd aid station and at the 4th I went for a banana and another water bottle. Somehow I had lost one off the back of my bike.

T2- 3:27- yet again slow- the bike from across had fallen off the rack and I couldn't get to my stuff. I worked as best as I could but also didn't want to rush. Somehow I ripped my number- I ALWAYS DO! and headed out on the run high five-ing my family, friends and D as I left.

Run- 2:51:57 (OUCH SO SLOW!) let me just say that little hill coming out of T2 kicked my butt. It took everything I had to get myself running. I gave myself the talk of run and you can walk the aid stations. I grabbed water and coke at the first few and stuck to water or gatorade at the rest. The cold/wet towels and sponges were the best! The run was hilly and to be honest I don't really remember much other than just keep moving. The run was a 2 loop 10k- D had told me to think of it as 4 laps. I was on number 3 when a golf cart pulled up to a girl in front of me to ask what loop she was on- they told her they would let her finish she was on loop 1- SIGH OF RELIEF. I crossed the mat of lap 3 and was heading back to the finish line- I raised my arms and smiled big. The volunteer said "we'll see you next year." I told her we'll see. haha

I got maybe a half mile up the street and a fireman told me they were going to close the course in 30 min. There was a horrible storm coming. My brain raced- 30 min on a good day if I hadn't just done a 1.2mi swim and a 56 mi bike the last 3 miles would be a push in 30 min. Then I convinced myself he was lying to me but I was going to keep moving as best I could in case he was right. Soon a golf cart pulled up next to me, he told me as long as I kept going they were going to keep me out as long as they could. So I pushed- I mean for how I felt at that point I was pushing as hard as I could. I stopped eating since that meant I would slow down. My splits for the 3.272mi were 42:28, 42:57, 45:52 (yuck), 40:37. Can you tell they lit a FIRE under my butt?!

I was within a mile from the finish when some old woman on the sideline goes "don't let the bus catch you." I wanted to PUNCH HER! I have never been so angry at a spectator!

I came toward the finish chute and there was D right at the edge of the road. He ran on the other side of the fence with me the whole way. I cried! I cried hard! Hard enough that I had to tell myself outloud to stop so I would be able to breathe and cross the finish. D cleared a thigh high fence and screamed at the people crossing the finish chute that were in my way. He also screamed my name so the announcer would call me out as I crossed. And I did it I crossed the finish line. With tears streaming down my face I got my medal and my hat.

It was pretty amazing to have my parents there when I crossed and my coach and my friends. My friends even made me a half ironman tiara. The best was to hug D when I crossed. He told me "I AM SO PROUD OF YOU! I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!" All I could say was "I DID IT! I actually DID IT!" I cried so hard while I hugged him I couldn't believe that I actually finished what I started months and months ago!

Race Recap: Not so Fun Last Min. Added Fun Sprint

2011-08-08T08:19:00.000-07:00

On Friday D mentioned possibly wanting to do a Sprint Tri in Lowell on Sunday. I figured my coach would veto this assuming my next race was Timberman on the schedule so no need to screw with it. But she said go right ahead- no rest just go out and have fun. I already had an OWS/bike brick on the plan so why not just add a short 5k. All sounded like a good idea.

So I registered Friday afternoon. D decided not to race :( but as usual was an amazing sherpa! Race morning I had my scrambled eggs and we got going out of the house. When we got to Lowell I realized I had left my HRM strap at home and my race belt (whoops). I figured oh well the race is for fun anyways.

Pre race the transition area was a mess. They kept it open while the Olypmic distance racers were going. I listened to pre-race announcements- all they told us were the swim course. No info on the transition, bike, and run- which had a horrible map on line and little to no marking (we will get to more on that later). I did my usual PB&J an hour before start time and a few min before the start had a hammer. Put on my wet suit and stood waiting the start count down.

Swim went really well! I was in the top 10 women out of the water. I did the 1/4 mi swim in 6:08- pretty good day in the water if you ask me. I got out felt pretty good. Moved okay though transition but since I wasn't really mentally prepared to race I didn't mentally prepare for transition. I had planned on testing out the theory of pulling on my new tri top in T1. That took forever it was a tangled mess. I will not be doing that for my 70.3- lesson #1 learned.

I headed out on the bike to the messy area of mount- the cops did a horrible job with traffic om the 4 lane road and the mount line wasn't marked. Again could have been a great help for the pre race announcements! Anyway- I was having a decent bike- I knew most of the course from the oly I had just done in Lowell. The bike went off in an area I didn't know and that is where it fell apart.

I came down off a hill in aero and hit a little bump in the road. Then it happen the dreaded PSFSSSSSSSSSSS! Crap I blew out my front tire. First thoughts this can't be happening to me. I am having a great race no effin way. Well I calmed down popped the wheel off and started attempting to pull the tire out of the rim. The kevlar bead just wouldn't let go. I needed tire levers- I didn't have any. A few people rode by and apologized, a couple asked if I was okay and kept riding even though I said NO. Then came along my savior- just as I was about to put the tire back on and hoof the bike back to transition. I just couldn't bear the thought of my DNF being blamed on a flat. My hands were bleeding from trying to pull off the tire but I wasn't ready to give up. This guy stopped and helped- pulled the tire off put the tube in and inflated my tire. He even stayed behind me for a bit to be sure the tire was okay. I don't think I could have said Thank You enough!

My bike took forever- I think it really took about 42 min to do the 11 mi taking out the time to change the tire. Official results 1:11- YOUCH! Lesson #2- I need tire levers and another change a flat class or 2!

I put my head down and just wanted to finish. I took t2 as it came. Did what I could. And headed out for 5k when really I just wanted to stop. My fueling was thrown all off my the tire problem and I just wanted to be done! But- I put my head down and got the task done. The run course had little to no marking and since I was so far in the end I had really no one to follow. I made my guesses on the course based on the little map I had seen on line. Another great pre race announcement where the run course is and where is the turn around.

Like I said I had a tough time with fueling and t2. I forgot to grab any fuel for the run and of course the run course had no aid station until the turn around. Lesson #3- continue fueling even through hiccups. I made it to the first aid station and grabbed 2 waters. I had no idea it was the turn around until I saw a hand written sign and the volunteer told me. Another good to know from a pre race announcement!

I trudged through the second half of the run. Made sure to try to keep it together for the race photographer. God I can't imagine how bad that pic is!? Surely a put your head down and get through this! I finished the run in 32:24- not great but I just wanted to finish.

According to the race results- I raced Athena for this race- I was the 1st in the Athenas out of the water, 5th out of 5 on the bike (damn flat), and 2nd best run time. Man if I could take that flat back.

I am really just trying to see it all as a learning experience. I am really hoping it took my bad racing juju out of me before Timberman. Though the competitive part of me is crushed! I know it was just a fun last minute add but I had really hoped for decent results. Again- learning experience. I keep telling myself- hoping soon I will fully believe it.

My hands are finally starting to recover from the cuts caused by the flat tire and I definitely learned lesson #4- it is time for a small first aid kit to be kept in my tri bag. I could have used a way to wash them out and bandage them before the hour long ride home. So as for the other lesson's learned #1- I will wear my tri top under my wetsuit for Timberman, #2- already had another flat class and added tire levers to my saddle bag need another lesson or 2 in the coming weeks, #3- FUEL, FUEL, FUEL- I may need to put that on my handlebars!

Mill City Olympic Tri Race Recap

2011-07-11T11:26:00.000-07:00

Couple things- this post is more for me to get everything out of my head from this race in prep for Timberman and this was my FIRST Olympic distance race. Saturday did packet pickup and some recon- swam a bit in the river and did a bike on the run course (ended up doing 6.86 mi and avg pace of 15.5mph). Saturday nights dinner was corn pasta w a meat/tomato sauce and peas. I made sure to drink a big gatorade on Saturday knowing Sunday would be hot! Got to bed around 11- alarm set for 4:45.

Got up made breakfast- 3 eggs scrambled GF bagel with cream cheese and started sipping on a gatorade and seltzer water. I had 2 endurolytes. Made a PB and J on GF bread to eat later. Left the house around 5:30- finishing my bagel on the way.

Arrived on site around 6:30. Set my transition area- towel with running shoes and visor on top, cycling shoes with race belt and number, gps on top. Helmet, sunglasses and headband on aero bars. Food in bento box- 1pkg gu chomps, 1pkg margarita blocks, 1 odwalla bar (cut in half). 2 bottles on the bike 1 gatorade, 1 water. 1 sm water bottle on towel and extra fuel (margarita blocks and gu's).

Hour pre race ate PB and J finished my gatorade. After eating I put on my wet suit and got ready to hop in the water for a little- just to get wet. Ate a hammer gel approx 15 min before the race start time. Listen to pre race announcements and I was in the first wave.

.9 mi swim- 31:31- There was a strong current for the first portion then the current pushes you back for the second half. About the same time I had with my last swim at Merrimack River. Not a super fast swim but good pace. Wore my wet suit for another race with it. Made sure to kick and worked on sighting. Had trouble sighting on the way back with the sun in my face- wore my mirrored goggles but it was just super sunny.

t1- it is a long run across a 4 lane road to transition got my wet suit off no problem and was able to toss my goggles and cap to D. Got myself mentally prepared for t1 while in the water- bondi band, sunglasses, helmet, watch, race belt, shoes. I should have turned on my garmin a bit earlier in the transition so it was a bit more accurate. D reminded me to take it slow and catch my breath so I was sure to take a sip of water.

26 mi bike- 1:29:24 w transition- got on and immediately ate 1/2 odwalla bar. I knew I was going to crave fuel soon. Once I got in a rhythm and got my heart rate down a bit I could eat the other half. I worked on the gatorade first. At a half hour on the bike I was sure to have my first half of the margarita block sleeve. I continued to sip on the gatorade and was sure to finish it by an hour into the bike. At an hour on the bike- I had 1/2 the pkg of gu chomps. At an hour in I looked down at my watch and was happy to see over the hour I had avg'd 17.5 mph. Once the gatorade was gone I worked on the water bottle- not sure how much water I got in for the 1/2 hour I had left on the bike- I think about half. I ate the other half of the margarita blocks as I came close to the transition to finish off the pkg. Put the other half chomp package in the pocket in the back of my suit. Coming into transition I dropped into an easy gear to prep my legs for the run.

t2- didn't think about this one as much before (which I need to do). Got everything off okay. Put my visor on and slid on my shoes. Took another sip of water. As I went thru transition I could feel the chafe on the inside of my arms from the long ride in aero and rubbing against me. But nothing I could do now just had to get thru the run. Grabbed the other package of chomps for the run just in case.

10k run- 1:09:16 with transition- headed out of transition and my reaction is to usually push hard thru the jelly leg feeling then settle into a pace. I started out with a 8:30 pace then slowed to around 10 for the first mile. At the 1/2 pkg of gu chomps in the first 1/2 mi to continue the fueling. Stashed the other package in the pocket. At the first water stop- 1 mi- grabbed a water skipped the ice. Second water stop was just before 3 mi. Grabbed a water and an ice package. The ice felt great as I stuffed it in the front and lower back of my suit. Next water stop was just after 3 mi. Grabbed a gatorade. Once the ice melted I poured it over my head which helped me cool down. Just before I hit mile 4 I started to feel my feet chafing. Left foot felt like a blister in the arch and right foot was a rub on the heal which already felt cut wide open. I slowed after the water stop around 4 after taking on water and ice again. Slid my shoe off to see if maybe if I put my foot back in it would help. My feet continued to hurt thru mile 4- again I put the ice on my lower back and in the front of my suit and dumped it over my head when it had melted. At the sign for mile 5 I told myself I could tell my body to shut up for a mile. So I grabbed a water and an ice bag again. This time I figured out how to get the ice just over my QL on my R hip. I got it completely numb then dumped the water over my head. The last mile my feet hurt really bad- but I was close to finishing and I just wanted to be done. The heat was pretty bad and the run course was mostly in the sun. The ice bags really helped. And I need to coat both my cycling shoes and my run shoes in anti-chafe everstride. Run splits 10:17, 10:36, 11:17, 11:17, 12:21, 11:45, 8:45. As you can see it was about mi 4 when my feet really started to bother me. When I finished I had D remove my shoes immediately. My feet were so swollen even as loose as they were they were hard to get off. My rings wouldn't pull off my fingers and they are usually so loose they spin around. I am not really sure why I am swelling. I felt pretty good- my nutrition plan seemed to work fine. I really need to figure this out it has plagued me off and on throughout my training.

Overall finish time 3:10. I was happy that my nutrition plan had worked and I wasn't hungry at any point nor did I throw up. I need to consider socks at least on the run if not for both the ride and the run. I think if I hadn't had the issues with my feet the run time would have been a lot better. I had a solid swim- given the current. I am very happy with the improvements to my biking speed- I figure I avg'd just under 18mph (taking out time for transition from my bike/t1 time). My sprint tri in May my avg pace on the bike was 14.73mph so that is a big improvement- due both to aero bars and training. I think my run could have been faster- the chafe really got to me and the heat. The last mile and a half it took a lot mentally to keep running- and to not just walk.

This morning I realized this was the longest (time) race I have done yet. It left me feeling good for Timberman. I know it isn't going to be easy but I still have about 5 wks left to train. I think given the improvements I have been making I will be ready to go. This Friday I am riding the Timberman course with my coach and that will only help me feel more prepared!

Cycling... New Equipment... Great Training Day

2011-06-27T12:28:00.000-07:00

For those of you that have known me for a while you know that I did my first tri in 09- it was off road so I used my old mountain bike to train and borrowed D's to race. In April of last year I had my hip surgery so that made bike riding a big part of my recovery and potential come back to triathlon. I bought a bike (trek 2.1) soon after my surgery and tried my first ride when I was allowed bout 4 weeks post surgery. On my very first attempt to clip in I fell over onto my NEWLY repaired hip. I rode with flat pedals for the rest of the 2010 season.

With the new endeavors I was taking on this season in triathlon I had to give the clips another shot. My friend Julia bought some speed play pedals and when I saw how easy they were to use I had to get some. I swapped to the speed play light action . Love em and get in and out of em easily!

So my newest edition to making my training and racing better I added aero bars to my road bike! Last Thursday I had aero bars put on my bike. In order to do this I had a fitting, I just needed to be sure that the add of the aero bars wasn't going to totally screw me up. Glad I went. Ended up adding Profile Jammer bars to my current road bike. I just can't afford the purchase of a tri bike right now so I am making it work. At the fit we ended up leaving most of my geometry the same but taking out a spacer in the handlebars.

I took the bike out for the first spin on Sunday- 2hrs on the road. It felt so good. I had a great training ride. I rode almost 31 miles in the 2 hours. Which is about 2mph faster than I usually ride my training rides. Then hopped off the bike and ran 2 miles. It was one of those great training days that boosts you mentally. I needed one. I was starting to get to the point where I thought I wasn't going to make the time cut offs for Timberman. This ride and run made me realize I have come a long way and my training is paying off. It was really just a great training day! :)

Training and Race Nutrition

2011-06-22T07:59:00.000-07:00

A big part of training for my 70.3 has been spent trying to figure out how to fuel pre race, while running/riding and after the swim. I have had a couple mishaps this season with racing fueling- season opener tri and rtb relay. I am trying to use those events and learn from them.

So I think I have my during ride fueling down- gu chomps and cliff blocks are my fuel of choice. I also throw in Odwalla bars cut in half. So 30 min in eat half a pouch/sleeve of chomps or blocks. At the 1 hr mark half an Odwalla bar. And repeat. Hydration on the bike is key so I have stuck to drinking a LG water bottle every hour. Usually one is Hammer Heed and the other being water. I still need to work out getting more water on my bike... Need more places to put it!

Running- I try to stick to a similar fueling schedule. Every 30 min half a pouch/sleeve of chomps or blocks. So far it seems to be working. I may have to up the intake though. I recently read some articles about how many carbs you need per hour of exercise- needless to say I need a little more. There's still time to play with it a bit more. But I think I have found the products I like to use and I will play with the timing a bit more.

I am really trying to work my pre-race nutrition. I always have been a big eater pre-race. Give me steak and eggs for breakfast and I'm good to go. Seems a couple eggs, sausage, some toast seem to really work. I also go with a gel- Hammer or Honey Stinger- and a banana right before start. All this seems to give me enough fuel to get through.

Being that I am not an average sized athlete I need to eat more and to be honest my stomach and body begs for it. I am just really trying to keep myself from getting hungry while I'm out there - because then its too late! Like I said I need to work timing to be sure I get enough!

My product choices are: Gu chomps (watermelon), Cliff Blocks (margarita- love the salt), Odwalla Bars, Hammer Heed (melon), Hammer Gel, Honey Stinger Gel

Happily Training- Endurance Athlete?

2011-06-17T07:42:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let you know lately I have had a few revelations related to my training. The biggest one was last weekend- after slugging through 2 hours and 10 min on the bike on Saturday and a 2 hour run on Sunday. On Sunday after my 2 hours out on the road I walked up the stairs to my condo and I realized I was unphased by the 2 workouts. I mean don't get me wrong I was tired but I wasn't beaten and feeling like a wet noodle. Made me realize I've come a long way... The fact that these kind of miles and hours of training don't kick my @$$ really makes me realize I have taken huge strides at becoming a ENDURANCE ATHLETE!

After running a half marathon on 5 June and setting a PR by about 10 Min. (more to come on this in another post) I had a hard training week. I logged 87miles! I was on the road all week for work and somehow pulled off the most miles I have done yet!

This week started a new week of training- with a new coach. I did a running speed workout on Tuesday. Wednesday had a nice long swim and a speed bike workout. And yesterday was a long run- mid week! The fact that a 45 min speed workout on the bike wasn't a big deal and the run on Thursday night tho HOT and HUMID was 7 mi. really solidified my thoughts from last weekend... I am becoming an ENDURANCE ATHLETE!

**All of you out there: please remind me of this when I am hating my training and I am FREAKING out pre 70.3- btw- 65 days but who's counting!**

Reach The Beach- 2days. 10.5 well then 9 girls. 200 mi

2011-05-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a hard one to sum up in a blog post. I spent a lot of time thinking about it but it still isn't going to do the relay justice! But here goes... My team mates @rtdanielle09 and @kissing_frogs have written their commentary- guess its my turn.

So- I wanted to do a reach the beach but J and I didn't want to be capt and try to pull together a team with the schedule we both had for work in May. The relay went out the window and I went on with training. Then a twitter friend @fiftyforbilly asked me to join her team. Well when I responded they had already found a replacement. Then sometime in late April I got another message from @fiftyforbilly asking me to join- this time I responded promptly and was added to the team.

I know my coach and I had discussed not adding anymore races to my schedule but this opportunity looked way too fun to let it pass! I signed up then told my coach. I wasn't really sure what legs or distances I would be doing but I was on team #dirtylittlefreaks and really looking forward to it.

A couple weeks before the race we needed another girl to join- of course I offered up @kissing_frogs. It worked perfectly that she could get the time off and wanted to run! I was excited that I would actually know at least one person going into this!

The week of the race I was out of town traveling for work like always. I didn't get to eat too much with being on my feet in an airfield so I had a hard time getting my runs for the week in. I got home and started to pack up. @kissing_frogs came over Thursday night- we went to the grocery store and tried to be sure I packed everything. And let me tell you I packed EVERYTHING! hahaha

Got up in the morning made my awesome French Toast- don't believe me ask D and @kissing_frogs?! We met up with @RTdanielle09 Sarah, Kelly,and Katie at Wachusett. We almost got tossed out of orientation- sorry I am not a morning person and the only way to get me through mornings when I am exhausted- LAUGHING!

Kelly had the first leg STRAIGHT up wachusett- better you than me! @kissing_frogs and @RTDanielle09 were next. Then my first leg:

Leg 1 STATS: 5.95mi, Moderate
Time- 1:06
Avg HR- 164
Cals- 1189

My leg ended with a uphill to the finish. It was a tough one. I wanted to be sure I would have enough gas to make it through the whole race so I wasn't going to kill myself in Leg 1. It was a humid and hilly but I got it done- slower than I had hoped but such is life.

After our van finished our legs we went to @RTDanielle09 friend's house since it was right near where we needed to start up again. Nice to wash some funk off- repack the car and just relax a bit.

Our next set of legs was going to take us into the night which meant the fun of running in vests, head lamps, and flashing lights. My second leg actually started at the Middle School I went to growing up. So my parents came down to say hi and brought us some chips and some more water. And I asked D to meet me at the end of my leg at the HS in the next town.

Leg 2 STATS: 5.23mi, moderate
Time: 54:37
Avg HR: 165
Cals: 893

It was tough in the dark to navigate and I had a really hard time feeling comfortable on the wrong side of the road in the middle of the night- pretty scary. Luckily the girls stayed close in the van. I was passed just as I finished by the team who ended up winning the whole thing- ya they avg like 6 min miles over the whole race!

The team was off for a few hours so we drove to get some rest. I slept in the van which was actually pretty comfy and I think I was just exhausted. We planned to get up get coffee and food then run our next set of legs. Well that didn't happen. We got the text at the last minute and got lost going to the transition. We got kelly out there and supported her run then got @kissing_frogs out there. I was up next and I was doing everything I could to get some food in my system. I ate a couple odwalla bars and had some water and had some other snacks we had in the car. But knowing me and knowing what I need to fuel to run I knew I needed more for my long leg being next. But what can you do? You eat what you can and make the best of it.

LEG 3 STATS: 8.34mi, HARD
time: 1:33
AVG HR: 155 (kinda low for a race)
Cals: 1296

Leg 3 is where the wheels fell off. I couldn't find a pace- Id look down one min and I was running 8:30s Id look down the next minute and I was running 14:30s? WHATS GOING ON?! I feel okay I just can't find a comfy pace. I brought 2 sets of Gu Chomps with me to help get me thru and the girls stopped a ton to support me. I threw up 2 times. At one point I had to walk b/c I thought it would come out both ends if I didn't! When I finished I hit the porta potty. Took @kissing_frogs with me b/c I thought I might pass out. She had to pull my compression shorts back up on me I was so swollen.

Before my 3rd leg started we had a team mate get sick. So I knew her long 8mi hard run was going to have to be taken my somebody. Everyone else in the van was already running 4 legs. After they saw how hard my 8mi was for me they decided to split it between them. I got in the van and told em I was not going to let them do that and not have me take part too. So we split it into 4 each taking about 2mi.

LEG 4 STATS:part of a 8mi, hard 1.85mi
Time: 19:38
Cals: 266
AVG HR: 151 (low considering pace- prob b/c I was beat)

All in all I totaled over 20 miles. Our team finished the 200mi in just under 32 hrs- avging a 9:30 pace. Not too shabby. I burned over 3600 cals! I have to say I had so much fun! I would do a relay like this again! I had a great group and wouldn't trade them for anyone! I am actually looking for another relay I can do with these girls :)

*this post took forever to write- i wasn't sure how to even write it but I think this covers the basics. I learned a lot from this race and had a blast*

Season Opener Recap- Nerves? Fueling?

2011-05-10T17:59:00.000-07:00

I was really anxious and nervous getting ready for this race. I knew I could get through it but I wanted to do well. This is the start to a big season and I wanted to get it going on a good note. The fact that I had to wear a wet suit really messed with my head and I didn't like that they changed the start time a week before hand. Packet pickup was on Saturday and my plan was to pick up my packet and do a short ride/run brick at the race site- well thunder and lightning made that a NO GO! After picking up my packet went to the gym- did 25 min on the bike and 5 min on the treadmill. I spent a lot of time stretching. We went home and made dinner- corn pasta and ground turkey in the sauce and lots of veggies. Picked a movie and hung on the couch for a couple hours.

Race Day- I got up at 5:45- tummy growling.D made me some breakfast. I am a big eater before a race- 2 eggs, GF toast, and a bowl of cereal. I had a cup of coffee and lots of water. Finished packing up my race clothes and headed out at 6:45. We got pretty decent parking and got to the transition at around 7:15- got some premo spots!

I laid out my transition area and tried to stay calm with my ipod. Scoping out the field around me I settled into the idea that I wasn't going to be taking home any awards at this race. There were some serious triathletes around! I tried to sit as much as I could to get in the zone but my nerves and my stomach were not getting into the game. I got into my wet suit put on my cap and goggles and got ready for the pre race meeting.

8:30- pre race meeting- They went over how the swim would start and possible pit falls on bumps on the bike course. they talked about how pretty the run was too. That's all I remember.... We were the first wave of women so I moved toward the start.

9:00 Duathlon starts- is that I'm hungry or is that I'm nervous?

9:?? SWIM- we walk into freezing cold water. For the first time I was thankful I was in a wet suit. As I was treading water my arms got cold and I felt my feet get really cold- I got that omg I'm cold headache feeling. I decided my best plan of attack with the swim being a shore line swim was to get to the outside far from the shore. The extra 25/50 yds weren't going to kill me and would give me clean water to work with. The start was messy. There was lots of kicking and bumping. I did finally find some clean water. My stroke felt out of sink. Wet suits make my body float too much and screw with my catch. I had some trouble with sighting. I am not sure if it was the cold or the locations of the bouys but I had a bit of a tough time. My lips were so cold. I could feel my bicep tendon not liking the wet suit across it. I was getting close to the end and I started to feel the OMG I am STARVING! I came out of the water and saw my father. He told me I was in the middle of the pack. That bummed me out- that swim did go as bad as it felt. 9:11- slowest swim I have ever had at this distance

T1- not a bad transition with a wetsuit. Dropped everything grabbed my number water and more chomps. headed out on the bike.

Bike- well lets just say things didn't go so great on the bike. First set of bumps in the road and there were water bottles strewn all across the street and out bump my chomps. Well I am down to one pack. I keep drinking my pure sport and water and try to get chomps in me since I was hungry. The rolling course proved to be pretty challenging at times. It was really hard to tell who was in your age group who was a triathlete and who was a duathlete but I tried to pass folks and had a few women pass me. But at mile 5 I started to feel kinda gross- and there it was I threw up. Just as I look at the half way point sign my body decided we didn't like the way today was going. And from there I knew this was going to be a tough one. I muscled my way through the rest of the ride and came into T2.

T2- knowing the dismount was going to be a mess of folks trying to clip out unprepared I clipped both of my shoes out early- since it was a downhill coast. I yelled to D in t2 that I had puked on the bike and he said he knew something happen. Guess my time wasn't too great. Well no time to think now off for the run. I grabbed my water bottle to sip on for the run and took the blocks I had to hopefully refuel a little.

Run- The run started out up hill. Just what I needed after that bike. I sipped on the water and ate margarita cliff blocks. The salt and sugar were a friend at that point. I had to walk a bit up the hill to drink more water. I knew I needed fluids. And just then my friend passed me and said good job jules! It was a great boost! I just slugged through the run. It wasn't pretty. I had really hoped for the 3 mi I could be around a 9 min mile. I had a PR 5k avg 8:45s so a 9 wouldn't be that big of a stretch. Well every time I pushed myself- I felt like I was going to puke again. I got to the point that it was either this needs to be over and I need to finish or I need to puke again and feel better. Well it happen that I finished. It wasn't the race I had hoped but I crossed the finish line.

I am now on the search to try to figure out what went wrong. What is my new way of fueling? Am I not eating enough? Am I not drinking enough water? Did I just have a bad day? SO many variables but I am going to try my damn'd ist to figure it out- I better or that 70.3 is going to be really hard!

Starting the Season... Tri #1 Sunday!

2011-05-02T08:33:00.001-07:00

This week officially kicks off my triathlon racing season. I will be starting with the Hopkinton Season Opener Sprint Triathlon I haven't done a triathlon since 2009, my 2010 season didn't allow me to run with my hip surgery. Tho in 2010 I did 2 aquabikes and did well in both. I am getting anxious about putting all 3 sports together again.

Swim- 1/4 mi- point to point swim- going to be cold. Water temp predicted to be in the low 60s. Even though it is supposed to be cold I don't really see the point in wearing a wet suit. I plan to be in the water about 5 min. I don't think I will get that cold. But the race packet says they are required so I will be wearing one. It is more the stripping out of a wet suit that I am not looking forward to. I will do as I am told since I have to.

Bike-10 mi- bike is described as rolling hills with a couple challenges at 2 and 7. I think with all the biking I have been doing lately this shouldn't be too tough. Though I still feel biking is my weakest of the 3. 10 mi is pretty short given my shortest rides lately have been more than that so hopefully it shouldn't be an issue. I am looking into getting tri shoes but looks like the road shoes will have to work for now.

Run- 5k- looks pretty flat. Contained to inside the state park. I think if my hips will agree with me I can hopefully knock out a fast 5k at the end of this.

The game plan with my coach is to do it all out. Have fun with it and listen to my body. If I feel good go for it. This week is a taper for training to get me ready- 2 weeks ago was about 7hrs of training this week is about 3. I am going to go nuts with taper but I am going to try not to lose it... Trying to stay focused not get anxious and get ready for Sunday! This is the kick off to a big Tri season!

2011 Season Plans

2011-04-20T06:11:00.000-07:00

So I decided to take the plunge this season and sign up for Timberman 70.3 on 21 Aug in New Hampshire. I know I have the swim in the bag. The bike is gonna take A LOT of work. My runs seem to be coming along nicely. I know this is not going to be an easy undertaking but I don't fool myself with any thoughts of a goal or even placing in this event! I just know this is a goal to finish race.

Since this will be my big race this year I will do mostly racing to prep for that- as opposed to my past 2 seasons of um I feel like racing this weekend race schedule. This is going to be different for me. I have a actual race schedule May 8th is the season opener sprint tri in hopkinton, june 5th worcester half marathon, june 25th 1 mi swim, july 10th mill city olympic distance, and then the big one Timberman!

It is going to be an exciting season. I am terrified about the bike and terrified to put it all together in one day. But I have plenty of time to train. This is going to hopefully be an exciting season ahead!

Reflection on my ONE year hip-versary

2011-04-12T12:07:00.000-07:00

So April 9, 2010- a day that will live in infamy- well in my life anyway. It was the day I went under the knife to fix my hip. I had a torn labrum tendon and needed to have the top of my femur shaved (FAI old post) I thought I was never going to walk again much less run.

Surgery was a very scary thing for me- thanks to my friends and my family I got through. It was tough 4 months without running. But in November I got back to it.... RUNNING!

Since then I have finished a few 5ks, a few 10ks and a half marathon. I honestly couldn't believe it had been a year. My core isn't back exactly where it was pre surgery- with months of no ab work but I am getting there. And I have to say that even tho my run this weekend my legs felt heavy and tight. I just enjoyed the fact that I can still run!

I know a lot of people decide not to go with surgery but for me it was the only option. I wanted to keep running and I wanted to keep doing triathlons! I just didn't see any other option. I have to say a year later and I am so glad I did what I thought was right.

On saturday- my hip surgery anniversary- I recorded myself running and sent it to my coach. It was kinda sweet it worked out that way. I have some work to do with my left leg but funny thing is my surgically repaired hip and leg strike very well. I am going to try these new techniques in hopes it will help me avoid having to have the left one fixed- since heel striking is bad for your hips. I think my right hip had problems to start and if I was a heel striker I wasn't helping them along.

Well- I spent a lot of time this past weekend thinking about where I was a year ago. I looked at my old pictures of my scars and looked at how little they have gotten in a year. Its amazing how different things are now! And I like it!

iPod Security Blanket

2011-03-02T11:58:00.002-08:00

I was always an iPod runner when I started a few years ago. I needed the iPod to get through every run. I had a zillion different play lists changing them almost monthly or maybe even weekly to get me through. But at some point in training for my half marathon I just stopped using music to get me through. Maybe it was because I was training with friends but at some point I didn't need the security blanket anymore.

So when it came time to hit the start line for the Hyannis Half Marathon I had this idea- hey why run with my iPod? I was going to be running with friends and the biggest weighing factor- for my trithlons iPods are out of the question. Might as well get used to running without it.

I have to say the half wasn't bad without it. And it makes me think I can race my tri's this season without it. I have to say I get geared up for my runs now and I look at the iPod and wonder if today I really want or need it. I mean don't get me wrong I am far from a technology free runner- I've got my Garmin and my heart rate monitor. But now I think about whether my brain could use the quiet time on the run to just enjoy the run. I know it isn't for everyone and I know some of my runs I welcome the distraction but I have to say it is nice to know I don't need the security blanket anymore!

Hyannis Half Marathon- Race Recap

2011-03-02T11:58:00.001-08:00

Sometime in mid December over twitter I was peer pressured into signing up for the Hyannis half marathon. Lets be honest given the fact that a half ironman was in my plans for this season I didn't take too much to convince me. I registered and started training. Notice I said I registered- well about two weeks before the race I checked active and my registration didn't exist. I emailed the race director to no avail. I decided since I had trained to run w j and Ashley i was gonna run number or not!! Luckily race morning I ran into a old friend who had a extra bib. Yay I was gonna have a number it wasn't my name but I had a legit number!

The weather was far from perfect. Rain to snow to rain. I was drenched and cold but i kept slogging through. J and I had planned on a 10 10:30 pace but the weather made that go by the wayside. When we realized we weren't going to keep that pace up J made it her goal for me to PR the race! I knew my first half was somewhere around a 2:30. She turned to me around mile 10 and said "PR this Bitch!" At mile 12 I had to stop for a second. I thought I was gonna puke. J told me to puke and keep running.

It was great to have a little monkey sitting on my shoulder to help push me through. We finished at 2:25! TOTALLY got my PR. Silly J told me if I got a PR she would run the Worcester half marathon with me. So we have our next race together!

This race meant so much more to me to PR. I was very nervous going into it that I was going to hurt myself again. My first half marathon is what caused the stress fracture and made for the pain that brought me to eventually having my hip surgery. I know that my hip was obviously an issue for a long time and the running is what caused the tendon tear, stress fracture and need for surgery- but mentally I needed to get over the hurdle. I can't believe that 10 months out from surgery I ran a half marathon. Pretty crazy when 4 months of that I couldn't even run!

I am so thankful to J for pushing me through and for the support of D- he was right there screaming at the finish. Thankfully I have great support for my races and it makes all the difference in the world!

I had great race photos- I can't believe my head is up and I am smiling the whole time?! woah!!

Functional Medicine Test and Eat Clean

2011-02-22T08:23:00.002-08:00

As you all know my doctor was no help when it came to my questions of why I can't lose weight when I work out and eat right. So I went gluten free and that has been really helping me feel better but the weight still isn't coming off. One of my twitter friends suggested a Functional Medicine Test. I was sent a sample kit- urine and saliva. The results revealed my blood chemistry is a mess- pH electrolytes just about all of it. So essentially yes my systems work well so my doctor was right but this proved the blood flowing through those systems was less than ideal.

The prescription to help me- supplements and eat clean. I bought the newest edition of the book and started following the principles as much as I possibly could. As much as I travel it is a bit difficult at times to follow the diet to the letter but I saw the eat clean diet as a lifestyle more than a diet. Making sure I have proteins and carbs. Drink lots of water. Eat unprocessed foods. And the hardest thing for me- especially while traveling NO SUGAR. I have pulled it off thus far. Candy is no longer in my diet! It has been replaced by fruit.

I have been doing the supplements and the eat clean diet for about 2 weeks now and I can honestly say I feel the difference. My energy levels have really increased. I was the queen of coffee and I have now cut it out completely or only have one cup. I haven't weighed myself to see how this change is effecting the scale. But I can tell you this my pants are lose again. I'll keep you posed as I continue with this nutrition journey. Hopefully I have cracked this nut once and for all!

Barefoot Running- Less is More

2011-02-22T08:23:00.001-08:00

After my hip surgery I started looking into new shoes with my new stride. I saw a lot of articles talking about all the benefits of barefoot running or less cushion. With my hip injury- come to find out caused by my nice big femoral head- I had a swing to my right leg. Whenever I got fitted for shoes they wanted to give me lots of stability to help "the kick". Since I also read articles that all the cushion in our shoes could be to blame for my problems with calves and possibly even my hips- I decided to try less is more theory.

I started with a pair of nike frees. The minimal cushion shoe from nike was perfect as I started running again I could break my feet and legs into the world of barefoot running. The frees worked well for my shorter distance runs but as soon as I was comfortable up around 6 miles I knew I needed some more cushion to help with my training.

I went back to the running store I always go to- Marathon Sports. Told them I was liking the frees but wanted a bit more cushion for longer runs. I was fitted into some mizzunos. The shoes were super light and didn't have too much in the world of stability but seemed to work out fantastic for long runs. I still wore the nike free for the shorter mid week runs.

Slowly my stride has seemed to completely get rid of "my kick"- it comes back when my hips are out of alignment. For the last couple years I have had calf problems- my chiropractor thought it was blood flow problems- after many graston technique sessions and a lot of active release it would go away for a few miles then come back. Compression sleeves would help with recovery but I would still get pain when I was running. As my legs got used to my less cushion and less stability shoes my calf pain just melted away. I can now run 10 or 11 miles with no calf pain at all.

As I started to realize maybe this barefoot craze was for me. I looked into my first pair of Vibram Five Fingers. Following my surgery I had not been able to run on a treadmill without pain but I thought these might be the way to fix it. I hopped on a treadmill at the running store to test them out and had no pain and shockingly D commented "no kick". I am slowly trying to work the Vibram's into my training. I am not able to do long distance in them yet but I can't wait for warmer weather when I can actually train in them!

I think barefoot running isn't for everyone but following my surgery it seems to be exactly what I need. Less is more for me!

Racing at Altitude- A 10k in New Mexico

2011-02-11T10:32:00.000-08:00

I just took a lil vacation. Went down to NM and visited my best friend from college, her hubby and their cute as a button 9-month old twins. The plan for the trip was to have my friend run her first 5k with me on Sunday. Well life happened- she ended up needing surgery to have her gallbladder out on Friday. Which made us running together on Sunday's IMPOSSIBLE. I took her to her surgery and tried to help her husband with the kids- man he has it down by himself he didn't need my help.

Since my friend pulled out of running the 5k I decided to register to do the 10k. The weather in NM was cold by their standards- in the 30s or 40s. I did a run in Friday morning at the gym in hopes it would help me with the altitude adjustment. The morning of the race I had a why am I doing a 10k feeling. My hip wasn't feeling too great and I didn't pack my cold weather running gear. It was a cool morning and the wind was howling at the start line. I kept thinkin I haven't done a 5k in a while... why didn't I sign up for a 5k?

The race started on the high school track then went out around the school and had a 2 loop path for the 10k and a single loop for the 5k. The field was pretty full. And I quickly realized when I was at mi 3 getting lapped by the top male racers in the 10k that this field was fast. I had decided at the start line with my hip pain and the altitude I was just going to race my race. I knew it wasn't going to be an easy run so I just kept a slower pace to be able to finish without issue.

Well it was cold at the start but at about mile 4 I had to take of my sweatshirt and I was running in shorts and a t-shirt. Which is a HUGE deal in February if you are used to being in New England. The sweatshirt slowed me down a bit and my rhythm just wasn't there but I kept chugging along. I finished in 1:10- which is slower than any 10k I have done. I had a lil hyperventilation issue right before the 6mi mark. I could hardly breathe from the altitude and I started getting upset about how slow I was going and the pain in my hip. But with a lil help from D- I pulled it together and finished.

I have a goal of getting a race (run tri whatever) in every one of the 50 states. So my bigger goal was to finish a race in New Mexico- which I did. I have so far checked Texas, Georgia and now New Mexico off the list- in addition to Massachusetts obviously. The mountains all around the race course were gorgeous and having t-shirt and shorts weather in the winter was fantastic. Even though I didn't have a great finish time or a great race I took another state out of my list and enjoyed the scenery while I was there.

To finish out my long run miles I went out for a run after the race- it is nice to run through the desert. All in all- I had a great vacation. I really needed the break from work and life- both have been really stressing me out lately. It is always nice to hang with old friends and get to play with kids to help relax you and bring it back to the simpler things.

The pictures are of me post race and of me with my friends twins :) The plan is to race with my friend sometime in the future- whether it be when we are both traveling for work in the DC area or maybe when she comes to visit or we go to visit again.

Girls Just Wanna Run

2011-02-01T07:38:00.000-08:00

Through twitter I have made many great running triathlon and overall athlete friendships. Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the friends I have from HS and college and realizing that with training being such a big part of my life we don't have as much in common as we once did. Don't get me wrong I love them but I can't talk about my long runs and the torture of sitting on a bike for an hour or 2 with them. It is nice to have friends (esp. female friends) that can relate and are doing the same.

That being said- one of my best friends from college just decided to take up running. She asked me how one would go about training for a 5k. I sent her to the couch to 5k plan. She was so excited to start. After just having twins she was ready to start a new challenge. I got so many excited phone calls after a run. It is great to help others find the fun in this sport. D and I are headed to go visit her soon and we are all planning to race- her first 5k! So exciting!

My twitter friendships with kissing frogs and getting stronger, burning fat have now brought me into a group of women that run for the Luna Chix running team. I did a hill repeat workout with them in Boston on Saturday followed by brunch with a great group of women! Not only did we all have running and training in common but they were all intelligent and fun to be around! I had a great time!

Since kissing frogs, getting stronger, burning fat and I are all running the Hyannis half marathon at the end of Feb. We decided to get together and do another long run on Sunday. My legs were sore from the hills and the slushy mess that we had to go through made it a bit more of a workout. But we trudged through and got a nice long 9.5 miles in. Let me tell you the whole theory group suffering makes it better was true. I wanted to stop so many times but kissing frogs and getting stronger, burning fat wouldn't let me give it up! They were great pushing me through the run! Thanks ladies. It is great to have running/training support. Looking forward to our next long one!!!

Top Sports Bras for Long Runs

2011-01-23T15:09:00.000-08:00

So I started thinking. I wanted to write a review of some of my favorite sports bras, for my double D's. Lemme tell you when running with such a "load" on the front of you and the load across your shoulders, its painful. The right bra choice can make or break a workout. I have certain sports bras that are okay for riding stationary bike at the gym, yoga, then the tie down mechanisms I use for my running. Long runs are even more of a deliberate choice.

I like the underarmor bra I reviewed. But to be honest I am not happy with the life of the bra. It seems to be deteriorating quickly and I have bought a couple since and the sizing doesn't seem to be consistent.

I have a champion bra that seems to work pretty well- but I end up with chaffing when I finish my runs. Either at the shoulders or even worse along the rib cage. I thought maybe I bought the wrong size but- I think its just the bra.

My new favorite is Moving Comfort. Their high impact fiona bra seems to be best. I don't end up with chaffing. The straps sit on your shoulders where a normal bra sits. It has a heavy 3 clasp closure- allowing for a little deterioration over time. I like how it holds them in place- read: NO bounce!! I get them at Dick's sporting goods but- I have seen them at my local running store too. They seem to be the best sports bra for running with a big chest. The only negative is the price- $44- but good quality comes at a price.

Training, Life and Blogging in a New Year

2011-01-12T06:35:00.001-08:00

Okay- first off I haven't been blogging with the regularity I meant to, so I am going to give myself deadlines to help get me doing this regularly again. I have been traveling a lot for work and I keep up my training but it gets me out of life's routines. Enough with my excuses- moving on!

So I ran a 10k on New Years day. Same route as Thanksgiving and same time- 1:05. I have been logging a long run every weekend, and one run during the week usually. It is hard when you are in New England and it is dark at 400. My next planned race is in February in New Mexico. A friend has started doing the couch to 5k plan so we can run together when I visit. More to come on this in another blog.

I am also having a hard time with my weight loss due to training. I seem to not be able to drop anymore weight. Gluten Free helps me feel better and I dropped weight initially. But it all seems to be stuck even though I train about a hour about 5-6 days a week. It gets to be very frustrating. But a friend has offered to do a functional medical test on me to see what the issue could be- I am awaiting results. More to come on that!

Well that's the basic update as of now. I have not signed up for the half ironman yet. I wanted to get this diet and metabolic issue taken care of- but I think I am close to clicking the sign up button. I did just sign up for a half marathon. Hope all is going well with everyone. Happy New Year!

Races Thanksgiving Weekend

2010-11-30T10:57:00.000-08:00

As most runners do, I turkey trotted. This year on thanksgiving day and the Saturday following. I don't know why I thought it was a good idea to do 2 races in 3 days- especially after having hip surgery 7 or so months ago. Eh the doctor just said take it easy, he didn't say I couldn't race anymore!

Part of me wanted to do a 10k to prove to myself I really am still a runner. I knew I could do 5ks but a 10k is another thing all together. Getting up at 5am on Thanksgiving was not my idea of a day off but- we did it anyway (D was not very happy about it). It was the first cold morning in Mass that week. We have had unseasonably warm weather. Silly me I only wore my compression run skirt and a t shirt. I put that long sleeve race shirt to good use and put it under my t shirt! The start line was jammed luckily we found our friends that we were meeting up with for a quick hello. Before we knew (or heard) the race started. I just wanted to pace myself to be around an hour and feel okay. I didn't want to over do it with my first 10k back- just set a mark on the wall.

Having run this same race last year I knew the course. It is pretty flat and just 2 loops of the 5k I did last year and just happens to be the tri course I did this summer. Always nice when you know what you are getting into. Well the course was nice but it was a windy day- when I turned the corner down by the Merrimack River, the wind cut me down. I had a hard time keeping my pace. But got back around to the back road and cut some time off the pace. Felt pretty good. My legs were really cold from the temps and the wind. But when I turned by the river again my legs just didn't want to move. Each step HURT because they were so cold. But I didn't want to stop. I wanted to prove to myself I could stay about the same pace as I did my first 10k over a year ago- 1:03. And coming into the finish I was a couple minutes slower than last time- 1:05. I wasn't disappointed though. I did a 10k! After the year I have had with my hip I was happy.

Of course, my poor frozen legs took a good 15 minutes to stop shaking before I could even climb in the truck to go home. I don't know if it was muscles from the run or just COLD. Either way I finally warmed up somewhere on the way home. We had to get home we had turkey to deep fry (SO YUMMY!) and family to visit- but that is for the next post. Thursday was pretty crazy with Thanksgiving and the only plan Friday was for D and I to hit the whirlpool at the gym. We thought that would be best for our tired sore legs and to get them ready for Saturday.

Well the whirlpool at the gym is broken- and we sweated a bit in the sauna which seemed to help. Got up on Saturday morning to run again- I know NUTS! It was a high school rivalry run. SO MANY high school track and cross country kids- SOOOOO FAST! The course was awful. It was hilly from about 1/2 mi in through about mile 2.5 not rolling either. Just up! and UP and UP! I started to use the D theory of "the faster you run the faster this is over". When I finally hit the down hills my legs were finally feeling human again and I got a decent turn over. I finished in 30:20 which is my PR for this season. D didn't have a great race and wasn't feeling too hot. But I was happy that on a tough course I pushed through after racing 2 days earlier to come out with a PR. It wasn't enough to win but it was enough for me. Hopefully the next 5k will be even closer to my times of last season! Thanks everyone for the support!

Big Race Week- Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-24T16:54:00.000-08:00

So in edition to an exciting new venture into gluten free thanksgiving (see the last post), I am going to be racing 2 times this week. Tomorrow morning I am doing a turkey trot. I did this race last year but the twist is- this year I am doing a 10k on thanksgiving morning! I haven't done in a 10k in over a year- last one Oct 09. I am a bit nervous. I ran 5 miles last weekend and it went well. I think given that I have done a half marathon and a 10k before I think I will survive. Mind over matter right?! I just want to have fun with this one and be thankful that I can actually do mileage again! I'll let you all know how that goes. I hope to do it in around an hour. Yes I know I'm no speed demon. The nice thing is run for about an hour and I think that thanksgiving meal won't be such a worry.

D and I are off to the races in the morning and then back to deep fry a turkey for thanksgiving. Luckily the race gives us pie for finishing so we will have another nice thing to bring to dinner. My grandmother has made gluten free pecan and pumpkin pies for me and D to enjoy! YAY! Should be a great day for racing and gluten free thanksgiving.

I am also going to run a 5k on Saturday. There aren't too many races left in Mass. The weather is already supposed to be snowy here- luckily it hasn't been yet. And D and I couldn't pass up an opportunity to get a race in for only 10 bucks. It should be an exciting few days. We are both thinking after a 10k and before a 5k a nice slow swim in the pool with some time in the hot tub would be just the trick on Friday. It is very exciting to be back running and racing again. I just need to make sure I give my hip the recovery it needs. The hot tub seems to provide some relief and swimming is always good for the hip- without too much kicking of course.

Well off to the races we go! Everyone have a fantastic Thanksgiving. I hope you all enjoy your families, food, and remember the things you are thankful for- I have so many things! I am thankful that I can run again, thankful for the support and love of D, thankful for a loving family, thankful for a job (in these economic times), thankful to have everything I do, thankful I can train, thankful that I have a healthy life- just to name a few. Thanks to you all for reading! Hope you have the HAPPIEST of thanksgivings!

First Gluten-Free Thanksgiving

2010-11-21T16:42:00.000-08:00

So in October I went back to my doctor to get my blood test results, I had told her I was feeling pretty tired and couldn't seem to drop weight. She tested me for the usual suspects and everything came back fine. I sat down with her to review the results since even though everything was fine- I wasn't happy with that answer. We sat down again and talked about my training and my diet. I explained how I had been to a nutritionist so I didn't think that was the problem.

Then we talked exercise. Her question "what do you do for workouts?" My response "I swim, I bike, I run. I do triathlons." Her eyes opened wide she said she could understand my frustration but she had no idea what to tell me. Well gee thanks doc!

I went back and started looking into possible causes. I started with food allergies. I am not 100% sure what it could be but let's start with gluten. So I went gluten-free. No wheat, rye, barley. I have been doing it for a month now. I've lost 10lbs and I have a lot of my energy back. I don't fall asleep the second I sit down. It also seems to have made my mood a lot better- I feel a lot more even keel. Hey whether it is that I am gluten sensitive or its just working for other causes- I don't care. It is better than just dealing with my doctor's "I don't know"

My boyfriend has become gluten free too. Or at least "when we are together". My family seems to have embraced it. My mom immediately started experimenting with gluten free dishes and getting ready for gluten-free options for thanksgiving. Looks like I will be having my first gluten-free thanksgiving this year. I'll let you all know what dishes we come up with- so far it seems like GF corn bread stuffing, GF pies, and I'm not really sure what else is in store.

I read an article last night in this month's Women's Health about being gluten free. It wasn't the most positive spin I have seen. I think it lost sight of the fact that some people choose this diet as a way to be more healthy. Yes there are hazards with any diet- compensating with bad foods- but if used properly with a balanced diet I can't seem to see the bad. Given that I am not someone with celiac I don't have to be extremely cautious. The other positive I have is my diet is very healthy normally so this is just one change that might make a difference.

Other good news: I will also be racing twice this week... more on that with the next post :)

I'm Back....RUNNING!

2010-11-16T10:28:00.000-08:00

Okay so after a long hiatus. I have decided to start blogging again. Life got a bit nuts after my surgery but has calmed down and I am back to what I love... Training and Running. Yes you read that right folks... I am RUNNING again! The girl who thought she may never walk again after her hip surgery is RUNNING! I have done 3 5ks- times are about consistent with early in the season last year. Which I think means given more training I could be back where I used to be in no time flat. Next races are planned- Thanksgiving Day 10k, and 11/27 5k.

Lets see during my lil blogging break I did a few aquabikes. Let me tell you that is the ideal event for someone with a hip injury. Swim then bike. And being a swimmer they were fun! I came in 1st in my first race and 2nd in my Age Group in the Maine State Triathlon. I think I will sprinkle a couple of these in my tri training next year. I enjoy them and they work on 2 of the 3 events.

Speaking of next season. I think I have come up with some sort of race plan.... if I can stay healthy.
May/June- Sprint Tri
June/July- Oly Tri
Aug- Half IronMan - yes 70.3 folks!

This is the thought as of now. Hopefully I can keep training like I am again and get back to racing like I enjoy! Well- I am going to get back to my training... blogging and life the way I like it... HAPPY!

Post Op Day

2010-04-21T08:32:00.001-07:00

Things have been progressing really well. I started this past weekend doing normal life stuff again. Went to dinner, got my nails done, a little grocery shopping... all of which I was driven to by my fiance but hey I got out!! My fiance had Monday off so we did some more lunch out and other things our and about. It is nice to be out but it kills me I can't do it alone. I get to shower just about every day, of course, not alone since I need someone to hold me up, and as a safety net.

I also sat down on the floor on Sunday and did some sort of workout. I sat with my 5lb dumbells, both in one hand did curls and tricep extensions. I did some shoulder lifts, 5lb per arm, and hammer curls. I did the same on Monday, I was a lil sore with from the day before. It was nice to sweat a bit and get my heart rate up.

I tell you it has gotten to the point that I am sick of not being able to do things. 2 crutches make it hard to carry things and move around. I have still been icing regularly but have switched to motrin to help with the pain when it gets a bit much.

This morning was my post op appointment. I am a week and a half out from my surgery (12 days to be exact). I had the hope that I would hobble in and walk out. Well close but not exactly.... I went in had my stitches removed. Then the doctor came in (Dr. Busconi's fellow- he is on vacation). He said I looked good. He cleared me to swim and water run- said swimming is best. Bike with low resistance next week. Yoga next week not pushing it though. Eliptical is cool the week after that (4 weeks out). I am okay to hit the chiropractor and massage (as long as I keep them from hurting me). As for the fracture- it isn't a big deal since it is now healed! YAY- I was so afraid that was going to keep me from running again. The doctor said wait till Friday to start walking. Well- on my way to make my follow up appointment- I saw the resident that helped with my surgery. He said I looked good and that if I wanted I could walk at home without the crutches. I was so happy to hear that!! He said stick with crutches outside the house- so I don't get bumped around. So- okay no driving through Friday. Got it!

I have a follow up appointment in 6 weeks with Dr. Busconi. I walked back into the condo and TOSSED the crutches in the kitchen and started walking. It isn't too bad to walk around. Hurts a bit taking it easy. But hey I am free in the house from those horrible crutches! I plan on hitting the pool tomorrow. Take a day of walking around a bit to let my body get used to it then get back to it :-) I need to set up my PT- 6 weeks 2 per week.

I AM ALL SMILES NOW! I can't wait to get back to life. I plan on taking this week and next easy with the workouts and work. I also get to go back to coaching! YAY!!

I have had the greatest support team though this whole process. I had a great doctor- which I hear is the key to this whole thing! My parents have been so supportive from being there the day of surgery through phone calls and stop by to say hi. I have a great room mate that has helped with everything. And the best friend in the world! They check on me daily bring me presents and give me support through the ups and downs of post surgery! Send me the greatest messages and talk me through ever tear and every smile. THANK YOU ALL!!! <3 you all!

I deem today a good day!

2010-04-15T15:34:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day I have actually started feeling better. Saturday was hard not much movement. Sunday was a bit better. Monday I spent most of the day on the couch with a lot of pain meds. Tuesday got a bit better but I got upset and did a bit more than I should have, I mean really why did work need me! I had only been out 2 days! Yesterday was really hard! I didn't sleep well. I had a lot of pain! I couldn't even really get myself out of bed all day, pain was really bad off and on. I felt like someone was shoving a finger in my stitches! Not only was he gone all day and was I in pain but I was alone pretty much all day! At about 630 I decided to cook. I did ok. That lead to a breakdown! I cried so hard I got a headache! It wasn't good. But he came home I got a you are gonna be fine suck it up talk. And a shower! I slept pretty well untill about 3, when I forgot I had surgery. That was some pain! I took a med and slept.

Got up today feeling pretty good. Mom left work early to get groceries for me and come hang a bit! I cooked myself some lunch and in walked mom! We sat and chatted watched tv. Then decided since today was going to be the last nice day for a bit- to try and go outside. Thanks to an elevator in my building and my crutches I got fresh air and sun on my skin. I stood out front for a bit! Then walked around the building and came back upstairs! It was so nice! Felt normal for a bit. A lil gimpy but normal. I hope to shower again tonight and shave! God I want to shave! I defintely deem today a good day! Best day yet! Hopefully it just keeps gettin better!

Post surgery recovery starts

2010-04-12T16:47:00.000-07:00

I had my surgery on Friday morning. I had to be at the hospital at 715. My mom took me in. I had somehow thought through all the variables of the day and was doing pretty well. I checked in changed into my Johnny and grippy socks. The nurse came in checked my vitals and gave me a rundown. Surgery was scheduled 915 to 1045. I would go upstairs about a half hour before and they would start my iv and get me preped fro the or. I would get to see dr. Busconi one more time when we signed my hip then they would start the drugs and get the or ready and off I'd go.

I sat with mom for about an hour and chatted. I was laid down and wheeled upstairs. All alone with a bitch nurse in pre op. God she was mean. you could tell the whole hospital knew she was. I answered all her questions and then they came to start my iv. The anestesiologist who did my iv happen to be a triathlete so we talked events. Took my mind off the needle. Dr. Busconi came in. He and I signed my hip and he told me they just did the surgery in someone else."they were all warmed up" i asked last minute questions he told me he wanted me walking w the crutches that day! I met the rest of my team and they gave me something to relax me.

I was wheeled down into the or. I helped them out moving to the operating table. He checked the traction for my leg and the I laid back. I remember busting the resident for having a Yankee thing on and talking lacrosse. Then I was out!

The next thing I remember was waking up in the recovery room. I had a sore throat I was pretty out of it. And it felt like the largest person I could think of was standin on my hip. There was a baby who just had surgery and was screaming. I was really confused. I was told in 10 min I could move downstairs. So they came wheeled my bed downstairs and nurse checked me back in. I told her about the pain she got me a pill and something to drink. My throat was killing me from the tube. Finally they got my parents and they came in. Apparently they talked to busconi and my surgery was cleaner than they expected. He didn't have to shave my femur much the tear on the labrum wasn't bad and the synovitis cleared. There was a healed fracture in my hip from before. I had at one point fractured my hip it isn't exactly clean heal it's slightly off. I think it is from the half marathon since the pain post surgery was really close to my pain after the race. Since I haven't run since November I assume that's why it is healed. I'll have to ask when I go to post op.

I got crutches from the nurse hobbled to the bathroom. After that I was free to go. The getting in and out of the car was the worst. Luckily it was a short ride home and there was an elevator to get me to my condo. I stayed in bed for a couple hours. Pain was tough. I got up to use the bathroom again and ended up passing out. My mom and dad took care of me and I made it back to bed. Alright next post will be the follow on days.... Thanks all!

Upcoming Surgery... Hip Femural Acetabular Impingement

2010-04-06T10:37:00.000-07:00

I found out around Christmas that I had a torn labrum tendon. After my chiropractor sent me for a MRI arthogram (which hurt like hell, we found the torn tendon in the film.The torn tendon was enough for my chiropractor to find me a orthopedic surgeon.At the end of February I met with Dr. Busconi.

He did some X-rays in his office and looked at my MRI. He determined that I had two options 1. cortisone injection into the hip 2. surgically repair the hip. I thought cortisone would be delaying the inevitable. And when he said it was only 40% effective I wasn't really liking the odds. Surgery was 98% effective and I would be up and running in 4 months. When I decided surgery is the way I wanted to go I started firing questions (of course I have questions I'm an engineer). I asked about:
recovery 2-3 weeks on crutches with no driving and limited mobility
anesthesia- general anesthesia I had to go fully under
when can I run again- 4 mo
We discussed the procedure where he will go in through 2-3 holes arthroscopically to shave the top of my femur repair the tendon and remove the fluid built up. The surgery itself lasts an hour to an hour and a half. Depending on the repair needed for the labrum. The repair to the tendon also changes some of the variables for the recovery. If it needs to be braided or pinned to the bone it will be longer. I scheduled the surgery for his first available date 9 April.

After leaving and finally getting the name of what is wrong with my hip Femoroacetabular Impingement I looked up as much as I could find about it. This site seemed to explain things well http://www.hipfai.com/ I have the cam form. So my femur needs to be shaved. It also appears this is something I was born with. It is possible I could live my whole life with it and if I wasn't active I may have never needed it repaired. But now that I read more it looks like if I don't get it fixed I could possibly need a hip replacement in the future. I would rather do the arthroscopic surgery.

I have to be honest, I am nervous. I know this is what I need to do in order to be active again- training for triathlons and half marathons and other races. But It is still scary. I had my pre op testing last Friday. I met with a nurse practitioner who took my history, then an anesthesiologist, then had lab work done, then a nurse- I expected a lot more explanation about the day of surgery. I am still a bit in the air about what will happen that day. They say I will be in the hospital for 5-6 hours.

I am having a hard time sleeping. I am trying to be sure I drink enough water this week. I am also trying to get in workouts, since I am not sure when I will be able to do what. The workouts also help me clear my head. I am coaching lacrosse again, so my assistant coach will be taking that over till I can get up there again. I have a lot going on this week but I would rather be busy up till the surgery, because when left alone for long enough to start thinking I get upset.

I try to keep myself calm but it is tough. Part of me is looking to the surgery to be like a vacation from work and lacrosse. I have been working a lot and even got an agreement from work to do some work from home in bed. I am trying my best to look at this procedure as a start to getting back out there. I really can't wait to do my next triathlon and sign up for races again. Its hard to pick a recovery race but I think I will sign up for a sprint Triathlon in September as soon as I am cleared to starting to do workouts. I figure I will be able to swim/bike during recovery and running will come in time so I should be okay come September. It will be nice to have a mark on the wall to train for again!

I will try to update the blog again before my surgery on Friday. There are lots of thoughts floating around in this head and it is nice to get them out.... Thanks all!

2009- what a year!

2009-12-29T12:25:00.000-08:00

Well as 2009 comes to a close and TV radio and news are all filled with recaps I think a recap on my own triumph of 2009 is in order. I started the racing season of 2009 with my first 5k in April. I ran with my Mom and Dad. Dutch ran the race too. It was unseasonalby warm for Worcester, MA. In the 90s in April?! My goal was to finish the race and not walk! Well I did it! From there I was running a 5K a month or so.

Then in July I signed up for Triathlon! FIRST EVER! Who goes from 5K to triathlon?! haha :) It was a great event! I had so much fun. I can't wait to do another. And coming in 2nd in my division and having a ribbon to show for it, doesn't hurt at all either! Too bad I waited until the end of the season to get going on that dream- oh well next season plenty more ahead.

Shortly after my first Triathlon in September I signed up to run a half marathon in November. I had never run more than 5 miles but a half marathon sounded like it was just outside the threshold of what I was capable of, so I signed up. I trained and raced a few more 5ks and a 10k as a part of my training plan. Then flew to Atlanta and raced! I finished. I did a half marathon! And to be honest I would like to do another!

So let's see in 2009 I did 7 5Ks 1 Triathlon 1 10K 1 Half Marathon. Not too bad for someone who has never competed in these types of events. I hope 2010 brings many more triathlons and another half, with a sprinkling of 5ks and 10ks! Have a happy new year! And bring on 2010!

Half Marathon

2009-11-13T12:30:00.000-08:00

On Friday November 6th I flew to Atlanta to run my first half marathon. I ran the zooma half marathon. A friend of mine Ali was supposed to run with me but sadly is plagued with injury and couldn't join. Even though she couldn't run she still opened her house to let me stay with her and cart me around! We had a great dinner with the president of an AWESOME organization getting2tri.

Late Friday night another friend arrived at Ali's house, Zu. The 3 of us went to the mini-expo on Saturday and walked around Atlantic Station a bit. Then joined other friends for appetizers and drinks after driving the course. I have to tell you while driving I didn't think the hills of Atlanta would be too tough, nothing compared to Worcester!

We were up early on Sunday, Race Day! I like a big breakfast pre-race. So I had scrambled eggs and toast. I was really nervous the morning of the race. The week of the race I had unexpected work travel and my legs weren't feeling too great. But- as I lined up to start I just reminded myself all I had to do was finish. I had a main goal of finishing but I would like to be in the 2:00- 2:15 time range. Well at about mile 4 it became obvious that the 2 hour plan wasn't going to work and I just went for a finish.

Zu finished the race in 1:45ish. As soon as she finished she walked back out the course and met me at about mile 11.5. It was a welcome face with a LOT of encouragement. She helped me through those last few miles that were tough. I have to say I looked down at my watch when Zu said "just around this corner" and realized it was 2:27. The competitive side of me kicked in and I kicked it to the finish I didn't want to be over 2:30. And I didn't I finished in 2:29! We got awesome finisher medals that are necklaces... I haven't stopped wearing it!

I was overcome with a lot of emotion at the finish. A half marathon isn't something I thought I could accomplish when I started training. It was one of those goals that was just outside of the relm of possible. I had always thought with my swimming background that a triathlon wouldn't be much of a stretch but I was never a distance runner. Before I started training 5 miles was a long run. But let me tell you I survived racing 13.1 and it feels great! I'm already thinking about next season or the next race.

I scheduled a 5k for my next work trip to Dallas. I will run on 21 Nov and plan on doing a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving with my Mom. To be honest- I am really shocked by how much I have accomplished so far this season:
5 5k's
1 10k
Off Road Sprint Triathlon
Half Marathon

Not bad for someone who had never raced any of these before. I have a real sense of accomplishment when I look at how far I have come!

First 10k with half marathon looming

2009-10-22T12:13:00.000-07:00

On Columbus Day I signed up to run my first 10k, Boston Tufts 10k for Women. I had gotten very nervous the night before, as I usually do, I had to be talked down more than once! On Sunday, I picked up my race packet in Boston. Monday morning I took the T into the city with Dutch, my pack mule for the race. As soon as I arrived at Boston Common I felt a lot better about my race, nerves pretty much disappeared. I looked around and saw close to 7,000 other women who were about to do the same thing as me and all fear and anxiety left me! I liked the race slogan "start strong finish stronger."

It was a great energy on the common that morning. Music blasting with a Boston radio station broadcasting live. A real race expo and GEORGOUS weather! I lined up for what was the biggest race I have ever run and the longest. Everyone was seeded by race pace. Which helped get things moving but I don't think everyone knew where they should be.

The race rule said no iPod so I went without it. I am glad I did. I got to take in a lot more of the vibe of the day. As we ran under the bridges of Memorial Drive in Cambridge all the women threw their arms up in the air and screamed. Also- with the loop route we got to see the elite (olympic) runners go by. That was really good. Everyone was cheering everyone else on. Pushing eachother to keep going. I have never been in a race where people say excuse me to pass you.

It was a great race. I finished in 1:03. I wanted to be around 1 hour. Not bad for my first 10k. When I finished I felt like I could keep going. I wasn't compeletly drained. I really enjoyed it and can't wait to go back next year!

To update on the half marathon... registration paid... and plane tickets have been bought! I am REALLY doing this! Training has been going well. Long runs started with 5 then 6 then 7.5. What was going to be around 8 turned into 8.75- now up to almost 9 miles. I can't believe I ran almost 9 miles! My short runs are getting a lot faster. I ran 2 miles lastnight at a 8:50 per mile avg pace. Not bad considering my usual pace is 9:30 to 10. This weekend will be 10 miles.

Next Challenge Accepted!

2009-10-06T12:51:00.000-07:00

So I have decided what the next fitness challenge is... HALF MARATHON! I decided 5k's are easy now. I mean I would love to get my PR down but the only way to do that is with miles...and to log miles why not train for something! I think a 10k wouldn't be too much of a challenge and I want to stretch myself beyond what would be an easy training goal. Why not push it right to the limit of what I think is possible?!

A friend of mine, Allison, lives in Atlanta and will be running the ZOOMA half marathon. She suggested a few of us come down to run with her. So I am taking her up on the offer. Granted it is coming up fast 8 November to be exact. So I am building a compressed training plan- as usual! haha ;-)

Long Runs on Sunday
Rest/Stretch on Monday
4-5 mi on Tuesday
2-3 mi on Wedns or cross-train
4-5 mi on Thursday
Rest/Stretch on Friday
Cross-train on Saturday

Each week on Sunday is the longest run I have ever done when I add a mile to the week before. I started at 5 and now am up to 7.5 miles. In the training plan was a 5k race and a 10k race. I will be racing my first 10k next weekend in Boston. It is an all women's event. It looks like a lot of fun. I will let you all know how the training and racing goes!

Triathlete!!! Hale Off-Road Triathlon

2009-09-24T11:55:00.000-07:00

I would like to start this post by saying, I would have never been able to even attempt a triathlon a year ago. I was over-weight, out of shape and just not even in that frame of mind. But- what a difference a year has made. I have dropped about 30 lbs and am officially a triathlete! Not only a triathlete but looking forward to the start of next season and racing again!

Now- back to race #1! haha :) I arrived early on race day to pick up my packet and set up my transition area. I actually was the first one there- got a great spot. As race time approached I was more and more nervous- but I have the best friends and family in the world. My whole family was there to support me and my friends Dutch and Robin made shirts for everyone! TEAM JULIA It was great to have such a big cheering section. They are the best a girl could ask for. My trainer (who is also my massage therapist) took the day off from clients to be there for me! I had the BEST cheering section at the tri!

I walked over to the race briefing. A run down of the swim course, swim out and around the 2 kayaks, and avoid swimming into rocks at the end! The bike course we were told was wet and slippery- great I was already nervous about that part. Not too much insight into the run. There were 3 waves- elites/teams and men and women. I had signed up to compete as an Athena 150lbs+ I wore my Under Armour sports bra and TYR tri shorts into the water.

Each wave started 3 minutes apart- a standing water start. I moved myself to the front but off to the left side. I hoped that would keep me from getting kicked/swimmed over. I started out the swim a little harder than I planned- and realized as I was trying to spot the kayaks. Even with slowing down a little I was out of the water in 7:55 for the 1/4mi swim. The 6th woman out of the water! Just where I wanted to be.

T1 consisted of putting on my socks, running shoes, jersey, racebelt, helmet, sunglasses, my bondiband headband , and grabbing my bike.I did that all in 2:27. Not a bad transition time. The bike started out as a trail then hit pavement (straight up hill) then hit hard single track trails! I had mountain biked quite a few times, but when you are on difficult terrain with other people around you, it was a lot harder. I was on and off the bike a lot. I even fell in the woods once. But I played it smart- if I thought I could get hurt doing something I got off the bike and walked/ran. I finished the 5.5mi mountain bike in 44:27. Right around where I wanted to be.

I brought the bike in for T2. All I needed to do was take on some fuel- my choice fuel is Cliff Shot Blocks- and took on some water. Transition2 was only 1:08. Fast turnaround without changing shoes. I was covered in mud and had to wipe some of it off.

I was pretty tired going into the run. I had that lead leg feeling. I had practiced quite a few bricks of bike/run but that feeling slowed me down as I hit the trails. I had to pull my legs through the run. I ran slow- a lot slower than I wanted to be. the 2.5mi trail run took 31:10. The fact that my run was slower than I wanted and the fact that I was exhausted didn't stop me from being so excited when I hit the finish line. Through the whole run I kept thinking just finish and you will be a triathlete. My cheering section errupted as I came to cross the finish. I wanted to cry but I was so excicted! I had done it! In 1 hour and 27 minutes I had finished my first triathlon! What a feeling of accomplishment.

As I stood talking to everyone the awards ceremony started. I was just happy to be a triathlete and be with my family/friends. I didn't think I had done well enough to get any award. Dutch told me to put on my shoes and shirt. We walked over and I couldn't believe it- I got 2nd in my division! 2nd?! Honestly- I didn't believe it until I saw the results online. I then checked how I would have performed in my age group.I would have come in 1st in my age group by 3 minutes! I can't believe it. Not only did I finish my first triathlon I did well. I really can't wait for next season. I plan on starting the season with a sprint or 2 or more and working my way up to an olympic distance. It is so fun why not right?!

Now onto the next challenge!

Been a while- Training and Chicago Triathlon

2009-09-10T12:40:00.000-07:00

Lots to update, I have been a bad blogger lately. I have been traveling a lot and I will use that as my excuse ha ha ;-) Weeks 5 and 6 went fairly uneventful. I was on the road for week 6 so hotel gym tread mils and bikes. I did however get to meet up with some of my twitter friends to run a track workout while in Missouri. That was a lot of fun. Although I think I enjoyed the post workout beers more! When I returned from Missouri I unpacked my bags did laundry and repacked.

My friend Dutch, in the photo above with me, had won entry into the Chicago Triathlon from the nice folks at Polar (heart rate monitor company). I offered to hop on a plane and use all my banked hotel points to be his personal support group! So Friday morning we jumped a Southwest flight to Chicago. We had reservations at the triathlons host hotel, Hilton Chicago. It was nice. Friday night, Dutch unpacked his bike and put it back together. His nice brand new tri bike got scratched very badly by TSA- but that's a whole different story! The race expo also opened Friday night.

As someone new to the sport it was a great experience. I got to walk around with other athletes and learn about coaching, buy some tri shorts, and new swimming drag shorts. I learned a lot about different fuel and shake options, my new fav... Mix1 www.mix1life.com it has a great flavor and texture- check it out! Anyway- I loved the expo's vibe and just being around other people that have the same interest as you!

Saturday we scoped out the race area and transition area. And I dragged Dutch for a bit of site seeing. I only had a couple things I wanted to see in Chicago, the cloud being the main one! We walked around Millennium Park and got a great feel for the city. Then Saturday night I did a great 4 mile run around the parks again! Nice and flat and cool by the lake. I like that city a lot!

Sunday morning was race day. I went with Dutch at 4am to set up his transition area. Urgh- did I want to stay in bed soooo bad! But good experience to get out there and get a feel for this whole thing. We set is all up and since his wave didn't go till 9am we went back for a nap. I slept for another hour or so and went down to the swim start with Dutch. He was all lined up and ready to go I told him I would either see him at the swim finish or the transition area.

As I was standing watching the other athletes already in the water, I observed 2 things 1.) I have a serious advantage in the swim portion, most triathletes look like they are drowning in the swim and 2.) Dutch was now doing the Olympic distance event. I knew the sprint swim only went along the lake wall and he was facing the direction of the Olympic distance! I freaked out! Being his swim coach for this triathlon I knew he could do it but the swim might end up taking a lot out of him. ~for those that don't know an Olympic distance is 1.5km swim, 40km bike, and 10k run. DOUBLE the trained for sprint distance~ I knew the bike and run were going to be easy for him unless he pushed too hard on the swim.

When I discovered this GIANT mistake made by the race production company, I raced to be at the fence at the swim finish! I knew I needed to get there and be sure he was okay. 45 min later he got out of the water... I screamed you are doing the international distances! He responded with "I am now!" and we both ran to transition. I yelled over the fence as he got onto his bike and was there when he came in from the bike at 1 hour 18 min. I raced to be at the transition fence again to be sure he was going to be okay for the run. I can't believe it but he did the 10 k in 50 min! He ran 8min miles! He didn't even train for this event and he KILLED IT! 3 hours and 9 minutes was the final result.

I have to say as a first time triat hlete it was a great experience to be there supporting a friend.I got to enjoy the event, well kind of, my nerves were pretty shot at the end! I also, got to learn a lot of new stuff about my new found sport. It was a really cool experience.

Week 4 - Practice Tri

2009-08-20T12:31:00.000-07:00

I returned from Aruba on 11 Aug. and jumped back into work and my routine quickly. Friday was supposed to be another brick of bike run but my trainer and I had decided that I would do a practice triathlon at some point before my actual race.It made the most sense to do it right after vacation since it fell about in the middle of my training. So Friday's brick turned into a morning run just to get out there on pavement again, and to keep my dog, Ben at bay. Since he is a retired racer he needs to run. We did a couple miles, at a 9:24 min mile pace. My tri training is increasing my running pace.

So Saturday I got up early to get my practice triathlon out of the way. It was going to be a hot day and I wanted to get it done before noon. I went and picked up my bike and met my mom at the lake in my hometown. Figured I knew the area and my mom did too so it would be easy for me to pick routes that she would know for the bike/run. I set up my transition at the truck. My goal wasn't to rush through this whole practice triathlon. It was to just prove to myself I could do all three together. I also wanted to get a feel for the whole thing, transitions what does and doesn't work and what I need to make sure I do and don't do race day. That being said- I was really nervous. I didn't know if this was going to prove to me that I couldn't do the triathlon I signed up for, I hoped not!

I got in the lake and swam for 5 min. That is about how long it would take me to swim the 450yds I have to do for the triathlon, since I had no way to measure that out. I have to say my nerves calmed down as soon as I was done with the swim. Luckily the part that I am best at is the first part of the race! Mom and I walked to the truck and I got into my bike clothes, ate a couple powerbar gelblasts before hoping on the bike. They actually aren't too bad, kinda candy like. I chugged some water at T1 too.

I had mixed a Puresport shake for my bike and had that for the ride. I went out in the loop I told my mom I was heading out for. It ended up being shorter than the one in my triathlon, 4.7 miles as opposed to the 5.5 miles of the triathlon. I also rode on the road as opposed to a trail ride. I didn't know anywhere around the lake that was trails so eh you do what you can!

I came in for T2 at the truck. I had a powerbar gel and some more water- I now know no gels pre run- didn't sit well. Put on all my run gear and headed out. I wanted to do about 2 miles. My triathlon is 2.3 miles trial run so I figured 2 would give me a feel. My legs felt like lead under me. I pushed up the hill out of the driveway to the lake. Another bad choice on location, the lake has a huge hill at the entrance. My calfs hurt and my quads were burning but I kept moving. It was a slow run. 10 min miles. I figure not too bad though after swimming and biking. Well the route I told my mom was short of 2 miles but I had a fear if I went somewhere else something would happen and she wouldn't be able to find me.

Well- I finished it in about 50 minutes: 5 minutes (approx 500 yds) of swimming, 4.7 mile bike, 1.7 mile run. I survived! It proved to me I would be able to survive the actual triathlon. My mom was a great coach she was all proud of after I finished. I took her home and then went to return my bike. When I arrived at Dutch and Robin's house my shoulders started throbbing! I knew I had been swimming too much. Well it caught up with me. I laid on the floor icing my shoulders for a while.

I need to cut some of the swimming out of my training. Swimming is the piece of this triathlon I really don't have to train too much. And my shoulder won't let me do too much. It is an old injury from my swimming career. I started swimming competitively at age 6 and didn't stop until I was 20- when my shoulder pain and college life got in the way. I swam year round for most of my life and was a freestyle and backstroke sprinter, so my shoulders don't do well with overhead use repeately anymore.

I have realized that my tri training plan has a large emphasis on swimming, since most triathletes are not swimmers first. I need to focus more on my biking and running and bricks of those two together. So from now on that will be my main focus with a few swim workouts thrown in to help balance my training and stretch me out.

Vacation and Training- weeks 3/4

2009-08-17T11:21:00.000-07:00

Most of week 3 was spent on vacation on the beautiful island of Aruba. It is so easy to train in a climate like that, with a ocean for open water swims feet from your room, and beach for running! I had no problem motivating myself. I mean what else is there to do on an all-inclusive vacation. This is the beach where I ran and swam, at the Divi All-Inclusive Resort http://www.diviaruba.com/

The training schedule was a bit off with the travel:
Monday- Run (at home)
Tuesday- travel day- ended up having to rest
Wednesday- open water swim/ stationary bike 40 min
Thursday- open water swim
Friday- bike with family
Saturday- 20 min beach run
Sunday- REST
Monday- 20 min beach run
Tuesday- 20 min beach run

I had a great vacation I relaxed a ton! I always do in Aruba. It was our 3rd time there. So no tourist trips. Shopped downtown, sat in the sun, trained, and rented a jeep to tour the island on our own. I caught up on sleep, ate whatever I wanted/drank and had a great time.

I came back and on weds hit the pool with my friend, Dutch, http://www.tri2iron.com/ While I was away he won from Polar Heart Rate Monitors, entrance into the Chicago Triathlon. He needed some swimming coaching/teaching. I spent most of the hour and a half working technique with him but did get in some swimming myself. I love being in the water!

Thursday morning I hit a spin class. I didn't realize my gym had a 6am class. It was a great bike workout. The teacher did music of Woodstock to pay tribute to the 40th anniversary. The icing on a great vacation cake was Thursday after working out with my trainer, he weighed me and I lost a pound in the week I was away. Not too many people lose weight on an all-inclusive vacation. It proved to me I really do need to eat more!!

Week 3... Beach Training

2009-08-03T21:19:00.001-07:00

Times were published today from the 5k at work during training week 1. Goal was to be 28 something. The official time 29.01. Close to the goal. Not bad! Got to find another 5k to do soon!!

Week 3 training is:

Sunday- 25 min bike

Monday- 1 hour training and 35 min run

Tuesday- 25 min swim and 35 min bike

Wednesday- Rest

Thursday- 50 min bike

Friday- 30 min swim

Saturday- Rest

Started week 3 with a bi-weekly massage. I tell you it is the best thing to add to a training plan. I needed my calf's, shoulders, and hips/gluts worked on. They were tight and giving me pain in my workouts. After an hour of having a sports/therapeutic massage I was feeling much better. I then went to hop on a mountain bike, Robin and I went out to the trail we went on last week. This time in the hope of not getting lost. We didn't get lost and 40 min later emerged after riding 3 miles of up and down hills and over rocks. The 400 cal workout was a great Sunday buster and I am starting to get more comfortable with changing gears.

I then had to get some work done. Apparently my job doesn't care that I am training for a triathlon or going on vacation. I did a little working from home and before I knew it the work week was here.

Luckily my work week is short this week. I am headed out on vacation Tuesday. Worked to get all the projects done pre-vacation. Headed out of work and went for a 35 min run. I ran kind of slow to keep a little in the tank to work with my trainer. So I only got 3.25 miles in the 35 min. It was hot and I was a sore. I headed out for the gym post dinner, and had a great core workout with the trainer. He is a killer! But it was my only workout with him this week.

I am looking forward to a week with my only priorities being relaxing and training. I can't wait to do my swimming, running and biking on or near a beach! Talk about true open water swims.

Week 2 ...Not Always According to Plan

2009-08-01T04:24:00.000-07:00

Training Plan for week 2:
Sunday- 45 min bike
Monday- 15 min run
Tuesday- Rest
Wednesday- 30 min bike and yoga
Thursday- 1 hour training and 25 min swim
Friday- 20 min run
Saturday- Rest

Week 2 was a bit tough. I had to go on travel for work so that always plays with the training a bit. I knew my hotel had a gym- since I am a frequently stay at this hotel. But when you are traveling it requires a lot of advance planning with your training.

Sunday I was still home and went on a mountain bike (well more like a trail bike) ride with my friend Robin. Her husband, my other very dear friend, Dutch, decided my bike was not suitable for my triathlon. Apparently a 10-15 year old mountain bike complete with rust is not acceptable?! LOL! Well luckily he is nice enough to let me ride his mountain bike. The whole preparation of the bikes took a few hours. I did eat some breakfast but I didn't realize what time it was when I left for my ride with Robin. We headed out to the local state forest to ride along a fire road. It was a great trail. Not overly easy but a good start to my mountain biking training.

Well about 1/2 way through our ride I realized I was really low on calories. I had eaten oatmeal and a banana for breakfast. I added an apple in there but that is not enough when you are heading out for a 45 min bike ride a few hours after eating. Well needless to say Robin and I got a bit lost. We ended up having to double back on the trail -making our 45 min ride last over an hour. It was rough. I downed my PureSport, recovery drink www.puresport.us. That gave me electrolytes and some protein. I think if I didn't drink that I might have passed out right there at the truck post ride. Well- I had to go home and spent a couple hours recovering from my caloric deficit. I sipped on Gatorade until I was able to actually eat something again. The issue was time got away from me on my eating schedule and I need to be sure I am fueling!

Monday morning I woke up went for my quick short run before heading to work since I headed out on travel that evening. Well as usual the flight was delayed and I didn't arrive in Ohio until sometime around 11pm. I was very glad I had done my run in the morning!

Tuesday was full of meetings in Ohio. I sometimes have a hard time taking recovery days. I know I need the rest but its hard to keep me away from a gym. I just love the feeling of the endorphins post workout, I am a total addict for it! Luckily with the full day of meetings and dinner scheduled for me it as easy to miss out on the workout due to time. This is why I usually do morning workouts when I am on the road. If I don't its really hard to find the time, since most of your day on the road is out of your control.

Wednesday morning I got up early and went down to the gym. Full house. I wasn't able to hop on the one bike, since I had planned to bike I brought my old running shoes to ride. When the bike was occupied I tried the treadmill and quickly realized that the old shoes would most likely give me shin splints so I jumped on the elliptical to avoid injury. After my workout I headed to my meetings and flew home... it was so nice to get back home! Robin and I headed to our last yoga class. The heat this week was insane! I was dripping sweat (audibly-drip-drip-drip) through class. But I did end up doing a headstand on the wall! I love the yoga it helps me relax and recover. It has really helped my flexibility and balance. I will be signing up for another session of classes at www.spiritbearpoweryoga.com.

Thursday back to a double workout! I must be insane because I was excited to do my double workout!I really like the feeling of pushing myself. My trainer worked with me for an hour. We did a TRX trainer workout. This thing is a killer... www.fitnessanywhere.com. After that hour I went to the pool. My original training plan had a bike on Thursday but I moved it to Sunday so that I could ride again with Robin. I think it is better to get in a ride on a trail when I can.

So my swim for 25 min was:
600- free
100 kick
100 pull
100 kick
100 pull
2x50 sprint
100 cool down

1200 yds total

I always feel amazing in the water. I love being in the pool. I have never found a sport that made me as happy as swimming. The only problem is I have shoulder injuries from my years of swimming. Usually when I swim sporadically I don't have issues but on Thursday my shoulders had hurt pre workout so when I tried to go to bed. There was pain in both of them. It is hard to sleep with 2 shoulders in a lot of pain but with a little help I was able to fall asleep!

I knew Friday night I had plans so got my workout out of the way in the morning. My 20 min run turned into about 25 min. Oh well- it was a good run. Friday afternoon I had a hair appointment. Oh did I need it! I am so worried though about what I will do with my hair for the tri. My thoughts are to grow it out so that I don't have to play with it while biking and running post swim (with a cap of course). Well as you can see there is a girl in there somewhere- I am worried about my hair for a triathlon! LOL!

Week 2 was a week that showed me that a week planned out doesn't always go as planned but I got in the training. I am now worried about my next week of training. I am off on vacation... so I must plan ahead to not fall into vacation mode....

Completion of Training Week 1

2009-07-27T06:33:00.000-07:00

I am pleased to report... I survived week 1! Wednesday nights yoga was a life saver! It helped stretch out my muscles and left me feeling calm. Though I looked like a drown rat from the sweat from the heat/humidity. I have to say I really enjoy yoga. And I think it does both me and my friend, Robin, that goes with me good!!!

Thursday it was back to the training grind. The weather was less than co-operative I had an hour with the trainer in the gym. I have to say my trainer is a great support system for this whole process. He is helping me with my training plans talking me through my trials and tribulations! After a little chat about the week so far, and surviving my first brick, we did a lot of back, abs, and upper body. I could feel the stress of the 1st week of training wearing on me. After he and I finished it was onto a treadmill. Can I just say this now I HATE TREADMILLS. I will deal with them in the cold winter months in Mass but once I get a taste for running outside it is hard to go back to them.

I pushed as hard as I could do finish the 30 min run on my training plan for Thursday. It was tough post training with the trainer. My gym's AC is broken and fans don't even come close to helping with the amount of sweat that was pouring off me. I pushed through, even though I was counting every minute down on the treadmill. I just kept thinking about how great I would feel after!

Friday morning was the 5K at work. Every year on Organization Day they have a 5K, I signed up this year. In the past I haven't thought I was in good enough shape to let my co-workers see me running by. The weather was awful. Still rainy like the night before. I had a goal of 28 something. My boss, and a few co workers came out to support me. My boss even made a "Go Julia" sign. It was a good push. I have to say the best push is to have my friend, Dutch, who has run every 5K "with me" sprint me into the end. When I say "with me" that means we run the same race. I say "later" when he takes off at the beginning and I don't see him till somewhere around the end where he shows up to push me to sprint hard to the finish. His famous words are "you can puke when you are done". He pushed me and I think I achieved my goal but we will see when the results get mailed out in a couple days!

After my max effort on Friday morning I couldn't bring myself to do the 30 min swim on Friday night. I just didn't have anything left. So I went off with Robin to a party hosted by my friend Susie. It was a Nintendo Girlfriend Guide to Gaming party. It was at a swanky hotel in downtown Boston. We sipped champagne, ate great food, played with the new Nintendo DSi and chit chatted for a few hours. After playing all 4 of the games you got a coin. Once all coins were collected you received your own Nintendo DSi to take home. I am not kidding, I took home a Nintendo DSi with no catch! I don't have to market for them, I don't have to go to another party, I don't have to host another party, just straight up free! Let me tell you I am no gamer but I love it! I am having fun with it!

Saturday was my off day. I spent the day with a friend who was in town for an interview. We drove around Boston looking for neighborhoods for him to live in when he gets the job. I took him to the airport in the afternoon and then spent the rest of the night RELAXING!

I have to say I can't believe I made it through week 1. I am starting to think I might be able to do this. Now onto Week 2....

Training week 1 starts

2009-07-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

Training Plan Week 1:
Monday- Trainer 25 min run
Tuesday 25 min swim/30 min bike
Weds- rest (yoga)
Thurs- Trainer 30 min run
Friday- 5k at work then 30 min swim
Saturday- rest

Monday was a real test. I train with my personal trainer on Monday nights for an hour. Luckily he is all on board with my triathlon training so he is working with my training plan. We did an hour with the TRX trainer http://www.fitnessanywhere.com/ and some resistance training. Mostly core and a little arms and legs. He really wants to make sure my core is ready for the trail bike. And I mean lets be honest who doesn't want a flat tummy? So after that hour it was still nice outside and I needed to do my 25 min run.

I decided to go outside the gym and do loops around the plaza my gym is in, there is a nice steep hill. So doing hill loops. Let me tell you at about loop number 5 with 2 min left in my run I didn't want to hit the hill again. But I gave myself the don't be a chicken speech and went for it. Did the loop 5 and a half times in the 25 min.

Tuesday is another tough day. It is the double block day. I did swim 25 min and bike 30 min. The weather decided to not behave so I had to hit the gym. I thought I would start my swim proving to myself I could do the swim distance of the triathlon. So I started with a 400- did it in under 5 min. I think I will be okay :) So here is the rest of the swim workout:

400 free
6x100 Free (kick, kick, pull, sprint by 100)
200 free

total 1200 yds in 25 min

I hopped out of the pool and changed as fast as I could into my biking clothes in the locker room (approx. 5 min) then got onto a spin bike. Luckily (and not so luckily) my gym has limited spin classes so I could use the bike. I threw my ipod on and did one song sitting one song standing. At about 15 min in my legs started burning I didn't think I was going to be able to finish the whole 30 min. But somewhere in the area of 20 min in I just stopped feeling any pain, at that point I decided to do 2 songs standing to finish my set. When my 30 min was up I thought I would try to run a lap on the track at the gym. Everyone says that is a hard transition with the leg to leg work. So I ran a lap, legs felt like they weren't even attached. But hey I survived. I have to say it proved to me that I think I can handle this- I just gotta keep that feeling in my head!

So, onto my review of the Under Armour bra from Sunday. I went to Dick's Sporting Goods to try on the D-support and compression sports bras. I have to say the D-support failed miserably in the locker room. It did not pass the jump up and down test! But the compression one did pass. So I spent the almost 50 bucks- because lets be honest for good support I will pay good money. The problem is, you don't really know until you run in it!

I took it for a spin on Sunday. First off it was tough to get on, being that it is compression it is hard to pull down over everything. I finally did get everything into place and I was ready to really run in it. I have to say it passed the test! I don't like there to be ANY bounce when I run and this bra passed that test. It was comfortable with wide straps and is made of heat gear so it doesn't stay wet with sweat. Let me tell you it is a good day when I can go for a run in only 1 sports bra! So I have to say it totally gets a double thumbs up from me!

Interesting I double checked which bra it was... It was the C-shaper. Maybe that is the key... it is a cup size or 2 smaller than usual! http://www.underarmour.com/shop/us/en/womens/apparel/sports-bras/high-impact/pid1001174-Women-s-Endure-C-Cup-/1001174-001

today is rest day... so I am continuing with my hot room yoga tonight. Should help me stretch out and relax! makes me feel zen

Triathalete?

2009-07-20T06:36:00.000-07:00

I decided to start a blog to share my training experiances. Everything from the workouts to the gear. I took to running in the early spring, running my first 5K in April. Did a second 5K in June. And last Thursday I decided to take on a new challenge and registered for a triathalon. I was a swimmer in college and running seems to be my new thing, its the biking and the transitions that scare me!

The other thing I want to do with this blog is....I discovered a week or so ago, that I share a common issue of women athletes. Finding a sports bra! I am really sick of wearing 2 or 3 of them to run. I am on the search for some sports bras that will keep up with my activities. So I will add reviews of new and my old faithful sports bras in here too!

Well, anyways back to the training. I signed up for this triathalon on Thursday which meant Friday started a whole new training regiment. I have been working with a trainer for about a year, 2x a week. And 3 to 4 days a week of running. Time to kick it up. This triathalon is a .25 mile swim, 5.5 mile trail bike, 2.3 mile trail run. http://www.munitrack.com/haletri/haletri_main.htm

Friday's workout was swimming... 35 min. From my days of US Swimming and college swimming I can't seem to just get in the water and do long and slow strokes. I made myself do a real workout.

4x100 free
8x50 IM order (30 s rest)
4x50 sprint free
200 free
100 cool-down

1300 yds.

Saturday was rest day

Sunday training... 30 min of running. It was nice to get out on my regular run route. I added a little jump onto a trail in the middle. That killed my legs but gotta get used to it!!

Next post will have a review of the new UnderArmor sports bra I bought....