Hallo! We are just about to say 'good-bye' and 'good luck' to our young soldier. I have tried to pack as much fun into the month of June as I could. It will be his only month of summer vacation, so I wanted it to be fun and memorable.
We had family pictures taken. I'll post some as soon as I get them from Miss Saren (Mrs., actually, but she'll always be a young 'Miss' to me, since I'm turning into an old person). We swam. We went to the movies. We ate out more often than we could technically afford. We BBQ-ed. We had bonfires in the back yard. We went to the lake and windsurfed/kayaked/stowed away on some dude's catamaran (only Will did the last part, but, HEY! sounds cool). And, I took him and his 'battle buddy', Private Paul, up to the Solomon Center in Ogden (2 hr. round trip) so they could do indoor skydiving/rock climbing/indoor surfing! That was a fun day! Well, all except realizing when we got home that he had lost his dog tags. GAH!!! I went into panic mode. They have his name and SS number on them! I know he will be issued new tags when he arrives at Basic. Most new recruits get their first tags at Basic. Will has had dog tags for almost a year, however, because he enlisted last July and has been serving in his Reserve unit ever since. He has already received a promotion, in fact, and will be doing Basic as a Private 2nd Class.
Anyways, I hurried and called every venue up in Ogden and asked for them to look for the tags. And, wouldn't you know it, THEY FOUND THEM! HOORAY! The Flowrider staff found them over by the Costa Vida (where we ate dinner). They are going to mail them back to us, so we don't have to drive for 2 hours to retrieve them. One of life's little blessings!
So, I'm down to counting hours before my son leaves for this big adventure. I'm excited for him, but I'm sad for me. I will miss him something fierce! When Helena moved out, I stood in her room several times and just teared up over missing her... even though she was only two towns over and often brought her laundry home &/or came "shopping" in my pantry. This will be much harder. I have no doubt I will spend some maudlin moments in his room, too. I'm extra thankful that Helena moved back home. That will make this easier for me.
No Skype. No phone calls. No texts.
Only snail mail.
They will give him his mail once a week, and make him earn it with push ups. No packages allowed. Just words of encouragement and photos. He WILL get to call me once on the day after he arrives at the base, to let me know he arrived safely. After that, he MIGHT be allowed to call every few weeks... if he earns it &/or the Drill Sargent is in the mood.
Meanwhile, I have to move on with my plans for the summer.
Normally, I have a routine planned out from day one of summer break. Not this year. I let June roll over me in one big jumble of activity. So, starting July 1st, I am getting back into a schedule. Not a rigid-my-days-are-packed kind of schedule. Just a routine.
Get up at 6
Work out from 7-9 (this could be walking/jogging/bike riding/weights/whatever)
Yard work (and house repairs) until lunch at 11:30
housework for an hour after lunch
personal improvement (sketching/painting/Rosetta Stone) for two hours in the afternoon.
Unplug at 8
Swim from 8:30 to 9:30
Bed at 10
There are some rigid time frames in there. Notably the getting up/exercising/going to bed times. I find I do better at exercise if I am more rigid with it. The rest can shift as needed, and it leaves me plenty of 'down' time to be a lazy summer slug and lounge around poolside or on the porch. I need that just as much as the exercise! And, of course, there will be some interruptions to that plan. The Steel Days Art Show will consume a week in mid-July, and I will be teaching children's community art classes for a week in late July.
Saturdays and Sundays won't have all that going on. Those days will be pretty unstructured.
Actually, I plan to use my Saturdays to work on Will's room. It is due for an overhaul. I won't say more, now. Just know I have some exciting plans that I hope to surprise him with when he comes home!
So, I say farewell to my boy, and hope to welcome him back 6 months from now as a soldier and a man.
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
The Workout Schedule
I have set stuff I like to do. I like to swim. I like to run. I like to ride my bike. Triathlon stuff.
So, I'll revisit my old triathlon type training and see where that takes me.
I think this year I'll make Saturday and Sunday my rest days. At least until summer vacation. That will give me the time I need to get weekend chores done and spend time with the family, I hope.
So, I'm splitting my workouts into two categories; MWF and TTh.
MWF will be running training and weights/core work. My running goal for the next 10 weeks is to speed up on my 5K. I average 31 minutes with a best time of 28 minutes. In 10 weeks I want 28 minutes to be the new average time for the 5K distance. We'll see what my new best time will become! I have an app called 5K Forever that I will be working with to try and meet this goal. The app is designed specifically to help 5K runners improve their time, so I'm excited to give it a go! Today was my first day using the app and it went well.
Core work means situps, pushups, squats, lunges, and planks. My 10 week end goal is 200 situps, 100 pushups, 100 squats, 200 lunges, and 120 second planks. Weights will be just maintenance stuff on my arms.
TTh workouts will be cycle class and swimming. The swimming is iffy, because TTh are long lanes, which means less available lanes (short lanes can be up to 8 lanes, long lanes are at max of 5). With the Resolutioners in the gym, I might not get a lane for a little while, but I'll do my best. I haven't created specific goals for cycle and swim. Just to do them and push myself each day. Work on form and endurance, mostly.
Resolutioners! It's that time of year, again. Today was great. There was no crowd, yet. I expect the crowds will hit just after the annual pass sale and fitness fair next week. Ugh. They all sign up, plunk down their money for an annual pass, crowd out the regulars for two months, then disappear. Most equipment breakage happens during this time because they also bring along their kids, who abuse the equipment.
I'm really not against New Year's Resolutions! I just really believe in only making goals I intend to achieve. Why would you spend the money and not follow through? Why give up after only a few weeks? Why do there have to be so many of them that I can't get my workouts done? The gym oversells knowing many will quit. So in January and February the facility is really over capacity.
Still, some of them end up turning into regulars, and in that case, they are very welcome! For now, I'll have to show up early to cycle class in order to get my preferred bike, and I might have to get creative with my running workouts if all the treadmills are taken.
So, I'll revisit my old triathlon type training and see where that takes me.
I think this year I'll make Saturday and Sunday my rest days. At least until summer vacation. That will give me the time I need to get weekend chores done and spend time with the family, I hope.
So, I'm splitting my workouts into two categories; MWF and TTh.
MWF will be running training and weights/core work. My running goal for the next 10 weeks is to speed up on my 5K. I average 31 minutes with a best time of 28 minutes. In 10 weeks I want 28 minutes to be the new average time for the 5K distance. We'll see what my new best time will become! I have an app called 5K Forever that I will be working with to try and meet this goal. The app is designed specifically to help 5K runners improve their time, so I'm excited to give it a go! Today was my first day using the app and it went well.
Core work means situps, pushups, squats, lunges, and planks. My 10 week end goal is 200 situps, 100 pushups, 100 squats, 200 lunges, and 120 second planks. Weights will be just maintenance stuff on my arms.
TTh workouts will be cycle class and swimming. The swimming is iffy, because TTh are long lanes, which means less available lanes (short lanes can be up to 8 lanes, long lanes are at max of 5). With the Resolutioners in the gym, I might not get a lane for a little while, but I'll do my best. I haven't created specific goals for cycle and swim. Just to do them and push myself each day. Work on form and endurance, mostly.
Resolutioners! It's that time of year, again. Today was great. There was no crowd, yet. I expect the crowds will hit just after the annual pass sale and fitness fair next week. Ugh. They all sign up, plunk down their money for an annual pass, crowd out the regulars for two months, then disappear. Most equipment breakage happens during this time because they also bring along their kids, who abuse the equipment.
I'm really not against New Year's Resolutions! I just really believe in only making goals I intend to achieve. Why would you spend the money and not follow through? Why give up after only a few weeks? Why do there have to be so many of them that I can't get my workouts done? The gym oversells knowing many will quit. So in January and February the facility is really over capacity.
Still, some of them end up turning into regulars, and in that case, they are very welcome! For now, I'll have to show up early to cycle class in order to get my preferred bike, and I might have to get creative with my running workouts if all the treadmills are taken.
26.2
The race began in Walsburg at 6 am. In order to be ready at the starting line, Bill and I had to get up at 2:30 am, so he could drive me down to the shuttle buses in Provo. There were over 2,000 registered entrants for the full marathon, so the organizers said there would be no private drop off at the start of the race (Walsburg is a SMALL town up in the mountains).
2:30 is stupidly early.
I tried to get a full night sleep Thursday night. Utter fail. I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, then Bill's 5 am alarm woke me up completely. I normally sleep right through it.
So, I tried to get a full night sleep Friday night before the race...
Fail.
I would have had to go to bed at 6 pm to get a full 8 hours. That's never gonna happen. So, the goal was 8 pm, but that time shot by as well. I finally did get in bed at 9 pm...
... then got a phone call at 10 pm and was wide awake for another 30 minutes or more.
Still, 2:30 am arrived.
I did pretty well at eating my breakfast of oatmeal and a banana. OK, so I only ate half the banana.
I had packed and arranged all my race day gear the night before, so I didn't have to worry about forgetting anything. I planned to run with a water belt even though there were water/aid stations throughout the course. I refuel with Shot Blocks and the race only offered Gu gels. It's important not to change what you do on race day, so the water belt was more to carry my fuel of choice than for the water. Although it did prove useful to have a little water on me whenever I wanted to rinse the sweat out of my eyes. I greased myself up with Vaseline to prevent chafing, got dressed, and was ready to leave by 3:00.
Bill dropped me off at the bus loading zone and took off into the mountains for some early morning biking. I got in line for the bus and met a man named Jason. We chatted about the race and our families the whole way up to the starting drop off zone. I tell you what. That was a LONG bus ride! I remember a feeling of panic when riding the shuttle for the half marathon. This was worse. 26 miles is a long way.
The bus dropped us off at 4:30 am alongside a ranch. The rancher allowed the runners to use his pasture for a staging area. The whole pasture was full of campfires for the runners to keep warm.
It seemed like most of the people there were running with a friend. I was alone. So, I asked to join a group at their campfire. It turned out that most of that group knew each other and had run several other marathons together. Still, they were friendly and supportive. We ended up sitting in that prickly field grass playing campfire games until it was time to turn in our drop bags and line up at the starting line.
Drop bags are used to stuff your warm-up gear and anything else you want to bring to the race. The organizers chuck them all in a rental truck and haul it down to the finish line for you. After the race, you can collect your drop bag because it has your bib number attached to it. Mine had my sweat jacket (for before the race), my flip-flops (for after the race), tissues and other random minor items.
Lining up for a race, you find a race pacer holding a sign with the time you want to try to finish the race in. The fastest race pacers are to the front of the line. I headed to the back of the line. Let's face it. I know I'm not fast. My only goal was to actually finish this monster. Based on my longest training run, I thought I'd be doing really great if I finished in 5 hours, but the reality would probably be closer to 5 1/2 hours.
In the final countdown everyone around me was chatting and getting encouragement from each other and from the race pacer nearest us. In fact, I was so caught up in listening to the chatter that the race began before I even realized! The big surge only happens at the front of the column. At the back, we just started walking calmly forward until we got to the starting arch, then began our run.
I won't give you a blow by blow of every single awesome-beautiful-uplifting-inspiring-challenging-tough-discouraging-painful-agonizing mile. Instead, here are some highlights...
The early part of the race was cool because we were high in the mountains and the sun wasn't up, yet. The mid part of the race was cool because we were still in the canyon and the cliffs formed huge shadows that keep a near perpetual pre-sunrise chill in the air. The last part of the race was HOT because we were out of the canyon, running in the full blaze of the summer sun in the middle of the city.
Oh, the scenery was beautiful! I live here and I know the canyon very well. Still, running through it gives so much more time to soak in the views than driving it. Rolling hills, red barns, white rail fences, shimmering water in the river and the reservoir, green pine forests, rugged cliffs, waterfalls, and wildflowers.
For a downhill course, there sure were plenty of uphills. I knew I couldn't run the entire course non-stop, so I decided to walk the uphills. That way I could use the momentum of the downhill running to try to improve on my training time. That seemed to work well. When an uphill section drew near, I picked a spot on the hill where I would give myself permission to slow to a walk. Then, as I neared the crest, I chose another spot there I had to start running again.
Once, while I was walking an uphill, another participant joined me. I couldn't tell her age. She might have been my age; she might have been younger. Her hair was bleached white and her skin was very dark. She looked too trim and fit to be with us slower runners, but at the same time, she looked like she had lived life hard and fast... if that makes any sense. We chatted for a while and she told me all about the person she was supposed to be running with in the race. He was her boyfriend and chose to run with her despite not being a runner himself. He used to be clean and sober, but had recently fallen off the bandwagon and was drinking and smoking weed again. He had fallen behind and she was worried about him. She was walking in the hopes that he would catch up to her.
Then she told me that he hits her, sometimes.
Holy $*#@!
I had listened to her tale about her boyfriend and held my tongue, despite thinking he was pathetic, but I couldn't remain quiet any longer. I told her emphatically that she needed to leave him! I advised her to turn him in to the authorities. I told her she deserved better and that NO ONE had the right to hit her! I asked her if she had family near by (she is living with her parents). We were well on the downhill side and my "run" marker had come and gone, but I kept walking and talking with her.
In the end, I had to leave her. I couldn't walk the whole race. I wished her well and continued on my way. I don't remember her name, and I will probably never see her again, but I hope she finds the courage to get him out of her life!
Other runners came and went on my radar. Only a few others stand out, for me.
One such runner was named John. He and I had been leap frogging for most of the lower canyon. We walked together for a little while at the base of the canyon. He was an older gentleman with a handlebar mustache. This was his 300th marathon.
300th!!!
He started running them in the 80's. He was so friendly. He complimented me on my "power walk" (I wouldn't let my walking speed drop below 4 1/2 mph) and advised me to cut from corner to corner of the road on turns to make sure I wasn't adding mileage to the race. I told him my hope to finish at around 5hr 15min and he said that while it'd be tough, he believed I could make it. He pulled away as we entered the city. I could see him turning to look back and check on me every once and a while. But he had some amazing reserves of speed in him that weren't in me, so I watched him go and kept on going at the best pace I could manage...
...because by then I was in pain.
Oh! The first half of the race was SO BEAUTIFUL! I really enjoyed the first 15 miles. In fact, it wasn't until around mile 18 that I started to hurt. Mile 21 is when it truly got tough. By then I was in new territory. I had never pushed myself that far, before. By mile 23, I was in agony. My knees hurt, but it was my feet that were causing my distress. They were on FIRE! Every step was piercing. It felt like I was ripping the soles off my feet. At one point, my mind was entirely filled with the pain in my feet until I finally had to tell myself, "yes, there is pain. It is not going away. Accept it, put it out of your mind, and keep going."
The last 3 miles felt like they lasted forever. My body wanted to quit, but my mind was locked and rock solid. I was gonna finish this thing. Only 3 measly miles stood between me and my goal. There were water stations at every mile marker for those last 3 miles, so I drank a Powerade, drank a water, and doused myself with a water each time and forced myself to keep moving forward.
I don't think I can put into words the feeling when I saw the finish line in the distance. Overwhelming emotions! Knowing it was almost over, if I could just hold out a little bit longer! I had sent Bill texts at 13.1 miles, 10 miles, 5, 3, 2, and 1 mile. I forced myself to run the last half mile non-stop. I wanted to finish strong.
Mom, Dad, and Paul (my brother-in-law) were waiting to cheer me at the 26 mile marker. Bill and Will were at the finish line. I found out later that my visiting teaching partner, Leanna, came down and watched me finish without telling me she was going to do so! She is so awesome!
Yes, I choked up as I crossed the line.
Bill and Will came to find me right away. Bill had made up an entire lunch cooler full of post race awesomeness! He made a bottle of chocolate milk mixed just the way I like it. He had a couple of frozen bottles of water that he used as a roller massage on my legs and to ice my knees. There was a protein shake and a couple of Cokes. He and Will ended up drinking the Cokes, though. I didn't want them. Will went and got my drop bag for me so I could strip off the shoes and socks and put my flip-flops on.
Mom, Dad, and Paul found me and we all sat on the City Hall steps as Bill massaged my legs. You are supposed to walk off the race, not sit down and, yes, I did walk around all afternoon, but I'll save that story for another post.
My official time was 5 hours, 19 minutes, 10 seconds. That is just crazy! Who would want to spend that much time running?! Me, apparently.
After saying good-bye to Mom, Dad, and Paul, we headed to the car. Bill had parked it on the second level of a parking structure, so Will and I waited in the shade while Bill brought it down. There was no way I wanted to walk up to it. While we waited, my campfire buddies came walking up! And... John was with them! They all recognized me and we high-fived (and John gave me a hug) as they congratulated me on completing my first marathon. One of them pointed out to me that there was a blister on the side of my foot. I hadn't even noticed it. The pain in the soles of my feet had completely masked it.
So, here we are... A day later. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) has set in with a vengeance. I feel like someone has beaten me with a baseball bat. Everything from my chest down just HURTS! I can barely stand. Besides the blister, I also have 4 toenails (two on each foot) that look like they are going to die and fall off.
But, I am so very happy! I conquered myself and completed this huge goal. Now I plan to enjoy my summer just doing whatever workout strikes my fancy. Running will return to its rightful place as only one of many things I like to do, instead of consuming all my workouts.
Thanks to everyone who has supported my in this crazy journey to marathon! It means a lot to me.
Will I ever do it again?
I think so!
2:30 is stupidly early.
I tried to get a full night sleep Thursday night. Utter fail. I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, then Bill's 5 am alarm woke me up completely. I normally sleep right through it.
So, I tried to get a full night sleep Friday night before the race...
Fail.
I would have had to go to bed at 6 pm to get a full 8 hours. That's never gonna happen. So, the goal was 8 pm, but that time shot by as well. I finally did get in bed at 9 pm...
... then got a phone call at 10 pm and was wide awake for another 30 minutes or more.
Still, 2:30 am arrived.
I did pretty well at eating my breakfast of oatmeal and a banana. OK, so I only ate half the banana.
I had packed and arranged all my race day gear the night before, so I didn't have to worry about forgetting anything. I planned to run with a water belt even though there were water/aid stations throughout the course. I refuel with Shot Blocks and the race only offered Gu gels. It's important not to change what you do on race day, so the water belt was more to carry my fuel of choice than for the water. Although it did prove useful to have a little water on me whenever I wanted to rinse the sweat out of my eyes. I greased myself up with Vaseline to prevent chafing, got dressed, and was ready to leave by 3:00.
Bill dropped me off at the bus loading zone and took off into the mountains for some early morning biking. I got in line for the bus and met a man named Jason. We chatted about the race and our families the whole way up to the starting drop off zone. I tell you what. That was a LONG bus ride! I remember a feeling of panic when riding the shuttle for the half marathon. This was worse. 26 miles is a long way.
The bus dropped us off at 4:30 am alongside a ranch. The rancher allowed the runners to use his pasture for a staging area. The whole pasture was full of campfires for the runners to keep warm.
It seemed like most of the people there were running with a friend. I was alone. So, I asked to join a group at their campfire. It turned out that most of that group knew each other and had run several other marathons together. Still, they were friendly and supportive. We ended up sitting in that prickly field grass playing campfire games until it was time to turn in our drop bags and line up at the starting line.
Drop bags are used to stuff your warm-up gear and anything else you want to bring to the race. The organizers chuck them all in a rental truck and haul it down to the finish line for you. After the race, you can collect your drop bag because it has your bib number attached to it. Mine had my sweat jacket (for before the race), my flip-flops (for after the race), tissues and other random minor items.
Lining up for a race, you find a race pacer holding a sign with the time you want to try to finish the race in. The fastest race pacers are to the front of the line. I headed to the back of the line. Let's face it. I know I'm not fast. My only goal was to actually finish this monster. Based on my longest training run, I thought I'd be doing really great if I finished in 5 hours, but the reality would probably be closer to 5 1/2 hours.
In the final countdown everyone around me was chatting and getting encouragement from each other and from the race pacer nearest us. In fact, I was so caught up in listening to the chatter that the race began before I even realized! The big surge only happens at the front of the column. At the back, we just started walking calmly forward until we got to the starting arch, then began our run.
I won't give you a blow by blow of every single awesome-beautiful-uplifting-inspiring-challenging-tough-discouraging-painful-agonizing mile. Instead, here are some highlights...
The early part of the race was cool because we were high in the mountains and the sun wasn't up, yet. The mid part of the race was cool because we were still in the canyon and the cliffs formed huge shadows that keep a near perpetual pre-sunrise chill in the air. The last part of the race was HOT because we were out of the canyon, running in the full blaze of the summer sun in the middle of the city.
Oh, the scenery was beautiful! I live here and I know the canyon very well. Still, running through it gives so much more time to soak in the views than driving it. Rolling hills, red barns, white rail fences, shimmering water in the river and the reservoir, green pine forests, rugged cliffs, waterfalls, and wildflowers.
For a downhill course, there sure were plenty of uphills. I knew I couldn't run the entire course non-stop, so I decided to walk the uphills. That way I could use the momentum of the downhill running to try to improve on my training time. That seemed to work well. When an uphill section drew near, I picked a spot on the hill where I would give myself permission to slow to a walk. Then, as I neared the crest, I chose another spot there I had to start running again.
Once, while I was walking an uphill, another participant joined me. I couldn't tell her age. She might have been my age; she might have been younger. Her hair was bleached white and her skin was very dark. She looked too trim and fit to be with us slower runners, but at the same time, she looked like she had lived life hard and fast... if that makes any sense. We chatted for a while and she told me all about the person she was supposed to be running with in the race. He was her boyfriend and chose to run with her despite not being a runner himself. He used to be clean and sober, but had recently fallen off the bandwagon and was drinking and smoking weed again. He had fallen behind and she was worried about him. She was walking in the hopes that he would catch up to her.
Then she told me that he hits her, sometimes.
Holy $*#@!
I had listened to her tale about her boyfriend and held my tongue, despite thinking he was pathetic, but I couldn't remain quiet any longer. I told her emphatically that she needed to leave him! I advised her to turn him in to the authorities. I told her she deserved better and that NO ONE had the right to hit her! I asked her if she had family near by (she is living with her parents). We were well on the downhill side and my "run" marker had come and gone, but I kept walking and talking with her.
In the end, I had to leave her. I couldn't walk the whole race. I wished her well and continued on my way. I don't remember her name, and I will probably never see her again, but I hope she finds the courage to get him out of her life!
Other runners came and went on my radar. Only a few others stand out, for me.
One such runner was named John. He and I had been leap frogging for most of the lower canyon. We walked together for a little while at the base of the canyon. He was an older gentleman with a handlebar mustache. This was his 300th marathon.
300th!!!
He started running them in the 80's. He was so friendly. He complimented me on my "power walk" (I wouldn't let my walking speed drop below 4 1/2 mph) and advised me to cut from corner to corner of the road on turns to make sure I wasn't adding mileage to the race. I told him my hope to finish at around 5hr 15min and he said that while it'd be tough, he believed I could make it. He pulled away as we entered the city. I could see him turning to look back and check on me every once and a while. But he had some amazing reserves of speed in him that weren't in me, so I watched him go and kept on going at the best pace I could manage...
...because by then I was in pain.
Oh! The first half of the race was SO BEAUTIFUL! I really enjoyed the first 15 miles. In fact, it wasn't until around mile 18 that I started to hurt. Mile 21 is when it truly got tough. By then I was in new territory. I had never pushed myself that far, before. By mile 23, I was in agony. My knees hurt, but it was my feet that were causing my distress. They were on FIRE! Every step was piercing. It felt like I was ripping the soles off my feet. At one point, my mind was entirely filled with the pain in my feet until I finally had to tell myself, "yes, there is pain. It is not going away. Accept it, put it out of your mind, and keep going."
The last 3 miles felt like they lasted forever. My body wanted to quit, but my mind was locked and rock solid. I was gonna finish this thing. Only 3 measly miles stood between me and my goal. There were water stations at every mile marker for those last 3 miles, so I drank a Powerade, drank a water, and doused myself with a water each time and forced myself to keep moving forward.
I don't think I can put into words the feeling when I saw the finish line in the distance. Overwhelming emotions! Knowing it was almost over, if I could just hold out a little bit longer! I had sent Bill texts at 13.1 miles, 10 miles, 5, 3, 2, and 1 mile. I forced myself to run the last half mile non-stop. I wanted to finish strong.
Mom, Dad, and Paul (my brother-in-law) were waiting to cheer me at the 26 mile marker. Bill and Will were at the finish line. I found out later that my visiting teaching partner, Leanna, came down and watched me finish without telling me she was going to do so! She is so awesome!
Yes, I choked up as I crossed the line.
Bill and Will came to find me right away. Bill had made up an entire lunch cooler full of post race awesomeness! He made a bottle of chocolate milk mixed just the way I like it. He had a couple of frozen bottles of water that he used as a roller massage on my legs and to ice my knees. There was a protein shake and a couple of Cokes. He and Will ended up drinking the Cokes, though. I didn't want them. Will went and got my drop bag for me so I could strip off the shoes and socks and put my flip-flops on.
Mom, Dad, and Paul found me and we all sat on the City Hall steps as Bill massaged my legs. You are supposed to walk off the race, not sit down and, yes, I did walk around all afternoon, but I'll save that story for another post.
My official time was 5 hours, 19 minutes, 10 seconds. That is just crazy! Who would want to spend that much time running?! Me, apparently.
After saying good-bye to Mom, Dad, and Paul, we headed to the car. Bill had parked it on the second level of a parking structure, so Will and I waited in the shade while Bill brought it down. There was no way I wanted to walk up to it. While we waited, my campfire buddies came walking up! And... John was with them! They all recognized me and we high-fived (and John gave me a hug) as they congratulated me on completing my first marathon. One of them pointed out to me that there was a blister on the side of my foot. I hadn't even noticed it. The pain in the soles of my feet had completely masked it.
So, here we are... A day later. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) has set in with a vengeance. I feel like someone has beaten me with a baseball bat. Everything from my chest down just HURTS! I can barely stand. Besides the blister, I also have 4 toenails (two on each foot) that look like they are going to die and fall off.
But, I am so very happy! I conquered myself and completed this huge goal. Now I plan to enjoy my summer just doing whatever workout strikes my fancy. Running will return to its rightful place as only one of many things I like to do, instead of consuming all my workouts.
Thanks to everyone who has supported my in this crazy journey to marathon! It means a lot to me.
Will I ever do it again?
I think so!
Over the Limit
I am still training for the marathon. It is less than a month away.
Several weeks ago, I ran 16.5 miles and my knees REALLY did not like it! I ended up walking the majority of the last two miles and I was very frustrated. The following weekend, I decided to cut my long run down to 10 miles, just to give my knees a bit of a break. That was working out great, until I pulled something in my lower left leg about 1.6 miles from the end of the run. Gah. I limped along, calling each family member in turn, to see if anyone was close enough to home to come and pick me up. No one was even remotely close. So, I limped on home for 1.6 miles. I iced it all day, but it still took about a week before I was able to "run" again. Now I am back to running, but I seem to have lost all ambition. I should be running 20 miles by now (in my training schedule), but I don't seem to have the motivation to do more than 7 or 8 miles at a time. :~/
Ah well. I still plan to "run" the marathon in a few weeks. My time on it will probably be terrible, but at least I'll be able to check it off the bucket list and go back to the kinds of workouts I enjoy doing!
I do enjoy running... for about an hour or less. After that it just becomes WORK. I'm not a marathoner, after all. I need to stick to the 10K to Half Marathon distance.
I also enjoy riding my bike... when it isn't a race.
I can't wait to get back to swimming, too! I've spent all this spring focused almost exclusively on running, with only one cross training workout per week. I can't wait to just go back to swim/bike/run/kayak/weights... and doing them whenever I want!
But all of that isn't really what I wanted to talk about today.
Despite all my exercising, I haven't lost ANY weight.
I know it shouldn't matter. My heart is healthy. My body is healthy. That is what should matter.
But I want a flat tummy. I want the flab and fat gone. Bottom line.
So, I have decided that I simply have to gain control of some kind over my diet.
Did you know that I gave up soda last November? Okay, I admit, I drank one in Hawaii. But I discovered that it tasted terrible! Woah. I used to LOVE the taste of Dr. Pepper! Now it just tastes like bitter chemicals to me. HURRAY! I am actually really glad for that "cheat" soda, because before I drank it, I struggled with my willpower every time we ate out, because I was remembering that wonderful taste. Now, it is super easy to go for a non-soda beverage, because I know soda won't taste good.
I thought giving up soda would be the magic bullet for weight loss. People are always saying, "I gave up soda and dropped 20 lbs!" Yeah, not me.
So. It is time for a new challenge. I feel like I have won the soda fight, and it is time for a new battle.
I am going to track my sugars.
That's it. No calorie counting. No worrying about ratios of proteins and carbs. Just count those stinkin' sugars.
So far today I am up to 57 grams. That is just breakfast (oatmeal w/butter, 1 tsp. of sugar, and cinnamon & a glass of milk) and lunch (frozen burritos w/sour cream & salsa & a glass of milk).
How many sugar grams am I supposed to have in a day?
Well, sha-poopie.
I'm already at the limit at 3:00 in the afternoon. That's without any treats, too. Dinner will take me over.
This is gonna be a hard fight.
I can tell immediately that I'm gonna have to curb my milk addiction. Milk has 12 grams per cup. So, I'm gonna have to cut my portions in half, I think.
I'll let you know how it's going in a month or two.
Several weeks ago, I ran 16.5 miles and my knees REALLY did not like it! I ended up walking the majority of the last two miles and I was very frustrated. The following weekend, I decided to cut my long run down to 10 miles, just to give my knees a bit of a break. That was working out great, until I pulled something in my lower left leg about 1.6 miles from the end of the run. Gah. I limped along, calling each family member in turn, to see if anyone was close enough to home to come and pick me up. No one was even remotely close. So, I limped on home for 1.6 miles. I iced it all day, but it still took about a week before I was able to "run" again. Now I am back to running, but I seem to have lost all ambition. I should be running 20 miles by now (in my training schedule), but I don't seem to have the motivation to do more than 7 or 8 miles at a time. :~/
Ah well. I still plan to "run" the marathon in a few weeks. My time on it will probably be terrible, but at least I'll be able to check it off the bucket list and go back to the kinds of workouts I enjoy doing!
I do enjoy running... for about an hour or less. After that it just becomes WORK. I'm not a marathoner, after all. I need to stick to the 10K to Half Marathon distance.
I also enjoy riding my bike... when it isn't a race.
I can't wait to get back to swimming, too! I've spent all this spring focused almost exclusively on running, with only one cross training workout per week. I can't wait to just go back to swim/bike/run/kayak/weights... and doing them whenever I want!
But all of that isn't really what I wanted to talk about today.
Despite all my exercising, I haven't lost ANY weight.
I know it shouldn't matter. My heart is healthy. My body is healthy. That is what should matter.
But I want a flat tummy. I want the flab and fat gone. Bottom line.
So, I have decided that I simply have to gain control of some kind over my diet.
Did you know that I gave up soda last November? Okay, I admit, I drank one in Hawaii. But I discovered that it tasted terrible! Woah. I used to LOVE the taste of Dr. Pepper! Now it just tastes like bitter chemicals to me. HURRAY! I am actually really glad for that "cheat" soda, because before I drank it, I struggled with my willpower every time we ate out, because I was remembering that wonderful taste. Now, it is super easy to go for a non-soda beverage, because I know soda won't taste good.
I thought giving up soda would be the magic bullet for weight loss. People are always saying, "I gave up soda and dropped 20 lbs!" Yeah, not me.
So. It is time for a new challenge. I feel like I have won the soda fight, and it is time for a new battle.
I am going to track my sugars.
That's it. No calorie counting. No worrying about ratios of proteins and carbs. Just count those stinkin' sugars.
So far today I am up to 57 grams. That is just breakfast (oatmeal w/butter, 1 tsp. of sugar, and cinnamon & a glass of milk) and lunch (frozen burritos w/sour cream & salsa & a glass of milk).
How many sugar grams am I supposed to have in a day?
50-60 grams.
Well, sha-poopie.
I'm already at the limit at 3:00 in the afternoon. That's without any treats, too. Dinner will take me over.
This is gonna be a hard fight.
I can tell immediately that I'm gonna have to curb my milk addiction. Milk has 12 grams per cup. So, I'm gonna have to cut my portions in half, I think.
I'll let you know how it's going in a month or two.
Too Much to Write About...
OK. So I know I have neglected this thing something fierce. I apologize. There is lots to tell you, and I'm not going to be able to do everything justice in one post. I think that's part of the problem. If I don't get things recorded right away, they start stockpiling in my mind and it gets overwhelming thinking of all the things I need to write about. I really haven't forgotten about writing, you see. I am constantly composing posts in my head. Unfortunately, most of those posts never happen because I am not in a position to actually write them in the moment. So what you read on the blog is only a fraction of what gets composed in my head. Then, if it piles up in my head, you don't get to read any of it because I get shut down by thinking of how much catching up I have to do. And, the "catch up" posts are never as vivid and detail rich as the original composition in my head. So, again, sorry about that!
What have you missed?
Each one of these things deserves its own post. I will try to work my way through them tomorrow. That should be a good Sunday activity, right?
What have you missed?
- Bill and I traveled to Oahu for a week to celebrate our 20th anniversary. Lots of stories to tell you. Awesome pictures will be posted to Facebook at some point... probably.
- As soon as we got back, Helena moved out and is now living with her best friend in a basement apartment two towns over. I am super sad she is no longer my little girl and I miss her something fierce!
- On the same weekend Helena moved out, one of Will's classmates (and friend) committed suicide. I did not know the boy, but man! It made me so sad for his family and worried about my own son and his mental health. I am exhausted from the roller coaster of emotions between joy on my anniversary trip, and grief the following week for the senseless loss of this young man.
- Will took the ACT for the first time back in March and got a FANTASTIC score! We're super proud of his brains.
- We refinanced the house to a 10 year term with a rockstar interest rate. It will save us tens of thousands of dollars without changing our monthly payment! Yeah, baby!
- I am still training for the marathon, though it is painful and difficult. Today's run was 16.5 miles. I doubt I will ever do another marathon after crossing this one off my bucket list. I am even considering removing the full Ironman from the bucket list simply because 26.2 miles of running is super hard on my knees.
- Will is off on another National Guard drill weekend. He still plans to enlist on his 17th birthday. I can feel how very little time I have left with him before he, too, moves out. With Helena and Will both gone, the house feels WAY too quiet and empty. I find myself wandering into their rooms and just standing there, feeling sad.
Each one of these things deserves its own post. I will try to work my way through them tomorrow. That should be a good Sunday activity, right?
Running
I ran 6.6 miles, today. That is 10% more distance that last Saturday.
Yup. Marathon training has begun.
For the past several months, I have been doing what I guess could be called "maintenance" exercising. Just trying to maintain a base level of fitness. I have tried to exercise 4 or 5 days a week, mixing it up with running, cycling class, swimming, and some weights. I have done this because I knew I'd be facing a tough marathon training regime starting in mid February.
And, here we are.
To train for a marathon, I have to build up the endurance to be able to keep my body moving for miles upon miles. It is not something than can be done cold turkey. Not without damaging your body. The pounding of 26.2 miles can only be endured with a body that has been slowly toughened up for it. At least, I hope it can be endured! I have to tell you, this race scares me more than anything I have yet done. Not even the half ironman scared me the way this running distance does.
So, every Saturday workout now becomes my "long run". I have deleted the pool from my Saturday lineup (I'm sad about that) so that I can focus exclusively on piling the miles on. Every Saturday will be a 10% increase from the previous week. That is just a small enough increase each week to prevent injury (I hope). Meanwhile, my weekday workouts will slowly build, too.
Actually, most of my weekday workouts will remain exactly the same. But within a few weeks, my Wednesday run will start to build mileage, too. It will stay at approximately 1/2 the distance of the Saturday long run. So, when Saturday's run hits 10 miles, Wednesday's run will be 5 miles. The rest of my week will stay the same. Mondays are 30 minutes of sprints and 1 hour of pool. Tuesdays are 1 hour cycle class and 30 min. arm weights. Wednesday was 1 hour cycle class and 30 minute run, but that will change, now. And Thursday is 60 minute intervals run. Friday and Sunday are my rest days.
I can only hope that the weather decides to cooperate and bring an early spring so I'm not stuck running 10+ miles around and around the indoor track in a mind-numbingly endless loop.
Here's a cute track story for you...
This morning as I was running my miles on the track, there was a family also exercising on the track. Their little boy looked to be about 4 years old. I was the only endurance runner on the track, and he noticed me running past. At one point, he was sitting with his big sister on the bench when he saw me approach. He quickly jumped up and started racing me! I matched his pace and he made it nearly one full lap of the track before he had to fall out of the race. I gave him a big cheeky grin and a high five for racing me. That did it! He sat in wait for me and "raced" me at least 5 more times, each time getting a high five. His momma and his grandmama both got a big kick out of it. So did I!
Yup. Marathon training has begun.
For the past several months, I have been doing what I guess could be called "maintenance" exercising. Just trying to maintain a base level of fitness. I have tried to exercise 4 or 5 days a week, mixing it up with running, cycling class, swimming, and some weights. I have done this because I knew I'd be facing a tough marathon training regime starting in mid February.
And, here we are.
To train for a marathon, I have to build up the endurance to be able to keep my body moving for miles upon miles. It is not something than can be done cold turkey. Not without damaging your body. The pounding of 26.2 miles can only be endured with a body that has been slowly toughened up for it. At least, I hope it can be endured! I have to tell you, this race scares me more than anything I have yet done. Not even the half ironman scared me the way this running distance does.
So, every Saturday workout now becomes my "long run". I have deleted the pool from my Saturday lineup (I'm sad about that) so that I can focus exclusively on piling the miles on. Every Saturday will be a 10% increase from the previous week. That is just a small enough increase each week to prevent injury (I hope). Meanwhile, my weekday workouts will slowly build, too.
Actually, most of my weekday workouts will remain exactly the same. But within a few weeks, my Wednesday run will start to build mileage, too. It will stay at approximately 1/2 the distance of the Saturday long run. So, when Saturday's run hits 10 miles, Wednesday's run will be 5 miles. The rest of my week will stay the same. Mondays are 30 minutes of sprints and 1 hour of pool. Tuesdays are 1 hour cycle class and 30 min. arm weights. Wednesday was 1 hour cycle class and 30 minute run, but that will change, now. And Thursday is 60 minute intervals run. Friday and Sunday are my rest days.
I can only hope that the weather decides to cooperate and bring an early spring so I'm not stuck running 10+ miles around and around the indoor track in a mind-numbingly endless loop.
Here's a cute track story for you...
This morning as I was running my miles on the track, there was a family also exercising on the track. Their little boy looked to be about 4 years old. I was the only endurance runner on the track, and he noticed me running past. At one point, he was sitting with his big sister on the bench when he saw me approach. He quickly jumped up and started racing me! I matched his pace and he made it nearly one full lap of the track before he had to fall out of the race. I gave him a big cheeky grin and a high five for racing me. That did it! He sat in wait for me and "raced" me at least 5 more times, each time getting a high five. His momma and his grandmama both got a big kick out of it. So did I!
By the Numbers
It is absolutely amazing how awesome I feel after working out. No, really!
I feel taller. Sexier. Stronger. Happier. Prettier. Skinnier. And just all around GOOD.
There is no drug better than endorphins. You wanna get high? EXERCISE!
I still have 20 lbs to lose. The numbers on the scale are stubborn little buggers. But I don't let them get me down, because I have some other really awesome numbers for you...
I can sustain 155+ bpm (heart Beats Per Minute) for well over an hour on a daily basis.
My resting heart rate fluctuates between 45-55 bpm. That is rockstar! An average healthy person's resting heart rate is 60-90 bpm. 45-55 bpm is endurance athlete level. That makes me feel amazing!
My blood pressure is consistently below 120/80. Usually about 116/75. That is also rockstar!
I can run a flat 5K (3.1 miles) in under 28 minutes and a 10K with light hills in one hour.
I'm at about 16.5-17.5 mph on my bike training.
I can get a short lane 100m swim done in under 2 min. and my longest swim to date is 3000m.
So, if the numbers on the scale are getting you down, start paying attention to other numbers in your life. You'll soon find something to cheer about!
And, by all means, get out there and get high...
... on exercise!
I feel taller. Sexier. Stronger. Happier. Prettier. Skinnier. And just all around GOOD.
There is no drug better than endorphins. You wanna get high? EXERCISE!
I still have 20 lbs to lose. The numbers on the scale are stubborn little buggers. But I don't let them get me down, because I have some other really awesome numbers for you...
I can sustain 155+ bpm (heart Beats Per Minute) for well over an hour on a daily basis.
My resting heart rate fluctuates between 45-55 bpm. That is rockstar! An average healthy person's resting heart rate is 60-90 bpm. 45-55 bpm is endurance athlete level. That makes me feel amazing!
My blood pressure is consistently below 120/80. Usually about 116/75. That is also rockstar!
I can run a flat 5K (3.1 miles) in under 28 minutes and a 10K with light hills in one hour.
I'm at about 16.5-17.5 mph on my bike training.
I can get a short lane 100m swim done in under 2 min. and my longest swim to date is 3000m.
So, if the numbers on the scale are getting you down, start paying attention to other numbers in your life. You'll soon find something to cheer about!
And, by all means, get out there and get high...
... on exercise!
Fall
I'm sorry. I've slacked off in my journaling. I've had several post ideas, but I was never at a computer when the thought came, and I forgot my awesome ideas once I was sitting at a computer.
And so it goes.
I thought I'd write about fall, today.
I had a hard time letting go of summer this year. It was really such an awesome summer! The best one I've had in many years! I'm already looking forward to next summer... it was that good.
Still, autumn is nice, too. In fact, I can now go running in early afternoon without giving myself heat stroke. But it is starting to get too chilly for biking because I am a wimp. I don't like being cold. Bill will put on extra layers and go out there even when it is fre-jeezing. Not me. No thanks. I'll go to a spin class, instead. Fortunately, there is a 6 pm spinning class every M-Th.
Same thing goes for running. Once it drops below 45 degrees outside, I'm an indoor girl! I was going to go trail running this morning, but it was 34 degrees. So I ran on a treadmill, instead. Then I swam laps in the pool, which is now indoors, too! Our local pool is convertible. In the summer it is outdoor, the rest of the year, there is a bubble over it. Not very attractive, but very effective!
I packed up my gym bag this morning with everything I thought I'd need. Plastic bag for sweaty running clothes, swim "toys", swimsuit & towel, and clothes to wear home. The one thing I forgot? Sandals for the walk home. Call me crazy, but I don't want to put my sweaty running shoes back on my damp feet after swimming! So I walked home barefoot. I did that all the time over the summer, and today was nice enough that it was fine, but I better start getting in the habit of packing them before winter sets in! I do NOT want to hoof it home barefoot in the snow! Sandals? Sure! Barefoot? No.
*****
The leaves in the canyons are starting to fade already. Their colorful display is nearly over and the trees down here in the valley are just starting to turn.
Bill and I went on a road bike ride together last Monday up Provo canyon and South Fork canyon. The Provo canyon portion was on the Provo River Parkway Trail (PRPT). It is a beautiful trail! I really think I'm going to go run it sometime this coming week. However, it is a little frustrating on a bike because of all the runners on it... and all the "Freds" who use the trail.
I learned recently that mountain bikers have a lingo for road bikers and recreational bikers, in other words, all cyclists who aren't cool enough to be mountain bikers. Road cyclists are "roadies". Bill tells me I'm one of those. Recreational riders are "Fred". You can tell them apart by the coolness level of their bike, their cycling etiquette, and by what they wear when riding. A "roadie" has a respectable bike, follows the rules of the road, and is wearing cycling gear. "Freds" are on heavy WalMart-esque bikes, often ride on the wrong side of the street &/or on the sidewalk, and usually wear a cotton t-shirt and cargo shorts. Helmets with "Freds" are about 50/50. All other bikers are hard core enough to always wear a helmet.
Anyways, back to the PRPT. We had to slow down every time we passed a runner. And the "Freds" had a hard time following the paint designated lanes on the trail and would often come coasting down the hill at us in our lane, causing some consternation.
Still, it was a beautiful ride!
You might wonder why we even took the trail instead of riding on the road like true "roadies".
The Provo Canyon highway is under construction and has signs up prohibiting cycling in the construction zone. So the trail was the only option going up.
Once we reached Vivian Park and the end of the PRPT, we turned into a side canyon (South Fork) and rode up it to the top. Or, at least, until we ran out of public road. That side canyon had a lot of hill climbing! At first I was not happy about that, but after a while, I started enjoying it! Sure, it was really hard, but I was so proud of myself for being able to do it! Just a year ago I would not have been able to climb it! We climbed 1,200+ feet in just over 10 miles of riding. 2/3 of that in the second 5 miles.
Yes, it was beautiful! And, yes, the downhill 10+ miles were exceptionally fun! Round trip we traveled 21 miles.
And so it goes.
I thought I'd write about fall, today.
I had a hard time letting go of summer this year. It was really such an awesome summer! The best one I've had in many years! I'm already looking forward to next summer... it was that good.
Still, autumn is nice, too. In fact, I can now go running in early afternoon without giving myself heat stroke. But it is starting to get too chilly for biking because I am a wimp. I don't like being cold. Bill will put on extra layers and go out there even when it is fre-jeezing. Not me. No thanks. I'll go to a spin class, instead. Fortunately, there is a 6 pm spinning class every M-Th.
Same thing goes for running. Once it drops below 45 degrees outside, I'm an indoor girl! I was going to go trail running this morning, but it was 34 degrees. So I ran on a treadmill, instead. Then I swam laps in the pool, which is now indoors, too! Our local pool is convertible. In the summer it is outdoor, the rest of the year, there is a bubble over it. Not very attractive, but very effective!
I packed up my gym bag this morning with everything I thought I'd need. Plastic bag for sweaty running clothes, swim "toys", swimsuit & towel, and clothes to wear home. The one thing I forgot? Sandals for the walk home. Call me crazy, but I don't want to put my sweaty running shoes back on my damp feet after swimming! So I walked home barefoot. I did that all the time over the summer, and today was nice enough that it was fine, but I better start getting in the habit of packing them before winter sets in! I do NOT want to hoof it home barefoot in the snow! Sandals? Sure! Barefoot? No.
*****
The leaves in the canyons are starting to fade already. Their colorful display is nearly over and the trees down here in the valley are just starting to turn.
Bill and I went on a road bike ride together last Monday up Provo canyon and South Fork canyon. The Provo canyon portion was on the Provo River Parkway Trail (PRPT). It is a beautiful trail! I really think I'm going to go run it sometime this coming week. However, it is a little frustrating on a bike because of all the runners on it... and all the "Freds" who use the trail.
I learned recently that mountain bikers have a lingo for road bikers and recreational bikers, in other words, all cyclists who aren't cool enough to be mountain bikers. Road cyclists are "roadies". Bill tells me I'm one of those. Recreational riders are "Fred". You can tell them apart by the coolness level of their bike, their cycling etiquette, and by what they wear when riding. A "roadie" has a respectable bike, follows the rules of the road, and is wearing cycling gear. "Freds" are on heavy WalMart-esque bikes, often ride on the wrong side of the street &/or on the sidewalk, and usually wear a cotton t-shirt and cargo shorts. Helmets with "Freds" are about 50/50. All other bikers are hard core enough to always wear a helmet.
Anyways, back to the PRPT. We had to slow down every time we passed a runner. And the "Freds" had a hard time following the paint designated lanes on the trail and would often come coasting down the hill at us in our lane, causing some consternation.
Still, it was a beautiful ride!
You might wonder why we even took the trail instead of riding on the road like true "roadies".
The Provo Canyon highway is under construction and has signs up prohibiting cycling in the construction zone. So the trail was the only option going up.
Once we reached Vivian Park and the end of the PRPT, we turned into a side canyon (South Fork) and rode up it to the top. Or, at least, until we ran out of public road. That side canyon had a lot of hill climbing! At first I was not happy about that, but after a while, I started enjoying it! Sure, it was really hard, but I was so proud of myself for being able to do it! Just a year ago I would not have been able to climb it! We climbed 1,200+ feet in just over 10 miles of riding. 2/3 of that in the second 5 miles.
Yes, it was beautiful! And, yes, the downhill 10+ miles were exceptionally fun! Round trip we traveled 21 miles.
"Wanna Go To The Pool?"
I am asked this question often throughout the summer. The actual activity du jour varies wildly, depending on who actually asked the question.
"Wanna go to the pool?"
Coming from my youngest son, Will, this is an invite to go put in some laps and work out together. Sharing a lane is probable. Wetsuits may or may not be involved, depending on the time of day and/or weather. An actual workout swimsuit is a must. My gym bag must come, because it has my caps, goggles, and ear plugs. He is definitely hoping I'll bring my pool 'toys'... hand paddles, pull buoy, kick board, fins... so he can use them, too. Some time relaxing in the hot tub after the workout is done is a given. He may or may not abandon me, depending on whether or not one of his friends also happens to be at the pool at that moment.
If I had to describe Will's pool self, it would be a fish. Warm water, cold water... he is happy in it. Living in and loving the water.
"Wanna go to the pool?"
This question from my daughter, Helena, is not actually an invite to SWIM. This is an invite to go lounge next to the pool and bake in the sun. A lounging suit is a must. My phone for music and entertainment, ear buds, possibly reading material, and a wallet for the snack shack should all be included in the pool bag. Now, I can't really tolerate just baking in the sun, so I go dunk myself in the pool every 10-15 minutes and return to my chaise pleasantly cooled off so I can lounge on. I may even abandon my post at her side and just lay right in the water for a while. Helena, however, is the all-time-family-record-holder-queen-bee of sun baking. She is really quite the master at it.
If I had to describe Helena's pool self, it would be a lizard. Basking and dozing in the sun. Collecting its warmth to hopefully last her through the cold winter.
Bill never asks this question. Or rather, I should say, I have no recollection of Bill ever asking me, "wanna go to the pool?" It is just not in his nature to want to go to the pool. He'd rather be on a bike.
So, which version of the question do I prefer, you ask?
I like them both. I am happy to do both. Usually not at the same time. The three of us occasionally go to the pool together, but usually it is a one on one kind of deal. Any which way you look at it, it is a win-win for me.
Time at/in the pool + time with my kids = a very happy me!
"Wanna go to the pool?"
Coming from my youngest son, Will, this is an invite to go put in some laps and work out together. Sharing a lane is probable. Wetsuits may or may not be involved, depending on the time of day and/or weather. An actual workout swimsuit is a must. My gym bag must come, because it has my caps, goggles, and ear plugs. He is definitely hoping I'll bring my pool 'toys'... hand paddles, pull buoy, kick board, fins... so he can use them, too. Some time relaxing in the hot tub after the workout is done is a given. He may or may not abandon me, depending on whether or not one of his friends also happens to be at the pool at that moment.
If I had to describe Will's pool self, it would be a fish. Warm water, cold water... he is happy in it. Living in and loving the water.
"Wanna go to the pool?"
This question from my daughter, Helena, is not actually an invite to SWIM. This is an invite to go lounge next to the pool and bake in the sun. A lounging suit is a must. My phone for music and entertainment, ear buds, possibly reading material, and a wallet for the snack shack should all be included in the pool bag. Now, I can't really tolerate just baking in the sun, so I go dunk myself in the pool every 10-15 minutes and return to my chaise pleasantly cooled off so I can lounge on. I may even abandon my post at her side and just lay right in the water for a while. Helena, however, is the all-time-family-record-holder-queen-bee of sun baking. She is really quite the master at it.
If I had to describe Helena's pool self, it would be a lizard. Basking and dozing in the sun. Collecting its warmth to hopefully last her through the cold winter.
Bill never asks this question. Or rather, I should say, I have no recollection of Bill ever asking me, "wanna go to the pool?" It is just not in his nature to want to go to the pool. He'd rather be on a bike.
So, which version of the question do I prefer, you ask?
I like them both. I am happy to do both. Usually not at the same time. The three of us occasionally go to the pool together, but usually it is a one on one kind of deal. Any which way you look at it, it is a win-win for me.
Time at/in the pool + time with my kids = a very happy me!
Utah Half 2012
This was the event I have been planning and training for all year. I have been dreading it for the past 3 months; afraid I wouldn't be able to accomplish it. Surprisingly, the day before the race, I was able to compartmentalize my mind, so it didn't really hit me that the race was tomorrow until after I finished teaching for the day and started heading home from work. Once THE RACE was the next thing on the agenda, that's when I really started stressing out. So I guess it is a good thing I only had to go through the physical reactions to stress for a few hours instead of a few days!
It was like how I felt before my first half marathon, only multiplied by 10. I thought I might be sick.
Early evening of the day before the race, my right hip started hurting deep in the joint. It was more like an ache... it felt like it needed to pop. That got me really paranoid!
(Hey guys, the next paragraph mentions female body parts and processes. If you want, you can skip ahead to the next paragraph and we won't think any less of you.)
As if I wasn't nervous enough already, Aunt Flo stopped by for her monthly visit on the night before the race! I hadn't even thought about how to deal with that kind of hygiene issue while on an all day kind of race. I was worried about possible cramping during the race. Not to mention how much more painful this was going to make my time on the bike, since lady parts get touchy and sensitive when Aunt Flo comes over. In the end, I decided not to deal with Aunt Flo at all and just let that be one more layer of gross-ness that can be showered off after the race was over. That strategy worked well for me, by the way. Sorry. I know that seems gross, but you do what you gotta do.
(Okay, guys. You can come back now.)
The night before the race we had our normal Friday date night at Rubio's. I packed my tri bag and my special needs bag. Will loaded his windsurf board on top of the car (hoping for good wind while waiting for me during the race, it wasn't to be). I had a second dinner of chicken and pasta. I went to bed early.
On the morning of the race, I dragged myself out of bed at 5 am. Bill did a last minute tune up of my bike and got it loaded on the car. The kids slowly emerged from their bedrooms, and I actually managed to eat my entire breakfast and felt surprisingly calm. I think it helped that I was alone in the kitchen at the time. People talking to me about all things pertaining to the event seems to kill my ability to swallow. I took a dose of naproxen sodium to keep swelling down and prevent joint pain, too.
We got down to the Provo marina just after 6 am. The pre race meeting was scheduled to start at 6:20 and the race was supposed to begin at 7 am. In the meantime, I had to get my number painted on (293), pick up and put on my timing chip (it goes around your ankle), set up my transition station, and get into my wetsuit.
It was a big transition station. And mostly already full. I wasn't the last to arrive, but the transition opened up at 4 am, so I was looking at just getting whatever space I could find. However, I found just the perfect spot! Transition is so big, and has so many bikes in it, that it can be hard to find yours if you aren't paying close attention to details. The racks have row letters painted in the center aisle, starting with A, going through the alphabet, and repeating with double letters beyond that (I think mine was DD, or something like that). But I had a better marker. My bike was close to the lake and lined up perfectly with the exit ramp from the swim!
The pre-race meeting started late and because of that, the race also started late. Instead of a 7 am start, I think the first wave of swimmers started at 7:27. Or maybe it was 7:37. Either way, it ended in a 7 because I did look at my watch. I was in the last wave again. Bill and the kids looked forward to watching me in the swim, but they weren't confident they'd be able to find me. The joke was, "just look for the swimmer in the black wetsuit and the green cap." Most people were in black wetsuits and the green cap was required for the race. Still, with my pink goggles and the huge bump in the back of my swim cap made by my hair, they said they were able to spot me.
All my pre-race nerves washed away the moment I stepped into the water. I had no thoughts beyond what was right in front of me... the swim. I was committed. It had begun. The water was calm. Flat. Even if it was murky Utah Lake water. Some final start line instructions through a megaphone and we're off!
There was lots of thrashing. Lots of accidentally kicking someone and being kicked. Or hit by flailing arms. I think there is just no way around that. I have a bruise on my left forearm that must be from someone kicking me. We had to do 2 laps around the buoys. My wave got into the swim course as the pros and men were starting their second lap, so the course was crowded. I kept swimming off to my left and getting farther from the buoys than I wanted to. However, it did get me out of the heavy traffic flow and I was able to settle down into my swim rhythm, which is something I couldn't do in last week's sprint.
Here's a secret about the Utah Half swim. One fourth of the course is in shallow enough water to put your feet down and walk. If you don't mind deep, soft, slimy mud, that is. I found this out when I went to practice the course several weeks ago. Apparently, there were plenty of people willing to put their feet in that mud, too. I saw several walkers on the back stretch. And, I admit it. I did put my feet down for a few moments to rest on the second lap. I even walked a few steps to catch my breath. But only a few, I promise!
I know. CHEAT! Ah well. It was only a couple of steps. I didn't walk the entire section, as I saw others do.
Another thing I have noticed about the swim portion of triathlons is... backstroke is a BAD IDEA. I can't tell you how many backstrokers I've seen headed off in the wrong direction! Some into the center of the course, others out to sea (so to speak). So, unless you are rockstar at keeping a straight course while stroking on your back... stick to front crawl and breast stroke so you can see where you are going!!! Work out whatever issues you have with technique or breathing, because it is NOT worth it to end up massively off course in the middle of a race. I do front crawl all the way, using breast stroke only to take a breather if I need one.
I had one bad moment in the swim halfway through when I suddenly started gagging and retching. I don't know why, but I did manage to get it under control and keep swimming. Finally I was in the last stretch of the swim and headed to the exit ramp. Oh, that was the longest part of the swim!
I finished the swim in just under 51 minutes. Not as fast as my pool swims by a long shot, but I was happy with how I'd done.
Will was waiting on the ramp for me. He wanted to help me out of the water, but an official got to me first. It was just as well, because I had forgotten to mention to the kids (and Bill, for that matter) that it was against the rules for me to accept help from anyone except officials and volunteers. I gave Will a big, wet hug anyway and jogged off to the transition and my bike.
Helena came running up to congratulate me on the swim. She and Will kept me company (through the fence) while I stripped off my wetsuit and got into my cycling gear. It took me longer in transition because the kids were there, but I don't care. I'd rather have my kids there showing me their love and support than have a fast transition time. Bill was down at the car getting his bike ready. The bike course was all on public roads, so I asked him if he would ride it with me, for moral support. Besides, if I got a flat, I'd need him to fix it for me, rules or no rules. I haven't learned that skill, yet. I know. My bad. He was not the only non-competitor along the course. There were lots of locals taking advantage of the policed course to get their personal workouts in.
Fortunately, I didn't get a single flat. But we found other people stranded on the side of the road, and Bill always stopped to help them. I'd keep going and he would catch up as soon as he could. The first time was just right outside the marina park. Bill said it took him 3 miles to catch up to me that time. Another time Bill stopped to help a rider, the guy had already had 4 flats (we hadn't gotten to the half way point, yet) and a torn side wall on his tire. Bill offered to give him a new tire (he was packing one for me... just in case), but the guy said 'no thanks, I'm done' and quit the race. That was the first one I saw that could not complete the race. Not the last.
The bike was 56 miles of beautiful rural countryside. Mostly. There was a little city riding, but there were cops at every intersection stopping traffic for us. I loved that! Early on I decided to go around 17 mph and keep to that pace. That's only 1 mph over my training speed, so I felt it was doable. I ended up averaging 17.5 mph, so my plan worked!
I picked up a bottle of Gatorade at the fueling station at the 15 mi mark. I'd never snatched a bottle mid-ride before. The volunteers hold them out to the riders as they ride past. I'm proud of myself for managing to do it without crashing. Most riders squirt as much of the liquid as possible into their mouths (or water pouches if they are on fancy/expensive tri bikes), then chuck the bottles to the side of the road for the volunteers to pick up later. I stuck it in my extra bottle cage and kept it for the rest of the ride.
The ride was an out and back. At the turn around (28 miles), there were volunteers waiting to bring special needs bags to the riders when they call out their bib number. Most riders quickly stuff whatever they had packed into their jersey (or where ever) and are on their way in 30 seconds or less.
Not me. I full on stopped and unclipped. I was probably there for 10 minutes, just eating what I had packed. I'm not good at eating while I'm riding. So I stood there and ate my banana, protein drink, and whatever else I'd put in there for calories to make it to the next refueling back at transition.
I have to say that during the first half of the bike, I'd passed a lot of people. They all blasted past me while I had my picnic at the turn around. But the interesting thing is...
... on the second half of the bike, I passed them all back again, plus a few more people as well! Many of them weren't able to sustain the same speed in the second half of the bike as they had in the first. I maintained the same speeds throughout. So I think the picnic turned out to be a good idea in the end.
Oh, and I can't tell you how good it felt to pass those 22 and 23 year old men. And that one 36 year old guy that got so upset about me passing him, yet he couldn't manage to catch back up to me. Hee, hee. (Sorry. Not very sporting of me.)
I can't thank Bill enough for coming with me on the bike! He made it fun and relaxing, just like one of our normal training rides together. So, thanks again, sweetheart! You rock!
The watering station at mile 41 came up much faster than I'd expected, and before you know it, I was counting down the last 6 miles of the bike. I wasn't sure what my increased pace on the bike was going to do to my running legs... the segment of the race I dreaded the most.
Back in transition, I took another dose of naproxen sodium, since I knew it had been 6 or more hours since the last dose. I ate another banana and some other sport beans & Gu while I switched from my biking gear to my running gear. I really spent a lot of time in transition this time, nearly 10 minutes! But the kids were so happy to see me and hear about the bike that I spent some time talking to them while Bill put his bike away in the car and hurried to join them and wish me luck on the run.
Okay, I was also stalling because I really didn't want to do the run. I still had to run a half marathon and all I really wanted to do was go jump back in the lake!
But, I couldn't stop now, with the swim and bike over, I was 2/3 done. And, early that morning, I had written a message to myself on my left forearm. "YouCanDoThis". Just in case it was ever in doubt.
So, finally, I said goodbye to the family and headed out on the run.
Running without music is HARD. I spent most of my time counting my breaths. Sixty breaths of running. 20 breaths of walking. Repeat. I knew if I just ran without taking breaks, I wouldn't make it. So, I created intervals that I could sustain over the long haul. I knew my time would be slower than a normal half marathon, but I thought it would be acceptable considering what I'd already gone through that day. I was just hoping to come in under 3 hours on the run. And I did! 2 hours 54 minutes.
The run is by far the most social part of the race. The competitors can finally see eye to eye and chat with one another as they pass on the route. Don't get me wrong, we were friendly on the bike, too, but the run was more so. It was a two lap course, so there we were passing each other coming and going. Lots of high fives and encouragement for each other. Care and concern when you could see someone struggling. I saw a man give up on the race during what I think was his second lap of the run. Others were doubling over with nausea, but managed to keep going. One awesome older gentleman was hobbling along with both knees in braces and a grimace on his face, but he never gave up.
I met a 34 year old woman named Lynette. We ran together for about 1/2 a mile until she had to drop back. She said this was her third year doing this race, and she's come in dead last in her division every year, but she just keeps coming and doing it anyways. She had a great attitude about it. She said that she may be slow, but only 1% of the world's population has ever participated in a triathlon, and only 1% of that group has ever attempted 70.3 or bigger. I don't know if her figures are accurate, but they inspired her to keep going. Several people congratulated me after the race on joining the 'elite' athletes, since this was my first monster race. I laughed at that, because I don't consider myself an athlete, let alone an 'elite' one.
I have to say that the aid stations on the run were the best I've ever seen! They were roughly every mile. There was water, Heed (an electrolyte drink), Gatorade, Coke (I tried it at one station and decided it was a bad idea... carbonation, no), gels, ice, and salt tablets. Oh, and every other aid station had a kid maning a hose to spray down any athlete who wanted it. I was carrying Will's phone (I'd forgotten mine at home), but I mostly managed to keep his phone dry AND get hosed off every single time.
For a few miles towards the end, my left ankle was hurting, and so was my right knee. But after a while, they stopped hurting. It's as if they decided since I wasn't paying attention, they'd just play nice.
I used the phone to text my position to the family periodically, starting at mile 7, so they would know when to position themselves at the finish and cheer. By the end of the run, I was counting 20 breaths running, 20 breaths walking. But, I made it! I crossed the finish line with Bill, Helena, Will... and my brother, Erik, and his wife, Deanna, there to cheer me on! I thought it was so awesomely sweet of Erik and Deanna to make time in their day to come see me finish!!!
After cooling down and visiting for a while, I discovered that Helena had gotten some specialized markers and wrote messages to me all over my car! She was afraid I might get mad, but I loved it! We got so many curious looks from other motorists on the freeway as we drove home.
The finisher's medal is a seriously heavy piece of hardware. It felt cool wearing it and I was proud to earn it, but I can't help wondering just what, exactly, I'm supposed to do with it now (along with the others I've collected). I think I'll get a curtain rod and install it on a wall in the back hall and hang them from that. Bill can hang his, too.
Now I feel sore, tired, and hungry. I calculated that I burned between 5,500 and 6,100 calories that day. I have no idea how many I ingested. Not that many, for sure. Not even by half.
So, everything I eat today tastes absolutely AMAZING. Really. I don't think scrambled eggs have ever tasted so good!
However, I feel amazingly good! Not as sore as I was after my first ever half marathon two years ago.
I still can't believe I did it. It didn't feel so huge while I was in the middle of doing it. Just one step at a time until you get to the end and realize you just traveled 70.3 miles!
I'll stop rambling now and move on with my life. Thanks for sticking with this extremely long winded post! And thanks to all of you for your kindness, friendship, and encouragement along the journey!
Oh, and what's next, you ask?
Red Rock Relay - Zion
in two weeks.
****
Official Record
It was like how I felt before my first half marathon, only multiplied by 10. I thought I might be sick.
Early evening of the day before the race, my right hip started hurting deep in the joint. It was more like an ache... it felt like it needed to pop. That got me really paranoid!
(Hey guys, the next paragraph mentions female body parts and processes. If you want, you can skip ahead to the next paragraph and we won't think any less of you.)
As if I wasn't nervous enough already, Aunt Flo stopped by for her monthly visit on the night before the race! I hadn't even thought about how to deal with that kind of hygiene issue while on an all day kind of race. I was worried about possible cramping during the race. Not to mention how much more painful this was going to make my time on the bike, since lady parts get touchy and sensitive when Aunt Flo comes over. In the end, I decided not to deal with Aunt Flo at all and just let that be one more layer of gross-ness that can be showered off after the race was over. That strategy worked well for me, by the way. Sorry. I know that seems gross, but you do what you gotta do.
(Okay, guys. You can come back now.)
The night before the race we had our normal Friday date night at Rubio's. I packed my tri bag and my special needs bag. Will loaded his windsurf board on top of the car (hoping for good wind while waiting for me during the race, it wasn't to be). I had a second dinner of chicken and pasta. I went to bed early.
On the morning of the race, I dragged myself out of bed at 5 am. Bill did a last minute tune up of my bike and got it loaded on the car. The kids slowly emerged from their bedrooms, and I actually managed to eat my entire breakfast and felt surprisingly calm. I think it helped that I was alone in the kitchen at the time. People talking to me about all things pertaining to the event seems to kill my ability to swallow. I took a dose of naproxen sodium to keep swelling down and prevent joint pain, too.
We got down to the Provo marina just after 6 am. The pre race meeting was scheduled to start at 6:20 and the race was supposed to begin at 7 am. In the meantime, I had to get my number painted on (293), pick up and put on my timing chip (it goes around your ankle), set up my transition station, and get into my wetsuit.
It was a big transition station. And mostly already full. I wasn't the last to arrive, but the transition opened up at 4 am, so I was looking at just getting whatever space I could find. However, I found just the perfect spot! Transition is so big, and has so many bikes in it, that it can be hard to find yours if you aren't paying close attention to details. The racks have row letters painted in the center aisle, starting with A, going through the alphabet, and repeating with double letters beyond that (I think mine was DD, or something like that). But I had a better marker. My bike was close to the lake and lined up perfectly with the exit ramp from the swim!
The pre-race meeting started late and because of that, the race also started late. Instead of a 7 am start, I think the first wave of swimmers started at 7:27. Or maybe it was 7:37. Either way, it ended in a 7 because I did look at my watch. I was in the last wave again. Bill and the kids looked forward to watching me in the swim, but they weren't confident they'd be able to find me. The joke was, "just look for the swimmer in the black wetsuit and the green cap." Most people were in black wetsuits and the green cap was required for the race. Still, with my pink goggles and the huge bump in the back of my swim cap made by my hair, they said they were able to spot me.
All my pre-race nerves washed away the moment I stepped into the water. I had no thoughts beyond what was right in front of me... the swim. I was committed. It had begun. The water was calm. Flat. Even if it was murky Utah Lake water. Some final start line instructions through a megaphone and we're off!
There was lots of thrashing. Lots of accidentally kicking someone and being kicked. Or hit by flailing arms. I think there is just no way around that. I have a bruise on my left forearm that must be from someone kicking me. We had to do 2 laps around the buoys. My wave got into the swim course as the pros and men were starting their second lap, so the course was crowded. I kept swimming off to my left and getting farther from the buoys than I wanted to. However, it did get me out of the heavy traffic flow and I was able to settle down into my swim rhythm, which is something I couldn't do in last week's sprint.
Here's a secret about the Utah Half swim. One fourth of the course is in shallow enough water to put your feet down and walk. If you don't mind deep, soft, slimy mud, that is. I found this out when I went to practice the course several weeks ago. Apparently, there were plenty of people willing to put their feet in that mud, too. I saw several walkers on the back stretch. And, I admit it. I did put my feet down for a few moments to rest on the second lap. I even walked a few steps to catch my breath. But only a few, I promise!
I know. CHEAT! Ah well. It was only a couple of steps. I didn't walk the entire section, as I saw others do.
Another thing I have noticed about the swim portion of triathlons is... backstroke is a BAD IDEA. I can't tell you how many backstrokers I've seen headed off in the wrong direction! Some into the center of the course, others out to sea (so to speak). So, unless you are rockstar at keeping a straight course while stroking on your back... stick to front crawl and breast stroke so you can see where you are going!!! Work out whatever issues you have with technique or breathing, because it is NOT worth it to end up massively off course in the middle of a race. I do front crawl all the way, using breast stroke only to take a breather if I need one.
I had one bad moment in the swim halfway through when I suddenly started gagging and retching. I don't know why, but I did manage to get it under control and keep swimming. Finally I was in the last stretch of the swim and headed to the exit ramp. Oh, that was the longest part of the swim!
I finished the swim in just under 51 minutes. Not as fast as my pool swims by a long shot, but I was happy with how I'd done.
Will was waiting on the ramp for me. He wanted to help me out of the water, but an official got to me first. It was just as well, because I had forgotten to mention to the kids (and Bill, for that matter) that it was against the rules for me to accept help from anyone except officials and volunteers. I gave Will a big, wet hug anyway and jogged off to the transition and my bike.
Helena came running up to congratulate me on the swim. She and Will kept me company (through the fence) while I stripped off my wetsuit and got into my cycling gear. It took me longer in transition because the kids were there, but I don't care. I'd rather have my kids there showing me their love and support than have a fast transition time. Bill was down at the car getting his bike ready. The bike course was all on public roads, so I asked him if he would ride it with me, for moral support. Besides, if I got a flat, I'd need him to fix it for me, rules or no rules. I haven't learned that skill, yet. I know. My bad. He was not the only non-competitor along the course. There were lots of locals taking advantage of the policed course to get their personal workouts in.
Fortunately, I didn't get a single flat. But we found other people stranded on the side of the road, and Bill always stopped to help them. I'd keep going and he would catch up as soon as he could. The first time was just right outside the marina park. Bill said it took him 3 miles to catch up to me that time. Another time Bill stopped to help a rider, the guy had already had 4 flats (we hadn't gotten to the half way point, yet) and a torn side wall on his tire. Bill offered to give him a new tire (he was packing one for me... just in case), but the guy said 'no thanks, I'm done' and quit the race. That was the first one I saw that could not complete the race. Not the last.
The bike was 56 miles of beautiful rural countryside. Mostly. There was a little city riding, but there were cops at every intersection stopping traffic for us. I loved that! Early on I decided to go around 17 mph and keep to that pace. That's only 1 mph over my training speed, so I felt it was doable. I ended up averaging 17.5 mph, so my plan worked!
I picked up a bottle of Gatorade at the fueling station at the 15 mi mark. I'd never snatched a bottle mid-ride before. The volunteers hold them out to the riders as they ride past. I'm proud of myself for managing to do it without crashing. Most riders squirt as much of the liquid as possible into their mouths (or water pouches if they are on fancy/expensive tri bikes), then chuck the bottles to the side of the road for the volunteers to pick up later. I stuck it in my extra bottle cage and kept it for the rest of the ride.
The ride was an out and back. At the turn around (28 miles), there were volunteers waiting to bring special needs bags to the riders when they call out their bib number. Most riders quickly stuff whatever they had packed into their jersey (or where ever) and are on their way in 30 seconds or less.
Not me. I full on stopped and unclipped. I was probably there for 10 minutes, just eating what I had packed. I'm not good at eating while I'm riding. So I stood there and ate my banana, protein drink, and whatever else I'd put in there for calories to make it to the next refueling back at transition.
I have to say that during the first half of the bike, I'd passed a lot of people. They all blasted past me while I had my picnic at the turn around. But the interesting thing is...
... on the second half of the bike, I passed them all back again, plus a few more people as well! Many of them weren't able to sustain the same speed in the second half of the bike as they had in the first. I maintained the same speeds throughout. So I think the picnic turned out to be a good idea in the end.
Oh, and I can't tell you how good it felt to pass those 22 and 23 year old men. And that one 36 year old guy that got so upset about me passing him, yet he couldn't manage to catch back up to me. Hee, hee. (Sorry. Not very sporting of me.)
I can't thank Bill enough for coming with me on the bike! He made it fun and relaxing, just like one of our normal training rides together. So, thanks again, sweetheart! You rock!
The watering station at mile 41 came up much faster than I'd expected, and before you know it, I was counting down the last 6 miles of the bike. I wasn't sure what my increased pace on the bike was going to do to my running legs... the segment of the race I dreaded the most.
Back in transition, I took another dose of naproxen sodium, since I knew it had been 6 or more hours since the last dose. I ate another banana and some other sport beans & Gu while I switched from my biking gear to my running gear. I really spent a lot of time in transition this time, nearly 10 minutes! But the kids were so happy to see me and hear about the bike that I spent some time talking to them while Bill put his bike away in the car and hurried to join them and wish me luck on the run.
Okay, I was also stalling because I really didn't want to do the run. I still had to run a half marathon and all I really wanted to do was go jump back in the lake!
But, I couldn't stop now, with the swim and bike over, I was 2/3 done. And, early that morning, I had written a message to myself on my left forearm. "YouCanDoThis". Just in case it was ever in doubt.
So, finally, I said goodbye to the family and headed out on the run.
Running without music is HARD. I spent most of my time counting my breaths. Sixty breaths of running. 20 breaths of walking. Repeat. I knew if I just ran without taking breaks, I wouldn't make it. So, I created intervals that I could sustain over the long haul. I knew my time would be slower than a normal half marathon, but I thought it would be acceptable considering what I'd already gone through that day. I was just hoping to come in under 3 hours on the run. And I did! 2 hours 54 minutes.
The run is by far the most social part of the race. The competitors can finally see eye to eye and chat with one another as they pass on the route. Don't get me wrong, we were friendly on the bike, too, but the run was more so. It was a two lap course, so there we were passing each other coming and going. Lots of high fives and encouragement for each other. Care and concern when you could see someone struggling. I saw a man give up on the race during what I think was his second lap of the run. Others were doubling over with nausea, but managed to keep going. One awesome older gentleman was hobbling along with both knees in braces and a grimace on his face, but he never gave up.
I met a 34 year old woman named Lynette. We ran together for about 1/2 a mile until she had to drop back. She said this was her third year doing this race, and she's come in dead last in her division every year, but she just keeps coming and doing it anyways. She had a great attitude about it. She said that she may be slow, but only 1% of the world's population has ever participated in a triathlon, and only 1% of that group has ever attempted 70.3 or bigger. I don't know if her figures are accurate, but they inspired her to keep going. Several people congratulated me after the race on joining the 'elite' athletes, since this was my first monster race. I laughed at that, because I don't consider myself an athlete, let alone an 'elite' one.
I have to say that the aid stations on the run were the best I've ever seen! They were roughly every mile. There was water, Heed (an electrolyte drink), Gatorade, Coke (I tried it at one station and decided it was a bad idea... carbonation, no), gels, ice, and salt tablets. Oh, and every other aid station had a kid maning a hose to spray down any athlete who wanted it. I was carrying Will's phone (I'd forgotten mine at home), but I mostly managed to keep his phone dry AND get hosed off every single time.
For a few miles towards the end, my left ankle was hurting, and so was my right knee. But after a while, they stopped hurting. It's as if they decided since I wasn't paying attention, they'd just play nice.
I used the phone to text my position to the family periodically, starting at mile 7, so they would know when to position themselves at the finish and cheer. By the end of the run, I was counting 20 breaths running, 20 breaths walking. But, I made it! I crossed the finish line with Bill, Helena, Will... and my brother, Erik, and his wife, Deanna, there to cheer me on! I thought it was so awesomely sweet of Erik and Deanna to make time in their day to come see me finish!!!
After cooling down and visiting for a while, I discovered that Helena had gotten some specialized markers and wrote messages to me all over my car! She was afraid I might get mad, but I loved it! We got so many curious looks from other motorists on the freeway as we drove home.
The finisher's medal is a seriously heavy piece of hardware. It felt cool wearing it and I was proud to earn it, but I can't help wondering just what, exactly, I'm supposed to do with it now (along with the others I've collected). I think I'll get a curtain rod and install it on a wall in the back hall and hang them from that. Bill can hang his, too.
Now I feel sore, tired, and hungry. I calculated that I burned between 5,500 and 6,100 calories that day. I have no idea how many I ingested. Not that many, for sure. Not even by half.
So, everything I eat today tastes absolutely AMAZING. Really. I don't think scrambled eggs have ever tasted so good!
However, I feel amazingly good! Not as sore as I was after my first ever half marathon two years ago.
I still can't believe I did it. It didn't feel so huge while I was in the middle of doing it. Just one step at a time until you get to the end and realize you just traveled 70.3 miles!
I'll stop rambling now and move on with my life. Thanks for sticking with this extremely long winded post! And thanks to all of you for your kindness, friendship, and encouragement along the journey!
Oh, and what's next, you ask?
Red Rock Relay - Zion
in two weeks.
****
Official Record
| Place | Bib | Name | Div | Swim | T1 | Bike | T2 | Run | Official |
|---|
| 302 | 293 | Katharina Watson | F4044 | 50:57 | 5:53 | 3:19:21 | 9:38 | 2:54:13 | 7:20:00.4 |
Saratoga Springs Sprint Tri 2012
I signed up for this race as an after thought. All my energy and focus has been on the monster race coming up next Saturday. Throughout the summer, my son, Will, had expressed passing interest in doing the Saratoga Sprints tri. He didn't seem too interested in actually training, though, so I didn't think he was serious. Finally, with only a couple of weeks before the sprint, he finally told me that he really did want to do it. So, I decided it would be a fun thing for both of us to do it! My brother, Erik, was already registered for it, and so was my friend, Michelle. I figured that, if nothing else, it would be a good practice run for transitions.
On race day morning, I was nervous. So weird, because I had done this one before and the distances seemed very tame to me... and I wasn't even going to push myself on it, just take it easy and enjoy the ride, so to speak. Still, I was nervous and had a hard time eating my pre race breakfast. Half of my oatmeal went down the drain, and Bill finished the second half of my banana for me.
When we got to the marina, Bill discovered that Will's front bike tire had a slow leak, so he repaired it while Will and I went to the body marking station and got our timing chips attached to our ankles. The volunteers put a number 90 on my forearm and my left calf, and wrote my age on my right calf. Will was number 85. I actually like that everyone's age is visible on their calf, because you can see the ages of the people you pass (and passing you) in the bike and run portions. More on that later.
We arranged our bikes and gear in the transition area. For those of you who have never done or watched a triathlon, the swim portion starts the race. When athletes exit the water, they run up to the 'transition area'. This is a fenced in area where the bikes are put on racks waiting for the second part of the race. All your gear is gathered on and around the bike in (hopefully) a super organized way to speed up your transition from one segment of the race to the next. For instance, my helmet hung from the handlebars with my glasses, gloves, and race number tucked inside. My tri bag was on the ground just in front of the bike with my bike shoes resting on top, and my running gear just below (running shoes, socks, visor). When you return from the bike, you quickly hang your bike on the rack and switch to your running gear. There are plastic mats at the entrance and exit of the transition area that ping your timing chip and mark the end of segments and the beginning and ending of your transitions. So the timing chip records swim, T1 (transition one), bike, T2 (transition two), run.
After getting all set up, we wandered down to the water's edge to hear the final pre-race instructions and to say hello to several people that I know from the community (I teach in Saratoga Springs, so I knew several of the volunteers and even some of the other racers).
The race is started in waves. This keeps the water from being too crowded with thrashing bodies. Erik was in the 2nd wave, Will was in the 3rd wave, and I was in the 5th and final wave. When the race was over, I had to subtract 8 minutes from my finish time, because my wave started the race 8 minutes after the timing chips were activated.
My friend, Michelle, was in my same wave, so we got in the water next to each other and waited for our starting horn to sound. There really were not very many ladies in our wave (the 5th wave was for women ages 35 and up). There couldn't have been more than 15 of us, if that. I have not been working on speed at all in my swimming and it really showed in this race! Michelle left me in the dust (or milky, murky water since "dust" is probably not a good descriptor for a swimming race). I really struggled with the swim this time around, and it had me panicking for next weekend's race. I couldn't find my rhythm and I spent WAY too much time with my head out of the water looking forward. It wasn't until I was around the final buoy and headed back to shore that I was able to improve my technique to some extent. Still, I got out of the water feeling VERY discouraged and I walked to the transition area instead of running.
Oh, I can't forget to mention the woman doing the backstroke in front of me... going the wrong direction! I stopped her several times and pointed her in the right direction. She'd correct her course, then end up curving off on some wrong tangent again! It kept her zig-zagging in front of me and I had a hard time passing her.
When I got to transition, I found that Will was still there. He had enjoyed the swim and found it surprisingly less difficult than he had feared. That made me feel very happy! All I wanted was for him to have a good time and want to do it again next year. He was taking his time in transition. Bill and Deanna were there, just on the other side of the fencing (spectators aren't allowed in the transition area), goading Will to hurry-it-up! He took his time, though, which is totally fine, of course. This was his first ever triathlon. Next time he will streamline things and will be faster.
Will left transition a few minutes before I did, but I caught up to and passed him quickly on the bike. This was one area of the race where training really did pay off for me. My summer of cycle training has given me strong quads and hamstrings! I hammered down on the pedals and passed TONS of people! Oh! That felt GOOD! I got passed a couple of times on some hill climbs, but I blasted past them again on the downs and flats. No one passed me for a second time. Boy, this sounds like bragging, but I can't help it. I rocked the bike!
Here is where it got fun to see the ages on people's calves. I felt pretty great passing a 19 year old boy on the bike!
The bike portion of the race was along a 12 mile strip of Redwood Road. Local police turned it into a one lane road and escorted vehicles from one end to the other while racers took up both sides of the road (going out and coming back). The bike course consisted of rolling hills climbing in elevation, then returning to the marina in an awesome downhill roller coaster!
T2 (transition 2) was my fastest transition to date. In, out, and on my way in just over 2 minutes. The run portion of this race was a 5K starting in an uphill climb out of the marina and into the surrounding neighborhood. I'm not gonna lie. The run is hard to get started on. It is hard mentally, but also hard physically to start on an uphill just after getting off the bike. Confession: I walked almost all of the uphill portions of the run. I also walked through the water stations.
...and I even stopped to "take a shower" when local residents held out their hoses on sprinkler mode for the athletes passing by. I kid you not. I literally stopped and rotated in a full circle, letting some little 10 year old hose me off before thanking him and heading on my way. That home owner also set up their own watering station with the coldest water on the route! Woot, woot!
The run is the segment of the race where the numbers on the calf can be both a blessing and a curse. I am not an awesome runner, as I have already confessed, so lots of people passed me during the run. Whenever someone passed me, I always took note of their age. If it was a guy... "well, he's a guy. So it's OK that he passed me, I'm not going to sweat it." If it was a girl... "Oh, she's 24 years old. Of course she's better at this than me!" or "Dang it! She's my same age! I can't let her get away with that!" And so I'd pace her and keep up with her.
Still, all the goofing off I did meant that I expected a pretty poor run time. I was surprised, therefore, to find out that I improved upon last year's run time by over a minute!
And, I came in THIRD PLACE in my age division!
At the awards ceremony, I actually blurted out, "What?!? No way!!!" when my name was called. I know my swim was sub par, as was my run, so it must have been the bike that put me on that 'podium'. (There was no podium, really)
We stuck around post race for the prize raffle. Local businesses had donated gift certificates or other goodies, which were given out by randomly drawing out bib numbers. My brother won a RoadID, and my son won a gift card to the local tri store, which he promptly traded to another winner for the National Guard backpack that she had won. So, every triathlete in our party won something that day and we all came away from it feeling like rockstars! Add to that an awesome post race lunch at a local joint called Sean's Barbecue (yup, it was AMAZING!) and you end up with a terrific day! I'm looking forward to doing this race again next year.
Farewells
Summer is ending.
I hate endings.
Really. I have had such a good summer! I have slept in more often than not. I had one and only one goal this summer... exercise. So, when my daily workout was complete, I was off the hook and could be as lazy as possible! I have spent quite a few days playing at the pool with my little nieces, aged 3 and 18 months. Those are some fun times! I've been biking all over the valley, hiking, kayaking, windsurfing, swimming, running, having backyard bonfires... and all with no schedules! I usually take off the watch for the summer, but this summer I kept it on because it is a waterproof lap timing watch that is useful when I swim.
And despite the lovely rash, I have enjoyed every single moment of this summer!
But it is almost over.
I officially go back to work next Thursday (a week from tomorrow, gasp!), but I still have to go put my classroom back in order before then. I won't get paid for it, of course. It just seems to be another one of those ways that teacher get taken for granted. We are expected to have a classroom put together and ready for the school year, but we aren't given the paid time in which to do it. I am not complaining, though. My classroom is easier to set up than most, and I know many of the other teachers I work with have already spent many hours in the school getting ready for school to start. I am likely the last one to straggle in and get my room ready.
But this post isn't just about saying farewell to summer. An even bigger farewell happened just yesterday. Helena's boyfriend, Dagen, left today to serve a two year mission for our church. Yesterday they had to say their goodbyes. They won't be able to see each other, or even call/text each other during those two years, so they'll have to rely on more archaic forms of communication. I think they can e-mail (which is archaic to them) and they can certainly use snail mail. In fact, Helena is already planning some cute care packages to send his way.
She won't be putting her social life on hold for two years, however. She'll still go out with friends, and probably even date other guys. But I certainly hope she'll keep all her socializing very casual and friendly so that she is still single when he comes home. She'll only be 20 when he gets back, after all! Still too young to get married, in my opinion.
I'm not saying I want her to marry Dagen, either. I'm not ready to even entertain the thought, no matter who she ends up marrying. She got a wedding invite in the mail today for a girl she was in Orchestra with! This girl was a senior when she was a junior. So she is getting married at the age of 19. Gah! That freaked me out. I remember her from when I volunteered as a chaperon on an orchestra trip and it blows my mind that she is stepping from childhood so early. Nineteen is still a teen, after all!
Phooey. I'm rambling. My thoughts on the whole subject are rather pointed and skewed by the fact that I am the mother. I am just happy for her to keep living at home, and... how do I say this? I am happy for her to have this experience of dating a boy who is willing to put his life on hold for two years over his religious convictions. I'd have felt the same if he went and joined the Peace Corps for those two years if that was his passion. It shows he is a young man of purpose and character, and I am glad she chose such a fine young man to be her boyfriend. So I don't see this farewell as a tragedy. Rather, I see it as a growing experience for both of them.
So, farewell, Dagen! You probably never knew exactly how I felt about you dating my daughter. What with the whole 'get home by curfew' business and being your girlfriend's parent, you probably thought I didn't like you. Quite the contrary. I think you are a fine young man! Good luck, do well, and you have all of us rooting for you back here at home.
Farewell!
I hate endings.
Really. I have had such a good summer! I have slept in more often than not. I had one and only one goal this summer... exercise. So, when my daily workout was complete, I was off the hook and could be as lazy as possible! I have spent quite a few days playing at the pool with my little nieces, aged 3 and 18 months. Those are some fun times! I've been biking all over the valley, hiking, kayaking, windsurfing, swimming, running, having backyard bonfires... and all with no schedules! I usually take off the watch for the summer, but this summer I kept it on because it is a waterproof lap timing watch that is useful when I swim.
And despite the lovely rash, I have enjoyed every single moment of this summer!
But it is almost over.
I officially go back to work next Thursday (a week from tomorrow, gasp!), but I still have to go put my classroom back in order before then. I won't get paid for it, of course. It just seems to be another one of those ways that teacher get taken for granted. We are expected to have a classroom put together and ready for the school year, but we aren't given the paid time in which to do it. I am not complaining, though. My classroom is easier to set up than most, and I know many of the other teachers I work with have already spent many hours in the school getting ready for school to start. I am likely the last one to straggle in and get my room ready.
But this post isn't just about saying farewell to summer. An even bigger farewell happened just yesterday. Helena's boyfriend, Dagen, left today to serve a two year mission for our church. Yesterday they had to say their goodbyes. They won't be able to see each other, or even call/text each other during those two years, so they'll have to rely on more archaic forms of communication. I think they can e-mail (which is archaic to them) and they can certainly use snail mail. In fact, Helena is already planning some cute care packages to send his way.
She won't be putting her social life on hold for two years, however. She'll still go out with friends, and probably even date other guys. But I certainly hope she'll keep all her socializing very casual and friendly so that she is still single when he comes home. She'll only be 20 when he gets back, after all! Still too young to get married, in my opinion.
I'm not saying I want her to marry Dagen, either. I'm not ready to even entertain the thought, no matter who she ends up marrying. She got a wedding invite in the mail today for a girl she was in Orchestra with! This girl was a senior when she was a junior. So she is getting married at the age of 19. Gah! That freaked me out. I remember her from when I volunteered as a chaperon on an orchestra trip and it blows my mind that she is stepping from childhood so early. Nineteen is still a teen, after all!
Phooey. I'm rambling. My thoughts on the whole subject are rather pointed and skewed by the fact that I am the mother. I am just happy for her to keep living at home, and... how do I say this? I am happy for her to have this experience of dating a boy who is willing to put his life on hold for two years over his religious convictions. I'd have felt the same if he went and joined the Peace Corps for those two years if that was his passion. It shows he is a young man of purpose and character, and I am glad she chose such a fine young man to be her boyfriend. So I don't see this farewell as a tragedy. Rather, I see it as a growing experience for both of them.
So, farewell, Dagen! You probably never knew exactly how I felt about you dating my daughter. What with the whole 'get home by curfew' business and being your girlfriend's parent, you probably thought I didn't like you. Quite the contrary. I think you are a fine young man! Good luck, do well, and you have all of us rooting for you back here at home.
Farewell!
Swimmer's Itch
How gross! Swimmer's Itch sounds as gross as it is.
In a nutshell, Swimmer's Itch happens when a person swims in shallow, warm water infested with a particular parasite that lives on ducks and other waterfowl. At a particular part of their life cycle, they float freely in the water hoping to hitch a ride on some bird. Swimmers become accidental hosts instead. However, humans aren't compatible hosts and the parasites die immediately after burrowing into the first layer of skin. Lovely. Then the itching starts.
I have been doing some of my swim training in open water rather than in the pool. Sometimes in Deer Creek Reservoir, sometimes in Utah Lake. Utah Lake is a nasty lake, I admit. For those of you who aren't local, Utah Lake is shallow, shallow, shallow. It can't be more than 50 feet deep in any given spot, and most of it is much shallower than that. It is a large body of water, but because it is so shallow, it is very warm. The current water temperature in the lake is 80* F. Deer Creek Reservoir is up in the mountains, and is a dammed body of water, so it is deep and much cooler. I'd say high 60's, low 70's on the surface.
So I think it is most likely that I got this Swimmer's Itch infection from Utah Lake. I have a fine rash that itches intensely across my chest and back, everywhere my swimsuit did not cover.
I couldn't sleep last night because it itched so badly! I wanted to rip my skin right off and finally ended up taking some night-time cold medicine just for the sleepy effect to help me get some rest.
Today I couldn't take it any more and went to the dermatologist. He prescribed a shot of something or other and some topical creams to put out the fire of the itch (they're not working!) and said I could use Benadryl, too. He also said it isn't serious and won't lead to any complications or dangers and that it is not contagious (obviously). It is just unfortunate because it is so very itchy.
The doc recommended avoiding the area where I most likely came in contact with the parasites in the water. Great. I am pretty sure I came into contact with the parasites at the race site. So the only thing I can really do is make sure to pour clean water over myself in the transition area and vigorously towel off before getting onto the bike. And I'll do the rest of my open water training at Deer Creek.
In the meantime, I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS CREAM TO MAKE THE ITCHING GO AWAY!!!!! Stupid parasites.
In a nutshell, Swimmer's Itch happens when a person swims in shallow, warm water infested with a particular parasite that lives on ducks and other waterfowl. At a particular part of their life cycle, they float freely in the water hoping to hitch a ride on some bird. Swimmers become accidental hosts instead. However, humans aren't compatible hosts and the parasites die immediately after burrowing into the first layer of skin. Lovely. Then the itching starts.
I have been doing some of my swim training in open water rather than in the pool. Sometimes in Deer Creek Reservoir, sometimes in Utah Lake. Utah Lake is a nasty lake, I admit. For those of you who aren't local, Utah Lake is shallow, shallow, shallow. It can't be more than 50 feet deep in any given spot, and most of it is much shallower than that. It is a large body of water, but because it is so shallow, it is very warm. The current water temperature in the lake is 80* F. Deer Creek Reservoir is up in the mountains, and is a dammed body of water, so it is deep and much cooler. I'd say high 60's, low 70's on the surface.
So I think it is most likely that I got this Swimmer's Itch infection from Utah Lake. I have a fine rash that itches intensely across my chest and back, everywhere my swimsuit did not cover.
I couldn't sleep last night because it itched so badly! I wanted to rip my skin right off and finally ended up taking some night-time cold medicine just for the sleepy effect to help me get some rest.
Today I couldn't take it any more and went to the dermatologist. He prescribed a shot of something or other and some topical creams to put out the fire of the itch (they're not working!) and said I could use Benadryl, too. He also said it isn't serious and won't lead to any complications or dangers and that it is not contagious (obviously). It is just unfortunate because it is so very itchy.
The doc recommended avoiding the area where I most likely came in contact with the parasites in the water. Great. I am pretty sure I came into contact with the parasites at the race site. So the only thing I can really do is make sure to pour clean water over myself in the transition area and vigorously towel off before getting onto the bike. And I'll do the rest of my open water training at Deer Creek.
In the meantime, I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS CREAM TO MAKE THE ITCHING GO AWAY!!!!! Stupid parasites.
Ironman Dreaming (Training Update)
I haven't said much lately about how my training is going for this monster race that is looming ever closer (and is really starting to make me nervous). So, here's your update!
I have been exercising nearly every day for weeks. I swim. I run. I bike. I lift weights. I even tried some Yoga (that kinked my neck... boo!). Several days of the week I do a combo of these activities.
I am not obsessive about it, so some days one or the other activity falls by the wayside. And some weeks other stuff gets in the way and I get frustrated. That's OK, because overall I am doing fairly well.
However, I haven't lost an ounce of weight.
Of course, weight loss was not the objective. But still. Man, oh man... I'd like to see those numbers go down! A great big phooey and harrumph. I know the secret is my crummy diet. I keep telling myself I need to love vegetables and hate sugars. There is no magic short cut, but I am not sure I have the willpower right now to make that happen.
But I will say that I now have muscles in places that I forgot muscles were supposed to exist. It has been a long time since I have felt this strong!
My half Ironman race is happening on August 25th. That is coming right up in just over a month!
AHHHHH!
So, here is a break down by segment:
I need to be able to swim 1.2 miles non stop in open water (yucky water, no less). So far, I can swim that distance, but not non stop. My longest non stop swim has only been 600 meters, or about 40% of the distance. I need to step it up in this segment of training. My biggest worry for the swim, though, is that the water might be too warm to allow wetsuits. I REALLY want to wear my wetsuit for the buoyancy it provides, so everybody please pray for cool weather for the month of August! (yeah, I know... very unlikely living in the desert)
Bill has been going on my long rides with me for the past couple of weeks. I am working my way up to the 56 miles I need for race day. My longest training ride so far has been 35 miles. We wander all around the lake from Provo to Saratoga Springs. For those of you who live in the PNW, that's like biking from the northern tip of Lake Washington to the southern tip and back. Kenmore to Renton and back. The weight training is hopefully strengthening my knees, because they start to twinge around mile 30 and I need them to last for the whole ride AND the run afterwards.
This is the part of the race that scares me the most. I need to be able to run 13.1 miles AFTER the swim and the bike have worn me out. Tomorrow I'm going on my long run (this week got a bit scrambled by my volunteer work for the city art show) of 10 miles. So I'm not as worried about the distance, just my stamina after the other two segments.
I am not fast in any of the segments. Not by any stretch of the imagination. But I hope to endure. This is an endurance race, after all.
The next stage of training is to start bricking the workouts together to build that stamina. I can't do much swim/run bricking because of pool limitations, but I can bike/run and plan to do lots of it over the next 3 weeks. Starting this coming week I need to plan one day of swim/bike/run mini triathlons.
I am working hard at not getting sunburned as I do all this outdoorsy stuff. My hair is bleaching out and my skin is darkening. I think it looks weird, but I don't think I can stop it from happening. And I'm not really going to worry about it anyways, because I'm having a lot of fun this summer!
I have been exercising nearly every day for weeks. I swim. I run. I bike. I lift weights. I even tried some Yoga (that kinked my neck... boo!). Several days of the week I do a combo of these activities.
- Monday: a.m. short run and p.m. swim
- Tuesday: weights and swim
- Wednesday: a.m. long run and p.m. swim
- Thursday: weights and swim
- Friday: bike (shorter distance climbing 700 feet)
- Saturday: bike (longer distance, flat)
However, I haven't lost an ounce of weight.
Of course, weight loss was not the objective. But still. Man, oh man... I'd like to see those numbers go down! A great big phooey and harrumph. I know the secret is my crummy diet. I keep telling myself I need to love vegetables and hate sugars. There is no magic short cut, but I am not sure I have the willpower right now to make that happen.
But I will say that I now have muscles in places that I forgot muscles were supposed to exist. It has been a long time since I have felt this strong!
My half Ironman race is happening on August 25th. That is coming right up in just over a month!
AHHHHH!
So, here is a break down by segment:
Swim
I need to be able to swim 1.2 miles non stop in open water (yucky water, no less). So far, I can swim that distance, but not non stop. My longest non stop swim has only been 600 meters, or about 40% of the distance. I need to step it up in this segment of training. My biggest worry for the swim, though, is that the water might be too warm to allow wetsuits. I REALLY want to wear my wetsuit for the buoyancy it provides, so everybody please pray for cool weather for the month of August! (yeah, I know... very unlikely living in the desert)
Bike
Bill has been going on my long rides with me for the past couple of weeks. I am working my way up to the 56 miles I need for race day. My longest training ride so far has been 35 miles. We wander all around the lake from Provo to Saratoga Springs. For those of you who live in the PNW, that's like biking from the northern tip of Lake Washington to the southern tip and back. Kenmore to Renton and back. The weight training is hopefully strengthening my knees, because they start to twinge around mile 30 and I need them to last for the whole ride AND the run afterwards.
Run
This is the part of the race that scares me the most. I need to be able to run 13.1 miles AFTER the swim and the bike have worn me out. Tomorrow I'm going on my long run (this week got a bit scrambled by my volunteer work for the city art show) of 10 miles. So I'm not as worried about the distance, just my stamina after the other two segments.
I am not fast in any of the segments. Not by any stretch of the imagination. But I hope to endure. This is an endurance race, after all.
The next stage of training is to start bricking the workouts together to build that stamina. I can't do much swim/run bricking because of pool limitations, but I can bike/run and plan to do lots of it over the next 3 weeks. Starting this coming week I need to plan one day of swim/bike/run mini triathlons.
I am working hard at not getting sunburned as I do all this outdoorsy stuff. My hair is bleaching out and my skin is darkening. I think it looks weird, but I don't think I can stop it from happening. And I'm not really going to worry about it anyways, because I'm having a lot of fun this summer!
Summer
There are two versions of me. For most of the year, I keep to a fairly strict schedule. I do my hair and makeup. I even dress well. You know, making an effort to look like a professional, grown up, well put together person. That version of me gets up to an alarm every morning, works hard all day, and falls into bed at night exhausted, but pleased with the many things that were accomplished during the day.
The other version of me only exists during the summer months. June, July, and most of August. For nearly 12 weeks each year, I transform into someone else.
In the summer, there are no alarm clocks. I will get up early if I feel like it, but most of the time, I sleep in. Before I go any farther, I feel I need to throw in a caveat... This is where I am in my life now. This has been a long time coming, however. For many years, my sleep patterns and schedules were dictated by the needs of my children. I know I have friends and family who automatically roll their eyes when I say I sleep in as late as I want to. You who are still in the young children phase are saying, "yeah, right! As if my children would LET me sleep in!"
I hear you. I have been there. Done that. And I am here now telling you that there is an end in sight! There will come a day when your children no longer jolt you awake at 6 a.m. (or earlier) by pouncing on you and asking, "what's for breakfast?" In fact, someday, your children will grumble if you dare to try and wake them before noon.
So. Back to summer!
Most summers I do have a loose resolution list. Things I hope to accomplish. One summer I stripped the paint and stain off several of the old doors in this house and re-stained, varnished, and hung them. (There are still more to do.) Another summer I sanded and painted the outside window trim and painted the exterior doors red. (Again, still more to do.) You get the picture. This year is no exception. However, this summer, my resolution list is all about me. Get in shape. Train for a triathlon. That's it... So, other than my workout(s) for the day, I have no other ambitions or goals.
Nope.
None. Nada. Zip.
I wear a lot of exercise clothes. And swim suits. And just lounge around clothes. I don't care if they match or even look attractive on me. I wear makeup about once a week, if that. More often than not, my hair is piled up on my head and clamped down with a great big claw clip, or yanked back in a pony tail. Half the time it is wet from the pool, the lake, or the shower. My summer time perfume is a combo of chlorine and sunscreen. My skin is darkening despite the 50 SPF I wear daily. My hair is bleaching out.
And I am very happy.
As I said, I have no definite schedules. I have the time to soak in all the sights, sounds, and smells of summer.
I love the sound of lawn mowers and sprinklers. The sound of a little league game at the nearby park. Children's laughter drifting through the neighborhood. The sound of a train whistle in the distance on a summer evening. I love to listen to the crickets at night.
I love the smell of fresh cut grass, chlorine from the pool, and fresh summer rain on hot pavement.
I love going to the lake and watching my son windsurf, or lounging at the pool with my daughter and catching up on all her news. I love sitting in my back yard and watching the dragonflies dance. I love falling into a trance as I watch the birch wood slowly burn to glowing embers in the fire pit. I love pondering a midnight blue sky full of stars while a gentle summer breeze caresses me.
I love that I can spend an entire afternoon buried in a book and not feel the least bit guilty about it.
No cares. No worries.
Or, at least, all cares and worries put on hold. Time seems to stand still for just a little bit and the days run together into a blaze of sunshine and glory. Just for a little while, I feel young again.
And that is a very good thing.
The other version of me only exists during the summer months. June, July, and most of August. For nearly 12 weeks each year, I transform into someone else.
In the summer, there are no alarm clocks. I will get up early if I feel like it, but most of the time, I sleep in. Before I go any farther, I feel I need to throw in a caveat... This is where I am in my life now. This has been a long time coming, however. For many years, my sleep patterns and schedules were dictated by the needs of my children. I know I have friends and family who automatically roll their eyes when I say I sleep in as late as I want to. You who are still in the young children phase are saying, "yeah, right! As if my children would LET me sleep in!"
I hear you. I have been there. Done that. And I am here now telling you that there is an end in sight! There will come a day when your children no longer jolt you awake at 6 a.m. (or earlier) by pouncing on you and asking, "what's for breakfast?" In fact, someday, your children will grumble if you dare to try and wake them before noon.
So. Back to summer!
Most summers I do have a loose resolution list. Things I hope to accomplish. One summer I stripped the paint and stain off several of the old doors in this house and re-stained, varnished, and hung them. (There are still more to do.) Another summer I sanded and painted the outside window trim and painted the exterior doors red. (Again, still more to do.) You get the picture. This year is no exception. However, this summer, my resolution list is all about me. Get in shape. Train for a triathlon. That's it... So, other than my workout(s) for the day, I have no other ambitions or goals.
Nope.
None. Nada. Zip.
I wear a lot of exercise clothes. And swim suits. And just lounge around clothes. I don't care if they match or even look attractive on me. I wear makeup about once a week, if that. More often than not, my hair is piled up on my head and clamped down with a great big claw clip, or yanked back in a pony tail. Half the time it is wet from the pool, the lake, or the shower. My summer time perfume is a combo of chlorine and sunscreen. My skin is darkening despite the 50 SPF I wear daily. My hair is bleaching out.
And I am very happy.
As I said, I have no definite schedules. I have the time to soak in all the sights, sounds, and smells of summer.
I love the sound of lawn mowers and sprinklers. The sound of a little league game at the nearby park. Children's laughter drifting through the neighborhood. The sound of a train whistle in the distance on a summer evening. I love to listen to the crickets at night.
I love the smell of fresh cut grass, chlorine from the pool, and fresh summer rain on hot pavement.
I love going to the lake and watching my son windsurf, or lounging at the pool with my daughter and catching up on all her news. I love sitting in my back yard and watching the dragonflies dance. I love falling into a trance as I watch the birch wood slowly burn to glowing embers in the fire pit. I love pondering a midnight blue sky full of stars while a gentle summer breeze caresses me.
I love that I can spend an entire afternoon buried in a book and not feel the least bit guilty about it.
No cares. No worries.
Or, at least, all cares and worries put on hold. Time seems to stand still for just a little bit and the days run together into a blaze of sunshine and glory. Just for a little while, I feel young again.
And that is a very good thing.
Holy Floatation, Batman!
... aka, I LOVE MY WETSUIT!!!!!
I went running this morning. 4.4 miles. Not rockstar. Meaning, I didn't go very fast. I am so glad I deferred the marathon, because I am in no way ready for it and it happens in just 3 days.
I slept in, though, and missed my morning window for hitting the pool. There are limited lanes in the a.m. due to swim team congestion, and then when swim lessons get going at 10 am, there are no more lanes at all until evening. However, if you can hold out and go swim after 9 pm, you nearly have the pool to yourself. Nearly. I ended up sharing a lane for about 15 minutes, but that's really no big deal.
A cold front moved in yesterday and today remained on the cooler side. Much cooler than we experienced over the past couple of weeks. Cool enough that I knew the pool wouldn't be toasty. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to take my wetsuit on its maiden voyage.
HOLY COW!!!
First of all, I have to say that it was much easier to slink myself into that thing today than it was on the day I bought it. I can only hope that is because I have a more trim figure? Even so, I felt like an overstuffed sausage since it is meant to have a tight compression fit. I was pretty proud of myself for managing to wedge my shoulders in enough to zip up the back without help and still feel enough rotation in my shoulders to swim. That is hard to explain, so I hope you understand what I mean.
When I jumped into the water, there was no cold shock at all. SO NICE! Then I swam my first lap.
I am in love.
With a wetsuit.
The buoyancy on that thing is incredible! Every bit of my stroke went into forward momentum. I had no idea that I had been expending so much energy in keeping my legs up. I forgot my lap watch... boy I wish I had it, because I flew through the lane! It was like wearing fins. I have no idea how fast I was going, but I was practically crashing into the walls I had so much thrust from my legs.
Don't get me wrong. I am still not rockstar fast at swimming, either. But I'll tell you one thing. I was the fastest in the lanes tonight... and I was the only woman.
That felt REALLY good!
It sure got a lot of attention, too. Some guy came up to me and asked how I liked it and what the thickness was on it (I'm not 100% sure of the answer on that. I just know it is rated for triathlons). The other lap swimmers had friendly conversation about it, too. I even noticed the hot tub crowd staring. Not at me, I am sure. At the suit. You just don't see too many wetsuits at the pool (although the scuba group were in wetsuits, so what gives?).
Anyways, I can't wait to swim in it again! That will depend on the weather, though. Our summers don't hold that many cool days. Besides, if I only ever swim in the suit, it might become a crutch, like only swimming in fins. And pool water is not good for the suit. So, I'll keep plugging away at form and endurance... without the suit for the most part.
Still...
IT WAS AWESOME!
I went running this morning. 4.4 miles. Not rockstar. Meaning, I didn't go very fast. I am so glad I deferred the marathon, because I am in no way ready for it and it happens in just 3 days.
I slept in, though, and missed my morning window for hitting the pool. There are limited lanes in the a.m. due to swim team congestion, and then when swim lessons get going at 10 am, there are no more lanes at all until evening. However, if you can hold out and go swim after 9 pm, you nearly have the pool to yourself. Nearly. I ended up sharing a lane for about 15 minutes, but that's really no big deal.
A cold front moved in yesterday and today remained on the cooler side. Much cooler than we experienced over the past couple of weeks. Cool enough that I knew the pool wouldn't be toasty. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to take my wetsuit on its maiden voyage.
HOLY COW!!!
First of all, I have to say that it was much easier to slink myself into that thing today than it was on the day I bought it. I can only hope that is because I have a more trim figure? Even so, I felt like an overstuffed sausage since it is meant to have a tight compression fit. I was pretty proud of myself for managing to wedge my shoulders in enough to zip up the back without help and still feel enough rotation in my shoulders to swim. That is hard to explain, so I hope you understand what I mean.
When I jumped into the water, there was no cold shock at all. SO NICE! Then I swam my first lap.
I am in love.
With a wetsuit.
The buoyancy on that thing is incredible! Every bit of my stroke went into forward momentum. I had no idea that I had been expending so much energy in keeping my legs up. I forgot my lap watch... boy I wish I had it, because I flew through the lane! It was like wearing fins. I have no idea how fast I was going, but I was practically crashing into the walls I had so much thrust from my legs.
Don't get me wrong. I am still not rockstar fast at swimming, either. But I'll tell you one thing. I was the fastest in the lanes tonight... and I was the only woman.
That felt REALLY good!
It sure got a lot of attention, too. Some guy came up to me and asked how I liked it and what the thickness was on it (I'm not 100% sure of the answer on that. I just know it is rated for triathlons). The other lap swimmers had friendly conversation about it, too. I even noticed the hot tub crowd staring. Not at me, I am sure. At the suit. You just don't see too many wetsuits at the pool (although the scuba group were in wetsuits, so what gives?).
Anyways, I can't wait to swim in it again! That will depend on the weather, though. Our summers don't hold that many cool days. Besides, if I only ever swim in the suit, it might become a crutch, like only swimming in fins. And pool water is not good for the suit. So, I'll keep plugging away at form and endurance... without the suit for the most part.
Still...
IT WAS AWESOME!
IT Band Troubles
I've gone my whole life without knowing what an IT band is, or that I even have one (two, in fact). That is, until my knee started hurting at the end of my 11 mile run today. I started limping pretty badly.
An IT band (iliotibial band) is a tendon on the outside of your thighs connecting the hip bone to the shin bone. It is one long, stretchy ligament. When running or walking, it slides across and over the knee. Overuse (through long distance running, for instance) can cause the IT band to get inflamed from too much rubbing across the knee. So, even though the tendon is all along the side of the thigh, it is the part just next to the knee cap that is giving me pain.
I've read up on everything I can about this condition. I immediately started RICE (Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate) and Bill is going to go get me a foam roller used for massaging the IT band to help stretch it out. From my reading, it also sounds like I could be doing some hip abductor weights to strengthen the laterally moving muscles of my legs (a preventative measure). I'll have to spend the next week doing cross training (swim mostly) to give it a rest and time to heal. And, I'm going to have to search out new running routes that don't keep me on the sloped sides of roads. It is the slope of the road that is killing my knee. The leg on the downward side of the road bows inward slightly to compensate, and that is what is causing the aggravation to my knee.
So phooey and double phooey!
But it sure was a nice day for a run.
An IT band (iliotibial band) is a tendon on the outside of your thighs connecting the hip bone to the shin bone. It is one long, stretchy ligament. When running or walking, it slides across and over the knee. Overuse (through long distance running, for instance) can cause the IT band to get inflamed from too much rubbing across the knee. So, even though the tendon is all along the side of the thigh, it is the part just next to the knee cap that is giving me pain.
I've read up on everything I can about this condition. I immediately started RICE (Rest, Ice, Compress, Elevate) and Bill is going to go get me a foam roller used for massaging the IT band to help stretch it out. From my reading, it also sounds like I could be doing some hip abductor weights to strengthen the laterally moving muscles of my legs (a preventative measure). I'll have to spend the next week doing cross training (swim mostly) to give it a rest and time to heal. And, I'm going to have to search out new running routes that don't keep me on the sloped sides of roads. It is the slope of the road that is killing my knee. The leg on the downward side of the road bows inward slightly to compensate, and that is what is causing the aggravation to my knee.
So phooey and double phooey!
But it sure was a nice day for a run.
Trail vs. Treadmill
Or rather, outdoor running vs. indoor.
I have spent all winter running either on a treadmill or on the indoor track. I don't mind at all. In fact, I like running on a treadmill for the ability to force myself to new speeds during interval training. I also like the fact that I can run no matter what the weather is doing outside. However, there is a point when indoor running becomes tedious. For me, that point is about 6 miles.
If it is going to take more than an hour to do the run, it gets frustrating to have to reset the machine. Most of the treadmills at the gym have a 60 min. max time allowed in their programming. And, really, who wants to spend more than an hour looking at the same thing while running?
This week my long run is supposed to be 10 miles. I usually do my long run on Mondays, but I noticed that Monday's weather is predicted to be significantly cooler than today (Saturday). Today is one of those beautiful early spring days that makes everyone throw open the windows and head outside. I decided to do my long run today. Outside.
Oh, I forgot how much harder it is to run outside! Variations in slope and running surface take their toll and I find myself having to take a walking break much more often. Most of my run was on the side of the road, on the pavement. That is so much more jarring on my legs and feet than the cushioned treadmill, or even the soft surface of the indoor track. However, I love the live breeze and the sunshine! The constantly changing view is entertaining and keeps my mind so occupied that I chew away the miles without noticing the passage of time. My route took me up into Highland and onto the Alpine Highway before looping back through the neighborhoods and back home. I had a real sense of accomplishment for the distance my body traveled today! You get no perspective on distance on a treadmill. 10 miles looks the same as 5 miles on a treadmill. 10 miles actually covers A LOT of ground!
I love the sunshine and the sun/wind burn on my face! I love the friendly wave from other joggers and cyclists you meet on the road. I love people watching. I watch the people in the cars that drive by, the kids playing in the neighborhoods, and the adults working in their yards. I passed a house with two llamas staked in the front yard. Who has llamas on a tether?!?
To be very honest, I only went 8 miles today. Around mile 7 my legs started giving me problems. The hard surface took its toll and I started feeling pain in my shins and feet. When my route intersected the road I live on, I detoured for home instead of continuing for the last 2 miles. I still have Monday to possibly do an indoor long run, or an outdoor short run to acclimate my legs to the surface. Depending on the weather.
I have spent all winter running either on a treadmill or on the indoor track. I don't mind at all. In fact, I like running on a treadmill for the ability to force myself to new speeds during interval training. I also like the fact that I can run no matter what the weather is doing outside. However, there is a point when indoor running becomes tedious. For me, that point is about 6 miles.
If it is going to take more than an hour to do the run, it gets frustrating to have to reset the machine. Most of the treadmills at the gym have a 60 min. max time allowed in their programming. And, really, who wants to spend more than an hour looking at the same thing while running?
This week my long run is supposed to be 10 miles. I usually do my long run on Mondays, but I noticed that Monday's weather is predicted to be significantly cooler than today (Saturday). Today is one of those beautiful early spring days that makes everyone throw open the windows and head outside. I decided to do my long run today. Outside.
Oh, I forgot how much harder it is to run outside! Variations in slope and running surface take their toll and I find myself having to take a walking break much more often. Most of my run was on the side of the road, on the pavement. That is so much more jarring on my legs and feet than the cushioned treadmill, or even the soft surface of the indoor track. However, I love the live breeze and the sunshine! The constantly changing view is entertaining and keeps my mind so occupied that I chew away the miles without noticing the passage of time. My route took me up into Highland and onto the Alpine Highway before looping back through the neighborhoods and back home. I had a real sense of accomplishment for the distance my body traveled today! You get no perspective on distance on a treadmill. 10 miles looks the same as 5 miles on a treadmill. 10 miles actually covers A LOT of ground!
I love the sunshine and the sun/wind burn on my face! I love the friendly wave from other joggers and cyclists you meet on the road. I love people watching. I watch the people in the cars that drive by, the kids playing in the neighborhoods, and the adults working in their yards. I passed a house with two llamas staked in the front yard. Who has llamas on a tether?!?
To be very honest, I only went 8 miles today. Around mile 7 my legs started giving me problems. The hard surface took its toll and I started feeling pain in my shins and feet. When my route intersected the road I live on, I detoured for home instead of continuing for the last 2 miles. I still have Monday to possibly do an indoor long run, or an outdoor short run to acclimate my legs to the surface. Depending on the weather.
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