Weekend Update

Saturday we managed to turn a 65mi ride into 6.75hrs of hilarity in the heat. Opened the day with a 1.87mi open water swim @ Lake Clearwater. Still have OW panic issues in lakes...date all the way back to being a wee little one swimming in lakes CONSTANTLY with seaweed and whatnot...for some reason I developed a FREAKOUT reaction to lake-swimming when it's clear enough to see things and/or there are weeds. Clearwater is an amazing lake...snorkel-like clear...you can see clearly down about 8 ft (insert FREAKOUT here) and there really aren't that many weeds. I just have a funny reaction to them when I let my mind wander to snakes and sticks and weird fish and other things that live in lakes. The swim itself went great...my shoulders got a tiny bit tired, but it was still nice to just go swim for a long time and not have to turn at a wall. And I got to grab some golf balls off the bottom...ha!

N and I bribed ourselves with the long ride...not feeling too great after inhaling the CRAP food that I ate and the swim...we said we'd go out for a couple of hours and ride all serious-like and then cruise the Monon down to BRip and grab some food and cruise home. Turned into a 6+ hour adventure. It was HOT...hot..hot. Despite the amount of water we naturally swallow while swimming, after a lengthy swim, a sprint to Zionsville and some crap food, I burned through my hydration stores pretty quickly while riding (probably wearing the black top - even though it doesn't cover much - wasn't a great idea) and was trying to be really conservative with the fluid I had on the bike (2 lg. bottles) but sheesh. I burned through that fairly quickly as well and made the mistake of riding in the middle of cornfields. So....I suffered a bit. Got a little light-headed as we were headed back for a brief time and we had to stop at the CVS in Westfield to grab some Gatorade and water...I was able to bounce back enough fairly quickly to keep going - but not a fan of the light-headed riding thing...following the middle of the 3 lines I see...not a fan!

Cruised by the house and down to BRip...still made decent time even on the Monon leg of the ride...quality saddle-time. After the meal, however, COMPLETELY different story. Angry stomachs don't like the aero position OR pedalling...so we cruised around 13 - 15 home. Turned out to be a decent day....schlepped around the evening and ate some more crap.

Sunday was volunteering at the JCC Kids Tri..entirely too much fun. Kids are HILARIOUS..parents are SCARY. It was, once again, fairly warm. Stomach was still rather unhappy and was just feeling poo-ish. Run-down feeling big-time. Bailed on the long run and napped on the couch, then hit the poolside with N and managed to Lobsterfy myself (AGAIN...CRAP) on my stomach and upper legs...might look decent in a few days but right now clothes HURT.

Monday morning - still feeling like dog crap and EXHAUSTED. Not sure what's up with that...stomach still a bit topsy-turvy and just sinusy and whiny. URGGGGG. Going to run some tonight, hopefully.

Thursday Thirteen

1. Track workouts aren't fun, but they are productive as hell!
2. I'm stoked that the boy comes back tonight, or tomorrow...or something really soon.
3. Today was the last day of the Prednisone!
4. I wish I could get to sleep early and stay asleep - this is an issue for me apparently
5. I'll have 4 dogs for the weekend and am not sure how it'll work
6. Brickyard tickets are secure - yay
7. Laundry is my nemesis.
8. There should be more transition between not-too-hot-rainy-as-hell-spring and hot-as-balls-summer
9. I'm annoyed with having people around me constantly
10. Dishes and trash are close in line behind laundry
11. I'm apparently a lily-growing guru
12. I've got to figure out a way to get up earlier to get more done
13. But right now - I'm going to bed.

Track Workout

Holy Humidity Batman! I like sweating and suffering as much as the next chick (ask my boyfriend, my boss, my coworkers, my training partners....I'm good for some suffering..) but holy moly it's a bit excessive out there right now. The true thermometer says around 90 or so...heat index says it's more like 96 or so. So anyway....onward with the suffering.

Track Workout #2 in the books....and it didn't feel too awfully evil and bad. Don't get me wrong - doesn't mean running EVER feels great, but this hard work stuff at least makes it feel a bit more productive and functional. So yeah, I'm still not a "supafast" runner or anything, but T keeps saying this'll have an impact and I'm going to trust the runnah...and keep suffering on Thursdays.

The problem - we get faster as we run...even if it's only a few seconds, the faster intervals coming at the end of the workout makes me question my own sanity.

1mi WU
2x200 (47.45, 45.35)
2x400 (1:50.36, 1:52.83)
2x800 (3:58.52, 3:39.88)
2x400 (1:46.69, 1:44.47)
2x200 (47.13, 44.15)
1 mi CD

Wednesday Sweater

It's so unbelievably hot here....John said it best earlier today, "If it there had been some transition between cold and balls hot it would've been great, but there wasn't....it was rain, rain rain, blah, blah, hot as hell." So 90 degrees and a gazillion percent humidity....annoyed.

30 mile bike ride, 1:52. Comfortably paced, not too hard, not easy though. Pushed a bit from time-to-time but a good, solid effort. Feel fairly good on the bike but still might be losing a bit of power...not sure if the legs are tired or if I'm a bit off....I suppose more time will tell...

Brick House...

Good brick workout last night.

1:19 on the bike w/N & T. Solid, comfortable efforts. Slight headwind on way out. Good conversation. (Note to self: if wearing tri shorts, chamois butter. Still finding the "happy spots" with the bike/saddle/shorts combo...moving target) Think we went 24 miles.

21min run, 2.31mi....Solid, comfortable run effort. Faster than intended I think, but comfy nonethless. Blister/wound from last weekend still bothersome - hoping that goes away soon.

Softball game from about 10:15 to 11:30....won by landslide. So exhausted could barely put sentences together by the time I got home at midnight. Bribed myself out of bed this morning with coffee.

Comfy dress = Good. Creeper underwear = BAD. (Note to VS - it shouldn't be a hard concept. Note to self - find smaller ass)

Monday

(Steroids + PMS + Humidity)*Fatigue/too much sodium = (Me making people around me miserable)*chubby

Ugh. Three days of Prednisone left and while the poison ivy has gone away, a little more of me just keeps showing up bit by bit. And that I get to dovetail the prednisone with PMS AND a super-hot week of weather?? Well, that's just awesome.

I'd like to tell the boy I'm sorry for positively LASHING out at him on Friday morning but he's in another country and that's not possible. I fought like a girl, I fought dirty and I really was just pushing until I got a reaction. It wasn't right and I even knew it at the time, but it didn't stop me. So yeah, lest there was any doubt, from time-to-time I am 100% bitchy female and I can't really apologize for that. But jeez....sometimes I even impress myself.

Sunday of the mug...

Holy cow it was muggy today. Wanted to run 12 or 13...managed to eek out 9.5. Legs were heavy from the get-go and the wounds from yesterday's "no sock" adventure just did me in. There was just no air moving and I paid for it. Just got hot and down and struggled. But...we did get through it so it counts. Even popped in the pool afterward and slugged through about 1200 yds.

It counts as decent training for slogging through the heat. A half is going to have me on my own feet around noon-ish and in July, hellllloooooo, it's hot and muggy in Indiana and Michigan. So, it's a good objective, even if it does piss me off during. Last quarter ran at about 8:30 pace. Urgggg...again - all in the name of training and getting the job done. Tanya's determined to make me a better runner, if she doesn't kill me first!

A good weekend. I'm stoked to take tomorrow off - MAYBE swim if I feel like it.

Short Race - Long Report....

Indianapolis Sprint Triathlon - Eagle Creek Park
500M Sw, 10mi Bike, 3mi Run
High 70's, sunny, no wind, muggy

Overall A/G Sex Swim (rank) Trans1 (rank) Bike Time (avg mph/rank)
-------------------------------
166/577 5/28 25/174 09:14.9 ( 56/1/10) 01:10.0 ( 52) 28:54.7 (20.8 mph/136/1/14)

Trans2 (rank) Run time (pace/rank) FINAL TIME
-------------------------------
02:01.2 (435) 0:24:59.5 (08:19.8/355/13/80) 1:06:20.3
(bike - 20.35mph on 9.8mi course) (run – 8:38.7min/mi on 2.89mi course)

I was due a good race at Eagle Creek. Being one built more for “the long haul” than the sprints, I usually don’t even feel human during the run until about halfway through. This leads to a fairly ugly sprint race. With all the other mental struggles I’ve had this year, I decided to take any and all pressure off and wanted to focus on the swim and the run and cheering on the rest of the CCMSC folks. Friday’s storm and the debris and wet roads only reinforced my “just for show” opinion. I’m still skittery from the bike wreck a month ago and wasn’t about to push hard on the new bike with sketch roads AND dealing with the usual EC Sprint traffic. I was stoked about the time-trial swim starts though….spread out that chaos and let the swimmers weave through the madness.

Swim was decent – although I like the time trial aspect, I thought it was really unorganized. I spent a lot of time weaving around people. While it was nice to not be all bunched up elbowing and kicking, it makes it a bit tougher as you’re CONSTANTLY dealing with traffic, instead of reaching the potential lull between waves. My swim was uneventful (aside from getting a handful of some guy’s crotch – sorry dude, you just appeared out of nowhere – I WAS swimming straight) and stretched out. Temperature was perfect, was able to stay relaxed. Did get bunched into a group of blue caps at the second buoy – but swam through it.

T1 felt faster than usual - Feet in shoes, sunglasses on and helmet and away I went. Those of us that do a flying mount at a full run (the one time I’ll be glad there’s a bit of “stuff” on the ground…traction for bike shoes) have a REALLY hard time navigating the stopped folks and picking a line that allows us to jump on AND have enough space (without taking out a bystander as I almost did – sorry pink shirt) to get clipped in while rolling. Was able to clear the bottle with my leg (good sign) and didn’t slip, had a bit of trouble clipping in, but could be attributed to the panic of finding a line and jumping without falling!

Bike was also uneventful – THANK GOD. I was a total pansy – if there was ANY doubt in my mind or I felt sketch at ALL I was sitting up and on my brakes. Again – new bike, sketch roads, hybrids and mountain bikes abound….AND a new course. So…better safe than sorry. Launched a bottle halfway through after one drink (bummer). New course has some chaos of having to ride on left - I would feel much safer trying to pass someone with another 6 – 8 feet of road on my right than me getting pushed toward the swamp as the faster rider. That was my only concern though. Traffic flowed well, the course felt really fast and not quite so bumpy. More turns than the old one and….well, I just liked it better. Felt I had some good power on the bike – maybe my lower back has loosened up a bit – and was able to just spin and pound on certain parts of the course. I Love, love, love passing guys that are all tricked out. Love even more passing them like they’re standing still…CHICKED. Got to do that a couple of times. Just kind of felt like things were going…legs were loose. Might need a bit more work still on the position – just for some additional power on ascents. Didn’t slide at all – but was definitely riding like a pansy. Finished fairly strong. Would feel much better with a little knowledge of the course AND dry roads. It was short of the 10mi though, have mostly heard 9.8. I’ll still take it.

T2 – always feels somewhat slow. Shouldn’t be…put bike down, take off shoes, put on shoes, put on hat, grab number, go. But I find reason to dawdle apparently somewhere in there. Usually in grabbing a gel, or taking an extra few seconds with the shoes, or taking extra drinks of water. Still haven’t mastered leaving shoes on bike- not sure if I will for this race ever given the amount of crud on ground. But whatever. Could stand to get a few seconds faster but not sure how.

Run – Trying to embrace the pain of a sprint. Worried about a side stitch (the ever-present agony I encounter). Running without socks (note: give this idea up, forever). This course, outside of that initial hill out of Transition – is pretty flat. I was a bit waylaid by the lack of air moving, got a bit warm, but was able to keep pushing. I was able to engage in what Tanya calls a “hard push off” and really could tell the difference when my knees were high, my hands low and my head up. Had a few moments of tough breathing – was just pushing harder than my body is used to. Still had the golden moment around 1.25 where my body just finally starts running right – but was able to push through it early too. Key for me might be easing into the run a bit but staying VERY steady in pushing that pace up a bit immediately. Had a couple of minutes where I lollygagged back into my comfort zone, but was able to push through most of it. Sub-9 pace….Hell, sub 8:45 pace. I’m stoked about that and pleased with the effort. Grabbed water at every chance during the run (out of transition and at both aid stations – figuring that I was pretty low since the one-gulp bike leg. I had the gel with me but didn’t take it. Could I have had a little more pep through the last 1.5 if I had inhaled that gel? Maybe.

Overall – Racing on perception (without gizmos) seems to be going well for me. I’ve been able to keep a fairly close eye on my body and while I could feel myself losing steam over the last ½ of the run, I was still able to pick it up and finish strong. I MUST RUN WITH SOCKS – EVEN IF IT”S SHORT. Make up the time somewhere else. I was able to be “comfortable” within the pain of this sprint race – pushing hard and steady – but not beyond my limits. I think there’s potential for a bit more speed there…still have some ways to go with the run footspeed though…and need to feel a bit more spent at the end of it…..dig deeper and hurt more in a sprint race.

My 1st Track Workout

And I ran like hell!!! I actually put my head down and ran. I also spent considerable time during this suffer-fest trying to figure out HOW exactly one runs well. Tanya says my run form doesn't look back - but every now and then my arms come up or my leg goes wonky. And let's not forget that I have this weird spot on both feet where my shoes hit each other?! And add to that apparently when I run fast the little chubby spots on the inside of my knees hit every now and then....I'm just a running mess. But I did the darn track workout!

And the shock of it is that it didn't feel that bad. I suffered a bit on the last couple of intervals, but ran the whole thing at the goal pace or faster. Tanya says the form looked ok (as she wheezes and gasps and leaves the inhaler at home) and solid, so I'll take it. She also is working on beating it into my head that I'm stronger than I think I am as a runner - I just have to learn to fight through it a little bit more. Embrace the running pain....blah...sort of like shooting myself in the foot to forget that my back hurts....but it was a positive experience, this track workout.

Originally designed to be 6x800 - we tweaked it around a bit in mind of the sprint race coming up. We walked equal distance between the intervals (or 400 b/w the 800's) as well. All intervals were done at 8:00/mi pace.

1mi WU
2x200 (200 walk)
2x400 (400 walk)
2x800 (400 walk)
2x400 (400 walk)
2x200 (200 walk)
1 mi CD (this was the most painful part....)

The whole experience took like 1:15 or something, so we weren't exactly blazing, but it did feel good, it was muggy as HELL and we did suffer duly. And there was a nice boy there that was entertaining, as well as some kicking practice, and a father/daughter training session. Fun stuff. Back at it next Thurs for Version 2.

This is me....

...beating my head against the wall. I would just like for one answer, ONE answer or solution that I provide to be enough in and of itself. No follow-up issues, or anything else to be added, or "just one more thing".

I take pride in my quality of work (most of the time) and do try to go above and beyond expectations the vast majority of the time. I try to anticipate the next question and answer it at the same time as the first.

Some days you're Sisyphus, some days you're the rock. I'm having a rock day. And the steriods have finally started to make me "puff"....grumble!

(Rest assured, I will return to my overwhelming attempts at a positive attitude shortly...as long as no one touches the "reply to all" button. Then all bets are off!! HA!)

Morning Run

Well, it felt good, anyway. Or at least kinda good. So maybe it didn't feel all that good, but I got it done!

Ran 4.6 this morning - didn't think it was that far - in about 47 minutes and some change. I really like running in the morning - just wish I could pry my lazy ass out of bed and get it done more often. It's a good start to the day and gets part of the "working out chaos" feeling out of the way. Lessens some of the guilt, if you will. I didn't sleep good again last night (too warm despite a freezing house and still friggin itching) but when the alarms went off I guilted myself up. I'm hoping that makes me CRASH HARD tonight after swimming. The route was easy, the run was easy and pressure-free. The new iPod arm band gizmo worked fine and I wasn't too opinionated on the new headphones - I will say though that if I mash them too far in my ears and they cut off all outside sound I FREAK out - hearing my own raspy breath and the sound of the cord bumping my back is instantly nauseating. Think I lose my equilibrium or something...just weird.

All in all, a good way to start the day. Now if I can just figure out my stomach and get it to cooperate on the schedule too, it'll all be fine!

EDIT: I also swam 3500yd in the evening. Didn't break any speed records, in fact have gained a small bit of time since I've not been swimming and have definitely switched the stroke into open water mode, but I did it and it's done. So there....that counts too.

Solid Weekend....

Good training stuffies. I was a tad bit of a slacker late last week, but old habits die hard. I'm trying to turn the bus around....

Friday - 5x800 - that's a bit of a misnomer to say it that way, because it wasn't a track workout. I just took my normal 6miler from my house to the north end of the Monon and back and put the intervals in it - figuring if I usually run about 10min/mile, to run an 800 would put me at about a 5:00 effort, with about 2:30 rest jog in between. If it clocks correctly, I'd have about .5mi leftover on the way home to cruise. The good news: it worked out just about perfectly and I took the extra time to schlep a bit. I did all the intervals and put in some solid efforts. The bad news: it didn't feel that spunky. In fact, it kinda hurt. Day 1 of the prednisone had my heart rate WAY high (combined with the lack of running activity/effort in awhile) so that was a bit tough to deal with, plus it was a tad muggy and just a tough run. Got a side stitch that almost brought me to my knees. Note to self: figure out why in the hell I get those with high effort levels!!!

Saturday - 3:38 ride, 62 miles. The Tour de Cure ride for the Amer. Diabetes Assoc. Turned out to be a blast. Started at the Speedway, went up to and through Z'ville then back down. Had a couple of decent little rollers in it and way too many SAG stops. We took two quick breaks at the SIHO supported stop to say hit to Cheryl and chat for a bit. The overall pace was pretty chill and we were having fun. Rode with Tanya and raised a little bit of money. Good times. Nothing too overwhelming.

Sunday - 10mi run - 1:51, 2k yd Swim - :36. Long run in mega humidity. We ran AROUND a rainstorm (north as it came in, south as it was leaving) and managed to get a little damp for the last few miles, which helped keep it a bit cool and clear some of the muggy out of the air. Run felt kinda wonky - not really settled until about 3-4mi in. But the pace was super easy. I can tell I haven't been running much, legs are heavy and things are creaky, but that'll come back fairly well I suppose. Need to keep an eye on the left achilles - it was hurting almost all the way through the run yesterday, not sure if that's attributable to Sat bike or Fri run, but it wasn't that comfy. Did seem to loosen up a bit, or other things just started to hurt too. Need to also figure out the stomach again....not happy. Altogether - not a bad deal. Finished with little pressure and had a good time. Saw Dan and another on bike patrol - didn't even recognize us....putz. But they did look quite crisp in their little shorts and polos. Went to the gym (outdoor pool was closed due to the storm) and just glided through 2k, nice and easy just stretching and staying conscious of form and stroke. Catch still feels good and rotation, but I may be a little too long and stretched out when it comes to game time. Need to get out in the OW to judge. Need to get back to practice, too. LAZY!!!!

This upcoming wknd is the EC sprint. I despise the race but it's usually fun. Cookout afterward. Maybe I can just let loose and actually run. Should be some fun people there at least! Would like to focus on the swim and the run - just get through the bike and not wreck and avoid the crazies. Track workout on Thursday, too. Tanya's going to slave-drive me through it....I'm sure I'll cry for Mommy.

Hmmm..me thinks I have it wrong

I've got this "sensible eating" thing a little off-kilter. Had to eat breakfast in order to be able to take the Prednisone to get right of the itching (poison ivy - LOOOOONG story there). I try to eat something for breakfast every day. I also try to get a snack in around 10-10:30a just to keep things going. Inhaled the breakfast (cereal) around 8:15, popped the pills and ate the banana in the car. Got to work and we had a new vendor-guy in here today and he brought us some treats while speaking of his product. So....the Paradise Bakery Cinnamon Roll "snack" at about 9:30 didn't really follow the protocol.

I'm sure the few beers I'm planning on drinking this evening won't exactly help the cause either. But it's Game 7 of the Cup finals. GO WINGS!

I also plan to throw in yesterday's skipped run between work and hockey as well. At least I'll be earning my beer, even if it is a day late. I'll throw in some extra swimming this weekend (as that's what I'll be "missing" today). Jeebus I need to pull my head outta my ass as far as this "training" thing goes. I start out with the best of intentions and then right when the season starts I always seem to jump (not fall - a headlong, sprinting LEAP) off the wagon and just screw up the rest of the season by being lazy. GRUMBLE. I'm sick of being a 'tard when it comes to this stuff. I can tell other people how to get in shape and what to do and how to be sensible, but I can't follow my own plans. URGGGG. Need to make some slight lifestyle changes to BE the person I WANT to be. (I'm such a broken record...I've been saying this for about 5 years now.)

Oh, and I graduated high school over 10 years ago. Comparatively, I'm not doing bad. SO....it's the little victories. GO WINGS.

This is your ass being handed to you...

...when you don't do much training on a really consistent basis and then expect to go ride with some folks all diligently training for an IM. (PS - it doesn't matter what you think of their training, their aerobic engines are a bit more primed than yours...)

Went down to LOU with KS and NB to meet up with some folks from Traverse City, MI (GREAT GROUP) for a ride on the course. Feeling like I might have a slight advantage over a couple in our group - I DID ride the course last year, after all..so what if I got my ass handed to me then, too - we managed to finally find a place to park and get ready to head out. The goal was about 60 - 65 miles. We figured leaving from where River Rd. turns onto 42 would be a good spot, parked at a cute coffee house and away we went. (We'll just glaze over the speeding ticket I got on the way down and the appx. hour we spent trying to navigate to a place to park - KS sucks at directions)

First few miles were ok - feeling a bit of fatigue or lack of conditioning in my legs as we started uphill. Pacing was a big wonky - we'd slack going downhill and then power uphill with a faster pace. (This quickly frustrates the heavier riders that absolutely need to gather as much momentum as possible on the downhill portions to survive the uphills in mediocre fashion) This continued all day, for the record.

It just took the life out of me - completely demoralized me by the end of the day. We finally made the turn back towards the barn and I just gave up. I'm not doing the damn race, I'm not training for anything aggressive, I'm not 100% setup on Luc yet, let them motor uphill and I'll see them later. I had the damn keys so they couldn't go far. (Did I mention I was driving??)

Anyway, the ride totally took the life out of me. No fun. I'm missing power on the bike, not sure what needs to change for that but something sure as hell does fairly quickly. Not even feeling like I've got any fight in the dog anymore. It's not fun to me. Seriously contemplating hanging it all up.

Yeah, it was a bad day. Maybe it'll get better with a little distance (and rest and medication) but if I can't find the fun again, I'm not going to continue to push this rock uphill.