Trotting

This Thanksgiving, we were in the great state of South Carolina at my brother and sister-in-law's house.
Their neighborhood hosted a 5k - there were about 100 people registered this year - their biggest yet.
It was small but fun.
Greg won the race in 18-ish minutes.
I finished in 27:20 - same time as my last 5k. An 8:47 pace. not my best pace sicne last year I ran an 8k at a 8:29 pace, but I haven't trained for this and it was all for fun.

My nephew ran the kids race.
And then my brother and brother-in-law pushed in for the 5k in the jogging stroller with flat tires.

So much to be thankful for.

Watching

Ever since IMCDA, I have had a touch of the lazies.

I go to the gym a few times a week.
I run and people watch.
 I lift weights and people watch.

I kind of watch what I eat...I watch it go in my mouth.
However, I have also been watching my clothes shrink.

this past weekend I watched my friends show how awesome they are with fantastic times at the Richmond Marathon, Half Marathon, and 8k. I passed out water at mile 2. It was cold. But awesome.

I am now back on the nutrition train. Watching what goes in my mouth...and making sure it's healthy. No more of my beloved fall baking days for me. And I am getting back into training.
Not sure what I am training for, though.

Oh and I am eating my words.
I want to do another marathon.
I have one in mind...when I sign up I will let you know.

xo.
m.

Tough Mudder

I'm a Tough Mudder!
We climbed 12 foot high walls
carried logs
climbs hay bales
lots of mud
swam through ICE
jumped over fire
lots of water
buttered monkey bars
and last, but not least we ran through electric wires
10 miles and 28 obstacles later
we are Tough Mudders.
Go Team Ironmaidens!!

Looking at the Bright Side

Call me Alexander. I'm having a case of "the Mondays."

 But the more I hang out in my pity party I am forced to look on the bright side.

- I have completed countless running races, including two marathons.
- I have completed countless triathlons including 5 half ironmans and 2 full ironmans.
- I own my own company.
- I have a great husband. (should probably make that bullet #1)
- I volunteer.
- i have a roof over my head and food in my belly.
- I have good fashion sense.

I mean check that out. It's good to be me.

Oh my Aching Back

I have always had some back pain.
Recently it got worse.
Once the pain started going down my leg, I decided it was time to go see my doc.
Turns out I have a herniated/pinched disc.

But I am stubborn.


so this Sunday I will still be participating in Tough Mudder.
Yes, I am nuts.

Please do not tell my mom I am doing this. haha.

My Life in Design Sales

Yesterday I ran around town updating libraries.

I went to XXX Architecture to take stock of what they actually had in theirs since I had never been there.

I was so happy I found a GREAT party spot on the street in a TWO hour zone! High five!

I walked around the car and got some things out of the trunk…and some home made pumpkin bread to reel them in.

Did my thing. Ran into a girl from another design firm there.

An hour later I am back at my car.

I see a bring green something on my windshield.

Surely it can’t be a parking ticket! I am in a TWO hour zone and have only been here for ONE hour.

I am so mad I get in my car and pick up my phone to call and complain as I open it and it reads ..”parking in less than 15 feet from a fire hydrant”

WHAT?!

I get out and look.

And oh yes, RIGHT next to my driver side door is a damn silver fire hydrant.

All I got to say is, Aren’t these things supposed to be red?

the funniest part to me -- the parking ticket included not one, but two pictures of my car illegally parked. 

so much for finding rock star parking. 

Drop Out

I just dropped out of a race.
I have never done this before.
Not a good feeling.
but I know that my heart is done for the season. the disappointment I felt after my last race make me re-evaluate the rest of my season.
sigh.

Goochland Sprint

I know I have not yet gotten to the Ironman run and finale...and post race wine trip.
But I have to jump ahead.
This past weekend I did the Goochland Sprint Tri.

Hmph.

Well, I did it.

It was not the day I was hoping for.

Looking at the people I would be racing against I really hoped for 2^nd in my AG.

I figured I had been working on my swimming. So that should be decent.

I did a HIM at a 18.6 pace and this is only 12.5 miles, so surely I should be in the 19-20 range on the bike.

Running, well I just have to push through as hard as I can.

The swim went well. A little slower than expected but was 3^rd AG

The bike I pushed, but forgot to start my computer so I wasn’t sure of my pacing. Ended up with…18.6. Seriously?! Not happy with that. 3^rd AG.

The run was hard. I knew there was only 1 person in my AG in front of me and I wasn’t catching her, so I had to keep the girl behind me off and I would have 2^nd. I finished feeling like I worked. 5^th AG

Well, I finished and the preliminary results has the girl in front of me as an overall winner, therefore pushing me to 1^st AG. I was stoked!!! Then as finishers were coming in the fast runners starting pushing me out of the way. I ended up 4^th. #2 beat me by 14 seconds. And #3 beat me by 2 seconds.

So looking back, I feel like I should have been able to find at least 14 seconds. Whish disappoints me. Mainly because I know I did not train for this race. And this is what I get for not trying hard enough.

Because of this I have decided that I am not going to do Giant Acorn sprint in October. My heart is not in it anymore. I need to re-evaluate myself. 

Ironman: the Bike

The bike in pictures. 

guess which picture was taken by Brightroom?!

It wasn't bad - a few good climbs to let you feel all that lactic acid. 

TMI - my crotch hurt so bad I couldn't go in aero. not cool. I kept thinking to myself how nice it would feel to sit in the cold lake now! 

Glad i used tube socks for arm warmers. they came in VERY handy at tissues since I was sick all week. 

I like to wave to my adoring fans when I race. 

I loved that it was a 2 loop "V" shaped course (2 x out and backs) With so many friends out there with me, I was able to see lots of familiar faces. 

I wasn't really sure what time to set for a goal since I am not good at climbing...but i love those descents! 

I thought it would be great to average in the 16-17 zone for this course. 

Finish Time: 6:50:08 - 16.4 pace. 

I definitely slowed down a bit on  he second loop (17.7 according to my computer for the first)

but hey, I'll take it. 

Ironman: the Swim

Race morning.
the weather was fabulous. the lake was calmer than we had seen it all week. the sun was up already at 4am. Something we are not used to. It made setting up in transition great -- no need to wear a head lamp to see what you are doing. Susie Q gave us a ride to transition which was super nice. We immediately found IronGreg's parents who were ready to cheer on all the Richmonders.

Swim
Lynnie Lou and I walked to the swim start together. We found Tyler along the way. this was a major cluster. The walkway to the water is narrow and it's filled with over 2,400 racers and their supporters. And one random idiot on a bike.

the calm before the storm

the pros started 25 minutes ahead. this way they would be on the second lap before the age groupers began. This makes total sense, right?! Keeps us out of their way since this is their income after all. However, because of this you were not allowed in the water  to warm up. you could walk in up to your knees, but that's it. boo. So no warm up. We were all shaking a bit. It was a little chilly and nerves were high. I stood on the beach where i seemed to be right in the middle. not to one side, not to the front or back. Right in the middle. sure I may get hit more, but time wise this was where I needed to be.

the pros are off! 

The gun went off and everyone rushed the water! I had practiced dolphin diving but with people all up in my biz, I couldn't do that, so I just ran until i couldn't run and dove right on in. Whew - that'll wake you up! the water was a balmy 55 degrees. Luckily, I was so focused on getting my rhythm I didn't have time to be concerned about the temperature...or lack thereof. I had told myself that IMAZ was 62 and I survived that and this wasn't that much colder, right?! anyways, I swam along thinking about Dory and Nemo, my trusty swimming imaginary friends. I got hit a few times. And I had to elbow one chick b/c she was she plain annoying. the first loop wasn't so bad. I could hear the volunteer yelling times - 42:30. That works for me! Ya know, thinking back - that may have been my fastest 1.2 time! score! 

The second loop wasn't as good. Sure things thinned out, but the waves picked up some. People wore booties on their feet. I hated finding those people. If you hit their foot your hand went right across the grippies on their booties - owie. I figured when I got out of the swim my knuckles would be nice and exfoliated! As we rounded the buoys they were just as congested as the first. Almost more so. there was no swimming - you waded around and the group would pull you around. the second turn buoy was the PITS! A good size wave came as were wading around it knocking us all over the place. One man yelled out "Tsunami!!!!" we all got a good laugh and kept on swimming. 

I did not negative split the swim, but from what I hear, no one did so that makes me feel better. 

Goal Time - 1:30

Swim time - 1:28

Ironman: Pre-Race

I read a fair amount of blogs. there are some really talented writers out there. I read about peoples' journeys through life and I am amazed at the talent of the writing that just sucks you in...and some posts can be rather lengthy. Made me think about my attempt at blogging. Why can't I write long posts? Probably because I don't take the time to write; I just regurgitate some quick thoughts onto my keyboard. I am always thinking of things to blog about...but then I never do it.

So here goes my attempt at an Ironman recap. I may or may not make it all the way through in one post. 

Pre- Race 

We arrived in Idaho on Wednesday, June 22nd. and it was h-o-t. If it weren't for the lack of humidity in the air I would have thought I was still in Virginia! We were beyond ready for lunch so we hit the town for some sammies. I had travelled in my FAVorite Skirt sports pants and my compression socks. I was so hot, that I had to roll up the pants into shorts and thus showing off my knee-high glory. At this point, Coeur d'Alene had not been taken over by athletes. It was filled with teenagers wearing bikini tops and cut off shorts...unbuttoned. and most of them should not have been wearing those outfits. Not only because of their age and sending the wrong message, but because they were not exactly petite. But I digress. As we strolled through town it was almost humorous getting looks and hearing the whispers over my outfit. 

Anyways, we made it to our house. "Copper Top Lodge" It was fabulous. The decor was not exactly on par with the quality of the home. but it was beyond perfect for our week-long Ironman retreat. It was about a mile from Ironman Village and was at mile 2 of the run course. So roughly miles 2 and 11 on the first loop and miles 15 and 24 on the second loop. 

IronGreg and I were assigned to the pull out sofa in the basement. I was a little concerned about the basement  (and by the end of the week my back was over that sofa bed), but it was great. We were tucked away in the downstairs TV room, connected to the gym, and we had to pass the wine cellar/tasting room to get to our own bathroom complete with a urinal. I named this space the "insert last name Lair" 

So Ironman. Yes, the days drew near. 

Wednesday I drove the bike course with "mi amigas", IronGreg and his coach. We passed one house that had a training tiki bar of sorts. complete with flat changing kit, bars, gus, and a port--o-jon. I mean this town really suports this race. It was so cool! the owner was out and he said they keep the goodies out in May and june for everyone to train with. 

I swam on Thursday and Friday mornings. I prefer to do this swim at the race site and at race time. so at 7am there I was freezing in my wetsuit as the wind swirled around us looking at the white caps thinking, "What have I gotten myself into?" (That wednesday heat previously mentioned was a fluke...back to the cold for this southern belle). the first swim was tough. Having been sick all week and jumping into 55 degree water really takes your breath away. Especially when you have a hard time taking a breath in the first place. I figured out that although I breath every 3-5 stokes, I needed to breach every other stroke in order to catch my breath. I was able to swim for about 30 minutes. And Friday's swim was even better since I figured this breath thing out. We practiced running in and out of the water. That sand hurt my cold feet! 

Thursday we picked up our bikes from Tri Bike Transport. In fact there were so many bikes coming from richmond, that we had our own VIP line. that's how we roll. (haha get it)

I got my rented race wheels and IronGreg put them on Diamond. Man she looked pretty. 

Diamond posed with IronGreg's bike for a pre-race photo shoot. 

The Richmond crew, well part of it, met at our house for a little ride along the run course to get our legs moving and get any kinks out of our bikes. 

Friday, after a much better swim, we picked up our race packets and hit the store for some pre-race shopping. We spent the afternoon putting together our gear bags. People enjoyed my spreadsheets and lists of what to put in what bag. What can I say? I was a Girl Scout. I like to be prepared. 

Saturday was re-lax-a-tion. We finished packing our t-bags up and rode our bikes to transition to drop them and our t-bags off for the night. 

Two Richmond sherpas that volunteered for 

the gear bag drop off. they are awesome. 

Well, like previously stated. It might take me a few posts to get through this one. but hey I elaborated more and I even added pictures. self-high-five! 

I am an IRONMAN...again

I have returned from my 12 day excursion to the Pacific Northwest where I participated in Ironman Coeur d'Alene. It was a GREAT day.
I finished in 13:52. Not a PR but I was pleased with my time.
IronGreg finished in 10:08. A PR for him, although not his goal time. and thus missing qualifying for Kona. Bummer.
Details to come. Trying to catch my bearings after being gone for 2 weeks.
I look forward to catching up with my blogger friends!

2 days...

In 2 days I will be competing with 2800+ of my closest friends in Ironman CDA.

Wednesday:
Our travels were eerily easy. No delays. All luggage made it. Easy drive to our rental home.

Thursday:
woke up to the trees swaying and the waves crashing. thunder. lightening. rain.
luckily this didn't last too long, so we can get in an early morning swim from the beach that the race is on. Our beautiful rental home in on e water with a dock, but we thought it would be nice to actually practice at the actual race site. The water was chilly, but bearable. I had a hard time catching my breath for the first few minutes. I figured out that since I am not able to take my normal deep breaths with this cold and the inability to breathe out of my nose, i have to breathe every other stroke. We practiced some run in and outs and then called it a day. Brrr.
We drove the bike course. The first third of the course is real scenic. only one larger climb on this section. the second third is pretty technical. Some steep descents with sharp curves. (IronGreg rode one particular descent today and wiped out but he is okay. Maybe one day he will learn that you go faster on your wheels)
We rode our bikes on the run course. My legs felt great. Snot-o-rama! I feel bad for anyone riding around me on Sunday.

Friday:
 another early morning swim. Air temp around 45 this morning. A little different from those 70 degree mornings at home. This time I knew what to do to help my lungs get air. I felt good in the water. Although the waves make sighting difficult.
Did some successful shopping in the expo. and now it's time to relax before an afternoon jog.

I did make a minor run adjustment. I typically have done run 4 minutes and walk 1 minute. With the hills, this didn't work. I learned during my 16 miler that hills and a time method don't work since I have to walk up the hills. I adjustment my plan to be run until I need to walk up a hill. Well, there aren't many hills on the run after all. So timex watch on sale at the Timex tent in Ironman Village and back to running a 4:1 for the marathon.

My calf is taped up with Kinesio tape. I just need to tape up my shin now.

I didn't bring my laptop, so I am borrowing one, so Iw ill try to update again before Sunday.

208

sunday I will be lucky number 208
you can track me at www.ironman.com using their athlete tracker.

208 is an area code in Idaho. I take this as a good sign.

IronGreg is 1154.

ART

I have been getting ART - Active Release Technique by Dr. Rob Green at Active Chiropractic throughout my training due to my chronic compartment syndrome.

You may have read about me bitching whining talking about this condition. It's a total PITA.
I have been dealing with it since 2008. In 2009 I caved and had a compartment release done on my lateral fascial compartment (the outside shin muscle). It left me with a fierce scar. and that muscle will never be as strong as it once was. But I can pick up my foot again when running.

Throughout training for IMCDA, this condition reared it's ugly head. Dagger. the compartment under my soleus (which is under the gastroc) started giving me a helluva time.

This time I decided to tray a new approach. Active Release. It's supposedly has a high success rate. I decided to give it a try. for about a month I went and saw Rob 3x/week for my torture sessions. Although my skin was left with some bruising and the muscles were tender for a day - holy cow - it really does work! I slowly worked my way down to one session a week. today was my last pre-race treatment. And we applied some Kinesio tape with instructions on how to apply pre-race.

My calf is loose and ready to try this running thing.

Thanks, Rob!

140.6 thoughts

In 10 days I will be competing in my second Ironman - Ironman Coeur d'Alene in CDA, Idaho.
This day I will go for a morning swim for 2.4 miles.
this ride around the town on my bike, Diamond, for 112 miles.
then finish off the day by jogging 26.2 miles.

I don't really have an overall finish time goal. Odd, I know. I felt the same at kinetic. I think about the goals for each split and they total up one way or another at the end of the day.

This time, however, will be long. so long in fact that I come to you, my friends, for 140.6 thoughts to keep me going throughout the day. (Note: I cannot take credit for this grand idea)
the last .6 miles I will be thinking about the finish line.
So my challenge for you, is to actually comment for a change and give 140 things to ponder on June 26th.
Before the race I will list them out...
I look forward to reading your thoughts.

La Fresh and So Clean Clean

As I headed off to Belize, one of my besties introduced me to the coolest products ever.
La Fresh
They have all kinds of travel products in a wipe form!
I have packed the Sun Screen wipes in my transition bags for Ironman. A great way to quickly apply sunscreen to my face as I head out for each leg.

Dory or Nemo?

This morning I had a great swim.
the pool is hot - which can slow you down.
the pool is shallow - which can slow you down.
BUT
I hit a new 100 meter time - 1:30!
A few months ago I hit 1:31, but I typically am in the mid-1:30's.
You can call me Dory or Nemo - I will let you pick :)

I have a draft post that has been hanging out since I returned from training camp over memorial day weekend.
Maybe one day I will finish it and post it.

1 day until Diamond (my bike) leaves for CDA.
7 days until I leave for CDA.
11 days until IMCDA.

Flying to LGA

This weekend we celebrated my Great-aunt-in-law's 99th birthday.
that's right 99.
And she is a tough old bird, too. But I that goes without saying considering she's 99.
She lives in Geneva, Switzerland. She comes over to visit family about twice a year. and she travels here...by herself. A few months ago she got pretty sick and we were all on pins and needles. the doctors told her no more flying to the states. she told them she would take a boat. ha!
But, she was feeling good, and so she flew. she came over for cousin Peter's high school graduation. While she was here, on May 19th - same birthday as Princess, she turned 99.
So IronGreg and I were able to fly up north to celebrate with everyone.

I got to the airport about 30 minutes before boarding. the computer screen at the gate looked funny to me. I stared at it for awhile before it really sank in....delayed about 30 minutes. We were scheduled to take off at 7:20.
As I sat in the terminal I read my july book club book (even though I haven;t read June's yet). anyways, as the time nears...the departure time moves later and later. Good thing I brought all 4 Uncrustables with me. I at them all. oink. oink.
After two hours, I find myself getting ancy - we all were. It's late. We're tired. and Delayed.
First the man to my right starts talking to himself....out loud. Watching TV on his lap top and laughing...out loud.
then the man behind me - his BO starts creeping over the back of his chair. Jeez, dude, the plane has recirculated air - please bathe before entering airport. Oh good God, please stop passing gas on top of your BO. you stink! literally. smelly kid in class.
The family to my left is so sweet. a mother, daughter, and son. they eat dinner  i think how kind they are to each other. surely it's not always like this, though. respecting their mother. the kids sharing a game of some sort. then it starts. the son's hic-cups. he is sitting 2 seats away from me. out loud. hic-cupping. I continue to read as I tell myself to remain calm. hic-cup. hic-cup. hic-cup. after 10 minutes I am losing my mind. I give him "the look". and it worked. I scared the hic-cups right out of him. sigh of relief.

I think to myself, I am sure glad I am not:
"but-i-had-tickets-to-the-yankees-mets-game-tonight" guy
or
"i-will-not-make-my-next-flight-so-i-have-to-spend-the-night-at-the-airport" guy.

I get all the plane and my seat partner joins me. Holy Vodka, Batman. I think this guy spent the last 2+ hours with his face buried in a bottle of alcohol. He clearly passed out during the flight. I may have gotten drunk off his fumes.

Finally I make my way to LGA and meet up with IronGreg and Dennis the driver. (IronGreg was in Montana for work all week, so we met up at LGA). We get to IronGreg's parents' house at midnight. Quickly shove some meatballs in and off to bed.

Saturday morning long run. Lovely park through northern Jersey. It was great seeing so many peopel take advantage of the nice weather to be active - whether it be jogging, biking, or walking. some alone. some with families. I accomplished a 2:15 run - roughly 14 miles. I was scheduled for 3 hours, but my legs were done after 2:15...and that's when I got back to the car and couldn't force myself to go back out for a short loop. I really wanted to get in 16 miles, but oh well. I am so not ready for the run at IMCDA. I a going to die out there. but i guess if I know this going into it, I will be mentally prepared?

The party was lovely. IronGreg (who ran a speedy 18 miles in 2:15) and I laughed that the old people might out party us. and they did. it was all we could do to stay awake during the party. I was even too tired to enjoy wine. I enjoyed some nice bubbly ginger ale instead.

Luckily, the flight home was less eventful. We had bagel sandwiches packed (IronGreg loves Bagelicious) and we got home as I finished my book and IronGreg went off for his 80 mile ride.
and so the week begins...

3 weeks, 5 days until our 1st anniversary
4 weeks, 5 days until IMCDA

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

this morning I could barely make it out of bed for a 7am swim.
I am supposed to go to the 6am class, but that one was definitely out of the question.

then I had an ART treatment. He walked in the room and told me I looked tired. (a compliment every girl loves to hear haha)

Then the kicker. tonight. I missed my favorite bike ride of the week.
I finished my work day around 4, so I turned on my soap (DVR) and the next thing I know it was 2 hours later and 10 minutes until wheels down. (and, man, was my ear laying funny)
I was in a dress. (not appropriate cycling attire.)
and 30 minutes away from the meeting location.

Hello Peak Ironman Training. We meet again.
Well, it's almost 9. time for bed.

side note: planning my post-Ironman wine road trip is well underway!