It has been almost two weeks since my biggest race/event yet and I am just now feeling ready to put it to bed by writing my race report. I said the other day that training for this was somewhat like being pregnant. You put your heart, soul, and every spare second of time you have into preparing for the big day. For seven months my training was the pretty much the main focus of my life (outside of family and moving to another state). One of the biggest differences is that at the end of it all, you're pretty much left empty handed with only your thoughts, a cool medal, and a sticker to put on your car. And then you wonder...now what?More on that later.
Doubt
During my last 2-3 taper weeks I started feeling very nervous. Did I do enough? Is that one workout I missed in week 9 going to come back and haunt me? Is the swim that I cut short a couple of times because I was feeling too exhausted going to do me in? What about all the juggling I did with my training schedule...will that matter? And how come my plan only had me running for two hours? I should have been running more than that. I don't think the plan had enough brick workouts!So many doubts filled my mind that I was doubting my ability. I started to wonder what not-finishing would look like. Not good. Usually my best strategy is to visualize myself feeling good and going strong in all 3 events. I spent each training session almost in a trance visualizing race-day. This negativity was eating away at that. Fortunately, my friend and former coach Leslie gave me my new mantra: Trust the Plan. With that in my head...I was ready to go.
Here's the recap!
Saturday:
Rick and I went for a very short swim in Cayuga Lake to get the feel of the water, wetsuit, and seaweed. This swim was horrible. I was scared, out of breath, and unable to finish the very short distance I had set out to do. I kind of expected this...it always seems to happen in open water swims when there are no lifeguards and I am in deep water. So I left it at that. Trust the Plan. Then it was time for a quick 20 minute ride to stretch the legs followed by a 10 minute run.
My cousin decided to ride with me because he knew the road and had a good place in mind for the turn around. Unfortunately, he miscalculated the distance and we ended up riding for 50 minutes instead of 20! I was definitely NOT supposed to do that. I decided it was best to scrap the run since I already overworked my legs. More doubt creeping in...
The rest of the day was spent at my aunt's lake house finishing up my hydrating and carb-loading with a big bowl of pierogis and just hanging out in the water, getting a feel for the lake. There was lots of seaweed around so I had to get used to that, too. It really felt great and I was thankful for the opportunity to calm my fears in the water. From there we went to packet pick-up and then to rack the bike and set up transition. I loved that they let us do that the night before! Of course, I didn't get much sleep that night, but I knew that was coming.
Sunday PreRace:
Four a.m. came pretty fast. I quickly got dressed while eating my dry Honey Nut Cheerios and banana. It was a really nice race morning since everything was already set up at the race site and I didn't have to rush around. I got to the site nice and early and had plenty of time to get everything done...body marking, warm-up bike and run, wetsuit on. The transition site was HUGE, but I had a good flag to mark my row and spent a few minutes counting rows just to make sure. Then it was into the water!
Again, I had plenty of time for a little warm up swim to the first bouy. I was so happy because I realized the water was shallow up to that point. Awesome...a little added security for the swim start. Perfect. I was also feeling great about being in the second wave. Hanging around forever waiting to start always makes me more nervous. No time for that today!
Swim:
When the gun went off I of course let all the maniacs go on ahead. Then I started jogging out with the rest of the apprehensive people. I realized that those around me kept walking...and walking...and walking. So, I walked too. No sense in tiring myself out before I had to. Conserving energy was good. We walked almost to the first bouy (probably about 75-100 yards) until the water started getting deep. Then the swimming started. I did my little chant in my head... "steady and calm" out to the second bouy. I had different chants for each part of the swim and it worked. I felt great the whole way through. It did seem to go on forever, though. I wasn't tired out or anything, just wanted it to end because I had other things to do.The middle portion was a little choppy and I felt myself rolling over a lot. After the turn around it was nice and easy though. I can honestly say that I truly enjoyed the swim and I felt energized coming out of the water.
T-1: Thankfully I had no problem finding my bike and had an easy transition. I grabbed a power bar and gobbled it down the minute I crossed the mounting line. I gulped down some sports drink and 4 enduralights and I was off again!
Bike:
Looking at the clock on my bike, I couldn't tell exactly how long my swim was, but I knew it was under 50 minutes, so I was happy. My goal was 45. The bike was HARD. Rolling hills, steep hills, and some rough roads. Nothing I was used to in training. But it was BEAUTIFUL! I had forgotten how gorgeous the Finger Lakes region was. The scenic lake views on that bright sunny day took my breath away. At times I forgot I was in a race and just looked around at the scenery. I loved passing the Amish farms and seeing the children outside playing and looking at us. And I loved passing all of the wineries and vinyards. It was definitely the most beautiful bike ride I had ever taken. I stayed hydrated taking sips of sports drink every 15 minutes, and a gel every 45 minutes. I'm glad I wore my camelback to sip water whenever I wanted. I never had to stop or get anything from the aid stations. I wonder why more people didn't wear camelbacks on the ride.
By mile 50 my back was really hurting and I was ready for the bike to be over. Miles 50-56 seemed the longest of the whole race. I thought it would never end. I noticed that I was approaching my goal time of 3:30 and I didn't see transition anywhere in sight. Oh, well. It was definitely hillier that anything I had encountered in training...so I was ok with a little longer time. I finally crossed the dismount line and rolled into T-2.
T-2:
Again, this was pretty uneventful. Got what I needed and got the heck out of there. At the last second, I grabbed my running hat. I wasn't planning on wearing it, but for some reason I grabbed it...thankfully!
Run:
The first thing I noticed was it was HOT! It really didn't hit me on the ride, but wow it was hitting me now. My legs were a bit wobbly, but boy it fet good to be off the bike and stretching my legs and being off my butt. Coming out of Transition I saw my family and friends and that was awesome. My plan was now to just make it to each aid station along the way. The first one was where I had friends volunteering and it was great to have them there. I began my aid station ritual of sports drink, water, enduralights, and cold sponge and ice in my cap. That worked great because everytime I felt myself getting hot I just pressed on the top of my cap and icy water released down my head.
Then I spotted Rick. He was running with me, but a bit behind me so as not to get me disqualified. I called him my phantom run partner. It was helpful knowing he was there, but I felt bad he wasn't able to get anything from the aid stations. The absolute BEST was that about every mile there were people holding hoses spraying us down with cold water. That is what got me through. I felt like a new person each time I got sprayed and I knew I was going to make it. I actually felt really good throughout the run pretty much all of the way through. Before I knew it, we were half way through. It was a pretty tough run course, though; hilly and hot. Fortunately I was used to running in the heat living in FL, but the hills were another story. I never remembered Geneva being a hilly town! When I reached mile 9, I started to feel myself running out of steam. I took one last gel and pressed on to the next aid station. I noticed a lot of people walking, so I felt pretty good that I was still running. At the last aid station, I once again saw familiar faces and that gave me what I needed to go that last mile. On the last stretch I came upon a line of men (racers)walking and blocking my way which annoyed me. I yelled out "Excuse me boys, I don't have the energy to go around you!" They apologized and moved aside and I ran on through them :) I crossed the finish line with my family there and I was feeling good. No crawling, no collapsing, surprising even myself!
Overall time: 6:53:54...place in age group 34/64
Swim: 47:53...place in age group 48/64
Bike: 3:33:30 place in age group 48/64 Pace 15.8
Run: 2:24:44 place in age group 27/64 Pace 10:53 :)
So that's it!
Over the past months of endless swimming, biking, and running I told myself that this was going to be it. There is no way I could ever train any more than this, so a full Ironman is out of the question. This HIM will be my big "Hurrah" and then I will just have fun, try new things, do some smaller tris and running events. I would even love to learn to surf if I can ever get over my fear of "things" in the ocean. I signed up for the Tough Mudder-a 10 mile mud run/obstacle course. I did my first training session yesterday and found out I cannot do more than 3 push-ups and cannot even do 1 pull-up. Certainly I have something new here to conquer and focus on for the next 5 months. But then it's still out there...140.6 miles I've never covered. At the finish line, Mary looked at me and said, "Mom, you can definitely do a full Ironman." well, if my baby girl thinks I can do it...I can do it. 2013 will be my year. Trust the Plan...and yourself!
Friday, July 29, 2011
Monday, May 16, 2011
2011 Tri Season begins with Dread, Dolphins and a DQ!
It has begun! My first tri of the season was yesterday, May 15th at Marineland Beach in St. Augustine. My season was supposed to have started last month with a sprint in the same location, but a little stubbed-toe damage put me on hold. On the road to my half-iron in July, I really wanted to have a sprint and olympic under my belt this season, but I guess it wasn't in the plan.
So yesterday's was an olympic with an ocean swim...a distance I've never done in the ocean. I really wasn't nervous about it until I was watching the news two days prior to see a report of a swimmer in Ponte Vedra having been bitten by a shark. That led me to look up other info. regarding sharks and swimming in the area, and that didn't make me feel any better. I ended up thinking I might just do the duathlon instead, and save my triathlons for safer, lake swims. I almost had myself convinced of chickening out, but I didn't.
Here's the play by play:
Packet Pick-up:
I couldn't wait to see the actual course in the hopes that it would calm my fears. When we got there, the buoys were not up, so all I saw was the great expanse of ocean and the waves crashing into the shore...yep, still want to do the duathlon. I checked with the race coordinators who said it wouldn't be a problem to switch, but to wait until the morning because it is always calmer then. They laughed when I mentioned my concern about sharks...hmmm.
Race Morning:
Rick, stephen, and I got there at 6:30 when transition opened. The ocean did not look any more calm than the night before, AND the buoys were still not up...yep, still doing the duathlon. As I was setting up in transition, I hear Rick and Stepehn yelling that there are dolphins swimming out where the buoys are being set up. So I finished setting up without even unpacking my swim stuff ("cause I'm doing the duathlon) and I join them on the rocks. Sure enough a pod of dolphins is "playing" around the buoys...really funny. Rick then said thaat I should do the swim because where there are dolphins, there aren't sharks. I had no idea if this was true, but it gave me some confidence. As I watched them, I became more comfortable with the course, thinking "Well, I can swim that..." then remembering the olympic course is around the loop twice...gulp "Yeah, I can still swim that." So I looked at Rick and stated "I'm going to do it." I headed back to transition to get my swim stuff out and grab my wetsuit.
The swim:
We all started on the beach for one massive wave start. The sprinters wore bright pink caps and the oly's wore green. I looked around and counted only 7 green caps in a sea of pink. Great, I thought. By the time I do my second loop, there will only be 7 of us and I know I will be behind. And don't predators always go for the weakest in the group??? Before I had time to contemplate this more, the horn blew and we were all running straight towards a wall of breaking waves. It was kind of hard getting through the breakers, but there were so many swimmers around me that I wasn't nervous, although I could feel my breathing start to get out of control. I focused on slow, calm, breaths and it worked. Having the wetsuit on along with the buoyancy of the salt water made it easy to swim with my head up so I could spot the waves all the way to the first buoy. I was feeling pretty good as we all rounded the first buoy and began the longest stretch of the course, swimming parallel to the beach. I realized two things were now on my side: we were now swimming with the current and my breathing side was facing shore. I began to settle into my normal swimming/breathing pace knowing I wouldn't be hit in the face with a wave all while being pulled along by the current. Nice. Furthermore...I was still in the middle of the group where I felt nice and safe. There were even a couple of green caps swimming by me, so I was hopeful we'd be together on the second loop too. I also noticed that the dude swimming on my left was doing the breast stroke. This was fantastic, because it meant he could see the buoys the whole time, which meant if I kept my eye on him during each breath, I wouldn't have to look up to sight the buoy very often. Thanks, dude. I can honestly say that by this point I was enjoying the swim and had no fears at all. After rounding the third bouy, things got a bit tougher because we weren't swimming directly with the current, and were approaching the breakers again. They were so strong that they rolled me over a couple of times and I bgan to feel dizzy and a little sea sick.
I finally reached the 4th buoy where I could actually stand and walk. Here, the sprinters ran out of the water and up the beach to get on the bike. The rest of us green cappers had to round the bouy and head out to the breakers again, but this time from an angle. We were now fighting the strong current AND breakers that seemed a lot bigger this time around. I caught my breath for a few seconds and followed a green cap guy out toward the waves. I kept diving through the waves, getting pushed back with each one when I realized something...I was all alone! The waves were so high I couldn't see the bouys, green caps,or the lifeguards paddling around, nor could I see the shore. I didn't even know if I was on course because of the current. Then I began hearing all of these strange squeaking and whistling noises in my ears...but no one was around me. At first I thought that it must be my swim cap rubbing against the back of my wetsuit. But I still heard them when my head was down and they seemed to be coming from all over. That was it! I immediately turned around in the directions that the waves were pushing and hauled my but as fast as I could toward shore. I imagined dolphins popping up beside me and it freaked me out. I kept chanting "Get away, get away, get away..." as I swam in, probably looking like a fool for going the wrong way. When I finally felt sand under my feet, I felt a rush of relief. I really hated the feeling of defeat, but I was done with that water and any dolphins that may have been around laughing at me.
Running up the beach I passed Rick and told him and the race director I was still going to finish the race. The director said I should just do the sprint so I could get an official time.
The Bike:
This was pretty uneventful. It was straight and flat. I decided on the bike that I would continue on and do the oly distances for the bike and run. This was supposed to help me in my training for the half iron, so just doing the sprint wouldn't do me any good. So I was now disqualified, but finishing the race anyway. I ended up averaging 18.4 on the bike which was my new PR for an oly, so that made me happy.
The Run:
Again, uneventful. Straight, flat and 2 loops of the course and I was done. I got lots of admiring looks from people who thought that I was really fast (not knowing that I had only done half of the swim). I came into the finish with the top oly men...haha, this will never happen again. I forgot to set my watch, so I don't know my time, but it was a good training brick, anyway.
So that was it. Of course now I have to do the race again next year so I can actually finish the whole swim. Maybe by then I'll be more comfortable with the ocean and dolphins!!
Good news: The half-iron is in NY in a LAKE. Stepehn now wants to train for a triathlon...yay!!
So yesterday's was an olympic with an ocean swim...a distance I've never done in the ocean. I really wasn't nervous about it until I was watching the news two days prior to see a report of a swimmer in Ponte Vedra having been bitten by a shark. That led me to look up other info. regarding sharks and swimming in the area, and that didn't make me feel any better. I ended up thinking I might just do the duathlon instead, and save my triathlons for safer, lake swims. I almost had myself convinced of chickening out, but I didn't.
Here's the play by play:
Packet Pick-up:
I couldn't wait to see the actual course in the hopes that it would calm my fears. When we got there, the buoys were not up, so all I saw was the great expanse of ocean and the waves crashing into the shore...yep, still want to do the duathlon. I checked with the race coordinators who said it wouldn't be a problem to switch, but to wait until the morning because it is always calmer then. They laughed when I mentioned my concern about sharks...hmmm.
Race Morning:
Rick, stephen, and I got there at 6:30 when transition opened. The ocean did not look any more calm than the night before, AND the buoys were still not up...yep, still doing the duathlon. As I was setting up in transition, I hear Rick and Stepehn yelling that there are dolphins swimming out where the buoys are being set up. So I finished setting up without even unpacking my swim stuff ("cause I'm doing the duathlon) and I join them on the rocks. Sure enough a pod of dolphins is "playing" around the buoys...really funny. Rick then said thaat I should do the swim because where there are dolphins, there aren't sharks. I had no idea if this was true, but it gave me some confidence. As I watched them, I became more comfortable with the course, thinking "Well, I can swim that..." then remembering the olympic course is around the loop twice...gulp "Yeah, I can still swim that." So I looked at Rick and stated "I'm going to do it." I headed back to transition to get my swim stuff out and grab my wetsuit.
The swim:
We all started on the beach for one massive wave start. The sprinters wore bright pink caps and the oly's wore green. I looked around and counted only 7 green caps in a sea of pink. Great, I thought. By the time I do my second loop, there will only be 7 of us and I know I will be behind. And don't predators always go for the weakest in the group??? Before I had time to contemplate this more, the horn blew and we were all running straight towards a wall of breaking waves. It was kind of hard getting through the breakers, but there were so many swimmers around me that I wasn't nervous, although I could feel my breathing start to get out of control. I focused on slow, calm, breaths and it worked. Having the wetsuit on along with the buoyancy of the salt water made it easy to swim with my head up so I could spot the waves all the way to the first buoy. I was feeling pretty good as we all rounded the first buoy and began the longest stretch of the course, swimming parallel to the beach. I realized two things were now on my side: we were now swimming with the current and my breathing side was facing shore. I began to settle into my normal swimming/breathing pace knowing I wouldn't be hit in the face with a wave all while being pulled along by the current. Nice. Furthermore...I was still in the middle of the group where I felt nice and safe. There were even a couple of green caps swimming by me, so I was hopeful we'd be together on the second loop too. I also noticed that the dude swimming on my left was doing the breast stroke. This was fantastic, because it meant he could see the buoys the whole time, which meant if I kept my eye on him during each breath, I wouldn't have to look up to sight the buoy very often. Thanks, dude. I can honestly say that by this point I was enjoying the swim and had no fears at all. After rounding the third bouy, things got a bit tougher because we weren't swimming directly with the current, and were approaching the breakers again. They were so strong that they rolled me over a couple of times and I bgan to feel dizzy and a little sea sick.
I finally reached the 4th buoy where I could actually stand and walk. Here, the sprinters ran out of the water and up the beach to get on the bike. The rest of us green cappers had to round the bouy and head out to the breakers again, but this time from an angle. We were now fighting the strong current AND breakers that seemed a lot bigger this time around. I caught my breath for a few seconds and followed a green cap guy out toward the waves. I kept diving through the waves, getting pushed back with each one when I realized something...I was all alone! The waves were so high I couldn't see the bouys, green caps,or the lifeguards paddling around, nor could I see the shore. I didn't even know if I was on course because of the current. Then I began hearing all of these strange squeaking and whistling noises in my ears...but no one was around me. At first I thought that it must be my swim cap rubbing against the back of my wetsuit. But I still heard them when my head was down and they seemed to be coming from all over. That was it! I immediately turned around in the directions that the waves were pushing and hauled my but as fast as I could toward shore. I imagined dolphins popping up beside me and it freaked me out. I kept chanting "Get away, get away, get away..." as I swam in, probably looking like a fool for going the wrong way. When I finally felt sand under my feet, I felt a rush of relief. I really hated the feeling of defeat, but I was done with that water and any dolphins that may have been around laughing at me.
Running up the beach I passed Rick and told him and the race director I was still going to finish the race. The director said I should just do the sprint so I could get an official time.
The Bike:
This was pretty uneventful. It was straight and flat. I decided on the bike that I would continue on and do the oly distances for the bike and run. This was supposed to help me in my training for the half iron, so just doing the sprint wouldn't do me any good. So I was now disqualified, but finishing the race anyway. I ended up averaging 18.4 on the bike which was my new PR for an oly, so that made me happy.
The Run:
Again, uneventful. Straight, flat and 2 loops of the course and I was done. I got lots of admiring looks from people who thought that I was really fast (not knowing that I had only done half of the swim). I came into the finish with the top oly men...haha, this will never happen again. I forgot to set my watch, so I don't know my time, but it was a good training brick, anyway.
So that was it. Of course now I have to do the race again next year so I can actually finish the whole swim. Maybe by then I'll be more comfortable with the ocean and dolphins!!
Good news: The half-iron is in NY in a LAKE. Stepehn now wants to train for a triathlon...yay!!
Monday, January 17, 2011
Half-Ironman Bound
Ok, I have basked in the glory of finishing a marathon long enough. For the few weeks after the race, I took it a bit easy and just had fun. I made sure to keep active, running a little, swimming a little, and taking some new classes at the gym. It really felt great to change things up and not just run every day.
Also, we announced to everyone that Rick got a new job and we will be moving to Jacksonville Florida. It has been a whirlwind of activity with selling our house, researching Jacksonville, and finding the perfect spot for us to live and go to school. Fortunately, it all came together and I think we have a great deal accomplished. Our house is sold, we found our perfect place to live, a great school, and Rick is down there now beginning his job. The kids and I will just have to get an apartment and finish out the year. Unfortunately, with 2 teenagers who are very involved in activities and not driving yet, I am going to be very busy. I was so upset that it meant my plans for the half-iron would have to be postponed for a year. But...I am determined to do it. I may have to do some late night or early morning workouts, but that's ok...I can do it!
My first week of training officially started last week, but it was kind of a bust. I got sick in the middle of the week and missed 2 whole days. Also, I hurt my foot as I am transitioning into 5-finger shoes for running. I haven't been able to run since last Tuesday. I am going to give it more time to rest until I don't feel the pain anymore. I figure that this is the best time to rest and let it heal before I get into the real important training. These first few weeks are just for building my base fitness. And since I spent so much time running as I trained for the marathon, I can handle some time off. Fortunately, I can now devote the bulk of my training to swimming and biking, which I need more of right now anyway. I think I might even take one more week off of running to let my foot heal right. Instead, I will bike or cross train on run days.
So...Here's this week's training plan:
Monday: 1:15 strength: 1 hour pilates class and 15 minutes with the ab roller.
Tuesday: 1:00 swim (Aerobic zones 1&2)
:45 min. bike pick-ups
Wednesday: 1:15 Strength: plyometrics and core
Thursday: 1:00 swim (speed drills)
:30 eliptical (aerobic zones 1&2)
Friday: 1:00 bike-(isolated leg drills)
Saturday: 1:00 run or eliptcal
1:00 swim-form drills (if possible...we will be at a hotel in FL)
Sun: 1:00 bike (aerobic zones 1&2)
It will be tough Friday-Sunday since the kids and I are flying to Jax to visit Rick, pick out a house and visit the school. But, there is a fitness facility at the hotel so I can get up early and do what I need to. The swim may not happen, but if not, I'll do something else. Again, it's easier to be flexible at this stage.
Ok, not to talk nutrition. I am determined to improve in this category also. I could still stand to lose some weight to make me lighter and faster. I am going to make small goals every month.
Goal number 1 for January: No pre-packaged (processed) snack foods. My grocery list right now consists of raw veggies, string cheese, almonds, eggs, fresh fruit, yogurt, and cottage cheese. Basically, anything whole and natural. I tried this before but made my goal much too big...eliminating ALL processed foods at once. This is just about impossible. So...by keeping it just to snack foods, I should be able to do it. Then, next month I will expand the goal to another area.
My positive thought of the week: Believe in yourself. It sounds cliche and over used, but it is so important. Take all self-doubt out of your mind and replace it with positive energy. Amazing things may happen!
Also, we announced to everyone that Rick got a new job and we will be moving to Jacksonville Florida. It has been a whirlwind of activity with selling our house, researching Jacksonville, and finding the perfect spot for us to live and go to school. Fortunately, it all came together and I think we have a great deal accomplished. Our house is sold, we found our perfect place to live, a great school, and Rick is down there now beginning his job. The kids and I will just have to get an apartment and finish out the year. Unfortunately, with 2 teenagers who are very involved in activities and not driving yet, I am going to be very busy. I was so upset that it meant my plans for the half-iron would have to be postponed for a year. But...I am determined to do it. I may have to do some late night or early morning workouts, but that's ok...I can do it!
My first week of training officially started last week, but it was kind of a bust. I got sick in the middle of the week and missed 2 whole days. Also, I hurt my foot as I am transitioning into 5-finger shoes for running. I haven't been able to run since last Tuesday. I am going to give it more time to rest until I don't feel the pain anymore. I figure that this is the best time to rest and let it heal before I get into the real important training. These first few weeks are just for building my base fitness. And since I spent so much time running as I trained for the marathon, I can handle some time off. Fortunately, I can now devote the bulk of my training to swimming and biking, which I need more of right now anyway. I think I might even take one more week off of running to let my foot heal right. Instead, I will bike or cross train on run days.
So...Here's this week's training plan:
Monday: 1:15 strength: 1 hour pilates class and 15 minutes with the ab roller.
Tuesday: 1:00 swim (Aerobic zones 1&2)
:45 min. bike pick-ups
Wednesday: 1:15 Strength: plyometrics and core
Thursday: 1:00 swim (speed drills)
:30 eliptical (aerobic zones 1&2)
Friday: 1:00 bike-(isolated leg drills)
Saturday: 1:00 run or eliptcal
1:00 swim-form drills (if possible...we will be at a hotel in FL)
Sun: 1:00 bike (aerobic zones 1&2)
It will be tough Friday-Sunday since the kids and I are flying to Jax to visit Rick, pick out a house and visit the school. But, there is a fitness facility at the hotel so I can get up early and do what I need to. The swim may not happen, but if not, I'll do something else. Again, it's easier to be flexible at this stage.
Ok, not to talk nutrition. I am determined to improve in this category also. I could still stand to lose some weight to make me lighter and faster. I am going to make small goals every month.
Goal number 1 for January: No pre-packaged (processed) snack foods. My grocery list right now consists of raw veggies, string cheese, almonds, eggs, fresh fruit, yogurt, and cottage cheese. Basically, anything whole and natural. I tried this before but made my goal much too big...eliminating ALL processed foods at once. This is just about impossible. So...by keeping it just to snack foods, I should be able to do it. Then, next month I will expand the goal to another area.
My positive thought of the week: Believe in yourself. It sounds cliche and over used, but it is so important. Take all self-doubt out of your mind and replace it with positive energy. Amazing things may happen!
Sunday, December 5, 2010
I made it!
It has been a while since I have posted. There has been so much going on in my life lately that the marathon started to take a back seat, but fortunately it was during "taper period" so it didn't really affect my training. All in all, my training was perfect. I had to scale back a bit from the "Intermediate II" schedule that Rick and I jumped into, but the main components remained: long run on the weekends (worked up to 3 X 20 miles), recovery on Tuesday, "short" long run on Wednesday, and either cross training or short run on Thursday. I tried to make Monday a swim day, but got a little lazy most of the time and just took it as another rest. But all in all, I was happy with my training and feel I did my best.
So the marathon was yesterday and I did it! Actually, I never doubted that I would finish. I know myself well enough by now to figure out how to make it through just about anything. But the feeling of being a marathoner is no less amazing. I feel so empowered. Three years ago I never would have imagined that I could do it; never would have wanted to do it. It is hard to fathom now that I am already thinking about my next one...what I would do differently...what advice I would be sure to take. I love to learn and grow and challenge myself. In some ways, my life is really just beginning...and I'm almost 40! Yes, it sounds dorky, but until you do something and push yourself through something that you never thought you could do, you probably wouldn't understand.
So here it is...my first marathon race report.
Taper Week:
God knew I needed Taper Week. Some events have recently unfolded in my life (one soon to be revealed) that made it impossible for me to physicaly and mentally handle much training last week. I followed Jennie V's carb-loading plan as best as I could. Good Lord, 600 grams of carbs is just about impossible to take in a day! I packed a bag for each day (for Rick and me) containing all kinds of snacks and meals that would bring us up to our carb-loading goal. Inevitably, my bag still had several items in it at the end of the day. I never thought I would ever say that I couldn't eat as much as I needed to. I felt bloated and sick every day. Then there was the water...1 gallon of water a day! I didn't quite make it, but I got close.Then there was the stretching...I ignored the advice to stretch my calves, hams and IT band all week. (My big mistake). I was able to sleep really well for a few nights leading up to the marathon. I haven't slept so well in a long time..all signs point to a great race day...or so I thought.
Race Morning:
Race morning was perfect. We woke up at 4:30, had coffee, breakfast, and puttered around with our gear. I really wasn't nervous at all. Unlike triathlons, there is very little that can go wrong on a marathon race day (in my mind, anyway). I wasn't trying to qualify for anything and I really didn't have a time goal, so for me...I tried to think of it as just another long run...a really long run. The worst that could happen is that I would have to walk some...I already planned on that. My friend Josh met us at the house and we drove to the race together. Nice mornng!
Race:
Wow, the weather was great. Cloudy, cool (but not cold), and just enough wind to feel good when running. I started out with a sweatshirt and then ditched it at about mile 3 or so. Josh, Rick and I started out together and it was nice talking the first few miles away. With all of the strange costumes and signs around, there was enough to talk about. Then, around mile 7 or so I had to pee, so Rick and I stopped at the port-o-pots, and Josh carried on without us. We never did see him again, as he started gunning it to a 7 min/mile pace for a while.
It was about then that I noticed my left knee hurting a little bit. Shit! It is way too early for this. In all of my training I have never had a knee problem...what the heck is going on? Then it hit me...the stretching...could it be that not stretching during taper week is causing this? Damn it! So I just ignored the pain for a few miles so it wouldn't get the best of me. Somewhere early on I passed my friends Holly and Greg as they were cheering us on. How cool it was to see someone we knew cheering for us. That really got me pumped. Then we saw Chuk and Jr, some students from school, and then Holly and Greg again. Awesome!
Well, ignoring my knee pain worked ok until about mile 15...it really started to hurt. So it was then that I took a little walk/stretch break at each of the aid stations (about every mile). That worked nicely for me, but it was killing Rick. The more he stopped, the worse his IT band felt. So at mile 17 I sent him on ahead and I continued my little stretching/walking breaks. It was then that I finally decided to turn on my i-pod and listen to some music. That really helped the miles pass by. At mile 20, those breaks turned up every half mile...and then the walks got a little longer. Mentally, I had to be ok with that. The alternative would have been to totally mess up my knee to the point of not being able to finish. No way! I was determined to do whatever I had to do to finish. So, I took my time. It was the longest hour and a half I can remember since my labor with Mary. I did my best to think of the awesomeness of the experience..."I'm doing a freakin marathon" and felt good about it, even though my body was definitely breaking down and I was all alone. I was also really worried about Rick. I knew he was in a tremendous amount of pain. I half expected to see him sitting on the side of the road. What would I do then? I wouldn't want to leave him, but he wouldn't want me to stay. I decided that if I did see him there, I would walk with him the rest of the way. We were both going to finish this race!
By now,even the songs on my ipod were annoying me. Push through it, push through it. No Rick on the side of the road... From then on, every mile marker was a beautiful sight. When # 26 came into focus, I remember looking at it hard and thinking "This is it...this is what you have been working toward." I stared at that sign as long as I could and I made damn sure that I was running when I passed it. The last .2 went by very quickly. There were specatators now cheering every step of the way. I actually felt much better and started to run faster and even passed a guy as I entered the finish chute. I clearly remember the point where I entered the orange cones and thought...I really did it...it's over. Just before I crossed the finish line, I looked to the right and saw Rick sitting on the lawn, smiling and waving to me. I burst out and screamed and waved my arms in the air...so happy that he had made it, too. We found eachother and were so happy...hugging and even a little crying. Very proud.
After changing and getting some water and chocolate milk, we saw our some friends, and joined Josh and his family at Huey's for some well-deserved food and beer.
Loking back, there is nothing Iwould have changed about the race. You can't always control what happens to you, but you can control how you react to it. I couldn't control my knee pain, but the way I chose to react to it caused me to finish the race. My actual finish time was 4:51:07. Not exactly what I wanted, but I'll certainly take it. What's next? Half Ironman in July and The Disney Marathon in Florida next year...(that's a hint). :)
So the marathon was yesterday and I did it! Actually, I never doubted that I would finish. I know myself well enough by now to figure out how to make it through just about anything. But the feeling of being a marathoner is no less amazing. I feel so empowered. Three years ago I never would have imagined that I could do it; never would have wanted to do it. It is hard to fathom now that I am already thinking about my next one...what I would do differently...what advice I would be sure to take. I love to learn and grow and challenge myself. In some ways, my life is really just beginning...and I'm almost 40! Yes, it sounds dorky, but until you do something and push yourself through something that you never thought you could do, you probably wouldn't understand.
So here it is...my first marathon race report.
Taper Week:
God knew I needed Taper Week. Some events have recently unfolded in my life (one soon to be revealed) that made it impossible for me to physicaly and mentally handle much training last week. I followed Jennie V's carb-loading plan as best as I could. Good Lord, 600 grams of carbs is just about impossible to take in a day! I packed a bag for each day (for Rick and me) containing all kinds of snacks and meals that would bring us up to our carb-loading goal. Inevitably, my bag still had several items in it at the end of the day. I never thought I would ever say that I couldn't eat as much as I needed to. I felt bloated and sick every day. Then there was the water...1 gallon of water a day! I didn't quite make it, but I got close.Then there was the stretching...I ignored the advice to stretch my calves, hams and IT band all week. (My big mistake). I was able to sleep really well for a few nights leading up to the marathon. I haven't slept so well in a long time..all signs point to a great race day...or so I thought.
Race Morning:
Race morning was perfect. We woke up at 4:30, had coffee, breakfast, and puttered around with our gear. I really wasn't nervous at all. Unlike triathlons, there is very little that can go wrong on a marathon race day (in my mind, anyway). I wasn't trying to qualify for anything and I really didn't have a time goal, so for me...I tried to think of it as just another long run...a really long run. The worst that could happen is that I would have to walk some...I already planned on that. My friend Josh met us at the house and we drove to the race together. Nice mornng!
Race:
Wow, the weather was great. Cloudy, cool (but not cold), and just enough wind to feel good when running. I started out with a sweatshirt and then ditched it at about mile 3 or so. Josh, Rick and I started out together and it was nice talking the first few miles away. With all of the strange costumes and signs around, there was enough to talk about. Then, around mile 7 or so I had to pee, so Rick and I stopped at the port-o-pots, and Josh carried on without us. We never did see him again, as he started gunning it to a 7 min/mile pace for a while.
It was about then that I noticed my left knee hurting a little bit. Shit! It is way too early for this. In all of my training I have never had a knee problem...what the heck is going on? Then it hit me...the stretching...could it be that not stretching during taper week is causing this? Damn it! So I just ignored the pain for a few miles so it wouldn't get the best of me. Somewhere early on I passed my friends Holly and Greg as they were cheering us on. How cool it was to see someone we knew cheering for us. That really got me pumped. Then we saw Chuk and Jr, some students from school, and then Holly and Greg again. Awesome!
Well, ignoring my knee pain worked ok until about mile 15...it really started to hurt. So it was then that I took a little walk/stretch break at each of the aid stations (about every mile). That worked nicely for me, but it was killing Rick. The more he stopped, the worse his IT band felt. So at mile 17 I sent him on ahead and I continued my little stretching/walking breaks. It was then that I finally decided to turn on my i-pod and listen to some music. That really helped the miles pass by. At mile 20, those breaks turned up every half mile...and then the walks got a little longer. Mentally, I had to be ok with that. The alternative would have been to totally mess up my knee to the point of not being able to finish. No way! I was determined to do whatever I had to do to finish. So, I took my time. It was the longest hour and a half I can remember since my labor with Mary. I did my best to think of the awesomeness of the experience..."I'm doing a freakin marathon" and felt good about it, even though my body was definitely breaking down and I was all alone. I was also really worried about Rick. I knew he was in a tremendous amount of pain. I half expected to see him sitting on the side of the road. What would I do then? I wouldn't want to leave him, but he wouldn't want me to stay. I decided that if I did see him there, I would walk with him the rest of the way. We were both going to finish this race!
By now,even the songs on my ipod were annoying me. Push through it, push through it. No Rick on the side of the road... From then on, every mile marker was a beautiful sight. When # 26 came into focus, I remember looking at it hard and thinking "This is it...this is what you have been working toward." I stared at that sign as long as I could and I made damn sure that I was running when I passed it. The last .2 went by very quickly. There were specatators now cheering every step of the way. I actually felt much better and started to run faster and even passed a guy as I entered the finish chute. I clearly remember the point where I entered the orange cones and thought...I really did it...it's over. Just before I crossed the finish line, I looked to the right and saw Rick sitting on the lawn, smiling and waving to me. I burst out and screamed and waved my arms in the air...so happy that he had made it, too. We found eachother and were so happy...hugging and even a little crying. Very proud.
After changing and getting some water and chocolate milk, we saw our some friends, and joined Josh and his family at Huey's for some well-deserved food and beer.
Loking back, there is nothing Iwould have changed about the race. You can't always control what happens to you, but you can control how you react to it. I couldn't control my knee pain, but the way I chose to react to it caused me to finish the race. My actual finish time was 4:51:07. Not exactly what I wanted, but I'll certainly take it. What's next? Half Ironman in July and The Disney Marathon in Florida next year...(that's a hint). :)
Thursday, October 28, 2010
On to the next 20
Ok, so I am in the middle of week 13. I am doing much better with my stretching and weight training and have altered my schedule a bit. After the last fiasco and thinking that I really hurt my foot, I've decided not to do my pace runs the day after my longs. So the experts were right. BUT, I have decided to actually cut the pace runs in half so I am not completely tired out when I go to do my long runs.
2 weeks ago I actually made it all the way to 20! It was a rough one for sure. First I wasn't prepared nutritionally. I forgot to restock my Gu, so all I had for the whole 20 miles was water, gator aid, and 3 little shot blocks. I ate those at mile 8, so they were long gone by mile 15.
I ran with Rick and some new people which was fun. We started at 5:30 a.m. and it was cool running in the pitch blackness with a group. I am used to being alone. We saw the sun come up as we turned from Poplar to Houston Levy, thankfully. That was another problem...it was in the low 50's that morning and all I had on was a thin T-shirt. I never really did warm up.
I was able to hold their pace util about mile 14 when I started to lag behind. The lack of nutrition was catching up with me and my legs were so stiff that I felt like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz. I caught up to them again at mile 17 at the water stop, so I stretched and felt a little better. Now I was just starving!
Finally, we made it to 20 miles, only to realize that we miscalculated the distance and still had a good 3 miles before we were back at the car. I felt like crying. Rick and I ended up walking/limping home.
So now I am looking at my second twenty miler this weekend. I am going to run with the same group, but this time have a LOT of nutritional supplements and even a granola bar stashed somewhere. I am hoping this one goes a little better, although I wouldn't say my last one was bad. I just think whenever a person runs that long it is always going to hurt and be uncomfortable.
Why am I doing this again?????
2 weeks ago I actually made it all the way to 20! It was a rough one for sure. First I wasn't prepared nutritionally. I forgot to restock my Gu, so all I had for the whole 20 miles was water, gator aid, and 3 little shot blocks. I ate those at mile 8, so they were long gone by mile 15.
I ran with Rick and some new people which was fun. We started at 5:30 a.m. and it was cool running in the pitch blackness with a group. I am used to being alone. We saw the sun come up as we turned from Poplar to Houston Levy, thankfully. That was another problem...it was in the low 50's that morning and all I had on was a thin T-shirt. I never really did warm up.
I was able to hold their pace util about mile 14 when I started to lag behind. The lack of nutrition was catching up with me and my legs were so stiff that I felt like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz. I caught up to them again at mile 17 at the water stop, so I stretched and felt a little better. Now I was just starving!
Finally, we made it to 20 miles, only to realize that we miscalculated the distance and still had a good 3 miles before we were back at the car. I felt like crying. Rick and I ended up walking/limping home.
So now I am looking at my second twenty miler this weekend. I am going to run with the same group, but this time have a LOT of nutritional supplements and even a granola bar stashed somewhere. I am hoping this one goes a little better, although I wouldn't say my last one was bad. I just think whenever a person runs that long it is always going to hurt and be uncomfortable.
Why am I doing this again?????
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Um...This is harder than I thought!
Why I thought training for a marathon would be easier than training for a triathlon is beyond me. I am starting to rethink my plan, or at least my schedule. In retrospect, jumping past the Novice and Intermediate training plans may not have been the best idea.
Both the Novice II and Intermediate I programs would have had me run a total of 36 miles this week. In the Intermediate II, I am running 43 miles this week. I guess that 7 miles really makes a difference in an untrained body. I didn't get to run my mid-week 9 or 4 miler due to hip issues. I did run 19 yesterday and felt OK, but today was supposed to be 9 at pace (9:15) and I just couldn't do it. I managed about a 10:00-10:30 pace for about 6 miles, but then had to call it quits due to a new pain, this time on the outside arch of my foot. It got so bad that I decided to walk the last 3 miles rather than risk an injury.
Now for my altered schedule...
a. I am going to follow Hal's advice and do my pace runs on Saturday and my long runs on Sunday. I reversed them initially because I wanted to get my long run out of the way and feel like I could relax a bit for the rest of the weekend and still do a pretty good pace run Sunday. That actually worked out until this weekend; week 10. After a 19 miler, I realize I just don't have the body to get out the next day and do a good pace run.
b. I AM going to make myself crosstrain Monday (swim) and Thursday (bike) and do two days of light weights and core. The reason my hips are having issues is because the rest of my body is weak, so they are working overtime. I need to strengthen all of my muscles if I am going to make it through in one piece.
c. Stretching!! I have not been stretching at all and that is not good. I know I will not be able to make it to Yoga with this schedule, but I can at least stretch at home each day. I've added some good stretching and weight training sites here, so I intend to use them!
d. New running shoes. It is time. I've had these since April and trained and raced for 4 triathlons and 1/2 way through this marathon program. I am headed to Fleet Feet today and am so excited.
So that's it. If I stick to this, hopefully that will help. If not, I may need to drop down to one of the lower training programs. We'll see. I do know that I am learning a lot and with each marathon I do, my body will be in better condition. I really want to just enjoy this journey and keep in mind how awesome it is that I am even doing this in the first place. :)
Both the Novice II and Intermediate I programs would have had me run a total of 36 miles this week. In the Intermediate II, I am running 43 miles this week. I guess that 7 miles really makes a difference in an untrained body. I didn't get to run my mid-week 9 or 4 miler due to hip issues. I did run 19 yesterday and felt OK, but today was supposed to be 9 at pace (9:15) and I just couldn't do it. I managed about a 10:00-10:30 pace for about 6 miles, but then had to call it quits due to a new pain, this time on the outside arch of my foot. It got so bad that I decided to walk the last 3 miles rather than risk an injury.
Now for my altered schedule...
a. I am going to follow Hal's advice and do my pace runs on Saturday and my long runs on Sunday. I reversed them initially because I wanted to get my long run out of the way and feel like I could relax a bit for the rest of the weekend and still do a pretty good pace run Sunday. That actually worked out until this weekend; week 10. After a 19 miler, I realize I just don't have the body to get out the next day and do a good pace run.
b. I AM going to make myself crosstrain Monday (swim) and Thursday (bike) and do two days of light weights and core. The reason my hips are having issues is because the rest of my body is weak, so they are working overtime. I need to strengthen all of my muscles if I am going to make it through in one piece.
c. Stretching!! I have not been stretching at all and that is not good. I know I will not be able to make it to Yoga with this schedule, but I can at least stretch at home each day. I've added some good stretching and weight training sites here, so I intend to use them!
d. New running shoes. It is time. I've had these since April and trained and raced for 4 triathlons and 1/2 way through this marathon program. I am headed to Fleet Feet today and am so excited.
So that's it. If I stick to this, hopefully that will help. If not, I may need to drop down to one of the lower training programs. We'll see. I do know that I am learning a lot and with each marathon I do, my body will be in better condition. I really want to just enjoy this journey and keep in mind how awesome it is that I am even doing this in the first place. :)
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Pain in the Middle
Rick and I have ventured into week 10 (just past the mid-way point) of our marathon training and are running into unchartered territory. So far, our longest run has been about 18 miles 2 weeks ago, and last week it went down to 12. This was an interesting couple of weeks.
Both of us had a fantastic 18 miler. Rick ran by himself so that he could keep his goal pace (which he did) and I ran with Chuk and Adam: half on the new Greenway, and half on the Yellow trail. It was a nice slow run (about 9:30-10:00 pace) and I felt pretty strong the whole way. The last mile is when my knees started hurting, but I was amazed it didn't happen sooner. If it wasn't for that, I know I could have gone longer.
The 12 miler the following week seemed harder, strangely. It was a little warmer, I ran by myself, and it was a hillier route through Germantown. I didn't have any pain, though. In the next day or so, my hips really started bothering me...mainly after running and throughout the day.
My weekend pace runs have been good, especially when someone is there pacing me. Last week I ran half of it with the team and the other half with Rick and Raul. Having Rick pace me is a little hard because he always goes a bit faster than my goal, but I'm glad for it afterward. On marathon day, I am going to try to stay with the 9:15 pace group that Jennie Vee is leading.
Gradually, my hip pain got worse, so I made the decision to take 3 days off this week in the hopes that I can do my long runs this weekend. So here I sit with ice packs stuffed in my sweats and a bottle of Alieve. I did dust off my road bike yesterday and got out for a fantastic 32 mile ride. It was a beautiful day and I forgot that I actually enjoy the bike. I did't try to kill it, but averaged about 16.9-17 which I was pretty happy with at this point. It is much better than where I was last year at this time, so that is encouraging! I actually felt excited thinking about tri season. I may go for a swim today, or maybe another ride. It sure is nice not to be so structured during the off season.
Next week's plan...
Sat: 19 miles
Sun: 9 mile pace
Mon: Cross
Tue: 5 mile recovery
Wed:10 miles
Thurs:5 miles or cross
Fri: off
Sat:20 miles
Sun:10 miles
Both of us had a fantastic 18 miler. Rick ran by himself so that he could keep his goal pace (which he did) and I ran with Chuk and Adam: half on the new Greenway, and half on the Yellow trail. It was a nice slow run (about 9:30-10:00 pace) and I felt pretty strong the whole way. The last mile is when my knees started hurting, but I was amazed it didn't happen sooner. If it wasn't for that, I know I could have gone longer.
The 12 miler the following week seemed harder, strangely. It was a little warmer, I ran by myself, and it was a hillier route through Germantown. I didn't have any pain, though. In the next day or so, my hips really started bothering me...mainly after running and throughout the day.
My weekend pace runs have been good, especially when someone is there pacing me. Last week I ran half of it with the team and the other half with Rick and Raul. Having Rick pace me is a little hard because he always goes a bit faster than my goal, but I'm glad for it afterward. On marathon day, I am going to try to stay with the 9:15 pace group that Jennie Vee is leading.
Gradually, my hip pain got worse, so I made the decision to take 3 days off this week in the hopes that I can do my long runs this weekend. So here I sit with ice packs stuffed in my sweats and a bottle of Alieve. I did dust off my road bike yesterday and got out for a fantastic 32 mile ride. It was a beautiful day and I forgot that I actually enjoy the bike. I did't try to kill it, but averaged about 16.9-17 which I was pretty happy with at this point. It is much better than where I was last year at this time, so that is encouraging! I actually felt excited thinking about tri season. I may go for a swim today, or maybe another ride. It sure is nice not to be so structured during the off season.
Next week's plan...
Sat: 19 miles
Sun: 9 mile pace
Mon: Cross
Tue: 5 mile recovery
Wed:10 miles
Thurs:5 miles or cross
Fri: off
Sat:20 miles
Sun:10 miles
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