My god. How can it be only Friday.
I am in a stage of nervousness so advanced that I am finding it difficult to eat. In fact, the last time I was this nervous I was approaching the final exams for my masters degree, which had cost me two years of my life and approximately $100,000. The Irongirl has cost me a few nights of sleep and socializing and approximately $100 in entry fees. It's totally unreasonable that I should be this nervous.
I think part of it is that I haven't been in a race with an actual start line since I did the half marathon in Vermont in 2002. I mean, there have been a couple of things since then, but they're more on the order of "ride 60 miles for charity and get free lunch along the way". Not exactly high pressure. This race isn't that high pressure either, it's just that I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing.
I'm also having all these phantom dramas. So far in the last hour I have decided that I'm one or all of the following: Sick, injured, over-tired, suffering an iron deficiency and sunburned. Right after I convinced myself that I was, I usually forgot about it as soon as something else came up.
Then there is the gear to think about. Running a tri is not for the faint of heart, or those who are incapable of making lists. I'm not that faint of heart, but I do suck at lists. So far I have three of them, all with different items on them. I've finally resorted to throwing all those out and using the one Alice very kindly wrote out for me. Everything I own is now piled in the middle of my living room because I'm not entirely sure what should be considered "crucial" and what should be considered "Elizabeth panicking". I probably don't need to bring the entire vat of Accelerade powder drink mix. Or more than three cliff bars. But I don't KNOW that I don't need them. So they - for the moment, remain the middle of the living room.
Finally, the thought that kept me up until 1am last night were fears about my new shoes. I finally got speedplay pedals which is, as my brother says, like standing on ice. They are fantastic for my knee because they have so much float and they're reletively painless to get in an out of. However there are three problems: One the clip in/out mechanism is different; two, I am used to riding with mt bike shoes which have recessed cleats; and three, I have now broken the cardinal rule of racing -- "do not ever ever ever do anything new on race day." Visions of myself tripping in the transition area or going face down on the race course, locked to my bike, rolled through my head for an hour last night before I finally wretched myself away to think about transitions instead.
Thank god tomorrow is T-1 to the gun going off. I don't think I can take any more of this. Tonight I'm going for a splash in the pool and then heading to dinner to say goodbye to some friends who are moving. I feel selfish and self-involved that I would rather be home, meticulously arranging gear and counting cliff bars, but I have to remember that people will be a good distraction. Besides, I need to eat a lot of pasta and a dinner party provides the perfect excuse. Tonight I'm trying to get in bed by 10:30 and get a solid ten or eleven hours of sleep. Then up and pack the car for the drive out to registration. Then all I have to do is rack my bike, look at the transition area and dedicate the rest of the day to finding my family and calming the f- down.
My god I hope this nervousness gets better soon. Hopefully it will - I just want to get all the stuff out of the way - racked, ID'd, safety-checked, stamped -- all the stuff that has to happen - I just want it to happen so I know it's done and my sole responsibility is to breathe and show up at 5:00 am.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Knocking Back that Vitamin C
Why hello Tuesday (otherwise known as five-days-before-the-race)
So far, so good. My biking plan for the morning was aborted by a "Code Orange Air Day" in Washington, DC, which basically means, "don't go outside and breathe if you don't have to". Since part of my bike ride this morning involves trailing along I66 and then along three miles of brutal hills, I decided to swap the bike and the run plan for the cooler weather promised tomorrow. Tonight I hit the gym for my last run session.
In other unrelated news, I've decided that my body is falling into shock because I have refused to feed it anything but kale, blueberries and protein. The sudden steep drop-off from my usual diet of does-it-come-in-a-take-out-container is apparently sending my immune system into a tailspin. I went for a 45 minute swim last night (incidentally, the water was fricking cold in Marie Reed - which is an improvement over the foggy/lukewarm combo from two weeks ago - but still) and there was stuff in my lungs. I don't mean to gross people out - but there it is. Anyway, I've started throwing back Airbourne like it was my job. Pink Grapefruit. So not as delicious as it sounds.
This focused intensity is very weird for me. I was literally in bed at 9:40pm last night. That officially is the earliest I have gotten into bed to sleep in the last decade. I had ginger tea and an ice pack and a book and I turned off the lights at ten after ten. I'm sorry - WHAT?!!
My sister was great yesterday and talked me through a big chunk of nervousness about the transitions. I think I have it all laid out in my head - now I just need to practice it a few times so I can do it without thinking about it too hard. Because I realize when I climbed out of the pool last night and fumbled to get my sandals on - I'm going to need to rely on muscle memory to get me through stuff like that and I'm totally the person who would get disqualified by running out of the transition area forgetting something major - like a helmet. There are - incidentally - in case you haven't wondered before - a lot of ways to get disqualified in a triathlon. You can't be on your bike in the transition area. You have to have your number on all the time. You have to have your helmet on before you move your bike. You can't draft off any other riders. Etc etc etc. So many rules. Yawn.
Anyway, I'm off now for my final bike fit. Hopefully this will also involve new bike shoes (with velcro!). This is my favorite part of having races so far. It's like I get to spend whatever money I want because I'm nervous :) Here is what is on my shopping list today:
-- cliff shots
-- gummy power gel fish
-- sports drink powder mix
-- new bike shoes (yay!)
-- race belt (to avoid puttin safety pin holes in my pretty unisuit... or me)
Reports to follow.
So far, so good. My biking plan for the morning was aborted by a "Code Orange Air Day" in Washington, DC, which basically means, "don't go outside and breathe if you don't have to". Since part of my bike ride this morning involves trailing along I66 and then along three miles of brutal hills, I decided to swap the bike and the run plan for the cooler weather promised tomorrow. Tonight I hit the gym for my last run session.
In other unrelated news, I've decided that my body is falling into shock because I have refused to feed it anything but kale, blueberries and protein. The sudden steep drop-off from my usual diet of does-it-come-in-a-take-out-container is apparently sending my immune system into a tailspin. I went for a 45 minute swim last night (incidentally, the water was fricking cold in Marie Reed - which is an improvement over the foggy/lukewarm combo from two weeks ago - but still) and there was stuff in my lungs. I don't mean to gross people out - but there it is. Anyway, I've started throwing back Airbourne like it was my job. Pink Grapefruit. So not as delicious as it sounds.
This focused intensity is very weird for me. I was literally in bed at 9:40pm last night. That officially is the earliest I have gotten into bed to sleep in the last decade. I had ginger tea and an ice pack and a book and I turned off the lights at ten after ten. I'm sorry - WHAT?!!
My sister was great yesterday and talked me through a big chunk of nervousness about the transitions. I think I have it all laid out in my head - now I just need to practice it a few times so I can do it without thinking about it too hard. Because I realize when I climbed out of the pool last night and fumbled to get my sandals on - I'm going to need to rely on muscle memory to get me through stuff like that and I'm totally the person who would get disqualified by running out of the transition area forgetting something major - like a helmet. There are - incidentally - in case you haven't wondered before - a lot of ways to get disqualified in a triathlon. You can't be on your bike in the transition area. You have to have your number on all the time. You have to have your helmet on before you move your bike. You can't draft off any other riders. Etc etc etc. So many rules. Yawn.
Anyway, I'm off now for my final bike fit. Hopefully this will also involve new bike shoes (with velcro!). This is my favorite part of having races so far. It's like I get to spend whatever money I want because I'm nervous :) Here is what is on my shopping list today:
-- cliff shots
-- gummy power gel fish
-- sports drink powder mix
-- new bike shoes (yay!)
-- race belt (to avoid puttin safety pin holes in my pretty unisuit... or me)
Reports to follow.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Swim, Bike, Run, Eat, Sleep, Race.
So it's Sunday night. Exactly one week before the race. At this moment, halfway around the world, the Olympic triathletes are half way through the Beijing course. Here in Washington, DC - this is where we are. Swim, bike, run, eat, sleep. Repeat.
I can tell I'm nervous because I can't stop pacing in my house - compulsively making equipment lists while icing my knee and randomly watching Ironman video footage on YouTube.
I have to assume this is the first blush of insanity.
I'm not going to lie to you. I am a stress case.
But - here's the weird thing. I have this almost unsettling sense of clarity about having a goal. I have a race. My goal is to finish the race. And until I get to the race it's my priority. It's a weird feeling for me - having a set of priorities, which creates some kind of hierarchy of social organization. I am not an organized person. I don't have any routines that I cherish. I periodically forget appointments, I'm constantly late and I tend to run from one thing to another - always feeling about half an hour behind everyone else with this unsettling feeling that I'm wearing the wrong thing.
But this race seems to be calming me down - even as I spend hours working myself into a froth about whether or not I'll get kicked in the face during the swim and what if I have to walk? And what happens if I get the flu between now and sunday and oh my god, my mother is going to be there, I can't walk during the run. So I have all that playing on a loop in my head - but the rest of my everyday stress fades into background noise. I don't feel worried about things I can't get to. I don't feel constantly guilty about things that I'm not attending -- both of which ensure that I'm not constantly late to few things that I do decide to go to. swim, bike, run, eat, sleep. If it's not on that list - then it's white noise at this point.
I've been pushing hard in the last week - knowing it was my last chance to beat myself up before the race "taper" starts. I'm finally FINALLY able to run again. I've still been running with walking intervals. But I'm running real distances again (thank God, thank you thank you). For all those who have ever been on a treadmill and wanted to run five miles while only being able to do 1/10th will understand the frustration. Last week I tried the race distance in the pool and it was awesome. It felt so fantastic - I wasn't fast. It wasn't pretty. But now I know I can swim it. Ditto for the run. And then on Saturday I got up at 7:30am (I know - me up early on a Saturday - I'm as shocked as anyone else here) to go biking with a group an hour outside DC. We did 40 miles, clipping along at about 19 mph. I felt like a rockstar - was on a biking high long enough to get me home so I could eat everything I could get my hands on and fall dead asleep for 45 minutes.
So here we go: Race Week
Sunday: (today) ice knee, cook food. think about race. do nothing. resist urge to do things. complusively call people instead. stretch.
Monday: Swim. Depending on knee (right one is twingy this time - what's up with that??). Possibly light jog in afternoon if knee feels better.
Tuesday: Bike to work. Final Bike fit at Conte's - possibly going to be purchasing new shoes depending on what they tell me about my cleat position vs knee problems. Purchase race snacks (espresso power shots have a starring role at mile 10 of the bike ride). Bike home.
Wednesday: Back in the pool - light swim. Light run in the afternoon.
Thursday: Final bike ride - leisurely pace. Jess arrives from NYC (not on the train, as you may assume -- no no. she's just going to bike it... like you do).
Friday: baby swim, baby ride, baby jog. Load car. Check and double check equipment eight million times. Avoid caffiene past four pm in order to sleep as much as humanly possible.
Saturday: Drive out to Colombia for equipment safety check, registration - ID and wristband are strapped on at this point and have to stay on until the race is over. Rack bike and rest of equipment at the course. Go to Jess's friend's house. Eat pasta. Curl up and try to sleep.
Sunday: RACE DAY - gun goes off for the silver caps (me!!!) at 7:53am. With any luck, all the pain and suffering will be over by 10am.
Meanwhile, in other unrelated news, I put on my tri unisuit for the first time in six months this afternoon. It's been hanging on the back wall of my closet - on a seperate hanger so I see it everytime I open the door. It's sleeveless razor back white top with grey shorts - lightly padded with small hot pink stripes. On the hanger it looks fast and sleek and has that "I'm sponsored" vibe. When I finally fought my way into it I looked at myself in the mirror and I saw this girl who was tanned and looked strong -- like she knew what she was doing --and I thought, "well, damn. I look good in this."
Hey hey. I might be able to finish this damn thing after all :)
I can tell I'm nervous because I can't stop pacing in my house - compulsively making equipment lists while icing my knee and randomly watching Ironman video footage on YouTube.
I have to assume this is the first blush of insanity.
I'm not going to lie to you. I am a stress case.
But - here's the weird thing. I have this almost unsettling sense of clarity about having a goal. I have a race. My goal is to finish the race. And until I get to the race it's my priority. It's a weird feeling for me - having a set of priorities, which creates some kind of hierarchy of social organization. I am not an organized person. I don't have any routines that I cherish. I periodically forget appointments, I'm constantly late and I tend to run from one thing to another - always feeling about half an hour behind everyone else with this unsettling feeling that I'm wearing the wrong thing.
But this race seems to be calming me down - even as I spend hours working myself into a froth about whether or not I'll get kicked in the face during the swim and what if I have to walk? And what happens if I get the flu between now and sunday and oh my god, my mother is going to be there, I can't walk during the run. So I have all that playing on a loop in my head - but the rest of my everyday stress fades into background noise. I don't feel worried about things I can't get to. I don't feel constantly guilty about things that I'm not attending -- both of which ensure that I'm not constantly late to few things that I do decide to go to. swim, bike, run, eat, sleep. If it's not on that list - then it's white noise at this point.
I've been pushing hard in the last week - knowing it was my last chance to beat myself up before the race "taper" starts. I'm finally FINALLY able to run again. I've still been running with walking intervals. But I'm running real distances again (thank God, thank you thank you). For all those who have ever been on a treadmill and wanted to run five miles while only being able to do 1/10th will understand the frustration. Last week I tried the race distance in the pool and it was awesome. It felt so fantastic - I wasn't fast. It wasn't pretty. But now I know I can swim it. Ditto for the run. And then on Saturday I got up at 7:30am (I know - me up early on a Saturday - I'm as shocked as anyone else here) to go biking with a group an hour outside DC. We did 40 miles, clipping along at about 19 mph. I felt like a rockstar - was on a biking high long enough to get me home so I could eat everything I could get my hands on and fall dead asleep for 45 minutes.
So here we go: Race Week
Sunday: (today) ice knee, cook food. think about race. do nothing. resist urge to do things. complusively call people instead. stretch.
Monday: Swim. Depending on knee (right one is twingy this time - what's up with that??). Possibly light jog in afternoon if knee feels better.
Tuesday: Bike to work. Final Bike fit at Conte's - possibly going to be purchasing new shoes depending on what they tell me about my cleat position vs knee problems. Purchase race snacks (espresso power shots have a starring role at mile 10 of the bike ride). Bike home.
Wednesday: Back in the pool - light swim. Light run in the afternoon.
Thursday: Final bike ride - leisurely pace. Jess arrives from NYC (not on the train, as you may assume -- no no. she's just going to bike it... like you do).
Friday: baby swim, baby ride, baby jog. Load car. Check and double check equipment eight million times. Avoid caffiene past four pm in order to sleep as much as humanly possible.
Saturday: Drive out to Colombia for equipment safety check, registration - ID and wristband are strapped on at this point and have to stay on until the race is over. Rack bike and rest of equipment at the course. Go to Jess's friend's house. Eat pasta. Curl up and try to sleep.
Sunday: RACE DAY - gun goes off for the silver caps (me!!!) at 7:53am. With any luck, all the pain and suffering will be over by 10am.
Meanwhile, in other unrelated news, I put on my tri unisuit for the first time in six months this afternoon. It's been hanging on the back wall of my closet - on a seperate hanger so I see it everytime I open the door. It's sleeveless razor back white top with grey shorts - lightly padded with small hot pink stripes. On the hanger it looks fast and sleek and has that "I'm sponsored" vibe. When I finally fought my way into it I looked at myself in the mirror and I saw this girl who was tanned and looked strong -- like she knew what she was doing --and I thought, "well, damn. I look good in this."
Hey hey. I might be able to finish this damn thing after all :)
Friday, July 25, 2008
30 days and counting.
Thursday:
45 min bike to work. About eight miles - it's really hilly for thelast four miles. I ordered another bike computer so I can start breaking into splits (there are some slow parts b/c of traffic). But the good (or bad) part is that the ride to work is all up hill once Ihit Virginia, and on the way home, it's all uphill once I hit DC. So technically, I'm going to be getting my ass kicked no matter which wayI ride.
Run after work - I'm still building my run times. I'm at pyramids right now of 2 on, 4 off, 3 on, 4 off, 2 on. I'm not doing any speed work this week, just trying to up my distance. So far the knee feels good, but a little tender. I iced and stretched with my bands last night.
Friday:
Swim - 45 minutes. Ouch. Warmed up with 100, then 200 mixing it up plus kickboard. Did decents 300, 200, 100. Then four sprint 25M moderateX25M Sprint. 30 sec rest between. 30 seconds never felt so short. I still can't control my breathing for longer than 50 m at a time - I want to breathe every other stroke, but my body can't take it for longer than two laps.
Then I did 4 sets of 50 with the pull buoys and cooled down with 100.
By the end of it I was convinced I was going to drown in the race. But I'll get back in on Sunday and hopefully I'll feel stronger.
My plan for the weekend is to bike the course tomorrow with a short transition run and then spend Sunday in the pool. I'll report in howit goes. Also, I realized that I left my brand new snazzy water bottle in theshower at the pool. Damnit.
I have so much energy and am so cheerful right now, it's disguising. I *hate* it when the morning people are right. I'm sulking into my much-needed-well-earned latte.
45 min bike to work. About eight miles - it's really hilly for thelast four miles. I ordered another bike computer so I can start breaking into splits (there are some slow parts b/c of traffic). But the good (or bad) part is that the ride to work is all up hill once Ihit Virginia, and on the way home, it's all uphill once I hit DC. So technically, I'm going to be getting my ass kicked no matter which wayI ride.
Run after work - I'm still building my run times. I'm at pyramids right now of 2 on, 4 off, 3 on, 4 off, 2 on. I'm not doing any speed work this week, just trying to up my distance. So far the knee feels good, but a little tender. I iced and stretched with my bands last night.
Friday:
Swim - 45 minutes. Ouch. Warmed up with 100, then 200 mixing it up plus kickboard. Did decents 300, 200, 100. Then four sprint 25M moderateX25M Sprint. 30 sec rest between. 30 seconds never felt so short. I still can't control my breathing for longer than 50 m at a time - I want to breathe every other stroke, but my body can't take it for longer than two laps.
Then I did 4 sets of 50 with the pull buoys and cooled down with 100.
By the end of it I was convinced I was going to drown in the race. But I'll get back in on Sunday and hopefully I'll feel stronger.
My plan for the weekend is to bike the course tomorrow with a short transition run and then spend Sunday in the pool. I'll report in howit goes. Also, I realized that I left my brand new snazzy water bottle in theshower at the pool. Damnit.
I have so much energy and am so cheerful right now, it's disguising. I *hate* it when the morning people are right. I'm sulking into my much-needed-well-earned latte.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
32 days and counting
oh god. oh god. oh god.
32 days. Full on panic has been setting in. I'm desperately afraid to get hurt again, but I'm totally panicked to go in so unprepared. And you would think that the bike and the swim would make me sweat bullets. But no -- it's the fact that I am currently running only in 3 minute intervals that's waking me up at night.
I actually ran outside this weeekend - it was brutally hot in New York City. But I did my one minute, two minute, one minute builds. And I admit I pushed that two out to more like three. I felt great. So today I got on the treadmill and I started at two minutes, 3 min, two and my RIGHT knee started getting all this attitude. I can't tell if it's a injury twinge or just a man-you-haven't-been-running twinge. But I was injured on my left side, so who knows what's up with that.
This weekend I'm finally in town so my plan it to the throw the bike in the car and go out and take a look at this course in Maryland. I can't decide whether to bring my road bike or my mountain bike. Maybe my mountian bike since I'm planning to just tool around (for 17.5 miles) and then doing a baby baby run.
Here's my schedule up to Vacay-2008:
Tuesday: Mini run.
Wednesday: Bike home from work. Leave car at office.
Thursday: Bike to work (car transfer is getting increasingly difficult since I hate taking the metro to work with a burning passion). Pick up car. Mini run at lunch.
Friday: Pool time (might try morning swim - have this crazy idea that it might be helpful.)
Saturday: Ride course in Maryland/transition run
Sunday: Back in the pool - be sore and grouchy from saturday ride.
Monday: Ride to work/ride home from work.
Tuesday: Run
Wednesday: Go to Caribbean -- take day off.
Thursday, July 30th - August 5th: Run as much as possible. Eat lots of good food. Drink fun drinks. Swim swim swim.
August 6th: Face Reality. Panic. Realize that there are only 18 days left until race. Work self to death until August 20th. Then tell everyone i'm tapering until race day.
So far that's my plan.
32 days. Full on panic has been setting in. I'm desperately afraid to get hurt again, but I'm totally panicked to go in so unprepared. And you would think that the bike and the swim would make me sweat bullets. But no -- it's the fact that I am currently running only in 3 minute intervals that's waking me up at night.
I actually ran outside this weeekend - it was brutally hot in New York City. But I did my one minute, two minute, one minute builds. And I admit I pushed that two out to more like three. I felt great. So today I got on the treadmill and I started at two minutes, 3 min, two and my RIGHT knee started getting all this attitude. I can't tell if it's a injury twinge or just a man-you-haven't-been-running twinge. But I was injured on my left side, so who knows what's up with that.
This weekend I'm finally in town so my plan it to the throw the bike in the car and go out and take a look at this course in Maryland. I can't decide whether to bring my road bike or my mountain bike. Maybe my mountian bike since I'm planning to just tool around (for 17.5 miles) and then doing a baby baby run.
Here's my schedule up to Vacay-2008:
Tuesday: Mini run.
Wednesday: Bike home from work. Leave car at office.
Thursday: Bike to work (car transfer is getting increasingly difficult since I hate taking the metro to work with a burning passion). Pick up car. Mini run at lunch.
Friday: Pool time (might try morning swim - have this crazy idea that it might be helpful.)
Saturday: Ride course in Maryland/transition run
Sunday: Back in the pool - be sore and grouchy from saturday ride.
Monday: Ride to work/ride home from work.
Tuesday: Run
Wednesday: Go to Caribbean -- take day off.
Thursday, July 30th - August 5th: Run as much as possible. Eat lots of good food. Drink fun drinks. Swim swim swim.
August 6th: Face Reality. Panic. Realize that there are only 18 days left until race. Work self to death until August 20th. Then tell everyone i'm tapering until race day.
So far that's my plan.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
24 hours in - and it hurts
Tuesday: Rock-climbing, 2 hours
Wednesday: 8 miles, uphill - approximately 45 minutes
As I was explaining to a friend of mine this morning, why yes, I am in fact a rockstar.
So far the kickoff into Retraining-The-Tri-2008 is going very well. Last night I went climbing and that was tons of fun and I think I got a good work out. I didn't fall so I guess the arguement could be made that I wasn't pushing myself hard enough -- on the other hand - all my muscles were shaking when I got to the top, so it wasn't exactly a cakewalk. I ate a cliffbar for dinner (delicious), went home, inhaled toast and fell into bed for 8.5 hours.
Then this morning I woke up and hopped on my bike and rode to work - down rockcreek park and up the Curtis trail. It was *amazing*. And when I say "amazing" what I mean is brutal, hard and uphill in 80-degree weather. And I am really really out of shape. Not as bad as when I did it last fall after doing nothing for months and ended up having to sit down on the side of the trail and breathe so I didn't throw up. But in that same range of pain. I think I could whittle it down to a half an hour ride - I'm trying to find the best way to get to the trail without hitting stoplights or running over pedestrians. Oh, or being run over by trucks. If I could get a straight ride and was strong enough to push the whole way, I think it would be pretty fast.
Hitting the pool tonight with E. Hopefully it wouldn't be a total diaster. I am crossing my fingers because although I feel pretty confident that I can get through a 3 mile run and a 20 mile bike -- not gracefully, but through, without crawling, I don't feel that confident about my ability to swim 900 meters before doing all the rest of it. There are may flip turns in my future. I can feel it coming.
Reports to follow.
Wednesday: 8 miles, uphill - approximately 45 minutes
As I was explaining to a friend of mine this morning, why yes, I am in fact a rockstar.
So far the kickoff into Retraining-The-Tri-2008 is going very well. Last night I went climbing and that was tons of fun and I think I got a good work out. I didn't fall so I guess the arguement could be made that I wasn't pushing myself hard enough -- on the other hand - all my muscles were shaking when I got to the top, so it wasn't exactly a cakewalk. I ate a cliffbar for dinner (delicious), went home, inhaled toast and fell into bed for 8.5 hours.
Then this morning I woke up and hopped on my bike and rode to work - down rockcreek park and up the Curtis trail. It was *amazing*. And when I say "amazing" what I mean is brutal, hard and uphill in 80-degree weather. And I am really really out of shape. Not as bad as when I did it last fall after doing nothing for months and ended up having to sit down on the side of the trail and breathe so I didn't throw up. But in that same range of pain. I think I could whittle it down to a half an hour ride - I'm trying to find the best way to get to the trail without hitting stoplights or running over pedestrians. Oh, or being run over by trucks. If I could get a straight ride and was strong enough to push the whole way, I think it would be pretty fast.
Hitting the pool tonight with E. Hopefully it wouldn't be a total diaster. I am crossing my fingers because although I feel pretty confident that I can get through a 3 mile run and a 20 mile bike -- not gracefully, but through, without crawling, I don't feel that confident about my ability to swim 900 meters before doing all the rest of it. There are may flip turns in my future. I can feel it coming.
Reports to follow.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
The Guilt. The Panic.
Well, well. Hello July.
Last night I got "the talk" from a friend of mine. I didn't enjoy it, but I acknowledge that someone had to throw some ice water over this delusion I have that I can run a triathlon without embarassing myself... or training for it. Basically I've been hiding under the bed since I got hurt, hoping that by ignoring the summer I could make August go away. So far, no luck. So now July has showed up like annoying dinner guests, fifteen minutes early when you're still trying to lay crackers out on a plate and you haven't straightened up the house. But I just have suck it up and cope.
So this is me packing my bags from my vacation of not coping.
Today. July 8th, 2008: I went to the gym. And let me tell you, my friends, it was a whole lot more fun then I thought it would be. I'm still really sensitive to the knee, so I did a 10 minute warm-up on the bike and started my run pyramids, which my PT gave me back in - whatever - I don't want to talk about when it was.
So I built - 5 minutes walking; 1 minute run. 5 walk, 2 run; 5 walk, 1 run. Then I cooled down and stretched all the leg muscles and did my foam roller (can I just spare a minute to say, "I HATE THE FOAM ROLLER").
Among other things I'd like to report the following. A) I resent that I feel fabulous right now B) Back in the day when I was doing this, I was damn impressive. My gym bag is so well organized that I feel like I should photograph it - after I dusted it off, C) My heart rate monitor is dead. Go figure.
Here's my plan for the rest of the week:
Tuesday: baby run - rockclimbing
Wednesday: bike leisurely to work/swim workout
Thursday: baby run/yoga
Friday: Bike
Saturday: (In NYC w/ JJ) Swim/Rockclimb
Sunday: baby run
Monday: Bike home from work
Then we will reassess where we are with everything and see if I can turn the baby run into a toodler-like run. I have to stay uninjured. But I also seriously need to reorganize my priorities and get this race together. I feel like since the race is pretty small I might let rockclimbing stand in for my weight training. Between rockclimbing and yoga I feel like I'm probably going to get more tones then I would if I was chaining myself to the handweights anyway - and hey, it's more fun.
Last night I got "the talk" from a friend of mine. I didn't enjoy it, but I acknowledge that someone had to throw some ice water over this delusion I have that I can run a triathlon without embarassing myself... or training for it. Basically I've been hiding under the bed since I got hurt, hoping that by ignoring the summer I could make August go away. So far, no luck. So now July has showed up like annoying dinner guests, fifteen minutes early when you're still trying to lay crackers out on a plate and you haven't straightened up the house. But I just have suck it up and cope.
So this is me packing my bags from my vacation of not coping.
Today. July 8th, 2008: I went to the gym. And let me tell you, my friends, it was a whole lot more fun then I thought it would be. I'm still really sensitive to the knee, so I did a 10 minute warm-up on the bike and started my run pyramids, which my PT gave me back in - whatever - I don't want to talk about when it was.
So I built - 5 minutes walking; 1 minute run. 5 walk, 2 run; 5 walk, 1 run. Then I cooled down and stretched all the leg muscles and did my foam roller (can I just spare a minute to say, "I HATE THE FOAM ROLLER").
Among other things I'd like to report the following. A) I resent that I feel fabulous right now B) Back in the day when I was doing this, I was damn impressive. My gym bag is so well organized that I feel like I should photograph it - after I dusted it off, C) My heart rate monitor is dead. Go figure.
Here's my plan for the rest of the week:
Tuesday: baby run - rockclimbing
Wednesday: bike leisurely to work/swim workout
Thursday: baby run/yoga
Friday: Bike
Saturday: (In NYC w/ JJ) Swim/Rockclimb
Sunday: baby run
Monday: Bike home from work
Then we will reassess where we are with everything and see if I can turn the baby run into a toodler-like run. I have to stay uninjured. But I also seriously need to reorganize my priorities and get this race together. I feel like since the race is pretty small I might let rockclimbing stand in for my weight training. Between rockclimbing and yoga I feel like I'm probably going to get more tones then I would if I was chaining myself to the handweights anyway - and hey, it's more fun.
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