Quickies are sometimes the best aren't they? :) HAHAHA!
Rode 40 miles this morning with T3 (Total Triathlon Training - a group that I may join) and it was cool. Although I rode 36 of it by myself.
Now, it's time to get our ass on the road and head up to Dallas for Cruefest 2! I'm stoked, although a bit tired so hopefully they'll be a Starbuck's on the way. I'll blog about the concert and stuff tomorrow! Peace out Peeps! - RA
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Sunday, August 2, 2009
It's been a while
So, yes...it's been a while since I last blogged. And really, there is no good reason, I just didn't feel like it. :) Well, maybe I just wasn't motivated to do it.
Anyway, I had my triathlon on July 12th, one of the most challenging physical feats that I've attempted thus far. Not sure I like it yet....still, but again, waiting for the big tri to decide. That is the Austin Triathlon on Sept. 7th. If you live in Austin I'm going to recruit you to run a short segment of the run with me to get me to the end! Haha, don't think I'm kidding people!! After swimming a mile, biking 25 miles I'll need some help getting through the 6 miles of running.
I really wanted to give a blow by blow of the tri, but now so much time has passed that it doesn't seem that interesting to write about.
On July 20th, I had my annual Dr. Day Out. I take a sick day at work and go through all the poking and prodding for the year. I started at 6:45am for my doppler on my leg and ended with a pap at 4:30pm. Oh, and my smash-o-gram appt was on Tuesday at lunch. This was an emotionally draining two days, which leaked its way into the rest of the week. I don't know what it is... Well, not true, I do know what it is. See last year's post Fear and that is part of it, and the smash-o-gram brings back the memory of when they told me about my mom's breast cancer which is the other part of it. I was a senior in HS, and they told me during 6th hour choir....why did they tell me in school? I have no idea. Probably because they were rushing around from Dr to Dr and I would wonder where everyone was...or something like that. Again, who knows. And...again...although I know in my heart of hearts that I am very healthy the thoughts creep into my head.
Anyway, I had my triathlon on July 12th, one of the most challenging physical feats that I've attempted thus far. Not sure I like it yet....still, but again, waiting for the big tri to decide. That is the Austin Triathlon on Sept. 7th. If you live in Austin I'm going to recruit you to run a short segment of the run with me to get me to the end! Haha, don't think I'm kidding people!! After swimming a mile, biking 25 miles I'll need some help getting through the 6 miles of running.
I really wanted to give a blow by blow of the tri, but now so much time has passed that it doesn't seem that interesting to write about.
On July 20th, I had my annual Dr. Day Out. I take a sick day at work and go through all the poking and prodding for the year. I started at 6:45am for my doppler on my leg and ended with a pap at 4:30pm. Oh, and my smash-o-gram appt was on Tuesday at lunch. This was an emotionally draining two days, which leaked its way into the rest of the week. I don't know what it is... Well, not true, I do know what it is. See last year's post Fear and that is part of it, and the smash-o-gram brings back the memory of when they told me about my mom's breast cancer which is the other part of it. I was a senior in HS, and they told me during 6th hour choir....why did they tell me in school? I have no idea. Probably because they were rushing around from Dr to Dr and I would wonder where everyone was...or something like that. Again, who knows. And...again...although I know in my heart of hearts that I am very healthy the thoughts creep into my head.
And everything came back within normal ranges. So, my heart of hearts is still right. I'm golden, with the exception of my irrational mind. :) Ha.
Today I went out for a ride. I have five weeks of training until the big day. I love my schedule (thank you MWG!!!) and follow it as close as I can. My ride was lovely, and I'm not even kidding. At first I thought it was going to suck. It is SUPER humid out today, and we have a chance of thunderstorms. Trainer went downtown for a run so I was stuck going out on my own...down Parmer, my usual route. BORING. But as I started I felt great and was loving the overcast skies. (Oh Oh...AND I got new lenses for my Oakley's yesterday just for days like today so I was stoked that I got to try them out!) The wind was mild and the humidity felt kind of like being at the beach...sans the sand and ocean.
I realized a couple of things on my ride, things that I KNOW, but have to remind myself every once in a while.
One - not everything is about me. I know...shocker. Really. See, I thought Trainer was going to go out with me this morning and we could ride 360 (much harder route), but he was actually going to run down at Town Lake. So, I was a little miffed, for no good reason b/c he never told me that he was going to go with me.
Two - Trainer and I have very different goals, although they mirror each other in some ways (like the basic - staying fit and healthy), they are not the same. Trainer is trying to achieve a new PR for his 1/2 marathon distance in November, while I am trying to get through this Triathlon in one piece. He needs to focus on his running and I need to focus on juggling three different disciplines.
Three - I don't need to rely on anyone but myself. I like training on my own. It gives me time to think. Now, don't get me wrong, I do like some social runs thrown in there, but for the most part when I have a goal in mind (such as this triathlon) I like to do it MY way. I like to push myself BY myself. I don't do well trying to keep up with others and I don't do well when I feel like I'm being held back. Which is why I haven't wanted to run with the democrat lately. If she were running at the same pace as me right now it would be one thing...but she's not.
These are the things that were going through my mind on my awesome ride today. I even got sprinkled on half way through my ride. I had a smile on my face the entire time, in my new cool lenses, all the way to the end. I hope that I can channel this day on September 7th.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
The Tri Pics - Just a few
Decker Lake at 6:30am, 83 degrees and humid, me and MWG
Transition from the Swim to the Bike, barefoot to the transition area
Me in the transition area, gearing up for the bike portion
Me starting the run portion
Me and MWG after the finish!!! We did it!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
The Tri Results
Here are my tri results, not stellar, but not too bad for my first.
Distance Sprint
Chip Time 1:50:07
Overall Place 709 / 910
Gender Place 305 / 424
Division Place 63 / 84
Swim 800M Time
27:09
Swim 800M Pace
3:24/M
T1 Time
03:34
Bike11 2Mi Time
41:03
Bike11 2Mi Pace
16.4mph
T2 Time
02:44
Run 3 1Mi Time
35:36
Run 3 1Mi Pace
11:29/M
I'll write more about the entire experience later, right now I'm pretty tired. I'm fed and now I'm a little sleepy. I survived. Yeah.
Distance Sprint
Chip Time 1:50:07
Overall Place 709 / 910
Gender Place 305 / 424
Division Place 63 / 84
Swim 800M Time
27:09
Swim 800M Pace
3:24/M
T1 Time
03:34
Bike11 2Mi Time
41:03
Bike11 2Mi Pace
16.4mph
T2 Time
02:44
Run 3 1Mi Time
35:36
Run 3 1Mi Pace
11:29/M
I'll write more about the entire experience later, right now I'm pretty tired. I'm fed and now I'm a little sleepy. I survived. Yeah.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
The rest day
I am not doing well with this concept today. Tomorrow is the big day, my first triathlon. And I don't feel prepared, although I know it's all in my head. Every time I say 'triathlon' (or even write it) I get flutters in my stomach. So today I'm supposed to take it easy and let my muscles recoup/relax.
Tomorrow will go something like this:
-Wake up at the crack of dawn (well, actually before that)
-Drink coffee, eat oatmeal, hope for good "results" in the bathroom (sorry - tmi)
-Quick shower to truly wake up, stretch, don my chosen tri-outfit
-Load up the bike, check for all my things (water, gels etc.)
-Have Trainer drive me to the race location
From here I have no idea as this is my first tri. Now, I've done several duathlons in the past and Trainer seems to think that it will be similar and that I shouldn't be worried, but I am...and I don't think it's the same. There aren't people kicking and hitting you in water when you do the du. (Haha, that's funny...do the du...ahhh...I digress.)
The race starts at 8am, with my "age group" starting at 8:05am. We know that I'm not a strong swimmer so I figure at least 30 min for the 800 meters. I have issues with transition so that will be at least 2 min and then I'll have to kick ass on the cycle portion to make up some ground. Lucky for me most people really don't spend a lot of time on their bikes b/c they think it's the easy part and therefore do not train. I train hard on the bike b/c I like it, so I should be able to gain some ground as well as recover for the run. It's something like 11.2 or 11.8 miles, I can't remember, but enough time to get my engine going, probably about 40-45 min. The transition from bike to run is one of the hardest, I know, I've done it. Your legs feel like jello and it takes several minutes to get going. The run is 3.1 miles and I'm figuring on a 12 min mile, gets me to 36 min on the run. So, overall I'm going for a time under 2 hours. In the heat. Yikes.
Well, I'll leave you with a happy picture from the cruise, well...maybe a couple. They are entertaining! I'm the short one, short hair...Legs is the tall skinny one...bitch. :)
Tomorrow will go something like this:
-Wake up at the crack of dawn (well, actually before that)
-Drink coffee, eat oatmeal, hope for good "results" in the bathroom (sorry - tmi)
-Quick shower to truly wake up, stretch, don my chosen tri-outfit
-Load up the bike, check for all my things (water, gels etc.)
-Have Trainer drive me to the race location
From here I have no idea as this is my first tri. Now, I've done several duathlons in the past and Trainer seems to think that it will be similar and that I shouldn't be worried, but I am...and I don't think it's the same. There aren't people kicking and hitting you in water when you do the du. (Haha, that's funny...do the du...ahhh...I digress.)
The race starts at 8am, with my "age group" starting at 8:05am. We know that I'm not a strong swimmer so I figure at least 30 min for the 800 meters. I have issues with transition so that will be at least 2 min and then I'll have to kick ass on the cycle portion to make up some ground. Lucky for me most people really don't spend a lot of time on their bikes b/c they think it's the easy part and therefore do not train. I train hard on the bike b/c I like it, so I should be able to gain some ground as well as recover for the run. It's something like 11.2 or 11.8 miles, I can't remember, but enough time to get my engine going, probably about 40-45 min. The transition from bike to run is one of the hardest, I know, I've done it. Your legs feel like jello and it takes several minutes to get going. The run is 3.1 miles and I'm figuring on a 12 min mile, gets me to 36 min on the run. So, overall I'm going for a time under 2 hours. In the heat. Yikes.
Well, I'll leave you with a happy picture from the cruise, well...maybe a couple. They are entertaining! I'm the short one, short hair...Legs is the tall skinny one...bitch. :)
Monday, July 6, 2009
Respect your body
Women have heard this phrase from the time of our first sex-ed class in the 5th grade. The phrase has been used in reference to many different things - Sex ('respect your body and save yourself for the right person'), food ('repsect yourself and eat sensibly'), exercise ('respect yourself and move your body')...and I'm going to speak about the latter.
In a post from last week I mentioned limits and on my ride/run training session yesterday I was really thinking about this topic. Respect for ourselves, for our bodies. Often time I find myself talking with my girlfriends and each of us has a gripe about our imperfect forms. How we would love somebody else's arms, abs, back, legs etc. We talk about our struggles with weight loss, no matter where we're at or how much we've lost thus far. We go on, self-loathing, over a bottle of wine accompanied by rich cheese and crackers.
And yet, we rarely give our bodies credit for what they actually DO. My arms may not be perfect, but they were perfect enough to comfort a friend through losing a baby. My shoulders were strong enough to catch the tears of my friends, whether they were tears of happiness or despair. My back was strong enough to help move friends from place to place. My legs were strong enough to walk a marathon, to run two half marathons, ride for 160 miles in a weekend and kept me standing when all I wanted to do was collapse.
I was thinking about all of this on my 20 mile bike ride yesterday and continued to think about it during the 44 min run that I had to do after the ride. Now, here is the other part of respecting your body. You have to respect it enough to listen to it. To know when you've depleted all it's resources and to know when to stop. Yesterday on my way out the door I wasn't feeling well. It was 100 degrees outside and I didn't have anything but water on my ride. I was only out for 65-70 minutes, but I knew I had to come back and do this run. Turning left at the end of my driveway I started to run, and had to stop after 30 seconds. I walked back to my driveway thinking that maybe I should go inside and finish my workout that night. But no...I know myself all too well and if I had gone inside I wouldn't have gone out that night. So I turned the opposite way figuring that 2.6 mile was better than none and I would get in 29-30 minutes.
I started down the block, tick-tock, tick-tock. Looking at my watch every 10 seconds to see how far I'd gone. I had to walk after one minute and 47 seconds. Okay, okay...no problem, I'll just do a run walk 2/1 split until I finish. Sure...I started and had to walk again in one minute. I would walk for no longer than 30 seconds. I made it a mile, up the long hill by my house and ran all the way down the hill, probably another three tenths of a mile. There was flat road ahead, no hills....but very little shade. And then on the turn up the next hill I had to walk again. I was still only walking for 30 seconds at a time...then I started getting the chills.
I ran across the street where there was a bit of shade here and there, anything was better than nothing. I wanted to run, I tried, but my body was refusing. My mind didn't want to stop and I tried to run again, almost to the park by my house...almost home...and I almost puked. Standing under a tree with my hands on my hips, less than a quarter mile from my house and all I wanted to do was lay down on my side in the shade. But I kept moving, knowing that I had to make it home, which I did and even jogged the last part, only because I knew it would get me out of the sun faster than walking. Fumbling for my key I was gasping for air, I had no water with me and all I wanted to do was collapse to the floor. Finally I got the door open and I threw all of my stuff on the counter - shirt, iPod, visor, sunglasses, took of my medical bracelet and threw it. Then I stumbled to the carpet and fell to my hands and knees, sitting there in child's pose trying to get air, all the while sweat was pouring off of my body.
I didn't listen to my body. I didn't prepare it enough. I didn't respect it enough to stop.
The point to my blog is that we should respect all aspects of our body. Love it, fuel it, push it and most importantly listen to it.
In a post from last week I mentioned limits and on my ride/run training session yesterday I was really thinking about this topic. Respect for ourselves, for our bodies. Often time I find myself talking with my girlfriends and each of us has a gripe about our imperfect forms. How we would love somebody else's arms, abs, back, legs etc. We talk about our struggles with weight loss, no matter where we're at or how much we've lost thus far. We go on, self-loathing, over a bottle of wine accompanied by rich cheese and crackers.
And yet, we rarely give our bodies credit for what they actually DO. My arms may not be perfect, but they were perfect enough to comfort a friend through losing a baby. My shoulders were strong enough to catch the tears of my friends, whether they were tears of happiness or despair. My back was strong enough to help move friends from place to place. My legs were strong enough to walk a marathon, to run two half marathons, ride for 160 miles in a weekend and kept me standing when all I wanted to do was collapse.
I was thinking about all of this on my 20 mile bike ride yesterday and continued to think about it during the 44 min run that I had to do after the ride. Now, here is the other part of respecting your body. You have to respect it enough to listen to it. To know when you've depleted all it's resources and to know when to stop. Yesterday on my way out the door I wasn't feeling well. It was 100 degrees outside and I didn't have anything but water on my ride. I was only out for 65-70 minutes, but I knew I had to come back and do this run. Turning left at the end of my driveway I started to run, and had to stop after 30 seconds. I walked back to my driveway thinking that maybe I should go inside and finish my workout that night. But no...I know myself all too well and if I had gone inside I wouldn't have gone out that night. So I turned the opposite way figuring that 2.6 mile was better than none and I would get in 29-30 minutes.
I started down the block, tick-tock, tick-tock. Looking at my watch every 10 seconds to see how far I'd gone. I had to walk after one minute and 47 seconds. Okay, okay...no problem, I'll just do a run walk 2/1 split until I finish. Sure...I started and had to walk again in one minute. I would walk for no longer than 30 seconds. I made it a mile, up the long hill by my house and ran all the way down the hill, probably another three tenths of a mile. There was flat road ahead, no hills....but very little shade. And then on the turn up the next hill I had to walk again. I was still only walking for 30 seconds at a time...then I started getting the chills.
I ran across the street where there was a bit of shade here and there, anything was better than nothing. I wanted to run, I tried, but my body was refusing. My mind didn't want to stop and I tried to run again, almost to the park by my house...almost home...and I almost puked. Standing under a tree with my hands on my hips, less than a quarter mile from my house and all I wanted to do was lay down on my side in the shade. But I kept moving, knowing that I had to make it home, which I did and even jogged the last part, only because I knew it would get me out of the sun faster than walking. Fumbling for my key I was gasping for air, I had no water with me and all I wanted to do was collapse to the floor. Finally I got the door open and I threw all of my stuff on the counter - shirt, iPod, visor, sunglasses, took of my medical bracelet and threw it. Then I stumbled to the carpet and fell to my hands and knees, sitting there in child's pose trying to get air, all the while sweat was pouring off of my body.
I didn't listen to my body. I didn't prepare it enough. I didn't respect it enough to stop.
The point to my blog is that we should respect all aspects of our body. Love it, fuel it, push it and most importantly listen to it.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Happy Birthday Hoe! (a day later)
In 1978,
when I was only four,
I made it around the block
to knock on your door.
"Do you have any girls?"
I asked your mother,
One girl stepped aside
so I could see the other.
This 'other' girl was my age,
as far as I could tell,
She wasn't shy by any means
and that would serve her well.
We became friends that day,
never looking back,
Through good and bad, thick and thin,
that was our pact.
Our siblings were mean,
our parents were strict,
But together we'd make it,
from barbies to girls scouts to di... (Oh, how inappropriate!)
She has always been fabulous,
reaching for the stars,
I never doubted her making it,
going oh so far.
She is not my sibling,
but she is my sister.
Always and forever, through thick and thin, I will be by your side.
I love you Hoe! Happy Birthday!
when I was only four,
I made it around the block
to knock on your door.
"Do you have any girls?"
I asked your mother,
One girl stepped aside
so I could see the other.
This 'other' girl was my age,
as far as I could tell,
She wasn't shy by any means
and that would serve her well.
We became friends that day,
never looking back,
Through good and bad, thick and thin,
that was our pact.
Our siblings were mean,
our parents were strict,
But together we'd make it,
from barbies to girls scouts to di... (Oh, how inappropriate!)
She has always been fabulous,
reaching for the stars,
I never doubted her making it,
going oh so far.
She is not my sibling,
but she is my sister.
Always and forever, through thick and thin, I will be by your side.
I love you Hoe! Happy Birthday!
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