OMG - 94 days to go

I have a confession.  As IMMT is creeping up, way too fast if you ask me, I am becoming terrified of this race.  John had a heart to heart talk with me a couple days ago about my training, or lack there of.  There have been a couple personal things in our lives that have distracted me from training and then our son, after almost two months of no episodes, has had another reaction on the weekend and we ended up in the hospital and he is now on IV antibiotics again.  I know he will be fine but it would be nice to find out what is causing this.  We are seeing another specialist next week.  Hope he has some definitive answers for us!!

I am not doing IMMT to be competitive, I am not a competitive person. I am just going to finish.  I did have a finish time in mind but have come to realize that I don't think it will happen.  The training (the getting your ass out the door part) is really hard and I love just being a great Mom and wife (I have a very spoiled husband - as I am sure most of you know!).  Every now and then I NEED to look after my nest, ya know what I'm sayin'??  

I started off strong in January, then I had a lull for a couple of weeks the beginning of February.  After that I had a good round of training, then hit another training road block mid-April.  And here we are now - the last couple of training weeks have been almost non existent (nesting!  lol).  During the week I would run only once, maybe twice, but I think my saving grace is that I have rode my long slow rides.  WHICH have been 200+kms and these LOONNGG rides have had hills, big hill, lots of hills, lots of hills..... did I mention hills! ;)   That is 10+ hours of riding each time.  As for my swimming, it has been a month since I was in the pool.  I was swimming 3km comfortably at that point.  I honestly do not want to swim again in the pool.  The lakes/quarry should be warm enough soon, right?? 

So, hats off to those who can stick to a training plan, you are far more disciplined than I.  For my fellow followers, but mostly for me as I only have 94 days left until my Ironman, I am going to pull up my socks and try to stick to the rest of my training plan.  I feel I have a pretty good cycling base.  I am riding another 200kms this weekend and have three more rides of that distance planned.  I am also going to Mont Tremblant to pre-ride/pre-run the course in June.  Pretty excited about that!  Wish me luck people!

Thanks for reading!

Tri-World

I was reading the 'Get Out There' magazine and I came across a great poem written by a 60-year old age-grouper from Oakville, ON that I wanted to share - he has completed many triathlons and three Ironmans.  Hope you enjoy - 'cause I know I did!

In my world
the water is cold,
the wind is unrelenting,
and the road ends at the horizon.

In my world,
there are no limits,
there is no end,
no past or future, just now.

In my world,
there are no losers,
only the inspired,
chasing their dreams.

In my world,
the people are extreme,
for limits, like fears,
are often illusions.

In my world,
it's about stretching the boundaries,
to experience those incredible moments,
that inspire all other memories in your life.

In my world,
to simply exist is not good enough,
it's about digging deeper,
about not just living, but really living.

In my world,
the pain of pushing yourself pales,
next to the pain of regret,
and the bragging rights last a lifetime.

In my world,
it's not about finishing first,
it's about being unafraid to go places,
you never thought possible.

In my world,
emotion trumps effort,
and success is not measured in medals,
but in guts and determination.

In my world,
to finish is to win,
changing your life forever,
emotionally, mentally, spiritually, socially.

In my world,
it's about the competition, and
the memories you've earned the right to cherish,
every single day for the rest of your life.

In my world,
there are only dreamers,
some say dreams never do come true,
I say they're wrong, I know they do.

In my world,
the word "can't" does not exist,
and we scream from the mountaintops,
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!

Because, in my world,
if you have to ask why,
you will never understand,
for I am one of just 72,000.

Almost habit

As Matty-O said to me on my last post, "come March you had better get your head in the right place and just do NOT think about working out, just do it".  Well Matt, I am Doing IT!  ;)

The last 3.5 weeks have been spot on.  I have not dreaded dragging my butt to the pool at 8pm and  I have decided to start running during my lunch hours, which helps A LOT.  We do not have showers at work so I just use baby wipes, lots of body spray and deodorant to mask my smell!  lol  My hair is never the best after but oh well.  Ya don't like it, don't look at me!  HAHA   I only missed last Thursdays training day but my priority was my son that day. 

Here is the story:

Dylan was at college Thursday and messaged me saying he got bit by something, the swelling was the size of a toonie (got much bigger as the hours passed) and that there was a red path going up his arm (to his armpit to be exact).  I told him to go to the medical clinic they have in the school asap. When he did as the infection progressed SO quickly they immediately put him in a cab that took him to emergency where as soon as they seen him they called the doctor and hooked him up to IV antibiotics right away. The doctor cannot say for sure what exactly caused this but diagnosed him with cellulitis. You can see on his wrist where something did bit him though...spider maybe!  They put an IV shunt in his arm as the CCAC nurse came to hook up a an IV pump to him at our house that night which supplied a very strong antibiotic right into his blood stream every 8 hours, plus he is on an oral antibiotic prescription, plus the nurse came to the house for the next three days to change the IV bag and monitor him. We had to go back to the hospital yesterday for a follow up and the doctor said that it looked very good and after his last does of the IV meds we can take the pump off him. SOOO scary!  We are now going to put Dylan in a bubble.  ;)

More on the training, about 10 of us who are participating in IMMT are renting a cottage in Mont Tremblant in June to go pre-ride and pre-run the IM course.  I am really looking forward to this!  



L-A-Z-Y



Yeah - I KNOW, stop nagging me!!!!!!!!!!!

Me - I'm going to get up early tomorrow to get some sort of work out in
Me in the morning - ummm..... no (goes back to sleep)
Me on the way home from work - I feel good, as soon as I get home and am going to get some sort of workout in
Me at home - uummm....  fuck it ( assumes the position of couch potato until bed)

Repeat, repeat, repeat

I've got problems........and food is calling to me....  all kinds of food.  They won't stop calling to me!   

What the hell Fran?!?!?  Only 24 weeks till IMMT..  get with it will ya!!!!   Dork! 

Randoms

I was tagged by Adena at she said I need a goal to post 11 random facts about me.  As Adena said is her post, there are strict rules to this game of tag.
Here are the rules:
1. Post these rules
2. You must post 11 random things about yourself
3. Answer the questions set for you in their post
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer
5. Go to their blog and tell them you’ve tagged them
6. No stuff in the tagging section about you are tagged if you are reading this. You legitimately have to tag 11 people!

11 Random things about me:

1- I hate fish and seafood. Taste, texture, smell - yuck, yuck, yuck! 

2- I was very young when I had my first child...and my second, but I found the strength inside me to persevere and not be swallowed up by the system as many young girls do.  I wanted to give my boys a better life and the opportunities that I did not have.

3- I always have to have the toilet paper on the dispenser a certain way.  It needs to come out from the bottom, not the top.  I don't know why I have this little O.C.D. thing but even in a public or work washroom I will take it off and turn it around before I use it.  Yes, I am a wee bit crazy!  lol

4-  I love nature. The interior of Algonquin is my favorite place. 

5- I want to travel and backpack and/or cycle in Europe.  This is on my bucket list.

6- I have broken both of my wrist in my life time.  The first time I was in grade 4 and I jumped off of a swing when I was swinging really high.  FAIL!   The second time was in 2007 while mountain biking.

7- Speaking of which, while mountain biking - I have bruised my tailbone really bad, but continued to ride for 4 hours afterwards to prove I am not a sissy girl to John; Bruised my ribcage, again continuing to ride as I did not want to ruin Johns ride; and when I broke my wrist I said that John can continue his ride and I walked my bike out of the trails and it over hour back to get back to the car......WITH A BROKEN WRIST.  Yeah, that's right, ME = NOT A WUSSY!

8- I thought I would give triathlon a try in hopes that I don't hurt myself so much!  I have come to discover however, that triathlon is a whole different kind of hurt!

9- I am a great listener and very laid back.

10- I am pretty good with directions, regardless of what my husband says.

11- I hope that I can regain my motivation for my IMMT training.  I fell of the wagon hard about a week ago!  BOO me!

Adena's Questions and my Answers:

1. What is your favourite ‘weird’ food to eat? Chicken noodle soup with ketchup..  when I tell people this they look at me like I am a freak..... but it is really good.  YUM

2. If you could have any job/career at all, what would it be? Hmm...  this is a good one.  When I was young I wanted to be a biologist (marine).  But I love nature so anything having to do with this would make me happy.  I also think about being a Midwife as I am a nurturer and love helping/caring for others. 

3. Do you know how I can get my safari address bar back permanently? I don't even know what you are talking about!  Sorry!

4. What is your best race memory? seeing my husband waiting for me at the last feed station during my half Iron in Peterborough and he followed behind me to keep me going! 

5. What is your favourite song right now? hold on I have to ask my son the name again.............  OK, it is called 'Help I'm Alive' by Metric.

6. What is your favourite training/racing gadget? my Garmin

7. Do you prefer to train with a team, or alone? Why? I prefer to train alone as I am slow and don't want the pressure of holding someone back or pushing myself and risk injury.

8. What is in your fridge right now? What isn't in my fridge? lol  If I have to list what I can think of it would be - zucchini, peppers, cucumber, lettuce, onions, apples, oranges, mango's, strawberries, carrots, spaghetti squash, cauliflower, avocados,  tomatoes, cantaloupe, milk, orange juice, dill pickles, olives, hard cheese, cheese slices, goat cheese, butter, eggs, pepperoni, black forest ham, mayo, ketchup, mustard, Italian dressing, vinegar, iced wine, beer, jam, clamato juice, yogurt.....  I cant think of anything else but there is not much else.

9. Favourite TV show? (if you watch TV) True Blood

10. Favourite book? don't have one.

11. Do you have any pets? If so what, name, age. no pets unless you count John..  jk!  ;)

With this game I am supposed to tag 11 people but I don't even think I have 11 followers so I am going to forgo this part. 

Hope you've enjoyed my post.  Cheers!

PUMPED!

New year’s eve - clean house, organized bike and run stuff (John's mess), prepare spare bedroom into stretch/yoga room/sanctuary, put up photos of Chrissie and Craig, put my training plan beside the bed so I see it every morning and every night to stay motivated and focused (also hang plan on fridge, on my jail cell cubicle wall at work and in the yoga room).

New Year ’s Day - marks the first day of my Ironman journey. I am happy to report that it has been a successful week. Not one workout missed. WOOOOHHOOOO. However, yes there is a however, my runs have been cut in half. BOOOO. My flippin' IT band is wreaking havoc on me. I took the last two weeks off prior to the start of my training plan (it was for resting the IT band and to eat myself into oblivion over the holidays lol) in hopes that it would help. My first run was not fun. I got about 7km done of a scheduled 14km. With that I am back doing physio and am told I have very strong, developed quad muscles but got nothing in the rear end or hammies to balance out my upper leg which puts way more stress causing ITBS. I guess my sciatica is acting up too which is causing my hamstrings to be extremely tight and not allowing the full range of motion while running. Regardless, I am doing what needs to be done - exercises my physio gal pal given me to do 3 times a day and a DVD I need to watch and practice about ABCD sequences (running technique).  I will be good as new before you know it. I am pumped to have nailed all my workouts and look forward to the many more positive weeks.

On a nutrition front, I have purged the entire house of sugary substances.  Bad sugar! 

What to say? hmm

I am finding it hard to find time or the creativity to write my posts.  I am not a very good writer and I am one to just say things how they are with no real fluff involved. 

That said, I am happy to say that I have been hitting all my runs this and last month.  I run about 11kms on Tuesdays and Thursdays and a long, slow run (16km) on the weekend.  Woohoo.  However, all of these runs have been on routes that have hills.  John says they are not big hills, but they are for me.  So I have a bit of pain in my right achilles and it feels really bruised just to the right of my inside right ankle.  I am not sure if this has to do with the achilles but I have been stretching it like crazy. To be safe I am going to take a week off from running.  Plus my left IT band is tight.  The good ol' foam roller aka pool noodle is back in action.  It is not enough pain to even notice really when I am running but it is there.  I figure as I am just base training now there is no need to push that hard.   can afford to rest for a bit.

John and I resting while on my first century ride!  :)

      In the meantime, my bike is going to need some work.  John and I have been getting up in the mornings twice a week to bike in our pain cave (ok, I didn't get up this morning with him but I rode tonight to make up for it) and I have to work on my cadence.  ALOT, so John says.  I agree with him.  I love having him coach me.  So tonight I pedaled my little arse off and my average cadence was about 85rpm.  It was hard!  I was sweating like a pig.  Good thing I set up the pain cave equipped with a big fan... ... right in front of me.  :)  Work*On*Cadence... this is my goal for the next couple of months.

With regards to my swimming, I have only been in the pool once in the last month.  I felt good but I hate the fact that our pool hours SUCK the big one.  It is the Wayne Gretzky Centre for crying out loud.  You would think that they'd have more then just one hour or one and a half hours of length swimming in the evening.  They have length swimming in the mornings for a measly hour long and it starts at 7am. Well I have to be at work by 8am so this does not work for me and I am sure not for many others.  I personally, like to come home, get my workout in and then unwind for the day.  Not come home rush to make supper, half ass relax, then go to the pool at 8:30pm, home at 9:45pm, then unwind and try to go to bed.  Like I said, it SUCKS!  The good news is that the Centre is undergoing a $50M+ renovation project right now and it includes the construction of another 25M pool.  I HOPE that this is strickly for lap swimming with better, more convenient hours!  Lets keep our fingers crossed!!

And so it begins

It has been quite a while since I have posted but I have been enjoying my 'off time'.

John and I have been relaxing and eating.  lol   We took some holidays in Algonquin for a 5 day canoe & portage trip.  Then we came home, picked up the boys and went back up again for three days of camping and hiking.  The weather was phenomenal. The fresh autumn air, the beauty and colours, it restores my mind and soul..  I love Algonquin!!!!!!!  :)

Vacation time over, let the base training begin. 

I am going to need a STRONG base before my IMMT training starts in January, so John and I (ok John) has completed my program using what he used last year for Lake Placid.  As a bonus, as he is training for a Double Ironman, which means he needs to slow his pace down, we can train together!  (Unlike last year when I was left in the dust!)  lol

I love that we can do this together.  On Sunday, we ran 17kms.  He perfects my form, keeps me motivated and kicks my a$$ when I my mind gets me down.  Which can be often!  My own personal coach.  I am so lucky! 

Tonight, John was going to be late coming home from a conference. While driving home from work I knew I needed to get a 10km run in by myself.  But those 'nasty, lazy' thoughts were in the back of my mind.  Thoughts like, 'do I want to run?', 'do I have to run?', 'I'm too tired to run!'.......  So as soon as I got home I quickly changed and ran out the door before I sat down or anything came up to hold me back.  I am happy to say I got an 11km run in.  It felt strong and so proud that I got out there on my own.  I attacked all the hills with fierceness!   Dear, Nasty, Lazy thoughts.... Bugger off, I am on a mission! 

Um, I'm afraid.....VERY afraid

As some of you know I have signed up for a full Ironman.  eekk!

John was very excited when he heard that they were thinking about having another Ironman event in Canada that is local to us, Mount Tremblent, Quebec.  It will be about a 9hr drive for us (maybe a bit longer with rest breaks!).   I was looking to sign up for a full and was contemplating Louisville, Kentucky but this one in Canada would be perfect.  So when the announcement was released John and I were tickled pink.....until we seen the bike profile..  OMG I am going to die!  Some climbs are a 12% grade for 5kms.  Yep, August 19th of 2012 will be the day of my death! Just kidding but seriously, they better have a stretcher and IV ready.  LOL 
I convinced another tri-chick I know to sign up as well.  SO SORRY, Miha!  ;)  We will get through this together!  hehe

IMMT Bike profile = OMFG what have I done!!!???

John entering the finishers chute!  AMAZING!!!!xoxo

John just completed his first full Ironman in Lake Placid on July 24th, 2011 and while he was on the bike course he was thinking about me.  Lake Placid has some BIG hills and BIG descends.  He began to worry about me in Mt. Tremblant.  He told me I am going to die.  That is great.  Thanks Sweetie, that is just what I wanted to hear! Your extraordinary support is truly cherished...  NOT!!!!!! 

Bike check-in

                                                                    Nonetheless, after watching John work so hard during his training which included every single one of his winter long weekend runs in a blizzard, him waking me up twice a week in the morning with music blaring on his trainer and him dragging me to the pool with him kicking and screaming, I see how this dedication has paid off for him.  He did an amazing job and pushed his limits as I would some day like to do.  He is my inspiration and I am so proud of his accomplishment and achieving all of his goals that day!   Being able to witness this entire day and watch all the Ironmen push their bodies to the breaking points, to have met so many wonderful athletes, fellow bloggers and volunteers and the breathtaking beauty of Lake Placid has left me with a desire to register this Ironman event.  My hope is to sign up for 2013 if they can negotiate their contract next year.  Lets keep our fingers crossed!!

I was going to race the Women's Olympic triathlon this year in Milton but they cancelled this distance so I have no plans to race for the rest of the year.  However, given that Mt. Tremblant is going to be insanely difficult my 'off season' will be a very short one.  I need to work extremely hard on my bike and improve my run significantly.    John and I have been talking and in speaking to TriTwins and his crazy turbo training, I may give it a shot.  John will be much more disciplined then I but that is ok.  He has more passion for cycling!  As for my run, it will progress....  I am patient.  I will continue to run with the Road Rebels and more hill work will be added.  I have to work on my run cadence as well.  Not sure exactly how to do this but I will look into it and if you have any suggestions please let me know! 

Who's that HOT guy getting body marked?  YUM yum

Chalk for my Ironman!

John and me at the top of Whiteface mountain.  Lake Placid is in the background. 

John telling Dylan how to clip in and out of the pedals.

I think he is ready for a triathlon!  :)

                                                                          With all of our races and training John and I have inspired one of our sons.  He told us the day after Johns Ironman that he wanted to start running and wants to give triathlon a try!  WOOHOO..  This is fantastic and very exciting.  We both know that Dylan will rock this!  He is a very strong swimmer and natural athlete.  When he was in high school the swim coach and gym teachers strongly urged Dylan to sign up for the swim team after seeing him in the pool.  They were even approaching our other son to convince his brother to join.  Dylan was not one for the competitive pressure I guess.  This is ok though.  You grow stronger and confident the more mature you get...... .... 'mature' in some cases.  LOL    A great support team helps too and we are there for him.  GOOOOO DYLAN!  John fit Dylan on his cross bike last night and got him used to the clipless pedals.  He looked confident on the bike.   John is going to build back up the LeMond for him as we used parts off of it for my bike.  Today we are planning to take him out for a short bike ride and maybe an open water swim.  Soooo exciting!  Now we just have to get him registered for a race towards the end of the season.

Peterborough Half Iron - FINISHER!!!



Half Ironman = MENTAL!!  LOL

 


 

May 29th I injured my IT band in my half marathon.  I was just stretching it out and rolling it on my own trying to heal it but the few times I ran proved that it was not getting any better.  So two and 1/2 weeks ago I decided to seek professional help.  I was seeing a physiotherapist and a chiropractor.  The physio guy did a run analysis to show areas I needed to strengthen and in time would help with the IT band.  I also have slightly contorted legs, my heals slightly pronate and I am slightly bow-legged too! .... Oh, and my right hip is sit about an inch further forward then my left (probably from child bearing... damn kids  jk  ;)  )   Yes, I am a freak!  lol  Nothing that halts my running but something to keep in mind and to make sure I am strong in the areas I need to be (namely my gluteus maximus).  I also had 5 acupuncture treatments to help with the inflammation.  The chiro guy specialized in A.R.T. (active release therapy) and I seen him twice. 

R&R at Sandy Beach

About a week prior to my race I went for a short 5km run and it was the most pain I have been in.  My IT band tightened up so bad that I could hardly walk... I wanted to cry.  I was running with our Road Rebels running coach at the time and he stop and massaged it out for me.  THANK GOD!  It was awful.  After this run I was so scared that my race would be compromised.  I was not about to quit though.... NO WAY!!  I would walk the whole run if I had to.  I was not about to concede defeat before I even tried!  I am waaayyy stronger then that...not to mention I have a high pain tolerance! 

So Friday after work, John, Dylan, Tyler and I headed up to our friends, Brian and Renu, cottage in Peterborough.  Renu was our hostess for the weekend.  Our oldest son, Blake, could not make it as he had to work.  We arrived about 10pm.  We unpacked, visited with Renu for a while, then went to bed. 

Saturday we were up at 7:30 for breakfast and then drove to Sandy Beach for a swim and some r&r.  At this point I could still feel my IT band pain when walking down or up hills.... or when John tried to wrestle with me in the water....  I yelled.. "my knee, my knee" and he let go.  I think he was trying to sabotage my race!  LOL  The rest of the day consisted of normal cottage activity and trying to keep my mind off the race..it was working until it was time for bed!  The feeling of worry was starting to overwhelm me.

Sunday we were up at 5:30 and out the door at 6:10ish.  It was about a 40min drive into town and race start was 8am.

When we arrived I put my bike in transition  and went through the normal motions ( body marking, timing chip pick up, ect. ect.)  My boys were with me the whole time and John went to help out a friend for a bit as it was her first sprint triathlon that day. 

SWIM 2km


John giving me some last minute advice  :)



This was my first ever mass swim start and I was a little nervous.  402 participants in a mass start.   Ummm, I hope this ends well for me!  I don't know if I was more worried on my own or because John was hugging me so tight all the time.  I think he may have been more nervous!  ;)

I heard the gun and we were off.  You can walk in quite a ways before it gets deep so I took advantage of it.  While swimming out the the first buoy there was this guy that DID NOT know how to sight.  He kept criss crossing right in front of me.  Really buddy, pick your damn head up and look!  It was really annoying but I kept my cool and tried to avoid the collision.  On our second loop I am not sure if it was the same guy but was at a point that I was getting angry.  I put my hand on his head and was going to shove him but didn't.  ( I am too nice).   As I was on the last stretch of my swim a guy in front of my kicked my fingers..  OUCH..  It felt like they were broken.  I checked them out and they did not look deformed so full steam ahead.  Swim time - 48:25, 2:26/100m pace

BIKE - 90km
I got on my bike and it was already insanely hot out.  I seen my boys and John and off I went.  The course was A LOT harder then I anticipated.  The hills for me were long climbs so I could not carry as much momentum them from the downhill.  It was all hills.  John said after that I did not have the proper gearing so that did not help.  Oh well, it will just make my legs stronger right!    At about 15km in had to go pee.  I did not want to stop, this was going to be a painful ride!  Oh no!  :(    I tried to go on my bike sooo many times but I just couldn't do it.  When I wanted to try there were people behind me and I didn't want them to see peeing.    I guess I need to practice!  hehe 
I had some tremendous pain in the bottom of my left foot.  I had to unclip from the pedal quite a few times to shake it out.  Sometimes I could not even put my foot back in the pedal because the pain was burning so bad.  I will have to figure out what that is all about!? 
I was pretty slow on the bike.  By the time I was on the road leading to transition the runners were everywhere.  I am going to need to do some serious speed/hill work over the winter for IMMT next year.

Bike time - 3:44, 24.1 km/h

RUN - 21km

I ran out of transition.... yes, ran....with no pain..... yippeee!!   But then seen a port-o-potty so ran in there!  RELIEF!!  lol


BIG high fives and all the chalk was for me!  Love my family!



Once back on the run course I was feeling pretty good.  My pace was slower but did not want to push my IT band limits so did 10 and 1's for the first half of the run.  After that I think I was running 5 min walking 1 min.  This is was working out perfect as the uphills were during my walks.  The clouds also rolled in while on my run.  THANK YOU Mother Nature!   I knew I was cutting it close for time and when I was at the 18km mark I seen John standing there at a feed station waiting for me.  :)  He was getting worried so ran out to meet me.  I wanted to stop and kiss him but just wanted to finish the race so I can sit down!  At this point my quads started tightening up too.  I think I could even feel all the micro tears as they were happening.  It was a strange feeling. 

As I was approaching the finishers chute, the people that were in their cars already leaving were all clapping and cheering out their windows. It was awesome!  Then right at the finishers chute Renu ran beside me for a couple of seconds cheering saying "go Fran go, you did it!", I almost cried.  All the people that were still there cheering was fantastic.  I loved it!  My first half iron triathlon was a success.  After I received my finishers medal, John ran around to meet me and gave me the most amazing hug and said how proud he was.  I kissed my boys who waited all day for me and then we walked to the water where I could cool off.
Run time - 2:42, 7:44 min/km pace.  -- run needs work but with an injury I am happy with this!!!

I think I was bang on with my nutrition..  I ate one Lara bar and 4 gels on the bike.  I wanted to eat more but with all those hills made it difficult.  On the run I had 2 gels and drank half a Gatorade and water at each feed station.

All in all, this was a great accomplishment.  I am happy I was able to finish considering I had not been properly training for the last 5 weeks!  I am tough like that!  LOL  :)

Time - 7:20:14, place AG 16/16, Overall 353/402

Woodstock triathlon - June 12th, 2011

Going into this race I was worried about my IT band as it's still causing some pain.  I tried not to think about it!  

Two of our sons as well as my Mom and sister came out to support John and I for this race!  :)  My sister is a hardcore cheerleader!  :)  Loved it!

Dylan and Tyler with their clappers!  :)



Almost back to transition.



Swim complete!

My swim: was strong I think.  I started in the last wave and caught up to some of the people in the second wave!  During my swim I was in awe regarding how aggressive some of the girls can be.  I was swimming along and I knew I was close to another swimmer but I am comfortable with this.... but obviously she was not because before I knew it she stopped and shoved me!  That's right, the b!tch shoved me!!!  Is this normal??    I just let it go and carried on my merry way!  lol

The bike: was freaking cold!  I wanted to put on my arm warmer and had them in my transition but John said after is warm up that I wouldn't need them.  Boy was I cursing him!  The headwind was enough to slow my pace considerably.  The only thing that helped me was knowing when I get to that turn-around I would fly back!  And I did.  Sweet! 

Running up a hill out of transition.

The dreaded run: was PAINFUL..  but I sucked it up and ran the whole damn thing in pain.  I found myself really limping afterwards.  Not good as my Half Ironman is only a month away at this point.  I think it is time to seek professional help!  Foam roller is failing me.

I finished last in my age category so I was pretty sad about it.

750M Swim/30km Bike/7.6km Run

Time 2:18  11/11AG    158/181 Overall.

Finished - Doing the happy dance.

John tried to help me feel better by saying I am not training for short distance races (interval training).  It made me feel better but if that is the case why did he place 4th in his age category and he is not training for short races!?  It's all good though.  He is an incredible athlete and much more competitive then I am.  I just do it for the sake of doing it (and to tell people about it!) as well as staying in shape (somewhat).  HEHE

Toronto Women's Half Marathon: May 29, 2011 - Race Report

Ok, I am a little late posting my race experience but better late then never, right?  Where do I start?  I am not one for fluffing things up.  I just mostly say how it is and that's about it.  So knowing that, this race report will probably be on the short side... as most of my posts are!  :)

About 3km into the Race- Am I done yet?

This is my first half marathon...  first ever running only race actually.  I was sooooo  soooooo nervous the couple of days leading up to the race that I was in the bathroom ALOT.  I think I lost about 2 pounds!  lol   Race morning we were up at 4, I ate my blueberry mini-wheat's and a banana, then were out the door.  We offered to pick up a friend in Toronto, Renu Bourne, as this was her first half marathon as well.  Once we got I checked out my race kit she picked up for me, put on my bib number and headed to Sunnybrook Park where the race was being held.  We parked and walked about a block to the park.  As were were walking my stomach started gurgling again..   Oh no!!!    

I warmed up with Renu.  I made her do some high knees, butt kicks and these horsey trot things (I'm not sure what they are called)  John got video of us.  It is pretty funny! 



Firefighter calendar boys!



Race start - some deep breathing and we are off.  The butterflies lasted for 2kms.  The race course was three out and backs but the course was changed a bit because of flooding so there were some turn arounds added to each of the three out and backs.  I did not like this at all.  Now you have to slow down that much more!  My first 10km I had done in an hour..... after that I slowed down and my last 5km were really tough, more mental toughness I think!  At the 18km mark the bottom of my left foot had some pain and my legs were starting to feel heavy.  There were some nice pick-me-up features in this race. 1) The Toronto Fire-fighter calender boys were on the course handing our water to us.  We passed them three time and the last time passing by was most pleasant.....  They had their shirts off.  :)    2) At the 20km mark they had a chocolate station were they handed out Cadbury chocolate bars.  I took one but did not want to eat it at that time and decided I did not want to hold it either so I threw out out at the next water station.  As I was reaching the finisher shoot I can hear all the people cheering so I picked up my pace...  as much as I could, which was not alot.  I was so glad that it would be over but it seemed like the moment was in slow motion.  It took forever to get to that finish line!  At last, I finished in 2:15:59 chip time.  Average pace 6:27.  AG place 117/209, Overall 531/1116.



The race course was not closed to the public John ran the course to get in his long run.  He started running about 30min before the race started.  This way he could take pics of me throughout the race.  I was soooo happy to see him.  It makes me smile when he is there cheering for me.  After the race we spent the afternoon at Renu's house with her husband and kids. We ordered some pizza and enjoyed the sun that finally decided to come out.  My IT band started getting tight as we were sitting there and as of today I am still trying to loosen it. 

Approx 7km to go.  My legs are starting to feel heavy!

LOL  ;)

I ran twice since the race and can get about 5-6km in but then my IT band will instantly get tight.  I have a rolling pin at work to roll it out and have the foam roller (pool noodle) at home.  Gawd that hurts.  There are some BIG knots in there!  I have a triathlon this Sunday so I hope it is better by then!! 

We are done.  YES! 

It's working

Last week was a great training week.  I clocked almost 11 housr of training and it felt amazing. 
Swim - 4km
Bike - 140kms (6hrs)
Run - 27kms (2:50hrs)

I mentioned in my last post about my non-existent weight loss and that I was going to start counting calories.  Well, I gave Fitday.com another chance and good news....  they must have done some upgrading because it is pretty quick to upload your foods/activities.   I lost about two pounds.  I am so happy!  It really helps to see what you are eating and to be accountable for the calories/fat/carbs you put into your body.  I am going to continue to track my food intake and hope that the pounds keep coming off!  :) 

My bike on Saturday was cut short as my son had his first soccer practice at 1pm and did not get done until 3pm.  When I got home I brought my bike outside and then my tube stem just exploded.   So now I had to change my first flat on the new bike with no help as John was already on his 145km+ ride.  I changed it with ease.  :)  Now the time was almost 4pm and that left me with little time to do my whole 90km route.  I could have tried but did not want to chance losing daylight if something mechanical were to happen. On my way back home I seen a familiar face.  John came back to met me and we rode home together.  That added another 30kms for him - total 180kms.  He is a machine!!  :)

I will not be able to run with the Road Rebels on Tuesdays now as my sons soccer games are Tuesday evenings.  Now my Tuesdays are non-stop busy.  I get up make John breakfast and lunch, make myself lunch, go to work from 8-4, come home and immediately run 8km, then eat supper (when I say eat I mean inhale), drive Tyler to soccer for 6:15 (game is done at 8pm), then go to the pool for 8:20 and swim for 50min or 2kms, relax in the sauna for about 15min, shower, then go home.  When we are home I usually have to make John a snack them I am ready for bed.  Are you tired yet?  lol

April Totals

April has been more successful then last month.. I could have done better but I took a week off to let my shin splint heal.  I also should be doing something on the Mondays. I think I am just lazy!  May will be a better month.  I am making a promise to myself!  As well, I think I really need to control my calorie intake as I have not lost any weight.  I said in the beginning that it was not about weight loss but who was I kidding.  I want to see some pounds shed, damn it.  ;)   I don't think I eat bad at all but I find myself eating/snaking on anything/everything while I am making supper and then I sit down to eat supper too.  I need to stop snacking like this!  :(  I was using a calorie tracker, Fitday.com, but it takes so long to upload the info.  I have no patience so I stopped.  Maybe I'll give it another try. 
Yesterdays run was a rainy one.  I didn't make it out for the early morning Road Rebels group run as we were out late at a friends house watching UFC..  Go GSP!!    So we ran in the afternoon after it started to rain.  I took my two sons with me as I do not want to run alone (there has been some women attacked on the trails).  They rode their bikes while I ran.  We were all soaked.  Good quality family time!  hehe
Bike - 12:20hrs (249 kms)
Run - 13:30hrs (113kms)
Swim - 4:20hrs
Core - 1hr

Shin splint

Ok, I may have pushed myself a little the last couple of weeks and now I am paying the price.

Two weeks ago the weekend weather was so nice and considering the loooonnnggg  winter I was desperate to get out for a real bike ride. I have not been on the trainer in a month and half and decided to go out for a 95 km ride by myself on Saturday as Mr. LOTC was out for his solo century ride.  I rode to my brothers, then to my parents and back home.  This was a tough ride.  There was a headwind all the way to my brother..  uuggh! Riding to my parents I thought about asking them to drive me home, but I didn't.  I would have hated myself if I cheated. 



Bike route to my brothers

Then on Sunday the weather was iffy at best.  While eating breakfast it was snowing, then raining, then snowing.  Hmmmm, this was going to be a very interesting run.  When we got to the meeting spot for the Road Rebels group there were only three of us that showed up.    Of course I could not keep up with John and the other runner so they ran together and left me in the dust.  I ran the 16kms all by myself and with longer run/walk times then normal.  I ran for 20min and walk for 2.  I usually will do 10 and 1's for my long slows.  The good news is that the snow and rain stopped and held off for the whole run..... Sweet!  I didn't notice my shins too much at that point but my legs were spent for the 7kms runs on the Tuesday and Thursday. The following Sunday I ran 18.5kms and that is what did me in as the group threw in hills.  Right,,,, I have not even worked on hills this year. Plus, they ran a faster pace then I am comfortable with!!  I couldn't even walk up the stairs without some strong discomfort. So last Tuesday was my last run and decided that it was time for some much needed to rest and healing as my half marathon that is only 31 days away. Wait, what...   OMG... that crept up fast!!!  AAGGHHHH.  I am not ready....  hee hee whooooo  (labour breathing...  LOL  ;) )
I ran last night for the first time in a week and the pain is still slightly there.  Once I got going I hardly notice it.  I will take it easy and swim tonight and run again tomorrow. 

This Saturday the forecast looks great so I hope to get out for another 90km ride.  Dear Mother Nature, please be kind and let it be warm and not windy..... we've had enough wind.... REALLY!  :)

So far, so good

I am still suffering from my respiratory infection but it is getting better so I decided to try some short 20min cardio/core (Jillian Michaels 30 day Shred) videos last Thursday.  The result was that I was sucking wind 5 minutes in.  Someone had jumped up and sat on my chest again..... but I pushed through and finished the workout.  When I woke up the next day, OMG, my legs were so sore (squats and lunges galore).  So I decided I was going to torture myself some more and did the video again.  Sufferfest! lol

Hiked to Dundas Valley peak with our boys - January

On Saturday, John was going out for a long 4 hour rail trail mountain bike ride so I decided that I was going to go out as well and enjoy the beautiful day with our boys.  They got their bikes out of the shed, pumped up the tires, lubed the chains and made sure the gears were working ect.....then we were off for our own 2 hour rail trail ride which ended up to be about 30 kms.  Again, with my infection/cold I was coughing up a lung but I endured.  It was fun to be out together but I don't think my youngest enjoys the sport much.  His bum hurts!  hehehe

Yesterday, our running group was scheduled for a 16 km long slow run.  I was hesitant to join as I knew my lungs were about to burst and I have not ran anything over 10km on my long weekend runs and during the weekdays I would run anywhere from 5km to 8km.  But I decided to go anyways and John said if I need to walk more then usual or at slower pace then so be it.  As long as I get the kilometers in right!  In the end it was NOT an enjoyable run, not that I was expecting anything other then just that.  I used about 20 Kleenex's to blow my nose, my lungs were telling me to slow down and I did.  By the end I think I was running 8 and 2s, maybe less.  LOL   My muscles were a bit tender from adding this much distance but nothing out of the ordinary or worrisome. 

Tonight I went to the pool with John and I swam 2000m.  I was worried about how I would feel in the water with my breathing but surprisingly enough it was not too bad.  All in all, not a bad couple of days.  Hope I can stay on this wagon and enjoy the ride!  :-)

Update

It has been a while since my last post but John just fixed my laptop so I should have the opportunity to post more often.
This month has been another so-so month.  I am letting myself down on the training front.
Some good news though is that John and I have finally found a running group in town and we started running with them about two weeks ago.  They are the Road Rebels and they are amazing people and I hope that running with them will help keep me committed as doing it on my own has proven not to be very successful.     

Yesterday, John completed his 30km Around the Bay race in 2:48:32. What an amazing time for his first ever running only race! He still thinks he is fat and slow but I am very proud of him and strongly suggest that he see a psychiatrist for his body image problem! lol   Today we are both home as he is still pretty stiff and I am fighting some sort of bug.  I feel a lot of pressure in my chest and my cough sounds like a bark and it is very painful. My doctor called in a prescription for me so I will be on the mend soon. 

February - FAIL

OK...  I am extremely disappointed in myself.  Since my exam I have not done anything,  I have lost every ounce of my motivation, there is no drive and no willpower to exercise.  John has been mad at me more then a few times because I refuse to go swimming with him.  I have only been out for one, yes one, 6km run which was last Thursday and I did P90X Yoga with John yesterday.  What is wrong with me???  I only have 95 days until the Toronto Half Marathon and I feel BLAH! 
I watched the 2010 Ironman video with John a couple of weeks ago as I think he was hoping this would inspire me again.... ....obviously it did not help.  I am still lazy!   I want to be fit and be a better athlete and watching John do so amazing with his training does inspire me but I can't seem to get out the door!  However, watching John also makes me tired thinking about exercising that much!
HELP!!!!!!!!

We did get all of our parts on for my new bike and John has it pretty much built for me.  All he needs to do is run the cables and tune it up.  This makes me happy and I can't wait for the warmer weather so I can ride... OUTSIDE!! 

My almost done Bike and Tyler  :)

My seat is on, yipe!