Risky Business

I feel like I should be in a confession booth writing this post and I'm not even Catholic. I have a confession to make...here goes: I ran today. I wasn't going to run for a week and I ran today.

But this is the deal: my hip was feeling good (no searing pain) and well, the weather was really nice and it was the time of day when I usually run and my body was just craving a good run.

So I made a deal with myself. I said I could run IF I went very slow and IF I would stop at the first twinge of pain and IF I stayed on soft surfaces. I decided to take Daisy since she usually stops a lot and that would force me to stop a lot too.

It worked quite well. I ran about 3 miles very slowly and for the most part, stayed on soft surfaces. I stopped multiple times with Daisy. I paid attention to my form and made sure I didn't twist or turn in any way that was not necessary. It felt so good to be outside!

Although I felt a slight twinge of pain with each footstrike, it was nowhere near what it was last week. After the run I took Advil and two extra strength Tylenols and iced the entire hip area for 20 mins. No pain!

But now, 8 hrs later, I feel it again. Its not any worse than its ever been but its still there. I didn't really expect it to go away and I'm glad its not worse.

I told Kurt and he thought that was ok. He can't get me in until Friday so he said a short run on soft surface was ok. I want him to assess it and then refer me to Proactive Physical Therapy, with either Darrell Martin or Todd Smith. They are the BEST physical therapists in town!

And, I got a good swim in today too. Made it to the pool slightly earlier this morning and warmed up for 200 yards, then did 6 x 125 and then 8 x 75's. Not a bad workout. My arms were really tired so I know I did something.

And one more thing re the hip situation. Its not really my hip...and its hard to explain where it is...but its the point of the bone to the left of the abdomen. Kurt says its the muscle that inserts into that bone there. It is obviously inflamed because it hurts so bad and I'm just curious to know what I did to it. Hopefully Darrell or Todd will know.

Until then, its rest, ice, and good ol' Celebrex!

Grin and Bear It

The good news is that it was damn near 80 degrees today and I managed to sneak in a quick 20-mile bike ride. I could've easily blown it off because I had a million things to do but I stuck to my plan and made it happen. Yes!

I have a system that works well. Since I pick up my kids at 3:30 and their school is out west where I like to ride, I put my bike in the back of the van and drive to their school and leave from there. Today I was slipping into the I-don't-have-time-to-ride mode and I threw all my gear into the car and took off.

And there's a lot to do before riding (why running is so handy). I have to get my bike down from the hook on the ceiling, pump up the tires, and check the brakes. I have to put on the right clothes: bike shorts, top, jacket and sleeves when its cold, socks, and special bike shoes. Then, grabe my cell phone, water bottle with home-made Gatorade in it, sports bar, and bike gloves and put bike in the car (until Kurt puts our bike rack on the back).

It may not sound like a lot but it is a LOT more than what you do to go for a run. I'm proud to say that today I did it all within 5 mins and got out the door.

I rode to Windsor and had a fabulous ride!  The only problem was that I had eaten such a big lunch that it was kind of uncomfortable to ride hard with a full stomach. And belching up black beans and salsa when you're int he aero position is not so fun.

I'm glad I got the ride in but I'm bummin' about my hip. I've decided to not run all week and see what happenes. It didn't hurt very much today so that's promising but when I would move certain ways, I could feel significant pain. I wish I knew how I pulled that muscle!

I am worried about how I will train for an Ironman with this injury. Everyone keeps telling me that its ok to take time off now and they're right, it IS best to take the time off now. But I haven't stopped running in 25 years (seriously) and I'm honestly wondering how I'm going to do it.

What I miss most is the Saturday morning long run. I've been doing that for 25 yrs now. I think I have missed only a handful of Saturdays in all those years. I don't how know to function without that long run. It kind of "sets" me for the week. I feel a little panicky when i think of not running long on Saturday or Sunday morning. I find myself thinking about sneaking out to do the run...what an endurance junkie I am!

So, we'll see how it goes this week. Hope to swim tomorrow and Friday, bike on Thursday and maybe Friday with a friend, and I guess bike again on Saturday. I really want to run!!!

ARRGGGHHH!!!!

Swimming is Good

OK, so I'm not going to run for 5 - 7 days. But I can obviously swim and bike and thank GOD the weather looks fabulous this week!  I just have to plan ahead since biking takes so much more time.

Today's swim felt really good but I got there later than I should have. I was in the water at 6:25 and I'd like to be there by 6:20. I will have to get up earlier or spend less time drinking coffee (I drink 1.5 cups before going to the pool - its my meditation time and you can't take it away from me).

Next week is spring break for my kids so I can stay longer since I won't have to get them to school. Hopefully, I can run short distances next week.

At the pool today, we did 12 100's and since I swam 200 before we started, I got in 1400 yards. Not great but better than nothing. Richard said I'm getting better. I've been working on "pushing through" to the end of my stroke (still). He says that I pull my arm out too soon. I might go down there tomorrow and work on this since I can't be there Weds morning (spending the night at our church to help a program for homeless families).

Hoping to have good news later this week!

The "I" Word

Yes, that means "injury". And I've definitely got one.  Ran with the group today, which really wasn't a good idea since it has been hurting quite a bit. But I thought that taking 2 days off would help and it kind of did.  I was able to run 9.5 miles today but it hurt so bad afterwards that I literally could hardly walk. Ugh.

So I really might have to take some time off from running. I'm too tired now to think clearly but wanted to jot down my thoughts. And I think it sucks, plain and simple.

I have pain every which way I move. Not good.

Tomorrow is Master's swim so need to get to bed early so I can get up early (5:20 AM). Will swim and lift tomorrow, bike Tuesday and see how things are on Weds. If I can run 2-3 days/week that would be great. Then again, it might be best to not run at all for a week or so. But I'm afraid it will just come back again and what good did that do?

Kurt is finally taking me seriously and says he will either do a formal exam on me or refer me to someone he knows. I also want to see the guys at Proactive - the best physical therapy in town!

I'll keep you posted. Keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer, if you are so inclined. I need to start IM training soon!

Uh Oh

I've been running some 25 years and I've never had an injury. Lucky, I guess. I've had my share of aches and pains and there's been many times that I've cut back on my mileage because I felt a twinge here or there but I've never had a full-on injury.

So, I should feel lucky, right?

I am lucky but darn it, why do I get one now?  The year I am REALLY going for it....really going all out for the best possible finish time in my 2nd (and probably last) Ironman. And at a time when I'm REALLY enjoying my long runs!

I guess its fate. 

Whatever it is, it stinks. And it hurts.

So, what is the injury?  Its the sharp pain in my upper left hip bone - maybe pelvic bone, I'm not sure - that has been bothering me for months now. It has been especially painful when I get out of a car, for some weird reason. It hurts like heck when I step out of my Honda mini-van and I hobble for the first few steps.

The good news (until now) was that it did not hurt when I ran. This made it easy for me to rationalize running. I mean, why stop running if you don't have pain during the run?  Ask any runner what they would do and they'd look at you strange and say "I'd keep running, of course". And so I did.

And it actually got better for awhile. It was hurting before the Florida Ironman but then it subsided and I was able to do the Ironman (although I walked most of the marathon, but that's another story).

I didn't feel it for weeks after the Ironman but then it slowly came back. But still, it never hurt during the run, only after (and it hurt like heck).

And its back with a vengeance. Yesterday, during a typical 5 mile run, it started hurting with each foot strike. Then it radiated down and around the entire hip area. Crap!  I came home and could hardly walk. It was really, really painful. I took a Celebrex and iced it for 30 mins but it still kept hurting.

Today when I woke up, it hurt like heck. I made it to the pool and swam for 30 mins. Fortunately, for my psyche, I had a great swim!  I wanted to swim longer but in order to get kids to school, I have to leave the pool by 7:00. Plus, Kurt had a 7:00 AM meeting and he needed a ride to the office. More on the swim later.

So, what to do. I should probably stay off it and keep taking Celebrex and icing it. But since I'm not running today or tomrrow, it might settle down long enough for me to run 90 mins on Sunday (can't believe I'm saying that). Cross your fingers - I really want to run on Sunday!

Back to the swim today. Tom and Richard were there and being the great guys that they are, they gave more excellent advice on my technique. Richard watched me swim underwater and told me to try the "almost catch up drill" which will hopefully force me to follow through on my stroke and "push" at the end, which is what I'm not doing. I tried it a few times and it did feel different. I really wanted to stay and practice longer (and the water felt so good!) but had to go. Such is the life of an endurance junkie with kids.

I'm looking forward to swimming more. I really think my stroke has improved and I want to start trying more speedwork (did I just say that???).  But as I said in my last post, if I can manage 2 days/week until summer when I can go to 3 days/week, I should be fine. Can't wait to do open water swims again!

As for biking, I did a 30 min Spinerval workout today. Again, no time to do the whole thing. I tried one that Sarah loaned me and I can't remember the name of it but it called for three 6-minute bouts of high intensity cycling, after doing an extensive warm-up. The good news is that I did that and felt like I hadn't done much work - I was ready to do more but had to grade papers and write an exam. Sigh.

So, not a bad week all in all. Tomorrow I'm skiing with the kids and Sunday, I hope to be running with my friends. Prayers for healing and good karma will be accepted and appreciated!

TTFN!

Mental Health Run

I teach at 9:30 on Tuesdays, so I have to run before taking my kids to school, which means getting out the door by 6:30 at the absolute latest. Today it was easy to do that because I had so much on my mind.

What was I thinking about?  Health care reform, of course!  And while I won't go into a political discussion here, I was feeling very frustrated, disappointed, and yes, a bit angry. And I'm FOR the reform bill!

Anyway, I needed to get out and burn off some negative energy running through my body. Sometimes we need to do that and for me, its the only way I can rid myself of the toxic ju-ju that too much news-watching creates in our brains.

I ran from 6:30 to 6:50 with Daisy (she actually did very well) and then another 25 mins by myself. I would've loved to have a LONG run to really work out the kinks but it just couldn't happen today.

Oh well, at least I felt better after the run. Some people turn to alcohol to drown their sorrows in but I go for a run. Its much healthier, they say!

Spring Rides: Heaven on Earth

It must be the long winter that makes the first few rides in the spring feel so wonderful....the warm air, the chirping birds, the endless sun....ahhhhh...there's nothing like a long ride with friends on a Sunday afternoon in early spring.

Its Monday and I still feel a bit "high" from yesterday's ride. We left from Sarah's house at 1:30 and got back around 3:00'ish. It was a bit nippy at the start but we warmed up fast.

We went south to Milliken and then up Mad Russian Hill. I felt great!  We rode 23 miles and I held a fast pace the whole way. I felt a little guilty because Sarah was not feeling great and I was pushing the pace (although Lynne and Marshall were way ahead of me).  This was the first time I've ever done Mad Russian hill feeling strong enough to NOT use my 3rd ring.

I hope I have more days like yesterday!

I actually got a lot of exercise yesterday. I walked to and from church, which is a good 20 minutes if you walk very fast (30 mins at a leisurely pace) and really enjoyed that. I was a bit sore from the 11 mile run on Saturday so walking felt really good. In fact, I thought to myself that if I ever get injured and I cannot run, I would actually enjoy walking. There is a whole other zen to walking that you don't get with running (but the reverse is true too).

Today, I went to Master's swim and got there by 6:20, in the water by 6:25.  I was really motivated to swim this morning and had a good workout. I couldn't keep up with Sarah (although she had on fins and I didn't) but it didn't bother me today. Tom was in the lane next to me and as usual, he kept me laughing.

I warmed up with about 400 yards (maybe more) of freestyle. Then the main set was: 2 x (200 easy, 150 fast, 100 easy, and 50 fast). There was a lot more but this was all I could do before 7:00, when I need to get out and get kids to school. So that would be....400 + 300 + 200 + 100 =1000, plus my warm-up = 1400 yards.

Normally, it would bother me to not do an entire workout but I've decided that until June, if I keep up this amount 3/week, I'll be in good shape to increase my swim mileage this summer and that's when the IM training really starts.  And besides, I was doing this much (or less) this time last year and I managed to eek out a 1:18 IM swimtime!  (I'm so proud of that!!!)

OK, so now I need to find time to lift weights. I always put that at the end of my list of things to do.  I need to move that higher...that's my biggest challenge, in terms of training...well, and getting high mileage in while getting things done at home too!

Off to get kids at school...more later.

Plans Change...and Then They Change Again

Such is the life of busy people who train for endurance events (and who like to FAC the night before our group run).  This morning was a prime example.

The original plan was for those of us running 10 - 12 miles to meet at Sarah's house at 7:30 and those who were doing 20 (Dan and Jenny) to meet at Jenny's at 6:00 AM and we would hook up on the Matt Maske Trail (our name for the trail).

Then Sarah and Lynne go out for a beer at Crabtree on Friday night and after indulging in several beers with high alcohol content, they decide to change the plan to meeting at Jenny's. Sarah texted me late last night to tell me the plan had changed. I thought Jenny and Dan were in on this change and since it didn't matter to me, I was ok with it. So, this morning I get ready to go to Jenny's and decide to take Daisy so that she can play with Sammy while we run.

I load Daisy up in the truck and of course, she's all excited about going somewhere, and I head out to Jenny's. While stopped at a stoplight halfway out there, I turn on my phone and see that there is another text. This time its from Lynne and she said they changed the plans AGAIN to meet at Sarah's at 7:30!

Crap, what am I going to do with Daisy?  And now I'm halfway to Jenny's and I'll have to go back home to drop her off and then back out to Sarah's house. ARRGGGHHH!

Long story short, there was an obvious snafu in the plan-making and it sounds like it happpened late last night at Crabtree's. This is not good. While I understand the reasoning for changing the plan (too long to explain here), it is NOT good to change a running plan late in the game and then change it AGAIN!

So I drove back to my house and dropped off a very sad-looking dog and then turned around and went all the way out west to Sarah's house. I got there late, of course, but I didn't care.

The good news is that Sarah, Lynne, Marshall, and I got in 11 miles. Dan, Brenda, Steve, and Jenny ended up doing 20 and that's what they needed to do (Dan and Jenny are training for spring marathons). And if you think about it, after all the years we've been running together on weekends and this is the first time we've ever had a major snafu, that's pretty good.

And the run was nice!  It was 15 degrees when we started but I had dressed warm enough that I was comfortable the whole way. I felt sluggish in the beginning but got a 2nd wind mid-way through and finished feeling really good.

Sarah got a new yoga video for runners/triathletes so I stayed at her house and did half the video with her after the run. Oh boy, that was painful!  I am not as flexible as I used to be and definitely not used to doing yoga so I could only do half of it (and was anxious to get home, shower, and eat). But it was nice to stretch and I feel pretty good now.

I'm just glad we had a nice run, considering how last night Katerina was not feeling well - had a swollen lymph node, sore throat, headache, and slight fever - so I thought I'd be staying home but she got up early this morning (like 5:30!) and said she wanted to go to snowboarding lessons (it was Kurt's turn to drive them today). She's one tough little girl.

Anyway, that's how it goes sometimes. Things change and then they change again. You just have to go with the flow...or don't go at all.

Quickie Swim

Kurt and I hit the pool this morning and I'm proud to say I was IN the pool at 6:20 AM!  That's the earliest I've ever made it. Not sure how I did it....it's all a blur right now.

We only swam for 30 mins but it was better than nothing. I did a combination of freestyle with and without the pull thingy and kicking. I like using the pull thingy because it keeps me afloat. I tend to sink without it. Plus, I heard that it mimics the bouyancy of a wetsuit fairly well.

I've learned that there are pros and cons to swimming on a non-Master's day. The pros are that you have a lane to yourself and you can go at your own speed and do whatever you damn well please.

The cons are that without a coach and a class full of really fast swimmers, its easy to slack off and/or lose motivation. I know I swim much harder and faster when I'm at Master's swim. But I also love the slow, easy pace of a non-Master's swim workout. I guess its best to include both in a training plan.

Speaking of training plans, I'm going to have to pick a training plan soon. Not sure if I'll use Gale Bernhardt's plan again. I emailed Wendy Mader re coaching fees but haven't heard back from her.

Tonight we have a winter's advisory for a snowstorm headed our way. Funny how I rode in shorts and short-sleeved jersey on Tuesday and tomorrow the high will be 32, with 3-5 inches of snow expected. Welcome to spring in Colorado.

Off to bed, hope to run or ride tomorrow, then long run with the group on Saturday. TTFN

First Spring Ride!

Today is St. Patty's Day and although I got in a short "Daisy" run this morning, I'd rather write about yesterday - it was simply glorious.

First, it was incredibly warm. And after a long cold winter, the first REALLY warm day is exciting enough, but I was able to actually ride my bike, making it even BETTER.

I had a lot of school work to do so I worked hard all morning so that I could ride for 90 mins or so before picking up the kids. This is what you do when you train for endurance events and you have a job and kids...you plan ahead.

And it was hard to wait. I'm a morning runner/exerciser and to wait until the afternoon is excruciating for me. My body goes through all kinds of weird contortions when it doesn't get its usual fix.

I finally put aside the computer around 1:00 and decided to go. Biking is so much different from running because there's so much to do, esp for the first real ride of the season.

I decided to ride my old road bike (the same one I rode in the Ironman) instead of my fancy-schmancy new racing bike because my new bike was on my trainer and it doesn't have a water bottle cage and a few other things.

I hadn't ridden my road bike since the Ironman and my race number was still on the stem!  I decided to leave it there as kind of a well, badge of honor so to speak. I couldn't bring myself to take it off just yet.

Next, I needed to pump up the tires but when I tried to unscrew the valve on the stem of the thinga-ma-jig, it wouldn't budge. I tried really hard and BAM, all the green gu inside the tire exploded out of the top!  ARRRRGGGH!  The green gu is stuff we put in the tire to keep it from going flat. It works great but now I had it all over my hands and bike shoes. UGH.

What to do. I can't get the valve to open and now my tire is flat. Crap, I really want to ride today!!!  I have to pick my kids up from school by 3:30 and I want at least an hour ride. I try again and again and it won't budge. So, I do what I always do in situations like this: I call my husband.

Fortunately, I got ahold of him. He suggests taking the front tire off of his bike and putting it on mine. Great. I find his bike hanging upside down in the garage close to the wall, requiring me to reach across a stack of junk in the garage and finagle the bike off the ceiling hooks. After almost falling flat on my face, I finally get his bike down. The clock is ticking...

I quickly switch the front tires and notice that his tire is a bit low. No problem, I'm sure he doesn't have the same problem with his valve. I was right, he didn't, the valve opened up fine. BUT the gauge on our pump has fallen our, meaning that when you use the pump, all the pressure is lost and the air escapes through the opening where the gauge usually is. This means I have to hold my thumb over the hole while I pump the tire, which is really hard to do! 

So, I start pumping with one hand. The other hand is keeping gauge-opening shut but the more I pump, the harder it gets. I finally give up and decide to ride it "as is". The front tire feels pretty good but the back tire clearly needed air. The clock was ticking....

I grab my helmet, shoes, water bottles, cell phone, powerbar, bike gloves (accidentally grabbing two right hand gloves but I didn't know it until later), sunglasses, purse, jacket (just in case), keys, and then put on bike shorts and shirt....stuffed the bike in the back of the van...and took off.

I drove to my kids' school so that I could ride from there. I hate having to do that but I like riding out west of town and if I ride from my house, I have to go through 4 major stoplights just to get out of town (with a few miles in between of stop and go traffic). This way, I can end my ride at 3:30, when the kids are getting out of school.

I get to the school, park the car, get the bike out and put front tire on, put cell phone, powerbar and jacket, in my backpocket, check brakes, put bikes shoes, sunglasses, and helmet on, notice that i only have one glove that I can wear and I put that on, and FINALLY I am ready to go!

As I head out of town, I notice how different my road bike feels from my racing bike. Wow!  No wonder I had a slow bike time in Florida!  I feel spread out on this bike, like my arms are reaching too far ahead. Oh well, its a beautiful day and I'M ON MY BIKE!

I check my watch and for once in my life, I see that I have plenty of time. So, I head out to Windsor. So far the bike is riding fine. It feels pretty good, actually. Its gonna be a great day.

I end up riding fairly fast out to Windsor because I just felt really good. I love riding on O Street, with its big wide curves and lack of traffic on weekdays. I felt like I was flying along....arms in my aerobars and my body tucked in as much as possible.

I got back to Greeley by 3:00 and since I had a little extra time, I turned around and looped back to 10th street and then back to 20th street. What the heck - I had the time and i just didn't want to get off my bike!

So that was yesterday (Tuesday). Monday, I ran a moderate 5 miles from Monfort (my kids' school) after dropping them off. Felt pretty good. Nothing spectacular, just a regular weekday run. I did run up Bunny Hill however and that's always a challenge.

Today, I missed Master's swim due to a certain dog I know, who woke me up at 3:00 AM. I couldn't go back to sleep until about 4:30 and there was no way I was getting up at 5:15 to go swim. Besides, its spring break and I don't feel too compelled to follow any kind of schedule.

Tomorrow I hope to make it to the pool by 6:20 with Kurt. Better get to bed then!

Birthday Run

Today is my birthday and I only wanted two things: handmade cards from my kids (which I got and I love - complete with Jolly Rancher candy and sticks of gum taped to the inside) and a long run with my friends.

Although only two of my friends could make it, I really enjoyed the run AND the fact that at the ripe old age of 49, I could run 8 miles so easily, it felt like I hardly did anything.

I have to add that last night was Daylight Savings Time so our 7:30 run time was really 6:30, and Jenny and Todd still made it over to run with me. Todd is nursing an injury so he rode his bike while we ran. Now that is commendable!

Last year, my birthday was on a Saturday and there was a good size group that went. This year, being on a Sunday, and one when the time springs forward an hour, drastically reduced the number of people showing up (they all ran long yesterday).

So, I feel really good to have such good friends. Many people make comments about my running or doing triathlons and if they only knew how much easier it is to train when you have such a great group of friends.

Our long runs on Saturday are something that I look forward to all week. We laugh and talk and cheer each other on. We are all different, yet we have this one thing in common and it works really well.

Today, I thought about two close friends that I lost a few years ago. Geoff, who I had run and climbed with for many, many years (he was an integral part of our running group), who died of multiple myeloma at the age of 56, and Denise, who was a fellow adoptive mom and who I became very close friends with. Denise died of stomach cancer at the age of 43. Both amazing people and I will never forget them. I'm missing them today and will not take life for granted, knowing that they would give anything to be here today.

So, here's to life and to living it to the fullest, each and every day.

Last Ski Day...I Think

Today was my 3rd and hopefully last day of hauling the kids and way too much gear up to Eldora for snowboarding lessons. I love my kids, of course, and I'm psyched that they are good snowboarders now but these Trek lessons are killing me.

First, I get up at 5:30 (which I do normally) and its a mad rush to get the kids ready and out the door (and wait til you hear what Fri night is like getting ready for this day!) and then its a 2 hr drive, door to door, then skiing by myself for 5 hrs, then skiing with the kids another hour, then loading up the car (which seems to take forever) and then an hour down the canyon (usually behind someone going just slightly under the speed limit so it also takes FOREVER), then eating in Boulder (not as fun as it sounds when you're dog-tired and sweaty from all the layers and wearing a helmet all day), then a long boring drive home that takes another hour. Ugh.

And the funny thing is, I love skiing. I really do. And its so cool watching the kids snowboard so effortlessly down the mountain. But it's a long haul to do in one day.

And so Friday night is worse....packing 3 lunches, finding ski clothes for the kids (socks, under garments, turtleneck, fleece jackets, ski coats, helmets, gloves, ski passes) and of course, there's always one glove missing, packing snacks for the ride home, making sure my ski's and their boards are in the topper, filling car up with gas, camera, sun screen, reading material (in case I linger in the lodge after lunch), water bottles, lip balm, and a movie for the kids to watch on the way up.

Its a major ordeal.

And I'm doing all of this knowing that I'll miss my Saturday morning run. My body yearns to run (or at least move) on Sat mornings and sitting in a car for the first two hours of the day (when I'm usually running) is cruel and unusual punishment.

But the kids and I had a great time and I know that's what is most important.

So, tomorrow Jenny, Cory, and Kevin are coming over to run with me at 7:30. I have to be in church so I need to be done by 9:00'ish. And its my birthday tomorrow so I want to run with my friends.

The downside (and this is a BIG downside), is that it's Daylight Savings Time tomorrow so we have to move our clocks forward, which means I'll lose an hour of sleep. Arrgggh!

So wish me luck getting out of bed in time to run at 7:30, which will really be 6:30 AM...the things we do for triathlons!

Flip Floppin' the Workouts

Wow, this week flew by fast. And nothing went as planned. But you know, that's the name of the game when you're trying to fit your training in around soccer and choir schedules, work, and all the other stuff most people do. When people ask me "how do you fit it all in?", I honestly don't know!

So here's a recap of the week:
Sunday - This was the weirdest day. We had a ride scheduled at 2:00 PM because we heard the weather was finally going to be nice so I didn't run in the morning. But when I took Daisy for a walk, I felt strangely energetic and really wanted to run. I jogged a bit and really had the urge to do a 5-6 mile run but told myself that no, I better not, since I'm riding at 2:00 and since I ran 12 miles on Sat, it was ok not to run.

But the weather was so cold and crappy that we aborted the ride. I was bummed because i could've run in the morning and now I was out both a run AND a ride. But it was way too cold and grey to ride. So, I went with my kids to a park to fly a kite and guess what, the sun comes out and it warms up 10 degrees (at least it felt like it) and was absolutely beautiful!  I could've rode after all. ARRRGGGHHH.

Monday
Master's swim. Felt pretty good. Had to leave by 7:00 to get kids to school but got in 1500 yards. I decided that that is ok for now. Until school is out, swimming 1500 - 2000 yards on Mon and Weds is good enough.

Went home and ran a good run but I don't remember how far it was right now...I think 5 miles

Tuesday
Rode my trainer 30 mins

Wednesday
Master's swim and fast 6 mile run. Felt good. Ran up Bunny Hill twice.

Thursday
Can't remember right now...

Friday
Rode my trainer: 20 min warm-up, then did 8 x 1 min bouts of fast spinning (90 rpm), then 12 x 45 second bouts of fast/hard spinning at 80 rpm. Had to get kids to school so got off bike, put on running clothes and after dropping off kids, took Daisy to Josephine Jones Park and ran her around there. It was warm enough I could've wore shorts!  Felt good. Need to find time to lift!

Tomorrow I am taking kids to Eldora for snowboarding lessons. Then on Sunday, which is my birthday, I'm running 90 mins with Jenny and whoever else shows up.

I've been thinking a lot about the Ironman. I really want to go for a faster time this time and how I'm pretty motivated to train hard. I've been thinking a lot about my training schedule too...its gonna be crazy this year but I'm up for it. That's why this blog is helpful - keeps me accountable.

What I need now is a stronger upper body and more bike training. My running is solid and even though I complain about how slow I am as a swimmer, I know I can train up to where I want to be with swimming. But it will take diligence...and sacrifice....and a hefty dose of humor.

As my husband alwasy says, don't take yourself too seriously...

Surprise 12-Miler

First, before I write about the run, I have to say that I am SO frustrated with Blogger. It is very hard to put pictures and text on this blog where I want them!  I also do NOT like the text centered like this but it won't let me change it. Believe me, I've tried. And the white space below this paragraph is unintentional, it won't let me start a new paragrap below this one. It skips to below the picture. Go figure!

This morning I met my friends at Jenny's house for our usual group run. Jenny wanted to run 18 (she's running a marathon in Kentucky in a few weeks) and Dan and Brenda wanted to run 12 (both training for marathons). Sarah and I just wanted to run 9 or 10 so we planned to do "just the loop" (which 9.something).

We also had Paul, Dave, Kevin, and Cory along for the ride. Such a stellar group to run with!

We headed out into the chilly fog (and yes, that's me in short-sleeves...). The thermometer said 37 but it felt more like 27 because it was a "wet cold".  But I quickly warmed up and by the end of the run, the sun came out and of course, I was hot.

Sarah, who was running ahead of me, missed the turn off point to go back and I just followed her. I knew that that meant we were doing more than 9 but I decided that I need to start pushing it. In other words, I need to stop wimping out.

So, I didn't say anything and like a good Ironman-trainee, I kept going.  This is precisely why I do my long runs with a group - you almost always go farther than you would have on your own. And I actually felt pretty good. No complaints (and you know you'd read them here if I had any!)

In the picture at left: Brenda, Dan, Sarah, Kevin, and Paul. The others are behind me. See how foggy it is?  Ugh. But we got it done and I'm glad I went for the full 12. Now I can sit on my butt all day and not feel too guilty.

Came home and had a delicious bowlful of leftover Pasta with Sausage and Soybeans. This is one of my favorite recipes and although the title doesn't sound too appealing, it is absolutely delicious. Low in fat and high in protein and carbs. I'll put the recipe on my Recipe page. Try it - you'll love it!

Breaking it Up

One of the most important things I learned while training for my first Ironman is that its very easy to get burned out on training.  And the best way to avoid burn out is to "break it up" - or simply, do something other than swimming, biking, or running when you get a chance. And although I am not officially in training yet, I have been gradually building my training base since January and that means my mind is focused on one thing 90% of the time: training.

So, I've decided to add other interests to my life. In fact, I found something that I enjoy so much that it could easily replace triathlons if it were logistically easy to do. And that would be skiing.

I grew up in Kansas and honestly, I don't think I had even heard of skiing until I was in junior high. And since my family didn't have much money, it was not anything we did or even thought of doing. It was a totally foreign concept to me throughout most of my life (and still is in some ways!).

Anyway, my kids learned to ski when they were 5 in Eldora's Trek program. Like most kids, they loved it. They went on to be pretty darn good skiers and would handily fly down any blue slope they could find and would occasionally do a black slope.

I was not far behind but being an adult, my worldly knowledge and great wisdom that I constantly told them about only made me more fearful of the steepness, because I knew what could happen if I, say, ran into a tree. They did not have this perspective, which freed them up to ski as fast as they could with nary a worry about crashing into anything. And crash they did, but they got up and kept going. Tough little buggers.

So, they had Thursday off and we went skiing and snowboarding. They did the latter while Kurt and I skied. It was a nice diversion from the usual swim, bike, run routine and I loved it. It won't be long before I'm on a rigid training program and I cherish these days when I can do what I want.

Two-a-Days = One Tired Mama

The good news first: I had an awesome 7 mile run today. And I mean awesome! I haven't felt that strong in a long time. It was like "old times" - when I used to run 5-7 mile runs on weekdays and feel really good.  I did that for years and years, back in my marathon days. Seems so long ago now!

And that's not all: I also did Master's swim this morning. I only swam about 1500 yards but it felt great. As usual, I had to leave by 7:00 to get the kids to school but I did the main set and I was very happy about that.  We did two 250's, two 200's, two 150's, two 100's, two 50's, all at race pace with about 30 seconds in between (after a 500 yard warmup).

The not-so-good news (or should I say the reality check) is that I can hardly move now. This is the difference between training when you are almost 49 and training when you are 29 or 39. I can still do it, but it takes longer to recover.

My younger training partners don't seem to get this. They seem to think I can run what they do and feel fine. Not!  There is a definite difference in recovery time (and energy level, sleep, mood, and sex drive, but that's another story) when you approach 50. Like I said earlier, you can still do the training but you get sore-er, faster. As my kids would say, it's more better to be younger.

Then again, all of my running and endurance training has paid off in other ways. I'm fairly smart about what I need to do to accomplish my goals and I know darn well how one day can feel significantly different from the next. Every runner will tell you that you can run like the wind one day and feel like a turtle the next. Its the nature of the beast.

So, its rest, ice, and Celebrex for me today (icing my hip). And since this blog is about training and parenting at the same time, I'm off to the school to pick up my two punks plus 3 others. All five kids will terrorize hang out at my house for a few hours and then I take 3 of them to church and the other 2 to soccer practice.

Such is the life of an Iron Quest Mama. Ha!