Monday's workout was a bit of a rude awakening, I think it short circuited a few muscle groups that haven't been pushed lately. Since my long run happened on Friday, that meant Saturday was a day off and Sunday was a short 4 mile run followed by a 2200M swim. I wasn't really sure what to do with Monday's workout, it wasn't on the schedule, so I made up a workout that kicked my butt.....(believe me, it needed a swift kick!) After a 5 min warmup, I headed over to the stadium to run stairs. My goal was to do 20 flights of stairs up and 20 flights down. Even while struggling through the last few sets, I was able to knock out 25 flights and still manage to run another mile back to my car. That's an improvement from the last time, so I left feeling positive even though I have a long way to go yet.
Perhaps stadium stairs wasn't such a great idea for Monday, it didn't register in my head that my appointment with Meredith at AE was scheduled for that morning!! Oh yeah, minor detail. You can't cry "mercy" with Meredith, that just doesn't fly in her gym, NOPE. There were squats, and squats, and more squats to be had and with each one, I was quietly cursing myself for doing a stair workout the same day as a weight lifting session.
Today, Tuesday, needed to be a low key day, a swim workout for sure. I had to walk backwards while carrying our 37 lb 3 yr old down two flights of stairs at 6:45am, my legs felt like lead that's been twisted and knotted, almost as bad as after a fast paced marathon run. Luckily, my massage therapy session was today.... some screaming, wincing, bruising, pain, and then some relief. I saved my swim workout for this evening, 1200M in the cool pool water helped loosen these tight muscles. Not sure how Wednesday's 10 mile run will go, but I'm sure there will need to be much stretching in the morning.
Sooooo tired....heading to bed. Looking forward to excelling this week and making some strides in the right direction.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Infused and ready to go!
Regional Cancer Center in Durham has been good to me, another successful iron infusion on Thursday!! Six hours of being hooked up to an IV pole and I leave feeling "whole" again, it's amazing!! Meredith, if you're reading this, I'm really sorry.....the nurse thought my blood sugar was to low during the infusion so she wanted me to drink something sugary.....I chose the Coke over the other choices!! I swear I
heard your voice in the back of my head saying, "NO, don't do it!!" Anyway, between the infusion of iron and the can of coke, I think I could have flown out of that chair without the use of wings. It'll take a few weeks for the energy levels to come back up, but I'm extremely excited just knowing that "normal" is just around the corner and that means better training days and awesome long runs.
Speaking of long runs.... This week's long run was a 10 miler, which I did on Tuesday with Kara at an 8:23 pace (huge surprise!) Wednesday was 7 x 800's at the track, between 3:23-3:32. Friday was a rare opportunity to run long with a friend that I usually don't get a chance to run long with, I couldn't pass up this chance! We ended up running just under 12 miles in HILLY Chapel Hill which ended up being the highlight run of my week. We tackled several steep hills, repeated smaller hills, and circled around to re-do challenging hills that kicked our butts the first time around. Nothing better than being challenged and coming out on top, huge success in my book!
Since I'm experimenting a little bit with triathlons, still trying to figure out if I like them or not, I thought I'd add a few swim and bike sessions this week as well. I'm not a big fan of the bike yet, so I only put in 15 miles there. BUT, I've really enjoyed the swimming and even surpassed some of my usual distances. Today was 2200 yds in the pool, probably the farthest I've gone in several years or maybe ever. There's something so peaceful about the water, it's so quiet and serene, so soft and gentle, so different from the hot struggle I find in the running, very appealing. At least I found my goggles and could actually see where I was going this time, very different experience from Monday. Oct. 14th will be another small Tri race, I'm hoping that this time I'll be a little more prepared for the event.
Though I'm behind in my training, I'm thankful that I'm able to run and I'm heading into fall marathon racing with no expectations of speed/pace, just distance. I'll have the winter months to work on speed in hopes of breaking the every lurking 3:40.
heard your voice in the back of my head saying, "NO, don't do it!!" Anyway, between the infusion of iron and the can of coke, I think I could have flown out of that chair without the use of wings. It'll take a few weeks for the energy levels to come back up, but I'm extremely excited just knowing that "normal" is just around the corner and that means better training days and awesome long runs. Speaking of long runs.... This week's long run was a 10 miler, which I did on Tuesday with Kara at an 8:23 pace (huge surprise!) Wednesday was 7 x 800's at the track, between 3:23-3:32. Friday was a rare opportunity to run long with a friend that I usually don't get a chance to run long with, I couldn't pass up this chance! We ended up running just under 12 miles in HILLY Chapel Hill which ended up being the highlight run of my week. We tackled several steep hills, repeated smaller hills, and circled around to re-do challenging hills that kicked our butts the first time around. Nothing better than being challenged and coming out on top, huge success in my book!
Since I'm experimenting a little bit with triathlons, still trying to figure out if I like them or not, I thought I'd add a few swim and bike sessions this week as well. I'm not a big fan of the bike yet, so I only put in 15 miles there. BUT, I've really enjoyed the swimming and even surpassed some of my usual distances. Today was 2200 yds in the pool, probably the farthest I've gone in several years or maybe ever. There's something so peaceful about the water, it's so quiet and serene, so soft and gentle, so different from the hot struggle I find in the running, very appealing. At least I found my goggles and could actually see where I was going this time, very different experience from Monday. Oct. 14th will be another small Tri race, I'm hoping that this time I'll be a little more prepared for the event.
Though I'm behind in my training, I'm thankful that I'm able to run and I'm heading into fall marathon racing with no expectations of speed/pace, just distance. I'll have the winter months to work on speed in hopes of breaking the every lurking 3:40.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
"I tried a Tri and I liked it"
Sunday's triathlon proved to be a good decision and I left feeling like I could conquer more. The experience was perfect for a beginner like me, it was all the things I needed to hear, see, and do in order to climb over this "fear" of a multisport event!
I learned so much about the event, transitioning, challenging myself, proper etiquette, what to do next time, and that it was really good to push myself out of my comfort zone. For years I've told myself to either sell my bike or ride it, do a tri and don't be afraid, but for many years I've allowed myself to back out. The Rex wellness tri was a perfect start, a great way to conquer all those little fears that like to creep up into my head.
At the packet pickup place, I stood around and waited for the informational session (though feeling like a nerd, I was determined to get over that). It was extremely helpful to learn where to put my bike, where the swim would be and how it would be done, the routes for the courses, etc. It really took away many "what if's" and "how to's." Later that night, I followed the advice of Jason K and watched as many YouTube videos as possible on how to set up your transition area. Total geek (again!) BUT, extremely helpful in not looking like a novice on race day morning. :) With my new found confidence, I packed my bag, laid out my clothes, made my lists, and loaded up my car. I was bound to do this event if my car was already loaded, another way to keep myself from backing out.
Race day morning, 4 am wakeup call, not as exciting. I've been up this early for long runs, for marathon events, but not for something I was less than confident in doing and I wanted so badly to hit the snooze button. Considering I had finally fallen asleep sometime after 11:30pm, this alarm wasn't very inviting. I wasn't sure how to fuel for an event like this, so I just did my pre-long run routine and went with that. I set up all my gear at the transition area, got marked (can't say I like having my age written over my calf muscle, but LOVED knowing the ages of those I passed while biking/running!) then walked around to see what other people did next. I was really out of my element, how does one warm up for a tri? Running, that's what I do best, I run, so that's what I did to warm up.
The race began at 7am with everyone lining up by bib number in the pool area. I learned a couple of things about this type of swim. One, do not be the "nice" person that let's the lady cut in front of you because she didn't feel like waiting in line like everyone else UNLESS you know that she is a faster swimmer than you. Two, if someone says that you may feel free to pass them in the water if they are too slow, they are lying. Three, figure out how to pass while swimming with multiple people in your lane or the frustration will eat you alive. That's what I learned about participant number 100, yes, she was an irritating little lady that helped me know what NOT to do for the next tri. After treading water 4 times so that I wouldn't get entangled in her legs, I wasn't able to swim my rhythm or speed and I wasn't experienced to know what to do in that case.
The bike was amazing, hilly but great. The wind whipping at your face, flying down hills at much greater speeds than on foot, and bugs shooting at your eyeballs and mouth at warp speeds were all new phenomenons to me. My bike has many gears, the problem is that I have no idea how to use them or when to use them. This is something I need to learn before the next tri....
Ahh, then the run. After getting off my bike, my legs were like jello and I had no control over them! I felt as though I had just ridden a horse for hours. I should have practiced, should have trained, then at least I would have known what to expect and how to manage the crazy jello legs. Such a strange sensation that stayed with me until mile 2ish when they finally relaxed enough that I could safely increase speed.
The finish line was a welcomed sight, I could finally stop and grasp all that I just accomplished and relish in the fact that I had finally conquered some long time fears and goals. It was an amazing feeling.
Here's the final result: 3rd in age group, 15th overall female---bad for a first time ever tri, I'll take it. :)
I've already signed up for another one in October, I'll be back.
I learned so much about the event, transitioning, challenging myself, proper etiquette, what to do next time, and that it was really good to push myself out of my comfort zone. For years I've told myself to either sell my bike or ride it, do a tri and don't be afraid, but for many years I've allowed myself to back out. The Rex wellness tri was a perfect start, a great way to conquer all those little fears that like to creep up into my head.
At the packet pickup place, I stood around and waited for the informational session (though feeling like a nerd, I was determined to get over that). It was extremely helpful to learn where to put my bike, where the swim would be and how it would be done, the routes for the courses, etc. It really took away many "what if's" and "how to's." Later that night, I followed the advice of Jason K and watched as many YouTube videos as possible on how to set up your transition area. Total geek (again!) BUT, extremely helpful in not looking like a novice on race day morning. :) With my new found confidence, I packed my bag, laid out my clothes, made my lists, and loaded up my car. I was bound to do this event if my car was already loaded, another way to keep myself from backing out.
Race day morning, 4 am wakeup call, not as exciting. I've been up this early for long runs, for marathon events, but not for something I was less than confident in doing and I wanted so badly to hit the snooze button. Considering I had finally fallen asleep sometime after 11:30pm, this alarm wasn't very inviting. I wasn't sure how to fuel for an event like this, so I just did my pre-long run routine and went with that. I set up all my gear at the transition area, got marked (can't say I like having my age written over my calf muscle, but LOVED knowing the ages of those I passed while biking/running!) then walked around to see what other people did next. I was really out of my element, how does one warm up for a tri? Running, that's what I do best, I run, so that's what I did to warm up.
The race began at 7am with everyone lining up by bib number in the pool area. I learned a couple of things about this type of swim. One, do not be the "nice" person that let's the lady cut in front of you because she didn't feel like waiting in line like everyone else UNLESS you know that she is a faster swimmer than you. Two, if someone says that you may feel free to pass them in the water if they are too slow, they are lying. Three, figure out how to pass while swimming with multiple people in your lane or the frustration will eat you alive. That's what I learned about participant number 100, yes, she was an irritating little lady that helped me know what NOT to do for the next tri. After treading water 4 times so that I wouldn't get entangled in her legs, I wasn't able to swim my rhythm or speed and I wasn't experienced to know what to do in that case.
The bike was amazing, hilly but great. The wind whipping at your face, flying down hills at much greater speeds than on foot, and bugs shooting at your eyeballs and mouth at warp speeds were all new phenomenons to me. My bike has many gears, the problem is that I have no idea how to use them or when to use them. This is something I need to learn before the next tri....
Ahh, then the run. After getting off my bike, my legs were like jello and I had no control over them! I felt as though I had just ridden a horse for hours. I should have practiced, should have trained, then at least I would have known what to expect and how to manage the crazy jello legs. Such a strange sensation that stayed with me until mile 2ish when they finally relaxed enough that I could safely increase speed.
The finish line was a welcomed sight, I could finally stop and grasp all that I just accomplished and relish in the fact that I had finally conquered some long time fears and goals. It was an amazing feeling.
Here's the final result: 3rd in age group, 15th overall female---bad for a first time ever tri, I'll take it. :)
| 15 | 102 | Lora | Charles | 41 | Durham | NC | 0:05:00 | 29 | 0:01:37 | 40 | 0:35:14 | 17.0 m/hr | 19 | 0:01:22 | 51 | 0:25:30 | 8:13 min/m | 17 | 1:08:46 |
I've already signed up for another one in October, I'll be back.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Going to give it a tri...........at least once....
I can't believe I'm going to say this, but it's true, I'm doing my first ever triathlon tomorrow morning!!! I have no idea what I'm doing, haven't trained for this at all, it's just a crazy on a whim idea.
So, heading to bed early to prepare for my 4am wake up call.....
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
It's all good, it's slowly coming back.
Ever find yourself feeling like you've been left behind, choking in the dust, left by the side of the road in the middle of the desert and no one is coming to get you? That about explains how I've felt for the past few months about my running, sad but true. While others are finding success in their races, getting faster, attempting track workouts and hill repeats, I can only read about their accomplishments and realize that I've been left behind, all on my own accord.
It's been important for me to take some time off from the scheduled running, and I've enjoyed the stress free days I've had, but now that I'm trying to get back on track, it's incredibly difficult to read blogs, posts, and emails that are filled with running joys and challenges. With every email from my running group, I see myself falling further behind, missing the marks they're already tackling, and realizing this will keep me from training with them for this fall season. This will make for a very lonely, long, arduous training season that will require extra focus and commitment. Am I ready for that? Do I have what it takes? I guess I will find out soon enough, but I sure hope so.
Where has my running gone? Up and down, sometimes literally, it's a hit or miss type of thing, a love-hate relationship for sure. We took a family vacation to the Smoky Mountains which provided a wonderful opportunity for me to find some time for myself to reflect, to reassess and to figure out where to go from here. The mountains provided beautiful scenery on every run, breathtaking views, and the added bonus of challenging my body to push a little harder with each uphill climb.
Fall is quickly approaching, it's my favorite time of year for running, especially marathon training. I was able to finally sit down, formulate a 14 week training plan, and register for a few fall races that will keep me both motivate and inspired so I can finally enjoy running again. The only fall marathon I've signed up for is November 4, City of Oaks marathon. It's not my favorite race, but it's local and doable. There will be a few HM races, 5K's, and perhaps even a couple of Tri's (yes, shocker, you heard me right). I've lost most of the little amount of speed I once had, lost some of the muscle mass I had worked hard for, and am really starting from scratch.....but starting somewhere is better than not starting. I figure if I at least get in the miles, the cross training, the lifting, then eventually I'll be able to catch up on pace/hill work in time for spring marathons.
It's good to feel back, good to be starting, now if only I can keep going. One thing I learned last week was that my iron levels had dropped considerably over this summer and that, most likely, has been the biggest culprit for my lack of good training, sluggishness, and feeling winded all the time. Next week I'm scheduled for another iron infusion and I'm extremely excited to feel "normal" once again. :)
It's been important for me to take some time off from the scheduled running, and I've enjoyed the stress free days I've had, but now that I'm trying to get back on track, it's incredibly difficult to read blogs, posts, and emails that are filled with running joys and challenges. With every email from my running group, I see myself falling further behind, missing the marks they're already tackling, and realizing this will keep me from training with them for this fall season. This will make for a very lonely, long, arduous training season that will require extra focus and commitment. Am I ready for that? Do I have what it takes? I guess I will find out soon enough, but I sure hope so.
Where has my running gone? Up and down, sometimes literally, it's a hit or miss type of thing, a love-hate relationship for sure. We took a family vacation to the Smoky Mountains which provided a wonderful opportunity for me to find some time for myself to reflect, to reassess and to figure out where to go from here. The mountains provided beautiful scenery on every run, breathtaking views, and the added bonus of challenging my body to push a little harder with each uphill climb.
Fall is quickly approaching, it's my favorite time of year for running, especially marathon training. I was able to finally sit down, formulate a 14 week training plan, and register for a few fall races that will keep me both motivate and inspired so I can finally enjoy running again. The only fall marathon I've signed up for is November 4, City of Oaks marathon. It's not my favorite race, but it's local and doable. There will be a few HM races, 5K's, and perhaps even a couple of Tri's (yes, shocker, you heard me right). I've lost most of the little amount of speed I once had, lost some of the muscle mass I had worked hard for, and am really starting from scratch.....but starting somewhere is better than not starting. I figure if I at least get in the miles, the cross training, the lifting, then eventually I'll be able to catch up on pace/hill work in time for spring marathons.
It's good to feel back, good to be starting, now if only I can keep going. One thing I learned last week was that my iron levels had dropped considerably over this summer and that, most likely, has been the biggest culprit for my lack of good training, sluggishness, and feeling winded all the time. Next week I'm scheduled for another iron infusion and I'm extremely excited to feel "normal" once again. :)
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