Ugh...first FTP and I went WAAAAYYYYY down compared to where I started last year!!! What the heck? I'm so disappointed!!! Ok...kick it in the ditch quit ma whining and move on. Only one way to go from here...up. Traveling M-W so I'll be doing my Vdot somewhere else.
I know what you mean Kit. My goal is to get this bag of rock salt off my arse so that I'm not losing weight during the 12 week IM training plan. Want to focus on race nutrition, not weight loss. Besides, it would be great to walk into my brother and his evil wife's house totally ripped when I go down for the race!
Oh, hooray! The cooking has begun again! I love hearing about all the delicious things everyone is making and eating. Beet and kohlrabi really must make the prettiest color.
I am eating a little salad of argula, basil, and roasted red peppers, dressed with a little lemon and I'm eating it will a slice of good multigrain bread and goat cheese. The rest of the red peppers (nine of them) are cooling and I am going to make them into soup tomorrow. I have the stock pot full of veggie stock and the big, blue le creuset soup pot simmering a pretty summery minestrone. I'm back to eating (more) cleanly again, too. My strategy to ward off the cheeseburgers is to fill the freezer with delicious food, so I eat that instead.
There was so much delicious food this weekend.
On Friday, I went to Kith and Kin, whose kitchen is run by a French Laundry alum. There was delicious pork. And who knew that grouper and poached egg would be friends?
Saturday? I drank lots of bourbon. Does that count as training for the Bourbon Chaser? There's a cool wine bar a few blocks away from me that had a fantastic bourbon flight. And cheese and charcuterie. Smoked duck breast with jalapeno mustard? Heaven. Aged gouda? Amazing. Lemon donuts from the bakery run by the most beautiful, hot sicilian couple next door to the wine bar? Perfect ending. That was the afternoon snack. Then, Jo came into the city, so we feasted on italian food at Anteprima, which was slowly paced and as pretty as a visit to Italy itself. And then I had to show Jo the bourbon.
I also found a fantastic, old engineer's stool for my kitchen. I am sitting on it now. Posting to you all from the kitchen feels right. =-)
I'm thinking running starts tomorrow, but with no garmin. And I have got to stay home next weekend! I'm not going anywhere I can't walk or wear a t-shirt and jeans!
Beth! Sounds like a wonderful weekend!!! I cooked all weekend too....isn't it great to cook on cool fall weekends??? We have so much basil!!! The entire house smells like basil!
Gigi- so glad to have you join us in here! What is Book Camp?
Beth- your culinary adventures amaze me. I made a huge pot of vegi chili for the first time this fall- yummmmmmm, forgot how nice it is to have that on hand for quick/easy meals.
My sis-in-law and her kids left this morning- sad to see them go, they were so much fun to have around. The girls are at a great age (9 and 12) and just full of energy. We took them to Nags Head Woods last night in the rain to scare the heck out of them. Sooooooooo funny! It's real spooky back there with lots of old grave yards- a real haunted forest kinda feel. They will need a few sessions of therapy from that one! HA HA! We made sure there was an ice cream trip afterwards to make up for it all. They loved it. It's kinda a family tradition- I'm sure when they are in their 30's they will be asking us to take their kids into the woods!
Morning all- We are off this week for a "stay-cation". Fall is here with temps in the 40s & 70s -perfect in my book. No traveling, just @ ;home to do whatever & it is lovely!! Slept until 8:10 today....
Yesterday, I went MTBing with Jamie. The trail we went went on is this :
"Trail Description: Knarly, twisty, rooty, challenging, fun are the adjectives that come to mind after riding this trail. It is not for the faint of heart (unless you walk a lot as I did). But it is a really neat trail and a great technical training tool for honing your skills. It's amazing what a good workout you get in only four miles."
We did that loop twice and it KICKED my butt, it felt like I was @ ;FTP the entire time!! Going to have to pull out the HRM since the only way I am guaging effort is RPE. Fun, fun, fun & just the change I needed after IM.
Although we have been doing AB-Ripper, today is the official P90* start. I feel certain it is going to hurt like a mutha'.
Ok so my cooking list this weekend (read cold outside, have cold so... I cook) Chili, banana bread, pumpkin chocolate chip bread, and breakfast for the week (boiled eggs and steel cut oats). Ran 9 miles Sat morning and was down pretty much rest of the weekend. Didn't make it past sweat pants yesterday (very odd for me). All this fun stuff going on this weekend to choose from and I end up watching Bagger Vance and cooking.
Next up on the fall cooking list.. chicken tortilla soup- yum yum!
Morning! I think I've caught up from a weekend away from my computer! I do still need to watch the vid Tracy mentioned (looking forward to it)!
@Olivia - yay! super cool! when you're fundraising is up and running let me/us know!
@Nemo - glad the storms didn't mess up your home or weekend with the fam! And thanks for the mental toughness mention - I've got one more long weekend (4.5/3 - I think) then the RR is the 16th.
@Linda - I totally know what you mean about getting a song in your head... it happened for me at Timberman and again at the AV last weekend... only they were songs I didn't know all that well, so, to be more fair, I had verses or refrains stuck in my head. Argh!
@Kit - I have fallen out of the habit of tracking on LoseIt... need to get back to that, too... my weight is way up... which is not good... I've been slacking with primal eating and it's made an immediate difference in tone and the number!
okay - my training so you can live vicariously through me... because of the horrible weather I couldn't run on Thursday, so I got to work early Fri and left early... so I was running by 4:30. It was sunny and breezy and cool... I just about hit all my zones, which is unbelievable - being able to breathe (no humidity) makes a huge difference. I finished at dusk...it was great... I felt good, was glad I got it done... stretched, showered, and put on compression tights.
Sat morning was the 4.5 hour ride. Suzanne K met me at Peirce Mill for loops on beach drive (Rock Creek Park)... it was a riot, she's behind me yelling out encouragement or telling me that I have another gear to use (translation: pick it up, Beck)! It was good, weather was cool, shoulders/neck felt good (perhaps the fit is finally A-OK)... Suzanne and I are catching up while we can (WU and recovery segments)... At the end of the first loop she showed me a little detour with some good hills... and my knee decided that that was BAD. I hadn't had problems all week on the trainer under load so I was really dejected. Per Todd, make little adjustments one at a time to see what might work, what the problem might be. We moved the seat forward. Ouch... Moved it back and then moved it down a bit... didn't hurt more, but I knew I wouldn't be able to tell if it was good bc of the inflammation... We got most of the way out for the second lap and Suzanne pulled me over and told me we were done. It was the right call. Instead of 4.5 I got about 2.25...Ugh... got home iced and ibuprofened. Pissed! Took the bike to the LBS to trade out the derailleur... I'm thinking it's the shoes. I got my new shoes (sidi's) just before the bike and hadn't worn them out that much...
Sun. Dan and I planned to go do a 50 mile loop in Nokesville... I had my road shoes with me to test out the theory. First few hours were great... well, I was actually cold, other than that, great. I was feeling strong, the weather was good... the problem is the shoes. Woo hoo... After the WU my garmin started going bezerk. It would finish a segment then I'd get the celebratory, you finished the workout music... huh? Fudge... stopped, restarted the workout and forwarded to the appropriate segment, and after that one (15") it did it again... Sigh... just hit start and did the ride without my Z3 beeps or my food beeps... whatever, I tried to ride strong... and was having fun until about 2ish hours in... we hit a hilly section and my knee was DONE. I had to drop way, way, down to get up any hill, I was wincing... it sucked... Just finished was brutal, even on the flats... I did a quick jog when I was done (Garmin seemed okay on the run workout), but I only did 10 minutes as a test... not the 30... Sigh... I think it was residual inflammation otherwise it would have hurt from the get-go, right? When I got home and cleaned up Jina I nudged the seat back up to where it was when I started on Sat to see if it will work... unfortunately Todd K is in Kona and will be less responsive this next week... but I'm testing the shoe theory now, so that will run me through my LONG Saturday ride... assuming I can knock the inflammation before then. Depending on how that goes I may send him another video. I'm also consulting with a friend who is certified to do bike fits - if it is the cleats I'm hoping he can fix them... and take a quick look (drop plumb lines, etc) to make sure everything else is kosher...
So, my emotions from the ride ranged the spectrum on both Sat and Sun, I started each ride loving life and feeling good, enjoying the cool fall temps, to dealing with sharp pain in my knee... I'm glad this is a lighter week(as far as weekday workouts) bc of run test on Thursday... so I can hopefully recover a bit and get the inflammation down. This weekend there are 2 century rides happening. I may do the Sunday event that has an 80 mile option as my 4.5 hour ride and then go out for 3 hours Monday since it's a holiday... so my week will be off a day and that's fine. With that in mind I'm pushing everything back a day... so presumably taking a rest day today... but I may go to the pool since I was only in there once last week (for 2600m of form work/drills - might do that again and do the "real" workout tomorrow). And, depending on how my watch handles workouts this week I may need to go drop more money on a new Garmin. Ugh... when will it end? When it rains it pours... but I suppose once it's all dialed in the bleeding will stop!
Now, on to the fun stuff: I've definitely appreciated your thoughts and am glad I'm not alone... I just wish I knew how to address it with Dan... I had my compression tights on post ride Friday night and he was obviously feeling a bit frisky (first sleepover in a long time - our weekends have been racing and traveling since mid Aug)... and was a bit disappointed when I got into bed still wearing the tights..."are you sleeping in those" my response: "I was planning to." My legs felt like lead. so, after cutting my ride super short Sat when I met up with him later I joked that at least this way I wouldn't be too tired for extracurricular activities... I appreciate the SAU theory, but in practice it just doesn't hold up - at least not with a season this long... but hopefully I'll learn to balance things out a bit better for next year.
Songs in the head- I usually don't mind the ones I get, but they are not appropriate for singing at work. I have an entire repertoire from a singing comedian. They were in my head all summer and make me laugh. Lately, my mind has been kind of blank. Maybe IM did turn it to mush.
Finally got off the couch Saturday noon and road my bike in splendid, perfect weather. What a joy.
I have 5 weeks until the half mary I signed up for. Decided I should actually train for it and not spend $$ just to train with strangers for a few hours. So I did a long run yesterday. Cool and overcast, perfect running weather. I like Sunday long runs, come home and nap. Max came home and dragged me to the mall (UGH!!). And I mean dragged, my legs ached and I couldn't keep up. He had to hold my hand or I'd fall behind and wander off to look at pretty things, then sit down and rest. HAHAHA
Can I just say that I still hate recovery. And Michele M was right, I don't want to lose all of that fitness I worked so hard to achieve. But I can not sustain that level.
Getting nagged by my mom to "give my body a break and just go swim". She totally does NOT get that: 1. swimming is part of triathlon and then I feel like I need to work out 2. It's the OS, I don't have to swim!!! HAHAHA (She didn't get the joke- go figure!)
Monday: I had a super day on my mt bike yesterday! yep I won my AG (the over 40 women beginners) which right there I find to be comical.. no really, it isn't my fault that only 7 are in My AG. the course was great!! for me. no big climbs or big rocks just like a rabbit going thru some trails twisty turny, tight, very tight, narrow, two trees and just room for the bike. with the 6 gals behind me! on a narrow dirth path, hardly any room for passing and up down with a few skinny bridges that accidentally I took one!!! and hopped over a log even, yep. and for 58' I was breathing so hard... non stop. now it is nice to know that I have the endurance for 58', ten miles of dirt. and I don't know if that is slow medium or what but I hadn't seen the course before. but I was counting down the miles let me tell you! had my Garmin on and would yell back what mile we were on! I only fell once and no big blood . it was a great day as I was hanging with my team and I have kept my 1st place in that category for the Arkansas Mt Biking Championship Series. I kid you not! and many people didn't know I was riding cuz the beginners go off first and then the sport and then expert so yesterday I camped out and stayed until the awards were over.. cuz my youngest 2 were playing nicely..and DH outta town and so I got to see the whole gamut. I think my first award ceremony in the 5 races I have done! this is a great tailgating, camping feel to it and I am helping to plan our next one called Carpe Diem. Now I told the guy our friend who recruited me that I was gonna change the face of mt biking and wondered why there weren't many females out there racing???
and as some of you know, I got sports bras that match our kits, my first endeavor and that shook em up, and now I have vendors coming to the race venue to include Premier Jewelry, a massage therapist but also a demo on "Trials" I call them bike tricks but the guy a friend will hop up on picnic tables, small car, over pallets and the like. and I scored us a "indie pop" band, whatever that is, but I heard them and they are local and they are coming for free cuz race is for two charities. oh yeah so now I am the hero cuz I got "live music"!! I might have Whole Foods coming too and I have visited the 5 local bike stores to ask for goodies and pass out fliers!! we are encouraging team spirit too and I got a kids jump on bouncer, fishing game, toss game, coloring, bubbles and the like for the kids to include little prizes and a free kid's race. I have ridden the course twice last week and never did find the correct race route!!! and fell even harder last week on a rock and now have a nice bruise too high up on my left thigh to show anybody!! I put pink curling ribbon on the trees on the part of the trail that I knew so my GF could follow one afternoon after work when I couldnt' be there!! anyways, God has been good to me to direct me to people who know what they are doing, cuz the whole mt bike race scene is new (11 mos) to me so I was stressed about helping to plan it.. but will go to a work day this weekend to prep the trails!! but this next race???? the course is "gnarly"... that is what they say and I couldn't agree more. uphill, roots, loose pebbles and rocks, yuck. with some nice parts but for me very hard. downhill and loose stuff is what I fell on last week.
so somehow in my last 3 post IM weeks, I have raced 2 mt bike races and have done a century. but I have not got my run on yet. in fact I haven't ran since the week before last on a Thurs. I felt my IT twinge and so just let it go and enjoyed riding every day since Last Tuesday, one bike or another. hoping to run pretty soon though. it has gotten cool, like was 38 this morning and you know I wasn't happy about that. In fact yesterday all the mt bikers were in jeans?? whassup cuz I was in shorts, hmm, I looked too much like a runner I think! and i put on the jersey when I got the trophy but still in shorts!! I thought it was nice and warm to wear shorts and tank in. Like I said all new to me. and I showered afterwards at campsite shower and yes had on mascara and lip gloss!! and clean hair. and I took a gazillion pics too. had a great time. drinking cold cold Coke and eating brisket!!! yum.
anyways I didn't do the Bike test in October OS but instead did a recov ride for 1.5 hours Just riding Along. I am like nah. I just raced yesterday and I aint' doin it!!! ha. haven't swam in 3 weeks and haven't done any core either. In fact the last 2 weeks I was hit with fatigue that was difficult to deal with. hoping to come out of that fog this week. feel good this weekend though.
oh yeah, went on a church bike team group ride right?? on Saturday and it shoulda been called Bike Race !!! hubby put us in the A group over 18mph and I didnt' know it, I just sorta said "whatever" ... I should pay attention!!! cuz the dude with no body fat on him in tight spandex took off like a bolt!!! without any warm up. okay new strategy. I had ridden 6 miles to the start to warm up but then there was 25' of intros and chit chat!! so then I was cold. hmm. roadie ride cuz they surged and relaxed so all I have to do is hang on and wait for the 4 mile into the ride relax state. relax down to the advertised 18!! then they flipped it and somehow I got in the front... and then was pulling into the headwind, oh yeah forgot how the roadies are manipulative and smart that way!!! husband told me later I was going 19mph!! i just knew I was uncomfortable!!! so see he pulled with tailwind....? I am on to this guy!! smile.
y'all remember my wallet got stolen pre IMWI so sure enough the CC wasn't working and I got kicked off EN over the weekend, Friday thru today. so catching up. hope to make the chat tonight at 7. hope to see you there.
OK.. completely off topic and humor me because I don't have television at home and I'm in a hotel watching it but have y'all seen that commercial for Subway with the Kenyan marathon runners and Jared? It is so funny!!!! Just had to share....
back again... I took yesterday off... instead of RICE, I'm going with RIIFT: rest, ice, ibuprofen, foam roller, tiger balm. I'm pushing the whole week back a day, so today is my yesterday and I'll swim after work... a good way to ease back into things... tomorrow will be a drainer ride followed by a 20 min run. I have to tell you, the low volume this week (to prep for the run test, I guess) is coming at a perfect time. I was really starting to get burnt out! although the demons in my head are starting to F with me bc I didn't get my quality rides in last weekend or the weekend before the RR bc of my knee. I did the RR fine, but I still have a month to go and I don't want to lose fitness if I can't figure out the problem... still hopeful it's the cleat positioning and that the inflammation will be down by the time I ride 4.5 on Sunday (at the 80 mile option of the Civista Century ride)...
Busy at work but can't seem to focus. so many other things on my brain... hopefully this weekend i'll have time to watch the 4 keys video again and go back over all the race execution stuff in advance of my next RR... and starting to think through my lists...
thank you all for your support and continued interest. My emotions are all over the map... so Nemo, I totally appreciated the no crying comment yesterday bc I have been a moody basket case...
on a completely unrelated but happy note, even though I'm not happy with the number on the scale I actually put on a pair of normal work pants that I distinctly remember did NOT fit this past winter... and all is well and they fit the way they're supposed to!
Becky- We all remember waaaayyyy to well being on the taper/IM rollercoaster! We feel with ya sister! It will get better- promise! Play back the dancing video of race day and keep that picture in mind cause once the gun goes off race morning- it is all worth it! As you start to taper, take some family/friend/me time. Go out and have lunch with someone you haven't gotten to visit with in a while- see a movie, do some fun (non tri) stuff. As Rich says. hay is in the barn at this point. You aren't going to gain fitness at this point but you can sure screw it up. The chickas are with ya! GGGOOOOO BEECCCKKYYYY!
Oh and it's an evil thing that we must work the last 6 weeks before an IM. Don't these folks know we don't care about meetingsm, deadlines or bottom lines unless it relates to FT, V-dot or T-pace ???? :-)
okay girls, for those of you that did IMMOO, another AR gal by the name of Hillary did her first IM at WI and just last weekend did the Arkansas Traveler (100 mile trail run) in 27:55. yeah, really. How is that for 3 weeks post IM. amazing, had to share. now to do that, you need a whole team of supporters and they take turns manning an aid station so quite the family/friend thing.
okay scooting off, gotta go check out Ozark Outdoors to see if they want to have a booth at mt bike race. never been there, but by my fav coffee shop!! m
Becky -- Yup. We were all in the crazy, trying to stuff our bodies full of fitness part very recently. Just remember, soon you will be to the part where we were finding it hilarious to discuss llamas. And Ironman with llamas. And what we would feed the llama. Because these things become really important, you know.
Dan's driving me crazy. I'm driving Dan crazy. I'm driving me crazy. I'm hungry all the time. I'm tired all the time. Why the heck do we pay a lot of money to do this to ourselves?
So, I'm taking the bull by the horns. I spoke to a good friend, who's also a certified tri coach and bike mechanic and bike fit person... he fit my on my last bike... he gave me the name and number of someone to go see... that actually surprised me. Andy could do my fit (which is what I was asking - well, for him to look at my shoes) told me this guy is better (actually he said he's the best, I realize that's subjective)... Well, that meant something to me. So, I called. I'm switching my telework day and going to the shop (about 30 minutes away) tomorrow at 11:30. I'm sure Todd at TT and I could nail it out eventually... but I don't have eventually, I have 1.5 weeks til my last RR. I can't do a cm tweak here a mm tweak there. I have to get this nailed yesterday. To be honest, I was skeptical about Todd/the remote fit thing to begin with but many of you have had such great things to say.... again, if I weren't totally crunched for time (and my knee weren't throbbing right now) I'm sure I'd be singing his praises, too... and I may still be (if the problem turns out to be my shoes, which he can't deal with remotely)... so, 18 minutes to go... and then I'm heading to the pool...
Another cyclist was killed by a car in Wisconsin. Jeff Littman, President of the Wisconsin Cycling Assoc and owner of Attitude Sports in Pewaukee, and Lauren Jensen, professional triathlete (oldest pro to do IMan WI this year, 43, placed 6th) were hit Fri morning. Lauren suffered a broken collarbone and some minor injuries. Jeff suffered major injuries and passed away this morning. He is the 8th cyclist killed by a motorist in WI this year. I'm so sad.
@Gi Gi, I first heard about this from Pam Kassner, it's just so sad. We've had so many close calls this year- and now this news. My heart goes out to everyone in the Wisconsin Cycling community- this has to be awful for all of you.
@Gina, a little sanford & son skunk work project in progress :-) Stay tuned!
Very sad about the bike accidents. They keep happening. We have to be sooo vigilant and not take anything for granted. And I agree with Sheryl about the risk associated with wearing headphones too. A self defense expert that I know recommends that if you must wear headphones outside they should only loud enough that you can hear your fingers snapping next to your ears. But then again she's a self defense rock star so she could handle most any situation...so I just abstain.
Becky - We all know where you are. I can also attest to that feeling of loneliness that might accompany a late (or early, in my case) season IM. It seems like no one can possibly get it! But you have us and WE DO! Think positive thoughts and start to focus on your race day plans for success. Start to calm your mind so you can enjoy this experience. As has been said, "the hay IS in the barn."
Since it's just us girls in here...I sometimes wish some of these boys would have to experience the pleasure of training (heck even living) with the menstrual cycle. It can be a real energy zapper.
Haha I've always said if I had 1 wish it would be that my husband would have to have 1, just 1, period/year. That's all I ask. But it would be even better if he would get it on IMan day! (he doesn't do IMan but as long as I'm wishing...)
Since it is the gals in here, I have to share. I did used to tell my husband that I wished he would get a period just once with all the horrible cramps and back ache, zits and sore boobs....but then the man emptied my bedpans and held the bucket when I puked for weeks on chemo and covered me with my scripture quilt every time it fell off. After that, when we were in the doctors office waiting to hear that I didn't have to go through any further treatments I looked at him and said, "I remove the menstrual curse. You have paid more dues than anyone should have to." He was so funny, he said, "Thanks because that curse scared the hell out of me!" We just laughed and laughed. He is a great man. The best man I know.
Becky, it sounds like you are being very smart about your bike. And,yes, this is definitely a tough game we play -- you late season/early season ladies -- I don't know how you do it.
Too many crashes this year. One of my friends in Madison posted a note to facebook offering to buy everyone who doesn't ride with lights a pair of them.
Periods. Ugh. Going out for the 4.5 hour + run brick when you start with a headache and feeling completely off is not my favorite. Worthy curse, Sheryl!
@Sheryl -- wow, that was really touching... and made me a little misty (and not just bc I'm an emotional wreck). you're lucky and I'm glad you're okay!
wow, my heart just sank reading about the WI crash. How horrible... it's so strange that a few days ago WTOP (the local news radio station) had done a bike v. car on the road call back Q&A - and it seems that there is a LOT of animosity by drivers towards cyclists based on the anger and the ignorant comments that were being made. Not like we can do anything to fix it, but how can we "compete" (meaning truly share the road) with people who don't think we belong there (and in some cases go above and beyond the call of duty to let us know how they feel by running us off the road) and/or who simply don't notice us when we are there (and do stupid shit like turning without looking and cutting us off).
@Nemo - x2 on Gina - how did you do that? I want cool emoticons, too!
Had a rough day yesterday with some random back and forth emails with Dan... oh well, a few more weeks... and hopefully I'll go about things a little differently next year. Next year should be better bc I know a handful of folks in my area who are also doing IMWI (not to mention Kate will be training for Timberman, so hopefully we can do some long hilly rides together).
Becky- hang in there. it's been a loooooong season for you and I'm sure Dan is feeling a little like a second class citizen in your world. This is why its so very important to just take a real true break from all things Triathlon after IMFL. Just stand down and focus your attention on all the stuff that has been getting a little ignored. Things will get better.
My running buddies from Maryland (who basically helped launch this whole Marathon/Triathlon thing of mine) are talking about a reunion in 2011. Our group came together for the first time and trained for Chicago in 2001. We stayed together loosely over the years, but the last 5 years have been VERY loose with many folks out of the marathon game altogether. Anyway- it's starting to look like folks are going to come out of retirement do a reunion marathon together in 2011 at Chicago. I'm frankly a little scared- haven't done an open mary in a loooong time!
Soooo- Kris- I think this might mean my Bourbon Chase slot is gonna open up. I think the races are on the same weekend.
And Beth- looks like I'm coming to your home town :-) But you'll probably be visiting Kris for the Bourbon Chase. Bummer!
The boyz are getting ready to order new race kits and Rich is looking for a volunteer to test out the fit on the LG Tri stuff for the ladies. I volunteered but what they really need is someone who has a few friends of various shapes and sizes (from S thru XL) who can try on the stuff and provide feedback. I can probably only round up S and M types around here (that would have any idea how tri gear should fit).
Soooooo, if you want input on the new kit, and you have some friends that can help. Please raise your hand!
Would it make sense to mail this one around to a few of us, like the infamous box of saddles?
Nemo -- Hooray coming to Chicago! Whether I'm here or not, you are welcome to stay at my house!
Bourbon chaser - We can add Jo to the list. And I have a few other people who may be interested, too.
I'm not feeling 100% -- The Ironman cold has caught up to me, but I do have homemade vegetable soup with lots of shelley beans. Delicious.
I have a cake-off (part of an international cake-baking festival. The Chicago version is Cakefork. NYC is Cakeapalooza. London is yet to be named.) and I have one cake recipe because I don't usually bake. Any ideas?
Beth- I think Rich kinda wants to do this quickly- so sending the kit around from gal to gal won't work. Alternatively maybe we could each volunteer to try on a certain size or sizes (like I'd take an XS and S and give feedback), but again- I think he kinda wants to just ship a box to one gal, have her pull gal pals together to try on all the various sizes, and then report back. Not sure we'll find anyone who can make that happen- but it sounded like thats what he wanted.
Comments
Ugh...first FTP and I went WAAAAYYYYY down compared to where I started last year!!! What the heck? I'm so disappointed!!! Ok...kick it in the ditch quit ma whining and move on. Only one way to go from here...up. Traveling M-W so I'll be doing my Vdot somewhere else.
I know what you mean Kit. My goal is to get this bag of rock salt off my arse so that I'm not losing weight during the 12 week IM training plan. Want to focus on race nutrition, not weight loss. Besides, it would be great to walk into my brother and his evil wife's house totally ripped when I go down for the race!
I am eating a little salad of argula, basil, and roasted red peppers, dressed with a little lemon and I'm eating it will a slice of good multigrain bread and goat cheese. The rest of the red peppers (nine of them) are cooling and I am going to make them into soup tomorrow. I have the stock pot full of veggie stock and the big, blue le creuset soup pot simmering a pretty summery minestrone. I'm back to eating (more) cleanly again, too. My strategy to ward off the cheeseburgers is to fill the freezer with delicious food, so I eat that instead.
There was so much delicious food this weekend.
On Friday, I went to Kith and Kin, whose kitchen is run by a French Laundry alum. There was delicious pork. And who knew that grouper and poached egg would be friends?
Saturday? I drank lots of bourbon. Does that count as training for the Bourbon Chaser? There's a cool wine bar a few blocks away from me that had a fantastic bourbon flight. And cheese and charcuterie. Smoked duck breast with jalapeno mustard? Heaven. Aged gouda? Amazing. Lemon donuts from the bakery run by the most beautiful, hot sicilian couple next door to the wine bar? Perfect ending. That was the afternoon snack. Then, Jo came into the city, so we feasted on italian food at Anteprima, which was slowly paced and as pretty as a visit to Italy itself. And then I had to show Jo the bourbon.
I also found a fantastic, old engineer's stool for my kitchen. I am sitting on it now. Posting to you all from the kitchen feels right. =-)
I'm thinking running starts tomorrow, but with no garmin. And I have got to stay home next weekend! I'm not going anywhere I can't walk or wear a t-shirt and jeans!
Have a great week all!!!
Beth- your culinary adventures amaze me. I made a huge pot of vegi chili for the first time this fall- yummmmmmm, forgot how nice it is to have that on hand for quick/easy meals.
My sis-in-law and her kids left this morning- sad to see them go, they were so much fun to have around. The girls are at a great age (9 and 12) and just full of energy. We took them to Nags Head Woods last night in the rain to scare the heck out of them. Sooooooooo funny! It's real spooky back there with lots of old grave yards- a real haunted forest kinda feel. They will need a few sessions of therapy from that one! HA HA! We made sure there was an ice cream trip afterwards to make up for it all. They loved it. It's kinda a family tradition- I'm sure when they are in their 30's they will be asking us to take their kids into the woods!
Morning all- We are off this week for a "stay-cation". Fall is here with temps in the 40s & 70s -perfect in my book. No traveling, just @ ;home to do whatever & it is lovely!! Slept until 8:10 today....
Yesterday, I went MTBing with Jamie. The trail we went went on is this :
"Trail Description: Knarly, twisty, rooty, challenging, fun are the adjectives that come to mind after riding this trail. It is not for the faint of heart (unless you walk a lot as I did). But it is a really neat trail and a great technical training tool for honing your skills. It's amazing what a good workout you get in only four miles."
We did that loop twice and it KICKED my butt, it felt like I was @ ;FTP the entire time!! Going to have to pull out the HRM since the only way I am guaging effort is RPE. Fun, fun, fun & just the change I needed after IM.
Although we have been doing AB-Ripper, today is the official P90* start. I feel certain it is going to hurt like a mutha'.
I've been a total bum for 3 weeks since IMan WI and need to get my act together. 5:45 class was a good way to kick start it!
Next up on the fall cooking list.. chicken tortilla soup- yum yum!
Morning! I think I've caught up from a weekend away from my computer! I do still need to watch the vid Tracy mentioned (looking forward to it)!
@Olivia - yay! super cool! when you're fundraising is up and running let me/us know!
@Nemo - glad the storms didn't mess up your home or weekend with the fam! And thanks for the mental toughness mention - I've got one more long weekend (4.5/3 - I think) then the RR is the 16th.
@Tracy - sending healing vibes your way!
@Tracy, Kate, Suzanne - how was the half full?
@Linda - I totally know what you mean about getting a song in your head... it happened for me at Timberman and again at the AV last weekend... only they were songs I didn't know all that well, so, to be more fair, I had verses or refrains stuck in my head. Argh!
@Kit - I have fallen out of the habit of tracking on LoseIt... need to get back to that, too... my weight is way up... which is not good... I've been slacking with primal eating and it's made an immediate difference in tone and the number!
okay - my training so you can live vicariously through me... because of the horrible weather I couldn't run on Thursday, so I got to work early Fri and left early... so I was running by 4:30. It was sunny and breezy and cool... I just about hit all my zones, which is unbelievable - being able to breathe (no humidity) makes a huge difference. I finished at dusk...it was great... I felt good, was glad I got it done... stretched, showered, and put on compression tights.
Sat morning was the 4.5 hour ride. Suzanne K met me at Peirce Mill for loops on beach drive (Rock Creek Park)... it was a riot, she's behind me yelling out encouragement or telling me that I have another gear to use (translation: pick it up, Beck)! It was good, weather was cool, shoulders/neck felt good (perhaps the fit is finally A-OK)... Suzanne and I are catching up while we can (WU and recovery segments)... At the end of the first loop she showed me a little detour with some good hills... and my knee decided that that was BAD. I hadn't had problems all week on the trainer under load so I was really dejected. Per Todd, make little adjustments one at a time to see what might work, what the problem might be. We moved the seat forward. Ouch... Moved it back and then moved it down a bit... didn't hurt more, but I knew I wouldn't be able to tell if it was good bc of the inflammation... We got most of the way out for the second lap and Suzanne pulled me over and told me we were done. It was the right call. Instead of 4.5 I got about 2.25...Ugh... got home iced and ibuprofened. Pissed! Took the bike to the LBS to trade out the derailleur... I'm thinking it's the shoes. I got my new shoes (sidi's) just before the bike and hadn't worn them out that much...
Sun. Dan and I planned to go do a 50 mile loop in Nokesville... I had my road shoes with me to test out the theory. First few hours were great... well, I was actually cold, other than that, great. I was feeling strong, the weather was good... the problem is the shoes. Woo hoo... After the WU my garmin started going bezerk. It would finish a segment then I'd get the celebratory, you finished the workout music... huh? Fudge... stopped, restarted the workout and forwarded to the appropriate segment, and after that one (15") it did it again... Sigh... just hit start and did the ride without my Z3 beeps or my food beeps... whatever, I tried to ride strong... and was having fun until about 2ish hours in... we hit a hilly section and my knee was DONE. I had to drop way, way, down to get up any hill, I was wincing... it sucked... Just finished was brutal, even on the flats... I did a quick jog when I was done (Garmin seemed okay on the run workout), but I only did 10 minutes as a test... not the 30... Sigh... I think it was residual inflammation otherwise it would have hurt from the get-go, right? When I got home and cleaned up Jina I nudged the seat back up to where it was when I started on Sat to see if it will work... unfortunately Todd K is in Kona and will be less responsive this next week... but I'm testing the shoe theory now, so that will run me through my LONG Saturday ride... assuming I can knock the inflammation before then. Depending on how that goes I may send him another video. I'm also consulting with a friend who is certified to do bike fits - if it is the cleats I'm hoping he can fix them... and take a quick look (drop plumb lines, etc) to make sure everything else is kosher...
So, my emotions from the ride ranged the spectrum on both Sat and Sun, I started each ride loving life and feeling good, enjoying the cool fall temps, to dealing with sharp pain in my knee... I'm glad this is a lighter week(as far as weekday workouts) bc of run test on Thursday... so I can hopefully recover a bit and get the inflammation down. This weekend there are 2 century rides happening. I may do the Sunday event that has an 80 mile option as my 4.5 hour ride and then go out for 3 hours Monday since it's a holiday... so my week will be off a day and that's fine. With that in mind I'm pushing everything back a day... so presumably taking a rest day today... but I may go to the pool since I was only in there once last week (for 2600m of form work/drills - might do that again and do the "real" workout tomorrow). And, depending on how my watch handles workouts this week I may need to go drop more money on a new Garmin. Ugh... when will it end? When it rains it pours... but I suppose once it's all dialed in the bleeding will stop!
Now, on to the fun stuff: I've definitely appreciated your thoughts and am glad I'm not alone... I just wish I knew how to address it with Dan... I had my compression tights on post ride Friday night and he was obviously feeling a bit frisky (first sleepover in a long time - our weekends have been racing and traveling since mid Aug)... and was a bit disappointed when I got into bed still wearing the tights..."are you sleeping in those" my response: "I was planning to." My legs felt like lead. so, after cutting my ride super short Sat when I met up with him later I joked that at least this way I wouldn't be too tired for extracurricular activities... I appreciate the SAU theory, but in practice it just doesn't hold up - at least not with a season this long... but hopefully I'll learn to balance things out a bit better for next year.
Finally got off the couch Saturday noon and road my bike in splendid, perfect weather. What a joy.
I have 5 weeks until the half mary I signed up for. Decided I should actually train for it and not spend $$ just to train with strangers for a few hours. So I did a long run yesterday. Cool and overcast, perfect running weather. I like Sunday long runs, come home and nap. Max came home and dragged me to the mall (UGH!!). And I mean dragged, my legs ached and I couldn't keep up. He had to hold my hand or I'd fall behind and wander off to look at pretty things, then sit down and rest. HAHAHA
Can I just say that I still hate recovery. And Michele M was right, I don't want to lose all of that fitness I worked so hard to achieve. But I can not sustain that level.
Getting nagged by my mom to "give my body a break and just go swim". She totally does NOT get that:
1. swimming is part of triathlon and then I feel like I need to work out
2. It's the OS, I don't have to swim!!! HAHAHA (She didn't get the joke- go figure!)
http://mlp5.smugmug.com/photos/1034236576_qh9Pd-M.jpg
before the race
http://mlp5.smugmug.com/photos/1033461553_7Mtx7-M.jpg
http://mlp5.smugmug.com/photos/1032890274_U4gNm-M.jpg
daughter Grace
http://mlp5.smugmug.com/photos/1032653857_T2oRC-M.jpg
Monday: I had a super day on my mt bike yesterday! yep I won my AG (the over 40 women beginners) which right there I find to be comical.. no really, it isn't my fault that only 7 are in My AG. the course was great!! for me. no big climbs or big rocks just like a rabbit going thru some trails twisty turny, tight, very tight, narrow, two trees and just room for the bike. with the 6 gals behind me! on a narrow dirth path, hardly any room for passing and up down with a few skinny bridges that accidentally I took one!!! and hopped over a log even, yep. and for 58' I was breathing so hard... non stop. now it is nice to know that I have the endurance for 58', ten miles of dirt. and I don't know if that is slow medium or what but I hadn't seen the course before. but I was counting down the miles let me tell you!
had my Garmin on and would yell back what mile we were on! I only fell once and no big blood . it was a great day as I was hanging with my team and I have kept my 1st place in that category for the Arkansas Mt Biking Championship Series. I kid you not! and many people didn't know I was riding cuz the beginners go off first and then the sport and then expert so yesterday I camped out and stayed until the awards were over.. cuz my youngest 2 were playing nicely..and DH outta town and so I got to see the whole gamut. I think my first award ceremony in the 5 races I have done! this is a great tailgating, camping feel to it and I am helping to plan our next one called Carpe Diem. Now I told the guy our friend who recruited me that I was gonna change the face of mt biking and wondered why there weren't many females out there racing???
and as some of you know, I got sports bras that match our kits, my first endeavor and that shook em up, and now I have vendors coming to the race venue to include Premier Jewelry, a massage therapist but also a demo on "Trials" I call them bike tricks but the guy a friend will hop up on picnic tables, small car, over pallets and the like. and I scored us a "indie pop" band, whatever that is, but I heard them and they are local and they are coming for free cuz race is for two charities. oh yeah so now I am the hero cuz I got "live music"!! I might have Whole Foods coming too and I have visited the 5 local bike stores to ask for goodies and pass out fliers!! we are encouraging team spirit too and I got a kids jump on bouncer, fishing game, toss game, coloring, bubbles and the like for the kids to include little prizes and a free kid's race. I have ridden the course twice last week and never did find the correct race route!!! and fell even harder last week on a rock and now have a nice bruise too high up on my left thigh to show anybody!! I put pink curling ribbon on the trees on the part of the trail that I knew so my GF could follow one afternoon after work when I couldnt' be there!! anyways, God has been good to me to direct me to people who know what they are doing, cuz the whole mt bike race scene is new (11 mos) to me so I was stressed about helping to plan it.. but will go to a work day this weekend to prep the trails!! but this next race???? the course is "gnarly"... that is what they say and I couldn't agree more. uphill, roots, loose pebbles and rocks, yuck. with some nice parts but for me very hard. downhill and loose stuff is what I fell on last week.
so somehow in my last 3 post IM weeks, I have raced 2 mt bike races and have done a century. but I have not got my run on yet. in fact I haven't ran since the week before last on a Thurs. I felt my IT twinge and so just let it go and enjoyed riding every day since Last Tuesday, one bike or another. hoping to run pretty soon though. it has gotten cool, like was 38 this morning and you know I wasn't happy about that. In fact yesterday all the mt bikers were in jeans?? whassup cuz I was in shorts, hmm, I looked too much like a runner I think! and i put on the jersey when I got the trophy but still in shorts!! I thought it was nice and warm to wear shorts and tank in. Like I said all new to me. and I showered afterwards at campsite shower and yes had on mascara and lip gloss!! and clean hair.
and I took a gazillion pics too. had a great time. drinking cold cold Coke and eating brisket!!! yum.
anyways I didn't do the Bike test in October OS but instead did a recov ride for 1.5 hours Just riding Along. I am like nah. I just raced yesterday and I aint' doin it!!! ha. haven't swam in 3 weeks and haven't done any core either. In fact the last 2 weeks I was hit with fatigue that was difficult to deal with. hoping to come out of that fog this week. feel good this weekend though.
oh yeah, went on a church bike team group ride right?? on Saturday and it shoulda been called Bike Race !!! hubby put us in the A group over 18mph and I didnt' know it, I just sorta said "whatever" ... I should pay attention!!! cuz the dude with no body fat on him in tight spandex took off like a bolt!!! without any warm up. okay new strategy. I had ridden 6 miles to the start to warm up but then there was 25' of intros and chit chat!! so then I was cold. hmm. roadie ride cuz they surged and relaxed so all I have to do is hang on and wait for the 4 mile into the ride relax state. relax down to the advertised 18!! then they flipped it and somehow I got in the front... and then was pulling into the headwind, oh yeah forgot how the roadies are manipulative and smart that way!!! husband told me later I was going 19mph!! i just knew I was uncomfortable!!! so see he pulled with tailwind....? I am on to this guy!! smile.
y'all remember my wallet got stolen pre IMWI so sure enough the CC wasn't working and I got kicked off EN over the weekend, Friday thru today. so catching up. hope to make the chat tonight at 7. hope to see you there.
m
OK.. completely off topic and humor me because I don't have television at home and I'm in a hotel watching it but have y'all seen that commercial for Subway with the Kenyan marathon runners and Jared? It is so funny!!!! Just had to share....
back again... I took yesterday off... instead of RICE, I'm going with RIIFT: rest, ice, ibuprofen, foam roller, tiger balm.
I'm pushing the whole week back a day, so today is my yesterday and I'll swim after work... a good way to ease back into things... tomorrow will be a drainer ride followed by a 20 min run. I have to tell you, the low volume this week (to prep for the run test, I guess) is coming at a perfect time. I was really starting to get burnt out! although the demons in my head are starting to F with me bc I didn't get my quality rides in last weekend or the weekend before the RR bc of my knee. I did the RR fine, but I still have a month to go and I don't want to lose fitness if I can't figure out the problem... still hopeful it's the cleat positioning and that the inflammation will be down by the time I ride 4.5 on Sunday (at the 80 mile option of the Civista Century ride)...
Busy at work but can't seem to focus. so many other things on my brain... hopefully this weekend i'll have time to watch the 4 keys video again and go back over all the race execution stuff in advance of my next RR... and starting to think through my lists...
thank you all for your support and continued interest. My emotions are all over the map... so Nemo, I totally appreciated the no crying comment yesterday bc I have been a moody basket case...
on a completely unrelated but happy note, even though I'm not happy with the number on the scale I actually put on a pair of normal work pants that I distinctly remember did NOT fit this past winter... and all is well and they fit the way they're supposed to!
We all remember waaaayyyy to well being on the taper/IM rollercoaster! We feel with ya sister! It will get better- promise! Play back the dancing video of race day and keep that picture in mind cause once the gun goes off race morning- it is all worth it! As you start to taper, take some family/friend/me time. Go out and have lunch with someone you haven't gotten to visit with in a while- see a movie, do some fun (non tri) stuff. As Rich says. hay is in the barn at this point. You aren't going to gain fitness at this point but you can sure screw it up. The chickas are with ya! GGGOOOOO BEECCCKKYYYY!
Oh and it's an evil thing that we must work the last 6 weeks before an IM. Don't these folks know we don't care about meetingsm, deadlines or bottom lines unless it relates to FT, V-dot or T-pace ???? :-)
okay scooting off, gotta go check out Ozark Outdoors to see if they want to have a booth at mt bike race. never been there, but by my fav coffee shop!!
m
Wow. 100 miles. That lady is tough!
Becky -- Yup. We were all in the crazy, trying to stuff our bodies full of fitness part very recently. Just remember, soon you will be to the part where we were finding it hilarious to discuss llamas. And Ironman with llamas. And what we would feed the llama. Because these things become really important, you know.
So, I'm taking the bull by the horns. I spoke to a good friend, who's also a certified tri coach and bike mechanic and bike fit person... he fit my on my last bike... he gave me the name and number of someone to go see... that actually surprised me. Andy could do my fit (which is what I was asking - well, for him to look at my shoes) told me this guy is better (actually he said he's the best, I realize that's subjective)... Well, that meant something to me. So, I called. I'm switching my telework day and going to the shop (about 30 minutes away) tomorrow at 11:30. I'm sure Todd at TT and I could nail it out eventually... but I don't have eventually, I have 1.5 weeks til my last RR. I can't do a cm tweak here a mm tweak there. I have to get this nailed yesterday. To be honest, I was skeptical about Todd/the remote fit thing to begin with but many of you have had such great things to say.... again, if I weren't totally crunched for time (and my knee weren't throbbing right now) I'm sure I'd be singing his praises, too... and I may still be (if the problem turns out to be my shoes, which he can't deal with remotely)... so, 18 minutes to go... and then I'm heading to the pool...
Just playing here
Nothing to see
Move along
Alright, Neems, FESS UP. How did ya do it???
@Gina, a little sanford & son skunk work project in progress :-) Stay tuned!
Becky - We all know where you are. I can also attest to that feeling of loneliness that might accompany a late (or early, in my case) season IM. It seems like no one can possibly get it! But you have us and WE DO! Think positive thoughts and start to focus on your race day plans for success. Start to calm your mind so you can enjoy this experience. As has been said, "the hay IS in the barn."
Since it's just us girls in here...I sometimes wish some of these boys would have to experience the pleasure of training (heck even living) with the menstrual cycle. It can be a real energy zapper.
Since it is the gals in here, I have to share. I did used to tell my husband that I wished he would get a period just once with all the horrible cramps and back ache, zits and sore boobs....but then the man emptied my bedpans and held the bucket when I puked for weeks on chemo and covered me with my scripture quilt every time it fell off. After that, when we were in the doctors office waiting to hear that I didn't have to go through any further treatments I looked at him and said, "I remove the menstrual curse. You have paid more dues than anyone should have to." He was so funny, he said, "Thanks because that curse scared the hell out of me!" We just laughed and laughed.
He is a great man. The best man I know.
Becky, it sounds like you are being very smart about your bike. And,yes, this is definitely a tough game we play -- you late season/early season ladies -- I don't know how you do it.
Too many crashes this year. One of my friends in Madison posted a note to facebook offering to buy everyone who doesn't ride with lights a pair of them.
Periods. Ugh. Going out for the 4.5 hour + run brick when you start with a headache and feeling completely off is not my favorite. Worthy curse, Sheryl!
@Sheryl -- wow, that was really touching... and made me a little misty (and not just bc I'm an emotional wreck). you're lucky and I'm glad you're okay!
wow, my heart just sank reading about the WI crash. How horrible... it's so strange that a few days ago WTOP (the local news radio station) had done a bike v. car on the road call back Q&A - and it seems that there is a LOT of animosity by drivers towards cyclists based on the anger and the ignorant comments that were being made. Not like we can do anything to fix it, but how can we "compete" (meaning truly share the road) with people who don't think we belong there (and in some cases go above and beyond the call of duty to let us know how they feel by running us off the road) and/or who simply don't notice us when we are there (and do stupid shit like turning without looking and cutting us off).
@Nemo - x2 on Gina - how did you do that? I want cool emoticons, too!
Had a rough day yesterday with some random back and forth emails with Dan... oh well, a few more weeks... and hopefully I'll go about things a little differently next year. Next year should be better bc I know a handful of folks in my area who are also doing IMWI (not to mention Kate will be training for Timberman, so hopefully we can do some long hilly rides together).
Thanks for the support, ladies!
My running buddies from Maryland (who basically helped launch this whole Marathon/Triathlon thing of mine) are talking about a reunion in 2011. Our group came together for the first time and trained for Chicago in 2001. We stayed together loosely over the years, but the last 5 years have been VERY loose with many folks out of the marathon game altogether. Anyway- it's starting to look like folks are going to come out of retirement do a reunion marathon together in 2011 at Chicago. I'm frankly a little scared- haven't done an open mary in a loooong time!
Soooo- Kris- I think this might mean my Bourbon Chase slot is gonna open up. I think the races are on the same weekend.
And Beth- looks like I'm coming to your home town :-) But you'll probably be visiting Kris for the Bourbon Chase. Bummer!
Ladies, please be sure to check out this thread:
http://endurancenation.us.dnnmax.co...fault.aspx
The boyz are getting ready to order new race kits and Rich is looking for a volunteer to test out the fit on the LG Tri stuff for the ladies. I volunteered but what they really need is someone who has a few friends of various shapes and sizes (from S thru XL) who can try on the stuff and provide feedback. I can probably only round up S and M types around here (that would have any idea how tri gear should fit).
Soooooo, if you want input on the new kit, and you have some friends that can help. Please raise your hand!
Would it make sense to mail this one around to a few of us, like the infamous box of saddles?
Nemo -- Hooray coming to Chicago! Whether I'm here or not, you are welcome to stay at my house!
Bourbon chaser - We can add Jo to the list. And I have a few other people who may be interested, too.
I'm not feeling 100% -- The Ironman cold has caught up to me, but I do have homemade vegetable soup with lots of shelley beans. Delicious.
I have a cake-off (part of an international cake-baking festival. The Chicago version is Cakefork. NYC is Cakeapalooza. London is yet to be named.) and I have one cake recipe because I don't usually bake. Any ideas?