Sunday Run and other stuff

Went out for a run today as there was no Sunday swim scheduled. Wanted to play with all my new gear...new running coat, new mits, new long underwear and of course my garmin. It was minus 20 degrees outside today. But got a solid 50 minutes in. I even installed my garmin software and downloaded all the info. Really neat!! Shows the map with the route that I ran, you can plot just about any set of data you want to...HR, pace, elevation, distance, grade etc. Not sure what it all means so I will send it to JP and let him tell me. I also figured out how to turn the back light on. I have to say that as much as this thing does a couple of things I have noticed, the HR info is in very small numbers and difficult to read. There must be a way to make that info bigger. The wrist part is really big on my arm and I have to put it over my jacket as it was too cold to have any bare skin exposed. The dials are too small to press with my mits on and I did not dare take them off so I had to live with the display that I went out with. I guess once I have more specific workouts, I will hopefully have the forward thinking to get it set up to give me the information I want. Mondays are my rest day because most all of my training is going to take place in the mornings and I have an 8:00am meeting every monday and just do not have the time to get anything in on Mondays. So Tuesday is a 45 minute bike doing a few sets of the "Muscle Tension" drill (?), Wednesday and Thursdays are run days this week, Friday is a core workout, Saturday is an hour on the bike and Sunday swim. Looking forward to it!!

Not so bad, not so bad...

Got my first few weeks of training yesterday. Very manageable in my opinion. I knew it was coming but was ignoring it...lots of biking!! And lots of biking drills. I have been studying the videos on the Carmichael website to make sure I have a handle on what I am trying to do. In fact, my first 45 minutes is on January 1, good thing I have no New Year's plans, might as well start it off on my bike. Kind of ironic, don't you think? I need to ask JP if he did that on purpose...I also got a long and detailed e-mail about why I was doing the specific workouts and how they are supposed to work together over the course of the week. ie. my legs will be tired and my runs are only for general fitness right now. Don't worry about doing them fast, "Just get out there and do them". Did I mention JP is very direct? No softy there. Work hard on this one, don't worry too much about HR on that one. Interesting!! I have not known there to be method to this, but it makes total sense now.

Conversation with Justin

I just spent the last hour on the phone with Justin. My head is full of information. Feeling a bit overwhelmed, actually. But not panicking...yet. Basically, I have my work cut out for me! We laid down the basics and timelines and scheduling etc. We set some preliminary goals which were kind of fun because even though we have only chatted this once, he sounds like he really believes in me. As I guess he should, as I am PAYING him!! He was quite honest in that he said he would be pushing me to see what I am capable of. He wants me to download my Garmin to him every week so he can analyse the data...I didn't mention that I have yet to figure out how to turn the light on so I can see the numbers in the dark. So downloading data might take me a bit!! I was playing with my cell phone this week and see that my total usage minutes since I got it in August are a whopping 32 minutes!! Technology and me do not see eye to eye. Anyway, I should have the next month's training plan here shortly, will keep you posted!!

Holy...I am EXCITED!!

I just got my first e-mail from my coach, Justin. And this is what he says...the red are my thoughts....

"From what I have read about you it looks like swimming is under control already, your running distance is good but you need to boost your speed a bit (duh wrt to my running), and that you need to work on cycling most (really??) of all in order to help you reach your long term goal of an IM event in the not so distant future (I told him I wanted to do an Ironman within 3 years..is this not so distant?). The good news is that the bike is the easiest area to improve and I will make sure to focus much of your training time and intensity on the bike (my ass hurts just thinking about this!!). It won’t take long for you to feel faster and more confident on the bike! (I think Justin is a bit of a dreamer...)"

But I think I like him already!!

Sunday Swim

Just back from my Sunday swim and finishing my shopping for Christmas...a bit more on that later. I wasn't going to go to swimming today as I thought it most likely would be a bunch of easy stuff and drills with many people being out of town and families getting together for the holiday. I talked myself into it, thinking it would be nice to get a few laps in, stretch out the muscles etc. Oh boy, was I wrong!! We did a warm-up and then some fast 25 meters and the main set was a Beat the Clock set for 100s. The jist was to have the leave times increase by 5 seconds...so start on 2:00 min and then 2:05, 2:10 etc. Then your pace time was to decrease by 5 seconds...so 2:00min then 1:55, 1:50 etc. We were getting more rest every 100 but had to swim faster to beat the clock and as soon as you didn't beat the clock, you were out. It is amazing that the faster we went, how it felt like we weren't getting enough rest!! When it was all said and done, I got down to 1:18, so I made the 1:20 pace time but seriously, that was ALL I HAD!! And it was at the end of about 6 100s.!! My legs were friggin tingling and I couldn't catch my breath after that one. Only one other person did a 1:15 so I was pretty happy to be the second last swimmer out.
As for the shopping, the new adidas outlet store opened up this week. Yep, Saskatoon has an outlet store!! This is something new for us. So in I go, and out I come with a very cool track suit....Yes a TRACK SUIT! I have not had one of these in many years. And just for fun, I bought a tee shirt that says "I make it look easy"...a bit of attitude never hurts.

I am freaking out...

Two blogs in one day...my ususal go to person I send my panic e-mails is on their way to Arizona to watch a basketball game this weekend on a total whim (I am so jealous) so I have to post my panic here.
I signed up for the Half Ironman coaching with Carmichael, just now. My hands are sweating!! I was pacing around my desk when I was on the phone getting things set up. Oh boy I hope this works out...I went to the website to read up on my new coach and holy shoot, we have the exact same birthday!! What does this mean? He was meant to be my coach, I guess?
Here we go!!!
Bio:
Name: Justin Peschka
Hometown: Chandler, Arizona
Current Residence: Tucson, Arizona
Degrees: B.S. Physiology, University of Arizona
CTS Coaching Level: Expert
Sports I coach: Road and Mountain Cycling, Ultracycling, Running, Ultrarunning, and Triathlon
Date of Birth:-February-19
Places I’ve called home and why I like where I am now: Western New Mexico; Chandler, Arizona; Tucson, Arizona (currently). Tucson is the place to be if you want to be outdoors year round and never lose your tan!
Favorite Quote:
“carpe diem”
Education
College/University: B.S. Physiology University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona 1998
Currently working on a Masters degree in Public Health at the University of Arizona
Favorite subjects/courses:
My favorite courses in college explored the mind and body interaction in health and disease states. Recent coursework has involved developing effective programs to curb the rise of diabetes in communities throughout the Southwest.
Coaching Background
I decided to pursue training and education as a coach because:
As an athlete, I never had a coach to help me with my athletic goals. In retrospect, I see how much a coach/mentor/teacher can be in helping to set and reach lofty goals. I want to see people succeed and it fulfills me to be a part of an athlete’s success.
Athletic Career Highlights
When I started cycling and what got me started:I started cycling when I was 14 years old as a way to get out and spend time with my dad. Later, cycling was a way to test my limits and see what I was capable of.
Athletic accomplishments:
I’ve spent 17 years riding and racing all kinds of bicycles. I have 12 state championships under my belt for the disciplines of Time Trial, Criterium and Road Race. With my collegiate cycling team, we were able to win the collegiate national team time trial championship in 1997. That year I was second in the collegiate national road race, losing by half a wheel. I have won numerous Ultracycling competitions like the Furnace Creek 508, and the Cochise County Cycling Classic, covering distances from 252 to over 500 miles. More recently I’ve run in two off road marathons and have had good results in each.
What I would have done differently in my competitive days if I knew what I know now:If I knew about all the mistakes I would make in training and racing, I would have found the best coach out there and trusted his or her experience to guide me past many of the pitfalls inherent in competitive sports.

Welcome 2008!!

Wow! Where does the time go? Another year gone by. Before looking forward to the new year I think I need to look back over the past year and remember how much I have done before setting the next set of goals. 2007 started off pretty good as I entered my first triathlon up at Waskesiu...it fills up fast so I remember sending the cheque in the mail in early January. I turned 36 in February, with a bang, and my sister continually reminds me I am officially pushing 40 now. March and April were crazy busy with work and we had a long cold spell so my training fell off the rails last spring and I had wanted to do the half marathon here in town, but could not get focused enough...a different story this year as I have already registered for the run that takes place in May!! My little guy turned 1 last May and as usual we were up at the lake opening the cabin for the summer. June and July were full of training stuff, as much as I could do, I had booked every Friday off for those months to go to the lake and spend time with my children, I (almost) did my first Olympic distance triathlon in June...the race was called off due to rain. I finally completed my very first triathlon in August, had a very fun day and made a promise to myself I would continue towards my ultimate lifetime goal of doing the Ironman someday. Went to Penticton also in August, to watch IMC, totally caught the bug, watched and cheered for all of my new triathlon friends, cried the entire day. Watched Jenn and CoryF sign up for 2008. In September, was online early in the morning, registering for the Half in Stony Plain July 6, 2008. Signed up for cycling, swimming, and running for the winter months and I am on my way!! Have managed to keep up the running for all of December, not so much on the bike and my swims Sunday morning....this is an improvement from any other years, believe me!!!

Looking forward....we don't know what balls life with throw us so my immediate plans are to increase my coaching with the Carmichael Group and take advantage of their knowledge and expertise. I need to drink more water every day. There are 5 Wednesdays in January...I am going to go to every single one of my cycling classes in January. I found out about a bike maintenance course at one of the local bike shops is offering and I want to get signed up for that right after the new year. I want to hit all my Sunday swims. I want to train smart and not get injured and enjoy my training. I promise not to complain too much...
There you have it!! Welcome to the new year and all the possiblities, opportunities, adventures waiting for me..Bring It On.

This one made me chuckle...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHtFixj0cWk

Sports Highlights

Was up and at it at 5:30am today. The weather forcast was for cold, cold with a side of cold and I had a 35 minute steady state run to do. I find it hard to get my heart rate up when I run outside this time of year because I am constantly watching my footing. So for my endurance runs, running outside is good but I headed to the treadmill today for the steady state. The idea is to do a bit of a warm-up and then run for 35 minutes with my heart rate in a range. Not a tempo run, not an endurance run, somewhere in between. But OH MY GOD boring....I turned the television on and watched the TSN sports highlights that they show over and over and over again...I haven't followed hockey at all this winter so I don't know the male dramas that are happening right now but that coach from the Maple Leafs looked darn pissed!! I am a huge football fan so to watch the NFL highlights is fun for me. I missed most of the Sunday games as my sister was in town and we spent the day with her and my cousins out at my mom's place.
Hopefully, everyone will sleep well and I can get a swim in tomorrow morning.

Splish Splash

Well, my ego was kicked to the curb yestereday at the pool! We did a fitness test to see where we were at in the way of pace times. First up was a warm up and then a little bit of rest and then a 50 meter sprint as hard as we could go. My 50m time was 33 seconds...and THAT was as fast as I could go!! Then we had a little bit more rest with some easy swimming and then a 400 meter timed swim and coach Brad said "You should have nothing left at the end of the 400." ALL of the fast guys were there yesterday and this means I get tossed around in the waves as they go by...but good practice for open water swimming! Anyway, I was last in the lane and Dr.Bob told me he would be okay if I drafted off of him. Dr.Bob would be in his early 50's and the only man in the group who wears a speedo...I do not lie. However, as kind as the drafting offer was, those boys took off like friggin torpedos!! I lost Dr.Bob's feet at about 75 meters and afterwards they told me their first 100 was done in 1:20...I don't think I kept that pace even when I was a kid. The postive, at least the effort was all my own...and I only got lapped by the leader. I had to laugh as before we started, two of them conspired against the leader and planned to take turns drafting so they would beat his time. They said he needed to be brought down a notch...boys will be boys! And the trash talking!! My goodness, my poor virgin ears...I can see a couple of you rolling your eyes...
When it was all done, my 400 meter time on the board was 6:22. I was actually a tiny bit dissappointed with this as I thought I should be down around 6:00minutes. But coach Brad took me aside after and showed me all the data and said that time did not account for the 25 seconds I left behind the start...so I really did it in just under 6 minutes....that's better. What does this all mean? He tells me I have lots of top end speed (my 50 meter time) but not so much for endurance (my 400 meter time). I had to hold my tongue as I wanted to say, no shit, Sherlock, all we have been doing is drill!! But he was very encouraging and told me that even though we had lots of work to do, I should be able to post a pretty good 1500 meter time early in the new year and only get faster from there. We can expect these fitness tests every 6 weeks. My 100 meter pace time, for now, should be 1:40s and right after the holidays, look for lots and lots and lots of meters.
Now I just have to get on that BIKE!!

Doggone Tired

Whew...I am beat. A long and busy week. I ran on Thursday morning and today. I had so much to do today I was up and out the door at 6:00am...on a Saturday!! Yak. It was calm and the trees were covered in frost. It was really eerie...because there was also a kind of fog just hanging in the air. I started running my usual Saturday route but did not want to do the trails when it was dark and with that fog so I doubled back and just ran around my neighborhood. For just over an hour. The plan called for almost 2 hours but darn it my hands were c-c-cold!! The best part was that I tried out my new Garmin!! Yup..a little Christmas present to Kelly love Kelly. I am pretty sure it will make me better at something...
Off to the pool tomorrow morning...can't wait to see what's in store for us there.

Here it comes....

I have just finished reading an old friend's blog on her Ironman training. She is a terrific writer and I was giggling while reading it until I got to the part about someone telling her she cannot be a good mother and an athlete. PARDON MOI???!! I would love to invite this a-hole to my son's 5th birthday party tomorrow and have him witness a very fine mom who is ALSO an athlete AND who has an education, a career, money, dreams and goals, that are all her own. The best thing you can do for your kids after loving them is live by example. I want my kids to chase their dreams, conquer their fears, do the things they think they cannot do...they will only believe this is possible if they see those close to them also out there chasing what they believe is theirs. Like The Universe says, thoughts become things, so pick the good ones. It is also about balance. No, I will not win any race I am in. No, I will not qualify for anything. BUT I will be healthy, fit, accomplished, proud, confident and walking tall. I will have worked very hard for something I wanted. Growth is not about finding your limits, its about finding those limits, and smashing through them!! These are the things I want to teach my boys because they are watching my every move. And if I do so say so myself, I am a GREAT MOM!! And so is my friend.

On the road again....

To quote one of the greatest country artists of all time. Although I am not in a band but I did go for a run today! The first time in a week. I must say, a good decsion to take that week off cause I did the hour, no issues, no pain, I actually had fun!! And I went outside for the first time in quite awhile and the weather station was lying because they said it was minus 13 at 6:00am today but it was MUCH colder than that. Oh well...my dad would now say...when the going gets tough, the tough get going, so GET GOING! I remember when I was a kid I begged and begged him to play hockey. We lived in a small town and that was back in the day before girls played any organized hockey. He played some pro hockey and I grew up at the rink, literally, so I think I just assumed I would play someday. So he put me in hockey skates, got all the gear on me and set me on the ice. The first game I was in, I remember getting hit by a kid, getting the wind knocked out of me, and crying and limping to the box. Of course, dad was the coach and wouldn't let me back on the bench. I remember him leaning down over me and saying "You wanted to do this, you get out there, suck it up, and DO IT!" My oh my, how our childhoods come back to haunt us sometimes. These were my thoughts when my alarm went off today, and I was groggy and it was dark and cold outside. Get out there, suck it up, and DO IT! It WILL pay off in July...I hope!!

Hoo Rah!!

I don't know if that is how you spell it but that is how I am feeling after today's swim!! It was a dandy so far this year. We did a warm-up and some drills (of course) and then the main set was 4x200 meters descending pace with 30 seconds rest in between each 200. I had looked at the workout, checked out who was there and decided I could handle the top lane today. As for the 200s I did the first one on 3:05 the second on 3:00, the third on 2:50 and the 4th on just under 2:50. This was really good for me this early in the season! I kept on the feet of those guys, just barely on the last one, but it was a really good workout. I laughed after as one of them bugged me about not being so "chatty" during that set and I countered with it was because I couldn't breathe!! Next week the coach says we are doing a fitness test...assuming this will be a timed something or other. And to top the morning off, I went to Winners and found the COOLEST purse for cheap...a great day so far!!

Check this out!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1Fw1GdRKkc

That's a bummer...

I was up and out the door yesterday morning to go for my 35 minute run on the treadmill by 6:30am. Did some stretching as my leg felt good but didn't want a surprise when I started to run. Got on the mill and everything was going really good...a nice easy "recovery run" although I had not done my long run on the weekend so I wasn't really recovering from anything. But I liked the "nice and easy" part. Then, at around 7:00am the cute lawyer from down the hall shows up and jumps on the treadmill beside me...so I increase my speed and incline...duh...my leg felt pretty good during it all but then by mid afternoon yesterday, it just ached!! I think I am going to visit a physio person and see what the deal is. Nuts, this sucks!! I am also not going to run for a week. I don't feel too bad about this, as it is bloody cold here and if I can get on my bike instead, I shouldn't loose much fitness. But what do I know...
So I got up today and headed to the pool. On Wednesday mornings, they swim long course. This is different as I can keep ahead of most of the tri-swimmers on Sundays with my tumble turns in a 25 meter pool...but the long course (50 meter) pool makes this a bit more difficult!! It was a good, shorter, faster workout and the fast of the fastest boys were out so, I had to hussle up to keep up.
Tonight I am to go cycling. I am not sure I am going to make it. I am awfully tired and feeling like I just want to be at home. But then I have to miss the next two weeks as I have other things going on...what to do, what to do....

Weekend training

My knee/leg still hurt a wee bit on Friday and my training plan called for a long run on Saturday. I even had an offer from a friend to run with me which was cool, because he is a good runner and it would have been a bit of work to keep up which can only help things. But I had to turn the offer down because I wanted to rest the leg just another day or so. But I GOT ON MY BIKE for 45 mintues on Saturday!! This was exciting because if you recall, I fell off the last time. It was in my basement, in front of the television, talking to my kids the entire time..."Don't touch that! Put that back! Luke, watch the bike, sweetie!" Oh..what us mom's have to do!! I actually had to break HARD once to stop the back tire as I thought Luke (18 months) was going to put his hands on the friggin tire...
Anyway, got myself to the pool yesterday as well. I have no idea how many meters we did. But it was a good workout, lots of 200s and 300s of all sorts of stuff. I received an e-mail this morning from a friend who did the California International Marathon yesterday and she qualified for Boston!! I am so excited for her...she has worked really hard for this and deserves it. AND she passed her husband at mile 18...he was walking...hee hee...that one made me laugh...

45 MINUTES ON MY BIKE!!!

That's all...just wanted everyone to know!

What....was THAT!!??

Woke up this morning on time to go for a run on the treadmill. Went to get out of bed, and WHAM my right leg was so stiff! Right in behind my knee cap...this is something new to me. Did some stretches and easy bending and it didn't seem to like any of this. So I opted out of the run and fooled around on the internet for a bit. Later in the morning I went to pick up one of my kids and wow, that hurt!! I am not one prone to injuries...knock on wood...maybe because I never really push things too far. I always figure this triathlon stuff is not exactly paying the bills, so if my 36 year old body needs a break, then a break it shall have!! Maybe a massage in in the works for the weekend...
And maybe I should (I can't believe I am typing this...) GET ON MY BIKE!!!!

Feelin Pretty Good

I got up Wednesday morning to go for a swim. Was up on time, had a good sleep, felt like hitting the water. Got busy doing stuff around the house (quietly) and then looked at the time and I did not want to be late for the swim so opted out. But at least my laundry got done, the dishes got done, the garbage got taken out, the birthday invites got done and this all before 7:00am!! Wednesday evening rolled around and it was rush, rush, rush to make it to my cycling class, as a client was half an hour late for her appointment and then wanted to talk about all the stuff going on in her life...and not her investments...and I had to politely sit there and listen. I really need to look into getting a psychology degree. Got to class on time and it was a good workout. My buddy was not there so I tried to get seated beside another person I have not really met but know slightly from hanging around the triathlon club. She is an amazing cyclist and gave me 100 tips, so that was good. The workout was a warm-up and then 4 times 3 minutes in my zone 2 heartrate with a one minute break in between. Do that twice. My gosh that is hard by the end!! I think it was hard cause I was trying to spend as much time in my aerobars as possible. I did not stick around for the stretching and core stuff...I called a couple of friends to see if they wanted to meet me for a hot chocolate...but could not get ahold of them, so I just went home. Had a hot bath, and to bed.

Up this morning early, early and did about 40 minutes on the treadmill at "my gym". I was impressed this morning as they have purchased another treadmill, a very nice big one. So now there are two in there. I only got 40 minutes in as the maintenance guy from the building showed up and gave me hell for tossing my jacket and purse on the counter at the front. I asked what the big deal was as there was nobody else in the gym. He was very annoyed with me as that spot on the counter "is for the newspaper and only the newspaper and my stuff should be in the locker room". Whatever...that man is always so grumpy, and on a friggin power trip.

If you want it, there's a place to get it, but it ain't pretty.

Well, that title sums it up today for me! The alarm went off at 5:15am and I did the stunned, it can't be that time already, oh my god, what am I DOING! I got up anyway, went to the computer to check the weather...-33 degrees with the wind. YIKES! No thanks. But I live in Saskatchewan and we get MANY days like this and I will not let this hamper my goals. So off I go to the treadmill. I am cheap and did not want to pay the $10 the gym down the street asks for a drop in fee and we have a perfectly good gym in my office building...all the weights, treadmill, bikes, big plasma screen tv, showers etc. And it is FREE. It only took me 8 minutes to drive there so now I really have no excuses when it gets too cold. 10 minute warm-up and a 40 minute run at my Steady State heart rate, and a cool down and I was pleased! Not the most exciting thing I have done, the boredom may kill me...seriously...and there is plenty of room to set up a trainer. I may just pay the $10 sometimes to see other humans at that ungodly hour. I feel good about that run today. I haven't ran on a treadmill for a very long time.

A New Week

I woke up on Saturday morning ready to go for a run. I got all my gear on and got the kids fed and tidied up the house and wandered around for about an hour. Finally, I started out, and it felt HORRIBLE!! I hate it when that happens...tired, heavy legs. So, I just resolved to keep them moving and listen to my music and try to tough it out for an hour and a bit. Funny how when you aren't thinking about it, the groove comes back. Turned out to be a really nice day for a run, the streets were not so bad and I ended up doing an hour and twenty minutes. I also registered for the Hypthermic Half Marathon in February...wish me luck. If it is too cold, I am going to go for coffee and then come back for the lunch. I need to stop in and buy a winter running jacket this week. Tomorrow it is supposed to be minus 26 degrees...here comes the real test of how bad I want to run. Will I stay in bed tomorrow morning? Or will I get my ass out of bed and go to the gym and get my run in? Hmmm...will keep y'all posted.
Got to the pool yesterday. I don't know how far I swam. Some people there are so hung up on their meters...not me. I like the hard fast stuff, and we did a bit of that yesterday. The main set was 4 times 200m pull, 100m choice, 100m build. A couple of the really fast guys showed up and I had to hussle to keep up. Felt good to get some hard work done at the pool. Except the sychro team practices at the same time in the deep end, and I do not know what was with the music...some sort of African, tribal, chanting, groaning, drums and stuff...sounded like a bad porno to me!!

Mo-ti-va-tion or lack thereof

This week has been not so good on the training front. And by the way, I use the word "training" very loosely. I have been reading IronGreg's blog and THAT is training...I just wanna get fit, loose some weight, look good in that bikini next summer at the cabin!! Did he seriously spend 5 hours on his trainer AND THEN go for a run? Did I read that correctly? Holy SMOKES!! GO GREG! Let me think...I swam on Sunday, missed my run on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, barely made it to my cycling on Wednesday night. And that is all I have done this week. Oops. I have had some sh*t happen this week that has sidetracked me a bit and I have not been able to get my head back into the game. And it snowed and then melted a bit and then froze and I am a bit timid to head out on those streets. A nasty slip and concussion about this time last year and the time it took to heal, was just too much and call me a wimp, but I am a bit paranoid.
SO....I have been on the fence with registering for the Hypothermic Half Marathon in February. BUT I am going to register cause I see we get a cool bag and I think some of the money goes to charity (?) so even if the weather is the shits and I only do one loop (GP!) it won't be a total waste. AND I will get some of my motivation back that will hopefully get me through the holidays cause this is the time of year I tend to come off the rails a bit and I made a promise to myself it was not going to happen this year...and I like to keep my promises, especially to myself.

The Universe

I get e-mails from The Universe every morning. I really try to take a minute to read them and try to understand what The Universe is telling me. Some I understand, some are just plain old too deep for me!! But today was a good one:

"Persistent thought is your ticket.

Persistent gratitude makes it easy.

And persistent action, Kelly, tells one and all, "There ain't no way, honey, I'm settling for less."

I notice these things.

The Universe"

Goal Setting

I have nothing to report wrt training. Could not drag my sorry butt out of bed this morning. I have no excuses. Just did not feel like running. So I thought I would add a little post on how I set my goals. Cause many people have ideals, but they do not have goals...the two are very different. I think when you start setting goals, these are the things to think about:
The goal needs to be SPECIFIC. For example, for me to say, I want to run a half marathon, is an ideal. I want to run a half marathon next May is more specific.
The goal needs to be MEASURABLE. I want to run my half marathon in under two hours.
The goal should be ATTAINABLE. I have done half marathons before and have been close to getting under 2 hours but for those that maybe haven't, I think you need to believe you can do it before you have ever even set the goal. ie. I believe I could do an Ironman someday, but that would be whole other set of goals to get there.
The goal should be REALISTIC. I would love to run my half marathon in around 1:40, but probably not realistic for me.
The goal needs to be BALANCED. It has to fit in with the rest of your life. Family, Physical, Business, Social, Spiritual and Community are my tests. If one of these is taking over, time to reasses things.

Weekend Training

The weekend as far at training went pretty good. Got out for my run on Saturday morning. Snuck out before anyone was up in the house and got 1 hour 45 minutes in. It was c-c-cold!! My hands and fingers were very cold and my thighs and butt were bright red when I returned home. My hair froze to my touque. Just a sniff of what is to come in a few weeks...yikes! But the run felt good, saw lots of people on the trail, and that always keeps me going...if they are out there, then so should I. Ran around the city on Saturday afternoon doing errands. Got up Sunday for my swim. A decent swim but drills, drills and more friggin drills!! We did a warm-up and the main set was 3 times 6 x 50s. Each set of 6 was a different drill. ARGH!!! The coach actually gave me hell at one point cause he said I was not paying attention...which was true, I just get bored and then sloppy. Was intending to get on my bike on Sunday afternoon but my girlfriends called and wanted to come over to watch the football game. One is just back from Brazil and one just back from NYC so we had lots to catch up on and lots of pictures to look at. Watching a football game is a bit trying with them, as they have no idea of the rules. And neither of them is very "athletic" so selfishly, I like to "brag" about my triathlon training as they are always SO impressed!!! But it is always good to get together with good friends and I figure the laughing we did yesterday should be considered an ab workout...

Jeepers negative people tick me off...

So, I try not to have too many of these people in my life. There are some I just cannot avoid and I try to ignore them but somedays, it just gets to be too much and I find myself putting a little vent on my blog. There is a person that I see on occasion that has started to really annoy me b/c everything that comes out of their mouth directed at me is just plain old negative. Do they not like me? Are they jealous of something? Do I care? But it just gets to be a bit much...you know? I would love to just come out with a zinger and leave them reeling one of these times, but then I would look like the bitch and the "high-road" always the one to take.
Okay, I am done now, just had to add this little blurb. My two best gal-pals are on their way over to watch the football game...I am sure they are bringing booze...and I can complain more to them!!

End of the week

Boy oh Boy, I have had an up and down day today. Did not sleep very good last night, Luke was up at 3:00am and I tried to ignore him, even put my earplugs in so I would not hear him crying...that sounds awful but I am convinced his little getting up in the middle of the night routine is strictly attitude and he needs to learn mom is not coming every time he lets out a peep. Tossed and turned for a bit, got up, rooted around on the internet for a bit, had a snack, went back to bed at around 5:00am. Do you remember the days when it was cool to go to bed at 5:00am? Not anymore, it makes for a tough day at work the next day. Consequently, I did not get out for my run. Heading out tomorrow for a couple of hours, a swim on Sunday, and hopefully a bike ride so that should make up for some of it!! Had some positive things happen at work in the morning and then the afternoon kinda fell apart. Got into a wacky and funny e-mail exchange with a friend and things started to brighten up. Looking forward to the weekend.

17 Weeks to Spring....16 To Go

Made it out to my very first cycling session last night. One of the local bike shops puts on this program every winter. It is a coached session and I have only ever heard good things about it. I need all the help I can get on the bike, so sign up I did. My afternoon went like this...call my friend Chris to check the time it started as I could not remember, race to the bank, the grocery store, daycare. Get home, thanks to my slow cooker, supper was ready. Eat with the kids, getting changed and hauling all my gear upstairs. Call Shaun (husband) to remind him he has to be home early today...he has a bit of trouble remembering my activities so a call is always necessary...sometimes more than one. When he is home, pack up all my gear in the truck and off I go. I can see already that this point is going to be a bit of an issue when the winter snow and cold hits. eeek. Did I remember to shave my legs? No. Too bad for anyone looking at them!! Haul my gear, trainer and bike up those stairs at the Fieldhouse...another issue I am going to have...but saw a woman actually taking her stuff on the elevator...hmmm...good idea for next week!! The workout itself was not too bad. I can't remember how many sets we did, but it was a few of 2 minutes in your zone 3 HR with a minute or two break in between. Was good to be with some hard core cyclists...wow...I have ALOT to learn. The coach is a Level 3 coach and she is just FULL of information.
Went for my run this morning as well. Just an hour. Felt really good. But it is so dark out there! I actually am looking forward to some snow just to brighten things up.

Slogging...

That is the only word I can come up with for today's run. It wasn't running, it wasn't even jogging, it was slogging...heavy, heavy legs and a sore back from lifting a full milk jug from the floor up to the counter. Huh? Yes, the muscles right between my shoulder blades did not like that little move!! I don't think I saw my heart rate get above 140 the entire hour. Oh well, need days like this too. The area I live in is old and was built on one mile grids, back in the day when they meaured things in miles. So, my last two miles I just pretend, sometimes, I am coming down the home stretch at the race. Today was a classic as I was thinking that my kids need to see me running at the end of the race so I might as well practice it now...when my legs are tired and full of lead.

frustration

As planned, I set up my trainer and my bike and got into all my biking gear that some of the tri folk actually laughed at last summer. Just cannot bring myself to wear spandex so I bought a pair of nylon biking shorts. Not very aerodynamic but neither am I so we work well together. Anyway, I jump onto my bike, and start pedalling. I am thinking to myself, WOW, I am doing this! Bought the bike last fall and it sat in my basement all winter. Bought the trainer this fall and have actually put my bike ONTO the trainer and now me ONTO the bike...this is progress!! I am pedalling away thinking these things and also thinking this really isn't that bad. Then I look at my watch...an entire 4 minutes have passed...OH...MY...GOD!! Then I realize I did not bring my water bottle downstairs and I am going to need that. So I go to get off the bike and I guess I did not have the thing secured correctly in the trainer and down we go onto the basement floor. Yup, I wiped out in my own basement. Better there than in front of everyone this Wednesday. Now, I am a bit shaken, but I am determined to get a handle on this bike thing. So up I go to grab my water, and back down to get back on the yellow cervelo. I get going and now I don't feel like my tension is right. Off I get a few times to fiddle with the gadgets but I can't figure this out...it just does not feel like it did when Neil at Bruce's Cycle was showing me what to do. And it does not sound correct either. Rather than take a chance at breaking something (which I understand is highly unlikely, but I don't know for sure) I decide to just can the whole bike workout for today. But I WILL be back....

That one is in the tank.

Did my long run this morning. Was a treat to go out in daylight!! Was a cool morning but once I got going, it was gorgeous. Saw Jenna on the run, just as she was finishing. The last few weeks, I have been lucky to have met a person or two on my long run and they have been kind enough to let me run with them. Not today...so I had a few walk breaks. A good thing it was cool cause my walk breaks only could last a few minutes and then I would get cold so I HAD to run!! Felt pretty good, a little tired but it is done. Last year there was a group of tri people that went out on Saturday mornings but I have not heard about that this year. I am thinking of calling my old running partner and see what she is up to on Saturday mornings. I put some new tunes on my iPod last night so that helped pass the time. The Riders are in the playoffs and I plan to watch the game tomorrow. I figure I should try to get on my bike and do a few minutes while the game is on...yes, you read that correctly, my bike!! Our cycling coach from my Wednesday sessions sent us some workouts to "consider" so I am going to grab one of those and see what happens.

Another day, another run

I wish all my runs could feel like the one I did this morning! I was flyin! For me, anyway. Nothing much to report on the run today...kept my HR where it was suppposed to be, felt really good, added on yet another block.
I don't know if anyone else gets this, but lately when I tell people I have entered in a half-ironman they ask me "why" with that annoying look on their face that says "you are just plain crazy, with a side of crazy".
Here are my reasons:
1. Just thinking about how fit I am going to be, keeps me motivated lots of days. I have always liked athletic challenges...when I am trained and ready to go. I want to get to that start line with no excuses.
2. I think this training not only keeps your body fit, but your mind fit as well. Running has always been a way to relieve stress.
3. Bragging rights...seriously, how many people can say they have done this! I have my Disney marathon medal framed and hanging in my office and it is always a conversation piece.
4. And my family and I were in a horrific car vs train accident when I was a kid. Will spare the details but I do think about it sometimes in that I was left here for a reason. I have not totally figured it out, but it is a good lesson to do the things you want to do and try to do them well and pack as much into your life as possible. Cause you just never know when the next train is coming....OMG how GOOFY is THAT!!
But it's my blog and I can type what I want!!

Biking HR Test

Well, not the most fun thing I have ever done. About a 10 minute warm-up and then 2 x 8 minutes of as hard of a biking pace as you can hold for 8 minutes. Neil at Bruce's Cycle standing over me, watching my heart rate and recording it every minute. Trying to be supportive, he was funny in the first few minutes, I wanted to put his head through the window near minute 7 and 8!! I showed up early as I needed someone to look at my bike tire and put a trainer tire on. Ended up dropping a few hundred bucks on a tire, a trainer, the front wheel thing that was an extra piece for the trainer (why they don't sell them together...?), a couple of gadgets Neil said I "needed". I was only on the bike for about half an hour total, and boy my butt hurts today!! Not as bad as it has hurt before, but I need lots and lots of hours on that trainer this winter. THAT little facto was slapped into my face last night!!

Got up and did my hour run today. It was gorgeous outside. Just a hint of snow on the streets which really brightens things up. And no wind and a perfect temp for a run. In the hour, I have actually had to add a couple of blocks as I am not quite at an hour for my usual route...I am seeing some progress and that is COOL!!

The Halloween Diet

This diet of chocolate and chips and all things ghastly apparently works for me as I jumped on the scale today and I am down 2 pounds! I had lost 10 pounds last spring but by not paying attention I gained all of them and a few friends back...so, off they must go! I just keep thinking about carrying extra poundage around on my runs and my bike, how much harder my body has to work to carry them. AND how awesome I could look in a bikini next summer up at the cabin...we can all dream a little!
Had a great sleep last night and because swimming is cancelled on Sunday due to the long weekend, I rolled out of bed this morning and joined the gang at 6:15. Was a good workout, saw some people that do not normally come out on Sundays so that was nice. My HR test for my bike is tonight and I am a little nervous...the gal running the class is super nice and patient and has answered all my silly e-mail questions and an amazing cyclist so hopefully I learn, learn, learn in the 18 weeks ahead. I am also purchasing a trainer tonight as she says she has the perfect one for me.

Soooo tired....

Oh dear, I have entered into zombie land. I am so tired. Up all night with Luke again. I do not know what the problem is. I was excited about a new week and getting some things done, but looks like I will be tired again all week and just putting one foot in front of the other. I have my HR test on my bike on Wednesday night. Have not been on my bike since the triathlon in August! Oops...buying a trainer Wednesday as well. I cannot get sick again, I have been washing my hands about 30 times a day!! I was out with some triathlon friends on Saturday night and one of the gals was saying how tired she was. Not one of these people had children and I was actually getting mildly annoyed as I do not think they know what "tired" really means. She was tired from training...that's a good, solid, tired. I am the sick to my stomach, nauseated tired.
Okay, time to stop complaining and get on with my day.

Sunday Swim

After having to get up with the baby (17 months old) at 4:00am and not really sleeping after that, I DID to go my swim practice. I MADE myself go...when days like this come along I can only deal with things in tiny steps, so I put my bathing suit on and then my sweats and t-shirt then I packed my swim bag. So I had no excuses but to head out the door. Often times these are some of the best workouts I have. Today's swim, as with all of them so far, was drills, drills and more drills. I am not one for drills!! I like to just get in there and swim. Today because I was tired and still hacking away from a lingering cold, I jumped into lane 7 and led the lane the entire workout. So even though I felt crappy, my confidence was boosted a bit and we ended up doing 3000 meters!! Another positive focus...are you seeing a theme yet? I will post at some time a few things I have learned from the Strategic Coach that we follow at work. One of the biggest things I have learned is that when things are tough, focus on the positives...even the smallest little things can help you. It helps you focus, look forward to the next goal/challenge.

My First Tempo Run...

Today my training plan asked for a 10 minute warm-up, 15 tempo run and then a 10 minute cool down. The goal was to get my heart rate up to between 164-174 for the entire 15 minutes. Well, it took me several minutes to get up to 164...I felt like I was sprinting (for me) and that there was NO WAY I could hold that for 15 minutes. I think the highest I saw my HR get to was 167...but it hovered around 161 for the entire time. Wow...this was hard and I had to stay really focused on running hard to get that HR up there!! At the end, my positive focus was (b/c I was looking for something postive as I felt like I was going to fall over) that I am still pretty green to all of this and I am learning LOTS so that is cool.

Off to the pool tomorrow. I signed up for Sunday morning swims with the tri club. This is really all I can handle in the way of swim training. After leading lane 7 for most of the year last year, I just moved myself on up to lane 8 right at the first swim this year!! The coach said nothing so there I stay. Mind you I bring up the tail end of lane 8 and those boys are FAST!! Coach Brad told us we (lane 8) should expect to be doing about 5000meters at our peak training...GOOD GOD!!

Running Field Test

Well, I was up at 5:30am, snuck out the door and on my way to do my second running field test. The aim was to run 2 miles as hard and as I can while keeping my eye on my average and maximum heart rate. I was not as fast as the first time I went out (2miles in 16min 11secs) Today I did the 2 miles in 16mins 27 secs BUT my max heart rate was about 10bps lower than the first time...maybe I was not pushing hard enough...I WAS tired and not really feeling into it, but once I got going and got my music right, it felt pretty good. I do my very first tempo run in my entire life this weekend....15 minutes of pure hell...can't wait!!

Run, run and run some more...

I have it in my head that I have to know I can run a half marathon before I even tackle the bike. Well, I have been running A TON over the last couple of months and I now feel I could pull off a half marathon...it would not be easy, but I could do it as I am feeling strong with respect to my running. Tomorrow am my training plan asks me to do a Field Test where I basically run my tail off for 2 miles and record my heart rate and my time. I am looking forward to this as I think I can go faster than I did back in September. I received my package from my cycling coach last week...this puts knots in my belly!! I have to go in for a heart rate test next week and then the fun starts November 14. Sadly, I have not been on my bike since I did that triathlon in August...oops!! My bike is actually right beside my bed so I fall asleep looking at it and wake up in the morning looking at it...I don't know why I have done this, but I am looking to bond with the yellow cervelo any way I can!!

Haven't been here in awhile...

Well, I did not do the half in May. The weather was so horrible last spring, I just could not bear to run outside. Sorry excuse, I know, but the truth! So I opted for the 10km. Did not too bad. Entered and attempted to complete my first triathlon in June. The race was cancelled due to really bad weather...although I have been curious all summer as to why they did not let me know as I was heading out on the second loop of the bike. Anyway, COMPLETED my first triathlon in August and was thrilled! Was a fun day, the weather was fantastic, the scenery wonderful. Also did another 10km in September in Regina and ran it faster than I have ever ran a 10km. Pretty proud of that. Would have actually come in 6th in my age group if I had of ran that fast in May...but coulda, shoulda, woulda doesn't get you very far.

February in Saskatchewan

Wow...it is cold! There is no way I can run outside in this. I did 3 miles on the treadmill after my spin class last night. So I was happy with that. I did the first one in about 8:10; the second one, my side totally cramped up so I half walked and half ran the the third I did in about 8:20. I am SO getting under 2 hours at the half-marathon in May!!

The spin class was okay. The gal teaching it played lots of really old music...kinda 1940s swing stuff which was different. I liked it.