Odds and ends

* Kristina totally killed it at her first triathlon last weekend! I'm so glad I was able to watch her compete. It was a miserably hot day on a difficult course, but she did a great job! Not only was I glad I could go to support Kristina, I was happy to have the opportunity to see the inner workings of a triathlon up close and personal. It was a small event, so I was able to get right up to the start/exit areas for swim and even to see the transition areas (from a distance so as not to interfere with racers). Thanks for letting me be a part of your day, Kristina!

* I walked away from K's tri with two solid thoughts:

1. I am SO ready for this.
2. I am SO NOT ready for this.

It's true. I'm ready and not ready. I'm ready for the thrill of a race atmosphere, to finally experience this event that I've been thinking about trying for almost a year, seriously considering for 9 months, have been registered for for nearly 6 months and have been in training for for almost 2 months. I'm excited to get out there and give it a shot and to be in the moment. And yet, if it's possible, I'm equally NOT ready. I don't think my body or mind are quite prepared for what lies ahead. Yes, I've been training, but I don't know that anything I've experienced in training has come close to what I'll experience that day. I'm trying not to freak out, but I do find myself getting a little overwhelmed from time to time. Must. Remember. To. Breathe.

* Because of #2 above, my goal for the next three weeks (yes, only three weeks left!) is to really hammer down and focus on my running and biking. They are easily my weakest spots, which means I tend to shy away from training for them. They're not as fun as swimming and with the heat as bad as it's been, it's extra hard for me to get out there and bust my butt out of the water. But it has to be done. As much as I'd like to be able to count on my swimming skills to carry me throughout the race, it's just not possible. So, swimming is a reward now--I'm allowing myself one or two pool swims a week just to keep up my fitness in that area, long OWS on the weekends whenever possible and running/biking/bricks as often as possible during the week. I still haven't biked more than 10.5 miles/1 hour, so a long ride (90mins or 12-13 miles) needs to be made a priority. I did get in a solid bike/run brick earlier this week, but those need to be the rule, not the exception.

* I had a private swimming lesson a few weeks ago, which was fantastic. I got some feedback on my stroke, learned a few tricks/tips to help with turns and such and she showed me a few basic drills to use with the boards and buoys. The best thing I got out of the lesson was learning that there wasn't a whole lot I needed to work on, at least when considering my current goals. I've always been comfortable in the water and consider myself a strong swimmer. Certainly not competition level, but I can handle my own in the water. Anyway, hearing from someone else that I looked as good as I FELT in the water was reassuring. I guess all those lessons I took as a kid finally paid off!

* Let's wrap this up with pictures, shall we? Here's my little munchkin, running her heart out at the kids' fun run last month. In the picture below, she's in the front, in the pink shirt and shorts, #363. She's already rockin' some great race face!

And striding toward the finish line! Look at that form... Way to finish strong, baby!

May all your training runs/rides/swims be full of joy this weekend!

The thing I should've done months ago

Before I delve into the heavy (oooo...punny, you'll see why) post below, I want to throw out a huge GOOD LUCK to my training buddy and friend Kristina, who will be completing her first triathlon on Sunday. I'm going to get my spectathlete on and head out to watch her and hopefully get some pics for her blog. I know she's going to kick that course's arse!

===================

Last year about this time, I was only about 4 months into the fitness thing and had lost about 20ish pounds. I was counting calories, running several times a week and using DVDs at home on a fairly regular basis. I was losing weight but not as quickly as I thought I should be. I quickly became OBSESSED with the scale--noting tenths of pounds lost or gained, fretting if I was above a certain number, celebrating if I was under. I was weighing myself daily, and often multiple times daily. I was the poster child for how not to have a healthy relationship with the scale.

Luckily I have good friends--great friends, in fact--who gave me a virtual "Snap out of it!" and suggested I hide my scale. While it's likely that their motivation behind the suggestion was because they were sick of me fussing about it all day, every day, they were able help me realize that my behavior wasn't doing me any good. I did end up hiding the scale--for a while anyway--and got back to weighing myself on a "normal" basis.

But I still weigh myself frequently. Sometimes only a few times a week, but sometimes a few days in a row. Usually in the morning, right after a shower, before I've eaten, when I feel like I'm at my lightest. And while I'm no longer trying to lose weight, it's reassuring to see the number more or less stay at the same spot day to day. (I don't obsess over the tenths as I used to, thank goodness.) Unfortunately, I've fallen back into the trap of letting the scale run my brain. There are times when I'm feeling light and lean, step on the scale and see a number slightly higher (we're talking maybe 1-2 pounds) than my "magic" number and I'm crushed. Other times I'm feeling pudgy and flabby and know I'm heavier than I should be, only to see a number well within my "normal" range and suddenly I feel better about myself. It's wrong to let that thing dictate so much of my self-acceptance and yet I still allow it to happen. But hey, as long as it's just me and I KNOW I'm being silly about it, no harm, no foul. Right?

But it's not just me. It's my sweet, beautiful, 4-year-old daughter.

The other day, after a healthy dinner together, she told me she wanted to go "weigh." Somehow my innocent little peach has connected "health" with "scale," and there's only one way she could've made that connection. By watching me.

We talk a lot about health. She knows I exercise and why I exercise and she's even participated in her own kid's run and bike race. (Cutest runner ever, btw.) She knows about good foods and the importance of exercise and why both are so important for our bodies. We don't talk about weight as a indicator of health and we certainly don't talk about HER weight as such. And yet, somehow, she's under the impression that when we eat a nutritious meal, we step on the scale and it tells us that we're healthy.

Bad, momma. Bad.

So the scale is going bye-bye. It's going on a high shelf in the closet or in the scary, spidery shed or maybe even in the trash. I'll let my husband decide. I don't need it and my beautiful daughter certainly doesn't need it either. No more letting the numbers tell me how I feel about myself. No more allowing some digits to tell me if I've worked hard enough today. No more weight=health.

No more. For me. For her.

Good riddance.

Q&A

Two posts in one day. What a lucky reader you are! ;) I thought I'd throw both of these Q/A posts together, just for funsies. Maybe you'll find them interesting, maybe you won't.

First, I was surprised and flattered to be contacted by the administrators of the sprint tri I'm doing to ask if I'd be willing to share my story and potentially be featured in some marketing and promotional materials for the event. I answered a few questions for them and have enlisted my new training buddy, Kristina, to take some training photos during our OWS/run brick this weekend so I can send those along as well. I feel sort of dorktacular at the thought of taking "training" photos, but whatever. If they want them, they'll get them. Not sure what will become of all this, if anything comes at all, but I'll keep you posted nonetheless!

Second, My Friend M My Friend M tagged me in one of those "What's your favorite..." posts. I think I'm supposed to tag someone else now, but since I don't know many other bloggers well enough to tag them (aside from M, who tagged ME), I'll let it die here. But in case you're interested, my answers are at the end of this post.

As mentioned above, here are my answers regarding "Why I Tri":

1. What motivated you to participate in the YWCA Women’s Triathlon?

My main motivation for participating in the YWCA Women's Triathlon stems from the desire to challenge myself to meet new fitness goals. I've never been particularly athletic or fitness-minded, but I recently began running and have found that it's something I love. Having run a few 5ks and one half marathon, I feel like I'm ready to tackle a new challenge. One of my best friends, who is also participating in the YWCA Women's Triathlon, began doing tris last year. Her race reports made the sprint tri sound like something I could accomplish with the right training--not to mention it sounded like fun! Also, the concept of a women's only, newbie-friendly event made me feel so much more comfortable as a first-timer! So, my desire for a new challenge coupled with the inspiration provided from my friend resulted in my decision to participate in this year's triathlon.

2. What has been the most challenging part of your training and preparation?

The most challenging part of my training and preparation is finding the time to squeeze in my workouts. As a mom who works full-time outside the home, my free time is limited. Juggling work, home life and training can be difficult, and I often find that training is the first item to be cut from my to-do list. Making time to exercise can be hard, but it's rewarding if you can make it work!

3. Did you register or train with a friend, coworker or family member?

I registered with three of my best friends. Three of us are traveling from different states (Kansas, Ohio and Illinois--the fourth lives in St. Paul) to participate and only one of us has ever participated in a triathlon before! We're looking forward to sharing this experience with one another! Since we all live far apart, we are unable to train together. However, we communicate frequently via email and I feel like we are virtual training partners since we check in with each other so often. Also, I'm lucky to have met someone locally who is also training for her first sprint tri, and we've become friends and occasional training partners. Having that support system--whether it's local or virtual--is priceless!

4. Why train for a triathlon and why now?

I am training for a triathlon because I find the concept of a multi-sport event intriguing and challenging, and I want to push myself to try something new. Being able to say "I finished a triathlon!" has a certain appeal, too. I am participating in the triathlon now because I'm finally realizing how important it is to fulfill my own personal needs and goals, and that taking care of myself is just as important as taking care of other people. Also, my daughter is 4 and is fully aware of my training--she sees me lace up for a run, load my bike for a ride and watches me swim laps at the pool. It's important to me to set a good example for my daughter not only from a health and fitness standpoint, but by showing her how important it is to set reachable goals, how to follow a plan to meet those goals and the satisfaction you get from accomplishing those goals. I want her to grow up knowing she can do anything she puts her mind to!

5. What advice do you have for other women interested in trying the sport for the first time?

My advice for other women thinking of trying a triathlon for the first time is to believe in yourself. Believe in the training program, believe in your abilities and have confidence! Trying something new can be scary, but you'll never regret getting out there! Enlist your friends, family, local training resources and other support services to help you along your journey. Finally, enjoy yourself and have fun!

And if you're interested in finding out more about my non-athletic side...here are my tagged answers:

My favorite cartoon character is… Jem! What's not to love about a girl who turns into a rock star through the aid of hologram emitting magic earrings?? Besides, it's a TOTALLY realistic show.

My favorite thing to photograph is… my daughter. She's got personality to spare!

My favorite thing to cook is… anything that requires a lot of cutting, chopping, tending or otherwise "worrying to death." I'm not one for leaving something be. I'm not happy if I can't mess with it continuously!

My favorite way to exercise is… swimming. Hands down. I could spend hours in the pool. But ask me when summer is over and I may have a different answer. ;)

My favorite movie is… I don't know that I have one favorite, but A favorite is "Waiting for Guffman." Hilarious!

My favorite article of clothing is… Ooo, tough choice between my Kansas Half Marathon shirt (best sleeping shirt EVER) or my swim suit because, duh, I love swimming.

My favorite flower is… I'mma be lame and say I don't have one, because it's true. I love them all! Except lilies. You can keep those.

My favorite breakfast is… Cheerios w/ milk. It's not what I'd order at a restaurant necessarily, but it's what I eat at home most mornings!

Training recap: Week of June 26

Training has been satisfying this week! While I haven't really done what's written on The Schedule, I think I've done a good job making sure I hit the three disciplines evenly throughout the week. I also managed to squeeze in two short brick/transition workouts, which is a new challenge for me.

Last weekend, I traveled to Iowa to visit family and totally over-indulged in festival food (pork Ts! hot mini donuts! hot dogs!) and car food (candy! corn nuts! pop!), and was feeling pretty barfy by Sunday afternoon when we got home. I flopped on the couch and prepared to laze the rest of Sunday away when a nagging thought wormed its way inside my head: "You really should get out and do something. It's been four days since you exercised and you overate to the extreme this weekend. You know you'll feel better if you sweat some of the junk out." As much as I tried to rationalize my way out of a workout, guilt won out and I decided to squeeze in an hour workout somehow.

It had been about a week since I took the bike out of the garage, so I settled on a short bike ride after a swim. It was sort of a pain logistically--I'm still too scared of traffic to ride on the roads, so I had to load my bike in the hubby's truck (first removing his ladder and stuff from the back), find an extra key for the lock, stop by the gas station to air up my bike tires and THEN drive to the pool. Still, the effort was worth it. I knocked out a quick 500m at the pool and loaded back up in the truck to drive to the levy for my bike ride. I'd lucked out with a gorgeous, not-TOO-hot day and biked about 6 miles to round out the workout. Not too shabby for an unplanned workout.

Monday I realized it had been a while since I'd done any running, but the thought of hitting any of my typical 'hood routes was too boring to bear and I didn't have much time to commit to driving elsewhere to run. Also, I'd read two issues of Runner's World nearly back-to-back and was under the influence some subliminal messaging, leading me to the brilliant idea of running to the local track to do some speedwork. 2.5 heinous miles later, I remember why I hated jr high track so much. Sprints are SO not my bag, baby. Yeah, yeah, I know they serve purpose and you don't get better at them if you never do them, but holy cow. Those are NOT fun. But I cranked them out nonetheless.

Tuesday I managed another brick, this time of the bike/run variety. Only about 5 miles on the bike, and I barely managed a 1 mile run after. It was my first bike/run brick and it was quite a wake-up call. I knew my legs would feel wobbly, but I wasn't prepared for exactly how wobbly they'd feel. It took me half the run to get my land legs under me. The second half of the run wasn't pretty physically, but I had the pleasure of running into a friend who was riding his bike the same direction I was running. We chatted while I ran and he biked (slowly) and before I knew it we were back to my truck! It was nice having someone show up unexpectedly, just when I needed the distraction the most. Serendipity FTW!

Wednesday I opted to rest, and by "rest" I mean "took my 4yo to the pool so she could jump in and have me catch her 5,000 times which I'm sure counts as some exercise, right?"

Thursday was strictly swim, and it was awesome! This week's schedule called for 1050m, so I figured I'd aim for a min of 1000, hope to hit 1050, and if I get anything beyond that, BONUS. I was also running short on time (what else is new?), so I was trying to crank this out in 30 minutes. I wasn't sure if it was possible, but I was going to try. I hit 250m at 7:30 min, and I thought it was going to be doable. I've been trying to work on my stroke lately, going for less random, crazy, crashing about and more deliberate, long, smooth pulls. Moving from what I think of as a sprint stroke to a distance stroke (I have no clue if there's even such a thing, that's just how I categorize them in my mind), makes it feel as if I'm going much slower than usual, but I wonder if I'm getting more power and that makes up for the lack of turnover? I don't know. Things I think about when my head's in the water. Anyway, the short of it is, I ended up finishing 1000m with about 1:30 to spare, so I decided to see if I could bust out an additional 75m in that time. I made it in a final time of 30:14! Not too shabby. It was an exhilarating swim on an scorchingly hot day.

So, not too bad of a week! The tri is 6 weeks from Sunday, which is darn close. I'm doing my best to be ready in time!

Because I like lists and I'm feeling lazy

I know the list-as-blog-post is kinda lame, but I'm not feeling very creative today and don't have the gumption to try to tie this all into one neat and tidy post. However, there are a few things that have happened over the past week that I wanted to highlight and I figured a list post was better than no post at all!

1. Huge congrats to My Friend M who was selected to be an alternate for the Nuun HTC relay team. I am so proud of her! She rocks!

2. Major kudos to my friend Becky who completed her first half marathon, the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, on Saturday! Woot! She pounded it out in 2:24, which is amazing in my book, especially considering the (what I would call) unseasonably cool, wet weather. She's a superstar!

3. Our Ironman Kansas aid station took First Place in the contest for best station at the event. Holla! We earned an additional $750 for two local charities.

4. And speaking of the Ironman Kansas, the perks just keep on comin'. In addition to the sweet-ass KS IM shirt, sweet-ass KS IM bag, box of free food and amazingly unforgettable experience, I also made a new friend that day, K. She is ALSO training for her first sprint tri, so we had lots in common and plenty to talk about that day, and we decided to get together for a few training sessions. Yay for training buddies! And she has a training blog too, but I won't link it here until I have her permission. ;)

5. K and I met up last weekend for our first OWS. We hit a smallish lake, one with little to no boat traffic, so we could hopefully have a much calmer OWS experience the first time out. We took turns at first so we could keep an eye on each other, and while we both had our freak-out moments we survived! I was less freaked out by fish/lake monster thoughts as I was about the extreme temp changes in the water. For some reason, my brain could not handle the rapid switch from hot to cold to warm to cool to cold to hot and it gave me the major willies. But I lived and made it back to the dock safe and sound. We did swim a bit more after that and I think we were both happy with how the experience played out. And again, how nice to have a buddy to do it with!

6. I'm headed to Iowa this weekend to see family, so probably not much training to be had. But that's okay because I'll be in Iowa! I lived there for the first 16 years of my life and it still feels like home to me. I'm excited to see my aunts and uncles, too. I'm taking my shoes and hope to squeeze in a run Saturday morning, but I make no promises.

7. I had my longest swim ever the other day--1000yds. It was AMAZING. The schedule called for 900, but I figured tacking on an additional 100yds wouldn't kill me. Not to mention that 1000yds just sounds cooler. But even as I was wrapping up that longest swim ever (for me), I thought, "I could do this ALL. DAY. LONG." Because, you know, I love the swimming!

Alright. That's it for this lame post. If you're training this weekend, have fun and be safe!

Iron Team

Yesterday I had the honor and privilege of being a run course aid station volunteer at the Kansas Half Ironman that took place in my town. To have an event of that magnitude within spitting distance of where I live is cool enough in and of itself, but to be able to help out on the front lines? AMAZING. We are lucky in that the event is growing and attracts world-class athletes, including Chrissie Wellington (who won for the third straight year).

The day started about 7:30. We arrived at our station, which was at miles 2.5ish/9 on the run course (they ran the same route twice) but happened to be stationed near T1 so we could hear the roar of the crowd as people were taking off from the swim and onto the bike course. Unfortunately, there wasn't much time to watch as we immediately had to get our tables set up and our water/drinks on ice. We set up smoothly and had a little time before the first male runner blew through around 9:15 (the first swim wave started at 6:10). Shortly after that, we had our first female runner--Leandra Cave--and a few minutes after her, I saw Chrissie come through the first time. Seeing a professional athlete of that magnitude that close gave me chills and left me awestruck. And she actually smiled as she came through--what a lady.

It was sporadic for a while, with only a few elite runners cruising through that early on. I decided to do a "behind the table" job since I was nervous about handing off drinks and things, and I set myself up at the food table thinking it would be the slowest of the bunch. Ha ha. Little did I know that every. single. runner. would want Coke, which was assigned to the food table. We also started handing out cups of ice at our table, since so many folks asked for it, so between keeping cups of coke and ice filled, I was a busy bee!

The first rush of runners went through between 10:30 and 12:00, and most people looked like they were still feeling good. Most were still running through the station, trying to keep pace and we did our best to cheer everyone on as best we could, while still keeping drinks and supplies filled. After noon, the temps began to rise and as folks made their second loops through, we could definitely see the beginning stages of exhaustion and fatigue set in. Most folks took the opportunity to walk, many grabbing an orange or some pretzels for a little extra fuel. And surprisingly, several folks were chatty and engaging and seemed happy to have an excuses to stop and chat, if only for a second.

By the end, nearing 2:00, most of the runners had passed through, although we were still getting the occasional BOPer. And THOSE were the folks we wanted to help the most. The ones who were cramping, the ones who looked like they needed an extra cheer or a smile or a heartier clap. The people who simply wanted to finish at that point--the folks who'd be me if I ever get up the guts to try something like that.

We finally pulled up stakes around 3:00, and I left with a mighty sunburn and the memories of a truly awesome experience. For those of you who participate at this level, you have my utmost respect and admiration. I would gladly stand outside in a parking lot for 8 hours every weekend if it meant an experience like that each time.

I walked away with a renewed fire for training and the longing for the sense of accomplishment you get only after conquering a major goal like that. I know my sprint tri is a drop in the bucket compared to what those athletes do, but it'll be huge for me. Along with my the sprint tri, my next goal is to convince M that she needs to come to Kansas next year and participate so I can cheer her on. Whether I'll cheer from an aid station or as a spectathlete remains to be seen, but I WILL be there one way or the other.

I wasn't able to get very many decent pictures--I did have other things to worry about at the time ;)--but here's the ones I did get.

The overall male winner, Paul Matthews. He'd done a HIM the previous weekend, too, and called it his "warm-up". Ha.

Chrissie Wellington at OUR aide station! I die.

I bet getting chicked is easier to take when Chrissie Wellington's doing the chicking.

Chrissie RIGHT in front of me. (Sorry about the port-a-potty background. Par for the course, I suppose.)

Best free t-shirts ever? Yes, I do think so. (And I got a KS HIM drawstring bag, too.)

What I've learned

First things first, if you don't already read My Friend M's blog you should add it to your Reader right now (go ahead--I'll wait). If nothing else, you need to read this post, and not just because I'm featured in two--count 'em, TWO--photos. You should read the post because it's awesome and really emphasizes the impact that running and fitness has in our day-to-day lives, and it sheds a light on how important a support system is and what a big difference a community, whether near or far, IRL or online only, can make in helping someone reach their goals. And in the spirit of her post, if you don't do anything else today, encourage someone. You never know what a difference it might make!

So, I didn't do a training recap for last week as promised, even though I did have a pretty decent week. What I'm doing instead--and we'll see if this holds going forward--is to highlight what I've learned this past week. Some of it will be fitness related, of course, but some might not be. It all depends on what I've absorbed!

What I've learned this week:

1. I (still) LOVE SWIMMING. I have always been fond of the water--I was one of those kids who practically lived in their swimming suit from the moment school let out for summer until it started back up again in the fall. I actually remember sleeping in my swimming suit because it didn't make sense to take it off at night just to put it on again first thing the next morning. (I wonder if my mother knew about that?) I took plenty of swimming lessons and got up to the Jr. Lifeguard level, which is the one right before being certified. I know the basic strokes and generally feel comfortable in the water. However, not having done any real swimming for years, I wasn't sure how well I'd take to the water as an adult and doing it for exercise. Oh. My. Gosh. It's like I'm 8 again, feeling the urge to move to the pool and stay there all summer long. Now, I can't say I'm awesome at it--I'm still slower than molasses--but it feels like home and that's good enough for me right now.

2. Just keep spinning. Oh, the bike. I wish I could say I adore the bike as much as I adore the pool. I don't HATE the bike, and it definitely does have it's merits (i.e. cruising down hills), I'm still trying to find my groove. But I've learned how to shift and when to shift and I've learned that when you're at the bottom of a really big hill A) Don't look up and B) Keep moving, because if you stop, you'll never get started again. I might be moving slower than the sparrows are hopping (true story!), but I'm moving. And that's all that matters.

3. It's okay to rest. You'd think I'd know this one after a successful half marathon training program, but sometimes I still need a reminder that the day you take off off is just as important as the days you put in.

4. Take a chill pill, dude. If you read my last post, you might have gotten a sense of how anxious I was feeling about starting my tri training plan. I'm a worrier by nature, and when faced with a new thing my brain goes into overdrive trying to plan/predict/prepare for every possible scenario. Multiply that anxiety by three--one for each sport, of course--and you've got one very high-strung individual on your hands. It took my awesome friends to remind me that it's okay to let it go. So what if I miss a workout? LET IT GO. So what if I don't bike the day it says to bike and choose to run instead? LET IT GO. So what if I don't train at all and end up doggie paddling my way through the swim, dilly-dallying my way through the bike and walking my way through the run? LET IT GO. Interestingly enough, the moment I allowed myself some wiggle room and a little bit of leeway in my training, I started to stay on schedule better than ever. Maybe it's as simple as knowing I have that bit of freedom that allows me to relax and let it go.

I know there's even more to learn, but it feels like enough for this week. And in the spirit of #4, I'm pulling a #3 and taking my rest day option. Six days in a row of working out and a stressful workweek makes for one tired Mom in Motion. Or maybe I'll ride my bike tonight for an easy 30 minutes. I have the option, you know. If I do ride, I'll do it because I want to, not because the schedule told me to.