Little steps...

I won't claim that the mojo has been completely restored, but it's starting to show small signs of life.

I've managed to get out for a few runs and a few pool sessions. I plan on hitting up a 50-meter outdoor salt water pool tomorrow for some laps, provided the weather doesn't take a turn for the bleh overnight. This evening, I will go for a run. And tonight, tonight I will reassemble my beloved road bike.

That's right, the BMC will be released from the confines of the bike box it's been sitting in since UPS delivered it after the Oly I did in May. *ahem* And maybe tomorrow, I'll pick up some rim tape and finally install the new wheels and tires that have been waiting in my hallway. At that point, pictures might have to be taken, to capture my lovely in all of her glory.

After that, I'll ride. Maybe not until the weekend, but a ride is definitely in the offing.

Looking for some motivation...

It would seem that I've misplaced my workout mojo. I have no idea where it went. And yes, I did try looking under the bed...it wasn't there.

Since I left the office early on Monday, I did manage to get to the gym. Once I got there, I did a full-body strength workout and followed it up with 20 minutes on the bike. A light workout, but since being laid out with a chest cold for most of last week, I didn't want to push it. Also, in the interest of not pushing it, I abstained from working out yesterday. I had two workouts planned for today--a 2000 yard swim and a 3 mile run. And despite yelling at myself (in my head, not out loud) repeatedly to get it done, I just...well, didn't.

A small part of this was the residual soreness I have in the upper reaches of my hamstrings after Monday's lifting workout. But the rest? Laziness. Sloth. Something like that.

Bah!

I don't know what it's going to take to get me back into a training state of mind, but I sure hope it happens soon.

Welcome back, self.

Two years. Well, closer to a year and a half than two years, so I'll be kind to myself. A year and a half. What have I accomplished in a year and a half--other than the utter abandonment of this blog?

Time to play some catch-up...

Well, I crossed one more goal off of my list. I completed an Olympic distance tri. Of course, because of chronic injury issues, it took a year longer than planned. *sigh*

I'd originally planned that my first Oly would be in the summer of 2009. I hired a coach. I was on track. I was focused...

I got a sprained hip flexor, a resurfacing of knee issues and plantar fasciitis. I had to pull out of every race I'd planned, and spent the entire summer rehabbing. It was beyond frustrating.

Late last fall, I decided I was ready to jump back in. I immediately signed up for an Olympic distance race in my former college town (a couple thousand miles away from my current home). I also committed myself to an early spring 5k run in a town a hundred+ miles away. (Obviously I'd convinced myself that races should be rewarded with vacations.)

The race wasn't easy, but I did it. I suffered through wetsuit issues on the .9 mile swim, a cramping left quad during the entirety of the hilly 24.8 mile bike ride, and dual cramping quads for the 6.2 mile run. My body didn't really want to work on race day, but my mind didn't give it much choice. I finished.

Actually, so far this spring I've done two 5k runs, a sprint tri, and an Olympic. And there's an Olympic/International distance tri on my calendar in July--this time in New England. I'm sure I'll be sprinkling more races in over the summer, I'm just not yet sure what they'll be.

I do know one post-summer event already on my calendar, though. The Portland Marathon in October. That's going to hurt. I am so not a runner, but gave myself an entry to the marathon as a 35th birthday present back in February. (Don't look at me like that. You know you give yourself birthday presents, too. Oh, you don't give yourself painful presents like marathon entries? Well, why the hell not? What the fuck is wrong with you?)

Sadly, I didn't manage to sit down and write up any race reports for any of the races that I've done this year. I want to be better about that. And I want to be better about keeping track of my training...and processing all of the crap that goes through my head while I'm doing that training. So, I'm going to try to revive this particular blog. We'll see what happens...

I spent much of my day trying to figure out what I want to do next. Despite having started up with a running group, signing up for a ChiRunning workshop coming up this weekend, and slapped down the fee for a Total Immersion swim clinic next weekend, I'm feeling a little rudderless.

I spent a good bit of time researching triathlon coaching. There are lots of local options, but I don't know enough about them to know which option to go with. There's another option for someone who is out-of-state, but already knows me, knows my injury history, and is a physical therapist. Going with that option will almost certainly mean needing to join a masters swim team. Biking and running I can handle on my own, but I really struggle with structuring pool workouts.

Or, I can join a local team. <--That's the least expensive of the options.

*sigh* So many choices.

Oh, and I found a recipe this evening that I am soooo making the next time I'm jonesing for cake. Gluten-free Coconut Carrot Cake. Oh, my...

Ugh. So, I didn't race this morning.

I got as far as driving to the race site and starting to set up my transition. And then my body started to rebel. And rebel hard. Sharp cramps, nausea, and then The Headache.

I decided to just pack my stuff back up and go home.

crappy weather + feeling crappy = needless pain and torture

There is something about getting up early that seems to be triggering migraines for me. I need to get to the bottom of that, and soon.

My bags are packed...

Ok, so just the one bag.

My transition bag is ready. My bike and the rack for my car are sitting by the door. Clothes are laid out. Alarm is set (for rilly, rilly early).

Sadly, I can't find my camo print dress or the chest strap for my heart rate monitor. I cant replace the dress (though I think I just remembered where it might be), but I can order a replacement strap if it doesn't turn up in the early part of next week. Neither of those things are necessary for my race, but I'd like to have them nonetheless. *sigh*

Think of me tomorrow morning, out in the chilly rain, suffering in the suburbs. (Ok, so it's not all suffering. It's more fun than anything else.)

Another race down. :-)

This morning saw my alarm go off at 4:40 a.m. I followed that up with a solid twenty minutes of sitting on Lisa's couch and alternately dozing and trying to get myself fully awake. Then, I got dressed, made some breakfast, loaded my bike on my car and went over to the race site with Lisa. Well, we went to a shopping center about a quarter mile away from the race site and then walked over. (I'm convinced all of this foot travel before and after a race is just the race directors' way of screwing with the participants.)

I got my transition area set up, but wasn't really happy with it. So, I set it up again...this time with my stuff positioned on the side of the bike I prefer. (Lisa took lots and lots of pics of all of this fussing around, so it must have been amusing to watch.) And then, a giant woman showed up and tried to rack her bike beside mine. Except, being a giant, her bike wouldn't fit under the rack easily, and once she got it under there it was too tall to actually hang from the rack. So, she decided to hang it *over* the rack...um, that didn't work out so well either. Eventually, she resigned herself to having to prop her bike against the railing around the transition area and just setting up the rest of her stuff across from mine. I was simultaneously amused and incredulous. She was well-meaning, but just a clueless mess. It was also her first triathlon, so it was hard not to feel a little bad for her--also the fact that she was #666 and in swim wave #13 seemed to have her just set up for mishaps.

My swim was ok, but I kept getting caught behind people who were struggling. I eventually got out of the water and realized I had a splitting headache. Ick. I *really* dawdled through transition, hoping the headache would dull a little before I got on the bike. It didn't. But,I eventually managed to talk myself into riding.

The ride was really pretty, but had lots of rolling hilly bits. My knee seemed to be cooperating a little better this time, but I was mostly just concerned with my headache. I was so preoccupied with that, I wasn't paying enough attention to the rest of my body. At one point, I was hit with intense nausea because of a way elevated heart rate (189...eep!).

My second transition was a little faster, but I was still feeling gross. But at that point, I was so close to finishing (just one more event) that there was no way I was going to bail. So, I walked almost the entire run. Except the end. Something got into my head at the very end (I think I realized I was really close to water, food, electrolytes, and a chance to sit down), and I started running toward the finish line.

Crossed the finish line and collected my medal. (and a bottle of water and an apple) w00t!

I also hit the stop button on my heart rate monitor and checked out a summary of my "workout". That's when I realized I had stupidly let my heart rate get too high. And I burned 1201 calories during the race. Kick ass.