Tri Rock Annapolis!

I survived! Despite the fact that I did a lot more worrying than training, I finished TriRock Annapolis and I even had fun. Here's a quick recap.

The Night Before

Flexing with my race numbers. 

The night before the race, I spent a little bit of time packing my gear, and a lot of time worrying. I had been out early (aka: at race time) every morning that week, and it was pretty chilly. The idea of jumping in a cold river in my only-tested-once wetsuit was both unappealing and terrifying. I actually woke up a couple times during the night and thought "Maybe I just won't do this."

Race Morning


When the alarm went off, I didn't let myself think about whether or not to go through with the race. I just got up and started getting dressed. My lovely fiance/equipment manager Andrew lives less than half a mile from the race start, so we just pushed my bike and carried my bags. We arrived at the transition area to find a line about half a block long. The transition entrance was narrow and it took a long time to get everyone in.

Transition on a lovely morning. 

Almost immediately, I started running into people I know. The nice thing about doing races in Annapolis is that I see people from the gym, the Striders, and my tri-training group. It felt like the whole neighborhood had just decided to do a tri that morning. Seeing so many friends made me feel more excited.

After about 20 minutes, I got to my transition spot and realized that I lucked out again. I had a spot on the end of a row (the inside end, but still the end) right up against a little building. Bingo: extra space AND a landmark! The race started at 7am, but my swim wave wasn't scheduled until 8:15, so I had a lot of time to chat with the other people in my row. It turned out that my whole section/swim wave was made up of 30-35 year-old women, and none of us felt particularly confident in the water. Many of the ladies were first-timers. One was 7 months pregnant! By the time our swim wave was called, we were all best friends.

The Swim

Go Team Pink! 

My swim wave was second-to-last: #12 out of 13. I wasn't thrilled with the long wait, but I was very happy to be in a group with other slow-ish swimmers and not too many other people in the water. I was worried enough about swimming in a cold river without also worrying about people swimming over me. At about 8:10am, my group walked down to the floating pier, where we faced the worst part of the whole race: jumping in.

Talking myself into taking the plunge.

I did it! 

The initial shock of the water was about as bad as I expected. Fortunately, I got used to it pretty quickly and didn't have to wait too long to start swimming. The water was cold and choppy- unlike any of my previous open-water swims. I tried putting my head under a couple times and found it too hard. So, I wound up alternating between a totally inefficient head-up freestyle and my trusty backstroke. This combo kept me moving, but it made the swim way more exhausting than it should have been. By the time I reached the ladder to exit the water, my whole body was like Jello.

Not an easy climb. 

T1 and the Bike


Once I finally got up the ladder, I started stripping off my wetsuit and heading for the bike. I realized too late that my wetsuit is too big. This didn't help me in the water, but it made transition a breeze! While other people around me were struggling to get out of their wetsuits, I had mine off in about 10 seconds. I grabbed my bike gear and headed for the mount line.

Feeling good... for the moment. 

All was going well for a couple minutes. I even managed to jog a little with the bike. Andrew met me at the mounting spot and snapped a picture as I got on. Thus, he captured the lovely moment when both my calves simultaneously cramped up.

AGONY!

The pain was fairly astonishing. I generally refrain from swearing in public, but I shouted a couple choice words as I waited for the pain to pass. Poor Andrew looked terrified. Fortunately, after a few seconds it died away and I was able to head out.

On my way! 

My number 1 fear going into this event was drowning in the swim. #2 was that I wouldn't be able to handle the hilly 12-mile bike ride. I find biking pretty challenging and I also find that training on a spin bike does not prepare me at all for riding on the road. And where did I do all of my training for this race? You guessed it- on a spin bike. Yet, for reasons I can't explain, the bike actually went fairly well. I never felt like I couldn't handle it and I wound up improving just a little over my speed from IronGirl.

Coming around the final turn. 

T2 and the Run


T2 was rough. Because TriRock was a short race and the swim waves were so staggered, some of the first racers had finished by the time I entered the water. By the time I finished the bike, far more people were finished than still on the course. For reasons beyond my comprehension, the organizers re-opened transition fairly early. This meant that I had to do my bike-to-run transition while others were hanging out post-race and packing to go home. I tried to run my bike in, but got held up repeatedly by people standing in the middle of transition, leaning on their bikes and having conversations. This was VERY frustrating and resulted in a way slower transition time.

Heading out on the run was also a challenge. No matter how many bike-to-run workouts I do, I never seem quite prepared for how tired I am going into the run portion of a tri. Fortunately, it was late enough by that point that tourists and finished racers had lined the streets, cheering on the runners. I wanted to walk out of transition, but I just couldn't do it with all those people cheering. I picked it up and kept running, even though the first half-mile was a cruel uphill.

By the first water stop, I had found my rhythm, but I still let myself take a brief walk break. I did the same when I came through the water stop again (it was an out-and-back course). After the second water stop, I got to the best part of the race. We repeated the first part of the course- Main Street- only this time, we were headed straight downhill to the finish. I spotted an older runner walking and said "This is downhill- let's run!" He smiled and picked it up.

As I approached the finish, I spotted Andrew with the camera and managed a smile and a mini-sprint.

Trying to look strong for the camera. 

Seconds later, I crossed the line and got my (very nice) medal. I felt awesome.

Another very heavy Rock 'n' Roll medal. 

I finished just in time to catch part of the awards ceremony, in which my Wonder Women trainer Michelle came in second, my boot camp teacher Kate won her age group, and my boot camp buddy Nate won his age group! I turned to Andrew and said "We may not be the best, but we get to train with the best!"

Kate and Nate show off their trophies/beer mugs. 

Andrew and I spent a bit more time swapping race stories with friends, and then we headed back to his place. On our way home, we saw a ton of racers riding their bikes home (including Kate and her husband and our friends Jen and Tracey) as well as the usual Saturday runners. Andrew commented "This is a really fit town," and I felt a lot of hometown pride.

Once I got home, I had no time to rest, as I had a family event to attend at a swanky hotel in DC. When I took my post-race shower, I learned that the race numbers had been designed to stay on- a good 5 minutes of scrubbing didn't make a dent. So, off I went to one of the fanciest hotels in DC sporting my classiest look:

The number was on my other arm and thigh too, making for head-to-toe class. 

All in all, a great race and a great day! My results were as follows:

Swim (500M): 17:09 (my weakest part of the day)

T1: 4:38

Bike (12mi): 57:22 (not great, but faster than IronGirl!)

T2: 3:20 (stupid open transition area!)

Run: 31:44 (my strongest part of the day)

Overall: 1:54:15

Considering I barely trained and was expecting to finish in 2:15, I was very happy with this outcome. Now, its time to get ready for IronGirl!

Tri again (and again, and again).

I have a wetsuit! 

As my regular readers know, I completed my first triathlon (IronGirl Columbia) last August. It was tough, but I had a great time and I finished thinking "I need to do more of these!" I wasn't able to fit any tri's into my fall racing schedule last year, but I had every intention of doing at least two or three this summer.

Then, life happened. I changed jobs, got into a relationship, and started planning a wedding. This left little time to think about racing. What little time I spent planning my summer/fall 2012 race schedule consisted of just signing up for all the races that I do every year. I signed up for IronGirl again, but I didn't find any other tri's to suit my schedule. I knew about a few other local races, but they all felt too soon and/or too long.

One of the races that fell into the "too soon" category was TriRock Annapolis, which takes place this Saturday. The distance is short: 500M swim, 12mi bike, 3.1mi run. Compared to IronGirl- 998M swim, 17.5mi bike, 3.3mi run- that's nothing. Still, when registration opened early this year, I didn't feel ready. I'd done some spinning, but I hadn't ridden my bike outside since IronGirl in August. I joined a pool in February, but I didn't actually start swimming again until mid-March. Plus, the weather would be still be cool enough to require a wetsuit for the swim. I didn't have one and, even if I got one, I didn't know if I would get a chance to practice in it before the race.

Then, a few things happened to change my feelings about TriRock. First, I started swimming again and it did not go badly. In fact, for reasons beyond my comprehension, I actually feel stronger in the pool compared to last year. Second, the weather warmed up early in the year. Last year's TriRock happened on a rainy day with temps in the 50's. That seems unlikely this year. Finally, I joined the Wonder Women tri-traning group again for both their late winter and early spring training sessions. The combination of these things started to make TriRock feel possible. Then, on the day before I left for my London vacation, I got a coupon in my email for $10 off TriRock registration. The combo of pre-vacation excitement and a discount pushed me over the edge. I signed up for the race and ordered a wetsuit from Amazon.

Now, a little under a month later, I am facing my first tri of the season! I would love to say that I have trained intensely over the last several weeks, but the only thing I have done intensely this past month is wedding plan. Fortunately, our lovely Wonder Women coaches came through for me big-time this past weekend. Realizing that I and several of the other WW were feeling less-than-prepared for TriRock, they set up a practice tri for us this past Sunday. We did a 10-minute open-water swim, which gave all of us the opportunity to test our new wetsuits. Then, we followed that with a 20-minute bike ride and 10-minute run. In between, we simulated race transitions as best we could.

The practice tri was rough, but I survived it. Swimming in the wetsuit was actually easier than I anticipated (though swimming in cold water was harder!). The bike ride reminded me that spinning is nothing like riding a bike outdoors, but it also reminded me that I can tough it out on the bike when I have to. The run reminded me that running after a tough bike ride is miserable, but I can tough that out too. I still rock at transitions. All in all, I don't expect to put in a stellar performance on Saturday, but I also don't expect to pass out or die. At this point, I'll take it!

In the midst of all this, I also added another tri to my 2012 schedule. After IronGirl Columbia sold out in a frenzied 3 hours this year, the organizers decided to add another MD race. This one- IronGirl Rocky Gap- will happen in Western Maryland this coming September. I thought that taking a weekend in the mountains a few months before my wedding sounded like a great idea, so I signed up the day it opened. Then, just last week, I got an unexpected and pleasant surprise. The IronGirl race directors emailed myself and the rest of the ladies who were in the first 500 registrants for RockyGap and told us that we will get an opportunity to register in advance for IronGirl Columbia in 2013.

So, now I have 3 tri's on the agenda for 2012 and at least one for 2013!

Milestones, numerous.

My two AS Ironman awards, in their place of honor-
flanking my Alison Bechdel book collection!

Greetings from the land of the late winter/early spring cold. I've been feeling a little off for over week now, but things got bad enough to keep me home from work this past Monday. Today is sick day #3, aka: the day I'm not well enough to work a full day but I am well enough to catch up on things at home. Things like blogging. So, here I am!

Since my last post, I achieved several milestones in my running life:

Ironman Award #2: On Saturday, 2/25, Andrew and I attended the annual Annapolis Striders awards banquet, where I picked up my second consecutive Ironman Award. I got this award for running all 8 races in the 2011 Champ Series. It was really exciting and gratifying to "graduate" from the first-time Ironman group into the (much smaller) multi-year group. It was also inspiring to pose for a group photo with people who have earned the Ironman 5, 10, 15, and even 26 years in a row!

B&A Half Marathon #3: This past Sunday, 3/4, I ran the B&A Trail Half-Marathon for the 3rd time. The 2010 B&A Half was my first half-marathon, and I am excited to report that the 2012 B&A was my tenth! I really hoped to PR in this race, but that wasn't in the cards. As I've been saying a lot the past few months, all of the recent changes in my life really threw off my winter training. I just wasn't in the shape I would have liked going into the race, and I finished a little behind last year's time (2011: 2:18:55; 2012: 2:19:46).

My 10th half deserves a good picture... but this is the one I got! 

BUT- there were bright sides: (1) I got to run the whole race with my awesome running coach Susan. Susan had a major injury a little over a year ago and this was her big comeback race. Seeing her get back out there was very inspiring! (2) I followed up the race by doing a bike/run workout with the Wonder Women tri-training group. I wound up having less than an hour to nap in between the race and the tri group and I had no idea if I would make it through the latter. To my surprise, however, I was okay. I definitely took it easy in the tri group, but I still finished the day having done just under 4 1/2 hours of intense cardio. I've been down on myself lately for not completing my planned winter marathon training, but this day taught me that I'm in better shape than I thought!

MCM registration #2: Just within the past hour, I registered for my second Marine Corps Marathon. I had a very tough time with my first MCM, but my experience in NYC this fall really boosted my confidence. So, now I look forward to actually enjoying this marathon, rather than just surviving it!

All in all, a productive few weeks!

Resolutions and routine.

Hello, readers! It has been far, far too long. I have been mentally drafting a post about my New Year's resolution for nearly 3 weeks now, and the fact that I'm just getting to it now shows just how much that resolution is needed. So, without further ado, my New Year's resolution for 2012 is...

Establish a routine.

I do my best in pretty much every aspect of life when I have routines. When life is semi-predictable, I eat better, exercise more, get more work done, and experience a lot less stress. When my routines get disrupted, or I go a long time without a routine, things start to fall apart. Classic example: In 2002, I took a job as a home-based counselor for children in a very intensive program. I saw clients at home, went to tons of meetings all over a very wide geographic area, and fielded endless crisis calls. For most of my time at that job, I had no set office and worked anywhere I could find space. Whenever I tried to establish a routine, something would change. The result? I gained weight, didn't exercise, and got myself into a string of less-than-healthy relationships.

Toward the end of my time at that job, I started ADHD treatment. In addition to taking medication, I also started working on getting organized and making my life more predictable. Since then, I have gotten better and better at establishing good routines for myself and life has become exponentially more manageable. Last year, I worked some of my best routines ever and a ton of great things happened for me: a marathon, a triathlon, weight loss, graduating from school, finding an amazing boyfriend, and- finally- getting a great new job.

Of course, the problem with all of the great things that happened to me last year is that they completely threw off my routines. Having a boyfriend takes up time that I used to spend on things like the gym and managing my house. It also means eating away from home more, which often results in unhealthier food choices. (I'm much better at just not going to restaurants than I am at going to a restaurant and not ordering a steak!) At my old job, I worked a pretty normal 9-5 schedule. At my new job, I often work until 7 or 8pm and my hours change from week to week. Also, while I really do love my new job, it is way more challenging than my old job. For me, challenging= stress= temptation to eat junk food or drink wine when I get home at 9pm.

I met my boyfriend in late August and I started my job-changing process in October. By the end of December, my average weekly time at the gym had plummeted and my weight had reached a number I haven't seen since 2003. I was also struggling to manage my house, keep up with friends and family, and (obviously) keep up with this blog. Thus, the resolution. January 1, I began work on making a new routine.

I am happy to report that I am making progress. To begin with, I thought seriously about my schedule and figured out when I am able to work out. The answer? Early in the morning and (sometimes) in the middle of the day. Early in the morning means that I have to be diligent about getting to my 6am classes and I also need to mix in some extra running and biking after those classes from time to time. I've been doing great with the first half and I'm still working on the second. Working out in the middle of the day means finding somewhere to exercise near my work. I have a couple of leads to investigate on that front.

I also talked to my boyfriend about my exercise and eating going downhill. He's awesome, so he immediately got with the program and began supporting/encouraging me in my habits. So, we've been eating at home more and he's started going to the gym with me whenever he's around. Yay supportive loved ones- they make such a difference!

Finally, some outside events came together and helped me with my goal:

My office: I spent 6 or 7 weeks of my new job in office limbo- I'm in a new site for my agency and my office was still under construction when I started. Finally, the week of 1/9, the construction ended and I got to move in:

I'm a real therapist now!

Not having to hunt for a spare computer whenever I need to do paperwork? Priceless.

A lovely table for family activities and lunch. Also, after 11 years of higher ed, a home for my diplomas.

A corrallary of my "I need a routine" rule is "I need designated spaces for things." I am way more productive when I have set places for things like work, paying bills, exercise, etc. So, having my office together has really helped me feel settled and more on top of things.

Winter trainings: With the new year came new sessions in both the Annapolis Striders' race training and the Wonder Women tri group. So, now I have at least two tough workouts scheduled each week and two groups of training buddies to motivate me on the days in between. This has been a big boost to my exercise goals.

So, I'm not there yet, but my New Year's resolution is off to a good start. If it continues to go well, you will hear from me more often in the coming weeks!

Just in time for 2012: My 2011 Year in Review

So, 2011 ended on a bit of a low note. New Year's Eve morning, I left the house at 6:45AM, intending to run to the first meeting of this year's Annapolis Strider's half-marathon training. I made an early start because I am signed up for a marathon in March (more on that soon!) and need to add extra miles to the half-marathon training runs. Less than 10 minutes into my run, I hit a pothole and fell. Hard. It really hurt, but I was able to get up and walk home, which meant no major injuries (phew!). When I got home, I found a seriously skinned and bruised knee, along with some cuts and imbedded gravel in my hand.

Not how I wanted to end my running year! 

After a good hour of fretting and pouting, I gave up on running for the day and proceeded to have an amazing New Year's Eve with my lovely boyfriend. Now, I am trying to stay focused on the positive, entering 2012 with a good attitude. What better way to do that than to review my accomplishments from 2011? So, here we go!

January: No races this month, but I did start my 2nd year of the Annapolis Striders' half-marathon training plan. I also started swimming and gathering gear for my first triathlon: IronGirl.

February: On 2/12, I ran the AS Valentine's Day 5K, my first race of the year and the first leg of the 2011 Champ Series. I was trying to come in under 30 minutes, but didn't quite get there. I finished in 30:16.

Also in February, I attended the AS annual banquet where I picked up my first IronMan award!

The 2010 Iron-people!

March: On 3/6, I ran the B&A Trail Half-Marathon for the second time. I finished in 2:18:55, an improvement of 5:10 over my 2010 time!

Val, Marie, and I after the 2011 B&A Half. This was Marie's first half! 

On 3/20, I ran a 5K with the Howard County Striders to support my friend and new runner Jaquisha. She finished her very first race, and I ran my 5K PR for the year: 27:19. That's over 3 minutes faster than my 2010 5K PR of 30:22!

April: On 4/4, I ran the AS Cherry Pit 10-miler, which is the 2nd leg of the Champ Series. I finished in 1:47:31, my 2011 10-mile PR and an improvement of 1:23 over 2010.

Also in April, my friend Pat and I competed in the Ridgeway Triathlon as part of the wedding of our ultra-running friends Krista and Ray. The event was run-bike-canoe. I did the run, Pat did the bike, and we both did the canoe. The run was just over 5 miles (5.14) and I ran it in 47:49. When you consider that my 2010 5-mile PR was 52:04, that's pretty awesome.

My teammate and I post-race and pre-wedding. 

I finished out April with my 2nd running of the Arbutus Spring Fling 5K, which I finished in 27:28. Not a PR, but still a 2:58 improvement over 2010!

May: No races in May, but I really got into my tri-training with the Wonder Women.

June: I celebrated my 32nd birthday with what I dubbed "Extreme Sports Weekend." On Saturday, 6/4, my friend Katie and I ran the first-ever VA Wine Country Half-Marathon. I finished in 2:17:16, which was a PR at the time. Then, after a wonderful day of post-race wine tasting, I got up on Sunday and did a practice tri with the Wonder Women. I was pretty impressed with myself until my tri coach Ellen mentioned that she ran a full marathon on Saturday... and won.

Katie and I post-race in VA Wine Country!

With the Wonder Women on my 32nd birthday. 

Also in June, I ran two 10K's. The first was the AS Father's Day 10K on 6/19, which is the 3rd leg of the Champ Series. I finished that one in 1:01:37, a 2011 PR and an improvement of 5:19 over 2010. The second was the Dreaded Druid Hills 10K on 6/25. That race truly lived up to its name, but I still managed to finish in 1:05:15.

Dreaded Druid Hills. This is at the start, which is why I don't look like I'm in agony. 

July: This was a crazy month, including the most intense training for IronGirl and the start of my 2011 marathon training. Somehow, I also squeezed in two races: 

On 7/9, I ran the AS Women's Distance Festival 5K. In 2010, I twisted my ankle on a trail run the night before this race and had to drop out. This year, I finished in 27:30. 

Still smiling: must be lap 1!

On 7/16, I ran the AS Wall Mile, which is the 4th leg of the Champ Series. I was trying to finish under 8 minutes, having clocked a 7:44 mile during training with the Wonder Women. Unfortunately, I shot myself in the foot by showing up early to put in some extra mileage for the day. A 5-mile warmup meant that I had to fight for every second of my 8:11 finishing time. Still, that's an official 1-mile PR and a 16-second improvement over 2010. Also, the AS photographer took a great picture of me crossing the finish line: 

Look at me go! 

August: This was probably the biggest month of my athletic year: the month of my first real triathlon! Before the tri, though, I ran the AS Dog Days 8K on 8/7, which was the 5th leg of the Champ Series. Marie and I did a tough bike ride beforehand, so this race was a struggle. I finished in 52:52, an improvement of 2:18 over 2010. 

Then, 8/21 was the big day: IronGirl! This was my first triathlon and it was both harder and more fun than I ever imagined. I finished in about 2:45 and I am looking forward to cutting that time in 2012! 

My training buddy Marie- I would not have survived without her! 

On August 28th, I had a big disappointment: for the 2nd year in a row, I didn't get to run the A10. In 2010 it was my appendix; in 2011, it was Hurricane Irene. On the bright side, I used the extra time to go on a first date with the guy who is now my amazing boyfriend. So, I guess that all worked out! 

September: After August, I shifted gears from focusing on IronGirl to focusing on November's NYC marathon. I also ran two races: 

On 9/11, I ran the Parks Half-Marathon for the 2nd time. I was hoping to finish in 2:15, but that dream ended early in the race when I waited in a bathroom line for 7 minutes. Instead, I finished in 2:22:02. I was a little bummed, but that's still an improvement of over 11 minutes from the previous year. Even better, Parks was my worst half of 2011, but I ran it faster than my best half of 2010 (which was 2:24:05). Woot!  

On 9/24, I ran 2 laps of a 40-mile ultra trail race with my friends Krista and Ray. The full race was 5 laps. I did a total of 16 miles, Krista did 24, and Ray did the whole 40! This was a serious trail race and I did not want to get injured, so Krista and I took it easy and enjoyed the sights. As a result, our shared 16 miles took about 4 hours. Not fast, but fun! 

This trail was MUDDY! It's a miracle I didn't fall. 

October: Two big races this month! The first was the AS Metric Marathon on 10/2. I went out way too fast in this race and the last few miles were AWFUL. Still I managed to knock almost 10 minutes off my 2010 time, finishing in 2:55:31. This was the 6th leg of the Champ Series. 

On 10/15, I ran the Baltimore Half Marathon in 2:16:31. I could not have been happier. Baltimore is a tough race and I managed a PR and a 10:01 improvement from 2010! 

I was very proud of this medal! 

November: This was the 2nd-biggest month of my athletic year: marathon month! The first weekend of the month was Extreme Sports Weekend 2 of 2011: 

On Saturday, 11/5, I did the worker run for the AS Down's Park 5-miler, which is the 7th leg of the Champ Series. My time for this race is unofficial, but I clocked myself at 48:35, which is 3:21 faster than 2010. 

On Sunday, 11/6, I ran my 2nd marathon: NYC! Despite some intestinal issues, I had an amazing day and finished in 5:31:05. That's over 38 minutes faster than my 2010 marathon time! Even better, I got to spend time with great friends and support a great cause: St. Lydia's church in Brooklyn. I even got a Christmas card: 

The marathon wasn't the end of my racing month. On 11/19, I ran the inaugural Annapolis Half Marathon. Both the race directors and I had some issues, but I enjoyed seeing many local friends and finished in 2:19:25. 

The race wasn't perfect, but the medal was beautiful! 

December: In December, I hit a racing milestone: I ran a race for the 3rd year in a row. The race was the AS Anniversary 15K, which is the 8th and final leg of the Champ Series. I had a great race, finishing in 1:37:44. That's nearly 7 minutes faster than 2010 and over 16 minutes faster than 2009! This race also sealed my 2011 IronMan award. 

IronMan award, here I come! 

I finished my 2011 racing season on 12/17, with my first running of the Celtic Solstice 5-miler. I was not feeling it in this race, but I was determined to set an official 5-mile PR and I did it: 49:28! 

All in all, an amazing year. Counting my two tri's (Ridgway and IronGirl), I completed 22 races and set PR's in every distance. For every race I ran in both 2010 and 2011, I finished faster in 2011. According to my calendar, I worked out 253 out of 365 days in 2011 (an average of 4.9 times/week) and ran a total of 568 miles.

I could not have done any of this without the amazing love and support of you: my family, friends, and readers! I can't wait to share 2012 with you! 

IronGirl!



Marie and I pre-race, trying to stay calm.

I survived! IronGirl/tri #1 is in the books now, and it was awesome. Shockingly, I don't have much energy for post-race processing at the moment (or for much other than sitting and eating), but here's a quick run-down and some photos:

Around 7AM, we had an unexpected downpour. This is the finish seen through the rain. The result: a delayed start and VERY soggy shoes!

Arrival: I heeded all the dire warnings and got there super-early. My mom (who is a trooper) and I left Annapolis at 4:15AM and were there by 5. I was set up by about 5:15 and then just had to wait until I went in the water at 8:10. I might not go so early again, as I had way too much time to sit around and get nervous. The upshot, though, was that I also had time to go to the bathroom a bunch of times and I did not have to stop mid-race (a rarity).

My mom got this great shot of my swim wave going off.

The Swim: All of my panicked, last-minute swim training definitely paid off. I'm pretty sure I knocked at least 5 minutes off my dress rehearsal time. I still back-stroked much of it, but it was a much more coordinated effort this time out- I never felt like I was just out there flailing around. Also, it went by pretty quickly, as opposed to the dress rehearsal which felt endless. So, I left the water feeling pretty good.

Transition #1: I will be interested to see my transition times when the results come out, because I felt like I moved pretty quickly. Swim-to-bike it the more complicated transition and it went really smoothly. Again, I was VERY lucky to (randomly) get a prime spot in the transition area.

The Bike: Like the swim, this went better than expected. I still feel so inexperienced on the bike that I was worried I would just get in the way of other riders. Fortunately, my first bike race was much like my first running race: I quickly realized the plenty of people were no more skilled or better prepared, and quite a few were less so. This was actually the first time I really enjoyed the bike ride, and it went by pretty fast. My one problem was that I have a hard time taking a drink and putting my bottle back while riding. As a result, I'm pretty sure I did not hydrate or re-fuel enough, and I paid for it on the run.

Transition #2: This was very simple, especially since I rode my bike in my running shoes. I did take a minute to take the huge drink of water I had been dreaming about my whole bike ride!

The Run: I expected this to be "my" leg of the tri, but it was BRUTAL. I did quite a few multi-sport workouts in my training, but nothing prepared me for this level of accumulated fatigue. The super-hilly course and the fact that everyone around me seemed to be walking did not help. I got through mile 1 without walking, but I think I walked more of 2 than I ran. Then, as I finished mile 2, my friend Scott met me on the trail. He ran with me for most of the last mile, which was just the motivation I needed to get to the finish line running. By the time I hit the finish, I was in the midst of a wave of stomach cramps that persisted for the next half-hour... but I was still really happy!

Marie and I celebrate being IronGirls!

 

Walking over to greet friends and family. My mom missed me at the finish line, but I don't mind because the reason is that I came in 10 minutes earlier than expected!

Recovery: As I mentioned, I had a fun little bout of stomach cramps post-race, but they subsided after about 30 mins of sitting, a snack, and some water. Now, I am at home addressing my insatiable post-race hunger and trying to sneak in a nap. I have a massage appointment first thing in the morning, for which I am very grateful!

A favorite post-race recovery tool, and the closest I want to get to an Ironman.

All in all, this was an amazing day! I am as giddy as I had hoped to be after MCM, and as I hope I will be again after NYC! Thanks for all your support, friends!

The night before.

IronGirl is tomorrow! I don't have a whole lot to say about it that I didn't cover in my last post, but I do have a few photos from the final preprations:

I got this wristband at the Expo yesterday and I will wear it until I leave the event tomorrow. No backing out now! The volunteer who put it on said I had the smallest wrists she had seen. One of the few ways I look like my Mom.

My bike, all racked and ready to go. I got an excellent spot in the transition area, for which I am very thankful!

My main gear bag. I also have a smaller bag for food and trash. I have to take a lot of stuff to this thing, but it is much less complicated than packing for a triathlon AND a wedding!

So that's that. Everything is ready, and now I just have to figure out how to get to sleep so I can get up at 3:30AM. This morning, when I woke up from a stress dream about forgetting my timing chip, I decided that I am officially more nervous about this event than I was about MCM. I think MCM just felt simpler- all I had to do was run, and I know how to run. Tomorrow, I have to swim, transition, bike, transistion again, and then run, and the run is the only thing I'm sure I know how to do. Yet, on the whole, I think I am better prepared for IronGirl than I was for MCM, and I am also more excited.

Stay tuned for the race report!

Are you ready?

This photo is from the John Wall 1-miler back in July,
but I hope to create a similar image on Sunday!

This is a question several people have asked me over the past few days. According to the countdown clock on the IronGirl website, my first triathlon is (as of this second) 3 days, 10 hours, and 44 minutes away! So, I suppose "Are you ready?" is an appropriate question.

Answer: Yes and no. At this point, I am confident that I can finish and that I will not go through the misery I experienced during my first marathon. I am definitely better prepared for this race than I was for that one. At the same time, I feel like I finally figured out exactly how I should be training and got in a good groove over the past three weeks. So, its hard not to think about how much better prepared I would be if I had figured it all out sooner.

But I'm trying not to think about that! Instead, I'm focusing on one of the lessons I learned from MCM, which is that you can only be so prepared for something you are doing for the first time. Nothing about all the training I put in really prepared me for what it was like to run a marathon. Now, the second time around, I feel like I have a much better idea of what I'm doing and what I need to do to be ready. I assume the same will be true of triathlons. Which, of course, means I'll have to do at least one more...

Here's a sport-by-sport breakdown of how I'm feeling:

1) The swim. I started swimming all the way back in January, but I had a very hard time establishing a consistent training schedule. The problem is that the closest indoor pool is about 10-15 mins from my house and often crowded. The best time for me to go there is on weekday evenings, and I have a hard time getting motivated to do much of anything after work. For awhile, I was getting there for an hour every Friday evening, but then summer rolled around and the pool started closing on Fridays. D'oh!

Finally, in late July, I contacted the athletic director of a small college less than a block from my office in DC. It turned out that I could get unlimited use of their pool- which includes a locker, towel service, and parking- until October 1st for $100. Problem solved. Now, I go there on my lunch breaks or right after work and feel like an idiot that I didn't ask about it sooner. Since I joined that pool, I have swam at least 2-3 times/week every week, and my swimming has improved by leaps and bounds. I still expect that I will have to backstroke a decent portion of the swim leg, but I am hopeful that I will improve a good bit over my dress rehearsal performance.

2) The bike. I expect the bike to be my weakest leg by far. Unlike the swim, I have never found a consistent bike training routine. Some weeks, I get to a couple of spin classes and ride around my neighborhood. Then, I'll go for a couple weeks without riding at all. Over the past two weeks, I have done three rides with my friend Marie, including two rides on the IronGirl course itself. These rides have made a big difference, so I wish I had started doing them sooner. My first trip around the IG course was miserable. The second- which was only a week later- was much better. I think that knowing what I was in for made a difference, but I was also better fueled on my second trip and I had added toe clips to my bike. So, I'm hopeful that my third tour of the course will be my best yet, even if I still have significant room for improvement.

3) The run. I was always best prepared for this leg, and that has not changed. Still, the run course is very challenging. I think the keys for this part will be staying focused and fueled. When Marie and I did our bike-to-run workout a couple weeks ago, I definitely did not eat enough and the run was miserable. So, I will absolutely be packing extra fuel for the bike-to-run transition. I'm hopeful that the excitement of getting to do what I'm best at will give me an extra push at the end of the race!

Double Dog.

This past Sunday, the day after my first long run in a long time (see previous post), I did my second run of the Annapolis Striders' Dog Days XC 8K. I ran this race last year with my former roommate Katie. Afterward, we spent several hours helping some friends move. All in all, an exhausting day.

This year, I continued the trend of doubling up on the exausting activities. In order to practice our bike-to-run transition, Marie and I went for a 45-minute bike ride before the race. Our bike ride was not very hard, but the combo of the previous day's run, the bike ride, and the race was brutal. I love running cross-country, but I did not enjoy a second of this race. The first half was total misery. By the halfway point, I had stopped caring about my time and I took a long walk break at a water stop. Fortunately, Marie and one of her friends caught up with me at that stop. Joining up with them gave me the motivation to run again and some distraction for the second half of the race. I wound up finishing in 52:42, a decent improvement over last year's 55:24. I'm pretty sure I could have done better had I not been so exhausted, but that's the way it goes.

Speaking of bikes, tonight I finally attached some toe clips to my pedals. When I started tri-training, I had intended to get clipless pedals, but I never came up with the money for the pedals nor the time to practice with them. Instead, I picked up a pair of $7 toe clips with straps at REI, and- with a lot of help from the internet- attached them to my own pedals. Once they were attached, I got up on the bike and promptly learned that getting into the clips is not easy. On the advice of a tri-training book, I practiced on my grass so that I would have a soft landing if I fell. It took a good hour before I could get into the clips fairly consistently. Once I sort of had the hang of it, I rode up the street to an empty parking lot... and learned that the tip about practicing on grass is really bad advice. Yes, I would have a soft landing if I fell off the bike. However, getting in and out of the clips on a bumpy surface is a million times harder than doing it on pavement. I would have saved at least 30 minutes by skipping straight to the parking lot. Another lesson learned. Sometimes I think tri training is as much a mental workout at a physical one!

Cramming.

The above photo aptly captures my entire educational and professional life before my ADHD diagnosis. Back then, I simply could not focus on any assignment or task until the night before, or- more often- the night after it was due. Then, I would work in a frantic haze of misery until I collapsed onto my (usually sub-par) product. It was not a fun way to live. I never could have done something as complex and preparation-heavy as a marathon or triathlon in those days because I completely lacked the ability to plan ahead and do the necessary groundwork.

Several years into ADHD treatment, things are much better, but I still do more cramming than I would like. Nowadays, when I sit down the night before a sermon, paper, or work assignment is due, the task before me is not impossible because I have done a good bit of the groundwork. Still, there is a certain level of concentration I'm able to achieve only in the face of a looming deadline. I often think about how much easier life would be if I could summon even a little of that focus before the last minute. 

I've been thinking about this a lot this week, because I'm coming down to the wire on my tri-training (2 weeks to go!) and getting close to it on my marathon training (90 days!). I signed up for Iron Girl on November 1st, and started studying tri training plans almost immediately. I started swimming in January, bought my bike in March, and worked with the Wonder Women from April-June. So, I've had plenty of time and resources, and yet I never achieved the consistency in training I knew I needed... That is, until last week when the Iron Girl dress rehearsal scared the heck out of me (see previous post).

Since struggling through those swim and run courses last weekend, I have attacked my training with a vigor I wish I had found earlier this summer. I've been swimming every other day, doing bike-to-run workouts, and I even got my friend Marie to take me out on the actual bike course. I'm pretty sure I sweated out my whole body weight twice over in the last seven days alone. At this point, I'm sure I'll make it through the event, but I hope that I can summon this concentration a little earlier next year so that I can set a higher goal than mere survival.

My marathon training had gone off course a little in the past few weeks as well, mainly due to some other weekend commitments. This Saturday, I joined the Striders' marathon training group for the first time since early July. We were scheduled to run 16 miles, but I knew I wasn't ready for that, so I did 12 instead. Normally, we meet at a park and run on the B&A trail as a group, but I've been experimenting with a slightly different plan. In order to lessen the boredom of running for so long on the trail, train for the hillier NYC course, and prepare myself for running a marathon on my own, I've started running to the long runs from my house. This knocks 7 miles off my time with the group (3.5 to get there, 3.5 to get home), adds several hills to the route, and means that I do a little more than half of each long run by myself. Thus far, I think this is a good strategy for me, but it is challenging- particularly the final 3.5 miles when I have to motivate myself to get back home!

Let the countdowns begin!

Sink or...?

Its August 2nd, which means my first triathlon, Iron Girl Columbia, is officially less than 3 weeks away. I've known for awhile that my training is not where it needs to be, and I got an excellent reminder of that this past Saturday. Iron Girl stands out from other sprint tris in a few ways, and this weekend highlighted two of them:

(1) It is longer than most sprint-distance events. According to Triathlon Training for Dummies (which I have indeed read), most sprint tris consist of a .5 mile swim, a 12-16 mile bike ride, and a 3.1 mile run. Iron Girl, however, is a .62 mile swim, a 17.5 mile bike ride, and a 3.3 mile run. Those sound like tiny differences, but they are actually quite significant when (a) they involve sports that are totally new to me, and (b) the course itself is very challenging.

(2) Iron Girl offers a free "dress rehearsal" to all entrants: a chance to practice en masse on the actual swim and bike courses. That's what happened this past Saturday, and I am so grateful that I participated!

Prior to Saturday, I had done two open-water swims as part of my tri training group. I did not know the distance we covered in either, nor did I know how that distance compared to the Iron Girl swim. Now I know: the Iron Girl swim is much, much longer. .62 miles is a LONG way when you are not a very strong swimmer. I really struggled with the swim; in fact, it joins a very short list of athletic endeavors where I really was not sure I could finish. The only thing that got me through was the backstroke. In my recent pool workouts, I have been working on my breast stroke and backstroke, so that I can use them when I need to rest during the tri. This turned out to be a very good idea, because I probably backstroked 50% of the practice swim. You may be wondering how I did this without running into anyone. Answer: I didn't. I had a few minor collisions and one bigger one, in which another swimmer (accidentally) punched me in the jaw and then dragged her nail down my neck. I happened to be speaking at a church that evening, so it was a little unfortunate that I looked like I had been in a fight.

This swim definitely put some fear into me. I really need to step up my swimming over the next 2 1/2 weeks because I do not want to rely so heavily on the backstroke in the actual event. It was hard enough to avoid other swimmers at the practice; I know it will be even harder in the actual event (which is much bigger).

After I finished the swim, my friend Marie and I decided to try the run course. I think we both set out with a mindset of "Its only 3.3 miles, how hard can it be?" Answer: hard. The run course is very hilly, and hilly in what I would call a "Baltimore-esque" way: it seems to have much more uphill than downhill. Marie and I both struggled through the course at a 10:35 pace, which is definitely slower than either of our usual 5K paces. I can only imagine how the run will feel after both the swim and the bike!

Later this week, I'm going to meet Marie again to try out the bike course. I'm imagine that this will also be a fear-inducing experience, but if fear makes me work harder for the next 19 days, then I welcome it!

Best Week Ever, pt. 2: Wonder Women.

The Spring 2011 Wonder Women (I'm in the back, wearing blue).
Photo by Ellen Ormsby.

Welcome to the second installment of my 32nd birthday week adventures: my practice tri and party with the Wonder Women training group.

Before I tell you about the tri, though, an update on the Wine Country Race: Last night, I checked the official results and learned that Katie and I clocked in at 2:17:16. That means I beat my previous PR (2:18:55) by over a minute, and Katie beat hers by 5 minutes! I was really susprised and pleased to see that time. What makes it even better is the fact that my 2:18 half felt really hard and this one felt relatively easy. I would say the courses were equivalent in difficulty, which means I am getting fitter and faster!

"Fitter and faster" is a good segue back to tri-training, because tri-training deserves much of the credit for my improvement. As many of you know, I have been training with the Wonder Women group (through Annapolis Parks and Rec) since April. Our session lasted from April 3-June 5th, meeting for two hours every Sunday. Even though we only met once per week, the prospect of those weekly workouts provided plenty of incentive to step it up during the rest of the week.

Despite the fact that everyone in the group was super-nice and our coaches encouraged us to work at our own pace, I never got past a certain intimidation factor. Every time I glanced at our training schedule I would be gripped by thoughts like "Bike ride next Sunday- I better get pedaling if I don't want to make an a** of myself," or "Open water swim- I better get to the pool if I don't want to drown." Some might argue that intimidation and fear are not the best motivators, but I can point to a whole slew of improvements made since April (faster run times, ability to stay upright on my bike, marked decrease in flailing in the water) which suggest otherwise.

This Sunday, I faced the culmination of all the fear, intimidation and improvements made during this Wonder Woman session: the practice tri. Our coaches set up a transition area near a local community beach and mapped out our course: an open water swim of undetermined distance (it took people 10-15 minutes), a 10.1-mile bike ride, and a 3.37-mile run.

Surviving last week's open water swim helped me approach the practice tri with more excitement than dread, but I was still nervous. Among our group, I am one of the slowest on the swim and the absolute slowest on the bike. Given the fact that the bike is the longest leg of the event, I knew I would finish last. I was okay with that, but I didn't want to get so far behind that I had to cut off some part of the course or make everyone stand around forever waiting for me. In many ways, I approached this event like I used to approach races: with no goal other than finishing without humiliating myself.  

Of course, I made even this low-bar goal a challenge by running the wine country race the day before the practice tri. When I woke up Sunday morning, I was relieved to find that I had only minor stiffness and soreness and (miracle or miracles) no noticeable hangover from all the wine. That afternoon, I took a couple of Advil and some Alka-Seltzer just to be on the safe side, packed up my gear, and headed to our makeshift course hoping for the best.

The swim was not my finest hour. We started out swimming to the left of a barrier, but within a few strokes, the water got too shallow to continue. Everyone starting bumping into the bottom and standing up, laughing. We moved to the other side of the barrier, where the water was much deeper. I could still touch the bottom, but just barely. The deeper water freaked me out a bit and made it harder to get into a swimming groove. In the end, I gave in to to fatigue and nerves sooner than I needed to, and walked along the bottom more than I should have.

Things got better on the bike. Once I started pedaling, I could definitely feel the accumulated fatigue in my legs, but it wan't too bad. The course was beautiful, with plenty of downhills and flats and no super-steep heels. Even better, our coach Andrea joined me on my second of three loops and rode with me to the end, keeping up a running conversation about counseling and wellness. It was just the distraction I needed, and the time passed quickly.

After the bike, I headed off on my own for the run. At this point, I am not steady enough on my bike to grab my water bottle while riding. Thus, I completed the whole bike leg without taking a drink. In the transition area, I quickly gulped down some Gatorade, and then headed out, leaving the bottle behind. I realized pretty quickly that this was a mistake. It was hot, and I was tired and dehydrated. The first few minutes of the run were miserable, and I wondered if I would be able to finish without walking. Then, I looked down and saw "1-mile" chalked onto the road by our coaches. I glanced at my watch and saw that I had only been running for a little over 8 minutes. So, despite feeling lousy, I was making good time and already 1/3 of the way there. I rallied and finished the 3.37 mile run in just over 30 minutes, just a bit off my recent 5K pace.

After the practice tri and a group photo (see above), I invited the rest of the group back to my house to celebrate the end of our session and the birthdays of myself and our coach Ellen. My wonderful friends Nancy, Jessie and Liz had volunteered to get my house ready during the practice tri, so I returned home to find the grill lit, chairs set up, and all the yummy food laid out. (FYI- I have awesome friends.) We had a great, low-key party, which was the ideal end to my action-packed birthday weekend.

The next morning, I logged on to Facebook and saw this great article about our group. Its wonderful to see our coaches getting the recognition they deserve, and I hope it motivates more women to join!

Stay tuned for the final installment of Best Week Ever, in which I will tell the stories of everything else that happened during my birthday week, including my niece's high school graduation and my first non-humiliating encounter with a favorite writer.

Victories!

I returned home Sunday evening after a whirlwind week of conference, college reunion, and a fun little bout of food poisoning. I will write all about these events if/when I get caught up on all of my backlogged work and emails. I want to take a moment, though, to share two victories which happened this weekend:

1) I passed the NCE (National Counselor Exam)! This puts me one step closer to being licensed as a counselor, though I still have quite a bit of bureaucracy to swim through befor I get there.

2) Speaking of swimming, I did my first open water swim Sunday afternoon. I was terrifed, but it was actually- dare I say- fun. I am still anxious about what will happen when I swim in open water too deep to touch down, surrounded by other swimmers. Still, this swim did a lot to reduce my anxiety and I'm actually looking forward to the next one. 

Okay, back to work. I'll write more soon!

What did happen this weekend.

I promise I was happy, but the sun was in my eyes!

I think we all know by now what didn't happen this weekend, so I'll talk about what did happen:

1) I graduated! My mom and I attended a banquet for just the pastoral counseling department Friday night, and then the main Loyola graduation on Saturday. It was all very nice. The Loyola PC faculty really made a point of showing up to everything, meeting our families, and expressing their pride. It was much appreciated. My mom commented that "Everyone is so nice- but I guess you picked the right field for that." I couldn't have said it better!

2) My tri-training class revisited our first workout: a bike ride followed by a mile run. I still struggled, but I was much improved over the first time around. Kate, my boot camp instructor, was subbing for one of our other coaches this week, and she did me the enormous favor of making some adjustments to my bike. I had the bike fitted, but I apparently needed a second opinion, because Kate's changes made a HUGE difference. For weeks, I've been watching other people zip along on their bikes thinking "How are they doing that?" As soon as Kate adjusted the bike, I thought "Oh, that's how!"

I also knocked about a minute off my mile-run time. I was expecting an improvement, as I did our last mile-run just a few hours after a 10-mile race, but I was still (pleasantly) surprised by my time. The odd thing is that the last mile-run felt effortless and this one was a struggle from start to finish. I finally got a diagnosis for my mystery illness (see previous post)- a sinus infection. I've been taking antibiotics for a week, which has made things much better, but also moved everything that was trapped in my head and chest down into my throat and stomach. Thus, this week's run was all about nausea from start to finish. Kate was running next to me, giving me what I am sure was good advice, but I was too busy willing myself not to throw up to listen. I finally had to slow down a bit toward the end, which I hate doing, but not as much as I hate puking in public!

Now, I am off to a young adult ministry conference in NJ followed by my 10-year college reunion (woo-hoo!).* I am looking forward to both things, but I am actually sad about being away from the gym! Fortunately, I have worked time to run into my schedule and I am spening one night in a hotel with a gym and pool. So, hopefully I won't be too behind when I get back next week.

*Attention internet opportunists: my roommate will be home all week, so go rob someone else!*