Tag Archives: running

Back on the Workout Wagon.

27 Sep

{source}

I run across this bridge almost every run I go on (they do allow bikes on the bridge, just not in the river).

Last night, I had been planning on doing yoga when I got home from work but since it was my only free night this week (tonight I have book study, tomorrow is care group and Thursday I fly to MN), I decided to do my “long run” of 5 miles.

It was low 80s and sunny but since it’s not humid out here in CO, it actually felt really nice outside. I took the pooches out for the first 1.5 miles, then dropped them at home, and ran another 3.5 (crossing the bridge above). My legs felt great – strong, stable. I felt like I was cruising! My first mile of the last 3.5 was at a 10:50 pace and I swear there was another 10:30 mile in there somewhere (according to my math-while-running) but my pace came out at 11:23/mile for the whole run (58:39 for 5.15 miles).

I have to admit, I was more than slightly disappointed. I think even shooting for an 11:00/mile pace for this half marathon relay is going to be a stretch. Has my 10:00/mile pace vanished forever? What once seemed slow now seems so fast that it’s out of reach. Hmph. I am not a fan of getting older. Hopefully once I start doing speed work again, my pace will pick back up.

But anyway, with the exception of my disappointing pace, it was actually an excellent run. So there’s that.

I think one of the reason I was so slow last year (consistently running 12:30-12:45 pace) was that I didn’t engage many of my leg muscles when running – like I wasn’t using muscle to propel myself forward but just inertia. Sometimes it seriously felt like I was running in place. Last night, I concentrated on using my muscles to push me forward, even when my legs got tired. It’s kind of hard to explain but you know how when you sprint, you kind of sink down into your legs and don’t do as much vertical movement? It’s like that, only not as intense. Anyway, it makes my legs feel stronger and less achy. My injury last year has made me very distrustful of my legs and knee joints. I just keep thinking that any run, the pain could return. I’m going to try really hard to not let that happen this year!

After my run, I vacuumed, washed laundry (still have to put it away), and did the dishes. We ate the Zesty Black Bean Chili from the crockpot for dinner. While the soup was delicious and I really liked the consistency of the wheat berries, man, that soup was spicy! The recipe called for a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce – they definitely cranked up the heat. It was borderline too spicy for me but Travis really enjoyed it. I froze the rest of the soup, so that Travis will have something to eat over the weekend while I’m gone. (Because even though he can cook and grocery shop, he refuses to.)

This morning, I finally got up when my alarm went off at 5:30, instead of hitting the snooze or resetting it for a later time. I did 60 minutes of Yoga X (the video that made me so sore last week) and was pleasantly surprised that after 45 minutes of pretty intense Vinyasa yoga, they go into doing balance poses – which although still challenging, don’t make me sweat like a man. I think I could do all 90 minutes if I ever have the time. But don’t worry – I still got my butt kicked today. I am so pathetically inflexible right now! In future triathlon seasons, I must find a way to fit yoga into my routine. It sucks having to gain back all the flexibility I lost since April.

I was nervous about being incredibly sore again tomorrow, so after I showered, I put Biofreeze on the parts that had been sore before – my hamstrings and biceps. I got several free samples from races this summer but had yet to try it. Holy cow that stuff is intense! It felt like I had sat in the snow for 10 minutes, then gone into a hot tub. Not painful, just…well, for lack of a better word, freezing. I put my clothes on and it felt like the back of my pants and sleeves were wet. So weird. Luckily, the feeling went away after 25 minutes or so. We’ll see if it was worth it tomorrow morning!

On the docket for tonight:

  • Finish laundry
  • Make banana bread while Travis grills dinner (brats, potatoes, and zucchini)
  • Book study
  • Pack for MN
  • Clean bathrooms (if I have time/energy)

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Sickness + Sore Muscles = Suck

23 Sep

Yesterday, after typing up my marathon training plan, I was all gung-ho to get back on the exercise horse. So I ran to the Rec (3.15 miles round trip) and did 30 minutes of intervals on the elliptical while I was there. I kept an eye on my heart rate but I was so tired and sluggish that my problem wasn’t keeping my heart rate low enough, but getting it high enough. My run was at a 11:50/mile pace but it felt a lot slower.

I did the first 30 minutes of Yoga X (from P90X) on Tuesday morning and I am just now getting over the soreness. And it was weird soreness – the front of my biceps and my hamstrings. Weird. My arms were still so sore yesterday that they hurt while I was running. It always amazes me how the human body adapts to exercises. I can do an Olympic triathlon and hardly be sore at all but I do 30 measly minutes of yoga and I can barely walk. What’s up with that? Anyway, I also had high aspirations to do strength training last night but after 15 lunges on each leg, discovered that my legs were completely shot.

Then during the night, Charlie woke up at 3 am and started whining and banging around in her crate. I either have the world’s best hearing or have a mother’s sixth sense because I can hear Charlie over a fan and through a closed door. Grrrrr… I got up once and told her to stop whining. She kept doing it. Travis was moving around a little then so I asked him if he thought she had to poop and if I should let her out. He said “Maybe” and “Probably” and then very chivalrously offered to let her out himself. As he stumbled over to the closet to find some shorts and rummaged around for 30 seconds, I told him I might as well do it since I was already wide awake and was fully clothed. So he went back to bed.

Charlie did have to go. As I put her back in her crate and went back to bed, I thought about how our relationship with Katy is so different from ours with Charlie. Katy is very predictable and always has been. So if she pooped or puked inside the house, you knew there was something wrong – it was so out of character for her. But Charlie has seriously been (to use Winston Churchill’s description of Christopher Columbus that I learned in college) “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.” We have not been able to figure her out. There is no predicting what she will or will not do.

But I feel like we’re making very slow progress with this. This morning, when I sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast, Charlie went over and sniffed at the laundry room door (the way they get outside). I let her out and she went and did her thing. Yay! She didn’t poop inside! Progress!

The downside of getting up to let her out was that I couldn’t get back to sleep for the life of me. I think I finally fell back asleep around 4:30. I don’t know why but when I go to bed, I don’t have any trouble falling asleep. But when I try to fall back asleep in the wee hours of the morning, I always have tons of thoughts running through my head – about work, what I’m going to wear, what I’m going to have for breakfast, if I should work out in the morning or wait until after work, what I’m going to bring for lunch, etc. This stuff does NOT need to be decided at 4 am!

"Yeah, I'm a lot of work."

Needless to say, working out this morning did not happen. I actually didn’t get up until 7:30! Katy started doing her low groaning thing in our bedroom around 6:30 because she wanted to be fed. So I got up, fed them, put Charlie back in her crate and went back to bed. But I just laid there, psyching myself out, paranoid that they were whining. Bah! So I got back up at 7, put them in the backyard (with Charlie on a cable so she couldn’t jump over the fence like she does all the time now), and went back to bed for another 30 minutes. Again, no sleep. Just too lazy to actually stay out of bed. I think I’m understanding my husband more these days…

And on top of everything, I woke up feeling more sick than I did yesterday. This cold is tougher to kick than I thought! So I guess I should ease off and do some more yoga and easy cardio.

I’m feeling very relieved that I only have to run 5 miles in the half marathon relay! And that today is Friday! Our weekend is pretty open so far – I’m having coffee with my friend Cathy tomorrow and then we’re having a “last of the summer” care group BBQ on Sunday afternoon. My only goal is to get our office cleaned up. That has been my dumping ground for the last 4 months and it shows!

Do you have any plans for the weekend?

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Marathon in 2012

22 Sep

Marathon Training Plan

So remember when I said I was excited to not have a training plan since triathlon season is over?

Well, that’s not really going to happen.

You see, I want to run this little thing they call a marathon in May 2012 (I’m eyeing the Stillwater Marathon in MN, which should be the last weekend of May). While I had been {stupidly} thinking that I could sit on my butt until January rolled around and then start a training plan, almost every website and person I’ve talked to has said that I need to be running 15-25 miles per week before I even start the training program. And since I’m not the world’s smartest runner, I guess I’ll trust them…

Since I’ve been training for triathlons and not concentrating on running, my weekly mileage has been somewhere in the single digits. Paltry. All of this means that to avoid injury, my marathon base building starts right after the Denver Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon Relay. Real marathon training starts on January 23.

To be honest, I’m kind of excited. Marathon, here I come! You will not evade me in 2012!

But since I have really missed doing yoga, pilates, the elliptical, and yes, even weight-lifting, my base-building plan includes 2 days of cross-training and strength training, 3 days of running (1 regular, 1 speed, 1 long), and 2 days of rest.

Base Training Plan

I think I can handle that.

For my marathon training plan, I used Hal Higdon’s Novice 1 Plan but I might sub out the runs on Monday for the same amount of cross-training, depending on how I feel. I think coming up with training plans is so stressful. I’m wary of running 4 days a week because I got injured last year from over-training. But if I don’t add in that extra day, my mileage won’t be that high. I decided to put the run on the schedule and will play it by ear whether that day should be an easy run or cross-training.

Like I have mentioned before, I am going to do things differently this year for marathon training. Last year, I signed up for the full Malibu marathon but ended up running the half because my IT band flared up. So as you will note on my training plan this time around, I will strength train. I will do speed work. I will stretch. I will cross-train (mostly on the bike and in the pool).

I posted these plans on my new marathon page for future reference.

I have discovered one more thing that I think will help me a lot:

Heart rate training.

I bought a heart rate monitor back in 2009 when I was training for my first triathlon. But I don’t use it like you’re supposed to. I only wear it to time my workouts and know how many calories I burned. And sometimes I like to look at my heart rate for fun.

Well, since things have slowed down at work and I just read the SELF cover story featuring Lauren Graham, I’ve been doing a little research about why staying in your aerobic zone is so beneficial. Here’s what I found:

The more work you perform aerobically, or in the presence of oxygen, the more efficient you are. Prolonged aerobic training produces muscular adaptations that improves oxygen transport to the muscles, reduces the rate of lactate formation, improves the rate of lactate removal, and increases energy production and utilization. These adaptations occur slowly over time.

So why haven’t I been doing this? I asked myself.

The hard part of base training is having the discipline to train at these low intensities. It may mean running very slowly or even walking. It may mean separating from your training group in order to pursue your individual goals. It also means avoiding the contest of egos that group training often turns into. If you can find a training partner with similar goals and fitness level you may be able to train with them, but more often than not what I see is a base work gone awry. Even spending short amounts of time above your aerobic zone degrades the work out.

The area between the top of the aerobic threshold and anaerobic threshold is somewhat of a no mans land of fitness. It is a mix of aerobic and anaerobic states. For the amount of effort the athlete puts forth, not a whole lot of fitness is produced. It does not train the aerobic or anaerobic energy system to a high degree. This area does have its place in training; it is just not in base season. Unfortunately this area is where I find a lot of athletes spending the majority of their seasons, which retards aerobic development. The athletes heart rate shoots up to this zone with little power or speed being produced when it gets there. {source}

Hmmmm… so you’re saying that I’m such a slow runner because I’ve been refusing to say in my aerobic zone? You mean I have to slow down to get faster? I can do that.

Based on a few different calculators I found for Maximum Heart Rate (MHR), mine seems to be somewhere around 195. That means my Aerobic Zone is somewhere around 157 – 171. My heart rate is usually around 160-165 during a regular run, so that’s good.  Easy recovery runs are supposed to be done in the Fat Burning Zone: 143 – 157 beats per minute. I hardly ever do runs that slow.

I hope this knowledge impacts the way I train – so that I can make sure to not overdo things and see the benefits promised by aerobic training. And if it doesn’t, oh well. I’m just doomed to be slow.

I would, however, like to keep up the pace I have been running (11 min/mile) and possibly even improve that. I think the strength and cross training are going to be key.

Now I just need to find the motivation to finish my training plan for this blasted half marathon relay! We found out that it’s not split into two 10Ks – the first leg is 7.8 miles, the second is 5.3. So Travis decided to do the first leg. I can’t lie – I’m relieved. It’s not that I’m sick of training – it’s that I’m sick of trying to balance everything and constantly strategize about when to fit workouts in. I have so much other stuff that I want to (and have to) be doing! (What really should go is this job thing. 😉 ) But I’ve been thinking – working out is not only important because of my athletic aspirations, it’s also important because it keeps me healthy and enables me to keep up with the other areas of my life. So behind God, my husband and church (oh and work), exercising has to be a priority. No matter what else doesn’t get done.   

Any advice for me on my marathon training?

Do you pay attention to your heart rate during training?

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Race Recap: Crescent Moon Sprint Tri

18 Sep

Well, I ended up doing the triathlon. Travis convinced me that it would be more fun if I did it with him than if I just watched. And I went on a short run Friday after work and felt almost normal, although a little bit more tired. So I went for it.

We got up around 5 and left the house by 5:30. We arrived at the race site a little after 6 and rode our bikes from the parking area down to the transition area, where packet pickup was. After we racked our bikes and put our stuff down, we picked up our packets and got body-marked.

The morning started off very pretty.

But by the time the swim started, it clouded over. It was upper 50s and cloudy/rainy all day.

Travis and I had plenty of time before the race to get our stuff set up, go to the bathroom several times, survey the swim course, note all of the transition exits (there was a different chute for each entrance/exit!), and run a decent warmup (me feeling very tired and sluggish!). I loved the feeling of not being rushed. I also had purposefully drank hardly anything that morning so that I would not have a repeat of Steamboat (in having to pee a lot). I had hydrated well the week before the race and figured the distance was short enough that I’d be fine.

Right after we got back from our last bathroom break, we took off our sweatshirts and sweatpants and headed down to the swim. Travis was in the first wave so he got in the water to warm up and pretty soon, he was off. I tried to keep track of him but lost him pretty quickly in the sea of yellow caps. I prayed for him to have a good swim, since I knew how nervous/unsure he had been about it.

After two more waves took off, I got in the water to warm up. I didn’t wear my wetsuit again but wished I had. Man, the water was cold! They said it was 69 degrees, 1 degree warmer than Steamboat. Well, someone measured wrong either at Cherry Creek or Steamboat because there is no way that Steamboat was colder than Cherry Creek. It probably didn’t help that it was only in the mid-5os outside. But I forced myself to put my head in and swim around a bit. It wasn’t enjoyable but I’d live.

As soon as the wave before mine left, I got out of the water and stood in line. Brrrr! I tried to control my flailing limbs while counting the seconds down until I could get back into the water and get moving.

Finally, it was time to go. It was a beach start and they had positioned a small buoy about 40 feet from shore that you had to keep on your right, to prevent people from running down the beach instead of actually swimming. The gung-ho swimmers in the front did the whole Baywatch thing into the water. I ran a bit, then walked to give the women ahead of me a chance to move out a bit before I started swimming. I’ was in no rush.

I made sure to settle into my swim pace right off the bat and breathe calmly – and it worked. The 750 meter swim was very uneventful. But I was glad to see the finish flags and finally be out of the water.

My feet were like ice cubes as I ran the long stretch up to transition. But I was pleasantly surprised that I had energy. When Travis and I had walked that section earlier in the morning, it had felt very hard to breathe. I had decided that I didn’t have to run up to transition. But after the swim, running up that part didn’t feel too hard.

Official Swim Time (including run to TA): 24:59

Unofficial Swim Time (not including run): 22:30 

Once in transition, I noticed Travis’ bike was gone. He had survived the swim! I rinsed off my feet, got my socks and shoes on and then took a little extra time to dry off and put on a long sleeve shirt. With the clouds, cool weather and being wet, I didn’t want to be cold on the bike. I grabbed my helmet, sunglasses and bike and off I went.

Official T1 Time: 2:56

I had been expecting my legs to feel weird like they had at Steamboat but they didn’t. I started off the bike feeling good. Around mile 1.5, I took a drink of my water and missed the bottle cage as I was attempting to replace it. So I had to get off my bike and go back to get my water bottle. There were no aid stations on the bike and I wanted my water bottle. Bah.

Back on the bike, I passed some people, a lot of people passed me. I pushed it up the biggest hill and decided that from there on out, I would take it easy. I didn’t want to ruin my legs for the run, like I have a habit of doing. So I took it easy. And it definitely showed in my time!

Right at the turnaround, I decided to eat my Shotbloks. I had eaten 2 and was going for my third when I dropped them on the ground. What was wrong with me? I was dropping things like it was my job! I looked around for a USAT official who would ping me for abandoned equipment. All I saw was a dude on a motorcycle and he was not USAT so I left my Shotbloks, feeling stupid and bummed.

The road through Cherry Creek that we biked on is so ridiculously bumpy that I will never do a triathlon there again (unless they repave it). It was just not fun to be on it so by the time I got back to the transition area, I was so ready to be done.

I glanced at my bike computer as I was re-racking my bike and it read 12.2 miles, instead 11.5 miles, like the race officials said.

Official Bike Time: 46:12 (14.9 mph) 

By this time, the sun had started peeking out of the clouds and warming things up nicely so I ditched my long sleeve shirt, grabbed my hat and sunglasses, and left.

Official T2 Time: 1:06

Since the first triathlon I ever did was at this same venue, I was familiar with the run course – it was almost exactly the same one. The first .5 mile is all uphill, then it flattens out for .5 mile, then the last 2 miles are rolling hills. My legs actually felt great for the first mile. I pushed up the hill and when I reached the first mile marker, I calculated a 10:00/mile pace. Sweet!

The 2nd mile was at a 11:00/mile pace but then the bottom fell out in the 3rd mile. I like to think it’s because I was sick and wasn’t at 100% capacity but I stopped and walked a few times because my legs just felt tired. Finally, I was almost to the finish line. I saw Travis watching for me and encouraged him to run with me a little, which he did.

Official Run Time: 34:18 (11:04/mile) 

Official Overall Time: 1:49:30

My goal going in to the race was to hit 1:45, but really I would have been satisfied with anything under 2 hours. So I made it. Woohoo! Since the bike was longer and made this race closer to being the same distance as the Oktoberfest tri I back in 2009, I was interested to compare my 2 times. My times from before were:

Swim: 19:57

T1: 2:14

Bike: 46:34

T2: 1:09

Run: 34:07

I finished that race in 1:43:59. Ah well. I don’t really care all that much.

Travis, of course, beat me (I knew he would). It’s funny though – I did the swim and transitions faster, he did the bike (on a mountain bike!) and run faster. He creamed me on the run. Here are his splits:

Swim: 26:28 

T1: 3:08

Bike: 44:09 (15.6 mph)

T2: 1:23

Run: 24:58 (8:03/mile)

Total: 1:40:05

So he did great! I think he had a very positive experience and even talked about doing another triathlon next year. I am very proud of him and had a lot fun doing a race with him. It’s kind of funny – we both placed 180th in our sex! (There were a total of 470 finishers – 233 male and 242 females).

And with that, Triathlon Season 2011 is in the books. I did 3 Sprints and 1 Oly this year. I am satisfied and ready to not ride my bike again until I get it professionally fitted. Our half marathon relay is in 3 weeks and then Race Season 2011 is over. Have I mentioned how ready I am? 

As far as the race itself went, this event was put on by Racing Underground – a pretty well-known group in Denver. I’ve done several races that they’ve timed but this was the first I had done that they’ve put on. I think they did a lot of things well – their website is informative with course maps, they sent out a pre-race email, their packet pickup was very organized and the goodie bags were stuffed. They also had plenty of porta-potties and their music/microphones were loud enough to hear.

Some things they can improve on: when I heard that we would get sweatshirts instead of t-shirts, I was excited. But while I will wear the navy blue sweatshirt sans hood and enjoy it, I can’t see Travis – or really any other guy – wearing it. I mean, guys don’t really wear sweatshirts without hoods, unless they’re playing basketball or over 40. So that’s a bummer.

Plus, it looked like they spent more money on the sweatshirts and got rid of the finishers medals. I know there’s some debate about whether finishers medals are cool or just unnecessary. Those who do oodles of races (and win!) don’t really care. Well, I care. And my husband who just did his first race cares. I want a medal because I will never win an award!

The last thing I was bummed about was that they didn’t have any finish line food like bagels, bananas, etc. The only food they offered was the post-race meal – BBQ – and while I was pumped that it was something that sounded good and that I could probably eat without getting sick after the race (my stomach won’t tolerate anything too sweet), the line was 200 people long. It stretched across the parking lot. Granted, it was a pleasant day and the food looked good but we just didn’t feel like waiting in line. I wished I could have just grabbed a bagel and been done with it.

So Travis and I went home, showered and went to BWW instead. Mmmm… I tried the new Soft Pretzels. AMAZING! I will definitely get those again. They just hit the spot. I also got 8 Honey BBQ boneless wings but only ate 4 because I ate too much of the pretzels. Then we rented Thor (great movie – looking forward to the sequel!) and Your Highness (would NOT recommend because of all the dirty, disgusting humor) and laid on the couch for the rest of the day. Glorious.

I’m glad that I did the race but my body is not. I felt increasingly sick yesterday and today, my whole head is congested, I have a runny nose and am coughing/sneezing a lot. So I’m forced again today to take things easy and relax. I guess this is good – I always like the idea of resting in theory but when it comes down to actually doing it, being productive always sounds more appealing. So I am going to take the dogs on a walk, go buy some tomato soup to go with grilled cheese for dinner, and then I’m going to plop my rump on the sofa for the rest of the evening.

The only bummer about being sick while relaxing is that I feel too tired/groggy to read so I end up watching copious amounts of TV. (There’s me trying to sneak in productivity again!) Oh well – I’ll enjoy being a bum!

How was your weekend?

Have you ever done a race while sick/not feeling your best?

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Hiking is Humbling.

16 Sep

It’s no secret that I’m not a fast swimmer, biker or runner. When I tell people that I do triathlons, I always mention that I do them “for fun” and not for “breaking any records.” When people ask if I did well in a particular race, I usually say, “Yes… for me,” I guess to avoid the misrepresentation that I won an award or something.

And for the most part, I’ve come to accept the fact that I will never be “fast” relative to other triathletes. I mean, the female winners from these races do the swim in less than 1/2 the time it takes me (I’m too lazy to figure out what their speed is), their average bike pace is usually somewhere around 20 mph, and their average run pace is somewhere around 6-7 minutes/mile. Yeah, I can’t compete with that.

So what’s an athlete like me to do?

It all comes down to the PRs – Personal Records. Trying to better your time for a certain distance. This presents a problem with the sprint triathlon distance, as hardly any race is the same as the next (though the most official distance is exactly half of an Olympic).

Yeah, I haven’t been good at that either. My half marathon times have progressively gotten slower and my triathlon times are pretty much in that boat as well.

Ok, I can deal with that. I’m still getting out there, having a good time. Plus, I’m willing to sacrifice the PRs in order to maintain my sanity and balance.

But then there are situations that just steam me. Like hiking on the Eaglesmere Trail. Or hiking Pancake Rocks. Or hiking in North Carolina.

Ok, hiking in general.

I’ve said it many times before and I’ll keep saying it – I can be in the best shape of my life and still cough, wheeze, and drag up a hill on a hike.

And it pisses me off.

It’d be one thing if the hike was challenging and everyone else was coughing, wheezing and dragging up right with me. But no, they’re just floating up the hill, without a single bead of sweat staining their brow or even so much as a slight increased need for oxygen.

Ok, maybe that’s just Travis.

But seriously, whenever I go hiking, it seems like everyone else is in better shape than I am. 

Which also would be fine if I knew that they were. If they were out there running marathons and doing Ironmans, and busting out 10 hours of intense exercise a week, I’d hand it to them. I’d applaud them.

But usually they’re not.

Usually they’re like Travis – they do intentional exercise 2-3 times a week, but usually only for about 30-45 minutes.

Sometimes they don’t exercise regularly at all.

And then here I come, all puffed up with my “I just did an Olympic triathlon” and “I ran 7 miles 3 weeks ago” attitude, and wilt like a frickin’ popsicle on pavement walking up the hill.

These were my thoughts during our NC Labor Day hike:

Wait, isn’t this a lower elevation than Denver? Doesn’t that mean I should be able to sprint all the way to the top?

Wait, isn’t Sarah pregnant? Didn’t she just say that she hasn’t worked out in 4 months due to nausea? How then is she beating me up this hill?

I did not handle that situation well in the moment. Instead, I got huffy as I puffed slowly up the mountain. I eventually got over it at the top but I’d like to eventually get over it before it starts.

I mean, this is a ridiculous problem. But such is the nature of pride. You try to squelch it in one form, and it pops up in another. Just as soon as I came to grips with being a slow triathlete, I became enraged at being a slow hiker.

My mentally unstable way of thinking is that I’ve put so much effort and time into getting to where I am today that it is totally unfair that other people (like my husband) are so naturally athletic. Travis could sit on the couch for a month and go out and run faster than I could if I did intense speed work for 6 months. (Ok, this is just a conjecture because Travis couldn’t sit still that long and I will never do intense speed work for 6 months. But still, I’m pretty sure it’s true.)

But in the end, my hiking handicap is really a blessing in disguise. If it hadn’t been for my completely unnecessary anger outburst in North Carolina, I wouldn’t have come to the realization (yet again) that my identity is wrapped up in how “athletic” and “in shape” I am. I want people’s praise for doing triathlons. I want people to think I’m a mean, lean, triathloning machine. I don’t want them to see that I still struggle up the side of a hill or that I’m not invincible. I don’t want to show weakness.

God knows that I constantly go to things other than Him to try to prove that I’m worth something, that I’m someone special (try being the operative word). But that way of life will leave me constantly dissatisfied and jealous of other people. Instead of being able to appreciate the talents God has given other people, I end up scheming in the corner about how to make myself just as good (or drowning my sorrows over not being just as good).

I’m like this with a number of things: clothes, success, body size. Measuring myself against others. Feeling good if I measure up. Feeling horrible if I don’t.

Our women’s book study just started at church for the fall and I chose to go through Love to Eat, Hate to Eat by Elyse Fitzpatrick. I’m really praying that this study will help free me from these struggles (because regardless of the specific struggle, it all comes from the same source of dissatisfaction) and release me into the freedom of embracing who God created me to be – body shape, quirks, slowness and all – in order that I might appreciate and love others for who they are. God has made each of us unique masterpieces (like snowflakes!) and I am missing out if I can’t appreciate another woman without competing with her.

Hopefully I’ll have some updates later on.

As for the triathlon tomorrow, I still haven’t decided if I’m going to do it. You’ll have to stay tuned!

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Running on full tilt

15 Sep

{source}

These little gals are in our freezer right now.

Which is the reason why my weekend of relaxation didn’t quite turn out how I had hoped. I started Saturday off nice and slow with time in the Word and a cup of coffee. Around 10, I went shopping with my full list of things to buy and plan of attack. After stopping at the pet store, the fabric store, Walmart and the mall, I finally made it home around 3:30. Guess who else made it home then too? Travis.

While I was excited to see him, I was not excited about the reason why he was home so early: he had shot 2 antelope that morning. TWO. Bah!

Luckily, he was exhausted from dragging and butchering them so instead of working on the meat Saturday night, we went out to eat at El Tapatio (where I had the world’s most unappealing taco salad) and then watched Iron Man 2. I had gotten up at 6 am so I fell asleep about halfway through.

Sunday morning, I got up around 7 and got the housewarming present for our friends together (to give to them after church). Then we went to church, came home and ate lunch, and got started on the meat.

Ah, the meat. Travis suggested that I help him cut it up. I told him that cutting it up would make me really not want to eat it. (I’m not a huge fan of antelope meat – which is why I’m not excited about him shooting two of them!) So I stuck to my usual job: vacuum sealing, which is gross enough. Except our vacuum sealer wasn’t working right. After much frustration over not being able to get the bag to seal before stuffing it, and going to Target and Walmart in search of new bags, I then read the directions and discovered I was using the machine wrong. Whoops.

But even after I learned the right way, the machine was struggling. It took forever to suck the air out and then once it sealed the bag, all the air somehow seeped back in so it was sealed, just not vacuum sealed. We weren’t too worried about it because we’re going to thaw it again in a month to grind it up when Travis and his family hopefully shoot an elk (I am a HUGE fan of elk meat).

Anyway, by the time we finished the meat, Travis had to leave for his work trip. I vacuumed the house, then went on a fabulous 6-mile run (running the last 3 miles at a 10:00/mile pace!). By the time I got back and did some strength training, it was 8:30. Time for bed.

So, weekend of relaxation – not so much. It was still good, just not what I had envisioned.

Then this week has been crazy busy – I had dinner with my aunt-in-law on Monday night, had Women’s Book Study Tuesday night, and then last night, I was supposed to go to care group. Except that I got a flu-ish type sickness and had to leave work at 1 pm. So I didn’t go to care group. I laid on the couch from 1:30 on, only getting up to eat the pizza I ordered and trying to sleep in my bed (one of the very few times I couldn’t get to sleep in the middle of the day).

I’m feeling better today but I’m still not 100%. If I didn’t have a crap ton of work to do at work (a blessing and a curse right now), I totally would’ve stayed home. Although I got ridiculously bored yesterday doing nothing. Travis took our laptop with him on his trip and I don’t have the muse to muscle through using our antique desktop. So that’s why I haven’t blogged this week.

The Crescent Moon Sprint Tri is this Saturday. I don’t know right now if I’m going to do it or not. I can’t imagine doing a triathlon while sick is enjoyable. Plus, I get the race sweatshirt either way. 😉

Anyway, life = crazy busy right now. SO READY FOR IT TO SLOW DOWN. Obviously, my body is saying that as well. Bah.

 

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Race Recap: Steamboat Springs Olympic Triathlon

29 Aug

I did it! The race went GREAT and I had an awesome time in Steamboat. But let me start from the beginning…

Friday

I found out from the vet that nothing is seriously wrong with our dogs. They don’t have giardia or parasites. Most likely, they ate something that upset their stomachs (I’m guessing mushrooms from our backyard). So they just need to be on a bland diet for a few days, and Charlie probably needs to switch to a new regular food to help with her soft stool. After the vet, I took a nap, ordered sushi :), packed, walked the dogs, stretched, and went to bed.

Saturday

I went for a swim at the Rec in the morning. I had tried to go Friday morning but the Rec was closed. It felt good to be moving again. That is one thing that I don’t like about taper week – not having that “I just did a great workout” feeling.

Then I talked to my mom for a bit, packed the car, and took the pooches over to my friend D’s house. I chatted with her over coffee and cinnamon rolls (yum!) and left around 11 am to go back home, load my bike on the Focus, and hit the road.

Everything was going according to plan — I didn’t forget anything, the sun was shining, traffic wasn’t bad, I was belting out my favorite tunes. And then I started to feel like the Focus was struggling a little more than usual up the big mountain grades. Like a precursor to it running out of gas and dying on the side of the highway. But I had plenty of gas. It wasn’t overheating. There had been a puddle on the driveway underneath the car though. And the Check Engine light was on (even though it has been for a while). Hmmmm…

I called Travis. “Um, the Focus is kind of lurching up the steep grades. Could it be low on oil or something?”

He had checked the oil not too long ago so he didn’t think it was that. He was at a loss as well, since he was 300 miles away and trying to diagnose the car via my very non-technical description. Eisenhower Tunnel was getting closer… visions of my car dying right in the middle of it flashed through my head. That would be very bad. Not to mention that I had only driven 45 minutes of a 3.5 hour drive — if the car was struggling already, would it even make it?

“So do you think I should turn around and go home to get the truck?” I asked.

“Yeah, that’s probably the smartest thing to do.”

Blast it!

So I turned around at the Loveland Pass exit and headed all the way back to Denver, transferred my luggage and bike to the truck, and took off again… for real. Travis very kindly met me in Vail instead of just staying in Steamboat, so at least I had a companion for the last part of my trip.

The clock was ticking… at 4:15, I saw a sign that said 40 miles to Steamboat. Packet pickup ended at 5. No! We can’t be late! I floored it, doing 80 in a 65 (shhh… don’t tell the po-po) and we arrived in Steamboat at 4:30 — plenty of time! After looking for packet pickup in two wrong places, I finally found it and got all my race stuff and swag. Whew!

We headed to the hotel to unload all of my stuff and put my bike in our room. After watching TV for a bit, we decided to have dinner at the restaurant across the street called Rex’s American Bar & Grill. I had looked up restaurants online the week before and heard rave reviews about this place. And I loved that it was within walking distance!

We opted to sit outside on the patio, where we enjoyed some live music and a gorgeous view of the Steamboat ski slopes, now lush and green. I wanted a glass of wine so badly but knew I had to behave myself. I ordered Napa pizza with apples, bacon, onions and bleu cheese. It was amazing. I have discovered that I love, love, love bleu cheese on pizza. Mmmm… Travis ordered a beer and “Stuffed Bird Boob” with mashed potatoes. I couldn’t figure out what kind of meat that was until the waiter described it as chicken breast. Ahhh… now I get it. His food was also delicious.

Right before we got our food, it started to rain. Since there were plenty of umbrellas on the patio and it wasn’t raining very hard, we stuck it out. Our waiter was nice enough to bring me a fleece blanket — much appreciated!

As we finished, it started raining harder and my very chivalrous husband agreed to go get the car to come pick me up. I decided that since I couldn’t have wine, I at least needed some ice cream. So we drove over to DQ and I got a mini Brownie Batter Blizzard. It hit the spot.

By then, it was about 7:30 and we decided that since it was raining and the rodeo had ended the weekend before 😦 , the best option was just to go back to the hotel and bum. So that’s what we did.

Around 9:00, I decided it was time to sleep. And as far as nights before races go, I slept very well. I woke up a few times to panic and wonder what the heck I was thinking doing an Oly tri but was able to get back to sleep fairly quickly (I guess that’s one nice side effect of your dogs making you sleep-deprived).

Pre-Race

Race morning, I actually hit the snooze button. I finally got up at 5:30. We left the hotel by 6:05, stopped and got coffee for Travis, and got to the race site around 6:20. I thought transition opened at 6:30 but it had really opened at 6:00. It wasn’t a big deal because there were plenty of spots left. I got body marked and then set my stuff up. I chose a rack on the inside aisle, about ¼ of the way down from the swim in.

After getting my area set up, I picked up my timing chip and heard that the water wouldn’t be open for warming up until 7:15. Since it was only 6:45, I went on a little jog for a warm up, went to the bathroom, put on sunscreen (which apparently all washed off during the swim), and then headed down to the water. The temperature was announced — 68 degrees. Woohoo!

At 7:40, I got in the water. It wasn’t bad at all. I could totally do the swim without a wetsuit. I mean, the water hardly even took my breath away. It was like swimming in Minnesota! I was feeling great and doing a little swim warm up when all of a sudden, I hit a giant patch of seaweed. I hate seaweed. I refuse to swim in seaweed. EEEWWW! I panicked and swam back to shore as fast as I possibly could. As I got out, I told Travis, “Well, the water is nice but that seaweed is going to kill me.” After I stood there for a bit commiserating with a fellow athlete about how gross the seaweed was, I decided to go back in and purposefully swim through the seaweed, reminding myself they’re only plants. No little creature is going to attach itself to me or eat me. I will survive. So I swam through the seaweed and I was fine.

I got back out and we stood around for another 35 minutes, listening to the pre-race briefing and watching the four waves before me go off. I just about froze. My teeth were chattering, my legs were shaking. I couldn’t help but think, I’d probably be warm if I was wearing a wetsuit.

Finally, my wave was up. I got back in the water, positioned myself at the back of my wave, got my face used to the water and then treaded water to warm my body up while I waited.

Swim

Before I knew it, the foghorn went off and we were off! Almost immediately, my whole wave had left me in their wake. But I was just pumped that I was swimming! And feeling great! I wasn’t panicking! I kept thinking, I totally have this.

The little toe on my right foot felt weird and I thought that some of the muck from the bottom of the lake must have magically bonded to my foot. Then I wondered if it was a leech. So I reached down to feel. Nothing, not even muck, was there. I realized that my toe was frozen. So were my fingers. You know that feeling when your fingers and toes feel like they’re hollow? That’s how I felt.

By the time I reached the first sighting buoy, athletes from the last wave were passing me. I kept my pace and let them go around me. Just keep watching the buoy get closer, I reminded myself. Take it one buoy at a time. The swim will end sometime.

After I rounded the third turning buoy, I started feeling like I had to pee. I tried to pee while swimming a couple of times but that proved to be more complex than I could handle. But I knew that biking on a full bladder was absolutely miserable so I stopped swimming momentarily to pee. All better.

Finally, I passed the last sighting buoy and could see the swim exit. A couple hundred yards more and I could stand. I ran out of the swim. Yay!! I did it! The hardest part is over! Travis snapped a picture of me as I ran to transition.

Official Swim Time: 46:34

T1

While it was nice to not have a wetsuit to get off, I fumbled with my socks and shoes, and took what seemed like forever to get my helmet on. Usually, I run from the swim into transition and then out with my bike, effectively leaving me breathless between each leg. This time, I said, Screw it — I’m going to walk and catch my breath. So I did.

Official T1 Time: 2:27

Bike

For the first two or three miles of the bike, I felt like I hadn’t ridden a bike in forever. Everything felt foreign. My legs felt really weird. I realized then that I was still frozen. No wonder why my legs felt weird – they were practically numb! It took me about 5 miles to warm up.

While I was still warming up, I encountered The Bumpy Road. Some construction-working genius had decided that gravel with a thin layer of asphalt over it was just as good as an actually paved road. I beg to differ. It was miserable. And I had to pee again, which was magnified 1,000 times with each bump. I started wondering, Can I really survive 20 miles on this horrible-ness?

The course took a left turn and Hallelujah! The road was actually paved again. Oh wonderful, gentle smoothness. By about mile 9, I really had to pee. I started hoping they’d have a porta-potty at the turnaround, all the while knowing that they almost certainly didn’t. But lo and behold, the turnaround was at a baseball field. I asked the volunteer at the turnaround if there were restrooms and he said there were, but he didn’t know if they were open. I had to at least try. So I laid my bike down and ran to the door. They were open! Praise the Lord!

I was so happy on my way back — it’s so much more enjoyable to ride a bike when you don’t have to pee!

{Side note: WHY did I have to pee so much? I went twice before the race started, then during the swim, then again on the bike. I purposely didn’t drink much before the race to avoid this very problem. Argh!}

I followed my fueling strategy by eating my first 3 Shotbloks right after the turnaround (11.5 miles because of the dog leg) and 3 more right before the dog leg (22 miles). There were 4-5 steep-ish hills on the way back, the longest one being the dog leg — 1 mile of 2% grade. Lucky for me, that’s nothing compared to the crap hills on my bike to work. I cruised up the hill (being mindful to not push it too hard), back down and hit the home stretch.

Official Bike Time: 1:31:29 (16.3 mph)

T2

Once again, I walked with my bike back to my rack. I took off my helmet and grabbed my hat, race belt, and Shotbloks. I wasn’t hungry so I didn’t grab my piece of bread with peanut butter. And I was off.

Official T2 Time: 1:34

Run

I started running soon out of transition and my legs felt typical – heavy and foreign. I made the decision to walk 1 minute at every aid station (there was one every mile). By the time I got to the first aid station, drank some water, and started running after my minute was up, I had my running legs and settled into a nice pace. By mile 2, I found that I was running an 11:07 pace. Decent.

Mile 3 felt long. My left knee started to hurt with a very familiar feeling caused by a tight IT band. Because I knew what it was, though, I just ran through it. I can stretch later. Finally, there was the aid station: it was a Hawaiian luau. That picked up my spirits and I made it up the hill to the turnaround. On the way back, I grabbed some water and ate my last 3 Shotbloks. On to mile marker 4.

My stomach had started sloshing around so I stopped drinking water. By mile 5, it was getting into the 80s. My knee still hurt. I had the slightest stomach cramp. But I could see the aid station and just kept running.

Finally, it was the last mile. I ran past the lot where we parked, which they said was .5 mile away from transition. There were a lot of athletes and spectators already making their way down to their cars, so I got a lot of cheering on this last stretch. That was fun.

I crested the last hill and picked up the pace. I was SO HAPPY. I couldn’t help but smile and throw my arms up. I totally made it! And…

I ENJOYED IT!

I had pushed myself so hard during the sprint tris I did back in June that I didn’t even enjoy them. The bike was hard and the run was ruined. Why did I do that to myself? I really enjoyed this race.

I crossed the finish line, all smiles, and was handed some water and my finisher’s medal.

Official Run Time: 1:13:06 (11:48/mile)

Official Race Time: 3:35:08

Sure, I didn’t make my “goal” but I am totally excited about my performance. For me, it was huge that I didn’t panic once during the swim, I enjoyed the bike instead of going balls to the wall, and I did the whole run at a very comfortable pace.

As far as the event itself, I think Without Limits Productions puts on a very good race. My goodie bag had a lot of cool stuff in it (hello Luna bars and free socks in Travis’ size!) and the shirts were cute and great quality. I’m not thrilled about the dogtag-style finisher’s medals, but oh well. Their website was kept up-to-date with all the important information and they had plenty of bike course marshals directing us where to go and holding back traffic. My only real complaint is that there wasn’t much cold water at the finish line (or maybe they ran out before I got there?). But overall, it was a great race.

Post-Race

After the race, Travis and I stuck around because my name had been called for a raffle. After I got some more free socks (that I can wear), we grabbed my stuff and loaded up the car. Since it was about 85 by then and just an absolutely gorgeous day, we decided to tube down the Yampa River. Colorado doesn’t have a big selection of “lazy” rivers that are mild enough to tube down, so we seized the opportunity.

When we were finally changed into our suits and everything was stowed in our truck, we grabbed our tubes and river shoes (pretty sweeto) from Backdoor Sports and took off down the river. It wasn’t so much a lazy river as an always-watch-where-you’re-going-so-you-don’t-fall-off-in-the-rapids river, but it was still a blast. I love mild rapids like that! Every once in a while, we’d hit the current and rapids just right that a giant splash of cool water landed on our laps. Refreshing. The ride took about 45 minutes and we waited for the shuttle back for about 10 minutes.

We changed back into our clothes at Backdoor Sports and went to lunch at Steamboat Meat and Seafood Co. Travis had a tuna melt (with REAL tuna meat, not the canned stuff) and I had a Reuben. Both were delicious. We made a quick stop at the gas station and then headed back to Denver.

What a great weekend! I’m pumped that the race went so well and I loved being able to do something fun and out of the ordinary with my very supportive and loving husband. I’m very lucky that he comes to cheer me on at my races, even if he gets insanely bored and takes pictures of random things, like pontoon boats and buildings. 😉

Now it’s back to work, laundry and grocery shopping.

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Packing and Pooping

26 Aug

Well friends, race weekend is here. In 2 hours, I will leave work to take my dog to the vet (more on that in a bit), then head home to pack up all of my triathlon gear and prepare for my trip to Steamboat Springs tomorrow.

Itinerary

I’m going to have coffee with my friend D in the morning (who is also graciously watching our pooches for the weekend) and then hit the road around 11. Due to a bike race going on near Silverthorne/Rabbit Ears Pass, I have to take the long way around, making my trip 3.5 hours, instead of 2.5.

No matter! I’ll be rocking the same mini speakers we rocked all the way to Yellowstone and back (since the radio in our Focus is still broken).

Heck yes!

Once I get to Steamboat, my plan is to head straight to packet pickup at the Ski Haus and then go check in at the hotel, where Travis will meet me on his return from counting cacti in Middle-of-Nowhere Roosevelt, UT (no joke). He’s been there all week. Apparently, this cactus is an endangered species. Meaning there aren’t a whole lot of them. They were batting .500 on seeing them during the course of a whole day.

From what I’ve heard, Steamboat has a rodeo every Saturday night. If it’s not too late, we might go check that out because I’ve never been to a rodeo. (Shocking, I know.) Otherwise, I figure we’ll just bum around downtown Steamboat, have dinner and call it an early night. Race wakeup calls come early – this one will be at 5:15 am. But usually I sleep so poorly that I’m rearing just to get up and get on with the show already.

And the other details will be saved for the Race Recap to come on Monday. 😉

Time Goals

Things this week haven’t gone *quite* as planned. Both Wednesday and Thursday, I only drank about 40 oz of water. I haven’t stretched since Monday. I couldn’t swim this morning because our gym was closed.

But regardless of all that, I do feel prepared. My time goals for this race are between 3:17:30 (stretch) and 3:32:30 (more realistic). Here’s the breakdown:

Stretch Goals

Swim 43:00

T1 1:30

Bike 1:30:00 (16 mph)

T2 1:00

Run 1:02:00 (10 min/mile)

TOTAL 3:17:30

More Realistic Goals

Swim 45:00

T1 2:00

Bike 1:35:00 (15 mph)

T2 1:30

Run 1:09:00 (11 min/mile)

TOTAL 3:32:30

Why those times?

For the swim, I practiced 825 yards (750 meters) and finished in 21:20. Double that and you have 42:40. But if I wear my wetsuit (which I’m still debating about because the race website said the water is supposed to mid-60s.. BRRR!), I’ll be slower, since the suit limits how much I can bend my legs and therefore, how well I can kick and how fast I can go.

For the bike, I have averaged 16-17 mph in the other races I did this year and I’m definitely in better biking shape now than I was then (thank you Simms!). This bike course is downhill on the way out and uphill on the way back and the elevation map looks sweet (for the first half) and nasty (for the last half).

But the good news is that the elevation gain/loss is less than 200 feet and the steepest grade is a 2%. But… then I look at my route to work and it says those hills are a 2% grade as well. Crap it.

For the run, I have been running an average pace somewhere between 11:00 and 11:30 on my runs. But for some reason, I run faster after I bike. In the Greeley Tri, I managed a 10:21 pace and in the Boulder Sunrise, I did a 11:00 pace. So in essence, I’m looking for a miracle. I guess I’m still hoping that someday, I can get back to consistently running 10 minute miles as my slowest pace instead of my fastest. I try to remind myself that last year, I was consistently running 12:30s – so I have made progress.

This triathlon will be my longest workout ever by at least 30 minutes (if you don’t include hiking). My longest workout previously was my slowest half marathon, which I finished in 2:44:44.

Fueling

I plan on fueling on race day by eating my traditional bagel with peanut butter. I’m also going to try to eat a banana before starting, since this race will be so much longer than a Sprint. On the bike, I will eat 1 whole pack (6 blocks) of Shotbloks, with 3 blocks at 45 minutes and 3 blocks very soon before I get off the bike.

I will eat 3 more blocks on the run around the halfway point. I will also have another piece of bread with peanut butter on it in transition for me to grab if I’m hungry before heading out on the run, since Shotbloks are more to replace electrolytes than to fill you up.

And then, the best part, I’ll have an Athlete’s Honey Milk waiting for me at the finish line! I tried these for the first time at the Greeley Tri and loved them. Since they’re $2.50 a bottle, I only use them for special occasions – like this race!

**Warning: Poop picture ahead**

Speaking of last night, and taking Charlie to the vet, and the pooping I mentioned in the title of this post, I had an incredibly disgusting experience when I came home last night. As I walked into the garage, I thought I smelled something funny. My first thought was Travis’ disgusting hockey gear, but no, it didn’t quite smell right. I was still wondering when I opened the laundry room door and was greeted by this:

I cannot even begin to describe how gross it was. The smell was beyond words. Poopy pawprints were on the door, the wall, the washer and dryer – everywhere.

I put the dogs outside, entered the house through the front door, and changed into old work clothes. I put my hair up, grabbed some rubber gloves, found a sheetrock mask of Trav’s, and got out the paper towels, a bucket and a sponge.

And Denver just had to set a record high of 99 degrees yesterday so I had sweat rolling down my face as I scrubbed and tried my darnedest not to gag. After I was done in the laundry room, I took the dogs one by one and gave them each a bath. Ick.

The room still stunk this morning. Once Travis gets home, we’re going to clean the crap out of it – literally.

So that’s why I’m taking Charlie to the vet. No dog in their right mind (or right bowel?) should ever do that. Poor Katy was subjected to Charlie’s poopy mess for who knows how long. And Charlie has been slinking around all night and all morning, like she’s incredibly embarrassed that I caught her deprecating in her own sleeping space. It happens, Charlie. Once. It happens once. It better not happen again…

……

I’m scared to go home.

___________________________

Anyway, have a lovely weekend readers! I’ll catch you all Monday!

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Warrior Dash Recap

23 Aug

The idea first came from our care group leaders, Paul and Carrie – they found out about the Tough Mudder, which is the Warrior Dash on steroids. The main deterrent from that race? The hefty price tag. Once we heard about the Warrior Dash (and the more reasonable cost), there was no question.

Travis was originally going to go on a fishing trip with a couple of buddies that weekend so I signed up to go with 2 other couples. I have no problem being the fifth wheel. Once the fishing trip was off and Travis decided to do the Warrior Dash, it was sold out. Boo!

Anyway, Paul and Carrie, and Leif and Karen stayed up in the mountains Saturday night so me and Charlotte (the best spectator slash cheerleader ever!) drove up Sunday morning. We left my house at 6:30 and arrived to Copper around 7:45. After a round trip on the shuttle because I forgot my ID, we got up to packet pickup, where we found Paul and Carrie. Soon after, Karen and Leif arrived and after bathroom breaks, checking bags, and decking ourselves out in star stickers, we took a picture in front of the Warrior helmet and headed over to the start line.

In case you haven’t figured it out, I dressed up as Rainbow Brite.

Before we knew it, the start line was shooting flames and the race had started. The first approx .5 mile was an out and back dog leg on pavement.

Then we encountered our first obstacle: hanging tires. Amazingly, I emerged on the other side having not gotten hit in the head (totally something I would do). After walking up a hill and running down, we encountered the second: a 4-foot wall to jump over, then another topped with barbed wire to duck under, times 5. The walls were high enough that I had to sit on top and swing my legs over. Other people (including Paul from our group) could swing their legs over. I tried but got rejected.

We walked/jogged around the bend and there was the third, most infamous obstacle: the mud pit. As we watched athletes emerging covered head to toe in mud, we knew we were in for it. Surprisingly, I was all about the mud (I generally don’t like being dirty). As I got in, I sunk in the mud up to my knees. The first thing I noticed was that it was ridiculously hard to walk. My feet were stuck in the muck! (I saw a guy later who had lost his shoe in the pit.) I was able to unstick my feet and wade slowly through the mud. There was real barbed wire strung across the pit, so you had to either crawl on all fours or duck down. I chose to duck down, as I thought it was too deep for me to crawl on my hands. I still got plenty muddy though.

The muddy group

The next .25 mile was slippery, slimy mud. You couldn’t run so much as you could waddle, trying not to fall over. We were still slipping and sliding when we came upon our next obstacle: a spider’s web of bungees. The tricky part about this one was not stepping off the bungees too quickly and tripping the person behind you.

Up another hill and across a very muddy puddle, we came upon #5: a plastic tarp stretched across a wooden frame, which you had to go under. The clearance was about 3 feet so you had to crawl through on all fours. We were surprisingly winded when we came out.

We walked up a hill, turned the corner and there was another obstacle: the plank – 2 x 4’s with rungs set up across a frame. You had to walk up the first board on an incline, across another board, up another board, and down the other side. This was definitely a test in balance – it’s surprisingly difficult to walk the line while going up an incline. But everyone made it!

Then, we came upon the Mega Hill. We walked it. That was perhaps the most surprising thing about the race: all the people walking. This is definitely a race done by 95% of participants for fun (I’m sure there still are hard-core runners who do it) – much more so than a regular race. Oh and there were way more hills than a regular race.

We reached the top of the hill and ran down to the next obstacle: a wooden frame with ladders on both sides and a cargo net across the top. I saw one lady do the roll to get over the net. I opted, once again, for the all fours approach. Another obstacle done!

The next obstacle was soon after: a 15-foot upside-down V with a ladder on one side and then on the other, 2 rungs and a solid piece of plywood for the bottom 6 feet. I got myself over the top, got my feet to the bottom rung, and then slid down as slowly as my little arms would let me. Done!

As we ran back into the Copper Mountain village, we encountered a similar obstacle – another (taller) upside-down V covered in a cargo net. This one was a little tricky because the net moved around a lot. And the top was very high off the ground. Leif was not a fan.

We continued on through the village and came to the 2nd to last obstacle. This one was, in my opinion, the hardest – or should I say the most technically challenging. It was another upside-down V. The side facing us was solid wood with ropes strung down to the bottom. The back was a very widely spaced ladder. I was a little skeptical that my wee little arms could pull the rest of my body up the side of that steep ramp but amazingly, I did it! But then the trick was to get over the top. My strategy was to swing my left leg up and get my foot over the lip for leverage. Then I pulled the rest of my body over. And done! I’m pretty sure I pulled a muscle on that one though.

Finally, we were on the home stretch: the FIRE! We ran past some condos, crossed a bridge and there it was. The flames were higher than I had expected so you definitely had to jump plenty high to ensure nothing got singed.

A few hundred yards more and we crossed the finish line to be greeted with water, bananas and a medal. We did it!

The race was definitely a blast, especially because I did it with 4 other people. I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed it as much doing it by myself – it was fun to talk about the difficulty of the obstacles, to watch each other complete them, and cheer after each successful one.

The race organization was some of the best I’ve seen (especially for a 5K distance) – all of the volunteers knew what they were doing, packet pickup was set up perfectly to avoid long lines and confusion, email communications were informative and timely, and they have plenty of useful information on their website. There were hot showers at the finish line (the Warrior Wash), they had lots of options for food and swag, and their music and announcements were loud enough to be heard. I have to say that I was impressed. (And I worked for a race company last year so I know a lot of what goes into an event like that!) It’s obvious that Warrior Dash organizers have gotten this race series down to a science. Case in point: their medals, while still cool, aren’t specific to the location you do – perfect for organizers because they can order 100,000 or however many racers they have and use the same medal for all races. Genius for a series like this!

So, all in all, this was a great experience and I would recommend this race series to anyone interested in doing a mud run. Can’t wait to do another!

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Weekly Recap: 8/15 – 8/21

22 Aug

I’ve finally made it to taper week! While some athletes hate tapering, I love it with big puffy hearts. I mean, I’ve been waiting 3 months for an excuse to sit around and read instead of exercise! I’m definitely not complaining.

Since I ran the Warrior Dash yesterday, this past week was a kind of quasi-taper – in that, I still worked out but planned my workouts so that I wouldn’t be ridiculously tired. I took Saturday off completely and we went out for sushi, then to the Carnation Festival in Wheat Ridge for a fried Twinkie, a funnel cake and one of the best fireworks shows I’ve ever seen… seriously. Wheat Ridge does it right. And I was having so much fun that I forgot to record my workouts so I’m going purely on memory here people.

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: 7 mile run (1:18:15)

During this run, I tried an improvised Galloway method by running 9 minutes and walking 1. A couple of times, I got into the running zone and forgot to walk. But I remembered for the most part. It did help my pace – I ran an average 11:07/mile instead of the 11:39 pace I ran back on August 3rd. So if I feel like I have to walk during the tri next weekend, I will try to do a regular interval like this.

Wednesday: Rest

Thursday: 750 yard open water swim

Friday: 18.5 mile bike on trainer

I discovered that the reason I hate being on my bike trainer so much is that I hate leaning over. It makes my butt hurt and my arms hurt. I don’t mind it sitting up. So I’m thinking that maybe I need a longer handlebar stem. And potentially a different seat. But those changes will have to be saved for after my tri next weekend.

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: Warrior Dash 5K 

Official time was 49:40.

Official costume was Rainbow Brite.

Weekly Totals:

Swim: 750 yards

Bike: 18.5 miles

Run: 10.1 miles

My focus this coming week will be:

1. Get lots of sleep – as in, go to bed at 7:30 to fall asleep by 8:30. Hehe. Travis is gone all weekend to count cacti in NE Utah so this will be a lot easier than if he were here.

2. Drink at least 64 oz of water a day (not counting water during workouts) and eat normal amount of carbs (60-70% of calories).

3. Stretch a ton.

4. Think through/practice transition again (I haven’t raced since the middle of June!) Don’t want to forget anything important!

5. Enjoy the time off! For this week, I’m planning on doing one workout of each discipline, very easy effort, for about half the race distance. Right now, I’m thinking run tomorrow, bike Thursday, swim Friday (other days off). I’ll take next week pretty easy but then it’s back at it (in a lesser degree) for a sprint tri in Sept and a 10K in October (the half marathon relay).

After the October race, I’m seriously giving myself the green light to not workout for an entire two weeks. If I feel like running, fine. If I want to do yoga, fine. But if I have no inkling whatsoever to do anything besides lay on the couch, bake chocolatey goodness, or get caught up around the house, then I won’t.

Warrior Dash recap coming up!

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