I have gotten through my first half-iron distance race of the season post Adrenal Fatigue.  I was nervous as all get out about what my ability would be.  In my head I was hoping for a 7 hour finish time, knowing that pre-AF I finished in about 6 and 1/2 hours. 

Barb’s Race is an all womens 70.3 that takes place in the Napa/Sanoma Valley.  It occurs  in conjunction with the full Vineman.  The race is a point to point with the start 30 minutes from the finish.  The swim is on the Russian River and the bike course meanders on rolling terrain through vineyards.

Saturday morning came and I was up at 4am.  Even though my wave didn’t go off until 8:17.. I have this thing about getting to a race real early.  See I love getting a good spot in transition near an end where it’s easy to find and get to my bike.

Black Betty hangin and me in the purple jacket

I set up…sociallized with all the wonderful women around me…and within no time they were calling us down to the water for the start of Barb’s Race. 

Pre-Race Game Face

I made my way into the river and got right in the front row.  The countdown started and the horn went off.  I was on my way!  The current of the river was barely noticeable. I felt strong and fluid as I swam and swam and swam upstream.  I finally reached the turn around, looked up to sight, and saw all these people walking!  Yeap, WALKING!  The river was shallow enough that many participants decided to walk.  The thought crossed my mind…and was quickly replaced with…”this race is training for Ironman Florida”.  So shallow strokes I took as I made my way around the bouy. 

As I began take my breaths and looked at the evergreens that lined the river I realized how dang FAST I was going with the current!  It felt like it took 10 mins to get back to T1. 

Blue Cap getting out of the water

Next it was the long run through T1 and then out the other end with Black Betty!  It’d been over a year since Betty and I had become one and raced out hearts out.  And on this day, that’s exactly what we did!!!!!

Entering the LONG T2

After a stellar ride and in good time I might add…I hit T2 in the town of Windsor after 56 miles of rolling wine country.  Now this transition was the absolute longest T2 I’ve ever experienced! It went on for eva!  I have decided I may want to learn how to get out of my shoes before transition after running for what seemed like miles in my bike shoes….but I did make it; racked Betty threw on my Newtons, and I was OFF!  (ok, after a pit stop).  Then I was off 

Yesterday when I was swimming I had the most fabulous experience occur.  In with my sets of pulling were interspersed fast efforts of 25s and 50s.

What occured during those sprints were that somehow I achieved an efficient stroke!  I could feel myself actually PULLING the water from the beginning of the catch all the way through to the end by my hip.

My core was engaged and I maintained a streamlined position while rotating from my hips and not my shoulders.  I have never yet, until yesterday, achieve that feeling of near “perfect” form. (perfect to me…probably not from the deck).

You may be wondering…”well, how did that happen?”  And the answer is simple…..DRILLS, BABY, DRILLS!

My coach is the master Drill Sargent! 

I mean she had me doing drill after drill after drill after drill- ALL,  I mean ALL, winter long!!  I did so many drills that the last time she gave me a workout with some drills in it….I literally said “F*&#”  quite loudly and then again as I was about half way through the workout.  I was SICK  of drills!  Done, over with, never want to see the word Drill written on my workout again….

That is until yesterday.

Following yesterdays workout, I have a new appreciation for all the drills Coach Cary has had me do for the past 6 months.  Actualy, as I am typing this, I can’t believe I’m feeling that way! There is no way I ever would have imagined myself being grateful for all the drills I’ve had to do.  I pretty much hated them every workout.  And now…I”m grateful for them.

In 3 years of swimming nothing has changed my swiming form as much as Cary has in the past 6 months.  The drills have been the key to a much more effective stroke and much more efficient body positioning.  I haven’t even begun speed work and my times are already improved!!!!  How cool is that??? 

So for all my inward belly-aching, I’m very grateful that Cary gave me all those drills.  It has paid off and I can now appreciate the reasoning behind it.

And with that being said….It’s onward and upward to all the running drills that Cary is having me do twice a week before my shorter runs!  I have a feeling I’m going to embrace these drills more than I did the swim drills having seen the benefits of  DRILL, BABY, DRILL!!!!!

Who do you love???

Big question I have…..do you love your coach?  Are you really truly happy with your coach?  Do ya  love him/her?

This Sunday as I was running my first EVER sub 1:59:30 Ten Mile Run, I realized that I absolutely LOVE my coach!  I mean, I really love her and am so grateful for her!

My workout for Sunday was to run 10 miles with 3 minute pick ups at an 8:45 pace every mile.  After a 20 minute warm up I started in on my first pick-up.  I hit 9:00 pace on the first one and with every pick-up after that I was hitting 8:45 or less!  At one point I looked at my Garmin and saw 7:45 on it!  I was like- Holy $hit!   That’s never happened before!  I’ve never been able to run that fast!!!

As I was having this fabulous run (mind you, I did not want to get out of bed that morning), I thought about what I great coach I have!  My coach Andrea Watkins  is the best!!!  She has been coaching me for a bit over two years now.  She has taken me from an out of shape 49 year old, to an Ironman finisher, to someone who can now run 10 miles in 1:42:10! 

See I believe a coaching relationship should be like any other relationship you have.  If the person is toxic or not hearing what you are saying, or not meeting your needs….It’s time for a change! 
A coaching relationship has it’s ups and downs.  I mean, poor Andrea has seen me through some REALLY tough times and with that some not so stellar behavior on my part.  She has been kind enough to point out these behaviors and I’m grateful for that.  It takes courage to call someone on their shit when it’s-a-flyin!  And she does that for me.

She also listens.  She listens to what I’m saying and hears what I need mentally and physically, even when I’m not aware!  She challenges me to grow both physically and mentally. 

She’s taken me to the airport butt-crack early when I flew home for my father’s passing.  She went to my house and packed my bike and shipped it to me when I was out in California caring for my father….I not saying that every coach should go above and beyond like this….but Andrea does!  And that just makes me love her and appreciate her even more!

I feel so fortunate I have found a coach who is such a good fit for me!  I have always felt grateful for her.  And as she continues to write my training plan and help me to reach my goals, I am in awe of her ability to help me reach a higher level of athleticism!

I may be wrong here, and this is only my humble opinion…..but do ya love your coach?  Are you unhappy? Do ya just coach with the person caz you have for years?  Do you feel like you’re not being heard?  If you answered, “kinda- sort of” to any of those questions….then ya might want to see what it’s like to Love your coach.  Heaven knows there’s enough of em out there!

It takes a village to be a triathlete!  Yeap- it really does. 

It Takes A Village

What got me thinking about this was what my day was like this past Saturday. 

I started the day at Doudy Draw in Boulder with my friend Brenda who I wrangled into joining me for a 13 mile run along trails I hadn’t explored before.   She was only going to join me for 7 miles, but after taking out the map and trying to explain where I would run, some puppy dog eyes and probably the fact that I was running pretty slow….she decided to join me for the whole run.  So- there’s Villager #1.

Next, after a quick swim, I was off to Active Imprints to meet with Danny Abshire (Newton Co-Founder)to have him help me with a final tweak to the orthotics he’s been making for me. 

I happen to be VERY fortunate and am sponsored by Newton Running Shoes.  These shoes have transformed me from a heel-striking-wannabe-runner, into a (almost) real runner!  I was having a problem with pain in my achilles and after Ironman decided to meet with Danny to have him help me with orthotics.  Within 2 minutes he figured out what was wrong with my left foot (something to do with metatarsal bones) and began working on an orthotic.  So- with this new orthotic coupled with my Newtons- I am golden again and running ultra-distances sans pain.  And did I mention Danny fixed my inserts for my bike shoes also?!!!  Voila- Villager #2

From Active Imprints I was off to Colorado MultiSport to meet with Jeff for some help with my road bike.  After a summer of switching my road bike from TT back to road…I wasn’t sure how the bike should be set up.  Plus it was time for a new saddle. 

After shooting the breeze and visiting with friends, Jeff and I got down to business.  Jeff spent an hour plus, moving this and moving that; adding this and changing that; and when he was done- I was feeling like I had the perfect bike fit again!!!  I have to say- the guys at CMS are so unbelievably patient!  They will work with you for hours and always make you feel like you are their most important customer!  I don’t know how they do it.  Alright- Villager #3

In one day- I had three different people help me on my road to being a long distance triathlete.  And that’s only ONE days worth…..there are others who keep me going- like….

Dr Ken Sheridan from Active Care.  He’s my chiropractor and without my weekly visits to him, I would not be able to keep running and training the way I do.  See, I have SI joint problems (as in they don’t stay where they’re suppose to), and Dr Ken is able to keep me from locking up…literally!  There ya go- Villager #4

Along with Dr Ken- I get regular bodywork by Brian Ray.  Now this guy is amazing!  When I first went to him 3+ years ago, I had back pain that wouldn’t quite.  I would get out of bed in pain, I took Celebrex daily….it was bad.  Brian was able to get my back working great with in few months (no more pain!).  He also keeps me going.  I mean at 50 years old and just starting this long distance stuff- there have been a few times where my body needed some help getting itself working.   And Brian is the man for that!  Yeap- we have Villager #5

One person I can’t forget to mention is my coach Andrea Watkins!  Not only does she write my training programs, but she works out with me, helps me through the mental stuff, and has become a good friend in the process.  She has taken me from a overweight 48 year old- to a descent long distance triathlete in two short years!  Now that is amazing!  Not sure how she does it….but her approach to training sure works great for me!!  Here ya have- Villager #6

Now there are many, many more Villagers who support me in many ways.  Whether it’s joining me for a workout, going to a race with me, calling to check on me, getting together for dinner….You name it.  The list goes on and on.  I never realized when I took up this sport what a great community I would be getting involved in…..and as we all learn in this triathlon life….It TRUELY does take a VILLAGE to raise a triathlete!!!!!!!!!!!

I had heard and read about this thing that supposedly happens to triathletes after they finish an Ironman called Post IronMan Depression or PIMD.

There is suppose to be this big let down afterwards. I mean you’ve trained you’re butt off for close to one year, foregoing all relationships and forgetting about sleeping in until 7:00 on the weekends.

You’re constantly on the go either working or training. You’re life becomes defined by the last big workout you did and competing in an Ironman.

The let down can be huge, leading to depression. Next can come lethargy and the inability to motivate for any type of workout. And heck, while you’re at it, all those delicious foods you abstained from while training, you might as well start enjoying again.

And so the cycle begins…depression, no exercise, bad food choices…and then more depression.

PIMD - Say it ain't so!

So what’s a (newly) ordained Ironman to do?

I don’t know about anybody else but I can tell you what I’ve done to stave off  PIMD.  I gave myself some goals…..

1.  Sign up for next seasons Ironman.  About 3 months before Ironman Cozumel, I signed up for my second IM.  Not knowing if I would actually like this Ironman stuff, but pretty sure I was going to….

2.  Lose some FAT.  After training for a year, and never having the opportunity to restrict calories to reduce my weight in fat…Two weeks post IM I have begun a “diet” to drop fat during this down time.  After consulting with my sports nutritionist and coach, it was unannomous that this would be my only opportunity to do this.

3.  Embrace and Enjoy a month of no serious/planned training.  Since I had decided to restrict calories and now was the best time to relax on my training plan- I have opted to enjoy my friends, movies, sleeping in until 7:00 on the weekends, no 5:00 am Masters swims….you get the picture.  I just wake up and do a half to full hour of  WHATEVER I WANT!  How fun is that!  And the key here…is 6 days a week I do some type of exercise.

4.  Plan an early season Race. Get your first race of the season on the calendar.  I am kicking off 2010 with Rage Long Course Triathlon.  They will have two qualifiying spots per age group for the Worlds Long Course Team.  Now this is movitating me tremendously!  I am motivated to stay motivate!  I am motivated to lose fat!  I am motivated to kick butt when I get back to serious training in January…..You get the picture.

5. Try a New Sport- or get back to an Old Favorite.  I was an avid rock climber for 15 years, many years ago.  I say that climbing is my first love yet I haven’t taken time to climb in about 7 years.  So, in this down time I have dusted off my climbing harness and shoes and gotten out to the climbing gym.  It’s great cross training and I’m hoping to keep it in my training plan once January rolls around.

I have been able to stave off PIMD.  I’m over 3 weeks post Ironman and have not felt depressed nor unmotivate.  Actually, I am really looking forward to January 1st and getting back into serious training.  I have embraced this month off and looked for ways to use this time to my advantage…plus having the goal of qualifiying for Worlds is really, really motivating me!!!!

Don’t know if this will help anyone, but I hope it can….I know this game plan has kept me positive and hopefully lighter at the end of it all!

One year later….in my second season of triathlons, I was headed to Loveland to race in Lake 2 Lake Olympic Distance Triathlon.  Last year this was my second triathlon after doing Napa Valley Sprint Tri w/my jr high school friend Janet V.  After that first race I decided I liked this sport and wanted to keep going.  Janet decided one was enough and focused on becoming a life coach. 

The past 2 weekends leading up to Loveland L2L, I have ridden a 100 mile bike fest; raced a 1/2 ironman the following weekend, and then found myself tackling L2L Olympic Tri….My question was- How would I stand up to this????

I also realized that so far in my tri career I have raced 1 sprint, then 1 olympic (L2L), and then 4 Long Courses (1/2 ironmans).  I had not raced in an event shorter than a 1/2 ironman since L2L last year. I was overjoyed with the idea of racing a shorter distance….Like pretty much 1/2 the distance as I have been racing which would mean half the time!  It was nice to be racing locally as my last 3 races I have had to travel to. This just means packing much less and not worrying about logistics so much.  It’s amazing how much preparation goes into racing out of state! 

After a drive to Loveland following work on Friday- Sandy and I went straight to packet pickup and ran into Andrea, Laura, and Gary.  We all went out to a spaghetti dinner (not so great) and headed to our rooms to get  things ready for an early morning.

I like getting to an event right when transition opens.  I like getting a “good” spot to set up- and I like not feeling rushed and to be able to take my time…and there are no long lines for the porta potties yet 

So I racked my bike and set up in the first row…As the row began to fill I noticed that everyone was female.  There was not one man who set up in the row were I was.  I made a comment about this and my fella triathletes thought it was nice (& odd) too. 

After setting up my gear I put on my running shoes and headed out for a 2o min warm up run.  I ran through the Benson Sculpture Park.  This is an amazing park w/sculptures throughout.which I enjoyed.  I felt good, nothing hurt, and when I finished I still had about 30 mins to get in my wet suit and head to the water.

Benson Sculpture Park

I headed back to transition and began getting into my wetsuit.  Sandy was next to me and I could see the other PCers   throughout transition.  I once again did the squirm into my wetsuit, but this time I pulled to hard on my upper leg and got a tear at the seam….I almost started to freak out but decided the worst that would happen is cold water would get in- and once I started swimming it wouldn’t matter…

Wetsuit Time

Off I headed down to the water.  I was pleasantly surprised to see all the PCers together getting ready.  It was fun to take a group picture and get in the water together for a warm-up.  I loved starting that way……But then the waves of swimmers ahead of me started to go…so I focused and centered and made my way to the swim start.

Group Hug Pre Race

My instructions from coach Andrea for this race was to use the swim as a warm-up; ride the first part of the bike course mellow and hammer the second part; use the first part of the run as a recovery from the bike and hammer the last half of the run…..

So that’s what I did.  This swim was the hardest swim I’ve done so far.  I don’t know why….but I never got my groove.  It felt hard the whole way…I did start more towards the front so had lots of people swimming around and over me for the majority of the swim….but out of the water I made it and up the big hill and across the grass to transition.

I got to my bike and made a pretty quick transition and was out the parking lot in no time.  Once again as I started the bike-many people came panting by me in the first few miles.  I always wonder about that….I can never remember who they are but chances are I pass them later on.

My legs felt like “blah”-noodles for the first 8 miles or so.  They did not have much in them.  Then around mile 10 I started to feel the strength in them again.  I felt like they had some juice…so by the time I was halfway through the bike I began to pick up the speed and hammered the hills.  I love downhills and there is this great section right before you get to the “flats”…. It was here I really put the hammer down and began the business of picking off people.  Not sure how many I passed but it was a few…men and women included.  I felt good and like I was flying….standing for the rollers and spinning like a fiend on the downhills and flats! And it’s like that I rolled back to transition and onto the run.

The run.  I was shocked!  For the first time ever- I began the run feeling great!  I didn’t feel stiff or like I needed to warm up.  I felt like I had good form right from the get-go.  I loved feeling good right away on the run.  (maybe I’ll be able to feel that again someday    I did spend the first part of the run at a moderate pace not pushing myself-per my coach.  

Around mile 2 I did begin a game of cat & mouse w/someone in my age group.  I passed her and then she passed me.  I knew I was stronger than her and that she was running too fast to stay ahead of me…so I hung off her left shoulder for a good 5 minutes until she began to slow down…and then I took off and passed her.  Never saw her again.

At the turn around point on the run I began to pick up my speed.  I kept my breathing just under anaerobic and held that for the last 3 miles of the run.  I felt strong and my form felt solid.  My legs began to get fatigued in the last half mile of the run…but I kept pushing.  The last part of the run kinda pisses me off as you pass right by the finish but have to keeping winding your way through the park….It’s like “I’m there! Fooled you-no you’re not”

It was at this last winding part that I spotted a woman I thought was in my age group.  I dug down and picked up my speed in the attempts of passing her before the finish.  Down, down, down, I dug and my little legs didn’t see to listen!  I reeled her in, but not as well as I had hoped to!  I came in 10 seconds behind her    Darn……But I pushed it-that ‘s for sure…felt like I was going to puke when I crossed the finish line.

So all in all- I took 10 minutes off my time from last year…but the best part was I took 8 of those minutes off my run!!!!  You see, running is my most challenging event in this sport.  I use to have one of the slowest times in my age group…but w/this race- my run time was FASTER then the two women who placed ahead of me!  How cool is that!!!!

After the race we all hung out, ate great food, stayed for the awards (Sonja, Barry, Steve, Holley, Laurie, Beth all placed!) and then went to ColdStones for ice cream on the way home.  I feel so blessed to be training w/such great coaches and to be surrounded by such great athletes!  Plus we all have a blast together….and if we’re not having fun…then something is wrong. 

Getting Our ColdStone Fix

So here’s to a few weeks of no races or events until July 11th when I head to Minneapolis for Lifetime Fitness Triathlon with the PC gang….just many days of training.

after I finished that 25 miler-about 2 hours later- I got to go SWIM for 45 minutes non stop! And ya know what- I didn’t even feel tired…….

I get really excited when I feel like I am making progress with my level of fitness.
I was talking to Andrea (my coach) yesterday and shared with her how after this past Sunday’s workouts of a 25 mile run followed by a 45 min. swim- how I was beginning to feel burly. I mean like- I”m getting pretty fit.

Yesterday someone else pointed out that it pretty awesome that I am able to run 25 miles without much trouble. She said that I could pick any marathon and just go do it, and how many people train all year to do just a marathon- and here I am running that distance for training.

It’s funny how other peoples perspectives help to put “me” and my view of myself into a different light. I don’t really realize that it kinda is a big deal to do this stuff and that not everyone can……Although I believe anyone has the potential to do anything if they want to and try to…..

So, with that- here’s to the next 25 mile run this Sunday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!