It’s been interesting. 

Since Ironman Florida I feel as if I have been sitting on a beach sipping Mai Tais.  What I mean by that is my internal fire to train has been fleeting if non-existent. 

I’ve been feeling a bit jealous of those who did late season Ironmans and are cranking right along already!  Granted, some of them have early season IMs on the horizon.

Me, not so much!  I am doing some workouts, not doing others…..and usually it’s in lieu of hanging out and being social!  With the holidays and my upcoming trip (I leave today) to Guatemala, I get on a roll and then….choose to be social over a training session. 

I got some perspective on that the other day.  It was like- BAM! - one of those moments of clarity.  I realized that in the last 3 years I never had time to be social unless it was on a bike ride.  With training for two Ironmans, my Dad being ill, and my having that dang Adrenal Fatigue, I spent a lot of time Not socializing.  And now, it’s like I found this new inner social diva who is just screaming to be out and enjoying  friends!  (Tri and non-tri friends).

So what’s a  triathlete to do????? 

I’ve decided to give myself a break and not beat myself up.  It’s still only January and my “A” race isn’t until September. 

I’m going to allow myself to have fun and enjoy my time in Guatemala, while I visit friends and study Spanish.  I am actually looking forward to hitting the gym every morning while I’m there.  I can’t wait to see my little old lady friends who walk on the treadmill every morning.  It’s been a long time!   Hitting the gym early in the morning is something I’m really looking forward to, as 5am in the city of Antigua is a magical time.

I’m hoping when I get back, my internal fire will be stoked again and raging.  I love to train and for the past few months, I have loved being social.  In talking with my coach, we discussed finding more of a balance this season and making sure I keep my social calendar active rather than non-existent.  It is about the word…balance isn’t it?

So what IS a Triathlete to do???    Well enjoy the break then….

I get asked this question  all the time by non-triathletes….”What do you do for fun?” 

I have sometimes stopped to think about this, trying to come up with something other than swimming, biking and running that I do for fun, and nothing ever comes to my mind.  I mean, I work, maybe see a movie once a year (not including inflight movies while traveling to a race),  and go out to dinner with friends (which is usually following a training session). 

So the answer I consistently come up with is “I swim, bike and run.”   To me this IS fun!  I love swimming, biking and running.  This is also fun because  I can usually do these things with a friend or friends!  I mean, this is my fun!  This is what I love to do!

 

I sometimes will feel a bit unbalanced or think that I should be doing other things for fun.  The fact of the matter though, is as an Ironman triathlete….most of my free time is spent swimming, biking and running.  Fortunately, since I enjoy all three sports, I think of this as FUN.

There are other benefits to having fun with triathlon…..some of which I experienced this weekend.  I took Friday morning off  work to  get my long run in so I would have some free time over the weekend.  Read more and tell me if this doesn’t sound like fun! 

Friday night I was invited through the organization GOTRIbal  (check em out and join!) to a sit down dinner with Chrissie Wellington and 7 other GOTRIbal members!

 

 To say the evening was amazing is an understatement. When Chrissie walked into the room, my knees got weak and I was so nervous.  Here I was in the presence of one of the most gracious and humble human beings I have ever met, and a three-time World Champion!

The evening discussion focused on empowering ourselves and other women through the sport of triathlon.  Chrissie shared with us her humble beginnings (you wouldn’t believe her experience at her first Ironman, which was Kona) and she shared her passion for serving.  There was no talk about training or nutrition strategies…it was just an evening for the girls to hang out and chat.

We all shared with Chrissie and each other, what motivates and empowers us.  Not only was meeting Chrissie an absolute blessing, but the women who attended where phenomenal.  I am so grateful I was able to meet such wonderful “age-groupers” as well.  As the evening wrapped up I found myself wishing for more time.  Three hours seemed to go by like nothing… And then we were going our separate ways.

Saturday 4:30 am came quickly (I was out way past my bedtime) and I was off to Boulder to volunteer with my TriBella mates. 

 We were all there ready to cheer on  the women as they came to the turn around point on the 5k run.  I must say, following the previous night, being out on that course and seeing 500 women, racing their hearts out, just made me fall in love with triathlon even more! Every woman who passed and slapped our hands as we cheered them on, has a story.  A story of the triathlon start and journey.  The energy these women had was absolutely through the roof!!!!

 As the cyclist rode by the crowds roar was deafening!  I’ve never heard so many cowbells in my life.  The place was just on fire!  Seriously, everyone was so amped and excited!  The energy was amazing!

As the cyclist rode up Lookout Mt we headed into the park to watch the live coverage on a humongous screen.  Watching them race up the mountain and knowing exactly where they were just made me want to get up and ride!  As they crested Lookout we headed over to where they cyclist would be returning to Golden for the last time before heading to Denver. Once they rode on by, we headed back to the park for the remainder of the race. 

 This was by far one of the best weekends I’ve ever had!  I have had to pinch myself that I actually experienced such an amazing three days!  Now I know I didn’t do a ton of training (except for the 18 mile run on Friday morning)….but you get the idea.  These experiences where all possible because I do swim, bike and run.  I was able to enjoy these  because I LOVE to triathlon!  Because I do  swim, bike, and run for FUN!!!!  I get to be a part of this wonderful thing called triathlon and it gives me great joy to do so.

And…my quesiton to you is: What do you do for FUN?

 

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I just spent the last week hanging in Northern California.  I flew in to San Francisco after a two hour delay due to the weather in SF….well that was just the beginning of one wet…I mean wet week in California.

I spent the weekend with my Mom who came down to meet me. We did some of those touristy kinds of things. We’re both native San Franciscans and enjoyed being back in our City By the Bay.

One thing we did twice- cause it was sooo darn delicious- was eat at Aliotos on the Warf. OMG how I love me some San Francisco sour dough bread with plenty of butter on it. I could eat that for days!!! Another fav dish on the menu at Aliotos is their sauteed calimari. Love, love me some of that too! Obviously….

In between downpours we’d get out for a walk and visit as many Peets Coffees as possible (love me some of Peets too!).
I was pretty much in heaven- even kinda with all the rain.

I got to visit with friends see family.  I met with my friend Joanne who I haven’t seen since the run at Ironman Cozumel.  I met Joanne at packet pickup and then on race day we kept seeing each other on the bike and then multiple times on the run….bonded for life!!!

  Oh yeah- I also attended a two day work training. I actually enjoyed being indoors given all the rain. One thing I know for sure… Is I could never live inthe Northwest. I would not do well with day after day of rain and no sun.

You know the funny part? When I got back to Denver it was still cloudy for two more days. And even though it was still cloudy- I was glad to be back home!

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Have I ever mentioned how much I love my job?  Strange heh, to read that on someone’s blog who isn’t a professional triathlete.  Yet it’s true.

I feel so blessed to do the work I do, AND to do it with the people I get to work with day in and day out!

I work for the Mental Health Center of Denver and we serve people with severe and persistent mental illness.  At MHCD our mission statement is “Enriching Lives and Minds by Focusing on Strengths and Recovery”.   And that truly is what we do…we focus on our consumers strengths and the employees strengths. I have never worked anywhere in my life where I have felt one tenth as much support as I feel here at MHCD.

I not only work for a great agency but I work with the best people on the planet!  Each employee is passionate about helping the consumers and helping each other!  The support and care that everyone I work with exhibits for each other is incredible.  MHCD is based on a Wellness Culture and I see this day in and day out…..

I shared a few months ago about a training I went to called Pathways To Leadership.  This past week we had a two day Mastery Session which proved to be beyond incredible.  I thought I’d just put up a few photos and video to share all the fun we had….

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L46STd11w4

This is just a sampling of what a supportive, foward focused, strenghts based group of people I get to spend 40 hours a week of my life with.   I wouldn’t change what I get to do for work for anything….ok…maybe to become a full time triathlete………

Once again it has been along time since I’ve visited my blog and updated what has been going on and the lessons I’ve been learning.  There is so much to share and today I think I’ll start with the things I am thankful for in my life.  It’s also a hard day as it is the first holiday with out my father, and, I am surrounded by the rest of my family and friends.

 

 

The first thing I am most thankful for is my family.  We have weathered a challenging year together and have been by each others side the whole time.  I feel so blessed to have the wonderful family I was born into.  Many people say- You can’t pick who your blood relatives are.  For me, I am so grateful I am blessed to share the blood of my whole family.  Each one of us is always there for each other and supports each other any time it’s needed.  I know this is not always the case for families, and because of that I am even more deeply appreciative of what we have.

 

 

The next thing I am most thankful for is my health!  Yeap, my health is back!!!!!!!!    I have gotten through the toughest, most challenging 4 months EVER in my life and I can honestly say- I am feeling better now than I have in 1 1/2 years!  How amazing is that???????  I wake up every morning feeling completely rested and ready for the day.  No more afternoon crashes where I can barely keep my eyes open!  (I have an admission here- I’m a therapist and there were actually 2 times, before I was diagnosed with Adrenal Fatigue, where I nodded off in a session with clients. How messed up is that?)  It feels fantastic to feel alive again and to have hope that I will be just fine.

 

 

Next I am thankful for my friends.  Through this past year and especially the past 4 months, many friends have reached out and helped get me through this time.  It means so much when I’ve gotten a phone call or an invite to do something.  Unfortunately in the beginning I had no energy to participate in anything, and luckily now, I am able to do just about any social activity I’m invited to!

 

 

Next I am thankful for my companion and pup Kai.  We have had 15 glorious years together exploring the country, rock climbing, and hiking/running many a high country trail together.  One reason I’m not as bummed about getting Adrenal Fatigue is I’ve had so much more time to spend with him, as opposed to if I was training.  Now we take out 15 minute walks around the neighborhood twice a day.  That is the extent of what his ol’ hips will allow him to do.  I treasure each day with him as I know he is getting close to the end of his time here.

 

 

I could continue to write many a things I’m thankful for, and these are the ones I am focusing on today.  There is much more to share with you all, and I will save that for another time.

Today I wish you all a wonderful day with family and friends and all that you have to be thankful for.

Last night I reached out and stopped isolating and went out to dinner with my 3 closest friends.  We went out to Little India and had the best dinner and conversation that I’ve had in months.

You see, I’ve really isolated myself since getting Adrenal Fatigue.  First because I had no energy for anything but work…and then because of the weight gain.  I felt uncomfortable to be around people I know because I was no longer the fit, athlete I’ve been for many years. 

Well, my friends quickly kicked my butt out of that frame of mind!  In a nutshell, they made it known that they didn’t even notice; they were not cady and going to be comparing me to before; and they loved me any way no matter what!  Now how could I ask for anything more than that.  And to be honest- being out last night was exactly what I needed. 

Today I feel as if the sun is a bit brighter and the weight is a little less on my shoulders.  It’s amazing when I reach out and spend time with friends how much that can change things for me.  After months of isolating I am making an effort to stay in touch with my friends and be more social.  

Another nice thing is everyone is done with  their season now…so they can join me on my very easy 1 hour workouts…..There are some advantages to Fall…..

I’ve been thinking about flexibility a lot lately. Not so much the flexibility of the body, but flexibility of the mind.

You see, a lot of things that were planned this season didn’t happen. Or maybe I should say they didn’t happen the way they were planned.

I remember when I started training two years ago, I HAD to get my workouts in EXACTLY as they were written.  I HAD to hit the right type, cadence, heart rate, speed, course, you name it.  If I didn’t do it just right, everyone heard about it and needless to say, I was NOT very flexible. 

Fastforward two years, and today I have embraced the attitude of flexiblity.  Granted, I don’t have it down pact, but I’d rather be flexible than how I was before.  I have found that I get to enjoy life more with an attitude of “oh well.  What are we going to do now? ”  This is helping me tremendously to enjoy training, life and my friends more.

Here’s an example….Saturday a stack of us met at the pond to swim a lap then head to ride City View.  We decided with the crowds riding City View and with how “friendly” the locals can be sometimes, that we would head to Cyclist Friendly Boulder!  (Boulder is the BEST place to ride and be safe!)

So that’s exactly what we did.  Swam at the Pond, drove to Boulder, cycled up there….then we had Lunch, went to Newton Running Labs and had a jolly good “Girlfriend” Day! 

See, two years ago, I NEVER would have done that!  I would have insisted on riding City View because that’s what my plan said.  I would have been so narrow minded that I would not have gone to Boulder.  I would have missed out on a wonderful day filled with sisterhood!  What a shame that would have been.

Flexibilitly of the mind has allowed me to enjoy my life more.  It has allowed me to be more spontaneous and to “go with the flow”.  It has allowed me to enjoy the journey of training and the moments I share with friends.  It has helped me with the bumps and cracks in the road that happen in this thing called life.  I’m not sure how I came upon this flexibility of the mind, wether it was life or training that helped me find this.  All I know, is I’m glad I have embraced it and attempt to live with flexibility as much as possible.

This past weekend we held the memorial celebration for my father.  It was the most wonderful, yet hardest day.  80+ people from around the country came to honor my father Frank.

We had a wonderful time sharing stories from a microphone about my Dad.  People talked for 4 hours.  It was amazing, and sad, and fun.

The themes that seemed to be repeated by everyone were that Frank was:

-A true steward of the earth.  He spent his whole life fighting for water.  He helped found CalTrout and most recently he successfully fought Nestles’ attempt to build a water bottling plant in McCloud. It was a 5 year battle and just last September Nestles backed out.  My Dad was a environmentalist and he went Green way back in the 60′s.  We grew up recycling and littering was not tolerated!

-He was a good listener and always could give sage advise.  Many people shared about the times my Dad took someone aside and helped them through a difficult time.

-He was a hard worker and could fix ANYTHING!  I mean ANYTHING!  Everyone had a story of how my Dad had come over and helped them fix, build or replace something.  A few times a hammer to whatever wasn’t working was all it took, but usually the fixes where very involved.  My Dad loved helping people fix things!

-He had a great sense of humor.  My Dad could bust you up laughing for hours.  He could also imitate just about any noise.  And if his comedic timing didn’t get you, his SMILE did!  My Dad had the best smile I have ever seen.  The world lit up when Dad smiled.

My Dad was many things to many people…and these are just a few.  I always thought my Dad was the most amazing man I had ever known.  I felt it in my gut that this was the truth, but then at times I’d wondered if I thought that just because he was my Dad.  After this weekend, and after what  people shared, I now know for certain that my Dad was truly that GREAT of a human being. 

My Dad, Frank, was the best father, mentor, friend, human being that I could have ever been blessed with. 

May you rest with the Angles Dad.  I love you and I will see you and that big smile again.

It’s the official, unofficial start to SUMMER!  Can you say…it’s about time???  And this weekend did prove to be a summer weekend.  No rain, snow or howling winds!  It was spectacular…and long!  Four days of pure -heavenly training and recovering bliss!

Friday started out with a 30 mile run with the temps forecasted in the 90′s.  I hit Highline Canal at the Goodson Rec Center and was on the trail by 6:30am.  The sky was slightly overcast and the temp was already 60 degrees. 

At first I thought that I would run 3 x 10 miles.  Out 5 back 5- 3 times….About 4 miles into the run I decided I would rather get 15 miles out of the way my first time out, then run 10 miles and then finish off the 30 with the last 5. 

Sounded like a great idea and it actually was!  Mostly because of the mind game I was playing with myself.  Do you ever do that?  Play games with your perception?  It seems like a pre-requist to racing and training long distances….ya know…a 15 mile run, no problem; a 10 mile run, no problem; a 5 mile run, piece of cake….they just happen to all be in a row!!!

I knocked out the 15; reloaded at the car; knocked out the 10; got back to the car and had a Humongous blister on the bottom of my foot from a iny-tiny grain of dirt.  The blister started to change my gait around mile 23 and when I got to the car, I took a look at my foot and decided to go for my post-run swim…..didn’t finish the 30 but had a successful 25 miles of running.  Plus the temps were officially in the mid 90′s.  Did I mention how refreshing my 20 minute swim was?????  Ahhhhhhhhh

Saturday was a rest day!  I went to Boulder, got my weekly body work, enjoyed the festival and relaxed!

Sunday was back at-it!  4+ hour ride with a bunch of women! Oh yeah- remember that sore throat I had last weekend…well Sunday morning it decided to become a sinus infection……When I met up with everyone at Boulder Res I felt like crap.  I decided to start off easy and ride what I could. 

Lucky for me even though the sinus infection didn’t go away, I was eventually able to feel good enough to have a stellar ride out to Carter Lake and back.  I had a blast.  I was back on Black Betty (my Ordea Ordu) and we were flying! My training buddy, Sharon, and I rode the whole way together and just enjoyed the heck out of the day! 

Back at the Res after 56 miles of pavement under our tires, I threw on my Newtons and hit a  hard 10 minute run.  I have NEVER run Hard off the bike- I was blown away by how I actually felt fine!  I was surprised!  I always thought I couldn’t run that fast off the bike…..but then- that’s why I have coach Andrea!  To help me learn new things about myself!

And then there was Monday.  Monday was all about the Honey-Do-List.  Can a  Honey Do List be a HDL when you’re writing it for yourself????  Anyway- I got through pruning trees and bushes in the front and back yards, and did all those piles of chores that I didn’t get to in the last year.  It felt fabulous to look around and see the piles gone and the trees trimmed.  I settled into my chair in the back yard and enjoyed the waterfall and the cool shade of the trees.  Another one of those AHHHHH moments.

For me, this was the best start to summer I can ever remember.  Two hard training days and two awesome rest days.  There is something to be said for having your “house in order” so that your training can just take off.  And with that….it’s time to take out the big guns and hit some pretty tough training in the next few  months…..but I’ma ready!!!

What a wild and fantastic weekend it was. Wild as in the weather. Fantastic because I was in Buena Vista with the best group of triathlon women friends!

After driving through the snow on Friday afternoon to get to BV, we arrived at packet pick up where we were told that the Century Bike Route would be changed due to 8 inches of snow around Turquoise Lake. Cool, we can handle that!

Next the seven of us made our way to the cabin we rented on the Arkansas River. We unloaded our bikes and gear and settled in for a carbo loading feast of spaghetti and salad.

As we sat around the table each of us kept checking our Blackberries for weather updates. No matter how many times we looked the forecast was always the same…Snow all night long and into the morning. Dagnabit!
We all decided we would get up and put all our waterproof gear on and ride as far as we could the next day.
We were up at 5:00am to be ready to roll by 7:00. We kept checking to see what each other was wearing and what we should wear. Nerves were running high. As daylight approached we could see the rain turn to snow.
We were all packed, bundled up and ready to leave when we got a text at 6:30am letting us know the event had been cancelled! Dang…all dressed up with no where to go!!!   What’s a bunch of women to do???

Well, head to the event site to see what’s up and grab a cup of coffee of course! The whole town was full of disappointed cyclist. And there were even a few brave ones out riding in the snow.

Plan B kicked into action. Kendra and I opted to postpone any cycling until the following day when the forecast was clear and in the 60′s. We went for a 30 minute run, the first since our marathon the week before. Then we had the chore of figuring out what to do with the rest of our day. This was brutal! I felt like a caged animal. Here I had been planning on riding 100 miles and had to chill. Tough but I (we) made it!  All the rest of the gals went for a 20 mile ride when the weather started to clear up then headed back to Denver. It was just Kendra and I left to ride.

Sunday morning found us waking to clear blue skies and warmish temps. We ate, packed the car and drove to town to start our ride.  We met up with a some others who opted to stay and rode south to Salida for the first 50 miles of the day.

The views were spectacular- the mountains freshly covered in snow, the sky a clear blue backdrop.  The wind….not so fun.  But heh- it’s Colorado- and here we are use to riding in the wind. 

The out and back made for 55 miles with a fuel and water reload at the cars.  Next we were headed north towards Leadville.  More fun and WIND!  Did I mention the wind was from the north..so it was against us as we climbed???  FUN!

We finished the ride, ate some great burgers, fries and chocolate shake at K’s in BV, then headed home for the two hour drive.  It was a great weekend, that once again taught me about flexibility and making lemonade out of lemons.  I wish the rest of the gang had been able to stay, as the weather was great and the riding even better.  Not as good as the actual Bike Fest itself….but much better than nothing!!!