HomeBaked Triathlete: Starting from Scratch

 

It may take more time and patience to produce a recipe from scratch rather than buying the "just add water" mix, but in the end home baked always tastes better.  This is the journey I am choosing to take this year to reinvent myself by starting over from scratch and right now I am shopping for the right ingredients and then I will figure out how to combine them into a final product that I can be proud of at the finish line.

I felt broken down at the end of my summer season followed by 6 weeks of forced time out.  My mind and body were out of sync.  When my mind was ready to get back to work after signing up for my next Ironman, my body gave out and my immune system could not keep up with the demands and then as my health finally started returning, my head was no longer in the game.

I was doing everything in my power to find motivation including posting my Ironman Finisher Picture everywhere, studying books and magazines, cut and pasting train logos to remind me Chattanooga is a coming and living vicariously through my friends upcoming Ironman.  My body and mind seemed to be rejecting my efforts at rebuilding stamina to workout and the motivation to overcome the mental and physical fatigue.  I felt defeated like I would not be able to return to that place I had gone before where you reach deep within your soul to be all that you can be.

What is the best way to cure a sick triathlete you might be wondering.  Just like a dead battery, sometimes we need a jump start.  I was signed up for a sprint triathlon in San Diego, so I had to cram for this race in a few weeks.  I almost did not even want to go, but these are the times that you need to "JUST DO IT" the most. 

So I managed to put in the minimum training to get through a sprint course.  I was pretty convinced that 1/8th of an Ironman was going to "feel" like the full distance at this moment in time.  To my delight after a relaxing run around the bay in San Diego, even though it did not feel like heaven, my pilot light was reset.  I came to terms with where I am at that moment and had hope that I could start this process over from scratch.

By accepting this, it made it easier to go enjoy the "SPRINT" and I was pleasantly surprised that sometimes cramming for a test pays off.  It was a great pre-test to assess "where I am" and "where I want to go".  I was pleased with the results and enjoyed the opportunity to use the sprint distance to refresh and rejuvenate.  The experience reminded me about the spirit of triathlon.  It was a great dress rehearsal, transition practice and speedwork all wrapped up in one.  Since it was an Esprit de She Event, it was fun bonding with old and new female triathletes.  There is something powerful about tri-ing with a herd of women!  I ended up pulling off a decent race finishing 11/56 in my age group and 119/417 overall (3/56 in the swim and 12/56 on bike (ave 18.6 mph) and 11/56 on run (ave 9:11 pace).  Now that I got a jump start....off to the shop I go for some base training, basic maintenance and maybe a few new parts!

Sometimes you have to clean out the closets and throw away the old stuff to make room for the new stuff that triathletes are made of.  Now time to go shopping!  What do you think should go into my recipe?

UNFIT

Inside the turtle's shell are cramped quarters with little air.  One must slow their breathing down, close their eyes, and quiet the mind in order to survive under the shell.  It is usually a place we go for protection while we are resting or recovering, but sometimes it can be an escape from the world.  This writer usually leaves out the darkest moments of her life as she does not like to write in the dark.  Perhaps this is dishonest or may be it is only half the story being revealed.  Today, the only word that really strikes me is UNFIT, if even that is a word.  Spell check has not told me otherwise, so we will just go with it.

This week, I started breathing better.  I had hope that I was finally regaining my health and I could finally start training for my next Ironman.  I have been trying to stock up on motivational strategies to generate excitement and motivation for training including:  posting my previous Ironman Finish all over the place, changing my profile picture, signing off with the train whistle to get ready for IM Chattanooga, and watching the IRONMAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS in KONA on my new Smart TV.

I went out yesterday on a 37 mile bike ride which is the longest ride in the last few months and finally felt like my legs were connected to the rest of my body .  For that I was grateful, but then the truth was revealed in how difficult the ride was for me.  It was not too hot, too cold, too hilly, or too flat, it was simply that I am UNFIT.  What would once be an easy short ride took a great deal of time and effort.  It is not something I am unwilling to give, but it is certainly discouraging to look back at your abilities a year ago, especially when you see other athletes preparing for their Ironman races.  (I also ran 1 hour and swam 30 minutes this week..so sad that those feel like the IM distance at this very moment).  You are almost willing to KILL for that feeling of determination, strength and invisibility for just one more day.  But that feeling is EARNED.  Even the pros rarely give up a few days of training to sustain the ability to be at the top of their game at the right moment.

Life happens and keeping up an Ironman pace of life for a recreational athlete is not always top priority.  Instead of looking at being unfit as depressing and staying inside my shell, I know I need to FIGHT and earn back the fitness that makes you strong in mind, body and spirit to TRI another day.  It is just hard when you are knocked down to the ground.

I am trying to remember this bottom of the barrel feeling so each month when I look back, I don't get discouraged as I am slowly climbing back to the top of my game.  Let me imagine now what it will look and feel like in 50 weeks when I am 50 years old and competing in my 2nd Ironman race fit and strong and ready to go.  It is a hard image to focus on, but I am going to create this picture in my mind until my painting comes to life!  In the mean time.....I JUST KEEP TRI-ING!

WHISTLE WHILE YOU TRI


High Ho, High Ho, Back to Work We Go
With a Hee Hee Hee and a Ha, Ha, Ha
High Ho High Ho High Ho

With a swim, swim, swim and a run run run
And a pedal pedal pedal, being unfit is so not fun
High Ho, High Ho, Back to Tri We Go

It is dark inside this shell! Still trapped!

Well as my husband would say in the IT world, problems take a while to solve.  Computer guys are so patient in trying to figure puzzles out.  I think my patience is wearing thin.  My Reboot is not going so well.  You try different ways to close out your frozen screen and one of these times, magically everything will come back fresh and new and work like it is supposed to.

This week has been filled with trying out different remedies as the gunk I have been gagging and choking on for the past month seems to have miraculously relocated to my sinuses.  My smoker sounding cough has been extinguished (never smoked one in my life as I was violently overexposed as a child by my parents and had a strong aversion to anything you light up!) with the remnants now residing in the dark cavities of my shell.  In lieu of a return doctor's visit to scold my doctor for not listening to me the first time around, I evaluate and treat myself daily for free (minus the cost of home remedies and future bill for my deteriorating mental health).  No fever and fluids still clear with slight color and thickening, treat self for congestion and find some draino.  So, I stocked up on Emergen-C Immune Plus,   Allegra, Zicam Cold Remedy, and NeilMed Sinus Rinse.  I think the rinse is the most effective tool so far, but as soon as I take a clear breathe, more fluid drains and gets trapped.  I can deal with the gunk and manage the symptoms, but the chronic fatigue really gets in the way of being a triathlete.  Luckily the events that are coming up in October were supposed to be fun short races and fun get a ways.  Even a short workout seems to take a lot out of me, but the benefits outweigh the cost, because I need my daily fix.  Every day, I tell myself I will wait one more day before going back to the doctor as we know just showing up at a doctor's visit scares away all the symptoms and the doctor cannot find anything wrong with you.  It might be worth the 120 dollar office visit that I pay out of my pocket to scare the symptoms away. 

With all that said, playing tug of war with the mucus streams, I have managed to get 3 short runs in this week 20-30 minutes a piece, 3 bikes rides of 20, 30 and 15 miles, and 1 20 minute swim.  I have been researching different training programs and one site I came across talked about including 3 weeks during your pre-season training to focus on your weakest link in the tri-chain.  Surely, I can complete a sprint triathlon in 2 weeks.  I am sure it will feel like an Ironman to me, but it will only make my next IM in September 2014 taste that much sweeter after being knocked down to the lowest of lows.  Sometimes we need our bodies to take over and hold us back!  But it is dark in this shell and I am going to poke my head out soon, kicking and screaming.

My plan for the next 2 weeks is to try out "working on one of my weakest links", my bike and try and get fit for my first training session with my bicyclologist, Jeff.  I have had to cancel a lot of appointments this month, but if you don't have your health, you simply cannot reap the physical benefits of training.  It is time to put the POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING BACK IN ACTION.

"Let me out of here", the turtle screams.  "I do not like the darkness, that is unless I am running the marathon portion of an Ironman."

 

REBOOT

One year from today is another opportunity to find greatness within.  Today I proclaimed that I felt like being an Ironman was like being crowned Miss America.  You hold your title for a year and it abruptly comes to an end as someone else steps into your running shoes as that day becomes their turn at the title.  During your reign, you have a responsibility to inspire others by sharing your journey, wisdom and strength.  As time passes, and your fitness level dwindles further and further away from the day you tasted victory, the memories fade and you no longer feel invisible or worthy of your title despite the blood, sweat and tears you shed to win.  So, you sign up again to try to find greatness for a second time.  All the doubts that were once there on that first pilgrimage return and you have to go through the process again for another taste of victory.  There are no short cuts to the finish line.

Let the games begin.  There will be the ups and downs on this winding road and the self doubt and questioning of one's own sanity will haunt you for the next 365 days questioning the state of mind you were in when you clicked the REGISTER NOW button on active.com.

This faulty computer of mine needs to be restarted.  When I went to bed last night, I told myself I was DONE being sick and no matter what, it was time to REBOOT.  Sometimes when you can't fix the problems that you are faced with, you just have to turn the power button ON and OFF and reboot to clear out the bad and start with a fresh screen.

Ironman Chattanooga 2014,  HERE I COME.......CHOO CHOO!!!!!

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SUPERSTITION: 3rd time: curse or charm!

Do bad things really happen in threes or is the third time really the charm!  Call me superstitious like many triathletes who chose to wear their lucky socks, obsess over every calorie they ingest, and go through training and race day rituals that must be performed to a T for the planets to align in our universe.  My absence from my blogspot over the past month has been a sure indicator about my plans that came crashing down.  My training has been almost non existent over the past few weeks due to a chronic cough and fatigue which was my first strike.  Then as I was finally starting to feel like I could get back in the saddle, I made a wrong turn and my back was in knots, strike two!  I felt doom and gloom hanging over my head as I sat around feeling sorry for myself anxiously awaiting for the third and final strike so I could just get on with my training.  Then I realize how ridiculous this all sounds, when I think about how great the number 3 can be......TIC, TAC, TOE 3 in a row can mean victory; or it can mean TRIATHLON:  swimming, biking, and running which equals HAPPINESS, or it can represent 3 triathlons in a row in a Triple Summer Series.  Maybe 3 really can be great!  I am always looking for the message in everything but if you can put a positive spin on what feels like a curse, you will usually find your lucky charm.

Decisions, Decisions...what to work on next

I know, I know.  I let a week or two slide by without a post.  That must mean it is still off season and recovery from my summer season along with adjusting to going back to work and back to school.  One thing most triathletes love to do is PLAN or hire someone to plan for them.

Most of the planning is done for 2013-2014 as many important activities, commitments, deadlines and events are filling up the calendar, but getting back into a smooth and regular routine can be a challenge or a juggling act.  I was what I like to call, "the spoiled triathlete" during last year as I did not have much to juggle other than training, a few hours of work, and making sure my son got to his activities.  This year, I have taken on a little more work responsibilities and my son started high school, after school activities, and work commitments.  So now, I am more challenged as to when, where, and how to get all my workouts in with the days starting to get shorter. (I did not say cooler, because cooler has not arrived in AZ yet).

That will not stop me from doing what I love to do because I live to TRI, so one way or another, everything will get done.  The past few weeks have been overwhelming and my body is rebelling about getting back to "work" both as a physical therapist and a triathlete.  I am happy to still be in the recovery mode so there is no pressure about having to get in a certain number of miles or intensity.  While I take a deep breathe to pause, there are plenty of off season things to focus on like strength and conditioning, flexibility, technique, and nutrition.

Now of course there will be a few short races on the horizon including a sprint or two.  I also accepted an invitation to run PF Chang's Marathon this year on Team Wylder and will be posting more about this undertaking.  I have not had the desire to "run a marathon" unless it is part of an Ironman.  I could not pass up this invitation to honor a special little boy and help raise awareness and funds for NORD (national organization for rare diseases).  I will share more about this event in a future blog, so stay tuned if you would like to be a part of this day with me.

And the big decision is getting near.  I had decided that the best way to celebrate turning 50 next August was to do another Ironman.  One of my requirements was that it would have pine trees on the course, but after a lot of soul searching and research, it made more sense to go with a course that was more reasonable for my skill level and and a new race popped up on the circuit, IM Chattanooga in Tennessee.  It looks to be beautiful fast course with possible ideal conditions for a race.  It will include a river swim with the current, a rolling bike course through Northern Georgia, and a flat run through Chattanooga with average temps of 55-75, low humidity and little wind.  Who knows, there might even be pine trees.  I am not giving up on my vacation destination races in Tahoe, Whistler, Boulder and Coeur d'Alene, I just want to get leaner, stronger and more prepared for the difficulty of those courses.  So the decision is getting close and sign up for Chattanooga for September 2014 is getting closer.  I also will have to pick a 70.3 race or two along the way...so more decisions coming.

For now, I put those big goals to the side and focus on getting my energy levels back on track, my nutrition under control and build a strong base.  This is the fun stuff where you can take an hour or two out of your day to TRI before the wild ride begins for 2014.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: TRIPLE SUMMER LONG SERIES COMPLETE

What does one do after an IRONMAN or as some triathletes would put it, on a NON-IRONMAN year.  I was talking to one of my friends who decided to get a tattoo a while after completing his Ironman.  Most people get them right away as a remembrance of all the hard work and the title that was duly earned.  I have talked about a tattoo, but as time has passed, I started to feel uncertain about it and undeserving.  A race memory fades away over time.  You have to constantly find new challenges to maintain a feeling of toughness both mentally and physically.  Nothing compares to the mental and physical strength you acquire during the year you train for an IRONMAN and at the actual event.


This summer, I decided to put myself through a new challenge since I enjoy the half iron distance and I wanted to maintain a certain level of fitness and I signed up for 3 challenging long course events.  My original goal for my non Iron year was to go after a PR in the half and work on getting faster. 

What better way to spend a triathlete summer.  When I go to a beautiful place with my wetsuit, bike and running shoes, I want to savor my time out on the course.

Deuces Wild in Showlow, AZ; Vineman 70.3 in Sonoma County, CA; and Mountain Man in Flagstaff, AZ COMPLETE.

The series took on names like "Turtle's Long Course Summer Series" and "Triple Suicide Series" as I came to terms of what I had done by signing up for all 3 while many of my friends were just enjoying the cool summer destinations.  They were not 3 fast flat courses, they were 3 courses with lots of ups and downs and each had its own challenges and own beauty.

The final race in Flagstaff presented many challenges this past weekend.  It was the long course that so many suggested NOT to do and the SLOGAN for the race is "THE TOUGHEST RACE YOU WILL EVER LOVE".  I went into this race not so different then the others feeling a little under prepared.  When you do 3 in a row, you have to allow recovery time after each one and then there is not a lot of time in between to step up your training and taper for the next one, so the PR goal turned into a finishing goal.  The future Ironman events that I am considering are all more challenging than AZ as if you desire pine trees on your course, altitude and hills usually accompany them.  So Mountain Man was also a little test of fortitude to see if I could be IM Tahoe material.

Mountain Man ended up being my slowest half of the season.  I started the race feeling fatigued and bloated although I had taken the week prior very easy to try and get some of my energy back.  It is difficult to assess if the slow time was a product of the race being the final event of the season or the difficulty of the course.  It still was my favorite of the 3 courses and the great thing it is in my backyard only 2.5 hours away from my home in the desert.

This race was the last get a way of the season before returning to work.  I had to encourage my support team to join me for the weekend as my husband is tired of traveling and my son started school, but I was so happy to have them with me.  We enjoyed a few good meals and my husband got a 70 mile ride on the course in on Saturday.  We went to my Tri Club's pre-race party at one of the member's most beautiful homes in the woods.  With my belly full and happy exchanges between a great group of triathletes, I went to bed with a smile looking forward to a day in the pines.  Pre-race rituals are just etched in my brain and an Ironman can go through them in the dark while the rest of their family is getting their last few minutes of sleep before they transform into Super Sherpas.

Passing by lots of friends and waves to people I have gotten to know over the past few years, I made my way to the water which is usually just a relaxing warm up to a long day.  The long distance race had about 130 athletes split into 2 waves.  Of course I was in the second wave, but I found it to be a little bit aggressive and full of better swimmers than most events.  It almost felt like an Ironman replay trying to get a space in the water and I did a lot of swimming around people because this "pull the athlete out of your way thing", does not work for me.  The water felt choppy so there must have been some wind and I did have a little more trouble breathing than usual in the altitude.  There were no spotting buoys in addition to the turning buoy which were impossible to see in the distance and with the glare of the sun, so it was a "follow the crowd" kind of swim.  My time was at least a minute slower than my last couple races, but still a reasonable start.  I felt tired coming out of the water, but excited to get on my bike.  It takes a good 30 minutes to warm up after a swim and I had to do that on an uphill bike course.  I knew to expect 3 rollers to the first turn around Morman Lake.  The scenery is beautiful with rolling hills and pine trees and wild sunflowers lining the roads.  The color seemed so vivid and I felt at times like I was probably in heaven.  The course was challenging with a strong head wind or cross wind when going around the first section of Morman Lake and then rolling and ending with a climb.  Then you turned right onto Lake Mary Road for a few more miles of climbing which was challenging but a beautiful section of road that we usually avoid due to not bike friendly without a shoulder.  At the turn around, you start flying full speed down the steep long hill.  I missed the first water stop due to it being at the bottom of the hill on a curve, but had enough to last me until we looped around the second time.  I quickly was surprised to find that the downhill ended and there were about 3 more steep sections of uphill rollers to get back to the turn off for loop 2 around the lake.  Those hills were not in my memory bank from previous training rides, but the good news is there was a beautiful tail wind that allowed me for the first time in my life to get the sensation of "spinning up a hill" and I felt like I was floating (don't worry, that did not last too long).  The second loop did not have the extra climb nor did it have the tail wind to help get up the hill.  Once you got to the lake turn off for the second time, you headed straight back to the transition which was mostly downhill.  My legs were pretty fatigued and I worried about making the cut off time set in this race, but I managed to finish that bike ride in less than 3:30 which is a slow time for me, but with the conditions, I could not beat myself up too much as I felt I used my energy management techniques that my coach is working on to get me through it unscathed.  So, I finished early enough to be granted permission to go out on the run course.  There was about 10 people behind me, maybe more, hard to count at that point and maybe a few who did not make the cut off.  The run course is famous for difficult with a 1.5 mile steep climb up a road off to the side of the main strip.  The Olympic Distance athletes, go up and down and turn back to the transition area, but the half distance athletes then turn to the right away from transition and have to put 7 more miles in of what they describe as flat (but it is rolling flat).  The aide stations did not provide any ice or sponges like most summer events, but mother nature was looking out for us with some nice drizzles and big lightening strikes.  I also started pouring water over top of my head at the stations which were every 1.5 miles.  I did fine on the hill and was able to run while many were walking, but my legs were shot at the bottom.  I was able to keep going, but every time I saw someone walking, I just wanted to stop.  I was able to fight that feeling up until the 2 mile to go mark.  My body just wanted to race to be over.  I finally gave into the urge and started walking/jogging and then jogged in the last half mile to finish in 6:50.  It was one of those races, where if I could just have a decent run, my time would be greatly improved, but often in a long distance event, you are just fighting to keep your body moving forward.  When I stopped running, my body was hunched forward like you see some runners finishing in Ironman.  My posture improved when I started running again but the fatigue, tightness and cramping was playing with my mind.  I had to prove that I was TAHOE WORTHY.  I ended up 2/4 in my age group...right in the 50th percentile that I usually find myself.  The lady that beat me was at Deuces Wild with me and training for her first Ironman, so I was proud to see how well her training was coming along.  I will take a podium finish, whenever the opportunity arises and I had to beat 2 athletes to earn my spot!!!

The crowd thins out quickly after the Olympic Event which most of the athletes partake in, but the cool thing is when I started the run and needed a pick up, I had people shouting my name from the side of the road and as they headed home in their cars.  Another athlete was struggling on the run and he said to me, "You sure have a lot of friends" and that made me smile.  TRIATHLON IS THE LIFE FOR ME!

What is left after Ironman?  There is so much more.  If you think you are going to just train for an Ironman and check it off your bucket list, think again.  Triathlon is life, so live it well!  And the people in my life are the best.  If you are feeling down, just go to a triathlete workout, race or a social event and you will get your batteries recharged.

SUMMER SUICIDE SERIES may have tried to kill me, but has made me stronger.  Now time to take a break and then search for my next challenge.  MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!  CHA-CHING!