Triathlon #2 is under my proverbial belt!
It was harder than the first one, which surprised me. I think I got a little too "well, I've done it before I can do it again" maybe? Not sure.
The starting line for the swim was farther away from the steps than last time, which is OK ... but we had only 5 minutes to get from the steps to the starting line. I got there in time, but I was a little tired from getting there and would have liked a minute or two just to chill. No such luck.
The horn went off and off we went. I had some trouble in general, partially because I was tired ("go slow, stop kicking, go slow, it's not a race, well, it is a race but that's ok") and partially because the shoulder injury has kept me out of the pool for the majority of the past five weeks. I felt it this morning.
There was a little more contact with other swimmers this morning than in the other race, which wasn't bad — nothing painful or anything — just kind of annoying.
My goggles were fine this time (thank goodness!) and I was able to swim less off-course, which was good. I need to learn how to swim in a straight line. Spotting (looking up for a landmark) every few strokes is tiring.
There were quite a few people hanging on to the buoys for rest, and a kayaker had to come out and help one woman who took a mighty mouthful of water. I was glad just to keep moving, slow as that might have been.
So I got out of the water — hooray! — and started to run to transition and checked my heart rate monitor. 190. Shit. OK, so I walked to my bike. [The cardiologist-approved exercising heart rate is 165. It's OK to go higher at the end, for the last minute or two, but for sustained exercise, I should stay around 165. No, this is not normal.]
Got changed, hopped on my bike, and started to ride. And I learned that my fabulous mountain bike, my trusty steed, does not ride like a spin bike (on which I've done all of my training). Hm. I guess that stands to reason, since spin bikes are made to simulate road racing. And so for the first time, I am considering buying a road bike. Not one of the fancy tri-bikes that whizzed past me many times, but one that will be a little more race-friendly.
The bike ride was OK, except that I was monitoring my heart rate and couldn't go nearly as fast as I wanted to (or as my legs could go).
At this event, there was a sprint tri, which is what I did (750m swim, 20K bike, 5K run) and an Olympic, which is twice the sprint. The Olympic swim waves started after the sprint.
Now, I am fully aware that I am not a fast swimmer, and I had a little trouble swimming today. However, an Olympic racer passed me on the way out of transition, and quite a few more passed me within the first quarter to half mile of the bike ride. So these guys started swimming at least 10 minutes later than I did, swam twice as far, and got to biking at about the same time. I was impressed.
Now, because I was heart rate monitoring (well, I think that's why), when I got off my bike, I didn't feel like I was going to keel over, and I was able to jog the first mile of the run! I walked up and over the bridge and jogged part of the way back, until, inexplicably, I hit 190 again and slowed to a walk. It didn't come back down below 170 at all after that, but I decided that the last half mile needed to be not walked.
My goal was to do this race in two hours, but I didn't hit that. The official times aren't posted yet, but I'll post them once I have them.
Regardless of not meeting my time goal, it was a good race, and I learned from it. I am thinking about doing maybe one more this season. There is one locally on Thanksgiving morning that I was considering, but I'm now thinking that it might be a wee chilly for my pansy body to swim early in the morning. Not sure. There are sprint races in the valley every weekend from now until then, so I have options. We'll see.
***
Also, I am likely going to delete this blog in another couple of weeks. Not much going on here — it's kind of just taking up space...
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
36 hours!
Going to bike tonight, maybe swim a bit tomorrow (though a rest day would be fine) and sit in the steam room, race on Sunday!
I am excited and nervous. Bike check-in is tomorrow.
And away we go! Unless something significant happens, the next post will be the post-race celebratory post!
I am excited and nervous. Bike check-in is tomorrow.
And away we go! Unless something significant happens, the next post will be the post-race celebratory post!
Sunday, September 20, 2009
good news!
I went to the pool today and was able to swim!!! My shoulder was slightly tweaky — not quite right all the time, but not off all the time, either — and I was able to swim my full distance. *whew*
Even going slow and taking care of my shoulder, I'm swimming 100m in about 3 minutes, which is much faster than I was a week before the first tri. I am hopeful to meet my 2-hour goal this time. Between my swimming getting faster, spending a lot of time spinning, working on form in all three disciplines, this bike ride being 1.4 miles shorter, and learning more about how to effectively use my heart rate monitor, I think I can take 16 minutes off my time.
I'd like to get in to swim two more times this week, just to re-acclimate to the water. It's been a long time since I swam more than a couple hundred meters.
So I have Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. The plan is to spin and run Monday (tomorrow), swim Tuesday, swim Thursday, spin and run Friday, rest on Saturday.
Woo-hoo!!!
Even going slow and taking care of my shoulder, I'm swimming 100m in about 3 minutes, which is much faster than I was a week before the first tri. I am hopeful to meet my 2-hour goal this time. Between my swimming getting faster, spending a lot of time spinning, working on form in all three disciplines, this bike ride being 1.4 miles shorter, and learning more about how to effectively use my heart rate monitor, I think I can take 16 minutes off my time.
I'd like to get in to swim two more times this week, just to re-acclimate to the water. It's been a long time since I swam more than a couple hundred meters.
So I have Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. The plan is to spin and run Monday (tomorrow), swim Tuesday, swim Thursday, spin and run Friday, rest on Saturday.
Woo-hoo!!!
Saturday, September 19, 2009
one week til race #2!
I saw the physical therapist on Monday and Wednesday mornings this week. My shoulder is still unhappy. I'm hoping another visit or two will clear up this dumb shoulder thing.
As planned, I trained with my trainer on Monday. As to avoid aggravating the shoulder, we did all lower body/core.
Tuesday, I went to spin.
Wednesday was a built-in rest day. It would have been a rest day anyway, as my legs were not happily functional.
Thursday, I was still sore just walking, so I didn't exercise again.
Friday, I went to spin.
Today, I am planning to spend some time on the stepper, the treadmill, and maybe the rower. Tomorrow, I am going to attempt swimming again. If I can't swim freestyle, I'll use a kickboard. Either way, tomorrow's workout is in the pool.
This week upcoming ... not sure ... Lots of cardio. Other than that, who knows?
As planned, I trained with my trainer on Monday. As to avoid aggravating the shoulder, we did all lower body/core.
Tuesday, I went to spin.
Wednesday was a built-in rest day. It would have been a rest day anyway, as my legs were not happily functional.
Thursday, I was still sore just walking, so I didn't exercise again.
Friday, I went to spin.
Today, I am planning to spend some time on the stepper, the treadmill, and maybe the rower. Tomorrow, I am going to attempt swimming again. If I can't swim freestyle, I'll use a kickboard. Either way, tomorrow's workout is in the pool.
This week upcoming ... not sure ... Lots of cardio. Other than that, who knows?
Sunday, September 13, 2009
two weeks til race #2!!
I'm on the downhill until the next race. According to advice I got from a very seasoned triathlete, this is what I should be doing:
No weight lifting for the last 10 days before a race (the muscle doesn't grow fast enough, I think)
The week before the race, taper time spent, but don't reduce speed
The 10-day mark is Wednesday.
This is the thing, though, and I didn't mention this to him: I don't lift weights explicitly to help me race. And I don't spend a lot of time running or swimming.
So this is what I'm thinking.
Today I'm going to do some more interval work on the treadmill and then see if I can swim. My shoulder is still a little sore, which by this point is just plain pissing me off. I have an appointment with the physical therapist tomorrow.
Tomorrow I'm training — my last session with my trainer before he moves across the country. *sniff*
Tuesday I'll spin.
Wednesdays from now through April are built-in rest days. I have a meeting after school and rehearsal early in the evening. I barely have time to eat dinner. I thought about getting up early on Wednesdays and going for a swim before work, and then I decided that rest days are good and mine will just always be on Wednesday.
Thursday I might spin again.
Friday, treadmill and light lifting.
If my shoulder feels better, there will be some swimming in there.
Saturday, a cardio mix, I think, including some stairs and rowing. I'd like to get up super-early and go to the gym, just to sort of let my body know what it's in for. The race starts at 6:30. My wave won't be first, but I'll need to be there and have my transition area set up by 6, I'm sure, which is earlier than I wake up for work. Ugh.
We'll see how it goes... Despite losing my trainer and this shoulder setback, I'm excited about this race!!
No weight lifting for the last 10 days before a race (the muscle doesn't grow fast enough, I think)
The week before the race, taper time spent, but don't reduce speed
The 10-day mark is Wednesday.
This is the thing, though, and I didn't mention this to him: I don't lift weights explicitly to help me race. And I don't spend a lot of time running or swimming.
So this is what I'm thinking.
Today I'm going to do some more interval work on the treadmill and then see if I can swim. My shoulder is still a little sore, which by this point is just plain pissing me off. I have an appointment with the physical therapist tomorrow.
Tomorrow I'm training — my last session with my trainer before he moves across the country. *sniff*
Tuesday I'll spin.
Wednesdays from now through April are built-in rest days. I have a meeting after school and rehearsal early in the evening. I barely have time to eat dinner. I thought about getting up early on Wednesdays and going for a swim before work, and then I decided that rest days are good and mine will just always be on Wednesday.
Thursday I might spin again.
Friday, treadmill and light lifting.
If my shoulder feels better, there will be some swimming in there.
Saturday, a cardio mix, I think, including some stairs and rowing. I'd like to get up super-early and go to the gym, just to sort of let my body know what it's in for. The race starts at 6:30. My wave won't be first, but I'll need to be there and have my transition area set up by 6, I'm sure, which is earlier than I wake up for work. Ugh.
We'll see how it goes... Despite losing my trainer and this shoulder setback, I'm excited about this race!!
Monday, September 7, 2009
week of 9-6
Another didn't-go-as-planned week, but it's OK.
Monday I lifted but didn't train for a long set of reasons that I needn't type out.
Tuesday spin.
Wednesday, my husband had surgery, so it was a hospital day.
Thursday was also a no-exercise day.
Friday: interval training on the treadmill.
Saturday I had a great session lifting :)
Yesterday I tried swimming, but my shoulder is still tweaky. If my race was today, I would be able to swim it (I think), but my shoulder wouldn't be so excited about it and would not be happy tomorrow. But it's usable. So I did just 600 m, 50m freestyle and 150 with the kick board three times. It was OK.
Today I'm planning to bang out some nifty 50s.
Tomorrow I'm planning to call the physical therapist who I went to in the spring and see if he can't work some wonders on my shoulder.
Plan for the week? Currently up in the air. But I'm very tired and pretty cranky, so it's not a great day to plan the week's activities. I'm sure something will get done...
Race is three weeks from yesterday!
Monday I lifted but didn't train for a long set of reasons that I needn't type out.
Tuesday spin.
Wednesday, my husband had surgery, so it was a hospital day.
Thursday was also a no-exercise day.
Friday: interval training on the treadmill.
Saturday I had a great session lifting :)
Yesterday I tried swimming, but my shoulder is still tweaky. If my race was today, I would be able to swim it (I think), but my shoulder wouldn't be so excited about it and would not be happy tomorrow. But it's usable. So I did just 600 m, 50m freestyle and 150 with the kick board three times. It was OK.
Today I'm planning to bang out some nifty 50s.
Tomorrow I'm planning to call the physical therapist who I went to in the spring and see if he can't work some wonders on my shoulder.
Plan for the week? Currently up in the air. But I'm very tired and pretty cranky, so it's not a great day to plan the week's activities. I'm sure something will get done...
Race is three weeks from yesterday!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
week of 8-30
Well, last week didn't go as planned after Tuesday.
I trained on Monday, as planned, and Tuesday, my left shoulder hurt like mad, right in the front. Right shoulder was sore in the same place, but left shoulder hurt. Couldn't lift a glass to drink. Over the course of the week, it's gotten better, to the point where yesterday it twinged once or twice but that was all. I have been careful not to use it at the gym at all, soooo....
Tuesday I went to spin as planned.
Wednesday my whole body was sore and tired, so I went and used the steam room and the hot tub :) I've never gone to the gym with the intention not to exercise before, so that was kinda weird, but it was a good, relaxing, healthy thing to do.
Thursday I did some interval training on the treadmill.
Friday I did just the stairmaster. I'm close to being back where I was before monitoring my heart rate, which feels good!
Yesterday I did nifty 50s on lower body and core: ball squats, calf raises, crunches, oblique twists, back extensions, hip flexors.
Today, I am going to do more interval training on the treadmill and also use the steam room and hot tub.
Tomorrow, I am going to train. Tuesday, I'm going to spin. After that, it all kind of depends on how my shoulder feels. If it's not feeling better by Tuesday, I'm going to call the PT who worked wonders on my hamstring and see if he can do the same magic on my shoulder. In the meantime, my trainer did give me some exercises I can do for my shoulder, which I have been doing.
We'll see how it goes. The tri is four weeks from today!!
I trained on Monday, as planned, and Tuesday, my left shoulder hurt like mad, right in the front. Right shoulder was sore in the same place, but left shoulder hurt. Couldn't lift a glass to drink. Over the course of the week, it's gotten better, to the point where yesterday it twinged once or twice but that was all. I have been careful not to use it at the gym at all, soooo....
Tuesday I went to spin as planned.
Wednesday my whole body was sore and tired, so I went and used the steam room and the hot tub :) I've never gone to the gym with the intention not to exercise before, so that was kinda weird, but it was a good, relaxing, healthy thing to do.
Thursday I did some interval training on the treadmill.
Friday I did just the stairmaster. I'm close to being back where I was before monitoring my heart rate, which feels good!
Yesterday I did nifty 50s on lower body and core: ball squats, calf raises, crunches, oblique twists, back extensions, hip flexors.
Today, I am going to do more interval training on the treadmill and also use the steam room and hot tub.
Tomorrow, I am going to train. Tuesday, I'm going to spin. After that, it all kind of depends on how my shoulder feels. If it's not feeling better by Tuesday, I'm going to call the PT who worked wonders on my hamstring and see if he can do the same magic on my shoulder. In the meantime, my trainer did give me some exercises I can do for my shoulder, which I have been doing.
We'll see how it goes. The tri is four weeks from today!!
Saturday, August 22, 2009
week at a glance
I thought I posted last week, but it's been two weeks!
The plan is to blog once a week about what's upcoming (and make amendments to anything that didn't get done according to plan from the previous week).
This morning, I went to spin.
Tomorrow, I'm going to run.
Monday, I'm with my trainer.
Tuesday, I'm going to spin.
Wednesday, I'm going to lift if I'm not still sore from Monday. If still sore, I'm going to swim.
Thursday, I'm going to do whatever I didn't do on Wednesday.
Friday, I'm going to lift and run.
Saturday, I'm going to spin.
Sunday I'm going to swim.
I swam on Thursday. My upper body is just tired, though, so I decided no more upper body anything until I train on Monday. Last night I did a good long set of foam rolling and half an hour on the stairmaster. Not resting entirely, but resting the parts that feel like they need to rest. I like this plan.
The next race is in 5 weeks! Four more weeks of good solid training, a week to taper, and two hours to show off all my hard work :)
The plan is to blog once a week about what's upcoming (and make amendments to anything that didn't get done according to plan from the previous week).
This morning, I went to spin.
Tomorrow, I'm going to run.
Monday, I'm with my trainer.
Tuesday, I'm going to spin.
Wednesday, I'm going to lift if I'm not still sore from Monday. If still sore, I'm going to swim.
Thursday, I'm going to do whatever I didn't do on Wednesday.
Friday, I'm going to lift and run.
Saturday, I'm going to spin.
Sunday I'm going to swim.
I swam on Thursday. My upper body is just tired, though, so I decided no more upper body anything until I train on Monday. Last night I did a good long set of foam rolling and half an hour on the stairmaster. Not resting entirely, but resting the parts that feel like they need to rest. I like this plan.
The next race is in 5 weeks! Four more weeks of good solid training, a week to taper, and two hours to show off all my hard work :)
Monday, August 10, 2009
goals
I was swimming yesterday and came to notice that I can do 800 meters about five minutes faster than I could two or three months ago. So I was thinking and plotting and planning ...
My current goal is to trim 15 minutes off my old time. I'm sure I can take 5 minutes off my swim. My bike time will be shorter if for no reason than the bike course is shorter ;) (by 1.4 miles). But I'd like to bike faster anyway. And my run time last race was awful, so I'm sure I can clean that up a bit.
So: 2 hours. That's the goal time. Yes, that's actually 16 minutes faster, but that's just details...
Today I trained with my trainer. Plan for the week is: spin tomorrow, swim on Wednesday, lift on Thursday, land cardio on Friday, lift on Saturday, swim on Sunday.
I'm getting excited!
My current goal is to trim 15 minutes off my old time. I'm sure I can take 5 minutes off my swim. My bike time will be shorter if for no reason than the bike course is shorter ;) (by 1.4 miles). But I'd like to bike faster anyway. And my run time last race was awful, so I'm sure I can clean that up a bit.
So: 2 hours. That's the goal time. Yes, that's actually 16 minutes faster, but that's just details...
Today I trained with my trainer. Plan for the week is: spin tomorrow, swim on Wednesday, lift on Thursday, land cardio on Friday, lift on Saturday, swim on Sunday.
I'm getting excited!
Sunday, August 2, 2009
tri #2 is officially on it's way!
Well, the title of the blog is my first triathlon, but since I'm still triathlon-ing this season, I might as well keep on blogging about it!
I just registered for my second triathlon, another sprint tri at the same place as the first one. The bike course is apparently different (a little shorter and a little hillier), but the swim and the run are exactly the same. There is also an olympic-distance tri at the same time and place (two loops for each of my one), but I don't really want to do anything longer. The last one took me over two hours to complete, and for me, that's plenty of time to be exercising.
I went to see a cardiologist regarding my exercising heart rate, as it easily climbs into the 180s, and with some exertion, hits 195. That's high. So he did some tests and said that it looks healthy and strong and not to worry about it, but for regular long-lasting exercise, to keep it around 165. I struggle with that, but I'm working on it.
For training now, I'm doing 1 or 2 spin classes per week, training once a week with my trainer, swimming 2-3 times per week, lifting weights 1-2 times per week without my trainer, and once a week doing other land-based cardio (treadmill, elliptical, stairmaster, rower). Things are varied enough that I'm never bored, and my body is getting stronger and stronger!
I have my weight and measurements checked roughly once a month by my trainer (scale, tape measure, calipers). According to those measurements, I've gained 7 pounds of muscle since March! Woo-hoo!
Training for the previous tri was hindered by a long-lasting hamstring injury. That's not happening again. Every time I go to exercise, I use a foam roller on my legs, which has been great. No problems so far...
I am very excited about this second tri, and I'm anxious to see how much better I perform!
I just registered for my second triathlon, another sprint tri at the same place as the first one. The bike course is apparently different (a little shorter and a little hillier), but the swim and the run are exactly the same. There is also an olympic-distance tri at the same time and place (two loops for each of my one), but I don't really want to do anything longer. The last one took me over two hours to complete, and for me, that's plenty of time to be exercising.
I went to see a cardiologist regarding my exercising heart rate, as it easily climbs into the 180s, and with some exertion, hits 195. That's high. So he did some tests and said that it looks healthy and strong and not to worry about it, but for regular long-lasting exercise, to keep it around 165. I struggle with that, but I'm working on it.
For training now, I'm doing 1 or 2 spin classes per week, training once a week with my trainer, swimming 2-3 times per week, lifting weights 1-2 times per week without my trainer, and once a week doing other land-based cardio (treadmill, elliptical, stairmaster, rower). Things are varied enough that I'm never bored, and my body is getting stronger and stronger!
I have my weight and measurements checked roughly once a month by my trainer (scale, tape measure, calipers). According to those measurements, I've gained 7 pounds of muscle since March! Woo-hoo!
Training for the previous tri was hindered by a long-lasting hamstring injury. That's not happening again. Every time I go to exercise, I use a foam roller on my legs, which has been great. No problems so far...
I am very excited about this second tri, and I'm anxious to see how much better I perform!
Friday, July 24, 2009
next race...
As soon as I get a green light from the cardiologist (which I am expecting on Tuesday), I am going to register for the sprint distance of the Nathan Tempe Triathlon. It's almost the exact same as the Danskin that I did in May. Bike route is different — hillier but shorter. Swim and run courses are the same. And as long as I take good care of my legs, my training will be better and it will be a better race. Stay tuned...
Saturday, May 9, 2009
I am officially a triathlete!!
The race this morning was amazing. Where to start...
I arrived a little later than I would have liked (surprise) and was a little rushed. I went to put my bike in transition and set up my stuff. I found my spot, but I couldn't figure out how to get my bike onto the rack. The ones around me were hanging either by their seat or their handlebars, but I couldn't get mine to do that. I asked the lady next to me, and she gave a couple of suggestions, watched them not work, then said just to use the kickstand. Much easier :)
It was my first time wearing a swim cap, and that felt a little funny. I'm used to feeling water in my hair. Not a big deal, just odd.
The swimmers were divided into eight waves which went out five minutes apart. One group was at the starting line, another group was in the water, and the next group was at the side of the lake. My group was orange (which was the color of our caps). I got out into the water and decided to be at the complete back of my group. Hanging out, treading water, feeling OK. The blue group was behind ours, and those ladies got in and crowded up the back of us. I couldn't even tread water without smacking into one of them. Their conversation among themselves indicated that they knew they were crowded, but they didn't do anything about it. It's one thing to be crowded in a place where you are standing or sitting. It's another one entirely to be crowded where feet on the floor is a bad thing. (I don't know how deep the lake is there, but it's over my head, and that's all I need to know ... not that I would have wanted to put my feet on the bottom. Ew.)
So the horn went off and we started, heading east in Tempe Town Lake. Problem #2 in the swim: my goggles fogged up pretty instantly. Between that and looking into the sun, I couldn't see where I was going. So I'd swim a little, stop, take off my goggles, look to see where I was, put them back on, swim a little, etc. Annoying at best. Once I got around the buoy, the problem subsided. Heading north I had a lot of bumping issues with people nearby. I drank a lot more of Tempe Town Lake than I would have liked, but that's just how it goes sometimes. Anyway, heading west was great. I had a nice, easy stroke going, could look up and spot without stopping, most of the time, didn't have too much groping with other swimmers. There were two or three ladies from my wave who finished behind me.
I got out and ran to transition. It wasn't too hard to get switched into biking mode, but I did have some trouble getting my socks on. I wasn't sure how much I needed to dry my feet, as I've not run or biked in wet socks and didn't want blisters. Pretty quickly, the "screw it, I gotta go" kicked in, I got everything on and headed out.
I did the whole race in Skins, compression clothes (in my case, long sleeved and long legged) that have UV-blocker built in. I had sewn some cloth onto a sweatband and wore that under my helmet, so the cloth covered my ears and the back of my neck. This let me not worry about too much sunscreen.
So I only needed to put on shoes, socks, bandana, sweatband, helmet, get some gum and head out. It felt like it took a long time, but I'm not sure that it actually did.
About two miles into the bike course, the "what the hell was I thinking?" kicked in. Fortunately, it passed pretty quickly. It was a two-loop course with a little up-and-down, but nothing too severe. As I was coming over the Mill Avenue bridge near the end of my first lap, the woman who finished first crossed the finish line. It was the only point in the race where I felt really really slow. (Of course, I was really slow, but that's not the point ;)) The second loop was much better mentally than the first loop and was therefore probably faster, though I don't actually know. I had some good pushing at the end and finished pretty strong.
And then I got off my bike and was really pretty ready to go home.
I tried to joke with the volunteer at the entrance to transition. "I'm supposed to run now?" She gave me an explanation of where to put my bike and where to run to.
The ladies at the water stations were much less serious. I joked with some that I thought this race was multiple choice, "clarified" with one that this was a 5K walk, and at the last water station, just stopped and chatted for a minute. I was so tired. I did end up walking probably half of the run and only really ran the last 0.1 mile. The rest was a jog. It's OK. I did it.
With less than a mile to go, I was so happy and excited and proud, I started to tear up. I was able to put that away, telling myself I could cry when I was done. But right at about that time, I started to have trouble breathing. My throat got super-tight. I stopped running and just walked, of course, calmed down, and it went away. I figured it was just part of getting all emotional, I started running again, and it was OK. After I finished (at which point I felt no compulsion to cry), it happened again, and it continued to happen off and on for an hour or more. Once I had lunch, it stopped. I don't know if they're related or not, but it was definitely the most unpleasant part of the morning.
I had enough energy left to sprint-ish the last 0.1 mile, and then was completely wiped. I sometimes feel funny, going that fast at the end, when it's really pretty evident that I hadn't gone that fast all morning, but it's OK. Strong finish. I had good finishes to all three legs.
All the while, some friends were my cheering section. One had T-shirts made that they all wore. They saw me off at the beginning, cheered when I got out of the lake, cheered when I came by (both directions) for both loops of the bike ride, cheered when I was running. It was very very cool to have a cheering section :) One took pictures, but I haven't seen them yet.
There were pro photographers all over the place at the event. I just signed up to get a notification when my photos are ready.
After walking around, standing around, cooling down, some of us went out for a tasty lunch. I tossed my gym bag into a friend's car, not realizing until much later that my keys were in the gym bag. Oops. Fortunately, I had been flaky enough to leave one of my doors unlocked (I have one of three cars left on Earth with manual locks), so I could get in to get my change of clothes. I changed right there in the parking deck, and another friend, who had been carrying some of my stuff, gave me a ride :)
The other point of note from this morning is that I was able to walk around in public for 4.5 or so hours in clothes tight enough to be called "skins" and didn't even think about it. This is good :)
Also, while it was quite warm this morning, and I had on long-sleeved, long-legged tight black clothes, I didn't feel especially hot. The wicking properties really did a lot, and I suspect that not having the sun beating on my skin helped, too.
Currently (about 8 hours after finishing), my body feels pretty good. My head feels a little woozy and I'm a little tired, but overall, I feel great! I'm interested to see how all the muscles feel tomorrow. If I have sore anything, it'll be legs or maybe shoulders (tension). I've swum the swim distance many many times without residual soreness. Since I didn't train my legs as much as I would have liked (stupid hamstring injury), the biking was a little rough on them. We'll see...
That's my story! It was a great experience, and I'm thinking about doing another one in the fall. I can't imagine doing a longer one. If nothing else, I don't like running enough to do a longer distance.
I arrived a little later than I would have liked (surprise) and was a little rushed. I went to put my bike in transition and set up my stuff. I found my spot, but I couldn't figure out how to get my bike onto the rack. The ones around me were hanging either by their seat or their handlebars, but I couldn't get mine to do that. I asked the lady next to me, and she gave a couple of suggestions, watched them not work, then said just to use the kickstand. Much easier :)
It was my first time wearing a swim cap, and that felt a little funny. I'm used to feeling water in my hair. Not a big deal, just odd.
The swimmers were divided into eight waves which went out five minutes apart. One group was at the starting line, another group was in the water, and the next group was at the side of the lake. My group was orange (which was the color of our caps). I got out into the water and decided to be at the complete back of my group. Hanging out, treading water, feeling OK. The blue group was behind ours, and those ladies got in and crowded up the back of us. I couldn't even tread water without smacking into one of them. Their conversation among themselves indicated that they knew they were crowded, but they didn't do anything about it. It's one thing to be crowded in a place where you are standing or sitting. It's another one entirely to be crowded where feet on the floor is a bad thing. (I don't know how deep the lake is there, but it's over my head, and that's all I need to know ... not that I would have wanted to put my feet on the bottom. Ew.)
So the horn went off and we started, heading east in Tempe Town Lake. Problem #2 in the swim: my goggles fogged up pretty instantly. Between that and looking into the sun, I couldn't see where I was going. So I'd swim a little, stop, take off my goggles, look to see where I was, put them back on, swim a little, etc. Annoying at best. Once I got around the buoy, the problem subsided. Heading north I had a lot of bumping issues with people nearby. I drank a lot more of Tempe Town Lake than I would have liked, but that's just how it goes sometimes. Anyway, heading west was great. I had a nice, easy stroke going, could look up and spot without stopping, most of the time, didn't have too much groping with other swimmers. There were two or three ladies from my wave who finished behind me.
I got out and ran to transition. It wasn't too hard to get switched into biking mode, but I did have some trouble getting my socks on. I wasn't sure how much I needed to dry my feet, as I've not run or biked in wet socks and didn't want blisters. Pretty quickly, the "screw it, I gotta go" kicked in, I got everything on and headed out.
I did the whole race in Skins, compression clothes (in my case, long sleeved and long legged) that have UV-blocker built in. I had sewn some cloth onto a sweatband and wore that under my helmet, so the cloth covered my ears and the back of my neck. This let me not worry about too much sunscreen.
So I only needed to put on shoes, socks, bandana, sweatband, helmet, get some gum and head out. It felt like it took a long time, but I'm not sure that it actually did.
About two miles into the bike course, the "what the hell was I thinking?" kicked in. Fortunately, it passed pretty quickly. It was a two-loop course with a little up-and-down, but nothing too severe. As I was coming over the Mill Avenue bridge near the end of my first lap, the woman who finished first crossed the finish line. It was the only point in the race where I felt really really slow. (Of course, I was really slow, but that's not the point ;)) The second loop was much better mentally than the first loop and was therefore probably faster, though I don't actually know. I had some good pushing at the end and finished pretty strong.
And then I got off my bike and was really pretty ready to go home.
I tried to joke with the volunteer at the entrance to transition. "I'm supposed to run now?" She gave me an explanation of where to put my bike and where to run to.
The ladies at the water stations were much less serious. I joked with some that I thought this race was multiple choice, "clarified" with one that this was a 5K walk, and at the last water station, just stopped and chatted for a minute. I was so tired. I did end up walking probably half of the run and only really ran the last 0.1 mile. The rest was a jog. It's OK. I did it.
With less than a mile to go, I was so happy and excited and proud, I started to tear up. I was able to put that away, telling myself I could cry when I was done. But right at about that time, I started to have trouble breathing. My throat got super-tight. I stopped running and just walked, of course, calmed down, and it went away. I figured it was just part of getting all emotional, I started running again, and it was OK. After I finished (at which point I felt no compulsion to cry), it happened again, and it continued to happen off and on for an hour or more. Once I had lunch, it stopped. I don't know if they're related or not, but it was definitely the most unpleasant part of the morning.
I had enough energy left to sprint-ish the last 0.1 mile, and then was completely wiped. I sometimes feel funny, going that fast at the end, when it's really pretty evident that I hadn't gone that fast all morning, but it's OK. Strong finish. I had good finishes to all three legs.
All the while, some friends were my cheering section. One had T-shirts made that they all wore. They saw me off at the beginning, cheered when I got out of the lake, cheered when I came by (both directions) for both loops of the bike ride, cheered when I was running. It was very very cool to have a cheering section :) One took pictures, but I haven't seen them yet.
There were pro photographers all over the place at the event. I just signed up to get a notification when my photos are ready.
After walking around, standing around, cooling down, some of us went out for a tasty lunch. I tossed my gym bag into a friend's car, not realizing until much later that my keys were in the gym bag. Oops. Fortunately, I had been flaky enough to leave one of my doors unlocked (I have one of three cars left on Earth with manual locks), so I could get in to get my change of clothes. I changed right there in the parking deck, and another friend, who had been carrying some of my stuff, gave me a ride :)
The other point of note from this morning is that I was able to walk around in public for 4.5 or so hours in clothes tight enough to be called "skins" and didn't even think about it. This is good :)
Also, while it was quite warm this morning, and I had on long-sleeved, long-legged tight black clothes, I didn't feel especially hot. The wicking properties really did a lot, and I suspect that not having the sun beating on my skin helped, too.
Currently (about 8 hours after finishing), my body feels pretty good. My head feels a little woozy and I'm a little tired, but overall, I feel great! I'm interested to see how all the muscles feel tomorrow. If I have sore anything, it'll be legs or maybe shoulders (tension). I've swum the swim distance many many times without residual soreness. Since I didn't train my legs as much as I would have liked (stupid hamstring injury), the biking was a little rough on them. We'll see...
That's my story! It was a great experience, and I'm thinking about doing another one in the fall. I can't imagine doing a longer one. If nothing else, I don't like running enough to do a longer distance.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
35 hours left!
There was a "last chance for Q&A" tonight for the triathlon. I went. It was good. I talked to some neat ladies, I got more information about what to expect, I bought two of the three things I had left on my list. I learned that if I use an iPod, I'll get disqualified and won't get a time. So I won't use an iPod. But I want to!
Anyway, I'm super-extra excited. I have butterflies :)
YAYE!!
Anyway, I'm super-extra excited. I have butterflies :)
YAYE!!
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Well, things here got a little crazy in the last week or so, but I'm swimming, biking, running, lifting ... excited! nervous!
Two days left. Not doing a lot of exercising in those two days. I might get in one more swim. I'd like to get in one more run.
B. recommended lots of foam rolling, so as soon as I get off the computer, that's what I'm going to do. (It's nice to have a foam roll at home!)
I have an appointment with the PT on Friday morning for a "tune up." :)
And Saturday, I race! WOW!!!
Not sure there will be much in the next two days, but I surely will report back on Saturday!
Two days left. Not doing a lot of exercising in those two days. I might get in one more swim. I'd like to get in one more run.
B. recommended lots of foam rolling, so as soon as I get off the computer, that's what I'm going to do. (It's nice to have a foam roll at home!)
I have an appointment with the PT on Friday morning for a "tune up." :)
And Saturday, I race! WOW!!!
Not sure there will be much in the next two days, but I surely will report back on Saturday!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
gettin' closer!!
The tri is in 10 days! Holy cow!!
Yesterday, I worked out with B. It was a good, hard workout, and I'm sore today from it. We've been talking tri stuff (he's done a few), and it's been good. I'm feeling more and more confident. I know I can finish it — it's just a matter of how long it's going to take me to do it.
I'm going to do another mock-tri tomorrow evening — swim in the pool, go to a spin class, run on the treadmill (or maybe I'll run outside). Lifting on Friday, not sure what's up for the weekend. Training on Tuesday again and after that, everything is light light light.
It's coming!!
Yesterday, I worked out with B. It was a good, hard workout, and I'm sore today from it. We've been talking tri stuff (he's done a few), and it's been good. I'm feeling more and more confident. I know I can finish it — it's just a matter of how long it's going to take me to do it.
I'm going to do another mock-tri tomorrow evening — swim in the pool, go to a spin class, run on the treadmill (or maybe I'll run outside). Lifting on Friday, not sure what's up for the weekend. Training on Tuesday again and after that, everything is light light light.
It's coming!!
Sunday, April 26, 2009
bike race this morning
Bike race this morning gave me the opportunity to do a few different things.
First and foremost, ride my bike. It was a good ride. Hit a wall somewhere around mile six. Otherwise, no problems. The sport drink I got wasn't bad, diluted with water :)
On the course for the tri, the point where I hit the wall this morning will be nearing the end of the first loop. I'm thinking that if nothing else, all of the people around and cheering will at least postpone the tired.
When I finished this morning, I hopped off my bike and took a short run, just to get used to the transition. It's not bad.
I also got to try out a test-breakfast, since I very rarely exercise first thing in the morning. I made some frozen fruit into a smoothie and had a Zone bar. It settled well, but it wasn't enough. But I didn't eat all that much yesterday, which would have an impact. In any case, I know I can eat everything I ate this morning and be fine, so that's good.
I also had some crampiness going on this morning, which Advil took the edge off of, but still. No cramps on race day :)
Now, for the first time ever in my life, I was the first person to finish! I pulled up to the school where we started/ended. The volunteers were hanging out chatting. A few spectators were sitting in chairs, mostly reading. It was very anti-climatic. I pulled up to a table, and a lady asked: "Did you do the whole thing?" Yes, I did the 10 miles. "Wow! That was fast! You're the first one done!"
Really, it wasn't that fast. The lead pack for the 65-mile racers came past our corner about 10 minutes or so later, and they had completed 25 miles. That's fast.
Based on how I rode this morning, it's going to take me about an hour to complete the bike portion of the tri. I might be able to go a little faster, with some last-minute training and a bunch of adrenaline, but I think that's about where I'll be.
I wore my skins, of course, because they're UV-blocking and because I need to be used to wearing them. They're funky looking (mine have yellow seams). The same lady who asked if I was done later said, "Look at you with your fabulous body in your fabulous outfit." Besides "fabulous" just being a great word in general, it was a nice compliment :) Especially since I feel kinda bloated and gross.
So bike race was a success! Hooray!
First and foremost, ride my bike. It was a good ride. Hit a wall somewhere around mile six. Otherwise, no problems. The sport drink I got wasn't bad, diluted with water :)
On the course for the tri, the point where I hit the wall this morning will be nearing the end of the first loop. I'm thinking that if nothing else, all of the people around and cheering will at least postpone the tired.
When I finished this morning, I hopped off my bike and took a short run, just to get used to the transition. It's not bad.
I also got to try out a test-breakfast, since I very rarely exercise first thing in the morning. I made some frozen fruit into a smoothie and had a Zone bar. It settled well, but it wasn't enough. But I didn't eat all that much yesterday, which would have an impact. In any case, I know I can eat everything I ate this morning and be fine, so that's good.
I also had some crampiness going on this morning, which Advil took the edge off of, but still. No cramps on race day :)
Now, for the first time ever in my life, I was the first person to finish! I pulled up to the school where we started/ended. The volunteers were hanging out chatting. A few spectators were sitting in chairs, mostly reading. It was very anti-climatic. I pulled up to a table, and a lady asked: "Did you do the whole thing?" Yes, I did the 10 miles. "Wow! That was fast! You're the first one done!"
Really, it wasn't that fast. The lead pack for the 65-mile racers came past our corner about 10 minutes or so later, and they had completed 25 miles. That's fast.
Based on how I rode this morning, it's going to take me about an hour to complete the bike portion of the tri. I might be able to go a little faster, with some last-minute training and a bunch of adrenaline, but I think that's about where I'll be.
I wore my skins, of course, because they're UV-blocking and because I need to be used to wearing them. They're funky looking (mine have yellow seams). The same lady who asked if I was done later said, "Look at you with your fabulous body in your fabulous outfit." Besides "fabulous" just being a great word in general, it was a nice compliment :) Especially since I feel kinda bloated and gross.
So bike race was a success! Hooray!
Friday, April 24, 2009
mock tri and open water swim
Last night, I did a sort of mock-tri at the gym. I swam 750 meters, then changed and went to a spin class (55 minutes — I left before the cool-down), then jogged for 25 minutes on the treadmill. I felt great when I was done! Woo-hoo! Happy happy happy :)
I went this afternoon and bought skins.
Tonight, there was an open-water practice swim at the lake. I've decided not to wear a wetsuit (I found it too constrictive in the shoulders — the buoyancy wasn't worth it). The skins were quite comfortable to swim in. I felt pretty exposed — I don't typically walk around in clothes that are all skin-tight — but the self-consciousness mostly wore off (and was not with me at all in the water this evening).
Swimming in a lake is way harder than swimming in a pool. I was surprised. First of all, the lake is kinda gross. I put my head in and could barely see my hand out in front of me. Ew. Otherwise ... it's hard to explain why.
The swim tonight was just up-and-back. On the way out, it was easy to go in a straight line — I swam by the wall and kept my eye on that when I came up to breathe. On the way back, I swam way crooked and ended up swimming quite a bit farther than I needed to. 's OK.
I took off too fast off the line. My stroke was nothing like what it is in the pool. Adrenaline? So it wasn't long before I was completely wiped out. I stopped and caught my breath, but the rest of the swim wasn't great. Now I know and can plan for it. They warned us to start out slow, and I thought, "I always swim slow!" but alas, I did not. I'm glad we had a practice swim :)
Tomorrow is a rest day. Sunday, I am doing a bike race. That'll be good. I can get a feel for it. I've biked a lot, but never in a race. We'll see...
The race is two weeks from tomorrow! Can hardly wait!!
I went this afternoon and bought skins.
Tonight, there was an open-water practice swim at the lake. I've decided not to wear a wetsuit (I found it too constrictive in the shoulders — the buoyancy wasn't worth it). The skins were quite comfortable to swim in. I felt pretty exposed — I don't typically walk around in clothes that are all skin-tight — but the self-consciousness mostly wore off (and was not with me at all in the water this evening).
Swimming in a lake is way harder than swimming in a pool. I was surprised. First of all, the lake is kinda gross. I put my head in and could barely see my hand out in front of me. Ew. Otherwise ... it's hard to explain why.
The swim tonight was just up-and-back. On the way out, it was easy to go in a straight line — I swam by the wall and kept my eye on that when I came up to breathe. On the way back, I swam way crooked and ended up swimming quite a bit farther than I needed to. 's OK.
I took off too fast off the line. My stroke was nothing like what it is in the pool. Adrenaline? So it wasn't long before I was completely wiped out. I stopped and caught my breath, but the rest of the swim wasn't great. Now I know and can plan for it. They warned us to start out slow, and I thought, "I always swim slow!" but alas, I did not. I'm glad we had a practice swim :)
Tomorrow is a rest day. Sunday, I am doing a bike race. That'll be good. I can get a feel for it. I've biked a lot, but never in a race. We'll see...
The race is two weeks from tomorrow! Can hardly wait!!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
small hodgepodge of stuff
Nothing extraordinary to report. Lifting, swimming the last couple of days. Trained with B. tonight. Planning tomorrow to swim at the pool with my wetsuit. Planning Thursday to swim, then spin, then run a bit. Friday there is a practice swim at the lake. Saturday, there's a bike race I might do. Rampin' it up! Time's a-tickin!
In the mean time, a good friend and my husband are putting together the cheerleading squad :) They're even having T-shirts made!
I'm kind of wishing I had spare cash to get the fancy pedals and shoes for my bike (and feet), but I've never used them before, so I suspect I won't miss them.
I used non-cotton socks tonight at the gym for the first time ever and might not ever wear cotton socks again!
The hospital PR people want to interview me for a "life after cancer" piece regarding this event. I called today and left a message.
I'm super-excited about all that's going on! Now, I just have to do the race!!
In the mean time, a good friend and my husband are putting together the cheerleading squad :) They're even having T-shirts made!
I'm kind of wishing I had spare cash to get the fancy pedals and shoes for my bike (and feet), but I've never used them before, so I suspect I won't miss them.
I used non-cotton socks tonight at the gym for the first time ever and might not ever wear cotton socks again!
The hospital PR people want to interview me for a "life after cancer" piece regarding this event. I called today and left a message.
I'm super-excited about all that's going on! Now, I just have to do the race!!
Saturday, April 18, 2009
bought a wetsuit
My tri mentor was selling a wetsuit in my size, so I went today to meet with her and try it on.
I had never put on a wetsuit before.
I had heard and read that it's hard to put a wetsuit on. That is the understatement of the century! My hands were tired from grabbing and pulling. It was as if my whole body was hips!
Well, between the two of us, we got it on, but it was no small feat.
I did buy it from her, but I'm not looking forward to putting it on in a public space (i.e. at the race). I will practice putting it on, and I'll get my hubby to help, and I'm going to swim with it at the gym some time this week and use it for the open-water swim on Friday.
One more thing checked off the list. The race is three weeks from today!!!
I had never put on a wetsuit before.
I had heard and read that it's hard to put a wetsuit on. That is the understatement of the century! My hands were tired from grabbing and pulling. It was as if my whole body was hips!
Well, between the two of us, we got it on, but it was no small feat.
I did buy it from her, but I'm not looking forward to putting it on in a public space (i.e. at the race). I will practice putting it on, and I'll get my hubby to help, and I'm going to swim with it at the gym some time this week and use it for the open-water swim on Friday.
One more thing checked off the list. The race is three weeks from today!!!
biking!
I decided to bike to tonight's concert, which was roughly an 11-mile ride. It felt great to get out and ride again — it's been way too long! My quads went from being a little sore back to being quite sore as a result, but that's OK.
The plan is to do a small ton of biking in the next few weeks...
The plan is to do a small ton of biking in the next few weeks...
Thursday, April 16, 2009
ahhhh, back on the wagon!
I was right about being sore. It was completely contained in my quads, but I've had some trouble walking for two days now. That shut down my plans to go to spin class tonight. I did go and swim, and it felt good to be back in the pool. There is something soothing about the water that isn't available through other means of cardio. Also, the hot tub is there afterwards :)
I'm going to find time to go biking tomorrow, and maybe do a little upper body work if I have time. (I have a concert tomorrow night - the last of the season - so time is a little short.)
Saturday, I'm going to try on a wetsuit from someone who is selling one. Hopefully, it'll fit and I can write her a check and be done with that aspect of things. We'll see...
I'm going to find time to go biking tomorrow, and maybe do a little upper body work if I have time. (I have a concert tomorrow night - the last of the season - so time is a little short.)
Saturday, I'm going to try on a wetsuit from someone who is selling one. Hopefully, it'll fit and I can write her a check and be done with that aspect of things. We'll see...
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
been sick :(
Well, since I last posted ... I had half of an upper body workout in the exercise room at a hotel, I went for a swim, and I've been dancing twice. I had The Crud and it took a while before I felt functional.
Yesterday, I was finally feeling kind of better, so I went to the gym and just did a little elliptical. It felt good to be moving and sweating.
Today, I trained with B. It was excellent :) I expect to be sore tomorrow, and that's OK. So now I'm in hyper training mode, as the tri is coming up fast and I've lost a lot of training time :(
It'll be great.
Yesterday, I was finally feeling kind of better, so I went to the gym and just did a little elliptical. It felt good to be moving and sweating.
Today, I trained with B. It was excellent :) I expect to be sore tomorrow, and that's OK. So now I'm in hyper training mode, as the tri is coming up fast and I've lost a lot of training time :(
It'll be great.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
running!
I went for a short run tonight (roughly 1 mile). It felt pretty good :) It's nice to be back on my feet, as it were.
I left work a little late (maybe 10 minutes) and then there were problems on the freeway, so I missed the run-the-course, which was disappointing. I did meet up with my mentor and some other ladies, and learned about transitions and how to set them up.
I'm excited! It's getting closer... I'm not going to go too fast with running or anything, but I'm glad to be able to do it again. Biking soon, too! Woo-hoo!!!
I was able to get a bike helmet that fits finally, which is good. I have a few things left to buy, but not many, and a few other things that I'll buy if the money tree blooms in time ;-) This tri stuff can get expensive!
I left work a little late (maybe 10 minutes) and then there were problems on the freeway, so I missed the run-the-course, which was disappointing. I did meet up with my mentor and some other ladies, and learned about transitions and how to set them up.
I'm excited! It's getting closer... I'm not going to go too fast with running or anything, but I'm glad to be able to do it again. Biking soon, too! Woo-hoo!!!
I was able to get a bike helmet that fits finally, which is good. I have a few things left to buy, but not many, and a few other things that I'll buy if the money tree blooms in time ;-) This tri stuff can get expensive!
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
PT!
I can't believe I haven't posted about my physical therapy!
It's great!
The appointment last Thursday was just a consultation. But then on Monday morning, I had a real let's-do-something appointment. It was amazing! He massaged-ish the muscle and muscles around it, while stretching and moving my leg around. I say "-ish" just because it used a lot of pressure and was somewhere near my threshhold of pain. After 15 or so minutes, he asked me to stand up and stretch, and voila! I could put my palms on the floor with no pain! Crazy! (It was good for the rest of the day, though there were some other areas that were a little sore, and since then it's been mostly good.)
I had another appointment this morning, which was quite similar to the first.
There is a "run the course" tomorrow for the triathlon. The PT said I could run a mile, but that was all. So the plan is to walk most of the course and run the rest. Regardless, I'm excited to get out there and run some! It's been a long time!
It's great!
The appointment last Thursday was just a consultation. But then on Monday morning, I had a real let's-do-something appointment. It was amazing! He massaged-ish the muscle and muscles around it, while stretching and moving my leg around. I say "-ish" just because it used a lot of pressure and was somewhere near my threshhold of pain. After 15 or so minutes, he asked me to stand up and stretch, and voila! I could put my palms on the floor with no pain! Crazy! (It was good for the rest of the day, though there were some other areas that were a little sore, and since then it's been mostly good.)
I had another appointment this morning, which was quite similar to the first.
There is a "run the course" tomorrow for the triathlon. The PT said I could run a mile, but that was all. So the plan is to walk most of the course and run the rest. Regardless, I'm excited to get out there and run some! It's been a long time!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
feeling better-ish
I took off Monday and yesterday. My upper body is feeling great and is ready to jump back in the game. My hamstring is still a little sore. If it would just stay like that (as opposed to getting worse), I could easily work through it. But that's not how it works.
I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon with a PT to have it checked out. Hopefully, the visit will yield good results and not just "well, this is what's wrong, come back next week and we'll get started." He's sports-minded, though (his card has "ironman performance care" on it), and is aware I'm training for a May 9 triathlon and haven't run or biked in 2 months. I have hope.
Today I am planning to hit the pool. I got a new bathing suit in the mail on Monday (I hate mail ordering clothes, but I couldn't find this particular one in any local stores) that is much better-suited to swimming laps. I'm looking forward to trying it out!
Also today I can go and pick up my bike. I am going to ask them to fit me for a helmet while I'm there. I tried a bunch on the other night when I was shopping, but they were all too big ... even the youth ages 11-14.
That's where I'm at. Here's to hope!
I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon with a PT to have it checked out. Hopefully, the visit will yield good results and not just "well, this is what's wrong, come back next week and we'll get started." He's sports-minded, though (his card has "ironman performance care" on it), and is aware I'm training for a May 9 triathlon and haven't run or biked in 2 months. I have hope.
Today I am planning to hit the pool. I got a new bathing suit in the mail on Monday (I hate mail ordering clothes, but I couldn't find this particular one in any local stores) that is much better-suited to swimming laps. I'm looking forward to trying it out!
Also today I can go and pick up my bike. I am going to ask them to fit me for a helmet while I'm there. I tried a bunch on the other night when I was shopping, but they were all too big ... even the youth ages 11-14.
That's where I'm at. Here's to hope!
Monday, March 16, 2009
ready to be healed...
I swam yesterday, and my right shoulder was a little tweaky. This is Not Good.
I figure it's some combination of swimming a lot and lots of upper-body strength training. I always have at least one rest day between lifting days, often more, but I wonder if the swim days in between made days off less restful.
Today, it feels pretty good. I'm not exercising today.
My hamstring, however, is not healing. I'm very frustrated (to put it mildly), and I'm going to look into physical therapy and/or a chiropractor. I have a recommendation for a physical therapist, and there was a doc who came to our school and gave massages who I have info for. (I'm more likely to go with the first, since he was personally recommended.)
To add to my frustration, I've been using my heart rate monitor. I can swim comfortably and keep my HR under 165 (which is where I have the alarm set for). But on Saturday when I was lifting, I set the dumb thing off with almost every set of exercises. 20 pushups? HR=170. I thought we had moved on from this problem, but I guess not. I'm planning to wear it tomorrow when (if) I train. My mom suggested I get my thyroid checked. I need to get bloodwork done this week anyway, for the oncologist. I'm going to ask them if they'll tack the two tests she suggested on. And I usually have my blood chemistry checked every March, so I'll ask about that, too. I don't know if they'll do all that, but I figure, there's no harm in asking...
I'm not sure if I should train tomorrow or not. My gut is saying "rest another day," so that's what I'm likely to go with. I need to talk to B. and maybe reschedule for Thursday or early morning Wednesday.
I figure it's some combination of swimming a lot and lots of upper-body strength training. I always have at least one rest day between lifting days, often more, but I wonder if the swim days in between made days off less restful.
Today, it feels pretty good. I'm not exercising today.
My hamstring, however, is not healing. I'm very frustrated (to put it mildly), and I'm going to look into physical therapy and/or a chiropractor. I have a recommendation for a physical therapist, and there was a doc who came to our school and gave massages who I have info for. (I'm more likely to go with the first, since he was personally recommended.)
To add to my frustration, I've been using my heart rate monitor. I can swim comfortably and keep my HR under 165 (which is where I have the alarm set for). But on Saturday when I was lifting, I set the dumb thing off with almost every set of exercises. 20 pushups? HR=170. I thought we had moved on from this problem, but I guess not. I'm planning to wear it tomorrow when (if) I train. My mom suggested I get my thyroid checked. I need to get bloodwork done this week anyway, for the oncologist. I'm going to ask them if they'll tack the two tests she suggested on. And I usually have my blood chemistry checked every March, so I'll ask about that, too. I don't know if they'll do all that, but I figure, there's no harm in asking...
I'm not sure if I should train tomorrow or not. My gut is saying "rest another day," so that's what I'm likely to go with. I need to talk to B. and maybe reschedule for Thursday or early morning Wednesday.
Friday, March 13, 2009
misc from the last few days
Swim and upper body lift and swim and upper body lift. That's all I've been up to these days.
I swam today with a heart rate monitor, which was useful, not because I can use it in the way that most triathletes apparently do, but because my heart rate often spikes when I exercise. It's not bad in the pool at the speed that I'm happily swimming, so that's good :)
Last night, I had a bike maintenance workshop, sponsored by the triathlon people. I took my bike over. There was only one other woman who showed up, so we each got private lessons on changing tires. I left my bike there, as the back brake was broken (as it turned out) and it needs a tune up (I bought it in spring 2000, I think, and it's never been tuned up), but not before learning how to disengage the brakes, take the wheels off, take the tires off, put them back on, fill them with a CO2 cartridge, put the wheels back on, and re-engage the brakes. It's messy, but it was fun. They gave both of us bags that are hung from the back of one's seat containing a patch kit, CO2 cartridges, an inflator for the cartridges, and tire lever. Nice :)
I met my mentor, who is a neat woman, and I got two leads on a used wetsuit. This activity was definitely worth the time invested.
Tonight, I bought some compression shorts (this hamstring is pissing me off), some wrap-around sunglasses, some anti-chafing stuff, and some bamboo socks. The only things left to buy (I think) are:
a new bike helmet (mine sustained a crash some time ago and must be replaced)
a wetsuit
skins or something similar for sun protection
Is there anything I'm forgetting?
I swam today with a heart rate monitor, which was useful, not because I can use it in the way that most triathletes apparently do, but because my heart rate often spikes when I exercise. It's not bad in the pool at the speed that I'm happily swimming, so that's good :)
Last night, I had a bike maintenance workshop, sponsored by the triathlon people. I took my bike over. There was only one other woman who showed up, so we each got private lessons on changing tires. I left my bike there, as the back brake was broken (as it turned out) and it needs a tune up (I bought it in spring 2000, I think, and it's never been tuned up), but not before learning how to disengage the brakes, take the wheels off, take the tires off, put them back on, fill them with a CO2 cartridge, put the wheels back on, and re-engage the brakes. It's messy, but it was fun. They gave both of us bags that are hung from the back of one's seat containing a patch kit, CO2 cartridges, an inflator for the cartridges, and tire lever. Nice :)
I met my mentor, who is a neat woman, and I got two leads on a used wetsuit. This activity was definitely worth the time invested.
Tonight, I bought some compression shorts (this hamstring is pissing me off), some wrap-around sunglasses, some anti-chafing stuff, and some bamboo socks. The only things left to buy (I think) are:
a new bike helmet (mine sustained a crash some time ago and must be replaced)
a wetsuit
skins or something similar for sun protection
Is there anything I'm forgetting?
Sunday, March 8, 2009
looking forward
I'm ready to use my legs again.
They're almost ready.
I'm going to tell B. "no legs" on Tuesday when I train again.
I plan to be spinning by next weekend. I think that's possible. But I'm not doing anything before Thursday, regardless of how it feels.
With lifting, I'm definitely getting stronger, but it's taking a lot longer than it did last time. I wonder if chemo has anything to do with that. Weird. Frustrating. But progress is progress, regardless of how slow it is...
I took the saddle baskets off of my bike this evening; they're not so good for racing. There is a bike maintenance workshop on Thursday that I'm going to, which will be great :)
Swimming tomorrow. Going to try to go a little bit faster and a little bit farther. Maybe an extra 50-100 meters in the same time I've been swimming 750? I don't know if that's a realistic goal or not, but that's what I'll set it at anyway :)
I don't have many training sessions left, I don't think, which is sad. I don't think there's cash around to buy more when these run out, so I'll just need to savor the last few...
They're almost ready.
I'm going to tell B. "no legs" on Tuesday when I train again.
I plan to be spinning by next weekend. I think that's possible. But I'm not doing anything before Thursday, regardless of how it feels.
With lifting, I'm definitely getting stronger, but it's taking a lot longer than it did last time. I wonder if chemo has anything to do with that. Weird. Frustrating. But progress is progress, regardless of how slow it is...
I took the saddle baskets off of my bike this evening; they're not so good for racing. There is a bike maintenance workshop on Thursday that I'm going to, which will be great :)
Swimming tomorrow. Going to try to go a little bit faster and a little bit farther. Maybe an extra 50-100 meters in the same time I've been swimming 750? I don't know if that's a realistic goal or not, but that's what I'll set it at anyway :)
I don't have many training sessions left, I don't think, which is sad. I don't think there's cash around to buy more when these run out, so I'll just need to savor the last few...
Thursday, March 5, 2009
March 3 and 5
Tuesday, B. and I did Nifty 50s. Well, he didn't do any. Anyway, it was a comparison — we had done this about three months ago. The good news is that I'm getting stronger and my endurance is increasing :) I don't think there's any bad news, at least not about that.
He suggested that I try out the stationary bike for 10-15 minutes and see how the hamstring feels. So when I went in tonight, I biked lightly for 10 minutes (level 2, 55 rpm) while I wrote out what I was going to do for lifting. The ol' hammy was a little sore when I got off, so I think spinning is not yet in the cards. It's still sore, and I'll be icing it shortly.
The rest of my workout was pretty good, though — upper body and abs.
Tomorrow, I'm just going to swim.
(Yesterday was a rest day.)
I'd love to go and spin on Saturday or Sunday. Maybe this dumb leg will be healed up by then. Saturday probably not, but Sunday maybe...
He suggested that I try out the stationary bike for 10-15 minutes and see how the hamstring feels. So when I went in tonight, I biked lightly for 10 minutes (level 2, 55 rpm) while I wrote out what I was going to do for lifting. The ol' hammy was a little sore when I got off, so I think spinning is not yet in the cards. It's still sore, and I'll be icing it shortly.
The rest of my workout was pretty good, though — upper body and abs.
Tomorrow, I'm just going to swim.
(Yesterday was a rest day.)
I'd love to go and spin on Saturday or Sunday. Maybe this dumb leg will be healed up by then. Saturday probably not, but Sunday maybe...
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
back in the game :)
I went swimming last night, swam 30 laps (about 27-28 minutes). It felt good, it wasn't hard physically or mentally (though still harder mentally than physically).
I'm ready to speed it up a little, I think, at least for part of the time.
I'm going to start swimming farther as well.
Hamstring is getting better.
Can't complain too much :)
I'm ready to speed it up a little, I think, at least for part of the time.
I'm going to start swimming farther as well.
Hamstring is getting better.
Can't complain too much :)
Sunday, March 1, 2009
*BAM!* mental wall
I hit the mental wall at the gym today.
Planned to lift and swim today (which tends not to be a great combo anyway, since I'm lifting upper body (stupid hamstring) and swimming is all upper body) since I didn't do anything yesterday and I can't lift tomorrow because I'm training on Tuesday. Got to the gym WAY later than I'd planned and so decided just to swim.
Swim swim swim swim ... and it occurs to me that I might have done the math wrong the day that I (thought I) did 750 meters. So I'm recalculating in my head. As it turns out, I should just not think and swim at the same time. So I came home and checked my workout log, and I recorded meters, not laps, so I'll never know.
But I'm pretty sure I was wrong.
I swam 600 meters today (for sure - 24 laps x 25 meters). I needed only to go up and back three more times to hit 750. I just didn't feel like it. Didn't want to. Didn't do it. Seems kind of dumb no to. Eh. Whatever.
And somewhere around 400 meters, when I was already tired of swimming, I thought, "What was I thinking?! A triathlon?! Wait til the reality of trying to actually do it hits." Not thinking that's going to help me, for sure, which I was completely aware of, and was trying to reframe (all while swimming laps), but it wasn't working.
I think I'm just frustrated with my leg and am worried about losing all of this training time. It'll be OK. I'll be back in the pool tomorrow, and I'll be able to do this thing. Just you wait and see. (OK, you probably already believe that I can. That was more to convince myself.)
Planned to lift and swim today (which tends not to be a great combo anyway, since I'm lifting upper body (stupid hamstring) and swimming is all upper body) since I didn't do anything yesterday and I can't lift tomorrow because I'm training on Tuesday. Got to the gym WAY later than I'd planned and so decided just to swim.
Swim swim swim swim ... and it occurs to me that I might have done the math wrong the day that I (thought I) did 750 meters. So I'm recalculating in my head. As it turns out, I should just not think and swim at the same time. So I came home and checked my workout log, and I recorded meters, not laps, so I'll never know.
But I'm pretty sure I was wrong.
I swam 600 meters today (for sure - 24 laps x 25 meters). I needed only to go up and back three more times to hit 750. I just didn't feel like it. Didn't want to. Didn't do it. Seems kind of dumb no to. Eh. Whatever.
And somewhere around 400 meters, when I was already tired of swimming, I thought, "What was I thinking?! A triathlon?! Wait til the reality of trying to actually do it hits." Not thinking that's going to help me, for sure, which I was completely aware of, and was trying to reframe (all while swimming laps), but it wasn't working.
I think I'm just frustrated with my leg and am worried about losing all of this training time. It'll be OK. I'll be back in the pool tomorrow, and I'll be able to do this thing. Just you wait and see. (OK, you probably already believe that I can. That was more to convince myself.)
Saturday, February 28, 2009
small improvement
My leg is improving. Wrapping it yesterday definitely helped it, and it feels much better today. I'm not foolish enough to go exercise on it — today is swimming only — but I'm glad that it feels better.
I also emailed my mentor today and am hoping to meet up with her some time in the next week. I missed the introductory meeting last week when I was in NJ, which was a bummer, but it's OK.
Yesterday, I did upper body and abs. It always feels good to lift hard, even on days when I run out of attention span.
How can I stop that from happening? I don't know how to get mentally stronger...
Also, I'm aware of a product called "Skins" for both compression and sunscreen. Are there other products that are similar by other companies?
I also emailed my mentor today and am hoping to meet up with her some time in the next week. I missed the introductory meeting last week when I was in NJ, which was a bummer, but it's OK.
Yesterday, I did upper body and abs. It always feels good to lift hard, even on days when I run out of attention span.
How can I stop that from happening? I don't know how to get mentally stronger...
Also, I'm aware of a product called "Skins" for both compression and sunscreen. Are there other products that are similar by other companies?
Friday, February 27, 2009
stupid leg
My right hamstring is hurting again. It was feeling better. I was nice to it. I was careful. I trained on Tuesday, including some squats. Wednesday, it was hurting. Still it. I have it wrapped today, which feels pretty good. I need it to heal. I haven't run or biked in a long time :(
Monday, February 23, 2009
I'm back!
Exercise was present but light in NJ. I was able to do some cardio on Thursday upon arrival and on Saturday I swam. Yesterday, after I got home, I lifted.
My hamstring is feeling better, so I think I'm good to go with the lower body (finally!).
I had a meeting today and have jazz band tonight. I might go for a short swim after jazz band, or I might come home and sleep.
Either way, I am training for half an hour on core tomorrow, which I am looking forward to!
This week will not be as workout-heavy as I'd like (rehearsal tonight, dress rehearsal tomorrow night for Wednesday night's concert, school concert Thursday night but that should end pretty early...), but I figure, even when it's crazy busy like this, as long as I can do something (as opposed to nothing), I'm OK. I don't have too many weeks that are like this...
My hamstring is feeling better, so I think I'm good to go with the lower body (finally!).
I had a meeting today and have jazz band tonight. I might go for a short swim after jazz band, or I might come home and sleep.
Either way, I am training for half an hour on core tomorrow, which I am looking forward to!
This week will not be as workout-heavy as I'd like (rehearsal tonight, dress rehearsal tomorrow night for Wednesday night's concert, school concert Thursday night but that should end pretty early...), but I figure, even when it's crazy busy like this, as long as I can do something (as opposed to nothing), I'm OK. I don't have too many weeks that are like this...
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
gone for a few...
Early tomorrow morning, I am heading to NJ to present a workshop at a professional conference. I'll be exercising there but not blogging, so you'll have to live without me for a few days...
Monday, February 16, 2009
exceeding expectations :)
I trained this morning, and B. had me do "Crazy Eights." We take two exercises of opposing muscles (for example, biceps and triceps), do eight reps on one, eight on the other, back and forth, to failure. OK.
My first pair was row and chest press. It was hard, but I plugged along. Before long (kinda), I was on my 10th set! He stopped me then (thank goodness!) and said we'd come back to it if we had time ... but that he didn't think I'd be able to do that many. (I ended up doing all four pairs of exercises to 10 sets — 640 reps, plus my warm ups!)
ROCK ON! I (often) love exceeding expectations.
That said, I am not always pleased to be underestimated, but he has a pretty good idea of what I can do and when I'm not going to be able to do any more — we've done a lot of exercises to failure — so it was kinda cool :)
I will be in NJ later this week, just for a few days. There is a new location of my gym there. B. talked to the nice people at that location, and even though their gym is one level nicer than mine (which means my membership wouldn't get me in there), they're going to let me work out there without issue, since I'm going to be there for only three days. I'm glad about that.
My right hamstring is still a little tighter than the left, but it's working OK. I'm guessing that another day or three should be enough.
Also, according to what I told her I'm doing, my tri mentor said that my training regiment sounds fine as long as I get some biking in. I'm glad about that — it means I don't need to add extra stuff on top of what I'm doing, which is super-good. I don't have time for extra stuff right now.
My first pair was row and chest press. It was hard, but I plugged along. Before long (kinda), I was on my 10th set! He stopped me then (thank goodness!) and said we'd come back to it if we had time ... but that he didn't think I'd be able to do that many. (I ended up doing all four pairs of exercises to 10 sets — 640 reps, plus my warm ups!)
ROCK ON! I (often) love exceeding expectations.
That said, I am not always pleased to be underestimated, but he has a pretty good idea of what I can do and when I'm not going to be able to do any more — we've done a lot of exercises to failure — so it was kinda cool :)
I will be in NJ later this week, just for a few days. There is a new location of my gym there. B. talked to the nice people at that location, and even though their gym is one level nicer than mine (which means my membership wouldn't get me in there), they're going to let me work out there without issue, since I'm going to be there for only three days. I'm glad about that.
My right hamstring is still a little tighter than the left, but it's working OK. I'm guessing that another day or three should be enough.
Also, according to what I told her I'm doing, my tri mentor said that my training regiment sounds fine as long as I get some biking in. I'm glad about that — it means I don't need to add extra stuff on top of what I'm doing, which is super-good. I don't have time for extra stuff right now.
Friday, February 13, 2009
today's swim
I did it.
By now, I knew I could do it, and that it was just a matter of deciding, and today, I decided.
I swam 750 meters. That is the distance I need to swim for my triathlon. Today is the first time I swam that far at all, let alone without stopping to rest.
The tri is in open water, and this was in the pool, so it's not the same — I don't get to push off the wall every 25 meters in Tempe Town Lake. But when I was done, I could have kept going (physically) if I had wanted to. But for today, that was enough.
I'm gonna kick this tri's ass :) (As if it has an ass to kick...)
By now, I knew I could do it, and that it was just a matter of deciding, and today, I decided.
I swam 750 meters. That is the distance I need to swim for my triathlon. Today is the first time I swam that far at all, let alone without stopping to rest.
The tri is in open water, and this was in the pool, so it's not the same — I don't get to push off the wall every 25 meters in Tempe Town Lake. But when I was done, I could have kept going (physically) if I had wanted to. But for today, that was enough.
I'm gonna kick this tri's ass :) (As if it has an ass to kick...)
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Feb 11
I did a solid abs workout today, then tested out the ol' hamstring.
I was able to do the elliptical for 15 minutes without issue (not pushing too hard, but enough to get the heart pumping). I did about 5 minutes on the treadmill, then stretched (to see how it felt), and it was starting to get tight, so I stopped.
Went to the pool and did 10 laps. It's hard to swim the day after an upper-body training with B. — everything is sore. I worked on breathing to the left, as I have some trouble with that and thought today would be a good day to do it. It's getting better.
I was able to do the elliptical for 15 minutes without issue (not pushing too hard, but enough to get the heart pumping). I did about 5 minutes on the treadmill, then stretched (to see how it felt), and it was starting to get tight, so I stopped.
Went to the pool and did 10 laps. It's hard to swim the day after an upper-body training with B. — everything is sore. I worked on breathing to the left, as I have some trouble with that and thought today would be a good day to do it. It's getting better.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Feb 10 and mentoring!
I trained with B. tonight. Since my hamstring is still not 100% (though it's much closer than it has been), we did upper body only. It was killer. I will definitely stretch again before bed, and probably periodically all day tomorrow. But have I mentioned how much I love these killer sessions? Doesn't matter which part of the body we're working (top, bottom, middle, all), I LOVE being pushed as far as I go with a trainer. If I had the money, I'd train once a week year round.
Anyway, I have taken off tomorrow (from work) and am planning, if I feel well, to go to do some cardio (and maybe also abs). B. said that I could try out some light treadmill action and see how it feels. So the plan is to go in sweats and take my bathing suit so I can swim if walking/running doesn't work out. We'll see.
Also today, I got an e-mail from my triathlon mentor person! I'm excited! This whole triathlon thing is exciting :) Anyway, T. wrote me, told me about herself, let me know how she'd be available. I wrote back, probably too much, telling her where I'm coming from, asking a couple of questions, telling her my goals.
Goals:
-finish the race
-without doggie paddling or walking
-without getting hurt (whether by injury or crashing)
-without throwing up
Too much to ask? I think probably not. I think that if the race was next weekend, I'd be able to finish it, though I'd need to walk and maybe doggie paddle, and I might throw up at the end. But I have time, and in that time, I can get better. I will get better. I'm already getting better. So those are my goals :)
Anyway, I have taken off tomorrow (from work) and am planning, if I feel well, to go to do some cardio (and maybe also abs). B. said that I could try out some light treadmill action and see how it feels. So the plan is to go in sweats and take my bathing suit so I can swim if walking/running doesn't work out. We'll see.
Also today, I got an e-mail from my triathlon mentor person! I'm excited! This whole triathlon thing is exciting :) Anyway, T. wrote me, told me about herself, let me know how she'd be available. I wrote back, probably too much, telling her where I'm coming from, asking a couple of questions, telling her my goals.
Goals:
-finish the race
-without doggie paddling or walking
-without getting hurt (whether by injury or crashing)
-without throwing up
Too much to ask? I think probably not. I think that if the race was next weekend, I'd be able to finish it, though I'd need to walk and maybe doggie paddle, and I might throw up at the end. But I have time, and in that time, I can get better. I will get better. I'm already getting better. So those are my goals :)
Monday, February 9, 2009
hurt and sick
Well, I didn't work out at all on Saturday. My hamstring was sore, even when I wasn't stretching it, and I was tired and cranky. Not the best reasons, perhaps, but reasons none-the-less.
Sunday I went and did upper body and abs, and then went for a swim. A self-proclaimed health nut stopped me when I was done lifting and offered 20-minutes-worth of health advice which, while interesting, would have been better another time.
Today I had a meeting after school 4:30-6:30, then was supposed to go to jazz band 7:30-8:30, but I woke up this morning with a head full of snot, so I'm skipping jazz band and going to bed.
Tomorrow I'm scheduled to train, which will be good.
If I'm not feeling fabulous (or maybe even if I am), I'm thinking about taking off on Wednesday. I don't have many classes, made fewer by an assembly, and the afternoon meeting is not one relevant to what I teach. So, while typically a rest day, I might go in and get in a swim on Wednesday.
My hamstring is feeling much better today (although still not normal). I'm hoping to be running/biking/etc. by Thursday.
I got an email saying to look out for a message from my tri mentor. I'm looking forward to it! Hooray! I was also notified of some group workouts on the course a little farther down the line. I'm glad that those will be available to us.
I also looked at the workout schedule offered. The swimming workouts include all kinds of gear that I don't have. I plan to ask how important all of that stuff is. We're making some small sacrifices so that I can buy a wetsuit and pay the entrance fees to this event, and I'm not wanting to buy more stuff. If I really like doing this, I might invest in more toys over time, but not right now...
Sunday I went and did upper body and abs, and then went for a swim. A self-proclaimed health nut stopped me when I was done lifting and offered 20-minutes-worth of health advice which, while interesting, would have been better another time.
Today I had a meeting after school 4:30-6:30, then was supposed to go to jazz band 7:30-8:30, but I woke up this morning with a head full of snot, so I'm skipping jazz band and going to bed.
Tomorrow I'm scheduled to train, which will be good.
If I'm not feeling fabulous (or maybe even if I am), I'm thinking about taking off on Wednesday. I don't have many classes, made fewer by an assembly, and the afternoon meeting is not one relevant to what I teach. So, while typically a rest day, I might go in and get in a swim on Wednesday.
My hamstring is feeling much better today (although still not normal). I'm hoping to be running/biking/etc. by Thursday.
I got an email saying to look out for a message from my tri mentor. I'm looking forward to it! Hooray! I was also notified of some group workouts on the course a little farther down the line. I'm glad that those will be available to us.
I also looked at the workout schedule offered. The swimming workouts include all kinds of gear that I don't have. I plan to ask how important all of that stuff is. We're making some small sacrifices so that I can buy a wetsuit and pay the entrance fees to this event, and I'm not wanting to buy more stuff. If I really like doing this, I might invest in more toys over time, but not right now...
Friday, February 6, 2009
Feb 6
I saw B. when I went to the gym this afternoon and we talked about my tight hammy a bit.
Consensus is that I shouldn't do any land-based cardio or lower body training until the tightness is gone and the hamstring feels normal.
So today I did a rockin' abs/lower back workout for half an hour or so, and then swam. I did 22 laps tonight, before I had to get out because I was getting picked up. (I would have had more time, but all of the lanes were full when I arrived.) Knowing now that I can go longer, adding extra laps isn't as exciting as it was a week ago, but that's OK. I think I'll still be pretty jazzed when I hit the 750-meter-mark.
Plan for the weekend has changed. Tomorrow: upper body and some swimming (I don't anticipate that swim being as fruitful, especially if my lifting is rigorous). Sunday: abs and some swimming. If my leg feels better tomorrow, I might throw in some light legwork on Sunday. That'll be a go-with-the-gut decision.
Consensus is that I shouldn't do any land-based cardio or lower body training until the tightness is gone and the hamstring feels normal.
So today I did a rockin' abs/lower back workout for half an hour or so, and then swam. I did 22 laps tonight, before I had to get out because I was getting picked up. (I would have had more time, but all of the lanes were full when I arrived.) Knowing now that I can go longer, adding extra laps isn't as exciting as it was a week ago, but that's OK. I think I'll still be pretty jazzed when I hit the 750-meter-mark.
Plan for the weekend has changed. Tomorrow: upper body and some swimming (I don't anticipate that swim being as fruitful, especially if my lifting is rigorous). Sunday: abs and some swimming. If my leg feels better tomorrow, I might throw in some light legwork on Sunday. That'll be a go-with-the-gut decision.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Feb 4, 5
Well, Wednesdays during the school year are almost always rest days, as I have meetings at work until 5 or so, 45-60-minute drive home, eat some dinner, and be out the door at 6:30 or so for a 7:00 rehearsal. If there is no rehearsal or no meetings, I can get in a workout.
Anyway, yesterday was a rest day.
Today, due to many discipline issues that needed to be dealt with, I didn't get home from work until 6. My turn to cook dinner, and tonight's planned meal takes 45 minutes or so to make. After preparing and eating, I made the "fatal" mistake of sitting down :)
I'm really tired, and my hamstring is still tight (it's a little bit looser than it was yesterday, but I still need to adjust to tie my shoes), so I think I'm going to put some heat on the leg, give it a gentle stretch, and go to sleep. Sleep will be good :)
My upper body isn't quite as sore as I expected it to be, after Tuesday's workout. Tomorrow I'm definitely spending some good time in the pool. I'm not sure about working out legs if my hamstring is still tight. Can I work other muscles, or are they too inter-connected? I don't want to hurt myself, so if I can't get an answer from my (or another) trainer, I'll just lay off the lower body until the hamstring feels better. So if the leg is in good shape, I'll do lower/abs and swim. If the leg isn't in good shape, I think I'll still do abs and swim.
Anyway, yesterday was a rest day.
Today, due to many discipline issues that needed to be dealt with, I didn't get home from work until 6. My turn to cook dinner, and tonight's planned meal takes 45 minutes or so to make. After preparing and eating, I made the "fatal" mistake of sitting down :)
I'm really tired, and my hamstring is still tight (it's a little bit looser than it was yesterday, but I still need to adjust to tie my shoes), so I think I'm going to put some heat on the leg, give it a gentle stretch, and go to sleep. Sleep will be good :)
My upper body isn't quite as sore as I expected it to be, after Tuesday's workout. Tomorrow I'm definitely spending some good time in the pool. I'm not sure about working out legs if my hamstring is still tight. Can I work other muscles, or are they too inter-connected? I don't want to hurt myself, so if I can't get an answer from my (or another) trainer, I'll just lay off the lower body until the hamstring feels better. So if the leg is in good shape, I'll do lower/abs and swim. If the leg isn't in good shape, I think I'll still do abs and swim.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Feb 3
Yesterday was a cardio day. I did 15 minutes on each of the elliptical (level 6, "random"), the rower (average over 60 watts, 2600 meters), the stairmaster (level 5) and the treadmill (various speeds including a cool-down, most time on 5 mph, highest was 6.5).
I went to stretch and noticed that my right hamstring was super-tight. It still is. I can walk, jog, take stairs with no problem, but I can't tie my shoes without bending a little extra in other places. I'm taking care to make sure that it doesn't go from tight to injured.
Tonight, I trained with B., upper body. It was a long hour, with arms very gummy at the end. A good workout. Really hard. I like working out hard, though I sometimes have trouble pushing myself. That's why I like having a good trainer. (I've had many bad trainers.)
I don't have a tri plan yet, but the current lifting plan is upper and lower/abs twice a week each (one of those typically with B.). On days that I do lower, or days that I don't lift, I can swim. I need to log a lot of time in the pool. Wednesdays are typically rest days because of my schedule. One day over the weekend (depending on how the lift schedule falls), I need to get to a spin class. At some point, I'll start to brick a spin class with a run on the treadmill and see how that feels.
This week: rest tomorrow, lower body Thursday if the hamstring is feeling better. If not, just cardio, including pool time. Friday, upper body. I think I need to sit down with a calendar and figure all of this out...
I went to stretch and noticed that my right hamstring was super-tight. It still is. I can walk, jog, take stairs with no problem, but I can't tie my shoes without bending a little extra in other places. I'm taking care to make sure that it doesn't go from tight to injured.
Tonight, I trained with B., upper body. It was a long hour, with arms very gummy at the end. A good workout. Really hard. I like working out hard, though I sometimes have trouble pushing myself. That's why I like having a good trainer. (I've had many bad trainers.)
I don't have a tri plan yet, but the current lifting plan is upper and lower/abs twice a week each (one of those typically with B.). On days that I do lower, or days that I don't lift, I can swim. I need to log a lot of time in the pool. Wednesdays are typically rest days because of my schedule. One day over the weekend (depending on how the lift schedule falls), I need to get to a spin class. At some point, I'll start to brick a spin class with a run on the treadmill and see how that feels.
This week: rest tomorrow, lower body Thursday if the hamstring is feeling better. If not, just cardio, including pool time. Friday, upper body. I think I need to sit down with a calendar and figure all of this out...
Sunday, February 1, 2009
my history of swimming
I started swimming laps within the last 6 or 8 months. In that time, I have not been very good at, and while I wanted to do a tri (it was a New Year's goal), I wanted to be sure I'd be able to swim far enough first.
My typical swim before a month or so ago was two laps with a kickboard (one way = one lap; 25 meters), two laps freestyle, back and forth, repeat for a total of 10 or 12 laps, exhausted.
Dec 30: "for the first time ever, the first lap was easy" and a few days prior, I had been able to do 75 meters for the first time
Jan 11: after working with B. on going more slowly and kicking less, I was able to do 6 continuous laps ("continuous" isn't actually non-stop, as I can't flip-turn — it really means "touch the wall, turn around erect, and start swimming again right away")
Jan 21: ecstatic that I could do 8 continuous laps
Today, I got in the pool with only about 20 minutes to swim, so I set this goal: keep swimming the whole time, even if that meant going to a doggie paddle or something. Well, I am pleased to announce that I was able to swim freestyle the entire time! 20 laps, about 19 minutes. That's 500 meters! That's 2/3 of the race swim (though I'll need to adjust for pushing off the wall, of course). I'm very VERY happy about my progress in this aspect. I have lots of good news for B. when I see him this week!
My typical swim before a month or so ago was two laps with a kickboard (one way = one lap; 25 meters), two laps freestyle, back and forth, repeat for a total of 10 or 12 laps, exhausted.
Dec 30: "for the first time ever, the first lap was easy" and a few days prior, I had been able to do 75 meters for the first time
Jan 11: after working with B. on going more slowly and kicking less, I was able to do 6 continuous laps ("continuous" isn't actually non-stop, as I can't flip-turn — it really means "touch the wall, turn around erect, and start swimming again right away")
Jan 21: ecstatic that I could do 8 continuous laps
Today, I got in the pool with only about 20 minutes to swim, so I set this goal: keep swimming the whole time, even if that meant going to a doggie paddle or something. Well, I am pleased to announce that I was able to swim freestyle the entire time! 20 laps, about 19 minutes. That's 500 meters! That's 2/3 of the race swim (though I'll need to adjust for pushing off the wall, of course). I'm very VERY happy about my progress in this aspect. I have lots of good news for B. when I see him this week!
the last couple of days
On Friday, I did end up going to the gym and swimming some laps. It wasn't my greatest effort ever in the pool, but it wasn't my worst, either, and I was glad that I went.
Yesterday, I did upper body and a 20-minute run on the treadmill.
Plan for today is lower body and time in the pool.
Plan for tomorrow is pool only. Mondays are tight on time for the next few months.
Once I have a more concrete, long-term plan, I think I'll feel a little better. Right now, I'm kind of floundering a bit...
Also, I'll be in NJ for a few days at the end of this month. I just learned the other day that my gym recently opened a location about 10 minutes from where I'll be staying :) But my membership doesn't cover entrance to that facility (it's somehow more upgraded than mine). I need to find out from B. tomorrow or Tuesday what the rules are about me getting in there. It would be nice to be able to go and not have to pay a lot (or any) to get in. The weather will be too cold for me to do any work outside. I can do enough body weight exercises at my friend's house (where I'm staying) to keep up with strength training, but cardio will pose a challenge...
Yesterday, I did upper body and a 20-minute run on the treadmill.
Plan for today is lower body and time in the pool.
Plan for tomorrow is pool only. Mondays are tight on time for the next few months.
Once I have a more concrete, long-term plan, I think I'll feel a little better. Right now, I'm kind of floundering a bit...
Also, I'll be in NJ for a few days at the end of this month. I just learned the other day that my gym recently opened a location about 10 minutes from where I'll be staying :) But my membership doesn't cover entrance to that facility (it's somehow more upgraded than mine). I need to find out from B. tomorrow or Tuesday what the rules are about me getting in there. It would be nice to be able to go and not have to pay a lot (or any) to get in. The weather will be too cold for me to do any work outside. I can do enough body weight exercises at my friend's house (where I'm staying) to keep up with strength training, but cardio will pose a challenge...
Friday, January 30, 2009
I registered for my first triathlon!
Context:
In the winter of 2000, closing in on 200 pounds (at 5'4"), I joined a gym for the first time and started exercising. One afternoon that spring, I needed to exercise but it was far too nice out to exercise indoors. And so I gave up the mantra I had held for so long -- run when chased -- and went for a jog. Later that year, I ran my first 5K in roughly 35 minutes. My lifetime best speed is 29:58.
In August, 2003, I moved cross country and left my car behind. For a year and a half, my main means of transportation was bicycle.
In July, 2006, I started working with a personal trainer at the gym on a regular basis. I loved getting stronger and leaner, and my trainer pushed me hard.
In May, 2007, I was diagnosed with lymphoma and training took a back seat.
In February, 2008, I filed back into the ranks of "real life." I started exercising again and wanted to learn to swim for exercise. (I could already be in water over my head and not drown. I could already get myself out of the middle of a lake. But swimming laps? Not so much.) I joined a new gym where I could work with a trainer in the pool but didn't start that until summer.
In April, 2008, I ran my first post-cancer 5K in 39:30. I ran another just a few weeks ago in 34:30. That is my current time-to-beat.
Somewhere along the way, I learned that not all triathlons are super-long. I thought about trying one out.
On Tuesday, almost a year to the day of ending cancer treatments, I registered for my first triathlon!!! I'll be racing in a women's sprint tri on May 9 in Tempe, AZ.
I am super-excited about this venture and decided to start this blog to share prepping for it.
Today's exercise plan is just to do a little swimming. Swimming is easily my weakest link. I can't swim far enough to complete this race yet. That's OK - I'll get there in plenty of time. Today I am not feeling all that great, but I didn't exercise Wednesday or yesterday, so I need to do something today, even if I just go and do a few laps.
Also, I want to see my trainer, B., because I haven't seen him since I registered.
Here goes nothin'!
In the winter of 2000, closing in on 200 pounds (at 5'4"), I joined a gym for the first time and started exercising. One afternoon that spring, I needed to exercise but it was far too nice out to exercise indoors. And so I gave up the mantra I had held for so long -- run when chased -- and went for a jog. Later that year, I ran my first 5K in roughly 35 minutes. My lifetime best speed is 29:58.
In August, 2003, I moved cross country and left my car behind. For a year and a half, my main means of transportation was bicycle.
In July, 2006, I started working with a personal trainer at the gym on a regular basis. I loved getting stronger and leaner, and my trainer pushed me hard.
In May, 2007, I was diagnosed with lymphoma and training took a back seat.
In February, 2008, I filed back into the ranks of "real life." I started exercising again and wanted to learn to swim for exercise. (I could already be in water over my head and not drown. I could already get myself out of the middle of a lake. But swimming laps? Not so much.) I joined a new gym where I could work with a trainer in the pool but didn't start that until summer.
In April, 2008, I ran my first post-cancer 5K in 39:30. I ran another just a few weeks ago in 34:30. That is my current time-to-beat.
Somewhere along the way, I learned that not all triathlons are super-long. I thought about trying one out.
On Tuesday, almost a year to the day of ending cancer treatments, I registered for my first triathlon!!! I'll be racing in a women's sprint tri on May 9 in Tempe, AZ.
I am super-excited about this venture and decided to start this blog to share prepping for it.
Today's exercise plan is just to do a little swimming. Swimming is easily my weakest link. I can't swim far enough to complete this race yet. That's OK - I'll get there in plenty of time. Today I am not feeling all that great, but I didn't exercise Wednesday or yesterday, so I need to do something today, even if I just go and do a few laps.
Also, I want to see my trainer, B., because I haven't seen him since I registered.
Here goes nothin'!
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