just for now

I'll post a full RR tomorrow, but I just got home a few hours ago and after a mini-meal, napped... I awoke and talked to some peeps on the telephono...

What I have to say about IMKY????

AMAZING support!!!!!!!!!!
Loved every single volunteer, cheerleader, sherpa out there. Everyone was great. The aid stations were amazing!

The swim was a bit strange. I couldn't help but be amazed at the mile+ we had to walk to get to the end of the line.

Dude, my dad brought Clubber down! I have an IRONDOG!!! She survived the whole day of spectating. I think she's slept more than i have the last 24 hours. And that is saying a lot.

Pizza is the ultimate post-race treat.

I love my bloggin' buddies!! Kim sent me texts, Ed sent an email, Zen was trackin', Mary was out on her bike, Missy was out in her flourescent wig, Matt H gave a shout out...and i'm sure i'm forgetting people, but you guys are all AMAZING!!!!!!

I might just have the best friends and family ever! I'm sure everyone thinks this, but I am just so grateful for everyone who took the time to text or call or write or come down and cheer.

This was a race in which I was just way more excited for everyone else. Judi and Jess and Tom and Pete and Kevin and Eddy (coach, who rocked it out in 9:35...and Missy, who went 10:28. Are you kidding??). I was excited for THEM because they were excited. That kind of energy and enthusiasm is contagious. and inspiring.

I choked up on the bike, but I actually cried on the run, with a big ol' smile on my face. And when crossed that line, there was part of me that couldn't even believe it. I'd written off this race four months ago when I'd gotten sick. But i Pr'ed by about 48 mins...on a tougher course. THAT is not my plan. That's something bigger...

One last day...

..of work, that is.

Tomorrow morning, it's time to head down to Louisville for packet pick-up and a little practice swim in the Ohio. Beautiful!

Now, it's time to make the list. Ya know, the list of all the possible things i need to bring to make this a successful trip. It's insane the stuff I pack. Even in high school, I was the girl who would have *insert some random thing* when it couldn't be found in coach's bag. Included in my packing is always: a sharpie, spare roll of TP, tape, band-aids, camera, advil, extra socks, flip flops, food, gum, extra underwear (because there was this time i peed my pants at a CC race...and it wasn't on purpose), water bottles....you get the picture. I just want to be prepared.

Saturday is bike and gear bag check.

And then, Sunday... (gulp!)

I am feeling ready though. My emotions got all fired up yesterday over some fraudulent charges on a credit card...grrr...but it totally awakened my senses. My massage yesterday loosened my muscled just enough. No soreness and got through my bike feeling uber strong last night. And I'm still sleeping like a rock. For hours on end.

The greatest part of all this prep and taper the last week or so are the words of encouragement from other bloggers and athletes. You guys are amazing!!! Thank you all for your support.

thoughts for the day

Because I can only say "I'm tired and bloated" so many times before it gets really old, today, I'm sharing what made me laugh this morning. I am not the author, but I'm sure we've all had similar thoughts...

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".

Bad decisions make good stories

Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

I don't understand the purpose of the line, "I don't need to drink to have fun." Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they've invented the lighter?

Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk

I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard.. This recently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never be ending a work email with the phrase "Regards" again.

There is a great need for sarcasm font.

Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.

How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.

A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.

Was learning cursive really necessary?

Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in...(10 second lapse)..ummm. ..Goonies"

What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?

Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.

Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

I would like to officially coin the phrase 'catching the swine flu' to be used as a way to make fun of a friend for hooking up with an overweight woman. Example: "Dave caught the swine flu last night."

I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.

Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....

You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

"Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.

I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles.. .

Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

Careful what you wish for...

yeah, I was sooo wanting taper, right? wrong.
I'm bloated.
I'm lethargic.
I just want to sleep all day.
And I get hungry...but an apple fills me up.
I'm emotional.
I wept for a straight hour yesterday watching Seven Pounds.
I forced myself to get out of the house afterward but I didn't speak to a soul.
I went home and went to bed at 8pm.
And slept for ten hours. TEN HOURS!!!

The good news is that I only have to get through the next three days. Then, it's off to Louisville. And don't get me wrong, there are still workouts to be done...workouts that would make normal people beg for mercy...but they feel so short and simple now.

So, I purposely put off laundry and groceries and packing my bags and making lists for this week. To keep me busy. To keep me from going insane and mindlessly plowing a box of Honey Bunches of Oats...cause that's the kind of thing I do when I'm bored. and anxious.

In other news, Clubber threw up her breakfast, my dad's birthday is tomorrow (Happy Birthday, Dad!!!) and my newphew is scheduled to arrive on Wednesday. It's a big week for the family...minus Clubber, not so much for her.

Just a quick swim bike run today, another tomorrow, and we'll see what the future holds...

Bib #601

I looked today. For the first time, I actually got that lump in my throat, that twist in my gut. Next weekend is it. Where the hell did the summer go???

My morning run

I had one real goal for this morning's run - to not miss the sunrise. I got out while it was dark. It was kinda cloudy this morn...no crazy bright colors to report, but I got to see downtown before it woke up.

This was the view from the Purple People Bridge as the sun rose in the East...

And this is running across that bridge into downtown...

The flowers outside my apartment...

me, stretching...

Chance favors the prepared mind

After Sunday's long ride, things have been very low-key. Monday was an easy day and after work, I was exhausted! I went home after work with nothing to do!! What? So, I did dishes. And vacuumed. And swept the kitchen floor. And cut up veggies. And then it was 6:30. So, I painted. I forced myself to stay awake until 8:30 so I wouldn't waake up in the middle of the night, sweating, tangled in the sheets, and looking at the clock and wondering how it could only be 10:30pm.

But Tuesday morning, I was kinda regretting not having gone to bed earlier. I went to swim practice...after warm-up, 6x450 where we alternated each 100 back/free, breast/free, IM/free. Um, yeah. Coach Aaron is out of town so he left us this set. And he must be insane. None of the lanes made the intervals. After about 2300, I had no juice left. I quietly exited the pool and went and sat in the therapy pool in the Women's locker room before going home to prepare for work.

See, if there's anything I've learned through IM training and being sick and having a suppressed immune system, it's that it is not always best to push through. This was one of those days. My body wasn't fully healed from being sick over the weekend and it was NOT imperative that I complete the swim set. Coach E had actually indicated a "30 min easy swim and 30 min easy run". I'd done more than 30 mins. And it wasn't exactly easy. And my ego wasn't bothered in the least. Partly because I was too exhausted to move, let alone care.

I sat for about 20 mins at home before I got the gumption to get ready for work...and then I sat at work all day and mentally prepped myself for the easy evening run.

By the time my run rolled around, I was totally ready. Despite the 87 degrees and humidity of bagillion%, I simply ran. I imagined how it would be that steamy on race day and how I would stop at each aid station for repreive in ice or sponges. I imagined running with ease. And then I went home and crashed on the floor.

I finished today's workout before work - a 90 min ride and 20 min run with HR targets - because tonight, I'm going to the ATP! Andy Roddick in all his sweaty hotness. Yum. And free food in the VIP tent. This is why I love taper. I finally get to socialize :)

So long, farewell....

...to the long ass training days.

Hello to taper!!!

Friday was a great hour run with some speed intervals in the hot hot heat and early to bed. Despite feeling lethargic and feeling illness coming on, I had a great run. The best one I've had in a while.

Early Saturday morning, I was on my way to the lake for a long training day... or so I thought. I made it about 2800 in the water and could barely move. My mind was saying "Go, go, go!!!" And my body just said "NO!"

I spoke with coach and he sent me home to rest, indicating I could go out for a spin or easy run later in the day if I felt it. If not, don't push it.

After stopping at dad's on the way home and falling asleep in the bed of his truck while he worked on my car, I went home to rest more. After laundry and movies and lying around and grocery shopping, I decided to go out for a quick spin. I just wanted to get out and sweat! I considered going for a run as well, but decided it would be stupid to push through.

So I got loads of sleep and awoke Sunday morning to tag along with Judi for one last long ride before IMKY in two weeks. I wasn't sure if my body was going to let me go the whole 90 miles...

After 90 mins, I made the decision to just keep going. We were taking it easy and just chatting and enjoying the scenery.

At just over 40 miles, we caught the ferry and rode across to KY for the remainder of the ride...back toward home!

It was such a great ride. The 90 miles went by quickly. There was no drama. Just us girls out on the open road. And I can't think of a better way to go out...on a good note.

I know that everything

know that everything,
know that everything,
everything's gonna be fine. (Blink 182, "Josie")

Wednesday brought with it some heat and humidity....and a tempo run. The middle 30 mins was to be at 10k race pace. Warm-up started easy. The tempo started just fine. With about a mile left in the tempo, I started to feel a tad overheated. It was only 87 degrees. but the 90% humidity was killing me. And the ball cap I decided to wear wasn't helping. It trapped the heat in my head. And I got a little light-headed. But as soon as I thought I may not be able to handle it any longer, the 30 mins was up!! And I headed into cool-down.

And for a quick cold rinse before packing up Clubber to go play with the cat while I spent some time with mom.

Thursday morning was another early swim practice. 3400. after warm-up, 7x200, 7x150 and 7x100 with each in the set getting progressively faster. I was the only one in my lane to make all the intervals.

And after a long day at work, my BFF from high school, Lauren, came over so we could go to the Blink show! She’s all grown up and settled down with a family and I just play. I live in a bachelor(ette?) pad. There are two bikes in my living room, tri shorts hanging from door knobs, sports bras scattered on the floor, running shoes piled in the closet, water bottles littered on counter tops, training articles splayed on the table, my foam roller on the floor... I think she was a tad horrified at the sight.

But, off we went to the show...and we had so much fun catching up and laughing and getting hit on by 19 year old hipsters (who, when we told them how old we were, stated that they weren't going to speak to us anymore...but that at least when we're 40 we'll look like we're 30).

Yeah, at least we look young. ha ha!

This morning I awoke and realized that the lethargy I've been feeling this week isn't something I should accept as typical in my body. It's more likely my immunity being broken down...and that brings on illness...

But, the thing is, i know that everything's gonna be fine. I just need some rest. At this point, my success in the race isn't determined by puting in a few more hours...

Times are changing

In a good way.

My legs are beat up.

But I still PR'ed at the TT last night.

I think it was just the new bike though.

SIKE!

So, I was eagerly awaiting my training plan for the week. And yesterday, it arrived!!!

I couldn't wait to open it...

The message said "KEY WEEK! Get the hours in with efforts. Good luck!". I opened the spreadsheet and scrolled down ...and the excitement fell from my face...and I think horror replaced it. I tallied up the hours. Fifteen. Yes, 15 hours!! WTF?! I thought this was taper?

I suddenly got that same feeling in my gut that I got when I was a kid and my older brother would give me some amazing news, like "mom is letting us skip school today so we can go to King's Island"...and follow it up with "SIKE!!" and laughter.

But, I have Worlds less than two months after IMKY. And I trust coach. I'm sure there is some strategy to this insanity.

I did have intentions to go to the grocery. And I wanted to do another load of laundry. But I also knew at that point, that I had no energy to waste on tasks that could wait. And I was exhausted. So, I was in bed by 8:30pm...

And up again at 4:30am for swim practice. I've come to view swimming as recovery. Even if it's 3k at a good intensity. It's just not as grueling as running. or riding for hours on end.

Thankfully, today was a fun practice. We were missing a few people with vacations and kids starting school, so we did long sets...which I love!

Tonight is the Cleves Time Trial. The first time i get to test the speed on the new ride. Can't wait!!

It's HOTT!!

Seriously. Really, really hot. Finally. Just in time for IMKY. But not in time to acclimate with long workouts because...taper starts today!!!

THis brings mixed emotions. I don't like going into taper on a bad note...and yesterday was a bad note. Saturday, however, was good. I'm just not sure yet if it's enough to negate the poor performance of Sunday.

My Thursday night brick went really well. I went out a little too hard and a little too long on the bike portion, but I was feeling good...and i was on my new toy so it was hard to resist. The run was good and at a "steady" effort. Actually, it was a damn good pace. But, I didn't take water with me and i don't think I drank enough on the bike, so by the time i got home, I was a little dizzy. And it was a long brick, so I didn't even sit down to eat until after 8pm.

And I was up at 5:30 the next morning and out riding again by 6. I wanted to be able to go to the Downtown Dash 5k and visit with Tom a bit that evening, so I had to get the ride in early.

I was half tempted to run that 5k once 4pm hit, but I knew what the weekend held in store. And i got hungry, so I ate and then took Clubber downtown. Sadly, this is the extent of my hanging out these days. I go to races to socialize. Lame, huh?

Anyway, Saturday, I was up at 4:30am. (is that even legal on the weekend?) On the road by 5:30 with a bag full of gear, a lunch bag of nutrition, a gallon of water and my bike.

We started out with about 4k swimming HARD in the lake. Then, onto the bike for a 97 mile ride with just our little 6 man crew. The time went by quickly and we joked and sang and discussed race strategies and training and food! We stopped at 3 hours to fill water bottles and take a pee break. And that's when things really started heating up. Those last 2.5 hours were hot. But I felt great. And as soon as we got back to the parking lot, we all took off running. Just a couple miles. And then to the outdoor shower so I could drive home in my steamy shit can with no a/c.

I mused on the way home that it was about 3:15pm and I'd already consumed a gallon of water and 2200 calories. And after a shower, more food, rest, compression tights...I was up early Sunday morning for more fun.

I met Judi out at East Fork for an OWS. She had an hour on the schedule. I didn't have a swim scheduled, but I figured it couldn't hurt. Plus, I know it gets a little freaky out there swimming alone. Besides a little shoulder pain, that went well...

And that's the end of things going well for the weekend. I made the (in retrospect, very unwise) decision to go lie by the pool for a while before attempting my 2:40 run. So, I cooked. For two hours. I was dripping sweat. I put myself in the hurt locker well before I even went out for that run.

The run started with Holly. A half hour in, I was completely drenched in sweat, wanting to puke or crap my pants, and incapable of taking in water. I was miserable. Holly just kept telling me i was going to make it. Another ten minutes, I stopped again. Another ten...and stopped again. And crying. It was horrible. My skin was on fire. My head was aching. I had sweat everywhere. And I just couldn't move. Holly pointed me in the direction of her house and there I went. To get some ice and drip sweat all over her porch. As I drove away, my car read 93 degrees.

Coach called later to ask how the run went. Turns out everyone struggled with the heat yesterday. He was the only one to complete the entire time. And he blacked out at the end.

Oh, dear God, please let it be cool for IMKY. I don't want to melt.

ok, soo....

The first part of the day flew by! Then, I went home just before 1 to walk Clubber...and it's sooooo gorgeous outside, like 80 and no humidity, clear blue skies. I just wanted to take the bike out then!

Alas, I had to return to work. And now, the clock is stagnant.

Seriously, I can't even find anything interesting to read on the Internet. I just want to go home and start my brick!

It did begin to clear up Tuesday evening upon leaving work, but I already had my mind set on the trainer, so I plopped my road bike on there and went to a 40 min TT. The 35 min warm-up was hellish because my legs were busted, but it got better. By the time I got off that thing, my legs felt great! How does that happen?

I woke up Wed morning to a fab tempo run. I extended both the warm-up and the tempo portion by 5 mins. I needed to keep my evening open becaus ei had plans to hang with mom. I got to see Kaylee and Clubber got to play with the cat and a little neighbor dog, which was lots of fun!

I fell asleep quick last night and when my alarm sounded, I was very confused! I didn't know the day or why I had to get up. I hadn't woken the entire night, which is totally rare, so I'm guessing I really needed that sleep.

And swim practice was fun!!! You know you're in trouble when Coach says "this set is...well, it's not that bad". Right! After our warm-up, which was only 500 today, we put on pull gear for :
2x{4x225 on 3:30, 4x25 sprint on :30}
The key was that the first round through was with paddles. The second round, was just swim. I felt better on 225 #7 than on #2. Then we did some silly stuff with the kick boards. I can't even describe it. I was told I looked like a sea horse. I giggled the entire way.

OK, so like 15 more mins before I can leave here and go ride and run... I'm itching!!!!!!!!!!!!

Screw it. I'm leaving now.

Hip Hip Hooray!

Isn't he gorgeous?!? Lots of fun too. He's just a little waif, but he's fast. He's different than my Masi. Masi is comfy and rides hard, but this little guy...I'm still a little nervous on him. That just means I have to spend lots of time on him to get the feel.

Oh, and a nice little surprise when I arrive to pick him up... Dan hands me an aero helmet and says "Some dude called in and bought this for you. I don't know who it was. Bob took the call." After some probing, I found out it was Rob. (thanks again, Rob!)

So, I took the boy out for a quick spin last night. Just a few miles as it was all my legs could handle after the weekend. And, when you only get one "recovery" (ie- just 3k swim) day a week, you tend to take full advantage of it. I was hoping to take the new toy out to Cleves tonight for the TT, but it's looking like the severe weather will still be in affect. (Or not? Seems every time i blog about how crappy the weather is acting, it clears up in time for me to ride after work). If I can't ride it, I'll be on the trainer for a couple hours. Fun times.

In other news, the tri on Sunday was fun. I just did the bike leg of the sprint relay. We took first.

There was a whole group from our Masters swim team there. Here they are, minus me. I think I was off talking somewhere. OOps.

And then, I went and did my workout for the day. 2x bike run. And I was grateful to put the compression tights on for bed...

Random thoughts.

Are tt bikes really faster than road bikes? or is it just the power of the engine? What if I'm not faster on my new bike?

Do people EVER think before they act? or speak? Sheesh.

What does Clubber do during the day when I'm not here? Does she get mad at me when I leave to go train right after I get home and walk her? Does she ever get her feelings hurt hoping I'd spend more time with her? Do dogs even have feelings?

Are humans meant to be monogomous? Or is it just men that have trouble with this?

Will I ever go on another date worthy of a second? Or will I talk myself out of everyone that may be? Will I really be alone until I'm 50 like that therapist tried to tell me when we were getting divorced?

I really can be a clingy bitch sometimes. And I can nag with the best of them. But I really do mean well. It's just not until later that you see that. And it's too late when you finally come to appreciate it. I guess I should be grateful you have any appreciation at all. No, really, appreciation isn't enough at this point. You fucked me up.

I miss the days of living with mom and Kaylee and rockin' out to karaoke in the living room. Three generations of women giggling like crazy at some poorly rendered version of "Kryptonite".

Wow. One last week of big training before taper for IMKY. Am I ready for this? I hope I have a long run and a long ride this week.

I need to book my flight to Australia. And apply for a visa. And get my tags renewed for my vehicle. Shit.

Why does love always feel like a battlefield? Does Jordin Sparks sing that song? I don't even like it. It just gets stuck in my head, kinda like yesterday when E started singing the Moore's Nautilus theme song from back in the 90s and that's all I could think when i was riding. That, and Coach is crazy thinking I can ride with him when he hammers...

Seriously. ADD?

Why did I just eat all those pita chips? They weren't even that good.

I can't wait to swim again.

I can't believe the weekend is over already. Ugh. It was a good one though. Jam packed. Good stuff to look forward to: Mon- new bike!!, Tues - TT, Wed - speed run, Thurs - um...it's almost Fri..., Fri- jeans at work and a run...

I'm sleepy. And I have clean sheets. Sweet!

Eye candy

So, we had the 3-on-3 tri today. All I have time and energy to say right now is that we lost. But I was not the last person to finish. Thank God! And Missy kicked everyone's asses. Girl is just fast.


From there, I went to work at the Pur Tour in Mason, OH. This was my first ever bike race watching too. I was scheduled to work the start/finish area, but they needed help at registration. Um, I've never been so grateful that things changed at the last minute, though I didn't know it at the time because...


CYCLISTS are HOTTTT!!! Sheesh. Where do they hang out?? Oh, yeah...bike races. Hmm. Perhaps I will volunteer more often :)