Triathlon Diary: 2013

Sunday, December 29, 2013

Training buddies are the Best!

I finally got a training group! This is all thanks to my friend's super outgoing husband. Apparently, he ~~coerced~~ talked all of us into signing up for a triathlon. We registered for the Esprit de She Sprint Triathlon in San Diego. I had the best results that I have ever had. I was confident going into the competition and finished strong. This felt so much better after my DNF at the Encinitas Triathlon this year.

Pre-race happy and dry picture

Every race has its own story, in this one I lost a contact in the swim portion of the race and completed the triathlon with basically one eye. I am practically blind and can only see blocks of color without glasses. During the swim, I had to stop at each buoy and sight the next buoy in order to get to the end. Thank goodness the swim was cut to only 400m due to foggy weather.

Post Race Celebration!!!! (notice my mimosa in hand)

So, back to the point. I have three training partners, each with their own skills and talents. I wouldn't trade them for anything. I started working out with them right after Labor Day 2013. We trained together for about 6 weeks. I think that 3 of the 4 of us were nervous to train with other people. I know that I was very nervous. It was the first triathlon for two of the four of us. One of us has had athletic sponsorships in the past. I just work out for fun, but I secretly want to do well. Our schedules coordinated perfectly so that we could work out together a few times a week. We swam in Mission Bay on Fridays and Sundays and we would bike during the week. We would run on our own and cross train with Yoga when we had time. We would also bring our husbands when they were all around. One weekend we did some stand up paddle boarding after the swim instead of biking. It was a lot of fun!

I usually take a break after a big race, so I took about 4 weeks off after the triathlon and enjoyed Thanksgiving, while waiting for a contact lens replacement. We have been biking sporadically and going to yoga together since then. We plan to start strength training in late January and start the swimming and biking in earnest in the next few weeks. We bike on Fridays with the wonderful women at HERevolution. We are registered for the Desert Triathlon in March.

We'll see what 2014 brings. My goal is to stick to a training plan.

What keeps you from working out with friends? What suggestions do you have for sticking to a training plan?

Monday, April 8, 2013

The Dreaded Brick Workout!

I am trying to take my triathlon results to the next level, with a goal of not being at the back of the pack in my age group. Part of that is challenging myself in workouts. I have gotten very comfortable working out by myself and I need to push myself more. I have been taking some spin classes, but they aren't always challenging and I prefer to exercise outdoors. Every once in a while I will go running with the Firefighter, which is always fun when he wants to run the same distance - we really push each other for the last couple hundred meters, the rivalry has become an obvious one so that other people on the beach start cheering at us. I have been reluctant to join one of the local running groups, I am not sure why - surely there is someone running my pace that I can also talk to during the run. My training has been going well this year and I need to step it up if I don't want to be last in my age group. This past weekend I completed a 'Brick' workout. This is a triathlon training exercise where you perform two of the three disciplines consecutively. I did the bike/run portion. This is the worst! I have dreaded it so much that I have never done a brick workout - ever. When you complete your first triathlon and you haven't done this for practice you will know what I am describing.

When you get off of your bike, you feel good because you are off of the bike, but once you start to run, your legs feel like jelly or something, the feeling is actually very hard to describe. This is totally disconcerting if the run is your strength. Hello! You can't move and it's not that you are out of breath, your legs just don't work right, but you keep moving because if you don't you will never finish the race (and you are half delirious at this point anyway). I think at this point in the race you are running on pure adrenalin anyway.

After being laid up with a cold or the flu or something that has lasted for about 10 days, I could finally breathe freely so I decided to once and for all to do the brick workout. The weather was fine - as it always is here in San Diego - and I have a morning where I am not doing anything else. I made myself some bacon for breakfast and got ready. I packed my Camelbak, prepared my bike, and set out my running shoes. My goal was to find out how it felt after riding the 12 miles of the sprint triathlon. I rode 12 miles down and back on Coast Highway and changed my shoes, drank some water and took a Gu all in 3 minutes. That's a pretty good transition speed, especially with running up and down the stairs to the house and looking at the dogs for a quick second.

Once I started the run, I felt awful, just like in a race, but I knew that I needed to do this. I decided to do a short run of about 2 miles. I ran down to Moonlight beach and back and an extra time around the block. It felt super slow, but I know that mentally it will help me in the long run. Maybe I will do this another time, to augment my training.

The next challenge is the Master's swim class. I know it will be another adventure, it was the first time! More to come on that in the near future.

What kinds of workouts do you find the most challenging?

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Cardiff Kook Run

Winning Entry - Courtesy of Encinitas Patch

Hey!
I got my Kook on during the Cardiff Kook Run 2013! Well, maybe I didn't completely get my Kook on - I did not dress up for the annual costume run, but I did complete the 5k portion of the race. The Firefighter was working, so he did not participate this year. Maybe next year he will run it with me and we can do the 10k, now that's a goal.

This is a great, scenic racecourse that parallels the Pacific Ocean through Encinitas and Cardiff, California. You get to see the real surfers surfing and all of the people dressed up as whatever they want to be, fantastic! I actually walked up the hill with one of the members of the Magic Carpet ride group entry that won, pictured above. Very cool. Their group was wearing turbans and Middle Eastern wear and they fashioned cardboard surfboards, posed as the kook and the best part was that they were actually dancing along with the music that they were blasting through speakers. "What song?" you ask. Of course it was 'Magic Carpet Ride' performed by Steppenwolf! It was my theme song and motivation throughout the run. I was actually near many of the groups when they got their pictures taken. I got there almost 2 hours early, so I debated walking back home and taking a nap, but it was a beautiful morning, no reason to sleep through the start. I had a lot of time to soak in the atmosphere and warm up several times.

This event makes Superbowl day a lot of fun. You get up early, run the race, go home, take a shower and maybe a nap and then get ready for the Superbowl party and you know you can eat whatever you want - and if you happen to get a hangover, the next day is usually a rest day, so it won't matter. I had a low key party this year - I hung out with my friend D and during the infamous black out (#toobadfornola) we finalized the wedding details. How is that for efficiency! By the way, the wedding is in less than 2 weeks, training for this race definitely helped to reduce stress levels.

So, here are the results. My goal was somewhere in the 25 minute range, I didn't quite make it and I really wanted to walk towards the end, but I didn't. 26:16 - not too bad for the first race of the year and considering all of the families with strollers and walkers that I had to go around. By my rough count, I got 3rd in my age group - I can not remember the last time that happened. I heard a lot of grumbling about the course this year, I did practice on the exact race route, not intentionally, so I have no excuse. There were more hills than last year and the 10k participants unfortunately had to run the back half of the race uphill - motivation to run more hills next year.

Here's my bling from the race!

Now it's time to get serious about triathlon training. The Encinitas Triathlon is in May, 3 short months away.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

2013 Here We Come!!!!

I don't normally do resolutions. I am not doing resolutions this year either.

I have already started my work outs, gone into the ocean with my boogyboard and wetsuit and done a little bit of work. 2012 was a year of transition for me. Lots of new things happened for me, both good and bad, but it was definitely a year of growth. I lost a pet (for the first time at age 41), got engaged (for the first time), quit my job, lost my mom, completed a triathlon with an ocean swim, and ran my first 15k.

2013 will be about maintaining new routines and moving forward. I am already planning to participate in a 5k in early February with the Firefighter, the Encinitas Triathlon in May and I'll be getting married in between. I'll need to make sure that I have scheduled time for workouts while I am traveling and I need to make sure that I have time to grow my business so that I can support myself and my family. The goal is to maintain momentum, stay positive, and learn every day.

I have a new friend that will help me regularly go to the Y and do spinning workouts and we may even try swimming, I normally swim with the Firefighter, but we don't go on a regular basis because of his schedule. I will have to try the Master's work out again, that was really tough. I need to contact my other friend and see if she will go road biking with me. My real goal will be to improve on the bike. Swimming is my real weakness, but that might be a goal for 2014. I bought the bike, I need to make it a good investment. At the beginning, I knew I was better on the bike without doing anything on the first ride, but I want to find a way to substantially improve on my bike technique because I don't have any technique now. The spinning classes should help with that.

So here's to 2013. Let's make it the best year yet!!!!!

And, I joined a reading challenge. I have only read 2 or 3 books out of 100 recommended. I have a long way to go....

2013 Clutch Reading Challenge