... and now for the marathon training...

D you did fantastic, and I hope you're recovering nicely - and that your hip & shin won't be too much of a bother. In just 11 weeks and 3 days we'll be running the marathon! I'm excited too!

I'm also not sure if you want to do the Desert A&L's with me or not. I agree that IronGirl will have a lot more support, and most likely be a nicer course... thought the 1/2 marathon runs through the Mesa HoHoKam Stadium, which could be really cool! Either way, that weekend will be a lot of fun... I just need to decide what I want to do, and what I want to run. I know I want to run IronGirl.. just not sure if I want to do the 10mi race, or the 5k... so it is definately something to think about! They are both for great charities. The A&L's - skin cancer research... the IronGirl, for pediatric cancer (and any cancer survivor gets free entry!) I think they are both excellent causes for my support.. I'm just trying to figure out what I want to do.. and not necessarily have you dragging your feet along with me...

Soma Half Ironman

Last Sunday was my big race for the year, and I had a blast. The morning started with me waking up at about 3:50am. After having some coffee and breakfast, I went through my checklist to make sure I had everything packed. At about 5:15am, Tristin and I headed down to Tempe Town Lake.

Once we got there I set up my transition and checked my bike to make sure everything was still good. I then put on my wetsuit and waited with Tristin and my parents until my wave was about to start.

Once in the water we swam to the start line and waited for the gun to go off. It was pretty crowded in the water and it took about 10 minutes for it to thin out and for me to get my rhythm. After that it was pretty smooth and I finished the 1.2 mile swim in 38:16, much faster than I had thought I would - and 1 min faster than I finished the Olympic distance swim in September.

Once out of the water I ran to the wetsuit strippers and had them help me out of the suit, they were very helpful and had the thing off me in just a few seconds. I then took off to my bike, got my helmet on, grabbed my bike and ran out of transition for a T1 time of 1:21.

The bike was not a very well planned course. There were lots of 180 degree and 90 degree turns and it was hard to gain and keep any speed. Since the past two months had taken a toll on my bike endurance, my goal for the bike was to take it easy so I wouldn't be burned out on the run. This planned worked well, but my bike time was a little slower than I would have liked - but spot on for what I planned. My 56 mile bike time was 2:58:18 for an 18.84 mph avg.

My T2 was pretty uneventful, racked the bike, put on socks and shoes, grabbed my race number and visor and was out in 1:27.

I started the run out strong and felt great. I passed many people and it felt pretty good. At about mile 8 I started to slow and by mile 10 I was in some pain. I looked at my watch and saw that if I could finish the last three miles in 30 minutes I may finish in under 5 and 1/2 hours, so I tried my best to keep running strong. I finished the 13.1 mile run in 1:50:18 holding an 8:25/mile pace. My total finish time was 5:29:41, about 30 min faster than my goal. I was happy and had a great time during the race.

The best part about the race was the tremendous support I got from Tristin and my parents. It was hot and they had to be out there for 6+ hours, but they made me smile each time I saw them, and it was really nice to have them out there. I got to see then many times on the bike and hearing Tristin cheer so loud for me was great. It was also really cool to be able to hear them cheering for me as I was running down the finishing chute. After the race we all went to Chuey's for fish tacos and beer, yum!

My husband, the half Ironman!

YOU DID AWESOME! I'm incredibly proud of you! I can't even describe it in words. You are AMAZING!

10/22/09

Thanks for running with me this morning, at least part of the way! I had a blast. Thank you for making my birthday special. You are a wonderful husband. Try to relax, and enjoy this week. 3 more sleeps til race morning! EEK! You're gonna do awesome!

Race Week - Happy Birthday Tristin!

My race is this Sunday and I am very excited for it, as well as a little nervous. This past weekend I took it pretty easy. On Saturday I went out for an hour ride followed by a 45 min run. Then on Sunday I went for another hour ride - this time taking it very easy and staying away from all hills. Monday I got to practice open water swimming with my wetsuit at Lake Saguaro. The wetsuit really helped me feel buoyant and faster. When I first put the thing on it felt as if it was 2 sizes too small, but once I got in the water it felt fine. Tuesday was an interesting day. I woke up early and went for a 40 min (15 wu, 20 tempo, 5 cd) then headed to work. At about 9am I started getting a horrible pain in my stomach and by 11am I had to go home. The next six hours was spent vomiting and being in pain. At about 5pm the pain went away, and by 6pm I felt fine. I must have ingested some nasty water from the lake that just tore my stomach up??? All I know is that I am glad it was not the flu or anything longer lasting. Wednesday I woke up feeling fine. I plan to take it easy today, then go back to my schedule on Thursday. Today is Tristin's birthday and my parents get in town, so it should be a fun night.

10/19/2009 - 6 more sleeps til race day!

Be sure not to push yourself too hard this week. It will be of no benefit, training wise, and will only zap precious energy that will be needed for race day. The one thing that is most crucial this week is your diet.
I love you, and believe in you! You'll do great! I had a really nice low key weekend with you. Hope you enjoyed it the same!

10 more days!

9 days until you rack your bike, and 10 days until your race. This one will be a long one, but you are ready. When you get home tomorrow, and are in town, remember to relax, and not press too hard. You are ready. You aren't going to benefit from killing yourself the week before the race. Nutrition is key- and everything you put into your body this week IS critical. So that is the factor that will require the closest scrutiny.

I cannot wait to see you. Missin' you like crazy!!!

Final Long Weekend

Tomorrow starts my taper for the half ironman, so this weekend was pretty tough. Friday night after work I went for a swim. I swam 5, 500 yd repeats with 1 min rest in between. This was a good swim and I felt good throughout the entire swim. Saturday morning was my long run. I went out for 2hrs 5min and covered 13.2 miles. I kept my hr low and felt great during the entire run. I even got to catch Tristin for the last 2 miles and finish the run with her. Sunday was a long ride, which was tough. My legs were still dead from Saturday and about 2 hrs into the ride I had lost all energy. My cadence sensor stopped working also so I could not tell if I was in the correct gear, which I had probably relied on too much in the past. I rode 57.2 miles and it took 3hrs 40min. I was hoping to cover more than 60 in 3:30, but was not feeling it today. Tuesday I leave for Chicago for work. The hotel I am staying at says it has a lap pool, so hopefully I can still swim and run this week. Right now I am completely exhausted and look forward to sleeping as much as I can tonight and the next few days.

You'll do gr8!

Don't worry about your next race. You'll do great! We'll get the training in, and not have too many distractions this weekend. You have 2 weekends, and approx 3 weeks to get geared up. Your Nathan's swim was supposed to be 1500 meters, however it was over 200 meters further than it should have been, which means you've already basically covered the distance already. (1.2 miles is equal to 1,931 meters.)

Another fun fact! 1 yard = 3 feet. 1 meter = 3.281 feet.

You swim in a 25 METER pool. So when you are calculating your distances, be sure to use the correct terminology.... because 1500 meters is equal to approx 1650 yards.... both are the exact SAME distance... the yards just sounds further.

The Nathan's Olympic was comprised of a 1500 meter swim, a 24.6 mile bike ride, and a 10k run (6.2 miles).

The Soma Half IronMan is 1.2 mile swim (lets hope they don't mismark this one!), a 56 mile bike ride, and a half marathon distance (13.1 mile) run.

I think if you swim when you can, you are totally capable, and will finish the 1.2 mile swim w/o too much difficulty. I'll try to stay along the coast for the next swim to keep you focused and calm. Also with the bike this weekend, if you can get a 3 hour ride in you'll be good. Plus I have total confidence in your running ability. Get a 2 hour run in this weekend, and you'll be covered. We have the time, and you have the training. I know the work trip and the wedding's timing weren't ideal, but you'll do TERRIFIC! I believe in you!!!

Back from STL

So I am now back from St Louis. While I had a great time there, my nutrition and training has suffered. This combined with me having to go to Chicago next week for work really has me worried about my next race. All confidence that I got from the Nathan's race is now gone. I am just trying to get back into my routine and see what happens. I still feel sluggish and my motivation has diminished. So we'll see how these next few weeks go. I only have 18 days until the Half.

Derek is super amazing!

Thank you so much for all your help with the wedding stuff this past weekend!

I know Kristi really appreciated our help. Plus it meant a lot to me to have you there. I hope that the few days away didn't stress you out too much about the training plan. I think you are awesome and will do AMAZING! Just 18 more days until you rack your bike! and just 19 more days until you swim, bike, run your way to your very first triathlon medalion! YIPPPEEE!!!!

I LOVE MEDALS!

Nathan's photos up!

YAYAY your pictures are available!!!!

http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=56187&BIB=924&LNSEARCH=1