My 3rd Patriot Half Ironman

I wasn't sure how this was going to go.  The weather this Spring hasn't been very conducive to OWS (open water swimming). I was only able to get in 3 swims at Mystic Lake the rest of my swimming has been done in the pool and at my lessons with Stacy Sweetser at Sweetwater Swim..  I knew I had the distance I was just concerned about sighting practice and executing what I'd learned in my lessons with my wet suit on.

Another thing of concern was the run.  I mucked up my knee the beginning of May - no meniscus or ACL damage,  per my ortho  - but I haven't been able to run more than 3.5 miles in prep for the race.

My cycling however, has been going really well and Adena and I rode the course several times so I was really familiar with it and where the turns and hills were.

Race Day Morning - As always the begins really early - 3:00 AM.  I was picking Adena up and I wanted to make sure I was on time.  The weather was rather dismal as we headed out and there were those little lightening bolts on the weather app that had me a bit concerned.  As we were setting up it started raining and was foggy.  This is the first triathlon I've done where it was raining.  I've done running races in rain and snow but all 3 sports.... this was going to be something new and had me a little unsettled.

Swim - 54:06 - This was a 3 mins 26 second course PR and a 53 second overall PR!!!!
The swim start for this race is time trial start which means that you start 2 x 2 every 5 seconds.  Adena went in ahead of me and I tried to stay behind for a couple of people - just so she could get going.  I knew she'd be fine after that and would probably finish ahead of me.

I was really surprised that I PR'd in this swim - I felt like I was really struggling and that it just wasn't going to be my swim day.  But, I kept trying to use the things that Stacy taught me.  I tried the 'Mississippi' - that's one of the strategies she gave me to help with my breathing, that wasn't working so I just kept talking to myself.  Reminding myself to sight.... it was really hard - and I got kicked in the head a few times which was a little unsettling.  And of course, the doubt crept in... would I be able to swim an Ironman distance... ok... no time for that.  And then another strategy Stacy gave me came to mind... keep moving forward.... don't just take a stroke but take it to move forward.  That seemed to really help me get back on track and finished up.

T1 - 6:26 too long
This year we had wetsuit strippers so I should've been able to get in and out of transition faster but with everything being so wet it was really tough.  And I got my socks on but then had to take one of them off again because there was sand and stuff in them.  But I didn't dawdle and went as quickly as I could.

Bike - 3:44:31 An overall PR... not by much but a PR!
This went really well and I was able to accomplish a few things that made me really pleased.  I keep my gels in a flask and last year my tri-top had pockets similar to my bike jerseys so it was easy.  My new tri-top has different type of pocket that you slide things in from the side.  I only had one short ride pre-race to practice on so I put more gel packets in my bento box, just in case.  But I was able to grab it easily and even use both sides of my jersey.... YAY - I'm getting more comfortable and confident letting go of my handlebars - even when its windy.

It was great to see my Somerville RoadRunners, E3 friends and my new Boston Triathlon Team mates and friends on the course.    I was really happy when Jana Richtrova went by me and I was almost finished my first loop - in the past I was further behind.

T2 - 6:32 - again too long
Again, I think a lot of the trouble  was because stuff was everywhere.  My things were under a bunch of other things, mine and others.  Again, did my best and didn't dawdle and headed out.

Run - long
As I headed out Peej joined me for the first little bit to check on me and my knee.  We chatted for a few minutes and we were running at a slower pace but one that we decided I should stay at ... but most importantly - to be smart about it, if my knee started to hurt I was to stop.

While I'm really happy about the PR in my swim and bike, I'm equally as happy with my run, even though I had to walk after mile 8ish.  Up to that point I ran continuously - walking only thru the aide stations.  At mile 4ish, I did walk a little longer to talk to another athlete that was having a really bad run.  She was to the point that she couldn't hold down any fluids and she wasn't sure about continuing.  We chatted a bit, and the only advise I could give her was what my coach would've told me - sometimes its important to call it day so that you don't end up in the ER or ruin the rest of the season.  But then I picked it back up and kept going.  Around mile 6ish my knee started to talk to me a little and by mile 8ish I decided that this wasn't my A race and that I needed to preserve my knee and not do anything stupid - or as my coach and ortho  said 'Be smart'.

Overall, I'm really pleased with everything about my day and the improvement I see and feel.  And I was so happy that Adena had a great experience - I love my chosen hobby and was glad to share the winter training with her.

Ironman Chattanooga is 14 weeks away

Dream Big
Work Hard
Cherish the Journey!!!!!

Assessments, Race Wheels, Pee Sticks and other happenings.. 21 weeks until Chattanooga

Well, I think spring is finally here and that means that most of my training is now outside.  I run outside year-round but now I can move my long bike rides outside too.  There is however, a good and a bad side to being outside..... the bathroom, fridge, and extra food are not in the other room.  Its easy to forget, as much as I hate riding on the trainer, how convenient it is to have your bike in your kitchen.

Assessments - For most people, coaches refer to this as 'testing', to see where you are, gauge your improvement and set goals and paces for your season.  I have a really hard time with these - so much so that I was able to beg my way out of my swim 'test' last year.  It just seems to get into my head and is a pass or fail.  Logically, I know that's not what it is but my brain just goes to an all or nothing place.

My first thought was to try and beg my way out of my swim test - so I texted Peej and got a very short, simple response - "IM".  That kinda took care of that so I decided that I needed to come up with a better term and way of looking at this phase of my training, especially when it comes to my swimming.  I came up with 'assessment' - to me this is about more than speed.  Its about how did I feel, was I able to keep my form, was I able to stay focused.  This seemed to help and I went into my 'assessments' for each sport with a new outlook - yes, I care if  my pace is picking up but I also care about how I feel and how quickly after the exertion I recover and my heart rate and breathing comes down.

Race Wheels - Over the winter I decided that I would buy 'race' wheels for Oz. For my non-cyclist friends - race wheels are typically carbon and much lighter than regular wheels.  They offer a smoother, more forgiving ride.  But they also offer a challenge, which I found out about over the weekend - the wind catches them and moves the bike more than regular wheels.  Something new to learn.... but they make Oz look a bit fierce!

Pee Sticks - I know - a weird topic.  I've started reading Roar, by Stacy Sims - (thanks Stacy Sweetser for the recommendation).   The premise of the book is that women are not pint size versions of men and simple making things smaller and pink won't meet a woman's unique needs.

One of the first things I read about was 'pee sticks'.  You've all seen them doctor's offices - nothing fancy.  Stacy uses this quick and easy stick to help her ensure that she's hydrated.  But it can also offer extra insight into how recovered you are and even if you need more carbs.  Being the data nerd that I am and former nurse, I'm finding this helpful and another training tool - if helps keep me on my toes and hydrated.

Other Happenings....

Boston Triathlon Team - I went for my first group ride with my new tri team.  These guy were so great and waited for me at every intersection - God Bless them - I'm much slower than they are and add the hills of Harvard to mix and now you're talking turtle slow.

Patriot Half Course - Drove down to E. Freetown and rode the bike course 2 times.  It was an interesting ride - I had 2 Adena/Adina's !!!

Swim Lessons - I 'graduated' from my private lessons at Sweetwater Swim Studio and feel more confident about the Chattanooga swim, with or without my wet suit.  Thank you Stacy for your patience!

Journey to Chattanooga..... 28 weeks to go

It has been a great couple of weeks of training with some surprising successes. I figured this would be a great time to update my blog so when it gets hard and I doubt myself I can come back and read that a good week is possible.

Up to this point training has been similar to previous 'off-season's - a mix of swim-bike-run throughout the week but with the time schedule moved up a bit.  The past couple of years I wouldn't hit the distances on the bike or in the pool until late-March early April.

The past couple of weeks however, the intensity of my bike rides has increased a lot - or so it seems to me.  In a recent cycling class with Peej we were doing short bursts at maximum watts and in the final couple of bursts I managed to hit 446 watts -for me this is huge since my average is around 120.  Needless to say I was anticipating that my legs would feel pretty trashed the next day and possible sore - I was wrong - I felt fine the following day and was able to do my workouts and hit my targets.

 I've also started having 3 days a week with double workouts and seem to be always running on tired legs.  The surprising part is that this week I seem to be able to run and bike at higher intensities than would've thought possible, and even my swims are getting stronger.  I recently did a long swim workout (2,800 yards) and the last 200 yards were at the same pace as the first 200 yards and I was able to keep my form.

I know that my training will have its ups and downs through this amazing journey and need to celebrate not only successful training weeks like the past couple weeks but also the weeks that I struggle thru knowing that those weeks are even more important.  I need to honor those tough weeks and remember - which in the moment is always hard and I count on my friends and coach to remind me - are the weeks that will help make me stronger.

Holy Crap - I signed up for a full Ironman triathlon!!!

It's been a little over a month and I go from excited to scared to 'what the hell did I do'.  Peej and I had been talking about me signing up for a full Ironman since last year but talking about it and actually hitting the submit button..... a big difference.

From what I've been reading about doing a race this length is accepting that you have the take the conditions that you're given on that day and adjusting your plan and goals accordingly.  And I get it - its a huge commitment and you need to keep your head in the game. However, who knew that just selecting a race was going to be the first obstacle.

Originally I had planned on doing Ironman North Carolina - aka Beach to Battleship.  I had decided on this one because it's later in the year and it would give me more time to train outside.  I diligently followed both Facebook groups, trying to learn as much as I could, not only about the race itself but how other triathletes were preparing, the obstacles they were dealing with and how they were overcoming them.  I was heartened by the camaraderie within the group.  As the race got closer there were postings popping up saying there was not going to be a full IM in 2017.  A lot of these postings were ' my friend - who's in the know' kind of postings but never anything definitive.

Unfortunately these 'rumors' turned out to be true so I needed to find another venue.  So I started looking at Rev3's Cedar Point in Ohio - another race that's later in the season - again rumors were swirling that turned out to be true - no race in 2017.

So I was back to the drawing board - my other late season options were Louisville, Chattanooga or Maryland.  Maryland was quickly ruled out because in 2 years its had really lousy conditions and the logistics of the race are tough.  Looking at Louisville and Chattanooga - Peej and I decided that Chattanooga would be the best fit for me.  And so - I signed up and realized right away that I needed to get my lodging in place as well.  Done and done..... now comes the hard part.... training my butt off to make my big dream.... my goal.... come to fruition.

Marathon training ends before it really begins

The plan was to run Rehoboth Beach again this year.  Peej and I had talked and felt that I may even have another PR in me... not 20 mins but a PR nonetheless.

I went for a ride on Oz (my bike) on a beautiful, sunny Friday afternoon and was hit by a car.  I was lucky because the driver was going slow when she took the right at the lights without signaling or looking.  I was taken to the hospital and Oz was taken to the police station.  Mind you, I was a bit upset when I saw - from the back of the ambulance - the officer stick Oz in the trunk with half of her hanging out.  Once at the hospital they did an MRI to make sure my spleen and kidneys were ok because my back hurt and they cleaned up my elbow and checked my hip.  When the results came back the ER doctor told me - "I have good news - your spleen, kidneys and ribs are fine.  The bad news is you have pneumonia."  That explained the coughing that I thought was just leftover from a cold.  Peej and I talked and decided that the goal for my race would now be to just enjoy it - no trying to PR because of the time I was losing while I waited for my lungs to clear up.

My lungs started to feel much better and I could run without needing my inhaler - YAY - training is back on track.  I did a nice 11 mile long run with Gwen and we made plans to run Battle Rd the following weekend - one of our favorite places to run in the fall.

Training came to a crashing halt - literally - during the week when I went out for an easy 6 mile run and caught my toe on something and fell - hard.  I hit so hard that I broke my glasses (I've never been so grateful that I bought eye glass insurance), the arm of the glasses was embedded in my forehead and I was bleeding profusely.  So, another trip to the hospital in an ambulance.  This time no surprises but stitches and a concussion.  My season is over - no Rehoboth Beach.

I know withdrawing from the race was the right thing to do.  It took 2 weeks for me to be able to run without my head hurting or throbbing.  My first attempt was a run/walk which was frustrating.  This week I was finally able to run without walking, but everything is very slow.  Peej continues to reassure me that my 'speed' will come back and that I won't lose all my fitness.

So I'm officially on an off-season break - something I haven't done in quite awhile.

Timberman 70.3 2016 1 hour 2 min. PR!!!

So much went right with Race Day it’s hard to know where to start.

Heading into to race day there had been a lot of concern that the race would not be wetsuit legal. The Sunday before the race the water temperature was 79 degrees, wetsuit legal is 76.1 for age-groupers. Fortunately, the week leading up to the race featured cooler nights and a little bit of rain.  Hard to believe that Lake Winnipesaukee was almost 80 degrees. Phew!!!

Swim – 54:59 (2:29/100 yds.) 13.5 min. course PR and overall PR

I’m so happy with this time.  I worked really hard all season on my swimming.  I did a lot of it without my wetsuit so that I would have to work on body position – and truth be told, it was so damned hot all summer the thoughts of trying to get my wetsuit on was going to be a workout and not worth it.  I also swam in Mystic Lake a lot because it’s bigger than Walden Pond (although I still love Walden), has buoys to practice sighting and has more variable conditions – i.e. changing winds and waves. 

Because I had a hard time on the swim last year I spent the morning reminding myself of all the open water swimming I’d done and to swim my own race.  I lined myself up at the back of my age group to keep out of the fray as much as possible.  When the gun went off, I took off with my group, the water was really low so no dolphin diving, I just started.  I kept reminding myself to swim my own race – to stay within myself – and I’d be successful.  Holy smokes – I’m at the first buoy – ok keep moving. As the next group of swimmers catch up to me I’d get a bit jostled but it gave me the opportunity to draft a little – try and catch some of the bubbles, stay in a pocket as long as I could.

Another thing that I changed was how I sight.  I had been taught to lift my eyes out of the water like a crocodile, however I never really saw anything but water.  When I was watching the Men’s Triathlon during the Olympics I noticed that they were lifting there head up out of the water to sight – I decided if they could use that technique then so could I – HUGE difference (see picture – I swam pretty darn straight). 

 

First time I've ever stayed this straight

I’m sure there’s a few people that can relate – every time I see a picture or video of a swim start it makes me almost nauseous and very hesitant.  During one of my sighting ‘looks’ I noticed that ‘my’ swim was just like the pictures I’d seen – holy crap – don’t panic – keep moving.

T1 – 5:47

I thought I was quicker than this because for the first time ever I tried to jog to my bike – still not very successful running with my bike shoes on – work in progress

Bike – 3:57 - 26 min. course PR    Fastest speed – 40.6 mph

All of the hill repeats, 120% FTP workouts and hilly training routes really paid off (Thanks Coach Patricia Brownell).  I’m not a great climber, I’m not even a good one, but I’ve worked hard to get stronger and more consistent.  Of course, anyone riding near me going uphill probably thinks I’m a wee bit crazy because I sing or talk to myself in beat to the cadence I’m trying to keep – it also keeps me from either holding my breath or hyperventilating.

There are a ton of hills on this course with 2 that are killers, one is long and the other one is really steep.  First up is the long, killer one.  I took the hill in my steady but slow pace, concentrating on a) staying out of the faster rider’s way, b) breathing and c) my cadence.  There were a number of people walking this hill.  I’m not sure if it’s technically being ‘chicked’ but one of the walkers was a guy that was almost ½ my age.  All I could think was ‘dude – get on your bike, I’m way older than you’. 

During the out and back portion, I worked hard to stay within my plan and not get sucked into the pack and go too fast.  I knew if I did I’d pay for it on the way back. Before I knew it, I was turning onto Brown Hill Rd. (mile 41ish) the scene of my little crash last year and the second hill – this one is really snotty.  I’ll admit that I did breathe a little sigh of relief when I passed the scene of my crash.  At the end of the street you take a left and the hill is standing there, a little bit like a wall and if you weren’t prepared and in the right gears you’re (or at least me) going to have a hard time.  There were more people walking on this hill but I wasn’t surprised.  I hit the hill, knowing I had a short window of pain and the worst of the hills was done. 

You get a lot of nice downhills for all the work that you do and this year some of the really long downhills had been repaved, this meant I could ‘fly’.  I don’t have my bike computer set up to show me how fast I’m going – it can either be discouraging (going up a hill) or scary (flying down a hill) – so I go by my comfort level.  On the longest, newly paved, downhill section I pedaled until I had no more gears and then I let Oz fly.  I got to the edge of my comfort zone and then let my toes go a little over before I started to feather my brakes but I still went 40.6 mph – on a damn bike – and it is pretty cool to fly up the next hill.

Nutrition – I did pretty good on this – I had one tiny issue though – I forgot to open the Ziploc baggy with my Farbars.  I’ve gotten a lot more stable on my bike but I have a long way to go and I spent a few minutes trying to figure out a plan that wouldn’t require me stopping.  I decided that if I used up my Barnana Bites first then I could open the baggy and get it back into my bento box without losing any.  I also knew that if I did lose a couple of the squares I had extra GU with me.  I went with this plan and SUCCESS – not one square was lost.  I have to say that I was pretty damned pleased with myself. 

I get back to T2 – no crashes feeling really strong!!!!

T2 – 4:45 (it felt faster)

Run – 3:06 - 24 min. course PR

This is the only portion that I wasn’t that happy with.  I did better than last year but still struggle to not walk.  I made sure that I kept moving forward and I didn’t linger at the aide stations (volunteers – You’re the best!).  I spent the time trying to figure out how to make this portion stronger, I can run for hours without stopping so I need to work with Peej (my coach) to figure this part out.  We do agree that I really struggle in the heat – and I did keep hydrating, putting ice in my hat, down my shirt and shorts to keep my core cool.  I also think I need to figure out my fueling on my run – I may not be getting enough but I’ll be working with Marni @ TriMarni Nutrition and Coaching. 

Overall Time 8:09 – 1hr 2 min. course PR 

My mini-training 'camp' weekend

My second 1/2 Ironman distance race this year is 4 weeks away and training is right on track according to my coach - Patricia Brownell - Apex Coaching Group.

My training partners were going to be busy this weekend - Janice Biederman was racing Lake Placid, Adena Schutzberg was going to CA for her new job and Linda Davey was racing Whistler 70.3 - so I decided to have a mini training camp for myself.  I was able to get a motel on the run course and right on Lake Winnipesaukee.  I mentioned my plans to my friend and traveling 'gnome' Dan McCallum and he was interested in joining me.  I talked to Peej and she made sure that my training plan took full advantage of the opportunity to train on the course.

Friday
Dan and I arrived at Lake Winni mid-afternoon and decided to ride the bike course before our swim.  Dan has never done this race so he was seeing it for the first time.  This was an opportunity to figure out where he was going to turn around and head back to the motel - the traveling 'gnome' forgot that he had a birthday party in CT on Saturday afternoon.

Sunset on Lake Winni

Last year at the beginning of the swim I had a bit of a panic attack, the buoys looked so far away that in my head it had to be more than 1.2 miles. My goal for this swim was to take some of that anxiety away.  I was glad to have Dan with me this time - he led the way and we stopped a couple of times so that I could take in the scenery but also so I could get a 'feel' for the enormity of Lake Winni.  The lake didn't disappoint - it was a bit choppy and there were a lot of waves from the boats.  When we turned around to head back to the motel we were battered about as it got quite a bite more choppy,  I had to breathe to my non-preferred side - which was really good practice.

By the way.... a local boater told us that they really like that we were wearing brightly colored swim caps and had our little buoys trailing along behind us.

Saturday
We decided to head out around 7:00 am to try and beat as much of the heat as possible and so Dan would be able to ride and have enough time to get to CT by mid-afternoon.

Before we took off there was a Lake Winni water ski marathon. It only happens one day a year, because the boaters have to get special permission - the boats go 70 mph (20 mph over the limit) and tow the water skier 200 ft behind them - 7 boats total.  They were a bit far from shore but we did see them as we were getting our gear together.

We headed out for our ride - and there is new pavement as you turn onto the street next to Sawyer's Ice Cream - which is a perfect post-workout stop.  I forgot how hard this course is, especially for someone who is not that great at climbing but it is what it is and at least the 'auto-pause' on my Garmin didn't go on.  Dan stayed with me for the first 15ish miles - when we hit Rt. 106 - where he headed back and I continued on.

I was pretty pleased with my ride.  My nutrition and hydration was spot on.  I stopped a couple of times to get more water, something I didn't do last year.  I also made a stop on Brown Hill Rd. - the scene of my crash at last years race - and Oz and I had discussion with the road and we came to an understanding that it wasn't allowed to knock me over this year.

I got back to the motel and headed out for my brick.  It was nice to see Brian Kearney and Kristin Lawhorn go flying by me.

Sunday

Pretty nice scenery

I headed down to Ellacoya for my run and walked into the park to the 'swim' start.  I spent a fair amount of time looking out at Lake Winni, imagining where the buoys are going to be and how far out they go.  Last year I had a bit of a panic attack because it looked like the buoys went forever.  After a bit I headed out to complete my run. 

Post-run cool down

I need to work on my post-workout nutrition.  My legs felt dead and I just didn't have any energy.  I pushed as hard as I could but had to resign myself to the fact that I wasn't going to hit my paces but I could enjoy running along Lake Winni and not let myself walk -  good race day training.

All in all it was a great weekend!!!