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Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Information Overload


Winter has returned
Two weeks ago, I went to Santa Fe, New Mexico for a clinic to certify as a USA Triathlon Coach. It seems like the next logical thing for me to do since I love the sport so much and want everyone I know to join in with us crazies!

I started writing this last week but got sidetracked with the most hours of training in a week I have ever had. I hit every workout and only fell short of the goal by an hour. I made up for that time in changing my first bike flat ever! I was set up on my home trainer for a two plus hour ride when my rear tire blew. I have always had someone to change flats for me but figured I might as well attempt it.

Changing the flat was ok but I always have a hard time putting the rear wheel back on. I fight the derailleur every time. After getting frustrated, I walked away for ten minutes and then was able to get back up and running. I considered it a moral victory and felt okay about shortening my actual riding time.

In total, I did about 13 hours - 7 bike, 2 run, 2.5 swim, 1.5 GPP. I know there are much harder weeks to come but for me this was a first. I slept really, really good every night.

 Friday was also Valentine's Day that day and look what showed up at my office!
I have the best hubby!

Back to Santa Fe - I say information overload because we had two solid 10 hours days of presentations from others on triathlon coaching. Lots of great information from great coaches. I just hope that half of it sank into my little brain.

The clinic was at the Hilton Buffalo Resort and Casino in Santa Fe - really nice place to stay if you are ever in Santa Fe. There were outdoor and indoor pool areas, a gym and several restaurants. It is huge! I figured I probably walked 3 miles each time I left the room to get to clinic. Santa Fe is about a 90 minute drive from Albuquerque. Somewhere in my brain I though it would be a good idea to book a 6 am flight for Sunday morning. Since I didn't have the car, it was going to be a huge imposition on Rory to leave that much earlier than he needed to. I polled the attendees and had a great offer from members of the Albuquerque Tri Club to catch a ride back Saturday and catch some zzzz's at one of their houses as well as getting a ride to the airport in the morning. Thanks so much to my new friends, Marcos, Chris & Mark! I offered reciprocation for whenever they want to train or race in Utah. It was so fun hearing from another tri club on how they do things and local races.

In addition to the local people, it was fun to make new friends with people from all over the country. Jen - I plan on visiting Baltimore sometime!

To catch up to this week - winter is back! I've also hurt my shoulder somehow but got right into Dr. Tom for a little A.R.T. and taping so should be good as new before heading down to St. George this weekend for a long ride with the girlfriends.

I leave for Mexico three weeks from tomorrow - my emotions are up and down a lot this week. I feel that I am as prepared as I'll ever be but then I start having anxiety about random things.

To coin a phrase from the Ragnar days - 'It will be fun..."

 

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Hump Day



I'm so tired. I have a feeling that this is how I will feel for the next 4 months. Mexico is in just over 5 weeks and then 2 months after that is IMTX. I haven't even ramped up to max weekly hours of training yet so I need to get used to it!  It's a good tired feeling though, it means I am alive and have a purpose. A good thing about all this training while working full time, teaching and running my house is that I have learned to write everything down and schedule even the little things in my calendar. Getting gas, oil changes, grocery shopping, meeting friends, etc. all have a place in the calendar!

Last weekend was a trip to St. George for a long ride. When I originally scheduled it, the weather forecast was for 68 degrees. Every few days the forecasted weather dropped a few degrees until it wasn't going to make it over 50.  I went with four of the toughest chicks I know and after a morning of swimming (me and Jen) and a gym workout (the other 3), we finally hit the road about 2 pm. It was 42 degrees and windy.  Bundling up was the key!
What was a scheduled 4 hour ride turned into a two hour ride from hell! There was a point that I wanted to call someone to pick us up but we all hung in there even with one flat tire and finished!  The reward was a super yummy dinner at Sonny's BBQ in Hurricane and cookies (always cookies!).
I hope the weather starts warming up so I can get a few more long rides in before race day.

A couple of weeks ago I celebrated being 14 years sober. The latest headline about Philip Seymour Hoffman has had a profound affect on me. I always listen with interest when high profile people are in the news about their struggles with alcohol/drugs. No one celebrated more than me when Robert Downey Jr. finally got it figured out and now seems to be doing so well. Hoffman had over 20 years sobriety when he relapsed. I know some people think this is a "choice" to use and while it might be, it is hard to judge someone for it. No one can know what is happening within a person at the moment they use again. I feel terribly sad for his family and especially his kids. It makes me realize that there is no magic number of years for me to be "cured" and I need to live each day to the fullest and pray that my decision to not drink or use each morning carries me through.