P90X & Other Ramblings

So first, let's talk about P90X. I am still trying to figure out how to get my training runs in while still getting some benefit from P90X. Right now, I will run on the cardio days - so when Plyometrics or Kenpo X are on the schedule, I will run instead. However, this means I may be doing my long run on my day off from P90X. The problem with that? I don't get any rest day at all. I firmly believe that we all need at least one rest day per week. What do you think?

Yesterday, was Day 1 of Week 2 - Chest and Back. I'm still doing girlie push-ups, but I was careful to use the correct form and to really get a good range of motion. I also tried to get in a few extra reps on the pull-ups. My favorite exercise? Definitely the Lawnmower. Least favorite? It's a toss up between the dive bomber push-ups and the raised push-ups...I suck at both of those. Next was Ab Ripper X. Favorite crunch? The mason twist, mainly because it's the last one! Least favorite? V-up, roll downs...I don't know why, but I struggle with them and hate'em!

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I also got in a run during lunch on the dreadmill at the Y. Did I mention that my Y membership ends at the end of October? I went in to cancel it in August and the nice lady at the desk offered me 2 free months. Awesome! Why am I cancelling? If you noticed, I now have Fridays off...that also came with a 20% reduction in pay. Darn economy! However, I will admit that I do like the new schedule, even if it meant tightening our budget a bit - no cleaning lady (NOOOOO!), no Y membership, and no taking the toll road (gasp!). Oh and my run? 4-miles at a 10:23 pace...yay me! My goal is to do all my runs at a 10:30 pace or less. Trust me, this is a major breakthrough for my slow butt! Eventually, I wanna be at a sub-10 minute pace. Is that too much to ask?

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Garmin update....I ended up having to send my 305 in for repair. I've had the 305 since January 2007, when the hubby surprised me with it for my birthday. It didn't get used for 6-7 months of my pregnancy later in 2007...in fact, I didn't use it again until June or July of 2008. So, I still feel like it's pretty new and shouldn't be crapping out on me already. Thankfully, the folks at Garmin were extremely helpful and after trying a few troubleshooting attempts, we decided it was going to need some extra help. I hope to have it back sometime next week. In the meantime, I've gotten the battery changed in my old Timex sports watch and that will have to do for now. I miss my 305 and seeing my pace, distance and heart rate! Waaaaahhhhh!

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What the hell has been up with the traffic in Houston lately? Anyone who is a FB friend saw my multiple updates yesterday from the road and my adventures with high water...I know what was going on with the traffic there! But seriously? 1 1/2 hours to get to work when it normally takes 40 minutes? This is getting old. Fast.

That is all for today! Have a great one!

Pain in the Ass

Seriously people. I am s-o-r-e! My quads, my hammies, my glutes...they all hurt. And it's funny, because as the day goes on, I notice it more and more - especially when I go up and down the stairs. Which I have to do often. OUCH! That P90X workout really did me in. I really don't remember being quite this sore the 1st time I did this workout last summer. Maybe I didn't quite do it full out back then....I don't know.

What I do know is that my parents are coming over for dinner tonight, which means that I can't meet up with the neighborhood running group for a run. I was going to give this group another try, but looks like it will have to wait until next week.

Later Taters!

P90X

The adventure begins.

Again.

Monday, 9/21 - P90X - Day 1, Chest & Back
I forgot how hard this crap is! Until I started P90X last summer, I never knew how many different types of push ups and pull ups there were - military push ups, wide stance, diamond, dive bomber, reverse grip, etc. Earlier this year, I was still doing P90X on my non-running days and I could actually do real push ups. This time around, I was back to doing girly push-ups again. It was a very humbling experience! And then there was Ab Ripper X. More than just crunches, this core workout kicked my butt again! Ouch!

Tuesday, 9/22 - P90X - Day 2, Plyometrics Bike and Run
Since I don't have time to do P90X and run, I thought I might replace the cardio workouts with running. However, for some reason, I was totally jonesing for a bike ride. Unfortunately, I waited too late to get a real ride in...I started a ride in the daylight, but before I knew it the day was getting dark. Since I don't have any type of light on my bike, I hauled butt home and put the bike up after only 20 minutes. Then, I decided to head out for a quick run...at least with running, I could stay on the sidewalk. I ran 2-miles and it was at a pretty good pace for me! For some reason, I always run faster right after a bike ride. Once I finished, I wished that I would have run one more mile...it felt that good!

Workout Stats - 20-minute bike @ 17 mph, 20-minute run @ 9:30 pace!

Wednesday, 9/23 - P90X - Day 3, Shoulders & Arms
This is my favorite P90X workout! There's no pull ups, no pushups, just good old fashioned strength training with free weights. To be honest, my arms, chest and abs were still hurting from Monday's workout. Fortunately, after the warm-up, being sore didn't bother me. I love that this works out your triceps, biceps and shoulders...over and over again. Of course, this is followed by Ab Ripper X.

Thursday, 9/24 - No workout
Had to go to A&M for a job fair. Long day. No workout.

Friday, 9/25 - Long run day (in place of P90X, Yoga - I know, I know not even close to Yoga!)
I did my long run around the hood again. I wanted to get in 8-mile, but life happens and I only had enough time for 6. I have no idea of my pace, because I took a different route and had no idea where I hit each mile. I do know this...I felt like I was going faster than my usual pace. I wish I had my Garmin!!! The 6-miles felt great and I wished I had time for more. However, I had a date with my sweet kiddo - McDonalds and then Cloudy with a Side of Meatballs. Good times!!!

Saturday, 9/26 - P90X, Day 5- Legs and Back
More fun times! Today was garage sale day in the 'hood. It was a tiring day, but still had some energy for a little P90X. Lots of lunges, squats, and some pull-ups (which I did with resistance bands). Ouchie, ouch! I may be regretting this tomorrow when I run. :-)

What I’ve been up to since Eastside…

Monday, 9/14
I actually felt better by Monday morning, but I took it easy – I did go to work, but I ate only soup and had no workouts!

Tuesday, 9/15
Feeling even more like myself, but decided I wasn’t quite ready for spin class. I did get in a quick, but slow 20-minute run just to see if I felt up to it.

Wednesday, 9/16
Much better today! I ran on the dreadmill for 30 minutes during lunch - no speedwork, but just a nice, even paced run.

Thursday, 9/17
Feeling pretty much 100% back to normal! Did lunchtime spin class, which was outdoors and then swam 1800 yds. :-)

Friday, 9/18
Day off, yippee! I ran 7 of my scheduled 8 miles in the drizzly rain. It felt pretty darn good! Out of Gu, so I used Luna Moons - I kinda like them, too!

Saturday, 9/19
Rest day – spent time with the in-laws and kids. The kiddo had her 1st day of musical theatre class, which she really seemed to enjoy. They are going to perform in The Wizard of Oz in November!

Sunday, 9/20
Decided to check out the neighborhood “running club”. Turns out to be a coach and 3 members. One member is very new to running, so she and the coach ran the 1.75 loop around the neighborhood with a slower run/walk. I waited for the other 2 club members. At first, the coach told me they were running about a 10-minute pace. However, the 2 club members were chatting about how they ran the same 1.75 mile loop in 15:35. Yeah, I did the math in my head – that was less than a 9-minute pace. Even on a good day, there was no way in HELL I was gonna keep up with these 2 chicks!!! But, the coach assured me that this was an easy week for them, so I should come along – they’d be doing 45-minutes with no focus on distance or pace. I lasted about 30 minutes. Then, I bowed out and headed home. Yeah, I kept up, but I was huffing and puffing, LOL! Looks like I might be running solo afterall. I do like having faster peeps to run with, because it makes me want to run faster. But, I am soooo not ready to maintain their pace for a longer distance run!

Eastside Tri Race Report - Part II

Sorry for leaving you hanging....

THE SWIM - 300 meters
Thanks to the changes in wave start times, us short course folks were able to start the race earlier than expected. I liked this, because I hate the standing around and waiting thing - I am not a patient person! As my wave entered the water, I was sooo happy that I had done a warm-up swim. The were all kinds of squeals about the cold, the mushy, leafy plants and muddy lake bottom from the folks who were getting into the water for the 1st time. Fortunately, I already knew what to expect, so I could just submerge myself quickly and start trying to adjust. Finally, the horn went off and I started to swim. I forgot my little dolphin dive thingy that Viv had taught me, but oh well! I actually swam freestyle for the 1st 100 meters or so, only taking a side stroke when I needed to sight or get a better breath. The water was pretty clear, so it was easy to see the people around me. I could see feet in front of me, an arm next to me, etc. I tried to remember what I learned about drafting from Cassie and Viv, but then decided to "just swim". About 1/2 way through, I felt tired. I actually thought to myself, "why am I so tired?" Seriously people, this was 300 M...I KNOW I can do 300 M with no problem. Even in the open water. At some point, I got a mouthful of water and started to cough. I don't know how that happened, since it wasn't at a time when people were around me, LOL! After that, I was all sidestroke! Grrrr....oh well, I think my sidestroke is still faster than my freestyle anyway. I took a look behind me and I found that I was still in the middle of the pack. When I was about 1/2 way between the 2nd and 3rd buoy, I heard the horn for the next wave...should have been right about 5 minutes. Before I knew it, I was heading out of the water and walking up the slippery boat ramp.

T1
Side note: let me just take a second to let you know that do not have any of my race times. Unfortunately, they were never posted. I've called the folks at eztoregister and e-mailed them twice, but have yet to hear back to them.

My T1 felt very slow. I felt fatigued and my stomach felt queasy. I did consider stopping, but decided against it. I did not run to my transition area - I walked. Something I've never done before. I got my shoes on, took 1/2 a Gu and a quick drink from my water bottle, then I grabbed my bike and managed a slow jog out of transition.

THE BIKE - 14 miles
Once I was on my bike, I felt okay. Still a bit tired, but I love the bike, so I knew I'd at least make it through this leg. I knew I had a nice tailwind when I looked at my bike computer and it was showing speeds over 20 mph. :-) It was awesome! The only time I slowed under 18 mph was when I went over an overpass. Unfortunately, the course was an out and back, so after the turnaround the nice little tailwind turned into a headwind. Before the turnaround, my average speed was 18.9 mph. On the way back, my speed ranged between 16-18 mph. On the overpass, I went down to 14.3 mph. Ugh! I did get passed by a few folks - all men, and I did manage to pass a few folks too. At one point there was a young kid ahead of me. Everytime someone would try to pass him, he appeared to speed up! I finally caught him and gave him the "on your left" call and sure enough, he did try to speed up a bit! One thing I noticed here was that my lower back and my neck ached on this ride - something I hadn't experienced before. I didn't get a look at my computer before I racked my bike, but I imagine my average speed was around 17-something mph...slow compared to my last three races.

T2
T2 felt slow too. I slow-jogged my bike to my transition area, racked it, took off the helmet, took the other 1/2 of my Gu and was off. I did think about stopping again - I felt tired and weak -like something was not quite right. But I decided to just do it - if things got worse, I could always walk. I got all the way to the run start when I realized I forgot my race number - DOH! In our race packet, there's a huge area talking about how you cannot forget your race #, because the bottom section would be torn off and collected as you finish. If you do not have your race number, you would be disqualified, etc. So, after stopping to think about it for a second (really I stopped), I turned around to get my race number and was FINALLY off.

THE RUN - 3 miles
Honestly, the run wasn't too bad. I don't think I was going at my best pace, but I felt like I was maintaining a decent speed. I did get passed by 2 women - one in my age group and one who I knew was competing as an Athena. The other people who passed me were some pretty fast folks from the long course. I told myself, "no walking. you will not be a wuss. no walking until the water station." My Garmin has been on the fritz, so I have no idea how far I had gone or how fast I was going. According to the race packet, there would be an aid station at each mile. At some point it seemed like I was never going to be done, I thought to myself, "surely I've run a mile by now!" And then I saw it - the aid station! And right after it was the turnaround...so it had been over a mile - yipee! I walked through the station and took a quick drink of water and did have to stop for traffic before crossing the road and heading back, but that was the only time I walked. I do remember thinking to myself, "Damn, this shit is hard!", lol. I tried to pick up the pace a bit on the way back, especially when I saw the turn to get to the finish up ahead of me. I even passed up two guys on the way in. Definitely not my speediest run, but if I had to guess, I'd say it was around a 10:30 pace.

THE FINISH
When I started to get closer to the finish, I saw my fellow BTers there - Merry, Pat and Justin - and they were all cheering. Merry had a camera and Pat had a video camera. It was great to get some cheers at the end. They told me I was looking great, although I think they were lying. When I rounded the final corner, there were people standing everywhere and it took me a minute to figure the finish line was - thank goodness for the volunteers yelling "to your left"! Finally, I was done! I grabbed a Gatorade and went to hang out with the BTers and cheered for the folks still coming in - I was happy to be done and even happier that I hadn't thrown up! Oh and no one was at the finish to tear off my tab from my race number.

AFTERTHOUGHTS
I think overall, this was a good race for me - certainly not my fastest, but I think I would have done much better if I had been feeling 100%. The organization could have been much better:

• There were not very many volunteers along the route - no one to help you out of the water (I saw several people with bloody legs from slipping on the way out of the water), very few volunteers on the course, poor signage for the turnarounds, etc.
• Unorganized start, no PA system so hearing information was tough
• The race website had very little information - there was a map that was posted the week before the race, but it difficult to read. The map in the packet was for the run and not much better. Plus, there was some misinformation in the instructions as well.
• No race results for me - that's the worst part!

But, the race was fun - the water in the lake is clear, the bike and run routes were fairly flat, the volunteers were uber friendly, the post race food (pizza rolls) were nice although I couldn't stomach much, etc. It's a smaller race, which is nice too.

After the race, I hung out for the awards because Keri placed 3rd in Athena! The entire way home, I felt tired and could only think about how badly I wanted a nap. Seriously people, I don't nap!!! I went home, took a shower and got the baby down for a nap. I made a comment to the hubby about how badly I wanted a nap. He offered to entertain the kiddo and I napped for the entire 1 1/2 hours that the baby napped. When I woke up, I still felt like crap, but I promised to take the kiddo to get her hair cut and we did just that. We also rode the mall carousel, which seriously made me want to loose my lunch! When we got home, I laid on the couch for the rest of the afternoon while the sweet hubby entertained the kids upstairs. I slept off and on the entire afternoon. I had a 101 fever, chills, body aches, etc....I was bundled in a blanket until I went to bed around 10 pm. Apparently, I really was sick! (Maybe this explains my lower back and neck pain on the bike?)

So that's it folks - my final triathlon of 2009. It didn't exactly go as planned, but it is what it is. I am proud of myself for how far I have come...to think I couldn't do a 25 yard lap at the Y in February! I can't wait till next year! Until then, I will be training for the Houston 1/2 and will do the 10 for Texas as a training run. My goal is to get faster. I certainly can't get much slower!

Eastside Tri Race Report - Part I

Sorry this is so long. I started typing and it was like I contracted diarrhea of the mouth keyboard! I've decided to split it up into 2 parts....

PART I
I went to pick up my packet from Tri On The Run on Saturday. I would be #48 and would be wearing a lovely forest green swim cap. Of course I checked my yellow shopping bag for cool swag…it was light on the cool swag. However, since the race was taking place in the lovely city of Baytown (aka “Dirty Bay”), there was a nice leaflet on the subject of “Shelter In Place” and a brochure about Baytown. Who would have thought there would be so much to do and see in Baytown? The race shirt was your typical 100% cotton tee. Shucks, not technical tee! Oh well. I’d also be starting at 8:00 am – 1 hour after the official race start. Apparently, those competing in the long course would be going out in waves first and us short course folks would be next.

Saturday afternoon, I began to feel a little “off”. I don’t know how to explain it, but I just felt a bit tired and my stomach didn’t feel right. It wasn’t horrible or anything, so I just went on with the day. Sunday, the stomach still felt kinda queasy. I’ve never had pre-race nerves, but I thought maybe that was it. The entire way to Baytown I wondered if I really felt up to this race. Having to drive through rain and seeing lightening here and there may have made me question this even more.

I arrived, parked in a big grassy field and started to unload my bike when it began to rain. No worries – there was no lightening and I was getting wet anyway, right? I headed over to check in, get my body marked and pick-up my chip and next I was off to transition. According to the packet, there would be assigned racking - it also stated that if you weren't in your assigned spot, you would be disqualified! However, I found that it was pretty much open racking and you just had to beware of the puddles of water. I found a puddle-less spot and got set up near the end of one of the racks – it was a good spot! I ran into fellow BTer Merry, who was there to support her hubby Pat. Next I ran into another BTer buddy, Keri. Getting in some chit chat with everyone took my mind of my stomach and I started to feel a little better.

Next thing I know, we’ve got about 30 minutes until the race start. I walked over to the transition area and debated on whether or not my stomach could handle my ½ PB&J. I decided it could not, so I skipped it. I also noticed that an additional rack had been added to the end of each row, so my prime spot near the end was now a middle of the rack spot. Oh well! Next, I found my fellow BTers near the water, which now included Craig and Justin, and we checked out the course. It didn’t look too terrible – for the short course anyway, the long course looked, well, LONG. Keri, Justin and I decided to go for a practice swim. At first, a race volunteer told us we were too late, but then she changed her mind and told us to go ahead and that she wouldn’t tell anyone. :-) I am soooo glad I did this – the water was much colder than I expected and there was interesting plant life to step on once you clear the boat ramp. I’m glad I didn’t have the element of surprise for the 1st time when I was heading in with my wave before the race!!! I also got a chance to see how slick the boat ramp was – something to be careful of when heading out of the water and into T1. After I finished my short practice swim, I headed over to the porta cans….just in case. The tummy was okay for the most part, but every now and then it would feel queasy.

While we were swimming, we missed the anthem and directions, but Merry and Pat filled us in. Apparently, each group of men and women for each race would all start together rather than go out in waves. Then, the Athena and Clydesdales would head out, then the relay teams.

Before I know it, it’s time for our race to line up…

Friday Run

So much to do, so little time!

We had friends coming over for dinner and the cleaning lady hasn't been at our house in almost a month. So what I am trying to say is that I really, really needed to clean house! And, since I now have Fridays off, I have been on a serious organizing mission. Last week it was the downstairs coat closet. This week it was the kid's toys and playroom. Yeah, just call me Martha Stewart. Okay, maybe not.

So between that and getting the grocery shopping done, I had a pretty full day. I finally got out for a run around 2:30 pm. As I was leaving the house, I thought, "Hey, it's pretty cool out here!". There was a lot of cloud cover and a tiny bit of breeze going. However, by the time I made it out to the main road, the sun had come out and was beating down on me in full force. I ran the 1st mile at a decent pace...not sure how fast because the Garmin crapped out on me. The 2nd mile was tougher. I was getting hot, I took a quick walk to drink a little Gatorade. The 3rd mile was in a section of the neighborhood where I could no longer feel the breeze. By the 4th mile, I just wasn't feeling it. I walked pretty much the entire way back to my house. This is where I am such a wimp....I've run more miles in much warmer weather during my evening runs, but can't seem to do a short 4-miler in the middle of the day. WTH? I haven't had one of these runs in a looonnnggg time, so I guess I was due. Hopefully, it will be a long time before I have another.

We did have a great time with our friends on Friday night - cooking fajitas on the grill, kids playing in the backyard, etc. Fun times!

Today is a rest day for me - I'm going to pick up my race packet at Tri On The Run and then just hangout with the family.

Swim

Not too much to report. I made it to the pool in time to do a 40 minute workout before dark. I swam somewhere around 1300 yds...not very accurate, because I kept losing count! Last swim before Sunday, whoot! Tomorrow, I'll be running an easy, peasy 5-miler. I decided to wait until next weekend to do 9 miles and save my legs for Sunday's tri. :-)

Workout Stats
Swim, ~1300 yards, ~40 minutes

Mediocre Run

I am having some serious motivational issues this week. I could not bring myself to go to the Y in the rain during my lunch break to run on the treadmill. Instead, I thought I would just run at home once the kids were asleep. I did run, but it took me a long time to get myself on the treadmill!

I hemmed and hawed - got the lunches ready for the following day, got our clothes ready, did some straightening up, logged into Facebook for awhile, yadda, yadda. You get the idea. I did everything BUT run. Finally, around 9:30, I made myself get on the ol' dreadmill for 30 minutes. Not quite long enough for the 3 miles I orginally intended to do, but still a run. No interval this week - I am taking it a bit easy for the upcoming Tri this weekend. I'm not sure what's happened to my motivation, but I sure it will be back again in due time. :-)

Workout Stats
Treadmill run, 30 minutes, 2.85 miles, 10:30 pace

Concerned.

I have to admit that I am a bit concerned about this weekend's race. Originally, I thought I would keep doing this crazy tri thing until October's "Try Andy's Tri". But, I realized that I have been "training" for my 1st season of triathlons since February, which immediately followed training for Houston and then Zooma. I was feeling a bit burned out and decided that the August TriGirl was going to be it for me. I was gonna relax the week following TriGirl and take a much deserved coach potato week!

Well then some sorry bastard decided to hand out flyers at TriGirl for the Eastside Tri. Seriously, I've never been good at being a couch potato anyway! The tri was in September. I knew I didn't want to keep training through October, but hey, what was one more month? I could keep training through mid-September. Yeah, no problem! And there was a short course and long course option. While I do want to give some longer courses a tri, I figured the short course was right up my alley - 300m swim, 14 mile bike, 3 mile run. Whoot!

Well, my training hasn't been quite as regimented as it has been in the past. But, that's not what has me concerned. It's the lack of information on the website and, according to my buds at beginnertriathlete.com, the e-mails that have been sent to the race director have been pretty much unanswered. I read that the race has been well-organized in the past, but apparently there is a new race director this year. So all of this has me wondering....will there be enough kayaks in the water? Will the race course be safe and blocked from traffic? Will there be enough support at the aid stations? Or, will we be meeting up on Sunday morning only to find that we'd be better off just forgetting about the race and having breakfast at IHop instead?

To top it off, the weather for Sunday looks a bit iffy too!

I'm just keeping my fingers and toes crossed that it will be a great race and great weather!

Lawdy!

Good grief, sometimes being a mom is tough. I certainly don't see how the single ladies do it. Last night, I arrived home from my swim in time to help get the kiddo into bed. I had been leaving after she was in bed, but the days are getting shorter and the pool gets creepy after dark when you're alone. When I walked in the door the hubby was putting her to bed, but I heard screaming, crying, etc. The kiddo was having a complete meltdown. THANK THE BABY JESUS this doesn't happen often, because lemme tell you - it's not a pretty sight. She kicks, cries, screams, throws toys, etc. when she gets like this...and then she gets to the point where she almost makes herself sick. Yep, she's a bit of a drama queen - I can't imagine where she gets that from. ;-) At one point, she said she wanted her toy back (the one the hubby had taken away because of her behavior). The hubby explained that it was her fault it got taken away and she screamed "NO! IT'S YOUR FAULT!" Jeeze, this coming from an almost 5 year old...can't wait to see what the teen years will be like.


Then, this morning I walked into the baby's room and was greeted with the most awful smell. The baby had one of those hellacious, nasty poops...and no, it wasn't all neatly contained in his diaper either. It was on his arms, legs, the bed sheets, his onesie, etc. I had to literally scrape inch thick crap off his hiney and back. Yeah, it's gross, but it is what it is. Eventually, I took him over to the bathtub and washed him there. Ewwww!


So yeah, I was later than usual for a Wednesday meeting - partly because of the unexpected bath for the baby and partly because the traffic was PURE HELL.


So enough of that...you came here to read about training and here it goes:

Monday, 9/7 - Labor Day!

Okay, so I indulged a little with the adult beverages on Sunday night at our friend's house. Fortunately, I didn't have that last Mike's or I would have not gotten up at 6:30 am for my run. I have no idea of my pace, because my Garmin decided to crap out on me. I seriously do think it's on its last leg. It's says "Battery Charging Complete", but then it turns itself off after about 3/4 of a mile. Usually, I can turn it on again and it does okay. But not this time. This time it immediately turned off each time I tried to turn it on again. Grrrr....I wish I could use this as an excuse to run out and buy the new 310xt, but with 2 kids in daycare, recent car issues and a recent reduction in my work schedule, that's just not happening right now. Maybe Santa can bring me a new one...until then, I will go through withdrawals without knowing my pace, calories burned, distance, etc. Looks like I am going to become great friends with mapmyrun.com again. But, I did get in a nice run with decent pace from what I could tell and it was outdoors, YIPEE!


Workout Stats
Neighborhood run, 4 miles, ? pace

Tuesday, 9/8

I don't know what happened to my motivation yesterday, but I opted to go to the post office during lunch instead of spin class. I did get in 45 minutes in the pool after work. As I mentioned above, I made it to the pool earlier so that I could get in my swim before dark. I did lose count of my laps, which kind of irked me...somewhere between 1300 and 1400 yds, I *think*. I may be asking Santa for one of these as well, which can be found here.



Dorky, I know!

Workout Stats
Swim, 1300 - 1400 yds (lost count), 45 minutes

Change of Plans

I had originally planned to go to the lake for a little OWS practice - the last one before my final tri of the season. However, it seemed that my swimming buddies were going for a long bike ride instead, so my plans changed. I decided to get in a swim/bike brick around the 'hood. That would mean I could get my workout over with and I could still go to church with the hubby and kiddos - something we rarely get to do, since the hubby usually works every Sunday.

I jogged the 1/2 mile over to the pool in the pre-dawn morning hours. Then, I proceeded to swim for 45-minutes. It was still dark and I kept thinking about the story my Mom told me once about her friend who had a pool. Apparently, the friend dove into her pool and started swimming. When she turned her head to get a breath of air, she came face to face with a snake that had made its way into her pool. Because of that, my swim pretty much sucked until it was daylight and I could see everything a little better!

Next, I threw on my socks and shoes and jogged back home to hop on my bike. I rode for 54 minutes - almost long enough to get in 15 miles. Almost, but not quite. I don't know if I was tired from my swim, the teeny bit of breeze, or it was the lack of riding over the past couple of weeks, but I could not seem to get my average speed over 16.7 mph. Ugh! To top it off, a neighbor decided to roller blade around the block with his dogs - who were not on a leash. His dog darted in front of me to cross the street and then darted across again. My response? "Whoa, whoa, whoa - SHHHHIIIITTTTT!!!!! I'm sure my neighbor found that to be pretty humorous. Especially since I am sure the look on my face was priceless. LOL!

Once I was home again, I put the bike in the garage, took of my helmet and jogged to the end of the street and back - just to give the legs the feel of running after the bike. I really should have been getting in a bike/run brick each weekend, but just haven't been able to make time.

That being said, I don't know what to expect in next week's tri. I guess we'll find out soon enough!

Workout Stats
Swim, 45 minutes, I lost count of laps!
Bike, 53:45, 14.97 miles, 16.7 pace

Playing Catch-Up. Again.

Thursday, 9/3
Missed spin class due to other obligations. Then, thunderstorms in the evening kept me from swimming. Grrrrr. Sure a rest day is good now and then, but I was a slacker for the 2 weeks following my last tri, so I was looking forward to a good double workout day.

Friday, 9/4
With my new work schedule, I can drop the kids off to school and then head out for my long run. It's great, because that means I don't have to sacrifice evening family time to get the run in! I got in my 8-miler starting around 7:30 am. It wasn't too warm - maybe the low to mid 70's - but the humidity was brutal! Felt like I was breathing pea soup. I was also planning to swim afterwards to make up for my missed swim the day before. However, I really needed to get some things done around the house that I can never seem to do when the little ones are there, so that took priority over my swim. That and a trip to Target and the grocery store and before I knew it, it was time to pick up the kids from school!

Workout Stats
8-miles, 11:12 pace, 1:29:40

Saturday, 9/5
Rest day. I spent 2 hours at the most annoying place on Earth - Chuck E. Cheese's. The kiddo had a birthday party to attend and I was the lucky one to endure the madness that is C.E.C. Joy! And, right before we went into the party, the kiddo noticed that the sole on her sandal was pulling away from the rest of the shoe. What does a 4-year old do in that situation? Pull her shoe apart, of course!!! So we had to run into Office Depot next to C.E.C and buy super glue. The good thing is that the hubby and I had a date night planned, so at least I had something to look forward to later! We saw "The Ugly Truth" - okay movie for the most part. The hubby laughed A LOT more than I did, but there was a good combo of romance and guy talk to keep us both entertained.

Mock Speedwork

It's Wednesday, which means intervals on the treadmill. Fun, fun! Not "true" speedwork, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

Workout Stats
3 miles, 30:30, 10:09 pace
.5 mile warm-up, 300x4 (I think, I didn't count), .5 mile cooldown

Spinning Outside and a Creepy Swim

It's Tuesday and I'm back on track, which means it's time for lunchtime spin class and swimming after work.

First let's talk spin. The weather here in Houston is nice this week - 80-something degrees and low humidity. A far cry from the previous weeks of a "feels like" temp of 100+ and 90% humidity! Our spin instructor, Richard, must have thought it was nice too, because he decided to hold our class outdoors.

I know, you're thinking "What the frick? Spin class outdoors?"

Yeah, I thought so too. We all wheeled our bikes out the gymnasium doors and right to the sidewalk directly in front of the Y. It was interesting to say the least, but I have to admit it was nice to actually have the opportunity to enjoy the cooler weather after being in the office all morning. Richard even gave me a complement as I was leaving - "Looking good on the bike today!". I love that class! Really I do.

Now for the swim....For the past few weeks, I've been heading to our neighborhood pool for my swims. It's nice not to not have to drive out of my way to get to a pool, which gives me more time with the family in the evenings. The pool has five 25 yard lap lanes and with school back in session, it hasn't been too crowded. Now, I just need to get my timing right! I was waiting until 8 pm to go to the pool, because that's the kiddo's bedtime...in other words, I don't feel as guilty heading to the pool since she's asleep. But, it's getting darker earlier now! It can be very creepy at the pool when there's no one there and it's dark. So, I headed over to the pool at 7:30 instead. Thanks to the cooler temps, the water was actually cool! It usually feels like a warm bath, lol! Since I wanted to see if I could get in a mile, I knew I'd be there an hour. Lemme tell you...I was good for most of the time I was there, but then I swore I heard someone talking outside the gate. That kinda freaked me out, so I got in my last couple of laps and called it a night!

must.start.earlier.

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Dang it, I hate it when I eat almost all my daily calories before 1 pm! Seriously people...I had lunch with a friend at Olive Garden. I thought I was being smart by going with the Soup, Salad and Breadsticks combo. Yeah, I should have asked them to hold the breadsticks - who would have thought they were 150 calories each? And to top it off, minestrone has pretty much no protein in it! If anyone has suggestions for the lowest calorie way to get lots of protein for dinner, please let me know. I may have to run longer just to earn enough calories to be able to eat dinner. Idiot! :-)

Workout Stats
Spin class - 50 minutes
Swim - 1800 yds, 1 hour (woohoo, that's 1 mile and 40 yds!)
100 yd warm up, 600x2 and then a 500 with 1 - 2 minute recovery between each set

4-miles. Done.

I couldn't believe it - the kiddo went right to sleep last night! That meant there was time for me to get all the lunches and clothes ready for the next day - and I could be on (and off) the treadmill at a reasonable time! Yippee! This was a very good thing, because yesterday's goal was to run 4 miles. Most of the time, the kiddo doesn't want to cooperate at bedtime and I can only manage to get in about 20 minutes on the treadmill before the 10 o'clock news comes on.

The run felt great. I did a 1 mile warm-up at about a 10:40 pace, the next 2.0 miles were around a 10:10 pace, then a gradual cool down. I am finding that it's getting easier and easier to stay in the lower 10-minute range for longer periods. I am a slow runner, I know that...but I feel like I am making some progress. That's the crazy thing that triathlon training has done for me - it has kept me from getting burnt out on the running. Being able to swim and bike during the week and only run 3 days per week has been great. When I do finally run, I am more willing to give it my all. When I am only focusing on running, I have a tendency to just "get'er done" sometimes. Not really give it my all, just go through the motions and get the runs done. I would love to know how my times compare to last year, but for some reason I chose not to record my pace times. Must have been pretty bad...then again, I was finishing grad school and just had a baby too. LOL! Anyway, I do feel stronger than last year - that much I know. :-)

Workout Stats
Treadmill Run, 4 miles, 41:58, 10:29 pace