Countdown to Augusta 70.3

I had fully intended to keep this blog updated with my training progress, especially as I began to up the ante. However, I guess I didn't consider the reality that more training means less time to blog about it. I'm going to do my best the next two months to get back to it. Why now? I am 59 days away from my first long course triathlon... Augusta 70.3 Ironman. (and yes, I have a countdown app on my phone telling me how close this race is)

It's been nearly a year since my last post, so a quick update is in order. I've been racing non-stop. I hired a coach to get me through this madness without injury or burning myself out. Plus, I only know so much about basic fitness...endurance is a whole new world to me. Now, what have I accomplished since my last post? A lot more than I would ever have expected, that's for sure.

December 2012 - I ran my first marathon in Tucson, Arizona.

I then spent time getting back into multisport training. I did a few half-marathons in the meantime. I managed to PR at the Thanksgiving Atlanta Half-marathon with 2:04:16, and I finished the Publix half this year in just a little over a minute longer than that. I've essentially improved my half-marathon time by 25 mintutes in a year. I also PRed in my 5k time with 23:56, which got me into Group B for the Peachtree Road Race this year! That was pretty exciting, especially considering last year I was somewhere around G. I also got to experience the feeling of placing in my age group for a couple of 5k races...placed 3rd in my PR race and 2nd in a Valdosta 5k.

 Running my half-marathon and 5k PR races... form definitely has improved this year.

  The Publix Half-Marathon was my first repeat race - got to really see how far I've come in a year!

So that's how the running has been doing. Not long after the Publix half, it was time to put that multisport training to good use. I started my season with a couple of sprint duathlons and schedule a few sprint triathlons (including a repeat of the Iron Girl) leading up to the Chattanooga triathlon in July. Unfortunately, the weather this year has kind of sucked compared to last year. My first few races luckily involved no swimming... it was way too cold for that mess! The Iron Girl was cancelled due to inclement weather (it stormed like crazy), and the Chattanooga race got turned into a duathlon. So, as far as triathlons go...no repeats from last year to really see how far I've come. That makes me nervous somehow.

 A few duathlon photos shortly before I walked away with my age group award.

On a more positive note, I got a great start to du/tri season. My overall time for the 2nd duathlon of the season was great, placed in my age group (of only a few people), but was also pretty high up overall. My first triathlon of the season, I won my age group and was I think 2nd or 3rd overall female (behind some Ironman finishers...that felt good).

 While winning at small races may not be all that impressive, its still a good feeling to have a couple of these things lying around now! :)

So, now that Chattanooga is over with, I am in full-on half-ironman training mode! I have had to accept that life is about to get really busy, and I have to be willing to make sacrifices - my social calendar needs to chill for a while. This is going to be a challenge, but I'm sure it'll be worth it in the end. Other sacrifices involve my diet... have to start cutting out the useless calories and junk and replacing them with solid, nutrient packed foods. In the past few months, I've been lenient with my diet, but I want to do it right now. Unfortunately, people do give me a hard time for eating healthy ("you'll get too skinny"). I eat a lot...so it needs to be healthy food. I love making smoothies - kale, spinach, frozen fruits, bananas, coconut water, tomato juice, almond milk, protein, even granola, etc... anything can be smoothie-fied!

Every morning, I've started beginning the day with whole grain toast (or low-fat waffles) with almond butter and some V8 fusion juice. Then, I make a smoothie at home and bring it to work with me, for my mid-morning snack. My lunch the last few weeks has consisted typically of something like tuna (w/ a small amount of light mayo), whole grain crackers, and an avocado and random veggies. My ideal afternoon snack is dried fruit, almonds, and sunflower seeds, and this usually carries me over into the start of my workout, which I'll still fuel up as needed. When there's time to cook, dinner is typically seared chicken, kale or spinach, and sweet potatoes (or regular potatoes). Luckily, as a creature of habit, I'm ok with eating the same thing over and over...until I run out, then I get lazy and substitute with popcorn too often.

Anyway, that's where I am now...hopefully, I'll remember to keep on track with not only logging my workouts and tracking my meals, but also w/ blogging/journaling it out. Right now, I'm fighting major back pain (may have pulled something hopping out of bed today, oops!), which will hopefully not slow me down too much b/c I really am enjoying my lengthy runs lately.

 Hard to believe the next time I suit up and run/bike/swim in a competitive environment, I'll be racing my first 70.3 Ironman in Augusta!!!

The next logical step...

I'll keep this short, just another update. I kind of sucked it up at my last half marathon, but I keep telling myself it's bc I'm training differently. I was also not at 100%, and I knew it. I am feeling myself reaching a plateau, but not a permanent one. I think I may have reached the limit of what I can do on my own. Training alone for endurance races is kind of challenging, but I enjoy it. However, if I want to improve and keep myself going without burning out, I need to take it to the next level.

The next logical step for me is to look into training. I thought about team training with Atlanta Tri Club (or another similar group). I am not a huge fan of group training though, I know that's probably not good. I just have so much anxiety around other people that I just kind of want to do it on my own. I also like to use my training time as my "me time." So, I think I've decided to go with an individual coach. It's not cheap, but it could be really beneficial. It would also help me avoid potential injury from over-training on my own. I seem to be injury prone, so it'd be nice to have someone else keeping me in check. I also could use the individual accountability from someone who knows my training and where I am physically.

I think I've decided to go with a coach from The Sport Factory, which is mostly online coaching. That seems flexible enough for me, too. The tri clubs have their set schedules, which don't always work for me. It won't be cheap, but I could really benefit. If I don't improve within a few months, then I could stop the individual coaching. However, I think I really could see some positive results, and cut out some unnecessary stuff I'm doing now (supplement chasing, over training, now knowing what comes next, etc).

So...Today I will decide the next step. Am I serious about this racing thing? I want to be. Is that crazy? Am I really capable of being an Iron Man finisher? Am I capable of placing in bigger races? Is it a waste of money and time to get this serious about endurance races? It may be...however, I won't know until I try it.

Many months later...

I guess I haven't really kept this blog updated as I'd planned. Really, the past 5 months or so have been more of the same. However, I upped the ante beyond what I expected. I worked harder than I thought I would. Let's see... last race I posted about on here was apparently my 2nd half-marathon. Since then, here's the breakdown of what I've accomplished:

*April 28, 2012 - Beltine Northside 5K (Race time - 26:29.2 PR!; pace 8:31) To date, this is still my 5k PR, but my goal is to get an even better time for a Peachtree qualifier for next year. This race was after the cutoff for qualifiers, so at the least, I can use it for a better qualifying time.

*May 20, 2012 - Iron Girl Atlanta Tri; 540m swim, 19mi bike, 3mi run (Race time - 2:06:20; 20:17 swim; 1:11:15 bike; 25:53 run) My first triathlon, and I was immediately hooked! It was one of the best experiences of my life! Friends and I had spent a couple of weekends prior camping near Lake Lanier (the site of the race) for a training weekend. We biked from our camp site to the lake, swam for my first open water swim, biked back, and then did a short run. I am certain that the training weekend definitely gave me the confidence I needed to push myself for the race. In hindsight, I probably could have shaved a good bit off the swim time with more training and the bike time should be better next year now that I have acquired a real road/tri bike! I'm hooked.

Iron Girl run

*June 16, 2012 - Candler Park 5k Just another 5k. I don't remember the time, but it was not great. I think I finished in the 27-minute range. This was when I noticed how biking was beginning to have an effect on my running. My legs felt different. So, biking did slow my run down a bit, but that's fine during tri season... particularly because a speedy bike time is more advantageous than a speedy run time.

Kyle even volunteered for the race (but didn't run)

*July 4, 2012 - Peachtree Road Race 10k (Race time - 57:38) They say that nobody gets a PR at the Peachtree, but since it was my 2nd 10k ever, I got my PR up until that point. I loved this race...loved seeing the city, running by Piedmont Hospital (reminding myself of the time I was wheeled out of there years ago). The spectators were the absolute best! This race prompted me to sign up for the Atlanta Track Club, which means guaranteed entry into next year's race. It was a warm day, a great day. It was also my first race running w/ only a sports bra (no shirt) bc it was hot.

Peachtree Road Race

*July 8, 2012 - Chattanooga Waterfront Tri; 1.5km swim, 26mi bike, 10k run (Race time - 3:16:02 overall; 29:xx swim; 1:30:xx bike; 1:07:xx run) Because I did get a bit addicted to triathlons after the Iron Girl, I decided to sign up for an Olympic distance race. I knew I could handle the bike and run, but I was a bit intimidated by the swim. By this point, I'd acquired my road/tri bike, so my bike speed was much improved already. I was confident with the run having been keeping a steady 10k weekend run up by this point. I spent a few days a week in the pool, even got the hand paddles for training. I rocked the swim better than expected because the river current did kind of help keep me going. I found that switching back and forth to the breast stroke, instead of freestyle the whole time, was actually better because the deeper current pulled me to the side while in freestyle, but I was more on top of the water with breast stroke, so the upper current kept me moving forward. I loved this race. Beat my expected time (and the 2 ppl I knew who were also doing it). I plan to return to this race next year.

Chattanooga Olympic distance Triathlon

*July 14, 2012 - Beltline Southwest 5K (Race time - 27:33) At this point is when I began to notice that I wasn't taking shorter runs seriously enough. I drank the night before the race, didn't sleep enough, and didn't wake up until my beltline teammates showed up at the door! Luckily the race was just down the road. I struggled a bit bc of my dehydration, lack of preparedness, and sore side from the fresh tattoo.

Beltline Run Club crew at the SW 5k!

*August 18, 2012 - TriToBeat Cancer Sprint; 400m swim, 14mi bike, 5k run (Race time - 1:25:32; 9:45 swim; 44:42 bike; 26:44 run; 6th in age group) This was my first true sprint triathlon (Iron Girl was a long sprint), so I went into it with a very competitive mindset. I could have probably done a bit better on the bike because at this point, I still was not being aggressive enough with passing slower cyclists. I hadn't yet discovered that I am a pretty fast sprinter on the bike, so I can definitely be okay with passing as many slower bikes as I can. Either way, I finished extremely strong, my last half mile to mile was at about at 7:40 pace. It felt good. Mom was at the race cheering me on, and a couple of girls from the beltline crew raced too. I am still impressed with my swim time because I definitely didn't swim my hardest...lesson learned: no mercy in the water. People will swim over me, so I can swim over others too. Start toward the front of the pack and let them pass me, not the other way around. I spend too much time treading water by starting toward the back and passing others.

Sprint Tri in Athens

*Sept 1, 2012 - Castleberry Hill 10k (Race time - 55:13; 08:53 pace; 12/70 in age group) Great route around a part of town I am actually already familiar with (and run through often). The race was put on/organized by Tes and her RunningNerds. I really enjoyed it. I got a PR, which I had hoped for and kind of expected because I knew the course and it's only my third 10k. I biked to/from the race to get some duathlon training in. I felt so good afterwards that I ended up biking all the way to Grant Park, going on a 3 mile run, then biking across the city to run errands before heading home. It was a good day.

Stretching before my 10k PR race around the ATL

*Sept 14, 2012 - Cherry Point Sprint Duathlon; 5k run, 10 mi bike, 5k run (Race time - 1:29:17; 3rd overall female!) Scheduled this race as an opportunity for a road trip to go see Jess and the boys. It was a great weekend and a particularly impressive race performance! I raced mostly against marines. It wasn't a huge event, but size aside, I won third overall female! I had hoped to place in my age group, but I did not expect an overall place! It was awesome... I rocked the bike, apparently, because my run time has really slowed with all the biking I did over the summer. I am proud of myself for this...I needed the boost to end the multisport season. Next year, I plan to continue the triathlon trend and hope to do a 70.3 Half Iron Man.

Showing off my 3rd place trophy and hanging w/ my supporter!

*October 7, 2012 - Atlanta 13.1 Half Marathon (Race time - 02:32:53) My most recent race, and it's unfortunately my worst half marathon time. I am okay with it now though. The course was really hilly, and I didn't run many hills because my calves were shot from pushing it so hard for the duathlon (it was worth it). I'd gotten a few massages and had been running off-road mostly to allow them to heal. Race morning was also one of the first chilly mornings this year, so most folks weren't yet used to running in the cold! My pace has also continued to slow a bit because I am now training for my first full marathon.

That's right, I said that I'm training for a full marathon, and not just next spring's Publix Georgia Marathon. I decided to do another traveling race. I am going to Tucson in December to run my first marathon. The course is mostly flat and downhill, and I think the weather will be nice for the race as well. I have a lot of training to do, but that's where I am right now. I have a 5k or two, the Thanksgiving Atlanta Half Marathon, and a 10k between now and the marathon. So, there's plenty of time to train and the Atlanta Half should be at a good time during training. I'm having a few confidence issues after my rough finish w/ the last half marathon, but I know that right now I just need to train to finish. Next year I can up the ante.

13.1 + 13.1 = 26.2

Well, I have gone about a month without a race. I've been jonesing for some competition, I won't lie. In the past month, I have added that 13.1 sticker to my car with pride. I have let my knee rest a bit and really worked out my IT band and hamstring issues. My second half-marathon is in a few days, so I quickly jumped back into training w/ some longer runs. I feel a little bit less prepared for this one than I was for the Publix half. However, I am more confident than I was because I know I can do it. I want to beat my previous time, that's my main goal.

Not only am I running my 2nd half marathon this weekend, but I've signed up for number three in the fall (the Atlanta 13.1). As if that's not crazy enough, I also may have jumped the gun by signing up for next year's full marathon, but I think that by this time next year, I can turn taht 13.1 into a 26.2. We will see how that goes. For now, I have other things to focus on.

I still have a hard time believing how much I love running. I have been running once a month w/ the Beltline Running Club and have met some great people through that club. I also run once a week with the a group that runs from the Phiddippides store. These shorter group runs have been great b/c my speed has increased for the 3-4 mile range. I'm looking forward to my first Beltline 5k race in a couple of weeks. I haven't done a 5k since the fall, so I am amped to see how my time has improved since then.

As much as I love running, the time has come for me to start cutting back on running (after this weekend's 13.1) and increase time in the pool. My triathlon is 1 month away. I am scared to death. I know I can do the 5k run. I am fairly confident that I can handle the 19 mile bike ride, once I get off the stationery bike and get back on the road. Biking is a fun social thing too, so I know I'll get some training in on the bike. The swim is scaring the crap out of me. I am not at all comfortable in the pool. I struggle through my 450m practice swims in a lap pool, and I have to be able to do a 1/3 mile open water swim (about 550m). I know I'm just getting started, but I have one month to comfortably be able to swim that distance. I want to train for 1/2 mile distance just to be confident that 1/3 is do-able. The bad part is that I love running, I am beginning to love the bike, but the swim is where I need to spend most of my time training.

I'm just praying that my swimming experience will be much like my running. A year ago I didn't like running, and until 6 months ago, I didn't consider myself a runner. I have been in pools since I was 3 months old, so I know that I can pick up the swim if I just try. I will be an Iron Girl. I will not rest until I can swim 1/2 mile with confidence.

Ok, now for a moment of pride...where I should be humble, but I just have to have a moment of shallow pride here. I have been extremely self-conscious about my stomach ever since having surgery 2 1/2 years ago. It left me w/ a 6-inch long scar and a little bit of loose belly skin. I have been kind of obsessed over it for a while. I have worked hard because I am determined. I'm not sure why, but I want to be confident I guess. I want to no longer think about my scar and my weakness. I want to look in the mirror and see strength.

Well... I am finally getting there. The hard work is paying off, so I'm going to pridefully post the photo.

13.1... check.

I did it. This past Sunday, I completed my first half marathon! Because of the troubles I've been having with my knee/IT band, I was especially careful the weeks leading up to this race. I hadn't been able to do a legit long run for about a month, but with cross training and pool running, I was able to maintain my endurance/conditioning fairly well. Race day arrived, my knee was taped up with KT tape and wrapped with my IT Band Strap. I didn't trust the tape enough to try to run w/o the strap, but I wasn't ready to take the strap out for the full race w/o backup. I had only run with the strap a few times, but that had to be enough.

I started the race with a goal time of around 2:30:00. I decided that I had to walk for a minimum of 1 minute per mile, walk through every water station, and walk at least part of every steep/long incline to keep my knee from failing too early on. So, with my rules in mind, I knew there was a shot that I'd not make it in my goal time. I finished the race running and crossed the finish line at 2:31:54. Not great, but seeing as it's my first HM, it's also my PR. I can't wait for HM number 2 in a little over a month!

Post race, I filled a kiddie pool with 3 bags of ice, water, and a tossed in a few beers to keep them cool in the warm sunshine. Then, I climbed in. I think that's why my legs, feet, and knees felt fine the next day! That, and my foam roller...that thing is great. I've learned so much, and I plan to keep going.

I have also signed up for next year's Publix Georgia Marathon. If I decide I can't handle the full marathon in a year, I'm okay with cutting it short and doing the half...but I'd like to try to push it. Until then, I'm ready to transition my training to the triathlon stuff. This weekend I'll be practicing my first transition and doing some biking in south Georgia. I feel like I'm on top of the world!

I did it!

Post-race w/ the Beltline running crew:

It's Starting...

Well, many months ago, I started training. A few months later I started registering for races. My ultimate goal is still the Iron Girl Triathlon on May 20. However, during the course of my training, I decided to add other races along the way. My intention was to just do some 5K races here and there until the triathlon. Well, somewhere along the way, I got a little nuts. I upped the ante. I realized that I am capable of much more than I thought I would be able to do. I added in a 10k, the Spartan Sprint obstacle race, and 2 half-marathons.

It's all been leading up to the month of March, the month of races. I knew all a long that once this month got here, I'd be pushing myself to the limit. After my first half-marathon next weekend, I'll be switching gears to full-on triathlon training, instead of the mix of running and strength training for the Spartan Race. With a few bumps in the road and some problems w/ my knee, I have really begun to get scared for that half-marathon next weekend! The thing is, I am stronger now than I have been in years... if ever. I conquered that Spartan Race this past weekend. And even though I had my knee hinder my 10K run the weekend before, I have since begun to aggressively work on my IT band and changing my training around. I am confident that I can complete the half-marathon, even if I have to walk part of it. I have to keep reminding myself that I still have a second half-marathon, and my ultimate goal is the triathlon. From there, I'm not sure what comes next, but I will keep going... so I need to take care of myself along the way.

Another thing I remind myself of...my weakest moment ever. Just over 2 years and 4 months ago, I couldn't sit up on my own. I couldn't move without being in excruciating pain. Months later, 2 years ago, I couldn't walk up stairs without being exhausted, and I couldn't do a single situp without wincing in pain for a few more months. For a moment there, I thought I'd never have the lung capacity to do anything extreme ever again. One year ago, I couldn't run a mile.

I remind myself of 2 1/2 years ago... And at my weakest before/after my surgery (about 2 yrs 4 months ago):

My previously rock-climber-strong core muscles, reduced to nothing:

So, admittedly, I have moments of weakness. I want to quit. Thought seep into my mind telling me that I can't do it... then I stop and remind myself of the wonderful things that the human body is capable of. This body can heal and become stronger than before. I can run 13 miles...I know because I have done it already. I can conquer any obstacle that I face...I know because I have done it, and will keep going until this body can't take any more.

(Remember that 6" long, nasty surgery scar? Exactly. What scar?)

Time to start cross-training

Well, I've kept it up. I altered my weekly running schedule a bit to keep from running too much (and to allow room for biking and swimming a bit). Up 'til now my routine has now been:

Monday:
biking or swimming
light strength training

Tuesday:
Tempo run(10 min warmup; 20 min tempo run (or 2, 15 min tempo runs))
10 min cool-down run
intense strength training (full body)

Wednesday:
Off day (or easy run)

Thursday:
45 min intervals (10 min mile run warmup; 6 sets of 3-min walk/run/jog intervals)
10 min mile run plus cool down
intense strength training (full body)

Friday:
Off day or bike

Sat/Sunday:
Long Run (8-10 miles)


A week after my first 10 mile run, I dropped back down to about 8 miles. It was a few weeks straight of good runs. Then, the next week I hit 13 miles (on accident). I was going for just passing 10 miles, then thought I could hit 12. I did the math wrong and ran 13. It was great b/c I finally proved I could run the half-marathon distance. So, I signed up for the Publix Half-Marathon on March 18.

Unfortunately, a few weeks later, my knee started giving me trouble. I think I increased my mileage too fast and maybe switched shoes too soon. I am switching back to my old shoes. I'm also going back to the max dose of glucosamine/chondroitin in hopes that will help too. I am debating getting a knee support because I don't want to do any more damage, but I want to keep going. I have my first 10k this weekend, the Spartan Sprint next weekend, and the half-marathon the weekend after. I don't need to do a lot of running in the meantime, but I do want to. I want to hit 10-13 miles again one more time before the half-marathon. I have just had a few bad runs in the past few weeks, and all are probably from over-training. So, I really am going to try to take it easy this week, but I'm worried that by not running the distance I will lose the ability. I know that's crap though... every part of my body (except my knee right now) could keep going on all of these runs. I need to heal my knee so it can keep up.

I am trying to get myself started w/ triathlon training now. My bike needs a tune-up, but in the meantime I have stationary bikes at the gym. Swimming is tough, but it's great cross training and I could really benefit right now from aqua running/jogging. I am so self-conscious at the pool because I'm inexperienced and easily intimidated, but I need to get over that and just go for it.

I can do this. I will do this. Just because one thing is giving me a hard time doesn't mean I can't use this as an opportunity to work on my swimming and biking. I know that I can run 13 miles... or I can run 10 and walk 3. That I can do. This week, though, all I need to do is run 10k. I'll tackle the next goal after that. I can do this. I will do this.