Hallelujah! The holidays are over! Yes, technically they are not. We still have to get through New Years, but that holiday is going to be FAR less stressful than all the days leading up to Thanksgiving and Christmas.
So a quick recap is in order. Sorry, there are no photos to post of all the holiday chaos. If you are my friend on Facebook, well if you are RDJr.'s friend on Facebook, you might be lucky enough to have seen a couple that he took with his iPhone. But I'm just so bad about pulling out the camera to capture the moment which is another stressor all together. Sigh.
Let's see ... I went to Dallas, TX with my parents for Thanksgiving. My grandmother, aunt and uncle live there. Another aunt and uncle and a cousin came to visit as well. I raced a 5K and took a lot of naps.
The Aubs and I hosted a holiday party at our house. I volunteered to do all the cooking because it's what I love! And even though over 90% of the guests were cyclists or triathletes, no one touched the healthy food I prepared!! It just goes to show, no matter how serious they are about their sport, even athletes expect and WANT junk food at holiday parties. My flax-seed brownies apparently tasted like "earth". No one touched the quinoa cookies. And don't get me started on the prosciuto wrapped melon (RDJr. gave me the hardest time of all on that one.)
The following weekend we had three parties in one night - my work, his work, and then a friend's. It was a FUN night but we were oh so tired afterwards.
I celebrated Christmas with my parents the Tuesday before by going to dinner at Pot Pie, then home for gifts and dessert. It was weird and a little sad without my brothers and might-as-well-be-sister-in-law there. Brian and Maria are traveling the country in their RV. They called me from Cochella Valley and said the average age of the people in the RV park they were staying was 73!! Kevin was (happily) let go from Louis Vuitton/Edun and, saving every single penny he has, opted to stay home in NYC this year. They both promised they would be home next year.
Christmas Eve Day was fun and exhausting at the same time. TEAM BAD were up early for a trail run in the SNOW (we got a dusting) at Shawnee Mission Park. It was sort of magical - we saw seven or eight white tailed deer and a grey fox. All three of us were MUDDY but it was worth it. Headed to Eggtc. for breaky then out to Brookside Barkery and Bath to give Bailey (the "B" in Team BAD) a much needed bath. He was so good!!! It took us about 90 minutes to wash and dry that 100lb Golden, and he still wasn't 100% dry until 8pm that night! RDJr.'s dad came over for dinner. We opened gifts and played dominos. It was nice.
Christmas Day RDJr. and I opened gifts then headed to his mom and step-dad's for more gifts, lots of laughs and a THREE HOUR Monopoly game where I dominated!!! Hey, don't get mad at me cuz I'm savvy. ;)
And ... DONE!
Sunday was, I think, the best day of the whole weekend. We ate a HEALTHY breakfast at home, I finally got to do laundry and go to the grocery store (WHOLE FOODS SAVE ME from my holiday eating binge!). TEAM BAD got together later in the afternoon for a long run, dinner and a DVD. Oh, and some beard shaving. Get your mind outta the gutter - RDJr. shaved his Gizzly Adams beard. We did get some fun photos of that!
And ... now it's all over. Back to our regularly scheduled program. Back to full-on training and full-on work. I didn't send out Christmas cards this year so I'm going to send out New Years cards. And instead of including the usual "I did this, I did that this year" holiday letter, I'm going to write a "things I am looking forward to this year letter" which seems more appropriate for my situation than a "looking back" letter.
Hope everyone (all two of you who read this) had a wonderful holiday with your families and that you find time to decompress before the usual grind gets to you again.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Merry Christmas!
This photo makes me laugh so hard! Not just at Christmas, but throughout the year. More so because I actually know this little boy. I'm kinda feeling the way he does -stressed out by Santa and all that surrounds him.
Hopefully by the time Christmas actually gets here next week, things will have settled a bit. Looking forward to a Christmas trail run with RDJr. and B the Super Dog, most of all!!
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Lot of really good training!
Enough about food, time for a quick update on my training and just life in general. I actually have two ideas for blog posts but I wanted to have pictures to go with them, and then I keep forgetting my camera. Oh well. So you get boring words here.
So what's new pussycat? Six weeks of SOLID training under my belt and I feel good! I keep surprising myself with how well it's going and how quickly the speed is coming back. And even though my abs are so sore from the reverse push-ups on the stability ball that it hurts to sneeze, and even though I've already taken five ice baths in five weeks, I don't really feel like the training has been all that hard.
Sure, there are intervals in the workouts that are tough, but I'm rising to the challenge and haven't had to make an excuse yet. All of this is very encouraging and gives me so much confidence that this year is going to be great!
Swim speed is coming back - hopped in lane 3 instead of lane 4 at Blazers masters on Saturday. I even led the lane toward the end of the workout. Nice!
Bike - Best idea I've ever had: Netflix!!! Workouts fly by when I'm watching Mad Men, Date Night, It's Complicated, Lars and the Real Girl. (Romantic comedies are easier to follow than dramas.) I'm also drawing up blueprints for the new and improved "Pain Cave" that is our basement. Hee hee! Well, not really blueprints, but exciting things happening at the home gym.
Good things happening with my run as well. Did a run "test" in the form of a 5K on Thanksgiving and while I set no PR's (and didn't expect to) my time is consistent with where I should be for this time of year. Actually, maybe a little bit better than this time last year.
Recovery has been going REALLY well! This is the one thing I am most proud of - and the one thing I am working the hardest at. I am getting, on average, 8 hours of sleep each night. (Sometimes 9, sometimes 7, but never less than 7. ) I'm eating a recovery snack 10-15 minutes after every workout over an hour. Ice baths, ART, stretching - all of it. And ... AND ... I have only had two tiny little glasses of wine in six weeks.
What else?? RDJr. and I have been keeping it real on the weekends because I'm tired from training and he is so busy studying. We've seen a LOT of movies lately. This weekend we got out of the house and headed out to the Overland Park Arboretum for their luminary walk. It was COLD but so pretty and a lot of fun!! We laughed a lot that night - mostly at the fact that I'm a huge sappy dork and started to cry when the bell ringers played "Carol of the Bells", which is my FAVORITE Christmas song, and it was just so beautiful that tears began to roll and RDJr. just thinks it's hilarious that I cry at stuff like that. And really, it is.
So what's new pussycat? Six weeks of SOLID training under my belt and I feel good! I keep surprising myself with how well it's going and how quickly the speed is coming back. And even though my abs are so sore from the reverse push-ups on the stability ball that it hurts to sneeze, and even though I've already taken five ice baths in five weeks, I don't really feel like the training has been all that hard.
Sure, there are intervals in the workouts that are tough, but I'm rising to the challenge and haven't had to make an excuse yet. All of this is very encouraging and gives me so much confidence that this year is going to be great!
Swim speed is coming back - hopped in lane 3 instead of lane 4 at Blazers masters on Saturday. I even led the lane toward the end of the workout. Nice!
Bike - Best idea I've ever had: Netflix!!! Workouts fly by when I'm watching Mad Men, Date Night, It's Complicated, Lars and the Real Girl. (Romantic comedies are easier to follow than dramas.) I'm also drawing up blueprints for the new and improved "Pain Cave" that is our basement. Hee hee! Well, not really blueprints, but exciting things happening at the home gym.
Good things happening with my run as well. Did a run "test" in the form of a 5K on Thanksgiving and while I set no PR's (and didn't expect to) my time is consistent with where I should be for this time of year. Actually, maybe a little bit better than this time last year.
Recovery has been going REALLY well! This is the one thing I am most proud of - and the one thing I am working the hardest at. I am getting, on average, 8 hours of sleep each night. (Sometimes 9, sometimes 7, but never less than 7. ) I'm eating a recovery snack 10-15 minutes after every workout over an hour. Ice baths, ART, stretching - all of it. And ... AND ... I have only had two tiny little glasses of wine in six weeks.
What else?? RDJr. and I have been keeping it real on the weekends because I'm tired from training and he is so busy studying. We've seen a LOT of movies lately. This weekend we got out of the house and headed out to the Overland Park Arboretum for their luminary walk. It was COLD but so pretty and a lot of fun!! We laughed a lot that night - mostly at the fact that I'm a huge sappy dork and started to cry when the bell ringers played "Carol of the Bells", which is my FAVORITE Christmas song, and it was just so beautiful that tears began to roll and RDJr. just thinks it's hilarious that I cry at stuff like that. And really, it is.
Laughing so hard, I'm crying ... Or crying and then laughing?
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Tasty Tuesday #4
I know, I know! It seems like all my posts lately have been food posts, but I hear that people like them so until I get complaints, they'll keep comin'. Training is going really well, don't worry. I've got a couple of posts coming on that soon enough.
But for now, here is ...
Soft Polenta with Sliced Beef and Parmesan
Adapted from The Athlete's Palate Cookbook
My mother gave me an early Christmas present last week, The Athlete's Palate Cookbook. It was on "the list". For years, I have been tearing recipes out of Runner's World - thank goodness they had the where-with-all to put them in a nicely bound book!!
This is the first recipe I have made from the book and it was AMAZING!! The polenta was nutty and buttery (even though I used 1% milk instead of 2%), the beef tender, and the sauce the perfect compliment to it all. Serve this with a side salad for more veggies.
I am not going to include the the full-recipe for the tomato sauce, because I didn't make it. Pressed for time, I used half a jar of marinara, a can of diced tomatoes (drained), and some chopped fresh basil.
Also, I'm including the full, six serving proportions, but I actually halved it and got three meals out of it - one for dinner, one for lunch, and one to freeze for later.
Polenta
4 teaspoons unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
4 cups 2% milk
2 cups instant polenta
Salt & pepper to taste
1 cup grated or shredded parmesan
Beef
2 tablespoons EVOO
1.5 lbs sliced beef sirloin
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley
Polenta
Melt the butter until foamy over moderate heat in a medium pan. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is lightly colored, about 3 minutes. Add milk and bring to a boil. Slowly add polenta and cook, stirring constantly, until liquids have been absorbed (this will happen quicker than you think - the book says 5 minutes, but mine came together in 3 min. Polenta will get thick and rubbery as it cools. The more fat and liquid, the smoother the texture.)
Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in parmesan. Keep warm.
Beef
Add the olive oil to a medium saute pan over moderate heat. When the oil is hot, add the beef and saute until it is lightly colored, about 3-4 minutes. Turn the beef over and cook the other side. Add garlic and tomato sauce and cook until beef is done.
Spoon the polenta into the center of soup plates. Arrange the beef and tomato sauce equally over the polenta and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Tasty Tuesday #3
I've been a little lazy this past week and forgot to take photos of all the tasty food I made. Last Wednesday, I posted a random update about what I was eating for lunch - leftovers. It really surprised me how many people weren't familiar with half of the things I was eating. Surprising because I thought EVERYONE ate these things!
SF wanted the recipe for Salmon with Coconut Butter wrapped in Nori, Quinoa, and Kale with Lemon.
There really isn't much too it, and I wouldn't call it a recipe. ;)
I think I stole the idea from a blog post LOOOOONG ago from one of three people ... it could have been Bree Wee, because she seems to really love seaweed ... it could have been these people who I don't know but have a crush on their So-Cali life ... but most likely it was the Cotters, but before Lindsay went gluten-free.
Anywhooo ....
To make the salmon you will need:
Salmon fillets (skin removed - VERY IMPORTANT!)
Coconut Butter (NOT coconut oil)
Sheets of Nori
Preheat oven to 375. Spray a glass baking dish with Pam or lightly brush with olive oil and set aside.
Microwave the coconut butter, still in the jar (but with lid removed) for 30 seconds on high or until it becomes smooth when stirred. To soften the nori, hold it over a gas burner on your range for a couple of seconds until it turns bright green - then WORKING QUICKLY (or the nori will become dry and stiff) place it in the baking sheet, top with salmon fillet, drizzle about 2 T. of coconut butter on the salmon, and then wrap remaining edges of nori around the fish. Continue the process for the rest of the salmon.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until salmon flakes.
That's it!
You could season the salmon with a little salt before adding the coconut butter.
What you get is a nice piece of fish with a coconutty flavor. The nori has NO flavor but can have a chewy texture. It will also attach to the skin of the fish if you don't remove it first, so be sure to do that so you don't end up throwing that part away (unless you like to eat fish skin).
I served this with a side of Quinoa, cooked in chicken stock for more flavor, and kale sauteed in olive oil and lemon juice.
This brand of Quinoa is more expensive, but it is pre-rinsed and
that is a plus if you don't have a fine mesh strainer.
Kale: Be sure to remove tough stems,
then roughly chop before adding it to the pan
Hopefully next week I'll have something a little more exciting and exotic to share. :)
SF wanted the recipe for Salmon with Coconut Butter wrapped in Nori, Quinoa, and Kale with Lemon.
There really isn't much too it, and I wouldn't call it a recipe. ;)
I think I stole the idea from a blog post LOOOOONG ago from one of three people ... it could have been Bree Wee, because she seems to really love seaweed ... it could have been these people who I don't know but have a crush on their So-Cali life ... but most likely it was the Cotters, but before Lindsay went gluten-free.
Anywhooo ....
To make the salmon you will need:
Salmon fillets (skin removed - VERY IMPORTANT!)
Coconut Butter (NOT coconut oil)
Sheets of Nori
Preheat oven to 375. Spray a glass baking dish with Pam or lightly brush with olive oil and set aside.
Microwave the coconut butter, still in the jar (but with lid removed) for 30 seconds on high or until it becomes smooth when stirred. To soften the nori, hold it over a gas burner on your range for a couple of seconds until it turns bright green - then WORKING QUICKLY (or the nori will become dry and stiff) place it in the baking sheet, top with salmon fillet, drizzle about 2 T. of coconut butter on the salmon, and then wrap remaining edges of nori around the fish. Continue the process for the rest of the salmon.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until salmon flakes.
That's it!
You could season the salmon with a little salt before adding the coconut butter.
What you get is a nice piece of fish with a coconutty flavor. The nori has NO flavor but can have a chewy texture. It will also attach to the skin of the fish if you don't remove it first, so be sure to do that so you don't end up throwing that part away (unless you like to eat fish skin).
I served this with a side of Quinoa, cooked in chicken stock for more flavor, and kale sauteed in olive oil and lemon juice.
This brand of Quinoa is more expensive, but it is pre-rinsed andthat is a plus if you don't have a fine mesh strainer.
Kale: Be sure to remove tough stems,then roughly chop before adding it to the pan
Hopefully next week I'll have something a little more exciting and exotic to share. :)
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Tasty Tuesday 2
Inspired by my friends, Meredith and Dave, I am going to add a new weekly segment to the blog called "Tasty Tuesdays".
I love Martha Stewart. ADORE HER! Everything about her ... okay, not Martha the person, but really, Martha the BRAND. All the people working for her at the magazine, the website, the show, the people who come up with all the cool crafts sold at Michael's, the paint colors at Home Depot, the Flor tiles - WHAT DOES SHE NOT HAVE HER FINGER ON?
Martha should come up with some GU flavors. I would totally eat the crap out of them!
I picked up the latest issue of Martha Stewart Living because the cover looked SO good - pumpkin pie! Pie in general! Pie! Pie! Pie! I love Pie!
Most of the recipes in the magazine require about 3 hours and a long list of ingredients, so I usually save them for weekends or special occasions ... however, with a quick glance I did find this little gem:
Pork Chops with Apricot-Almond Stuffing
3 oz dried apricots, coarsely chopped
2 oz almonds, coarsely chopped
1/4 c. coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 T. EVOO
Coarse salt & freshly ground pepper
4 bone-in pork chops (I used boneless because that's all the store had)
1 c. homemade (ha!) or store-bought low-sodium chicken stock
2 t. red-wine vinegar
Mix together apricots, almonds, parsley and 1 T. oil. Season with S&P. Cut a 2 inch slit into the side of each pork chop using a paring knife, cutting through to the bone to form a pocket. Fill each pocket with 2 T. stuffing mixture, and press to flatten. Season the meat with S&P.
Heat remaining T. oil in a large skillet over high heat. Sear pork chops until browned, 3 - 4 min. per side. Add 1/2 c. stock. Reduce to low; simmer, covered, until cooked through, 6-8 min. Transfer pork chops to a plate.
Add remaining 1/2 c. stock to skillet; raise heat to high, and simmer, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon, until sauce is thick, 5-7 min. Add vinegar; simmer for 30 seconds. Strain sauce through a sieve (did not do this!) and drizzle over pork.
Viola! I served (ha! "served"! it was just me that night for dinner) the pork chops with my new, all time favorite side dish: kale sauteed with anchovies, olive oil and lemon juice. It is AMAZING!!!
And don't worry, I am totally going to make one, or three, of those pies on the cover!
I love Martha Stewart. ADORE HER! Everything about her ... okay, not Martha the person, but really, Martha the BRAND. All the people working for her at the magazine, the website, the show, the people who come up with all the cool crafts sold at Michael's, the paint colors at Home Depot, the Flor tiles - WHAT DOES SHE NOT HAVE HER FINGER ON?
Martha should come up with some GU flavors. I would totally eat the crap out of them!
I picked up the latest issue of Martha Stewart Living because the cover looked SO good - pumpkin pie! Pie in general! Pie! Pie! Pie! I love Pie!
Most of the recipes in the magazine require about 3 hours and a long list of ingredients, so I usually save them for weekends or special occasions ... however, with a quick glance I did find this little gem:
Pork Chops with Apricot-Almond Stuffing
3 oz dried apricots, coarsely chopped
2 oz almonds, coarsely chopped
1/4 c. coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 T. EVOO
Coarse salt & freshly ground pepper
4 bone-in pork chops (I used boneless because that's all the store had)
1 c. homemade (ha!) or store-bought low-sodium chicken stock
2 t. red-wine vinegar
Mix together apricots, almonds, parsley and 1 T. oil. Season with S&P. Cut a 2 inch slit into the side of each pork chop using a paring knife, cutting through to the bone to form a pocket. Fill each pocket with 2 T. stuffing mixture, and press to flatten. Season the meat with S&P.
Heat remaining T. oil in a large skillet over high heat. Sear pork chops until browned, 3 - 4 min. per side. Add 1/2 c. stock. Reduce to low; simmer, covered, until cooked through, 6-8 min. Transfer pork chops to a plate.
Add remaining 1/2 c. stock to skillet; raise heat to high, and simmer, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon, until sauce is thick, 5-7 min. Add vinegar; simmer for 30 seconds. Strain sauce through a sieve (did not do this!) and drizzle over pork.
Viola! I served (ha! "served"! it was just me that night for dinner) the pork chops with my new, all time favorite side dish: kale sauteed with anchovies, olive oil and lemon juice. It is AMAZING!!!
And don't worry, I am totally going to make one, or three, of those pies on the cover!
Friday, November 5, 2010
The Little Things
Happy New Year everyone!! Yes, to you it might be November, but I celebrated a new year on November 1st. Out with the old and in with the new. Training for the 2011 race season has begun!
Here are the races/tris I will be doing this year (but the goals are TOP SECRET!):
TriZou Sprint Tri - Columbia, MO
Kansas City Triathlon Oly - KCMO
Quartermax Oly - Innsbrook, MO
Evergreen Oly - Bloomington, IL
WIN for KC Sprint - Smithville, MO
Nothing big or fancy razzle-dazzle (ie. no WTC events) just keepin' it real and focusing on the training, preparation and outcome. Okay, there is a big race that is tentatively on the schedule for the end of the August, but it's one of the "top secret" goals, so I'm leaving it off the list here.
Speaking of keepin' it real, last month while I was putting this list together, I started to think about the all the little things that I always blow off year after year. Blowing one or two of these items off every now and then, probably doesn't have a substantial effect on one's performance, but compounded over time ... well, it got me pondering ... what if I really started focusing on the little things? Would my performance improve? Would I be a better athlete? Would I get faster? Um, yeah I will! Cuz the little things really add up!
Another list! Yay! Of mini-goals that I am implementing EVERYDAY with hopes of a big pay-off in the end:
Get 8 hours of sleep every night - Easy! I am in bed every night by 10:30pm and my alarm goes off at 6:30am. Even on weekends!! Although, maybe I don't quite need all eight hours right now. I've been waking up at 530am the past two weeks.
Take a multi-vitamin every day - Another easy one. I eat pretty well, but I know I am lacking in the iron category, and probably some other areas too. A multi-vitamin can't hurt. When I was home sick a couple weeks ago, I was flipping channels and came across the Dr. Oz show. He said that taking a multi-vitamin is great, but you should cut it in half and take half in the morning and half at night because our bodies often can't absorb the nutrients in the entire vitamin all at once. Therefore, it absorbs what it can and you pee the rest out, (which is still better than nothing). So I bought a pill cutter at Target for $4 and tried it out. One tiny little extra step that can't hurt, should the good doctor's claim turn out to be false.
Drink 64 oz of water daily - This one is sooo hard for me to do, especially on the weekends. I feel like I am chugging water ALL the time - and then I am in the bathroom ALL the time and I can't get anything done!!! On the weekends, running errands, I am constantly looking for the restroom at Target, Whole Foods, etc. I'm really working hard on this one.
Drink 16 oz of water after every workout - This is even MORE of a challenge. I fight with this one every day. I hydrate enough in prep for the workout, but I HATE drinking water, or anything at all, afterwards. I just want to eat, shower, and go to bed. This week, I have been FORCING myself to drink at least this amount. I know I probably need more, but it's a start.
Stretch after every bike or run - another one I struggle with. Mostly because it's just one more thing to do, but I know it is SOO important for staying injury free. Just have to get into the habit of doing it and not considering the workout "done" until this is complete.
Eat a recovery snack 15 min. after every workout - NO PROBLEM! I love to eat! And since the temps have become cooler lately, I've been happily drinking hot chocolate (Horizon Organic 1% chocolate milk) after EVERY workout. I even bought a little thermos to take with me to Masters. What a treat!
If you think you need an ice bath – TAKE ONE! Oy vey. I have a love/hate relationship with ice baths. Who doesn't? They are terribly uncomfortable but sooo worth it. I took one last night and feel like a million bucks today! Of course, I cheat a bit ... I don't actually use ice in the winter. Since the temps outside are in the 30s-40s, the pipes are cold so the water temp straight outta the tap on the coldest setting, is just fine.
Cut back the alcohol - I already blogged about this. I have cut back SIGNIFICANTLY. I'm going to see if I can make it through the whole month of November without a drop ... until Thanksgiving where I plan to imbibe with two glasses of wine at dinner.
I'll keep you posted as to the results of this little experiment, but so far, so good. I've only implemented ALL of the above for the past 5 days, but already I feel AMAZING! Just really good, happy and healthy! And ready to achieve all those TOP SECRET goals for 2011!!
Here are the races/tris I will be doing this year (but the goals are TOP SECRET!):
TriZou Sprint Tri - Columbia, MO
Kansas City Triathlon Oly - KCMO
Quartermax Oly - Innsbrook, MO
Evergreen Oly - Bloomington, IL
WIN for KC Sprint - Smithville, MO
Nothing big or fancy razzle-dazzle (ie. no WTC events) just keepin' it real and focusing on the training, preparation and outcome. Okay, there is a big race that is tentatively on the schedule for the end of the August, but it's one of the "top secret" goals, so I'm leaving it off the list here.
Speaking of keepin' it real, last month while I was putting this list together, I started to think about the all the little things that I always blow off year after year. Blowing one or two of these items off every now and then, probably doesn't have a substantial effect on one's performance, but compounded over time ... well, it got me pondering ... what if I really started focusing on the little things? Would my performance improve? Would I be a better athlete? Would I get faster? Um, yeah I will! Cuz the little things really add up!
Another list! Yay! Of mini-goals that I am implementing EVERYDAY with hopes of a big pay-off in the end:
Get 8 hours of sleep every night - Easy! I am in bed every night by 10:30pm and my alarm goes off at 6:30am. Even on weekends!! Although, maybe I don't quite need all eight hours right now. I've been waking up at 530am the past two weeks.
Take a multi-vitamin every day - Another easy one. I eat pretty well, but I know I am lacking in the iron category, and probably some other areas too. A multi-vitamin can't hurt. When I was home sick a couple weeks ago, I was flipping channels and came across the Dr. Oz show. He said that taking a multi-vitamin is great, but you should cut it in half and take half in the morning and half at night because our bodies often can't absorb the nutrients in the entire vitamin all at once. Therefore, it absorbs what it can and you pee the rest out, (which is still better than nothing). So I bought a pill cutter at Target for $4 and tried it out. One tiny little extra step that can't hurt, should the good doctor's claim turn out to be false.
Drink 64 oz of water daily - This one is sooo hard for me to do, especially on the weekends. I feel like I am chugging water ALL the time - and then I am in the bathroom ALL the time and I can't get anything done!!! On the weekends, running errands, I am constantly looking for the restroom at Target, Whole Foods, etc. I'm really working hard on this one.
Drink 16 oz of water after every workout - This is even MORE of a challenge. I fight with this one every day. I hydrate enough in prep for the workout, but I HATE drinking water, or anything at all, afterwards. I just want to eat, shower, and go to bed. This week, I have been FORCING myself to drink at least this amount. I know I probably need more, but it's a start.
Stretch after every bike or run - another one I struggle with. Mostly because it's just one more thing to do, but I know it is SOO important for staying injury free. Just have to get into the habit of doing it and not considering the workout "done" until this is complete.
Eat a recovery snack 15 min. after every workout - NO PROBLEM! I love to eat! And since the temps have become cooler lately, I've been happily drinking hot chocolate (Horizon Organic 1% chocolate milk) after EVERY workout. I even bought a little thermos to take with me to Masters. What a treat!
If you think you need an ice bath – TAKE ONE! Oy vey. I have a love/hate relationship with ice baths. Who doesn't? They are terribly uncomfortable but sooo worth it. I took one last night and feel like a million bucks today! Of course, I cheat a bit ... I don't actually use ice in the winter. Since the temps outside are in the 30s-40s, the pipes are cold so the water temp straight outta the tap on the coldest setting, is just fine.
Cut back the alcohol - I already blogged about this. I have cut back SIGNIFICANTLY. I'm going to see if I can make it through the whole month of November without a drop ... until Thanksgiving where I plan to imbibe with two glasses of wine at dinner.
I'll keep you posted as to the results of this little experiment, but so far, so good. I've only implemented ALL of the above for the past 5 days, but already I feel AMAZING! Just really good, happy and healthy! And ready to achieve all those TOP SECRET goals for 2011!!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Tasty Tuesday
Inspired by my friends, Meredith and Dave, I am going to add a new weekly segment to the blog called "Tasty Tuesdays". Meredith and Dave call theirs "Mondays Menu" so if we get a couple more people to do blog posts on food, we won't go hungry any more!!!
I love to cook! RDJr. loves to eat. Therefore, we are a match made in heaven!! He came over last Thursday evening and we made this:
Butternut Squash Pizza
I got the inspiration for this dish from a 2006 Spring issue of Self magazine. In that recipe, they suggest that you make the squash filling from scratch: peel the squash, cut it in half, place it in a microwave safe dish with a little water and cook until soft. Wait for it to cool, then mash it up with a fork, some nutmeg, and a little salt and pepper.
And I have done that before, but ... for this time-pressed athlete, I cut a corner and bought frozen, already cooked and pureed winter squash! It comes in a box and you can find it in the freezer section next to all the other frozen veggies.
So here's the recipe we followed (I made it up based on what we already had in the house):
Butternut Squash Pizza
1 thin whole wheat pizza crust
1 pkg frozen winter squash
grated nutmeg
salt & pepper
olive oil
1/2 a yellow onion, thinly sliced
1-2 c. spinach, torn/chopped into little pieces
fontina cheese (low-fat if you can find it)
pre-made turkey meatballs
Preheat the oven according to pizza crust directions. Thaw out squash in the microwave until warm and becomes smooth when stirred. Add ground nutmeg, salt & pepper (to taste) to the squash and set aside.
In a sautee pan, add olive oil (I always eye-ball this) and onions. Cook until translucent. Add spinach and cook until wilted. You can season the mixture with a little salt & pepper here too.
Shred the cheese using a grater.
Spread the squash mixture over the crust. Top with cheese, then top cheese with onion and spinach mixture. Add the meatballs (we cut them up into quarters). Put it in the oven and cook according to crust package directions, or until crust is at desired crisp-ness. :)
ENJOY!!!
The 'Boucha is Back!!
I washed it down with a cocktail. Not really, but I'm so glad my favorite alcohol substitute is back on the shelves at Whole Foods. (For some reason, they were not able to carry it for MONTHS!!) And yes, I know it is FERMENTED tea, so it has alcohol in it, but it's far less than a beer, a glass of wine, or a high-ball of whiskey on the rocks!
I love to cook! RDJr. loves to eat. Therefore, we are a match made in heaven!! He came over last Thursday evening and we made this:
Butternut Squash PizzaI got the inspiration for this dish from a 2006 Spring issue of Self magazine. In that recipe, they suggest that you make the squash filling from scratch: peel the squash, cut it in half, place it in a microwave safe dish with a little water and cook until soft. Wait for it to cool, then mash it up with a fork, some nutmeg, and a little salt and pepper.
And I have done that before, but ... for this time-pressed athlete, I cut a corner and bought frozen, already cooked and pureed winter squash! It comes in a box and you can find it in the freezer section next to all the other frozen veggies.
So here's the recipe we followed (I made it up based on what we already had in the house):
Butternut Squash Pizza
1 thin whole wheat pizza crust
1 pkg frozen winter squash
grated nutmeg
salt & pepper
olive oil
1/2 a yellow onion, thinly sliced
1-2 c. spinach, torn/chopped into little pieces
fontina cheese (low-fat if you can find it)
pre-made turkey meatballs
Preheat the oven according to pizza crust directions. Thaw out squash in the microwave until warm and becomes smooth when stirred. Add ground nutmeg, salt & pepper (to taste) to the squash and set aside.
In a sautee pan, add olive oil (I always eye-ball this) and onions. Cook until translucent. Add spinach and cook until wilted. You can season the mixture with a little salt & pepper here too.
Shred the cheese using a grater.
Spread the squash mixture over the crust. Top with cheese, then top cheese with onion and spinach mixture. Add the meatballs (we cut them up into quarters). Put it in the oven and cook according to crust package directions, or until crust is at desired crisp-ness. :)
ENJOY!!!
The 'Boucha is Back!!I washed it down with a cocktail. Not really, but I'm so glad my favorite alcohol substitute is back on the shelves at Whole Foods. (For some reason, they were not able to carry it for MONTHS!!) And yes, I know it is FERMENTED tea, so it has alcohol in it, but it's far less than a beer, a glass of wine, or a high-ball of whiskey on the rocks!
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Fat Friday
Nope, it's not the hottest new series on IFC, it's my life. *said with a smirk and a smile*
So Thursday mid-morning, right around my 10:30 feeding, I get this fabulous idea ... since this is basically going to be my last weekend of the "off season", let's send it out with a BANG! I am declaring tomorrow FAT FRIDAY!!
I had this genius plan to eat all of the forbidden fruits of a true athlete - I would stop at Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast, go to Houlihan's for lunch and order a cheese burger and fries, and finish with pizza for dinner! On second thought, the donuts are probably enough to put the FAT in Fat Friday. Gawd, I'm smart!!
I ended up having a total of three donuts and three donut holes scattered throughout the day. I had to keep eating sugar to keep the sugar crash at bay. Come lunch time, I felt disgusting. Less fat than just ... kinda hung over. No dehydration, but certainly a headache and stomach ache. And this feeling was what compelled me to buy pretzels and raisins to hand out to the trick-or-treaters on Sunday night/Halloween.
Saturday morning: Boss Cross 3. Last cross race of the year for me because Tuesday is back to SBR! SBR!! Course wasn't as "fun" as some of the others but it was pretty. Nice little park in a residential neighborhood up north with lots of SAND!!! Sand sucks the life out of you more than any other obstacle. I would much rather do barriers down a 15% off camber muddy slope than run sand. Ahh well.
Photo: Philip WilkersonOnly eight in the WC4 race and I was in 3rd right of the bat. My starts have been awesome -I'm always out in front! Then I played cat and mouse for 2nd with the leader's jersey/Wonder Woman. I was doing pretty well until ... I wasn't. I went down hard on a sharp turn. So hard that it put my front wheel out of true ... or the brake was stuck ... I don't know. Thankfully, the pit was not far away and Berning (teammate) was there to help me fix the problem!! Of course, by then I was down, down, down to ... I don't know what place. I only had one lap to go so I thought, "just ride it in". I must have gotten a concussion when I went down because somewhere mid-lap on the final lap I went the wrong way????
As in I was going the wrong direction???
Where am I?
It was too difficult to correct, so I pulled myself out and called it a day. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that my shoe came off in the sand pit and I missed remounting my bike by about 4 inches ... all after the fall. I told you I went down HARD!
A special someone reminded me that I couldn't get too down about the results as I had already professed that I wasn't going to take racing cross seriously and I never practiced. Ha! Ha! Oh yeah, I guess that's true.
Um' what else?
Saturday night was date night with RDJr. Chili, cornbread muffins, hot apple cider, pumpkin carving and Children of the Corn (the original) and 1/2 of Amityville Horror (the remake). We had carved pumpkins a couple weeks earlier with some fun stencils but I forgot them when it really mattered (the night before Halloween) so we got creative and came up with some jolly lanterns.
Howl at the Moon
Haunted House
Goofy GuysIt's now 8:30 on Halloween night. I'm sitting in the dark in my office in the back of the house. The first of the munchkins came by at 6:30. By 7:15, I was all out of pretzels and raisins. Guess that wasn't such a bad idea after all - especially when a little Jayhawk exclaimed with glee to her parents, "You guys, she gave me pretzels!!" Score one against childhood obesity!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
So close, I can almost taste it!
As in the the salty-sweat, the snotty-nose, and the chlorine smell that just doesn't wash off in the shower.
FOUR DAYS TO 2011 RACE SEASON!!!
Well, technically, it's five because I asked for Monday's off this year. (DOH!! I have to wait ONE MORE DAY???)
I logged into Training Peaks yesterday (about 40 times) - are they there yet? Are they there yet? My workouts. Around 3 pm CST they were completely posted. Two full weeks of simple, get back to the routine, kinda stuff. Honestly, I think some of that simple, easy-no-HRM work is going to hurt more than I think it will. I even saw a comment for week #2 that says, "drills are like eating your vegetables" (or something to that effect). So true, so true.
AND ... BIG NEWS that I'm just so darned excited about it, I just can't contain myself!!! Come March, I'm heading to Tucson, AZ for a train-cation! That's training vacation, in case you aren't up on my make believe vocabulary. Best idea I've had in years! And I don't care if it takes me TWO HOURS to climb Mt. Lemmon - Imma gonna do it!!! AND LOVE IT because it will be in the mid-70s and (hopefully) sunny!!! And I don't care that I'm going to blow all of my savings on this trip or rack up a huge credit card debt because I DESERVE THIS and I didn't go anywhere for vacation (remember Stay-cation 2010?) this year ... or even last ... or the year before that.
Oh my goodness! I can almost feel my legs climbing the podium steps at that "A" race, right now. Yeah, I just said that! So? Wanna make something of it? Key word for 2011 is CONFIDENCE.
YEUH!
FOUR DAYS TO 2011 RACE SEASON!!!
Well, technically, it's five because I asked for Monday's off this year. (DOH!! I have to wait ONE MORE DAY???)
I logged into Training Peaks yesterday (about 40 times) - are they there yet? Are they there yet? My workouts. Around 3 pm CST they were completely posted. Two full weeks of simple, get back to the routine, kinda stuff. Honestly, I think some of that simple, easy-no-HRM work is going to hurt more than I think it will. I even saw a comment for week #2 that says, "drills are like eating your vegetables" (or something to that effect). So true, so true.
AND ... BIG NEWS that I'm just so darned excited about it, I just can't contain myself!!! Come March, I'm heading to Tucson, AZ for a train-cation! That's training vacation, in case you aren't up on my make believe vocabulary. Best idea I've had in years! And I don't care if it takes me TWO HOURS to climb Mt. Lemmon - Imma gonna do it!!! AND LOVE IT because it will be in the mid-70s and (hopefully) sunny!!! And I don't care that I'm going to blow all of my savings on this trip or rack up a huge credit card debt because I DESERVE THIS and I didn't go anywhere for vacation (remember Stay-cation 2010?) this year ... or even last ... or the year before that.
Oh my goodness! I can almost feel my legs climbing the podium steps at that "A" race, right now. Yeah, I just said that! So? Wanna make something of it? Key word for 2011 is CONFIDENCE.
YEUH!
Monday, October 18, 2010
BLVD CUP RR
Sunday was the Boulevard Cup race and it was, once a again, the best CX race of the season! The weather was GORGEOUS, if not a little on the warm side (75-80). The course was mostly flat and fast but very twisty-turvy (I think I just made that term up) and had a couple of technical ... um, "ticks" ... as in you come screaming down a hill, left 90 turn up a 15% grade incline with a sharp right turn at the top. (Yes, I bit it there - but only once!), sand, tall barriers, etc.
This time I did the perfect amount of warm-up (only two loops or so) but I had feeling that this race was not going to be pretty on account that I was feeling sluggish still from the cold I have only 90% kicked. Whatever. I'm on the Boulevard Team and it's the Boulevard Cup so I'm here to represent no matter the outcome!
Line up was an awesome sight! Biggest womens field I have seen at a cross race! 9 in the open, probably 15 in masters, and 13 in Cat 4. It doesn't seem like a lot, but on the local level, this is huge - which speaks volumes about this race and the sport in general.
Pavement start/finish meant big gears going out. First lap I was in 3rd-4th and felt great! I was thinking to myself, "sheesh, if this is going to be the pace all day, this will be a piece of cake!" but then there was the sand pit and the false flats and my lungs filled with goo. Ultimately, I fell to 5th out of 13. You know how sometimes you have that "not so fresh feeling"? Yeah, that was me yesterday.
RDJr. raced right after me and was looking pretty good for the first lap and a half ... until his cleat lost a screw and he had to finish the race with one foot clipped in!!! Three laps with one foot!!! He still finished mid-pack with a HUGE field and that really says something!!! Way to go RDJr!! Rockstar!
So I've done three cross races this season. Two last year. Total of five. This year is WAY better than last year and I would say that it has a lot to do with my high confidence level lately. And I'm happy. Very, very happy.
After the race, I was hacking up a lung! RDJr. thought maybe I over did it and should not have raced. Awww, he's always looking out for me. :) But here's the deal, I've got two more weeks of unstructured "play time". I'll take a couple of days off to kick this cold 100% then start back with the easy stuff, and then one more cross race (Boss Cross 3).
Can you believe I'm actually counting down the days until November? I am so ready for 2011! Bring it!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Quittin' Time
Two more weeks of "off season" and I can hardly stand it!! When everyone is just ending their race season, I'm itching to start back to base training. Really. Seriously. But I think that's what happens when you end your season early ... like really early ... like at the end of July. Ha! Ha! But I needed the money and I didn't really have any BIG goals or races for August and I had a new distraction to focus on. *wink, wink*
Having all this time "off" has been good in a number of ways, but most of all, it has given me time to reflect and assess. First month was "PARTY!" Second month was, "what do I want to accomplish next year?", and third month has been, "what is it going to take, mentally, to get ready for a breakthrough year?" because it's gonna hurt - in a good way, of course.
For the first time in a long time, I am really excited about next years goals. They are just enough of a stretch to be a challenge, but also attainable with hard work, focus, and some sacrifice...
... and THE biggest sacrifice is something I have struggled with for a long time but is also something I am finally ready to give up.
I'm going to quit drinking.
Of course, I'm talking about alcohol. And when I say it like that, "quit drinking", it sounds so much worse than it really is ... today.
Without getting all "woe-is-me" and cliche, I have had a problem in the past. I have had it under control for a while, but it's time to finally get the monkey off my back for good. And I'm in a place where I feel like I can finally do it.
So for the past three months I have been working on the issues that cause me to drink and mentally preparing myself for how I will handle parties and holidays ... or Tuesdays ... and I've come up with a pretty good plan and some substitutions that I really like!! I also have the most amazing support system (RDJr. and The Aubs) who will help remind me why I am doing this.
This post is starting to sound all sad-gloom-and-doom but honestly, I am in such a good place now that I don't even think it will be all that hard and I'm really happy and excited about all of it!! For realz.
Yes, I will likely be caught with a glass of wine in hand at Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and I'm not going to go all "holy-ier than thou" on people at parties and, for crying out loud, my bike team is sponsored by an AWESOME brewery (which I still promote and love all of their products!!) but, for me, right now, it seems like the right thing to do.
And that's all I'm going to say about that.
Cheers to 2011!!
Having all this time "off" has been good in a number of ways, but most of all, it has given me time to reflect and assess. First month was "PARTY!" Second month was, "what do I want to accomplish next year?", and third month has been, "what is it going to take, mentally, to get ready for a breakthrough year?" because it's gonna hurt - in a good way, of course.
For the first time in a long time, I am really excited about next years goals. They are just enough of a stretch to be a challenge, but also attainable with hard work, focus, and some sacrifice...
... and THE biggest sacrifice is something I have struggled with for a long time but is also something I am finally ready to give up.
I'm going to quit drinking.
Of course, I'm talking about alcohol. And when I say it like that, "quit drinking", it sounds so much worse than it really is ... today.
Without getting all "woe-is-me" and cliche, I have had a problem in the past. I have had it under control for a while, but it's time to finally get the monkey off my back for good. And I'm in a place where I feel like I can finally do it.
So for the past three months I have been working on the issues that cause me to drink and mentally preparing myself for how I will handle parties and holidays ... or Tuesdays ... and I've come up with a pretty good plan and some substitutions that I really like!! I also have the most amazing support system (RDJr. and The Aubs) who will help remind me why I am doing this.
This post is starting to sound all sad-gloom-and-doom but honestly, I am in such a good place now that I don't even think it will be all that hard and I'm really happy and excited about all of it!! For realz.
Yes, I will likely be caught with a glass of wine in hand at Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and I'm not going to go all "holy-ier than thou" on people at parties and, for crying out loud, my bike team is sponsored by an AWESOME brewery (which I still promote and love all of their products!!) but, for me, right now, it seems like the right thing to do.
And that's all I'm going to say about that.
Cheers to 2011!!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Random Weekend Blather
Another fun-filled weekend! Where to begin? Where to begin?!
Friday night: RDJr. was up to his eyeballs in homework so I went to his place, whipped up an awesome meal of spinach, mushroom, green onion, and goat cheese quesadillas while he studied. We prepped our bikes for Saturdays ride and went to bed early.
KCOI/BLVD ladies are hot even when the temps are cold!
Saturday: Woke up at 5:30 am for Tour de BBQ! Had to be at Boulevard Brewery at 7:00 am to meet the team and ride over to the start of the charity ride in all our green glory. It was truly a site to see: 15-20 of us all in green riding to the P&L as the sun rose over the downtown skyline. It was good to catch up with the girls (and guys) from the team and the chill of the morning quickly wore off by the time we made it to the first rest stop. The ride was well organized and, really just a ton o' fun. Honestly, it's hard to stomach BBQ and beer at 9:00 am. I tried a couple of bites of burnt ends and a sandwich at Okie Joe's, but we all passed on the beer.
After the 35-mile ride, I headed home, shower, quick nap, errands run (new yoga mat, towel and tank from Lululemon) and then home to make banana bread and dinner for RDJr. and I. He came over around 7 pm and we just lounged - watching "Catch Me if You Can" on TNT, hanging out in our comfy clothes on the couch, drinking hot tea. Sounds lame when I read it, but boy did I need the recovery!
Sunday: Another early morning! Well, 7:30 am on Sunday is EARLY these days. Boss Cross 2 up in Riverside today! I raced at Noon but I wanted to be hydrated, fed, and ready to go so that I had plenty of time to pre-ride the course and warm up. I got to the race at 10 am and rode the course for a full hour - mistake #1.
The course was AWESOME! So much fun!!! Three big climbs, two sets of barriers - with one of the sets ON a hill so that you had to jump them as you were pushing your bike UP the hill, then a short little landing at the top to re-mount before you were sent screaming down the hill with a sharp turn at the bottom! Oh, and there was sand. TWO sand pits and it was deep. The first pit was so deep and long that everyone ran it, the second one ... well, let's just say that was mistake # 2.
The second sand pit was a volleyball court, and before the race my teammate, Kat, tried to show me how to ride through it - instructing me to gain a ton of speed before, then shift down right before you hit it, pick a line and STAY IN THE LINE! I failed twice during practice so I thought, "I'm just going to have to run it during the race".
Lined up and GO! I was in second right from the start and quickly caught 1st on the top of the hill with the barriers. I stayed in first for a good portion of the first (of four) laps and thought "THIS IS AWESOME!! I'M IN FIRST!!" even managed to hold it through the first sand pit ... but when we got to the second, and I'm just about ready to dismount, everyone is screaming "RIDE IT" so I did and well, it went something like this ...
Still upright ...
... and down! This photo just cracks me up! (Photo by Jon Peck)
I had trouble getting up fast enough in the sand and fell to um, I think 4th. Rode hard and made it back to 3rd place in lap 2, but then I had some mechanicals when the bike would not shift down. This has happened before on this bike - last year Ashley rode the same bike in one speed (and of course, went on to win) because she could not get it to shift. So ... essentially I blew myself up because I could not get the bike to shift. Add that to too much of a warm-up (I think) and I fell, fell, fell to what I can only guess was 6th place - out of 9.
So what did we learn?
1). PRACTICE RIDING SAND!!!
2). Take the bike to the shop for a quick adjustment
3). Shorten the warm-up time
Finished the race with a BIG smile regardless, quickly grabbed the gear and left. There was still so much to do! Went home, mowed the front yard, quick shower, quick 30 min. nap, then headed to my first Bikram yoga class taught by my high-school pal, Jessica Johnson.
WOW! It's HOT! 100+ degrees hot! Yes, yes, I knew that going into it, but I had no idea that it would be ... so hot! The poses aren't that hard - I can't do all of them but that's mainly because I'm a runner and a cyclist and my hamstrings are tighter than a tuned guitar string. It will get easier I assume, and I plan to go twice a week for the rest of the month. Well, that's the plan now anyway. I did get pretty dizzy towards the end of the 90 min. session and had to sit down in the front lobby for 5-10 minutes before going to the changing room - where I sat for 3-5 minutes more before showering. I took a bottle full of Nuun but I'm almost thinking I'm going to need a couple of salt tabs as well. I didn't cramp, but I sure did sweat!!!
Yoga was followed by dinner at my parents house and a quick game of dominos - just the three of us. We were all yawning hard during the game and got a little silly about it, but that's my family. I love them and am so blessed that they are here in town.
Next weekend won't be nearly as busy ... I think. I bought RDJr. tickets to Widespread Panic for his birthday (back in August) so we'll be doing that Friday night. There is a cross race on Sunday but I'm not sure I will be racing that one. We'll see. After this busy, busy, busy, weekend, I could use a little break. Maybe get a pedicure. Maybe spend a little extra time in the pool. Who knows?
Friday night: RDJr. was up to his eyeballs in homework so I went to his place, whipped up an awesome meal of spinach, mushroom, green onion, and goat cheese quesadillas while he studied. We prepped our bikes for Saturdays ride and went to bed early.
KCOI/BLVD ladies are hot even when the temps are cold!Saturday: Woke up at 5:30 am for Tour de BBQ! Had to be at Boulevard Brewery at 7:00 am to meet the team and ride over to the start of the charity ride in all our green glory. It was truly a site to see: 15-20 of us all in green riding to the P&L as the sun rose over the downtown skyline. It was good to catch up with the girls (and guys) from the team and the chill of the morning quickly wore off by the time we made it to the first rest stop. The ride was well organized and, really just a ton o' fun. Honestly, it's hard to stomach BBQ and beer at 9:00 am. I tried a couple of bites of burnt ends and a sandwich at Okie Joe's, but we all passed on the beer.
After the 35-mile ride, I headed home, shower, quick nap, errands run (new yoga mat, towel and tank from Lululemon) and then home to make banana bread and dinner for RDJr. and I. He came over around 7 pm and we just lounged - watching "Catch Me if You Can" on TNT, hanging out in our comfy clothes on the couch, drinking hot tea. Sounds lame when I read it, but boy did I need the recovery!
Sunday: Another early morning! Well, 7:30 am on Sunday is EARLY these days. Boss Cross 2 up in Riverside today! I raced at Noon but I wanted to be hydrated, fed, and ready to go so that I had plenty of time to pre-ride the course and warm up. I got to the race at 10 am and rode the course for a full hour - mistake #1.
The course was AWESOME! So much fun!!! Three big climbs, two sets of barriers - with one of the sets ON a hill so that you had to jump them as you were pushing your bike UP the hill, then a short little landing at the top to re-mount before you were sent screaming down the hill with a sharp turn at the bottom! Oh, and there was sand. TWO sand pits and it was deep. The first pit was so deep and long that everyone ran it, the second one ... well, let's just say that was mistake # 2.
The second sand pit was a volleyball court, and before the race my teammate, Kat, tried to show me how to ride through it - instructing me to gain a ton of speed before, then shift down right before you hit it, pick a line and STAY IN THE LINE! I failed twice during practice so I thought, "I'm just going to have to run it during the race".
Lined up and GO! I was in second right from the start and quickly caught 1st on the top of the hill with the barriers. I stayed in first for a good portion of the first (of four) laps and thought "THIS IS AWESOME!! I'M IN FIRST!!" even managed to hold it through the first sand pit ... but when we got to the second, and I'm just about ready to dismount, everyone is screaming "RIDE IT" so I did and well, it went something like this ...
Still upright ... 
... and down! This photo just cracks me up! (Photo by Jon Peck)I had trouble getting up fast enough in the sand and fell to um, I think 4th. Rode hard and made it back to 3rd place in lap 2, but then I had some mechanicals when the bike would not shift down. This has happened before on this bike - last year Ashley rode the same bike in one speed (and of course, went on to win) because she could not get it to shift. So ... essentially I blew myself up because I could not get the bike to shift. Add that to too much of a warm-up (I think) and I fell, fell, fell to what I can only guess was 6th place - out of 9.
So what did we learn?
1). PRACTICE RIDING SAND!!!
2). Take the bike to the shop for a quick adjustment
3). Shorten the warm-up time
Finished the race with a BIG smile regardless, quickly grabbed the gear and left. There was still so much to do! Went home, mowed the front yard, quick shower, quick 30 min. nap, then headed to my first Bikram yoga class taught by my high-school pal, Jessica Johnson.
WOW! It's HOT! 100+ degrees hot! Yes, yes, I knew that going into it, but I had no idea that it would be ... so hot! The poses aren't that hard - I can't do all of them but that's mainly because I'm a runner and a cyclist and my hamstrings are tighter than a tuned guitar string. It will get easier I assume, and I plan to go twice a week for the rest of the month. Well, that's the plan now anyway. I did get pretty dizzy towards the end of the 90 min. session and had to sit down in the front lobby for 5-10 minutes before going to the changing room - where I sat for 3-5 minutes more before showering. I took a bottle full of Nuun but I'm almost thinking I'm going to need a couple of salt tabs as well. I didn't cramp, but I sure did sweat!!!
Yoga was followed by dinner at my parents house and a quick game of dominos - just the three of us. We were all yawning hard during the game and got a little silly about it, but that's my family. I love them and am so blessed that they are here in town.
Next weekend won't be nearly as busy ... I think. I bought RDJr. tickets to Widespread Panic for his birthday (back in August) so we'll be doing that Friday night. There is a cross race on Sunday but I'm not sure I will be racing that one. We'll see. After this busy, busy, busy, weekend, I could use a little break. Maybe get a pedicure. Maybe spend a little extra time in the pool. Who knows?
Monday, September 20, 2010
More Cowbell, Please!
Number 2 and Number 3: Barb and I at KC Cup CrossAs you know, I have been super duper excited about the new cross season - just like everyone else. Well, everyone around these parts anyway. This weekend was, what we here in KC consider, the season opening race - KC Cup. One weekend of dirt racing! (There is a mountain bike race on Sunday... but I don't have a MTB and I've never ridden trails so yeah, did not race Sunday.)
So ... enter Friday and I'm super excited to race on Saturday. It's all I can think about. In an effort to save some cash, and with my reasoning that this is a new sport and I shouldn't spend too much money until I know what it is all about, I have been borrowing equipment. This include MTB shoes. I've been borrowing RDJr.'s shoes and doubling up on socks to compensate for the fact that they are one to one and half sizes too big. After Wednesday's practice in torrential rain, sliding around in the muck and, sliding around IN the shoes, I decided I had to have my own that fit me. How much could they cost? Really?
I drove ALL THE WAY out to BikeSource over my lunch hour and bought the last pair of size 43 women's mtb shoes. They fit like a glove ... or a sock. AND they were on SALE!!!
Yay! My very own shoes! Super excited, I left work a little early in order to meet RDJr. and ride the course. Now that RDJr. had his shoes back, he was able to ride with me and HAD A BLAST!! I think that his exact words were, "I wish I had discovered this before triathlon!" Typical RDJr. - he had a smile from ear to ear the entire time we were at the course and even asked to go "one more lap".
The course... I have only done two other CX races up to this point and both have been in city parks with nothing but grass, mud and sand. KC Cup is unusual (I later learned) in that, almost half the course was on single track in the woods. Since I didn't know this, I didn't have any reason to be anxious about it. I just went with it and IT WAS AWESOME!!! There were two logs on the trail and on the first couple of practice loops I dismounted them, but later RDJr. convinced me to try jumping them - or at least rolling over them with speed. I was scared, but we practiced and I did it!! GO ME!
Saturday morning the Aubs and I headed out - with our bikes on her new Thule roof rack with NO incidents, thank you very much. Both of us were racing at noon - she in the Women's Open, and me in Women Cat 4. Rode two loops of the course, said hello to everyone, blah, blah, registered, etc. Aubree commented a couple of times on how many women there were racing, and many of these women all commented on how they were nervous about all the single track. Huh. I guess ignorance is bliss OR riding the course the night before really helped boost my confidence because I felt ready.
In a previous post I mentioned how I had learned that in cross, it's all about the tires. I was wrong. It's all about the TIRE PRESSURE! Seriously. That's all everyone was talking about pre-race, "what pressure you runnin'?" FYI, everyone was running 30-35 on Saturday.
So la la la, and it's time for line-up. The start was on blacktop up this long, steep hill and there were about 6-8 women in the Cat 4 race. I'm not very good at sprinting up a hill but I did my best and later passed two people in the first grassy turn. Then, passed another girl when she hit the first muddy section and had trouble steering the bike. I kept passing girls the whole time!
In the woods (photo by Dennis Grelk)It was really hot out. Like mid-80s or higher. There was a lot of shade, but no breeze and I was sweating like a sow. Our race was only 30 minutes and at the bell lap, I thought, "if I had to, I could probably do another lap" because I was tired but not dead. I think that's where you want to be in a cross race - tired but not dead, because when you are dead tired, you get lazy and your handleing skills get sloppy and then you crash and then you get passed.
Yada, yada, yada ... I took 3rd! Yay me! I have to say, that pre-riding the course the night before gave me a big boost of confidence going into the race and is something I plan to do for future races (when possible). The couple of laps that I get in as a warm-up just before the race start is not enough - for me. There are too many distractions and it makes it hard to focus on the course and get to know it. Because I pre-rode, I knew what corners were tricky, which straight-aways I should shift into a harder gear, and how to jump a log to save time!!!
Another big confidence booster was having RDJr. at the race to cheer me on. Just knowing that he was there made a world of difference. And of course, all the support from the BLVD men and women was awesome as well.
Speaking of RDJr., he raced too and had so much fun - his FIRST cross race! He did GREAT and I think he plans do more in October.
The rest of the weekend was pretty relaxing. We stayed in and watched a movie Saturday night, and ate cinnamon rolls for breakfast on Sunday. Later I met up with Martini - totally random - for a Chief's football viewing party, a stop at Fresher than Fresh Snow Cones for the last snow cone of the summer, grocery store, and finally, ending with turkey burgers and the season premiere of Boardwalk Empire with RDJr.
Fall = Chiefs Football
Cranberry Clove Snow Cone!Next weekend is a mini-vacay at the lake with RDjr.'s family but the weekend after, first weekend of October is another BIG bike weekend!! Tour de BBQ and Boss Cross 2! Can't wait!!
Editor's Note: I have decided NOT to do the KC Half Marathon, as mentioned in a previous post. Doing a race that long, "just because" is not productive and probably not something I should be doing during my break. Besides, BLVD Cup and Captiol Cup are that weekend! MORE COWBELL!!!
Friday, September 10, 2010
Die Trying or Try Dying
The first day of fall is just two weeks away and you know what the means - IT'S CYCLOCROSS SEASON!
Last year, I did two CX races with close to NO practice, skills, or knowledge of what the sport entails. Well, okay ... I knew what the sport entailed but had no idea that it required so much coordination and grace! I was born a klutz, so mixing me and CX is like mixing oil and water. But I had SO MUCH FUN that I'm going to try it again this year - die trying or try dying. They're basically the same thing.
Let's get one thing straight - I am NOT taking racing this sport seriously. I'm on a break for crying out loud! I have a prescription to have fun for the next two months and that is exactly what I plan to do. Sure, I want to do well and sure, I will TRY but, look ... I'm borrowing a very nice bike (THANK YOU TERI!!!) and shoes (THANKS BOYFRIEND!) and some old wheels I just had laying around the house. I did break down and buy some tires (walked right into the store and said, "I need some CX tires, please") and tubes. That's all you need for a bike, right?
Just like in any sport, you can get totally geeked out on gear. So I (later) learned that there all kinds of types of tires for all types of terrain - who knew? There are tires specifically for dry conditions, tires for sticky conditions, and a couple of different tires for different types of muddy conditions?? This triathlete is used to using one type tire all year, so I bought one set of CX tires. Hope they work.
I did drop a couple hundy on a couple of cold weather kit pieces - fleece lined bib knickers (SO nice!) and a long sleeve jersey. That's it. Very simple. I thought about buying a jacket, and a vest ... but that added up to over $400!!! Forget the skinsuit!!! Whew!
So that gets me thinking ... back to when I started in the sport of triathlon. I bought a road bike for $500 and some clip-on aero bars. I may have even done my first race with toe-clips (I can't remember.) What I'm trying to say is, when starting a new sport that requires a lot of gear, I feel like less is more. Add/upgrade later. (I'm saving my money for Zipp race wheels for the TT bike.) Besides, I don't want to be the jerk that has all this cool gear but hasn't got a clue how to use it!!
Which brings me to handleing skills. Thank goodness for the KCOI BLVD clinics!!! Without them, I would be lost. This week we went over mounting and dismounting. With luck and practice, I will be MUCH better than last year (when I tried to mount with my hand ON the saddle!!) I am still weary of the barriers - so I just rode around them during practice. :) God, I'm such a girl!
Okay, time to HTFU - but laugh off the small stuff too! There are no goals other than to finish (and not finish last, if I can help it) drink a beer or three and have a LOT OF FUN!!!
In other sports, I'm only swimming once a week (that will probably come back to bite me in the lats come November) and training for a half-marry in October, just because. Also picking up trail running and having a blast with that!
November? When's that? WHO CARES! :)
Last year, I did two CX races with close to NO practice, skills, or knowledge of what the sport entails. Well, okay ... I knew what the sport entailed but had no idea that it required so much coordination and grace! I was born a klutz, so mixing me and CX is like mixing oil and water. But I had SO MUCH FUN that I'm going to try it again this year - die trying or try dying. They're basically the same thing.
Let's get one thing straight - I am NOT taking racing this sport seriously. I'm on a break for crying out loud! I have a prescription to have fun for the next two months and that is exactly what I plan to do. Sure, I want to do well and sure, I will TRY but, look ... I'm borrowing a very nice bike (THANK YOU TERI!!!) and shoes (THANKS BOYFRIEND!) and some old wheels I just had laying around the house. I did break down and buy some tires (walked right into the store and said, "I need some CX tires, please") and tubes. That's all you need for a bike, right?
Just like in any sport, you can get totally geeked out on gear. So I (later) learned that there all kinds of types of tires for all types of terrain - who knew? There are tires specifically for dry conditions, tires for sticky conditions, and a couple of different tires for different types of muddy conditions?? This triathlete is used to using one type tire all year, so I bought one set of CX tires. Hope they work.
I did drop a couple hundy on a couple of cold weather kit pieces - fleece lined bib knickers (SO nice!) and a long sleeve jersey. That's it. Very simple. I thought about buying a jacket, and a vest ... but that added up to over $400!!! Forget the skinsuit!!! Whew!
So that gets me thinking ... back to when I started in the sport of triathlon. I bought a road bike for $500 and some clip-on aero bars. I may have even done my first race with toe-clips (I can't remember.) What I'm trying to say is, when starting a new sport that requires a lot of gear, I feel like less is more. Add/upgrade later. (I'm saving my money for Zipp race wheels for the TT bike.) Besides, I don't want to be the jerk that has all this cool gear but hasn't got a clue how to use it!!
Which brings me to handleing skills. Thank goodness for the KCOI BLVD clinics!!! Without them, I would be lost. This week we went over mounting and dismounting. With luck and practice, I will be MUCH better than last year (when I tried to mount with my hand ON the saddle!!) I am still weary of the barriers - so I just rode around them during practice. :) God, I'm such a girl!
Okay, time to HTFU - but laugh off the small stuff too! There are no goals other than to finish (and not finish last, if I can help it) drink a beer or three and have a LOT OF FUN!!!
In other sports, I'm only swimming once a week (that will probably come back to bite me in the lats come November) and training for a half-marry in October, just because. Also picking up trail running and having a blast with that!
November? When's that? WHO CARES! :)
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Dream Big, Or Go Home
Last weekend I went Louisville, KY to watch a little race called the Ironman. As you know, the BF was participating and it was his first full IM - but there were also about 15 other athletes from KC that were also racing. Add in family and friends, and you have one big party!!
It was a whirlwind of activity - not just on race day, but during the days leading up to the race as well. And you know what? I was totally at peace and happy. Just blissed out happy. Coulda been the weather (mid- to upper-80s most of the time), coulda been the people, coulda been that I'm a triathlete and was thrown into one full-on-intense weekend of nothing but the one sport I truly love, coulda been I was not racing. :)
My thoughts about Ironman came and went. During the swim, I thought "Ha! Ha! Suckers!!!", then in La Grange watching the bike, I thought "I could totally do this! It looks like so much fun!" and then on the run, "Whoa. This place is a graveyard."
Hey, I'm just being honest.
All of my friends had awesome races on Sunday (yes, even you Mer!) and it inspired me. NOT to do Ironman myself - come on people, you know me! - but it lit a fire in me and got me thinking about my own training and my own goals for sport.
My biggest struggle is, and has always been, motivation. Not for training - I get the work done - but I lack the "GRRR!" I would say that, even though I put 100% effort into my training and racing, I'm only putting about 80% heart into it.
This fall, before I start training for 2011, before Liz and I start "dating" again, I am going to work on fixing this. Fixing my self-esteem, fixing my heart and my head so that when November 1 rolls around, I'm ready to go. I want to fix it so that when February is here and I can't stand another trainer ride, another ice-cold run, or another dark drive to the pool, I've got a fire in me so bright that I KNOW why I am putting myself through it all - and it will be WORTH IT. Every second. Fix it so that when June rolls around, when I'm typically burnt out, I'm still going strong!! Instead of dreading that bike/run/bike/run/bike/run workout at the track at 4am, I'm looking forward to it like a kid on Christmas Eve!
I got to thinking a couple weeks ago, "what if actually did everything I knew was right? what if I actually stretched after every workout? what if I ate for recovery and drank 64oz + water every day? what if I actually believed in myself?"
The answer was, "I would be one hell of an athlete!!"
And with that, I drew up an ambitious 2011 race schedule. Like, REALLY ambitious. Still all short course, and no, I'm not trying to qualify for Kona. Only three people know what's on it - Coach, the BF and me. I like it that way.
But ... in the meantime while I'm trying to fix this "stuff", I have two more months of FUN! Two more months of mental prep before I put the body through the wringer again.
Dream big or go home. Just watch me!
It was a whirlwind of activity - not just on race day, but during the days leading up to the race as well. And you know what? I was totally at peace and happy. Just blissed out happy. Coulda been the weather (mid- to upper-80s most of the time), coulda been the people, coulda been that I'm a triathlete and was thrown into one full-on-intense weekend of nothing but the one sport I truly love, coulda been I was not racing. :)
My thoughts about Ironman came and went. During the swim, I thought "Ha! Ha! Suckers!!!", then in La Grange watching the bike, I thought "I could totally do this! It looks like so much fun!" and then on the run, "Whoa. This place is a graveyard."
Hey, I'm just being honest.
All of my friends had awesome races on Sunday (yes, even you Mer!) and it inspired me. NOT to do Ironman myself - come on people, you know me! - but it lit a fire in me and got me thinking about my own training and my own goals for sport.
My biggest struggle is, and has always been, motivation. Not for training - I get the work done - but I lack the "GRRR!" I would say that, even though I put 100% effort into my training and racing, I'm only putting about 80% heart into it.
This fall, before I start training for 2011, before Liz and I start "dating" again, I am going to work on fixing this. Fixing my self-esteem, fixing my heart and my head so that when November 1 rolls around, I'm ready to go. I want to fix it so that when February is here and I can't stand another trainer ride, another ice-cold run, or another dark drive to the pool, I've got a fire in me so bright that I KNOW why I am putting myself through it all - and it will be WORTH IT. Every second. Fix it so that when June rolls around, when I'm typically burnt out, I'm still going strong!! Instead of dreading that bike/run/bike/run/bike/run workout at the track at 4am, I'm looking forward to it like a kid on Christmas Eve!
I got to thinking a couple weeks ago, "what if actually did everything I knew was right? what if I actually stretched after every workout? what if I ate for recovery and drank 64oz + water every day? what if I actually believed in myself?"
The answer was, "I would be one hell of an athlete!!"
And with that, I drew up an ambitious 2011 race schedule. Like, REALLY ambitious. Still all short course, and no, I'm not trying to qualify for Kona. Only three people know what's on it - Coach, the BF and me. I like it that way.
But ... in the meantime while I'm trying to fix this "stuff", I have two more months of FUN! Two more months of mental prep before I put the body through the wringer again.
Dream big or go home. Just watch me!
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Where in the world is Flossy??
The last couple months have been a whirlwind of activity and with my final tri of the season behind me, things are finally winding down.
So yeah ... WIN for KC Sprint Triathlon (WIN stands for Women's Intersport Network) was a couple weeks ago and I had high hopes and ambitious goals for this race. I love this race!!! The venue is great, course is super flat and the volunteers are amazing!
The Aubs, and the rest of the Boulevard crew were volunteering that morning so I rode out with her. She had a three hour ride on the books, so we planned to drive out together with her car and both bikes on the hitch-mounted rack, and after the race, she would ride home and I would drive home. At 4 am, we load the bikes up and Aubree is very adamant about showing me exactly how to rack the bike:
"You have to get the bolt really tight, Andrea. Really, really tight! See how I'm doing this? You want it so tight that it hurts your fingers and you can't turn it anymore. Really, really, tight!"
Pull out of the driveway ... la la la... 45 minutes later, we arrive at the lake and are looking for parking. Aubs rolls down the window to look for a volunteer to ask where we should park and then ... well, the conversation kinda went like this:
"do you hear that? it sounds like I have a flat tire"
"huh?"
"it sounds like I have a flat"
"hmm? really? no ... I don't think ... OH MY GOD AUBREE - MY BIKE IS NOT ON THE CAR!!!"
My heart sank. I thought for sure it was in a million carbon pieces in the middle of Hwy 169. Luckily, we had only drug it behind the car!! It was still attached!!! I was missing half my saddle, an aero pad, and a front brake cable but it was still ride-able. I WOULD STILL RACE!!
Yada, yada, yada ... I had the best bike split EVER. EVER. EVER! Of course, borrowing Aubs fancy Eastons with the sexy Challenge tires, and Teri's aero helmet, probably helped too.
And with a, "that's what you get for focusing on boys instead of training/racing", I missed my goal time but still managed an AG podium and a 1-minute PR. Boo-yah! Not a bad way to wrap up the season. My teammate and pal, Ashleigh, took 3rd overall! Go Ash!
I don't have any photos from the race, but you can go here and enter my bib number (284) to see some of the comedy that is me hamming it up for the camera.
Later that night we celebrated my birthday with dinner at R Bar followed by cocktails at Harry's Bar and Tables. It was one of the best days/nights of the summer!!
So um... yeah ...
It's August.
It's hotter than Hades.
The locusts are deafening.
My friends have finally started their taper for IM Louisville.
My man heads back to school next week.
Summer is almost over.
Honestly, I'm ready for it to be over. Ahhhh, fall. I love you fall. If I love masters in the summer, I love running in the fall.
Fall 5 and 10Ks.
Cyclocross.
Bob's 47!!
Long rides with no real purpose or destination.
Awesome concerts (Walkmen, The National)
My hair will no longer looks like a rats nest!
My skin will no longer look like a pizza!!
That's about it. Not sure how much you will hear from me in the coming months. You know me. Oh, I'll probably post something about how awesome IM Louisville was and how I will be even further convinced that Ironman is NOT FOR ME!!! And you can probably count on some comical posts on how CX racing and I are the perfect mismatched couple... and how I missed my calling with trail running/racing ...
Thanks for stopping by and stay classy!
So yeah ... WIN for KC Sprint Triathlon (WIN stands for Women's Intersport Network) was a couple weeks ago and I had high hopes and ambitious goals for this race. I love this race!!! The venue is great, course is super flat and the volunteers are amazing!
The Aubs, and the rest of the Boulevard crew were volunteering that morning so I rode out with her. She had a three hour ride on the books, so we planned to drive out together with her car and both bikes on the hitch-mounted rack, and after the race, she would ride home and I would drive home. At 4 am, we load the bikes up and Aubree is very adamant about showing me exactly how to rack the bike:
"You have to get the bolt really tight, Andrea. Really, really tight! See how I'm doing this? You want it so tight that it hurts your fingers and you can't turn it anymore. Really, really, tight!"
Pull out of the driveway ... la la la... 45 minutes later, we arrive at the lake and are looking for parking. Aubs rolls down the window to look for a volunteer to ask where we should park and then ... well, the conversation kinda went like this:
"do you hear that? it sounds like I have a flat tire"
"huh?"
"it sounds like I have a flat"
"hmm? really? no ... I don't think ... OH MY GOD AUBREE - MY BIKE IS NOT ON THE CAR!!!"
My heart sank. I thought for sure it was in a million carbon pieces in the middle of Hwy 169. Luckily, we had only drug it behind the car!! It was still attached!!! I was missing half my saddle, an aero pad, and a front brake cable but it was still ride-able. I WOULD STILL RACE!!
Yada, yada, yada ... I had the best bike split EVER. EVER. EVER! Of course, borrowing Aubs fancy Eastons with the sexy Challenge tires, and Teri's aero helmet, probably helped too.
And with a, "that's what you get for focusing on boys instead of training/racing", I missed my goal time but still managed an AG podium and a 1-minute PR. Boo-yah! Not a bad way to wrap up the season. My teammate and pal, Ashleigh, took 3rd overall! Go Ash!
I don't have any photos from the race, but you can go here and enter my bib number (284) to see some of the comedy that is me hamming it up for the camera.
Later that night we celebrated my birthday with dinner at R Bar followed by cocktails at Harry's Bar and Tables. It was one of the best days/nights of the summer!!
So um... yeah ...It's August.
It's hotter than Hades.
The locusts are deafening.
My friends have finally started their taper for IM Louisville.
My man heads back to school next week.
Summer is almost over.
Honestly, I'm ready for it to be over. Ahhhh, fall. I love you fall. If I love masters in the summer, I love running in the fall.
Fall 5 and 10Ks.
Cyclocross.
Bob's 47!!
Long rides with no real purpose or destination.
Awesome concerts (Walkmen, The National)
My hair will no longer looks like a rats nest!
My skin will no longer look like a pizza!!
That's about it. Not sure how much you will hear from me in the coming months. You know me. Oh, I'll probably post something about how awesome IM Louisville was and how I will be even further convinced that Ironman is NOT FOR ME!!! And you can probably count on some comical posts on how CX racing and I are the perfect mismatched couple... and how I missed my calling with trail running/racing ...
Thanks for stopping by and stay classy!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Yep - Still Happy!
It's been forever since I posted something and that's mainly because I'm so busy. Also because everything I wrote in the the last post still stands and I'm still doing the happy dance!!
Stay tuned for an update soon that will include:
Stay tuned for an update soon that will include:
- Stay-cation recap
- WIN for KC race report
- Photos of birthday party shenanigans
Until then, assume all is well with me - like, REALLY, REALLY well. Hope all is well with you too!!! :)
Friday, June 25, 2010
What's Next?
Having a BLAST!!If you are my friend on Facebook then you know that I am SCREAMING AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS HAPPY right now. I am doing the happy dance happy. I am over the moon happy. Blissed out happy. Everything is lollipops and rainbows happy.
I am also scared out of my mind.
Many have guessed, and I must confirm, there is a guy in the picture. It's still pretty new and I don't want to jinx it, so I'll just say ... he is a big reason why I have a perma-grin on my face these days.
Things are so good right now, it's a little too much to handle. It's all just a little "too good to be true", ya know? I had three people this week alone tell me, "You deserve this" and you know what? They are right. But really, I don't know many people who don't deserve to be happy.
There is so much going on in my life, and yet, at the same time, there isn't. I only have one more race this year and it's only June! Can you believe it? I must have really been burnt out last year because I only put four tris on the schedule and the last one is July 31st. Ha! I had a couple of crits and road races on the schedule for August but ... the crits were cut due to lack of funding and the road race is the same weekend as Mr. Makes Me Smile's BIG race.
So yeah, after July 31, I'm done with multisport for the year. Wow. So what in the world am I going to do with all my free time?? Buy a cyclocross bike of course! Ha! Ha! I love cross even though I am not very good at it. Cross, in Kansas City anyway, just seems more about the party afterwards than the race before. And come fall, I am all about the PARTY!
But really, with all of this HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY, JOY, JOY, JOY! comes OH MY GAWD - WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING???
To the average person, what's going on in my life might not seem like that big of a deal. I get that. But I am a person who plans EVERYTHING and I must have at least two back-up plans in case Plan A backfires. I don't have that right now. While it's a little liberating and certainly refreshing - surprises around every corner! It's also scary to know you are ... on your own.
Speaking of being on my own, I will take a short hiatus from being coached after my last race. That scares me too. The thing I love most about being coached by Liz, aside from her sassy attitude, is that I feel a certain responsibility and accountability for my work. And I LOVE not having to think about the work - am I doing enough? too much? too little? too hard? too easy? etc. Come August, I will be ON MY OWN (echoing through my head in a baritone voice). Will I let myself go? Party too hard? Eat too many cupcakes? LOSE ALL MY FITNESS and no longer be the hot piece of action I am today?? Oh the horror! GASP!
Shake it off, Flossie!
It's time to embrace the fear! It's time to take some risks and free fall a bit. "Don't fear change - fear not changing!"
If I'm not careful, my face just might freeze like this - with the blissed-out grin from ear to ear. Guess worse things have happened.
I am also scared out of my mind.
Many have guessed, and I must confirm, there is a guy in the picture. It's still pretty new and I don't want to jinx it, so I'll just say ... he is a big reason why I have a perma-grin on my face these days.
Things are so good right now, it's a little too much to handle. It's all just a little "too good to be true", ya know? I had three people this week alone tell me, "You deserve this" and you know what? They are right. But really, I don't know many people who don't deserve to be happy.
There is so much going on in my life, and yet, at the same time, there isn't. I only have one more race this year and it's only June! Can you believe it? I must have really been burnt out last year because I only put four tris on the schedule and the last one is July 31st. Ha! I had a couple of crits and road races on the schedule for August but ... the crits were cut due to lack of funding and the road race is the same weekend as Mr. Makes Me Smile's BIG race.
So yeah, after July 31, I'm done with multisport for the year. Wow. So what in the world am I going to do with all my free time?? Buy a cyclocross bike of course! Ha! Ha! I love cross even though I am not very good at it. Cross, in Kansas City anyway, just seems more about the party afterwards than the race before. And come fall, I am all about the PARTY!
But really, with all of this HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY, JOY, JOY, JOY! comes OH MY GAWD - WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING???
To the average person, what's going on in my life might not seem like that big of a deal. I get that. But I am a person who plans EVERYTHING and I must have at least two back-up plans in case Plan A backfires. I don't have that right now. While it's a little liberating and certainly refreshing - surprises around every corner! It's also scary to know you are ... on your own.
Speaking of being on my own, I will take a short hiatus from being coached after my last race. That scares me too. The thing I love most about being coached by Liz, aside from her sassy attitude, is that I feel a certain responsibility and accountability for my work. And I LOVE not having to think about the work - am I doing enough? too much? too little? too hard? too easy? etc. Come August, I will be ON MY OWN (echoing through my head in a baritone voice). Will I let myself go? Party too hard? Eat too many cupcakes? LOSE ALL MY FITNESS and no longer be the hot piece of action I am today?? Oh the horror! GASP!
Shake it off, Flossie!
It's time to embrace the fear! It's time to take some risks and free fall a bit. "Don't fear change - fear not changing!"
If I'm not careful, my face just might freeze like this - with the blissed-out grin from ear to ear. Guess worse things have happened.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Flossie Diary: Chapter Three
This weekend I went to Des Moines, Iowa for a little race called "the Hy-Vee". That's actually what they call it in the pre-race meeting video - "the Hy-Vee". It is a pretty big deal - huge cash payout for the pros, lots of great schwag, awesome sponsors, etc. This year however, the weather put a damper (literally) on the race.
Headed up with a good friend Saturday morning - leaving the torrential downpour in KC for ... more torrential rain in DSM. It had been raining in DSM all week but this meant a wetsuit legal swim!! It also meant I would NOT be running out of T1 with my bike shoes on my feet (Speedplay pedals + mud = hell of a hard time clipping in).
We got to town and went straight to packet pick-up, sat through the pre-race meeting, wove through the mandatory expo, then got the best goody bag ever!! Backpack, visor, bike jersey (which I passed on because I'm a cycle-fashion snob) and tons of food samples. Left pp, and did the bike check-in. MUD EVERYWHERE!!! Transition was a swamp!
My super star travel companion had researched and found a fabulous Italian restaurant for dinner Saturday night in downtown DSM - away from all of the athletes out in suburbia. Great food, great ambiance, and great company. We took desert to go and headed back to the hotel for all the usual pre-race prep: double check the race bag, race number on helmet, etc.
Race morning came too soon! 6 am start!!! It was overcast and chilly and about two seconds after I walked into transition and put my water bottles on my bike the announcement was made: "We've been in contact with the National Weather Service since 3 am ... there is a rather large cell that should arrive around 7:30 am ... changing the Olympic distance to a Sprint with a 400m swim, 20K bike, 5K run and a time trial start so that we can get everyone out of the water in time".
What can you do? Nothing. Roll with it. I was a little surprised that there weren't more groans from the crowd - in fact, most of the comments were "those poor race directors" ... "can you imagine how hard it would be to make that decision?". And really, under the conditions, the RDs did AWESOME!!! The volunteers WERE AWESOME!!!
So the race ... I decided to forgo the wetsuit because of the short swim distance. MISTAKE!!! I swear that course was long because that was the WORST swim time I have ever had at that distance - worse than when I first started swimming 6 years ago. ALWAYS WEAR YOUR WETSUIT!!! NO MATTER THE DISTANCE!!! Lesson learned.
Out of the water and on to the bike. I picked up my shoes and ran with them in hand to the mount line - slipped them on and away I went. Bike course was PANCAKE FLAT with one slight hill. Tailwind going out, headwind on the way back. I still have not replaced the computer that I lost at the Auburn TT last month and have been racing by "feel" for the last two races. It's been working out really well, I must say. This time, I opted for a slightly higher cadence (again, going totally by feel here) and while I felt slightly guilty about not pushing it to the limit on the bike, it paid off on the run ...
WHICH ROCKED!!!
We got to run through the ITU grandstand heading out on the run - all that blue carpet was a blur though 'cuz I was bookin' it!!! Run course was flat too with only one little hill at the turn around. I got new shoes on Friday before the race (my old shoes were so old they were causing me leg pain earlier in the week) and they felt AMAZING!! With one mile left to go, I kicked even harder and with about 400m left I started to get some crazy chest pains. I felt like my heart was going to explode - but my legs felt fresh as a daisy!!
Crossed the finish line with a time that wasn't exactly what I was hoping for but I raced smart on that bike and run and THAT IS PROGRESS!!! More and more progress people - I love it!
About two minutes after I crossed the finish line and found super friend, the announcer comes on again and tells us that we have 5 minutes before the storm will be there. No really? You mean that huge black cloud hanging out over the lake? All the athletes rush transition and the USAT official is barking instructions at us: the race is still going on; don't wear your helmet as you ride to your car so they can distinguish who is still in the race and who is not; do not jump the barricade or you will be disqualified; volunteers will check to make sure your bike number and bib number match. We all rush into transition, grab our gear (luckily, I travel light) and just as the first drops fall we take cover under a tent - with 200 other athletes.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited for it to stop POURING!!! Soaked to the bone and teeth chattering, the race seemed like such a blur. What just happened? Was that a dream? Seriously, it went by so fast it seemed surreal. No chit chat with other racers ... no expo... no autographs from Shawn Johnson (who canceled her appearance due to the storm). HA!
Finally it let up enough for us to book it back to the car, crank the heat, quick stop to Starbucks, then HOT SHOWER!!! Ahhh...
Yesterday I had a brief e-mail conversation with coach. I wondered "what is going on with my swim?? am I not as focused this year? am I over confident?". The swim will come and the easy fix is - WEAR THE WETSUIT! I am making HUGE strides on the bike and run this year and I'm really happy about that. I'm doing bigger, more competitive races this year too. Not that 70.3s aren't big - they're HUGE, but the competition in the shorter distances is fiercer. You are sprinting!!! The fields are bigger and filled with college track stars. It's so interesting ... you can be racing better than you ever have before, getting stronger and faster than ever before, and yet place lower than you have before simply because the race you choose to do has a stronger field.
So forget placing. Forget time. I'm breaking it down by splits. I'm comparing my race times to MY race times. I'm analyzing the last couple of years that I have been racing and even though I don't have the hardware to prove it, I'm getting faster and faster.
But more importantly, I am the happiest I have been in a long time. I know that this is where I belong. I'm happy with the journey and rolling with what ever life, or mother nature, throws my way.
Headed up with a good friend Saturday morning - leaving the torrential downpour in KC for ... more torrential rain in DSM. It had been raining in DSM all week but this meant a wetsuit legal swim!! It also meant I would NOT be running out of T1 with my bike shoes on my feet (Speedplay pedals + mud = hell of a hard time clipping in).
We got to town and went straight to packet pick-up, sat through the pre-race meeting, wove through the mandatory expo, then got the best goody bag ever!! Backpack, visor, bike jersey (which I passed on because I'm a cycle-fashion snob) and tons of food samples. Left pp, and did the bike check-in. MUD EVERYWHERE!!! Transition was a swamp!
My super star travel companion had researched and found a fabulous Italian restaurant for dinner Saturday night in downtown DSM - away from all of the athletes out in suburbia. Great food, great ambiance, and great company. We took desert to go and headed back to the hotel for all the usual pre-race prep: double check the race bag, race number on helmet, etc.
Race morning came too soon! 6 am start!!! It was overcast and chilly and about two seconds after I walked into transition and put my water bottles on my bike the announcement was made: "We've been in contact with the National Weather Service since 3 am ... there is a rather large cell that should arrive around 7:30 am ... changing the Olympic distance to a Sprint with a 400m swim, 20K bike, 5K run and a time trial start so that we can get everyone out of the water in time".
What can you do? Nothing. Roll with it. I was a little surprised that there weren't more groans from the crowd - in fact, most of the comments were "those poor race directors" ... "can you imagine how hard it would be to make that decision?". And really, under the conditions, the RDs did AWESOME!!! The volunteers WERE AWESOME!!!
So the race ... I decided to forgo the wetsuit because of the short swim distance. MISTAKE!!! I swear that course was long because that was the WORST swim time I have ever had at that distance - worse than when I first started swimming 6 years ago. ALWAYS WEAR YOUR WETSUIT!!! NO MATTER THE DISTANCE!!! Lesson learned.
Out of the water and on to the bike. I picked up my shoes and ran with them in hand to the mount line - slipped them on and away I went. Bike course was PANCAKE FLAT with one slight hill. Tailwind going out, headwind on the way back. I still have not replaced the computer that I lost at the Auburn TT last month and have been racing by "feel" for the last two races. It's been working out really well, I must say. This time, I opted for a slightly higher cadence (again, going totally by feel here) and while I felt slightly guilty about not pushing it to the limit on the bike, it paid off on the run ...
WHICH ROCKED!!!
We got to run through the ITU grandstand heading out on the run - all that blue carpet was a blur though 'cuz I was bookin' it!!! Run course was flat too with only one little hill at the turn around. I got new shoes on Friday before the race (my old shoes were so old they were causing me leg pain earlier in the week) and they felt AMAZING!! With one mile left to go, I kicked even harder and with about 400m left I started to get some crazy chest pains. I felt like my heart was going to explode - but my legs felt fresh as a daisy!!
Crossed the finish line with a time that wasn't exactly what I was hoping for but I raced smart on that bike and run and THAT IS PROGRESS!!! More and more progress people - I love it!
About two minutes after I crossed the finish line and found super friend, the announcer comes on again and tells us that we have 5 minutes before the storm will be there. No really? You mean that huge black cloud hanging out over the lake? All the athletes rush transition and the USAT official is barking instructions at us: the race is still going on; don't wear your helmet as you ride to your car so they can distinguish who is still in the race and who is not; do not jump the barricade or you will be disqualified; volunteers will check to make sure your bike number and bib number match. We all rush into transition, grab our gear (luckily, I travel light) and just as the first drops fall we take cover under a tent - with 200 other athletes.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited for it to stop POURING!!! Soaked to the bone and teeth chattering, the race seemed like such a blur. What just happened? Was that a dream? Seriously, it went by so fast it seemed surreal. No chit chat with other racers ... no expo... no autographs from Shawn Johnson (who canceled her appearance due to the storm). HA!
Finally it let up enough for us to book it back to the car, crank the heat, quick stop to Starbucks, then HOT SHOWER!!! Ahhh...
Yesterday I had a brief e-mail conversation with coach. I wondered "what is going on with my swim?? am I not as focused this year? am I over confident?". The swim will come and the easy fix is - WEAR THE WETSUIT! I am making HUGE strides on the bike and run this year and I'm really happy about that. I'm doing bigger, more competitive races this year too. Not that 70.3s aren't big - they're HUGE, but the competition in the shorter distances is fiercer. You are sprinting!!! The fields are bigger and filled with college track stars. It's so interesting ... you can be racing better than you ever have before, getting stronger and faster than ever before, and yet place lower than you have before simply because the race you choose to do has a stronger field.
So forget placing. Forget time. I'm breaking it down by splits. I'm comparing my race times to MY race times. I'm analyzing the last couple of years that I have been racing and even though I don't have the hardware to prove it, I'm getting faster and faster.
But more importantly, I am the happiest I have been in a long time. I know that this is where I belong. I'm happy with the journey and rolling with what ever life, or mother nature, throws my way.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Weekend in Larry-ville
Last weekend I spent every single day in Lawrence, KS. I love Lawrence. It's a cute, quaint but rather large, college town (University of Kansas) and has the best bars, shops, and just overall laid-back feel to it. But it also takes about an hour to get there from KC, so I don't go very often.
However, this weekend, I was there Friday night, Saturday and Sunday.
My brother, Brian, and his girlfriend, Maria, live in Lawrence. So Friday night, I left KC with my parents to visit them and celebrate Brian's 29th birthday. It was a good time with good conversation, homemade BBQ, and ONE beer. Maria bought an RV about two months ago and they are currently refurbishing/updating it. Come August when their lease is up, they are going to hit the road, working part-time via telecommute, and travel west for 6-8 months. Jeal. Ous. They also leave for Europe tomorrow to take part in the World Cup festivities in Berlin, Amsterdam and some other "host" cities for the cup.
Saturday I was up EARLY in order to get my workout done, hurry home, shower, and meet the BLVD ladies who would be part of my relay team for IMKS 70.3. Remember, I decided last year NO MORE 70.3s!! Nothing longer than OLYs in 2010. (Ironically, our bib number was 2010.) We headed out to Lawrence/Clinton Lake for the usual: bike drop off, packet pick-up, chat it up with friends, etc. It was HOT! 93 degrees that day!! Whew! At the athlete meeting, they said the water temp was 81 and I thought, "there is no way the temp will drop to 78 or lower by tomorrow". Totally fine. I could do it without a wetsuit no problem. I would be slower, but I could still rock it!
Let me just go on record to say that the IMKS course is great! Parking is not. You have to park about a mile away on packet pick-up day, and 2-3 miles away on race day!! There were shuttles on race day, but still.
Anywho ... back to KC Saturday afternoon and had a couple hours of down time in the AC before heading to a friends for dinner and a movie. Good times. :) Laid my head on the pillow Saturday night at 10:30 pm and took a 4.5 hour nap - 3 AM wake up call!!!
Back out to Larry-ville on Sunday morning. Out of the driveway at 4 AM and into T1 by 5:45. We learned on the shuttle bus ride in, that the water temp HAD dropped to 77.5 F and the race would be wetsuit legal. DOH! I didn't even bother to bring it with me!! I swam in my swimsuit and nothing else and STILL pulled out a decent time! Boo-yah!
Relay team did fantastic! Teri was smokin' fast on the bike (but we all know that) and Darcey exceeded her goal time and ROCKED her very first half-mary!! Who said cyclists can't run???
Honestly, I was SO happy not to be doing the full race. Those things are fun, but just soooo looong!! Even spectating takes it out of you! Standing and yelling in the heat for all my friends - and people I didn't even know - I was so exhausted that I skipped my easy 40 min. run for the day.
We got back to KC at 4 pm. Just enough time to shower and change then head over to the Stewarts for dinner. Thank you to Tony and Teri for hosting a bunch of tired, hungry athletes!!
Congrats to all my friends that raced: Amy, Ashleigh, Brian K, Brian S., Carly, Casey, Darcey, Dave, Derick, Gretchen, John, Meredith, Teri ... and anyone else I forgot!!!
Next weekend is MY race weekend: Hy-Vee Olympic!! WOOT! I'm ready!!!
However, this weekend, I was there Friday night, Saturday and Sunday.
My brother, Brian, and his girlfriend, Maria, live in Lawrence. So Friday night, I left KC with my parents to visit them and celebrate Brian's 29th birthday. It was a good time with good conversation, homemade BBQ, and ONE beer. Maria bought an RV about two months ago and they are currently refurbishing/updating it. Come August when their lease is up, they are going to hit the road, working part-time via telecommute, and travel west for 6-8 months. Jeal. Ous. They also leave for Europe tomorrow to take part in the World Cup festivities in Berlin, Amsterdam and some other "host" cities for the cup.
Saturday I was up EARLY in order to get my workout done, hurry home, shower, and meet the BLVD ladies who would be part of my relay team for IMKS 70.3. Remember, I decided last year NO MORE 70.3s!! Nothing longer than OLYs in 2010. (Ironically, our bib number was 2010.) We headed out to Lawrence/Clinton Lake for the usual: bike drop off, packet pick-up, chat it up with friends, etc. It was HOT! 93 degrees that day!! Whew! At the athlete meeting, they said the water temp was 81 and I thought, "there is no way the temp will drop to 78 or lower by tomorrow". Totally fine. I could do it without a wetsuit no problem. I would be slower, but I could still rock it!
Let me just go on record to say that the IMKS course is great! Parking is not. You have to park about a mile away on packet pick-up day, and 2-3 miles away on race day!! There were shuttles on race day, but still.
Anywho ... back to KC Saturday afternoon and had a couple hours of down time in the AC before heading to a friends for dinner and a movie. Good times. :) Laid my head on the pillow Saturday night at 10:30 pm and took a 4.5 hour nap - 3 AM wake up call!!!
Back out to Larry-ville on Sunday morning. Out of the driveway at 4 AM and into T1 by 5:45. We learned on the shuttle bus ride in, that the water temp HAD dropped to 77.5 F and the race would be wetsuit legal. DOH! I didn't even bother to bring it with me!! I swam in my swimsuit and nothing else and STILL pulled out a decent time! Boo-yah!
Relay team did fantastic! Teri was smokin' fast on the bike (but we all know that) and Darcey exceeded her goal time and ROCKED her very first half-mary!! Who said cyclists can't run???
Honestly, I was SO happy not to be doing the full race. Those things are fun, but just soooo looong!! Even spectating takes it out of you! Standing and yelling in the heat for all my friends - and people I didn't even know - I was so exhausted that I skipped my easy 40 min. run for the day.
We got back to KC at 4 pm. Just enough time to shower and change then head over to the Stewarts for dinner. Thank you to Tony and Teri for hosting a bunch of tired, hungry athletes!!
Congrats to all my friends that raced: Amy, Ashleigh, Brian K, Brian S., Carly, Casey, Darcey, Dave, Derick, Gretchen, John, Meredith, Teri ... and anyone else I forgot!!!
Next weekend is MY race weekend: Hy-Vee Olympic!! WOOT! I'm ready!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)