1. Do not sign up for a half marathon in vegas and expect a PR
2. Do not fly down to orange county the Thursday before, do disneyland the friday before and fly out to vegas that night
3. do not got to bed at 4am the day before the race
4. do not wear a new running skirt for the first time (hellooo chafing!)
5. do not grab the first pair of running shoes you see in your closet while packing---that was 2008's model silly!
6. Do not eat nachos, buffalo wings, sushi, lycheetinis, and cabo wabo margaritas the day before
7. do not expect your tummy to not rebel on race day because of #6
8. do not walk 4 miles around disneyland two days before, and 5 miles round trip to packet pickup the day before
9. do not forget to have breakfast on race morning
and finally
10. do not get hooked on the "deal or no deal" slot
and finally
11. do not forget to have an awesome weekend doing crazy things with friends and feeling kinda proud that you can manage to (slowly) finish 13.1 miles with no training AND vegas/disney antics.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
Looking to the Future...
My last post was a recap of STP. Yikes. That was in JULY. Sheesh.
My lack of posts is due to a lackluster year. Biking 200 miles in one day has been my only claim to fame for 2010. The events I did after the ride were nothing to (literally) write home about. I dealt with some annoying bouts of plantar fasciatis (aggravated by running 4 miles at the Sandman tri in August) and had a cold in October that had me on the couch instead of training for two weeks. I also took an Improv class through comedysportz for 8 weeks in September and October, so I didnt focus on race training as much as I could have. I did a half marathon in Morgan Hill last week, which was about 17 minutes faster than the Kaiser 1/2 in February, but still a pathetic race time in comparison to Mermaid race in 2008.
So now is the time to now is the time to reflect on the past and look to the future. I am gonna just say it: I did not train in 2010, and hence I had a not-so-stellar race year. Even with Seattle to Portland I only got serious about training 1 1/2 months before the race, which in reality I needed another 1 1/2 months of training. But I did finish it and I did finish a 1/2 marathon last week without having a training run longer than 8 miles since February. That is saying something, though not quite sure what is is saying.
What does the future show? Thanksgiving I will do what I always do: the Turkey Trot in San Jose. Though this year I decided to sign up for the 5k and make it a fast training run for the Vegas half marathon on December 5.
Yup, Vegas. I am gonna something CRAZY. I am flying to Orange County Dec 2, playing in Disneyland for a few hours with mermaid friends Dec. 3, driving to LA that afternoon to pick up a good friend, and the two of us will fly out to vegas together. I will race that Sunday in the rock n roll 1/2. Though honestly, I have no dreams of a PR because, well, it is Vegas. My one goal is to not hit the snooze button when the alarm goes off on race day.
Here is my plan for 2011 races:
Jan 1 Resolution Run 5 miler, Los Gatos
Feb 12: Mermaid 1/2 Marathon, San Diego
April 16: Tierra Bella Bike Ride (distance TBD, depending on dedication to get on bike)
April 17: Reservoir Triathlon, Morgan Hill (though if I do the 100 mile or 120 mile ride at Tierra Bella, most likely will not do this one
April 23 Mermaid 1/2 Marathon
June: Mermaid tri? possible long course silicon valley tri?
August 13: Santa Cruz Olympic Tri
September ?: Mermaid Santa Cruz?
Thanksgiving: Turkey Trot
Now, one thing I do know is I want to do a long course triathlon and a marathon. (hmmmm...deja vu, since that was my goal for 2010 AND 2009)
There are a couple factors in place. If I get my name pulled for NY Marathon lottery (race is in November) I will do Silicon Valley long course (it is in June, and for some reason 4 miles short of a 1/2 iron distance on the run). If I don't get into NY, I will do Big Kahuna in September and California Marathon in December.
I also plan on doing Splash and Dashes as training workouts, and may toss in some centuries for good measure.
So 2011, I say to you, "bring it..."
My lack of posts is due to a lackluster year. Biking 200 miles in one day has been my only claim to fame for 2010. The events I did after the ride were nothing to (literally) write home about. I dealt with some annoying bouts of plantar fasciatis (aggravated by running 4 miles at the Sandman tri in August) and had a cold in October that had me on the couch instead of training for two weeks. I also took an Improv class through comedysportz for 8 weeks in September and October, so I didnt focus on race training as much as I could have. I did a half marathon in Morgan Hill last week, which was about 17 minutes faster than the Kaiser 1/2 in February, but still a pathetic race time in comparison to Mermaid race in 2008.
So now is the time to now is the time to reflect on the past and look to the future. I am gonna just say it: I did not train in 2010, and hence I had a not-so-stellar race year. Even with Seattle to Portland I only got serious about training 1 1/2 months before the race, which in reality I needed another 1 1/2 months of training. But I did finish it and I did finish a 1/2 marathon last week without having a training run longer than 8 miles since February. That is saying something, though not quite sure what is is saying.
What does the future show? Thanksgiving I will do what I always do: the Turkey Trot in San Jose. Though this year I decided to sign up for the 5k and make it a fast training run for the Vegas half marathon on December 5.
Yup, Vegas. I am gonna something CRAZY. I am flying to Orange County Dec 2, playing in Disneyland for a few hours with mermaid friends Dec. 3, driving to LA that afternoon to pick up a good friend, and the two of us will fly out to vegas together. I will race that Sunday in the rock n roll 1/2. Though honestly, I have no dreams of a PR because, well, it is Vegas. My one goal is to not hit the snooze button when the alarm goes off on race day.
Here is my plan for 2011 races:
Jan 1 Resolution Run 5 miler, Los Gatos
Feb 12: Mermaid 1/2 Marathon, San Diego
April 16: Tierra Bella Bike Ride (distance TBD, depending on dedication to get on bike)
April 17: Reservoir Triathlon, Morgan Hill (though if I do the 100 mile or 120 mile ride at Tierra Bella, most likely will not do this one
April 23 Mermaid 1/2 Marathon
June: Mermaid tri? possible long course silicon valley tri?
August 13: Santa Cruz Olympic Tri
September ?: Mermaid Santa Cruz?
Thanksgiving: Turkey Trot
Now, one thing I do know is I want to do a long course triathlon and a marathon. (hmmmm...deja vu, since that was my goal for 2010 AND 2009)
There are a couple factors in place. If I get my name pulled for NY Marathon lottery (race is in November) I will do Silicon Valley long course (it is in June, and for some reason 4 miles short of a 1/2 iron distance on the run). If I don't get into NY, I will do Big Kahuna in September and California Marathon in December.
I also plan on doing Splash and Dashes as training workouts, and may toss in some centuries for good measure.
So 2011, I say to you, "bring it..."
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
STP: A Slacker Cyclist's Recap
STP is over! And I finished it. IN ONE DAYYYYYYYY.
Here is my recap which is probably riddled with typos as I am still a little delirious from the craziness.
I spent the night at my friends house in Sacramento on Wednesday. We left Sacramento at 8am on Thursday. I realized there would be a lot of cat herding with this group, but whatever. There were four of us doing the ride so we took two cars for all the bikes. The car ride was brutal (very traffic-y in Portland and Seattle) and we didn't get to the hotel until 10:15 that night. Fortunately, I brought my walkie talkies so we could communicate with each other during the ride. We went to a restaurant/bar for food because it was the only place in walking distance of our Seattle hotel that was open. They had happy hour so all the apps were 1/2 off. I don't what we were thinking, but we ordered tons of cheesy fatty delicious apps and had a couple beers. Hello? Wasn't Seattle to Portland in two days? I think we were in denial. We got back to our hotel room at 12:30 am (!) and went to sleep at 1:30. Who did I think I was? A 20-something-year-old? Sheesh.
We rolled out of bed around 8 and stumbled to the lackluster continental breakfast buffet at the hotel and drank some weak coffee flavored water. We then went across the street to Starbucks to recharge. We got back to the hotel room and started the packing for the ride. That was when the reality of what we were going to do set in as we giggled nervously putting our energy gels in bento boxes and packed our overnight bag that we would drop off at the start.
We then headed to downtown Seattle to do at least one touristy thing and went on the Underground Tour (it was cool, though I would have preferred stopping in some of the cute stores. And THAT is why I am a diva.) We were back to our hotel area in time for an early pasta dinner and were in bed by 8:30. Our alarms went off at 3(!) and we shoved some breakfast in our mouths, drank coffee,packed up our gear and bikes, and drove to the start at University of Washington. What is amazing is it didn't feel like a 10,000 person event, but perhaps that is because the one day people had an earlier start and left in waves. They estimate only 2500 of the participants do the one day event. We rolled out at 5 am and it wasn't as chaotic as I anticipated. The first 15 miles were beautiful. We rode around the bay as the sun was rising and I though to myself, "this would be a great place to live." Then we were on a less scenic more commercial part, which was fine. Before I knew it, we were at the first rest stop. I decided to not stop because it looked crowded and my pace felt great. I ate a gu (Vanilla-YUCK!) and drank some gatorade. At one point we hit a stoplight at a major intersection and I looked behind me and saw hundreds of cyclists. I felt like I was having lunch at the cool kids table. It was super cool.
I stopped at the second rest stop for a potty break. I spotted a man wearing La Dolce Velo bike shorts and I said, "Are you from California? I am too! I go to Dolce Velo sometimes. I am friends with Rob and Jaquie on Facebook! They are cool!" (um, did I mention I had a big coffee at the 24 hour starbucks on the way to University of Washington?) I hopped on my bike and checked the time. I had ridden straight for 41 miles in 2 hours 45 minutes. Not too shabby.
The next 30 miles were a blur. I was very amused by all the signs for small business in these itty bitty towns. One business had a sign advertising tanning AND saw sharpening. Some of the cars were aggro, but that is typical for big rides like this. On one busy road traffic was coming to a stop and I saw two fire trucks in the middle of the road. I rode slowly past and saw a girl on a gurney on the ground and two fire fighters surrounding her and talking to her. It was a very solemn moment and it made me realize I need to be extra careful on the ride. At around mile 83 we went on a bike path. Phew, right? That would be nice and safe. WRONG. My theory is people turned their brains off when they got on the path because they didn't have to deal with cars. I witnessed two separate instances where bikes crashed into each other and passed two people on there backs who must have crashed. YIKES. There was a rest stop at the end of the path with REAL BATHROOMS and snickerdoodle cookies. It was like Christmas. I felt bad for a guy who was walking on the grass and yelled, "Ew! Dog poop in my cleats!" But it was kind of funny. Oh, also on the path I accidentally knocked off my headlamp and rolled over it. As I heard the crunching noise I thought naively, "Well, I will be done before dark, right?" BWA HA HA.
Finally I made it to halfway point. 100 miles in a little under 7 hours of riding! Whoo hoo. I had a sandwich and drank some chocolate milk and hopped back on my bike. Oops...my stomach lurched a little. To quote Anchorman: "Milk was a bad choice." The next 30 miles were gorgeous as we were surrounded by trees and creeks. The Pacific Northwest is so gorgeous. I stopped at another rest stop and chatted with some fellow riders (I didn't ride with my friends as we are all different speeds). They asked me how far I was going (some people stop at mile 100, some at mile 150) and I said allegedly all the way. They seemed concerned that I was by myself, but I said, "I'm fine. It's alllll good." They were stopping at mile 150.
Around mile 140ish I started getting nervous because I knew THE BRIDGE was coming. Finally I saw the signs for Lewis and Clark Bridge and took a deep breath to brace myself. This is a major bridge with lots of traffic that connects Washington to Oregon. There isn't a separate area for cyclists, just a bike lane where if you made one wrong move into the lane next to you, you would be toast because of the cars going so fast. Oh yeah, did I mention it was uphill? It was a mile long and awful. I didn't think it could get any worse until I reached the top and realized I had to go downhill. EEEEK! I finally made it across the bridge and stopped at a gas station to get some food, water, and 7up for my nervous tummy. By this time it was 6:30ish and I had 50 miles left. I called Dennis to check in and told him about the headlamp breaking. I could tell that freaked him out a little even though he sounded calm on the phone. I got back on my bike and braced myself for the next 50 miles.
The next 40 miles were on an awful, busy highway. I started to fall apart. It hurt sitting on my bike seat. My feet were numb. There were rolling hills and cars swooping past me. As the sun started setting I had a feeling that I didn't think I could finish the ride. At this point I was pretty much all alone on the road, except for a few times when two or three cyclists would pass me. I just wanted to be home with my cuddly kitty and my hubby. At around 8:45 I passed a woman and asked her if she wanted to ride with me. She gratefully said yes and I told her she should ride in front because she had a front light and I had a back light. Two other riders joined our little wolf pack and we rode into the night. It got pitch black out there and I was on the verge of a panic attack. But we made it to Portland, went over another bridge (luckily it was a pedestrian/bike only bridge and it was amazing to ride over the water at night). We went through a hip section of downtown and drunk people cheered us on. Finally the finish line was there! They were supposed to close the finish line at 9, but some volunteers stayed around to give us our patches. It was 11pm! Holy Mole. I stumbled to my hotel in a daze. My friend LaRee got in around 8:00pm so she was already at the hotel Our friend Nancy had to get a hotel room at mile 140 because she got four flats on her ride and didn't want to risk getting a flat in the dark. Jason was already asleep on the rollaway bed in our hotel . He called a cab at mile 170 to get him. I took an ice bath, tried to eat some food, but just didn't have the energy to to chew. Laree and I watched bad tv and discussed our adventures. We woke up the next morning, had breakfast, and headed to the finish line to cheer Nancy on. She called us when she was a couple miles away from the finish because she got another flat and ran out of CO2. Fortunately someone gave her a cartridge and she was at the finish in no time flat. We were together again!
So, we hopped on a shuttle back back to Seattle that took us 5 1/2 hours, ate at the Indian Restaurant at our hotel, woke up by 5 and hit the road to go back home. I got back at 11pm last night. Fatigue is starting to hit now.
All in all, I am glad I did it. I am glad I finished something that I couldn't even picture completing. Would I do it again? Maybe. But only if I flew and took more time to explore Portland or Seattle.
Here is my recap which is probably riddled with typos as I am still a little delirious from the craziness.
I spent the night at my friends house in Sacramento on Wednesday. We left Sacramento at 8am on Thursday. I realized there would be a lot of cat herding with this group, but whatever. There were four of us doing the ride so we took two cars for all the bikes. The car ride was brutal (very traffic-y in Portland and Seattle) and we didn't get to the hotel until 10:15 that night. Fortunately, I brought my walkie talkies so we could communicate with each other during the ride. We went to a restaurant/bar for food because it was the only place in walking distance of our Seattle hotel that was open. They had happy hour so all the apps were 1/2 off. I don't what we were thinking, but we ordered tons of cheesy fatty delicious apps and had a couple beers. Hello? Wasn't Seattle to Portland in two days? I think we were in denial. We got back to our hotel room at 12:30 am (!) and went to sleep at 1:30. Who did I think I was? A 20-something-year-old? Sheesh.
We rolled out of bed around 8 and stumbled to the lackluster continental breakfast buffet at the hotel and drank some weak coffee flavored water. We then went across the street to Starbucks to recharge. We got back to the hotel room and started the packing for the ride. That was when the reality of what we were going to do set in as we giggled nervously putting our energy gels in bento boxes and packed our overnight bag that we would drop off at the start.
We then headed to downtown Seattle to do at least one touristy thing and went on the Underground Tour (it was cool, though I would have preferred stopping in some of the cute stores. And THAT is why I am a diva.) We were back to our hotel area in time for an early pasta dinner and were in bed by 8:30. Our alarms went off at 3(!) and we shoved some breakfast in our mouths, drank coffee,packed up our gear and bikes, and drove to the start at University of Washington. What is amazing is it didn't feel like a 10,000 person event, but perhaps that is because the one day people had an earlier start and left in waves. They estimate only 2500 of the participants do the one day event. We rolled out at 5 am and it wasn't as chaotic as I anticipated. The first 15 miles were beautiful. We rode around the bay as the sun was rising and I though to myself, "this would be a great place to live." Then we were on a less scenic more commercial part, which was fine. Before I knew it, we were at the first rest stop. I decided to not stop because it looked crowded and my pace felt great. I ate a gu (Vanilla-YUCK!) and drank some gatorade. At one point we hit a stoplight at a major intersection and I looked behind me and saw hundreds of cyclists. I felt like I was having lunch at the cool kids table. It was super cool.
I stopped at the second rest stop for a potty break. I spotted a man wearing La Dolce Velo bike shorts and I said, "Are you from California? I am too! I go to Dolce Velo sometimes. I am friends with Rob and Jaquie on Facebook! They are cool!" (um, did I mention I had a big coffee at the 24 hour starbucks on the way to University of Washington?) I hopped on my bike and checked the time. I had ridden straight for 41 miles in 2 hours 45 minutes. Not too shabby.
The next 30 miles were a blur. I was very amused by all the signs for small business in these itty bitty towns. One business had a sign advertising tanning AND saw sharpening. Some of the cars were aggro, but that is typical for big rides like this. On one busy road traffic was coming to a stop and I saw two fire trucks in the middle of the road. I rode slowly past and saw a girl on a gurney on the ground and two fire fighters surrounding her and talking to her. It was a very solemn moment and it made me realize I need to be extra careful on the ride. At around mile 83 we went on a bike path. Phew, right? That would be nice and safe. WRONG. My theory is people turned their brains off when they got on the path because they didn't have to deal with cars. I witnessed two separate instances where bikes crashed into each other and passed two people on there backs who must have crashed. YIKES. There was a rest stop at the end of the path with REAL BATHROOMS and snickerdoodle cookies. It was like Christmas. I felt bad for a guy who was walking on the grass and yelled, "Ew! Dog poop in my cleats!" But it was kind of funny. Oh, also on the path I accidentally knocked off my headlamp and rolled over it. As I heard the crunching noise I thought naively, "Well, I will be done before dark, right?" BWA HA HA.
Finally I made it to halfway point. 100 miles in a little under 7 hours of riding! Whoo hoo. I had a sandwich and drank some chocolate milk and hopped back on my bike. Oops...my stomach lurched a little. To quote Anchorman: "Milk was a bad choice." The next 30 miles were gorgeous as we were surrounded by trees and creeks. The Pacific Northwest is so gorgeous. I stopped at another rest stop and chatted with some fellow riders (I didn't ride with my friends as we are all different speeds). They asked me how far I was going (some people stop at mile 100, some at mile 150) and I said allegedly all the way. They seemed concerned that I was by myself, but I said, "I'm fine. It's alllll good." They were stopping at mile 150.
Around mile 140ish I started getting nervous because I knew THE BRIDGE was coming. Finally I saw the signs for Lewis and Clark Bridge and took a deep breath to brace myself. This is a major bridge with lots of traffic that connects Washington to Oregon. There isn't a separate area for cyclists, just a bike lane where if you made one wrong move into the lane next to you, you would be toast because of the cars going so fast. Oh yeah, did I mention it was uphill? It was a mile long and awful. I didn't think it could get any worse until I reached the top and realized I had to go downhill. EEEEK! I finally made it across the bridge and stopped at a gas station to get some food, water, and 7up for my nervous tummy. By this time it was 6:30ish and I had 50 miles left. I called Dennis to check in and told him about the headlamp breaking. I could tell that freaked him out a little even though he sounded calm on the phone. I got back on my bike and braced myself for the next 50 miles.
The next 40 miles were on an awful, busy highway. I started to fall apart. It hurt sitting on my bike seat. My feet were numb. There were rolling hills and cars swooping past me. As the sun started setting I had a feeling that I didn't think I could finish the ride. At this point I was pretty much all alone on the road, except for a few times when two or three cyclists would pass me. I just wanted to be home with my cuddly kitty and my hubby. At around 8:45 I passed a woman and asked her if she wanted to ride with me. She gratefully said yes and I told her she should ride in front because she had a front light and I had a back light. Two other riders joined our little wolf pack and we rode into the night. It got pitch black out there and I was on the verge of a panic attack. But we made it to Portland, went over another bridge (luckily it was a pedestrian/bike only bridge and it was amazing to ride over the water at night). We went through a hip section of downtown and drunk people cheered us on. Finally the finish line was there! They were supposed to close the finish line at 9, but some volunteers stayed around to give us our patches. It was 11pm! Holy Mole. I stumbled to my hotel in a daze. My friend LaRee got in around 8:00pm so she was already at the hotel Our friend Nancy had to get a hotel room at mile 140 because she got four flats on her ride and didn't want to risk getting a flat in the dark. Jason was already asleep on the rollaway bed in our hotel . He called a cab at mile 170 to get him. I took an ice bath, tried to eat some food, but just didn't have the energy to to chew. Laree and I watched bad tv and discussed our adventures. We woke up the next morning, had breakfast, and headed to the finish line to cheer Nancy on. She called us when she was a couple miles away from the finish because she got another flat and ran out of CO2. Fortunately someone gave her a cartridge and she was at the finish in no time flat. We were together again!
So, we hopped on a shuttle back back to Seattle that took us 5 1/2 hours, ate at the Indian Restaurant at our hotel, woke up by 5 and hit the road to go back home. I got back at 11pm last night. Fatigue is starting to hit now.
All in all, I am glad I did it. I am glad I finished something that I couldn't even picture completing. Would I do it again? Maybe. But only if I flew and took more time to explore Portland or Seattle.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Are you trying to sabotage me?
Though I didn't write a lot about Wildflower in my previous post, I did want to admit to one thing that happened after I found out I was disqualified:
I cried.
Seriously, how dumb is that? It is just a race for peets sake. But once they stripped me of my timing chip and my coach hugged me in sympathy, I felt the tears prick my eyes and turned into this big baby. I wasn't sad. I was just tired and sunburnt and speechless and all I was capable of was crying.
Now that I am 5 weeks away from Seattle to Portland and my bike rides have intensified, I am finding that I just feel...like an animal. Or rather, more primal.
Ok, that sounds weird. Let me explain.
In our everyday lives, we try to be rationale human beings and keep our emotions in check. We try to be polite, we don't yell at someone meandering in the hot foods section of Whole Foods even though deep down that is what we are dying to do. We control ourselves, and don't show the world our emotions.
However, once you start training for endurance sports, it gets a wee bit harder to keep yourself in check. (please note: I wrote "once you start', this doesn't apply to the hardcore people who can sleep for three hours and then wake up and say, "Oh, guess I will ride 200 miles today" and totally be ok. I am not sure what it is like for those guys. Maybe one day I will be that cool).
When I trained for my first marathon, I became super duper emotional and irrational. The training for hours and hours was getting to me. I remember it was my turn to bring cookies to the group workout and I went off on my boyfriend (now husband) for eating some of them. To be fair, he ate like A DOZEN cookies. IN ONE DAY.
I woke up the morning of the workout to see a suspicious amount of cookies missing. Then the yelling started.
"Did you eat my cookies? I MADE THOSE FOR MY WORKOUT GROUP! YOU KNOW WE ARE RUNNING, LIKE,TWENTY TWO MILES TODAY! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS? ARE YOU TRYING TO SABATOGE ME? GARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR."
And he STILL wanted to marry me even after this outburst. Guess the lesson is, show someone your Incredible Hulk Side and if they stick around, they are a winner. Or you are a winner.
On my long bike rides I am aware of every emotion, every drop of sweat, and every pain. After 80 miles, I want to cry and hurl my bike off a cliff. My teeth feel furry from all the gatorade and gu I am injesting. I find myself grunting and making arm gestures because it is too difficult to talk to my riding partner. I am on a stupid bike and I would rather be at home watching The Real Housewives of Whatever.
But it isn't all bad. After riding 100(!) miles on Saturday, we stopped at Togos for non-sports nutrition grub. My otherwise mediocre turkey sandwich was an amazing delicacy and the sea salt and vinegar potato chips were life-altering. Don't even get me started on the oreo shake after the bike ride..sigh...
Anyways, there isn't a huge lesson here or theme to this random post...just that pushing your body for more than 3 hours is hard, but food tastes delicious.
I cried.
Seriously, how dumb is that? It is just a race for peets sake. But once they stripped me of my timing chip and my coach hugged me in sympathy, I felt the tears prick my eyes and turned into this big baby. I wasn't sad. I was just tired and sunburnt and speechless and all I was capable of was crying.
Now that I am 5 weeks away from Seattle to Portland and my bike rides have intensified, I am finding that I just feel...like an animal. Or rather, more primal.
Ok, that sounds weird. Let me explain.
In our everyday lives, we try to be rationale human beings and keep our emotions in check. We try to be polite, we don't yell at someone meandering in the hot foods section of Whole Foods even though deep down that is what we are dying to do. We control ourselves, and don't show the world our emotions.
However, once you start training for endurance sports, it gets a wee bit harder to keep yourself in check. (please note: I wrote "once you start', this doesn't apply to the hardcore people who can sleep for three hours and then wake up and say, "Oh, guess I will ride 200 miles today" and totally be ok. I am not sure what it is like for those guys. Maybe one day I will be that cool).
When I trained for my first marathon, I became super duper emotional and irrational. The training for hours and hours was getting to me. I remember it was my turn to bring cookies to the group workout and I went off on my boyfriend (now husband) for eating some of them. To be fair, he ate like A DOZEN cookies. IN ONE DAY.
I woke up the morning of the workout to see a suspicious amount of cookies missing. Then the yelling started.
"Did you eat my cookies? I MADE THOSE FOR MY WORKOUT GROUP! YOU KNOW WE ARE RUNNING, LIKE,TWENTY TWO MILES TODAY! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS? ARE YOU TRYING TO SABATOGE ME? GARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR."
And he STILL wanted to marry me even after this outburst. Guess the lesson is, show someone your Incredible Hulk Side and if they stick around, they are a winner. Or you are a winner.
On my long bike rides I am aware of every emotion, every drop of sweat, and every pain. After 80 miles, I want to cry and hurl my bike off a cliff. My teeth feel furry from all the gatorade and gu I am injesting. I find myself grunting and making arm gestures because it is too difficult to talk to my riding partner. I am on a stupid bike and I would rather be at home watching The Real Housewives of Whatever.
But it isn't all bad. After riding 100(!) miles on Saturday, we stopped at Togos for non-sports nutrition grub. My otherwise mediocre turkey sandwich was an amazing delicacy and the sea salt and vinegar potato chips were life-altering. Don't even get me started on the oreo shake after the bike ride..sigh...
Anyways, there isn't a huge lesson here or theme to this random post...just that pushing your body for more than 3 hours is hard, but food tastes delicious.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Don't Put All Your Eggs in One Bento Box
Since I guilt-tripped my friend M to update her blog, guess I need to update mine so I don't look like a hypocrite. Last blog was after the Cinderella ride, which was almost 6 weeks ago. A lot has happened since then: 4 races and 2 organized rides. I had another flippin' DNF for a half ironman. Here is the shortened version of what happened at wildlfower. I am quoting a conversation I had last week when some friends went over to my parents house. We were getting ready for the iCare classic bike ride and enjoying dinner.
Nancy: "So Jill, what happened at wildflower? I heard it didn't go so well."
Me: "Yeah, I had a slow bike so-"
The table immediately erupted in giggles and I was confused until I realized how I sounded. I played along.
Me: "Yeah, I just don't know why my bike isn't faster. I should take it to the shop and say, 'this bike isn't going as fast as I want. Fix it.'"
In actuality, it was me who was slow on the bike, not the bike itself. (Don't hate the game? Hate the player?) I learned my lesson that not training enough for a 1/2 ironman triathlon will result in a not so great race. I also learned that you should PAY ATTENTION TO CUT OFF TIMES. As in STUDY THE RACE PROGRAM. For some reason I thought the bike cut off was 3. Which meant as long as I got off my bike and in the transition by 2:59 pm, I would be golden to run the 13 miles.
Yeah, the cutoff was actually 2:45. But they apparently gave people a 10 minute grace period so it was really 2:55.
I rolled in at 2:57.
I foolishly was thinking, "Oh yeah, I got this. Wait, why is this race official taking my timing chip off? What the -"
So, I was disqualified, but she did say I could run the 13 miles if I wanted to. It just wouldn't count.
Oh, that sounds super.
Yeah, I passed and chose to enjoy an adult beverage at the spectator stands while cheering my friends on who finished.
So, whatever. I had another bust of a high profile race. It's not like this is my job. If the Barb's Crash of 2008 taught me anything, it's don't put all your eggs in one bento box. Life goes on. I could recap the Wildflower Experience, but am not really feeling it. In summary, it was a big ole' pain in the neck party with 10,000 people taking over a campground. It was cold. It was hot. It was sweaty. It was no toilet paper for one day. It was sleeping on the ground on a slanted hill. It was sunburnt. It was crazy endurance athletes. It was a man with cerebral palsy doing the swim. It was people crossing a finish line with their own story as to how they got there. It was a hard race. It was awesome.
I will try again next year.
Nancy: "So Jill, what happened at wildflower? I heard it didn't go so well."
Me: "Yeah, I had a slow bike so-"
The table immediately erupted in giggles and I was confused until I realized how I sounded. I played along.
Me: "Yeah, I just don't know why my bike isn't faster. I should take it to the shop and say, 'this bike isn't going as fast as I want. Fix it.'"
In actuality, it was me who was slow on the bike, not the bike itself. (Don't hate the game? Hate the player?) I learned my lesson that not training enough for a 1/2 ironman triathlon will result in a not so great race. I also learned that you should PAY ATTENTION TO CUT OFF TIMES. As in STUDY THE RACE PROGRAM. For some reason I thought the bike cut off was 3. Which meant as long as I got off my bike and in the transition by 2:59 pm, I would be golden to run the 13 miles.
Yeah, the cutoff was actually 2:45. But they apparently gave people a 10 minute grace period so it was really 2:55.
I rolled in at 2:57.
I foolishly was thinking, "Oh yeah, I got this. Wait, why is this race official taking my timing chip off? What the -"
So, I was disqualified, but she did say I could run the 13 miles if I wanted to. It just wouldn't count.
Oh, that sounds super.
Yeah, I passed and chose to enjoy an adult beverage at the spectator stands while cheering my friends on who finished.
So, whatever. I had another bust of a high profile race. It's not like this is my job. If the Barb's Crash of 2008 taught me anything, it's don't put all your eggs in one bento box. Life goes on. I could recap the Wildflower Experience, but am not really feeling it. In summary, it was a big ole' pain in the neck party with 10,000 people taking over a campground. It was cold. It was hot. It was sweaty. It was no toilet paper for one day. It was sleeping on the ground on a slanted hill. It was sunburnt. It was crazy endurance athletes. It was a man with cerebral palsy doing the swim. It was people crossing a finish line with their own story as to how they got there. It was a hard race. It was awesome.
I will try again next year.
Monday, April 12, 2010
We're on a Road to Nowehere
Below is an excerpt from an e-mail exchange between me and my coach:
To: coach@getoffthecouch.com
from: Jill@slacker.com
Hi Coach, Thanks for the workout yesterday and the wildflower peptalk/scared straight talk. :) So, I am going back and forth on Cinderella. To challenge or not to challenge? At first I wasn't going to do the challenge, but now I may do it. But then I read blogs about Patterson Pass being super crazy and now I just don't know. so, 65 miles or 95 miles with crazy hills. What do you think? -Jill
To: jill@slacker.com
From: Coach@getoffthecouch.com
Do the challenge. Pretend you are at the gnarly wildflower hill and practice what you will say to yourself
-coach
(um...I kinda know what I will say to myself...and they are not fit to post in a family friendly blog)
So, yeah, I did the Cinderella Challenge. 87 miles on the bike with wind and nasty climbs. Honestly, not to sound like a jerk, but this is my third year doing this and I just wanna lecture the newbies who do not know the rules of the road. If you are slowing use a the correct gesture or announce it BECAUSE I CAN'T READ YOUR MIND. There is a bike lane there for a reason, so please use it. And seriously, do NOT PASS ON THE RIGHT! ARRRRGGG.
Maybe I get upset because I see shades of my former self in them.i.e. Riding a bike without knowing the consequences of my actions. When I think of how I rode my bike on the road in college...um, I can't believe I am still here. No lights. No helmets. Riding home from the pizza place I worked at 1 in the morning!
Anyhoo, by doing the challenge (which breaks off from the main group at mile 26ish) I got to enjoy a fairly empty ride with people who were schooled in the art of cycling. It was spooky coming into the school where the lunch rest stop was because it was empty. When I did this ride in previous years, it was always super duper crowded at the rest stops. But, I was behind by an hour and half and missed the crowds.
We rode up Patterson Pass. Hill. Big hill. But, I didn't walk. We took group photos at the top and were surrounded by the maniacal flapping noises of windmills. Downhill was scary as I cuddled my brakes desperately hoping I would maintain control of my bike.
Going back into Livermoore on the Altamant pass was hell. We hit wind and took an hour to go SIX MILES. At one point I was all by myself on an empty road and was literally singing the talking heads song, " we're on a road to nowhere...."
So, that is all I want to say about this ride. I feel that I am gradually getting stronger, but just am not getting where I want to be. It will happen. Eventually.
The plan now? Get some open water swim time in and brick workouts with major hills on the run to prep for wildflower which is in, oh, LESS THAN THREE WEEKS.
sigh.
To: coach@getoffthecouch.com
from: Jill@slacker.com
Hi Coach, Thanks for the workout yesterday and the wildflower peptalk/scared straight talk. :) So, I am going back and forth on Cinderella. To challenge or not to challenge? At first I wasn't going to do the challenge, but now I may do it. But then I read blogs about Patterson Pass being super crazy and now I just don't know. so, 65 miles or 95 miles with crazy hills. What do you think? -Jill
To: jill@slacker.com
From: Coach@getoffthecouch.com
Do the challenge. Pretend you are at the gnarly wildflower hill and practice what you will say to yourself
-coach
(um...I kinda know what I will say to myself...and they are not fit to post in a family friendly blog)
So, yeah, I did the Cinderella Challenge. 87 miles on the bike with wind and nasty climbs. Honestly, not to sound like a jerk, but this is my third year doing this and I just wanna lecture the newbies who do not know the rules of the road. If you are slowing use a the correct gesture or announce it BECAUSE I CAN'T READ YOUR MIND. There is a bike lane there for a reason, so please use it. And seriously, do NOT PASS ON THE RIGHT! ARRRRGGG.
Maybe I get upset because I see shades of my former self in them.i.e. Riding a bike without knowing the consequences of my actions. When I think of how I rode my bike on the road in college...um, I can't believe I am still here. No lights. No helmets. Riding home from the pizza place I worked at 1 in the morning!
Anyhoo, by doing the challenge (which breaks off from the main group at mile 26ish) I got to enjoy a fairly empty ride with people who were schooled in the art of cycling. It was spooky coming into the school where the lunch rest stop was because it was empty. When I did this ride in previous years, it was always super duper crowded at the rest stops. But, I was behind by an hour and half and missed the crowds.
We rode up Patterson Pass. Hill. Big hill. But, I didn't walk. We took group photos at the top and were surrounded by the maniacal flapping noises of windmills. Downhill was scary as I cuddled my brakes desperately hoping I would maintain control of my bike.
Going back into Livermoore on the Altamant pass was hell. We hit wind and took an hour to go SIX MILES. At one point I was all by myself on an empty road and was literally singing the talking heads song, " we're on a road to nowhere...."
So, that is all I want to say about this ride. I feel that I am gradually getting stronger, but just am not getting where I want to be. It will happen. Eventually.
The plan now? Get some open water swim time in and brick workouts with major hills on the run to prep for wildflower which is in, oh, LESS THAN THREE WEEKS.
sigh.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Thoughts while on a bike...
1) Dead flat squirrels are kinda gross.
2) 5 miles down, only 50 to go. Seriously?
3) Maybe that pre-ride mcmuffin was a poor choice.
4) I have to run 13 miles after this?
5) I think I have ridden 300 miles this month. Cool.
6) Was that a bug I just swallowed?
7) Santa Barbara would be a fun weekend getaway. Do I go in August or September. I should get some new dressed for that trip. That sounds so nice. Wine tasting. Relaxing on the beach....much better than being on a bike for 5 hours.
8) 20 miles down. 35 to go. Seriously?
9) I have seen some pretty cool parts of California on two wheels.
10) Maybe nasty grade isn't so nasty.
11) oooh...it is pretty nasty.
12) Relax.Relax.Relax. ACK TRUCK HAULING A TRAILER PASSING ME ON THIS HUGE HILLLLLLLL! Relax. Relax.
13) Did I seriously sign up for a two hundred mile bike ride in July?
14) Is it raining or was that just sweat pouring our of my helmet? Gross. Triathlons are gross.
15) Should I book a massage for Sunday or Monday?
16) Did I misss my turn. Its been 56 miles. Shouldn't I be there by now? Where is everybody? Where am i? I.Don't. Want. To. Be . On. This. Bike. Any. More. I will call a cab. I totally will. This ride can kiss my----oh, hey, that's where I turn. Sweet.
17) This hill is going to suuuuuuuck when it is crowded with triathletes.
18) Why don't I look like THAT in spandex shorts. I hate her. That's mean. I don't hate her. It's spandex I hate.
19) Seriously? 13 miles? After THIS?
20) What shall I have for dinner? What will be, like, the perfect food? Grilled cheese sounds amazing. Like, good grilled cheese, american cheese on sturdy bread and a chocolate shake..ohmygoshthatsoundssogoodandIwantitrightnowandIamsosickofsportsdrinksthattastelikepunchata6yearoldspartiesandsportsbarsthatlookliketheyarealreadydigestedandwhywouldtheycallsomethinggu.gross.
2) 5 miles down, only 50 to go. Seriously?
3) Maybe that pre-ride mcmuffin was a poor choice.
4) I have to run 13 miles after this?
5) I think I have ridden 300 miles this month. Cool.
6) Was that a bug I just swallowed?
7) Santa Barbara would be a fun weekend getaway. Do I go in August or September. I should get some new dressed for that trip. That sounds so nice. Wine tasting. Relaxing on the beach....much better than being on a bike for 5 hours.
8) 20 miles down. 35 to go. Seriously?
9) I have seen some pretty cool parts of California on two wheels.
10) Maybe nasty grade isn't so nasty.
11) oooh...it is pretty nasty.
12) Relax.Relax.Relax. ACK TRUCK HAULING A TRAILER PASSING ME ON THIS HUGE HILLLLLLLL! Relax. Relax.
13) Did I seriously sign up for a two hundred mile bike ride in July?
14) Is it raining or was that just sweat pouring our of my helmet? Gross. Triathlons are gross.
15) Should I book a massage for Sunday or Monday?
16) Did I misss my turn. Its been 56 miles. Shouldn't I be there by now? Where is everybody? Where am i? I.Don't. Want. To. Be . On. This. Bike. Any. More. I will call a cab. I totally will. This ride can kiss my----oh, hey, that's where I turn. Sweet.
17) This hill is going to suuuuuuuck when it is crowded with triathletes.
18) Why don't I look like THAT in spandex shorts. I hate her. That's mean. I don't hate her. It's spandex I hate.
19) Seriously? 13 miles? After THIS?
20) What shall I have for dinner? What will be, like, the perfect food? Grilled cheese sounds amazing. Like, good grilled cheese, american cheese on sturdy bread and a chocolate shake..ohmygoshthatsoundssogoodandIwantitrightnowandIamsosickofsportsdrinksthattastelikepunchata6yearoldspartiesandsportsbarsthatlookliketheyarealreadydigestedandwhywouldtheycallsomethinggu.gross.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Short recap
It has been awhile since I have blogged. Here is a short update of races.
Kaiser 1/2 marathon: slow, hard, nice weather, beautiful route.
Mermaid 10k: 1 week after Kaiser half. Legs are still feeling like I am running through mud.
I haven't had a good quality run since the Campbell Oktoberfest 5k last October. I am doing more tempo work, so hopefully that will get me to my ideal race pace.
I have found my 1/2 iron training plan. Next step is following the training plan. I also am trying to tweak the plan by combining it with my Seattle to Portland bike ride. My crazy friend who was the one who convinced me to do Alcatraz two years ago said we should try training for doing the ride in one day. 200 miles. One day. I said, "Ok." When will I learn.
As an added incentive, I told myself the first time I ride 100 miles, I will treat myself to a new Coach bag.
Will write more next week...
Kaiser 1/2 marathon: slow, hard, nice weather, beautiful route.
Mermaid 10k: 1 week after Kaiser half. Legs are still feeling like I am running through mud.
I haven't had a good quality run since the Campbell Oktoberfest 5k last October. I am doing more tempo work, so hopefully that will get me to my ideal race pace.
I have found my 1/2 iron training plan. Next step is following the training plan. I also am trying to tweak the plan by combining it with my Seattle to Portland bike ride. My crazy friend who was the one who convinced me to do Alcatraz two years ago said we should try training for doing the ride in one day. 200 miles. One day. I said, "Ok." When will I learn.
As an added incentive, I told myself the first time I ride 100 miles, I will treat myself to a new Coach bag.
Will write more next week...
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
There is no SLOW group
I hopped back on the workout train finally. A week ago Saturday I had my first meeting with the Cinderella Challenge Training Group. This is a group that has a training ride each Saturday in preparation for the all-women Cinderella Ride in April. I am planning on doing the Challenge (same route as regular ride, with an extra 20 miles of hills thrown in), because I just really really REALLY want to be a rock star on the bike. And I am so not there right now.
I showed up to the first meeting totally unprepared--I just figured it would be a "Hey, this is what to expect, lets ride the bikes a bit, Cumbaya, blah, blah, blah." Wrong! They informed us we were doing a 21 mile ride. Wha? So, I took off with the first group and we rode around Fremont and had a little hill in there. I am not a great group cyclist, and the leaders kept giving me tips. I have space issues, and group cycling is all about riding close together.
The following day I did an hour and fifty minute run at the Los Gatos Creek Trail. It was the only dry time that day, so I lucked out. My prep for the Kaiser 1/2 (which is in 2 weeks--HELLO!) hasn't been the greatest. I had originally planned on doing Hal Higdon't training plan, but the rain and cold made running outside not very appealing. Instead, I had my trainer set up and did 3 bike workouts during the week and one 2 mile run squeezed in there.
My second training ride on Saturday went well. The leaders decided to split us up in groups based on speed. I asked some of the ladies which one was the slow group anda couple were a little indignant, "There is no SLOW group. There is Fast and FAST FAST."
Fine, fine, whatever, just put me in the non-time trial style group. The ride was 32 miles, some climbing, and a bit wet. I felt pretty strong though. Or rather, on my way to getting strong. Did I mention that I really, really, REALLY want to be a rock star on the bike?
On Sunday my plan was to run 2 hours. Also on the agenda was breakfast with the hubby and going to Trader Joes. My problem with Sunday runs is I usually get a late start on them and by the time I get home, it is time to make dinner and poof the weekend is over. So, my plan was to kill two birds and run to Santana Row where I could meet Hubby for brunch. I tried to figure out a route, and the decided I would just run to Santana Row and then run around the neighborhood there it to make up for whatever time was left.
Unfortunately, I managed to get a little lost. I took one road, and knew I had to make a left on Pruneridge, but somehow got my streets mixed up. Gradually I found my way to The Row, and it took exactly two hours. I was done by 12:15, had a lovely brunch at Left Bank (why hello, $5 Mimosas), and looked at couches with the hubby at Design within Reach and Crate and Barrel.
We went to Trader Joes, Chain Reaction Bike Shop, checked out and open house in our complex, and even managed some Super Mario Brothers on the Wii. All in all, a great, productive weekend.
This week's goal is to make it to one spin class. Oh, and bike early Saturday morning since I can't make it to the group ride. And get some speed work done on the track. That's it.
I showed up to the first meeting totally unprepared--I just figured it would be a "Hey, this is what to expect, lets ride the bikes a bit, Cumbaya, blah, blah, blah." Wrong! They informed us we were doing a 21 mile ride. Wha? So, I took off with the first group and we rode around Fremont and had a little hill in there. I am not a great group cyclist, and the leaders kept giving me tips. I have space issues, and group cycling is all about riding close together.
The following day I did an hour and fifty minute run at the Los Gatos Creek Trail. It was the only dry time that day, so I lucked out. My prep for the Kaiser 1/2 (which is in 2 weeks--HELLO!) hasn't been the greatest. I had originally planned on doing Hal Higdon't training plan, but the rain and cold made running outside not very appealing. Instead, I had my trainer set up and did 3 bike workouts during the week and one 2 mile run squeezed in there.
My second training ride on Saturday went well. The leaders decided to split us up in groups based on speed. I asked some of the ladies which one was the slow group anda couple were a little indignant, "There is no SLOW group. There is Fast and FAST FAST."
Fine, fine, whatever, just put me in the non-time trial style group. The ride was 32 miles, some climbing, and a bit wet. I felt pretty strong though. Or rather, on my way to getting strong. Did I mention that I really, really, REALLY want to be a rock star on the bike?
On Sunday my plan was to run 2 hours. Also on the agenda was breakfast with the hubby and going to Trader Joes. My problem with Sunday runs is I usually get a late start on them and by the time I get home, it is time to make dinner and poof the weekend is over. So, my plan was to kill two birds and run to Santana Row where I could meet Hubby for brunch. I tried to figure out a route, and the decided I would just run to Santana Row and then run around the neighborhood there it to make up for whatever time was left.
Unfortunately, I managed to get a little lost. I took one road, and knew I had to make a left on Pruneridge, but somehow got my streets mixed up. Gradually I found my way to The Row, and it took exactly two hours. I was done by 12:15, had a lovely brunch at Left Bank (why hello, $5 Mimosas), and looked at couches with the hubby at Design within Reach and Crate and Barrel.
We went to Trader Joes, Chain Reaction Bike Shop, checked out and open house in our complex, and even managed some Super Mario Brothers on the Wii. All in all, a great, productive weekend.
This week's goal is to make it to one spin class. Oh, and bike early Saturday morning since I can't make it to the group ride. And get some speed work done on the track. That's it.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Note to self...
um...yeah...remember that 1/2 marathon you signed up for in February? You may want to like seriously start training for that...like, try running for more than 45 minutes...just a thought...
Sunday, January 3, 2010
2010---off to a good start and not (too) slackery.
Because I am all about cliche New Years resolutions, I am in full force so far in 2010. I have ran 2 - yes 2!- races this year AND did a spin class this morning. This year is going to be THE year for greatness. The two races were also a good barometer of my fitness level going into the new year.
On New Year's morning I met up with a bunch of friends to do the Los Gatos Resolution run. It is a 5 mile run to Lexington Reservoir. I have done the route a few times and was prepared for the hills. The run was ok. I wasn't fast and wasn't super slow. They only had enough goody bags for the first 300 finishers, and I didn't make it in time for a bag. Not that I was all bent out of shape---it just was a little humbling to know that I wasn't fast enough for a goody bag.
Yesterday I did the Brazen New Year's Run at Lake Chabot. I had heard about the race a few weeks ago and was THIS close to signing up for the 1/2 marathon. I slacked off though and didn't register until a few days ago and knew that a 10k would be far enough.
That race was the hardest one I have done since the Pacifica Trail Run 2 years ago. It was ridiculously hilly, muddy, and profanity-inducing. I did it in a pathetic hour and 31 minutes. Slowest 10k ever.
This morning I joined my friend Diane for a Spinning class. Yikes--60 minutes of sweat and torture. I must have been delusional or was high from exercise-induced endorphins because I signed up with 24 hour fitness again.
This week will be getting on my 1/2 marathon trainig plan and starting my swim class. I just have to be dedicated to making working out a habit.
On New Year's morning I met up with a bunch of friends to do the Los Gatos Resolution run. It is a 5 mile run to Lexington Reservoir. I have done the route a few times and was prepared for the hills. The run was ok. I wasn't fast and wasn't super slow. They only had enough goody bags for the first 300 finishers, and I didn't make it in time for a bag. Not that I was all bent out of shape---it just was a little humbling to know that I wasn't fast enough for a goody bag.
Yesterday I did the Brazen New Year's Run at Lake Chabot. I had heard about the race a few weeks ago and was THIS close to signing up for the 1/2 marathon. I slacked off though and didn't register until a few days ago and knew that a 10k would be far enough.
That race was the hardest one I have done since the Pacifica Trail Run 2 years ago. It was ridiculously hilly, muddy, and profanity-inducing. I did it in a pathetic hour and 31 minutes. Slowest 10k ever.
This morning I joined my friend Diane for a Spinning class. Yikes--60 minutes of sweat and torture. I must have been delusional or was high from exercise-induced endorphins because I signed up with 24 hour fitness again.
This week will be getting on my 1/2 marathon trainig plan and starting my swim class. I just have to be dedicated to making working out a habit.
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