Please Don't Call the Fire Department

 After a couple days of reflection, and some insight from Coach Mary, I have decided that, despite the fact that I was a little disappointed in my performance at Du the Lakes on Sunday (read about that here), it was a great race for me in that I have learned a little bit about myself, and have some work to do to get ready for my upcoming races.

In other words, I feel like there has bee a fire set beneath me!!  And I want it to burn hotter and hotter until the half-iron at Rev3 Quassy, which is my first big race of the season, and a little over a month away!!

Here are a few lessons learned from my race:

1. Short course is hard and it hurts.  No matter how fast or good you are, it's still painful.  I either need to embrace that or not do short course.  I haven't made a firm decision on that, but I do love a challenge.
2. When I begin to push myself, I think too much.  I let my brain make decisions for me instead of trusting my body to do what I have trained it to do.  I need to work on getting my mind out of it and flowing with my body.
3. I have to train my mind to obey, just like I train my body to obey.
4. When I figure out how to train my kids to obey, will someone please give me a prize?
5. If a woman passes me just before the finish line, I will not try to guess her age, I will run her down!! (I swear she looked a lot older than me!!)

Time for bed!  Have a wonderful evening! 

Du the Lakes Race Report

Well, as much as I would love to have pictures for this race report, they will have to wait, since I still cannot get the picture from my new camera to my computer.  I have a fix, but it probably won't be delivered until the end of the week.  I guess I will just have to update you with the pictures then.

Anyways, I raced today.  The first real race of the season (for some reason 5Ks don't count in my mind...I mean, it's hardly even a workout if it's under half an hour!;) ) is in the books.  Before I get all analytical, I'll just give you the cold, hard numbers:

Du the Lakes:  3 mile run/20 mile bike/3 mile run

Total:  2:02:54 58/104 overall, 13/42 women, 3rd in AG F35-39 (actually 4th but the 1st overall female was from my AG)

Run #1:
29 min. 9:40 pace  86/104 overall, 30/42 women, 5/8 F35-39
T1:
44 sec. 20/104 overall, 8/42 women, 2/8 F35-39
Bike:
1:04:54 18.8 mi/hr  38/104 overall, 8/42 women, 2/8 F35-39
T2:
34 sec. 19/104 overall, 8/42 women, 2/8 F35-39
Run #2:
27:42 9:14 pace  62/104 overall, 20/42 women, 4/8 F35-39

My plan from Mary was to go easy on the first run, go hard on the bike, and push as hard as I could but maintain pace on the second run.

Well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad, I guess.

This was my first duathlon, but I felt pretty confident going in.  I was in the second start wave, and started a ways behind the start line even though there weren't that many people.  It was kind of disorganized, and when they said go a lot of the people I was standing around didn't go...apparently they were in the next wave.  I settled into a nice pace and watched people pass me.  But I was okay with that, because that was the plan!!  I didn't do any warm-up besides jumping up and down a little bit, so I didn't really feel warmed up until about the middle of the third mile.

Came into transition and made quick work of the change and was on the bike in no time.  I felt really strong on the bike and passed quite a few people right off the bat.  After that I slowly picked off riders one by one.  I was only passed by a few of the faster men in the wave behind mine.  I was passed by one woman, but I'm almost positive she was in a relay team.  There were two huge hills at the end of the course, and I was in granny gear all the way.  I still felt strong though, even though I was hurting a bit.  Finished strong on a fun downhill to transition.

Another quick change, and I was off on the second run.  Coach Mary told me to push hard and then try to keep the pace within 5 seconds of the first mile.  Uh, yeah, that did not happen.  My first mile was 8:44 and it hurt.  I was running at the top of my HR and my breathing was very labored.  The next mile began on a hill.  I pushed up the hill, but slowed way down.  Mile 2 was 9:21...definitely not in the plan.  Once I hit the second mile marker, my spirits lifted and I started to push a bit more.  According to my Garmin the course was a bit long, so my third mile was 9 minutes even with an additional .08 mile in 37 seconds.

Came across the finish, and was super excited to see Kel and the boys.  I wasn't sure if they were coming or not because the weather was iffy.  I grabbed my fleece and my bottle of First Endurance Ultragen recovery drink, cappuccino flavor, of course, which I was super glad I brought because all they had there was water and soda.

Obviously I'm pleased with a 3rd place in my age group, but I am a bit disappointed that I didn't push harder on the second run.  It really hurt, and after the race I pretty much declared that I would be totally happy never running short course races again.  I'm just not sure if I have a fast bone or muscle in my body!!  Is it that I just don't know how to push hard on the run, or that I really just can't run fast to save my life??

Well, I guess I would be okay not knowing the answer to that question.

Overall, the race, which is in its first year, was well done.  There were a few little things that would have made it better like women's t-shirts or at least enough small shirts for the women (I requested a small and got a medium because there were no more), better food at the end, and more volunteers directing racers on the course.  I loved the low-key, relaxed feel of this race though, and would definitely do it again if I could figure out how to run faster!!

Hopefully, I'll have some pics by the end of the week.  I won a visor for my 3rd place AG finish.  Also, a big congrats to Mike, my Train-This teammate, who came in 2nd overall, and his wife, Jen, who came in first in her age group, which happened to also be my age group!!

The Sunday Report

Ahh...I'm sitting here with my computer propped up on very tired legs, but it sure did feel great to race today...kind of.  I'll qualify that in my race report that will follow this shortly, but here are the quick numbers for the week and the day:


6:17:45
Swim:  40m 1750 yds
Bike:  2h 4m 38s 11.89 mi
Run:  1h 30m 11s 9.64 mi
Du the Lakes Duathlon (3m run/20m bike/3m run):  2h 2m 57s 25.81 mi (according to Garmin)

Total:  6h 17m 45s

Have a great week!

Technology Fail

I planned out this great post today on the way home from Ithaca while the boys snored away in the backseat.  It had pictures of Ryan on his new bike, pictures of me in my new Team Trakkers kit (it's awesome, in case you were wondering), pictures of our trip to the science museum and Ithaca Falls today, and a video of Ryan being surprised with Happy Birthday from the servers at the restaurant last night.

All of these pictures were taken with much anticipation on my new camera that I just got this week - a Fuji Finepix waterproof camera (we got a waterproof camera for the sole purpose of being able to get underwater footage of our swim strokes!). I downloaded all of the necessary software, plugged the camera into the computer, and received this message: "I/O process aborted."  I then spent about 30 minutes trying to find a solution online to no avail.

This is what I will call a TECHNOLOGY FAIL!!!  This happens to me all the time!  I don't know if it's just me, or if this happens to everyone, but I hate it!!  I spend way too much time figuring out solutions for problems that shouldn't happen in the first place!

Take my new phone, for example.  I was just getting to know it and figure things out, and I stopped by the Verizon store because I had a question about one of the functions.  The guy said he would need to look at it for 20 minutes, so I left it.  Came back and he said all was fine, BUT now the main screen is different, and I can't figure out how to get it back to the old way!!  I'm sure it's not that hard for normal people, but I am a technological idiot.  This is even more frustrating because, deep down, I know I am a smart person.  How can   I mess this stuff up so much!!

Ahh...anyway, my little rant is over (at least until the next technology fail).  I have the first big race of the season on Sunday.  A little duathlon - 3 mile run/20 mile bike/3 mile run.  My coach gave me a full taper that I wasn't really planning on because she said she wanted to see where my fitness was.  The funny thing is, I'm more worried about the weather and how to dress for it than anything.  It's supposed to be cold and rainy.  I don't want to be too hot on the run, but I don't want to freeze on the bike either.  I have a couple of contingencies, but I'm just going to have to wait and see what the day brings on Sunday.  I got my race plan from Coach Mary today, and the them is...NO FEAR!!  I'm looking forward to it!!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Happy Birthday, Ryan!!

Today is Ryan's 7th birthday.  A child's birthday is a very special day for a mother.  Today is the day I became a mother.  Today is the day I became an athlete.

Ryan was born after 26 hours of very hard labor.  After he was born, I felt invincible.  His birthday was the day I realized that I can push my body far harder than I realized.  I had never run a race (with the exception of the 8th grade) before Ryan was born.  This year I will be racing two half-ironman races and my first 50K!!

Thank you, son, for being such a part of making me the Trimommy I am!

Here are some other things I love about Ryan.

• He is quirky, and certainly has a mind of his own.
• I love his gravelly little voice.
• He has the funniest faces.
• His focus on the things he loves is unwavering.
• He asked for a bow tie for his birthday.  Seriously.
• He is confident in a way that only a 7 year old can be.
• He can be very generous and loving when he sets his mind to it.
• I love how I can tell what his day was like the minute he steps off the bus.
• He is very creative.  For Christmas he asked for recycling so he could invent things with it.
• I love his freckles.

I could go on forever, as any mommy could.  Today we are headed to the bike shop to let Ryan pick out a new bike. I wonder what he'll pick out??

Shifting

Things in my life are shifting.  Slowly and quickly changing directions in unexpected ways.

Sometimes a shift is sudden.  It takes you by surprise, and it knocks you off balance.  Other shifts are subtle.  You don't even feel some of them, but after a while you realize things have been moving all along.  It seems I have a little of both going on.

This shifting is exciting and scary at the same time.  It's bringing me new opportunities that I would have never imagined, but that also means new things to get used to, new routines to establish, new people to meet, and new directions to navigate (and sometimes I am not very good at directions!).

I pray that I use the wisdom God has given me to stay balanced during this shifting.

Team Trakkers News

Wow...so much is going on with Team Trakkers, I don't even know where to begin!!

If you are on Twitter, you might have heard about the Team Trakkers/Team Trek/Team K-Swiss throwdown.  At Rev3 Knoxville on May 9, there will be some head-to-head pro team competition, and the winning team will take home a $5,000 prize.  I've no doubt that Team Trakkers will come through, but it certainly makes the inaugural Rev3 Knoxville olympic distance race that much more exciting.  There's still time to register for this race, too, if you haven't already, so be sure to use my discount by typing in TRAKKERS115 at the registration checkout.

The Trakkers Elite Team held a training camp in Austin, Texas a few weeks ago.  I was bummed I was so far away, because it looked like a great weekend for pros and age-groupers alike.  Here are some great pics of the pro team.  One of the things I love about Team Trakkers is that, despite the fact that I am not an elite athlete, I am treated like one.  Every member of Team Trakkers is important, and that means a lot to slow me!!

If you want to learn more about the pro team and also check out the age-groupers, take a look at the Team Trakkers website.  You can see a map of the whole team and read up on what everyone is doing this season.

The Sunday Report and then some

I have had a bit of blogger's block lately, and not because I haven't had things to write about.  It's actually been a weird week.  I have a lot going on...more than usual, I guess, and a lot of it is special stuff that is out of the ordinary.  It began with Aflac Iron Girl Clearwater, then I had a weekend of concerts this week, I'm starting rehearsals for a concerto I'm playing with the Oswego State University Symphony Orchestra, I have two races looming in the next two weeks, and I'm getting geared up for some more travel in May.  With putting so much energy into these "special" things, I feel that I don't have much left for the "regular" things, once I've done all of my motherly duties, which at times I don't feel I'm doing all that great at either.

The strange thing is that, despite doing all of this stuff, I feel inert.  Right.  Like I'm not doing anything.  I'm not really sure why I have that feeling, but it's there nonetheless.  This week one of my goals is just to feel like I'm getting the stuff done that needs to get done.  I have a friend who's been reading "The Four Hour Work Week" by Timothy Ferris, and he says it's all about spending time on the things you are really good at and being honest about the things you are not good at.  This is a hard thing, especially for a classic overachiever like me.

"What do you mean, the things I'm not good at? I can do anything."

Come on...you know what I'm talking about!!

Anyway, just my thoughts for the week.  And now for the numbers:


Swim:  2h 5550 yds
Bike:  4h 51m 58s 80.80 mi
Run:  3h 18.92 mi
Strength:  40m

Total:  10h 31m 58s


And a couple of other things that just came to mind this morning during my run.  I ran sans ipod and got a whole lot of thinking done.  Unfortunately, not all of the thoughts are deep, but that's okay, right?

• Have you tried the new Tide Febreze Sport for workout clothes?  I bought some, and it works great! This is my own opinion.  I didn't get any free samples from Tide, but if you want to send me some feel free!!
• Noah kept me company today while I had my ice bath.  It was actually quite fun.  I'm also thinking either I am getting used to them or my water hasn't been cold enough even though I used all the ice we had in the freezer.
• I had a great run this morning, and the whole time my Garmin was working just fine.  I got home and when I tried to download the workout it got all messed up, and I'm pretty sure I lost the workout.  I was way more upset than I should have been about that, but it's almost like the tree falling in the forest when no one is there to hear it...
• I was talking with a professional dancer yesterday about body image.  I thought it was very interesting that even someone with just about zero body fat, still has body image issues.  She is a mother too, which, for me, made her body that much more amazing and strong.  It also made me realize that body image is a deep-rooted thing that all women battle with.  I think I might try to see myself from other people's eyes a little more often now.
• I saw a red-headed woodpecker on my quiet, no ipod long run this morning.  I was so glad I didn't have music or words blasting in my ears at that moment.
• My children watch way too much television.
• I bought an audiobook of "Outlander" by Diana Galbaldon to listen to on my long runs.  I've read this book several times, but I am loving the audiobook.  I've actually been listening to it while I'm driving by myself, instead of on my runs.  Can't get enough of Jaime and Claire!!
• I guess I am over my blogger's block...sometimes you just have to sit down and write!

If you have made it through my rambling you deserve a reward.  Have a great week and happy training!

Aflac Iron Girl Across America in Clearwater

Well, it's Thursday after the first race of the 2010 Aflac Iron Girl Event Series, and I stil can't believe this is my real life!!  After a day of training in Atlanta, I flew down to Clearwater on Friday.  At the expo, I was able to chat with several women, including Tammy and Sandy, who had amazing stories to tell about their transformation to Iron Girls.

On Saturday, I was up way before the sun, to meet with even more women and watch as over 2800 women overcame obstacles and pushed themselves past limits to become Aflac Iron Girls.  Here is a picture of the race start:

Pretty amazing, huh?

It was a very emotional day for me.  My cheeks hurt at the end of the day from smiling so much, yet I still couldn't stop.  Memories of this race will be with me always, and I was so glad to stand and watch while women finished and raised their arms in victory, hugging their daughters, sisters, and friends.

Eileen and Shannon who ran their 4th 5k together!

Part of my job, if you can even call something this fun a job, was to get footage and interviews that will be turned into a webisode.  Click here to go to the Aflac Iron Girl Fan Page on Facebook and check out my adventure!!

I will be headed to Del Mar, California in May for the next Aflac Iron Girl event, and you can stay tuned for the next installment of my Aflac Iron Girl Across America webisodes!!

#i8this on Twitter

Holistic Guru (@holisticguru on Twitter) has issued a twitter challenge on her blog called #i8this.

Basically what it is is a period of 3, 5, 7, or 9 days where you set an intention for yourself and focus on eating super clean. During the period of your challenge, you tweet at least one picture of what you ate that day with #i8this in the tweet.

When I first read about this, I have to tell you honestly that I thought, "No way. I don't need to do another challenge. I eat well." Then this afternoon I had some weak moments with some Easter chocolate.

So, beginning Friday, I will participate in #i8this for seven days. My intent is to have absolutely no sugar for those seven days with the exception of training and recovery fuel, eat a ton of fruits and veggies, and drink a lot of water. This isn't too far from my everyday eating, but I can always stand to stay away from the sugar.

Check out the post on the challenge, and let me know if you are in. To participate all you have to do is tweet your intention and length of time to @holisticguru.

I'm hoping to be inspired by others and feel great to boot!! You can follow me on Twitter @trimommykelly.

The Sunday Report

I'm exhausted.

I had a wonderful time in Atlanta and Clearwater and will have a post up about my travels and adventures tomorrow, but today is just a quick wrap-up of the week before I hit the hay.

Despite my travelling, I was still able to get several quality workouts in this week. Here are the numbers:

Swim: 1h 2900 yds

Bike: 2h 45m 6s 28.65 mi

Run: 2h 40m 17s 16.50 mi

Strength: 40m

Total: 7h 5m 23s

Coach reassured me that because the intensity was higher, it's okay that the volume is lower, and I am trusting her. Still nervous, but trusting. :)

I'm pretty sure I'm hitting the track for the first time ever this week, so that should be interesting.

'Night.

I'm exhausted.

Aflac Iron Girl Clearwater Update

My Big News...

Hey, y'all.  I'm writing to you from good ol' Atlanta, Georgia!!  I lived in Georgia for about 7 years, so there is something that just feels like home when I am surrounded by people with southern accents!!

So, I know I've been super quiet this week after leaving everyone hanging in this post, but I was having a hard time thinking of anything else to write about besides my big news!

Do you want to know what it is?? 

Okay.  Here it is....

Beginning this weekend at the Clearwater Aflac Iron Girl 15K/5K Run/Walk, I will be the Aflac Iron Girl Across America Host!! (Insert excited screaming noise here!!!!!)  I will be at 10 Iron Girl races across the country this year to talk to women about their lives and listen to their stories, to see women achieve things they never thought possible, to witness the beauty of friendship and motherhood, and to share the excitement as women become victorious over all that has held them back.

I am so honored that I get to share the Aflac Iron Girl experience with so many people this year.  Last year I raced at Aflac Iron Girl Syracuse and was just blown away by the beauty of so many women getting out there and conquering fears and pushing their limits.

So here I am in Atlanta for a day of meetings, and tomorrow I'm headed to Clearwater, Florida for the race.  It's not too late to register if you are close by!!  Click here for registration info.  If you are racing in Clearwater, please be sure to find me and say hi!!

And stay tuned for video from the race and who knows what else!!

The Sunday Report

Hey there.

I like to say that because that is how my best friend always answers the phone when I call.  She is from Georgia, so it's not just Hey There--it's Heeey Theeeerrre!!  I don't get to see her very often, BUT a visit is on the horizon!  Yay!!

This week was a tough week.  I've been really busy with a lot projects that seem to be boiling over at the same time.  All of them are great, it's just hard to have my spoon in so many things at once!! 

Training was pretty good this week. I hit almost all of my workouts with just a little bit of tweaking here and there (thanks, Coach!!).  Yesterday, though, was hard.  The plan called for a 2.5 hour ride, 2 in Z2 and .5 at tempo pace, followed by a 20 minute transition run.  I decided to wait until Noah went down for a nap to head out, and once I was on the road is was hot and so windy.  I was literally almost blown off the bike three times!  I decided to do an out and back and went five minutes over halfway before I turned around so I wouldn't get home too early, since I was going to be riding "faster" for the last 30 minutes.  Hah!!!  The best laid plans...

Once I turned around the wind really kicked in gear, and it was all I could do to hold on!  Everytime I went down a hill in aero, I felt like I was being blown around like a little leaf...and I am not a little leaf.  To top is off, I don't think I brought enough fluids because by the end of the ride my mouth and lips were parched; I felt like the wind was sucking everything out of me.  When I realized I was not going to make it home in 2.5 hours, my spirits got really low.  We were planning on going to church last night, and I knew I was on limited time, so the run was nixed. 

Ugh...I hate not hitting the workouts.

So to make up for it, I totally nailed my 80 minute run this morning.  My improved running pace held through 7 out of 8.33 miles, so I feel pretty darn good about that. And the ice bath (I just accidentally spelled it ice batch, and I think I might start calling it that...think what you will) almost felt good.  Kind of.

Here are the numbers:

Swim: 2h 5100 yds
Bike:  5h 42m 52s 73.15 mi
Run: 3h 20m 11s 20.54 mi
Strength:  1h
 
Total:  12h 3m 4s
 
Have a great week, friends.

March in Numbers

Here is the monthly report. 

Swim: 7h 16m 19050 yards
Bike:  24h 40m 12s 259.85 miles
Run:  13h 4m 12s 76.88 miles
Strength:  3h 30m

Total:  45h 24s

For some reason, I've still been feeling like my volume is low for the time of year, but I checked last March to compare, and I still have a little more volume this year than last.  I did notice my run miles were much higher last year in about the same time, which at first was a little bit discouraging, BUT I have been doing a ton of Zone 2 endurance work, so actually it is good.  It means I might be running slower but I am training my body to run longer and faster!!  Funny how that works!

Have a wonderful Easter weekend.  He is risen!!

Bora Bora Giveaway Winner!!

Congrats to.....

Aimee at I Tri To Be Me!!!  Check out her blog...she has a weekly recipe every Wednesday (Humpastry Day, of course) that is not to be missed!!

You are the winner of all 8 Bora Bora Bar flavors, plus this great tiki mug.  Just today I drank my recovery drink out of mine, and I'm sure it has special powers that brought beautiful weather my way for a great run and ride outside.

Aimee, shoot me an email with your deets so I can get this off to you!!