Even triathletes get the blues

Wow, it's been a rough couple of weeks since I last posted. I bet everyone who is reading this thought I'd given up. Nope. I've only been getting in two or three workouts each week because of injury and being not as happy as normal, but I'm still hanging in there. Tonight Ben and I went for a roller blade. We rolled (bladed?) for about a mile and then he roller bladed back and I ran/walked beside him. It was nice. We think it might be the perfect answer to my wanting a running partner. Tomorrow I'm going to do a "brick" workout, where I bike and then I run afterwards. From what I've read, your legs feel wierd when you transition so you have to practice it.

One more thing about running. My sister used to always joke about me getting a "black eye" while running. No more!! If you're a big gal you NEED the Enell bra. It's amazing. It really reminds me of the corsets I used to wear when I was in the SCA. The straps are different, but the rest is pretty darn close. I even found two in the same color! I'm telling you, it's expensive but it is worth it.

A workout hangover

Everything that I've read about training warns that when you work out you'll be more tired and sleep longer. After all of that working out yesterday, I slept hard. I didn't hear my alarm going off, and if Ben hadn't woken up and told me to shut it off, I'd probably be late for work. It was rough. It took a ton of will power to get up and put on my running duds. What helped was realizing that if I chickened out today, I'd end up chickening out every day. I also told myself that I'd only do part of the work out if it "really was that bad." It wasn't. I extended my Couch to 5k podcast by two more intervals of 90 sec running and 2 min walking, for a total of 8 intervals and 37 minutes. The 90 seconds wasn't all that hideous because I kept looking forward to the 2 minutes of "brisk walking." Hopefully, it'll be even easier tomorrow to get up and get going. I'll be swimming. (Yeah!! My favorite workout!!) Sometime this week, I need to fit in an ocean swim, but I'll need a buddy for that. Maybe Ben will kayak next to me. We'll have to see.

Still going.....

This week has been a series of ups and downs. Tuesday, during my run, something really nice happened. As I was sweating and huffing along, nodding and smiling at the people walking by, one of the joggers and I simultaneously recognized each other. It turns out that one of my close friends from high school was out jogging in the park! It was really odd. We've only seen each other twice since we graduated, including on Tuesday, so it was great to see her again. We jogged a bit together catching up, but anchor dog Meggie was too worn out to keep up, so I just got her number and will call her soon. It was great to see her again.

On the "not so good" side, I ended up sick with a migraine for a couple of days and missed a work out. I'm not too worried as I'm doing it for fun, so if it won't be fun, I'm not going to do it. And trust me, running with a migraine isn't fun.

Friday Ben and I got out our old, decrepit, rusty, mountain bikes and started to go for a ride. Unfortunately, I'm not the smartest person mechanically, and I didn't get my bike seat on correctly. It was UNCOMFORTABLE. Ben described it as a torture device. After less than 20 minutes, I was home again.

Today, Saturday, has been excellent. It started out with Ben and I going to the pool for a nice swim, which put me in such a good mood that I've been smiling, laughing and blaring music for the rest of the day. We also went to REI to pick up some cycling shorts. I read on the Slow Fat Triathlete blog about how very few stores actually carry workout clothes for larger people. REI was mentioned as being one of the few that does. The odd thing is, as the author pointed out, what are big people supposed to wear when they're getting in shape?? I mean come on. So here's someone who doesn't like to exercise, sweats more than most, and is uncomfortable to begin with, and we're not going to give them something comfortable to wear? I've had to run in sweats and a cotton T-shirt, and now I'm running in amazing moisture wicking fabric. I can tell you, I'm much more likely to keep running now that I'm wearing something that isn't obscenely uncomfortable and heavy when wet. Anyway, I got an incredibly cute pair of capri's at REI that have bike padding in them. (I don't know if you can see it, but there is really cute teal embroidery on the bottom.)

We also went to a bike shop, Pacific Coast Bicycles in PB, where we had some of the best customer service I've had. (And trust me, I'm a customer service snob.) The guy who helped us, Joe, was willing to adjust my bike seat, which was on backwards... oops!, install the bike odometer that I bought, and fit my bike for free! They are really amazing. If I end up really getting into triathlons, I'm going to get my bike there. If nothing else, I got a new bike pump, new lights, and a great little set of bike mounted iPod speakers. (When they play, I'm brought back to Burning Man. I wonder if they'll let me use them during a race sometime?) When I rode my bike home from the shop, it felt marvelous! Ben and I are going back out for another ride tonight so I can get my 45 min in. Oh, and if you go to their website, don't be put off like I was by the "West Coast Choppers" look of it. Luckily, Ben had been there before and knew what great service they provide.

So, the workout today is.... swim - 1200 meters, bike 45 min. Tomorrow I'm going to run/walk for 35 min.

So far so good

Well, I seem to be doing OK so far. I know it's only been 3 workouts, but I've actually done them all.
Friday morning I went out and ran/walked 2.3 miles. It took quite a while (40 min), but I did it. I figure just doing it is more important than speed right now. Once I can actually run 5 K, I'll worry about running it quickly.
To become a runner I'm using the Couch to 5K program from Cool Running. In truth, I'm actually using Robert Ullrey's Couch to 5K podcast. It's great. As I mentioned earlier, I have never thought of myself as a runner. I swam competitively in high school and went through a year long phase of riding 20 miles a day about a decade ago, but other than a brief stint in middle school I have avoided running whenever possible. Thanks to Mr. Ullrey's podcast, I'm no longer afraid of it. He set the music up and cheers you on through the whole thing. It's still not easy, but I can do it now. If it weren't for finding his podcast, I'd never have dreamed of becoming a triathlete. Anyway, Friday's workout was 5 min warm up, 8 x (60 sec running/ 90 sec walking), and a 5 minute cool down. I'm sure you're doing the math and realized that that only encompasses 30 minutes. I ended up running further away from my car than I meant to and got a bonus 10 minutes of walking in.


Saturday was originally supposed to be a biking day; but as my day included going to the beach and kayaking, I skipped the additional morning workout. I guesstimate that I kayaked for about 1.5 - 2 hours. It was really fun because we were able to get my dogs into the kayaks for the first time. They even went for an hour long paddle with my sister and I. I definitely got a workout.
Today was a true triumph of mind over matter. When my alarm went off at 5, I turned it off and started to roll back over. I was WAY too sore to go the gym and bike. I then thought about what I'd really gain if I didn't go (one more hour of intermittent sleep where I was constantly checking the clock) vs. if I did go (working the soreness out of my legs and knowing that I had actually done what I said I would.) Knowing I'd have to admit to everyone that I skipped the bike again was the deciding factor. I got up, drove to the gym, and biked for 30 minutes. It was in no way as nice as actually riding my bike, but I'll be able to go on the road my next bike workout. The seat arrived! It's not a good tri seat, as it's built for comfort, but it'll get me on the bike for the first month. I can look at a "racing" seat after that. First thing is first, get out on that road!!
Tomorrow looks like it's another swimming day. (Yay!! My favorite!!) I'm going to work on swimming the whole mile and streamlining my form. It should be right around 30 minutes. I'm also going to put in some yoga time tomorrow. I definitely need to limber up and stretch out.