NYC Triathlon #2- The Race

Hi. It's Laura.

Race Weekend is very exciting. The weekend starts with a mandatory athlete briefing and Expo.

Who doesn't love pre race Expos?! There is so much gear and equipment and athletes generating excitement about the upcoming race.

The NYC triathlon is the only race I am aware of that does a pre race mandatory briefing. I do understand why. The logistics of a race this large in New York City are quite complicated. And with the recent bombing at the Boston Marathon, new security measures were put into place. The organizers wanted to make sure everyone was aware of what they were going to be.

The briefings stared Friday ran through Saturday late afternoon. Not much else happens on Saturday except for mandatory bike check in which happens between 2:00pm and 9:00pm. This is no surprise. The organizers put this information out long before race weekend. No bike, No race, No exceptions.

I got my bike in around 2:30 Saturday afternoon, fully loaded and ready to go. I decided to put my rinsing water on the bike because I didn't want to juggle multiple liquids race morning. I don't care if my rinsing water is warm so, to have it sit over night, is not a big deal. After the bike was dropped off, it was home to rest.

I was really looking forward to a good night on the sofa with a great movie. It is summer time so apparently nothing is on so The Husband and I wound up watching some cheesy movie on Netflix streaming (Netflix streaming sucks BTW, they seem to only have movies that no one ever wanted to watch in the first place).

A little supper and off to bed. I make this sound so very simple. It was not.

Saturday was one of the busiest days on the UWS that I can remember.

If you are a baseball fan you know that the All-Star game is on Tuesday and that it is at Citifield. Apparently that means there are events all over NYC. Most of them seem to be happening in my neighborhood. There was a HUGE concert in Central Park on Saturday night, a boy band concert that had a matinee and evening performance at the Beacon Theater. I happen to live across the street from artist entrance. Oh yeah, there is the triathlon on Sunday. To say that the UWS was busy on Saturday is an understatement.

It is bad enough to have prerace jitters and have to go to bed at 8:00. But to have several hundred screaming teenagers outside on the street added to my nerves. I was very worried that the concert would let out in the middle of a bad night's sleep. As it turned out, I fell right to sleep (lack of nap certainly helped). It was not the screaming teenagers that kept me up but The Husband's intermittent bouts of snoring that kept waking me up. Don't worry he got punched, a lot.

The new security procedures were promised to take a little more time so I decided to get up a little earlier and give myself some time. The alarm had me up at 3:15 AM. I was sure this would give me enough time. I am a notorious bad “waker upper” (it is a technical term). I need my coffee and scheduled this into my time in the morning. It takes me a solid half hour to get going any morning and I took that into consideration. By 3:45 I was making breakfast and getting my tri-tats applied by The Husband. This year I ate all of my breakfast. Last year I only ate half. I knew it was important and my nerves were better this year over last year.

Transition is open from 4:00am to 5:15 am. If your crap (another technical term) is not in by 5:15 you are S.O. L.

We left the apt at about 4:20 plenty of time (or so I thought). We left the building and crossed Broadway when I realized I had forgotten my bike computer and Chapstick. We headed back to the apartment. Items gathered we head to Riverside Park again. We are almost at transition when I realize, I forgot my water in the fridge. Seriously! This is not a good start. I asked The Husband and he (being the amazing husband that he is) ran back to the apt to get my water bottles. I went into transition to set up everything else. Unlike last year, this year I am in a middle row in the middle of the zone and quarters are tight. I have no great spot to get organized so I wound up putting my stuff under the tire of the bike that was racked opposite of mine. I finish setting up and go back to the entrance to wait for The Husband.

As I stood there waiting the kept announcing how much longer transition would be open. I also spotted Tara Costa formerly "biggest loser" fame, not sure if she was a volunteer or participating. I thought to myself “how stupid of me, of all things to forget”. If I had no water out on the West Side Highway, where there is no bike support, and if something happens I am stuck out there until the final sweep at 10am, yikes! I hear the announcer say 4 minutes until transition closes when I hear my name being shouted. It’s The Husband!! He has my water. Oh thank goodness. I run into transition against all of the people heading out which it looks like most everyone and get my water on the bike with minutes to spare.

I was concerned about getting to the start line on time. From transition it’s a 1 mile walk

I know I need to use the restroom before I get my wetsuit on and I also need to drop my sneakers from the walk into the waiting trucks. We manage to get to the start area on time.

The restroom lines are huge but I am in and out without incident.

I asked The Husband if he could drop my sneaker into the truck while I get my wetsuit on.

I stood to the side and struggled to get my wetsuit on because of the humidity. You try pulling on 1/2 inch thick neoprene when you are drenched with sweat. It ain't easy. I swear it took me 15 minutes.

I get it to my waist, which was enough before I need to get to my corral, and The Husband returns. We head down to the start together. Twice on the way, I had to stop. I thought I stepped on a rock I bent over to wipe it off my foot. I took a few more steps and had to stop again because it hurt. After I cleared the foot a second time and it still hurt I asked the husband to look. He tells me I have a splinter. Are you kidding me? We go to the medical tent. No doctor, no nurse and no tweezers. They tell us there is another medical tent beyond the start. We head through the chaos next to the pros who were just going into the water, and there is no second medical tent. I am slightly panicked at this point because once the pros start it goes fast. I don't want to miss my start. I head back to the coral and The Husband heads out in search of tweezers.

Please keep in mind the humidity is 100%. The poor guy is drenched from running home for my water and now running all over Riverside Park looking for tweezers. In the end he comes up empty handed. It’s too late. It’s time for me to go.

My age group is headed to the barge and we are moving quickly! NYC Triathlon does a time trial start format. The whistle blows every 20 second and 15 athletes enter the water. The pros started at 5:50 am. I was the 9th group into the water and I entered the water at 6:23am. I was less nervous this year waiting to go in and on the barge I felt good. I started my awesome watch and when the time came, I jumped.

Once in the water, I swam. Yes that is what you do when you jump in the water. I felt ok and then I didn't. I picked my head up at about the 600 meter mark and looked back. I was pretty far from the barge and definitely far from the finish. This is where I had my panic attack. I stopped swimming and sat there. The internal conversation sounded something like this: “WTF where you thinking, triathlon again?” “You are such an idiot”. “I can't do this, I have to stop”. “I feel like I am suffocating”. “Everyone will be so disappointed”. “I need to quit but I can't quit”. “I could get them to pull me out now I can take a DNF”.

At this point I unzipped the back of my wetsuit and flipped onto my back. I cannot tell you what exactly changed. Maybe the internal conversation continued but I don't remember. I do remember telling myself “you are an idiot and you have a plan you have trained for this”.

So I flipped back onto my belly and started stroking. I remembered not to kick and just kept stroking. Once I got going I refused to look ahead because I didn't want to freak myself out again. So when I felt the wrist bands (mandatory for participation and getting your bike back at the end) cutting into my wrists I just let it go. I told myself it didn't matter I didn't need my hands for the rest of the event. I now however look like I tried to commit suicide from the gash on my right wrist.

I came to the end of the swim. It was relatively free from incident except for being cut off at least once before getting to the finish barge. But I made it.

All of the thoughts of quitting I had towards the beginning of the swim were now gone.

I head down the long 700 yard jog from the swim finish to T1. Last year I walked out because I was so wiped out. This year I run it. I find my bike, get my bike gear on and realize I need to pee. The port-a-potties are at the back of transition, grrrr. That will take too much time but I know I cannot head out on the West Side Highway without going.

I exit transition and wind up using the public restroom out of T1 which is adding time to my bike ride. I say “priorities”. I thought about peeing my pants and not worrying about but I knew I stood no chance of winning my age group at this point so, into the bathroom I go.

The bike course is just as brutal as I remember it. I am 8 minutes in and the sweat is just pouring off my head and down onto the bike. From my placement in the race, I get to see some of the elite athletes already on their way back, way impressive and perhaps just a little inspiring (Ok a lot). I was grateful that it was overcast for most of the ride, actually all of the ride.

The West Side Highway has not been paved recently and the potholes are brutal on the butt. Between Hurricane Sandy and snow removal, the pavement is best described as “ouch”.12 ½ miles from bike to the turnaround at Mosholu Parkway and back down the west side. Rolling hill after rolling hill after rolling hill.

It’s amazing what happens in a race like this. I caught a group of women and we were riding and chatting. The camaraderie & cooperation was just amazing. When you are half way through one of the best triathlons in the country, it’s awesome that people can be that respectful and considerate of one another. I must note here that my foot with the splinter in it was throbbing like crazy. The splinter entered the foot in the exact spot where my cleats are which is the power position for cycling.

As I finish the bike and head into transition, I see there are swimmers still coming out of the water, wow!

Into T2 (same place as T1 just headed for a different sport), quick change and I head out. On the list of things that I have forgotten to do, reapplying sunscreen was one of them. I knew I was tired so I allowed myself to walk out of transition and up the steep hill to get onto 72nd street.

Again, after the panic attack, winning the age group was not going to happen. Once I was out on 72^nd street, my right calf started to tighten. I allowed myself to walk and stretch the calf. In addition to the calf, I had a wicked stitch in my side. I know from all of my bricks that it takes me a little while to settle into the run. I allowed myself run/walks down 72nd and into the park. The morning was ticking away and the sun come out just as I was making my way into the park. I remember reading on the weather channel that the heat wave was supposed to start around noon. I disagree. As soon as the sun came out, the heat was overwhelming.

I hit 1 mile mark upon entry into the park. 5.2 to go.

I am not recovering and I am a little worried. I keep trying to push myself and making myself run but I have to keep stopping because of the stitch in my side. My foot is fine. Fortunately I am not striking the foot where the splinter entered.

At mile 2, I feel better and start to run, I took water at every station and Gatorade at every other. I would take one water for drinking and dump one on me for cooling. By the time I hit the 5K mark, other than the sun bearing down, I felt ok. I could feel that I was not getting my feet far off the ground and didn't care. I was going to make it.

Once on the east side of the park, the home stretch, I execute my plan like I planned and not the improvised plan the course and heat were forcing to me to do. I allowed myself to walk through every water station from beginning to end. It gave me a minute to rest and consume.

I saw two runners passed out on the course at about the 4 1/2 mile mark. At mile 5, I borrowed some one else’s friends who were cheering her on. They were loud and they were awesome and they were happy to cheer for me since all of my people were at the south end of the park.

I run this park 3-4 times a week and I run this course at least twice a week. It is never as long as it was during the race. I finally made it down to the 72nd crossover and had almost forgotten they make us run through Cherry Hill before being able to cross the finish line. Through Cherry Hill and into the finish line corridor to the finish line. I was elated and hot.

The second I stopped I could feel how high my core temperature was. I did the following in this order: cross the finish line, get an iced towel, get my finisher’s medal, drink water & Gatorade and then onto medical.

I entered the medical tent to see if they could get the splinter out of my foot. I had yet to check in with my family and was worried about how long it was taking. But exactly like the start, there were no tweezers to be found.

The medical staff was doing the best they could. It was not their fault. They were all very nice and very accommodating.

I found The Husband and home we went. But of course, not before having to walk all the way across town to collect my bike.

Bike collected, I go home to celebrate with my family. Thank you family for all of your support. You have no idea how much it means to me to have there for me.

You will be happy to know I slept for 12 hours.

Onto the next one!

Laura.

Bib # 1059

Hi. It's Laura.

 I wish I could say I am having an easy time this week.  I'm not.

Monday's bike ride was short (50 min) and hot. Tuesday morning's run was sticky. And when I jumped into the pool for a quick (900 meter) swim I was more nervous swimming in the pool than I was at the actual start of the race last year. 

I know that, by the time I hit the start last year, I was ok, not great. I was as calm as anyone can be doing their first triathlon (at least I didn't puke).

I am not sure if my nerves are amped up because of a) I do know how difficult the course is or b) because of the high expectations I have of myself. 

Yesterday during my ride, about 1 mile in, I developed a headache. I generally don't get headaches so the fact that I did get one was disconcerting. Two Advil and two hours later I had no relief. The two Tylenol after that seemed to do the trick.

This morning while swimming I developed yet another headache. Can we say stress? All together now!

All I have left for the week as far as workouts are: 30 minute bike ride on Wednesday, 20 minute run and a 750 meter swim on Thursday. The final workout is Saturday with a quick brick: 20 minute bike ride and a 15 minute run.  Almost there!

I have been watching the weather like it’s my favorite television show. This morning I heard some good news: rain and thunderstorms for the next two days and the humidity should break by Friday leaving the weekend quite pleasant.  I am delighted!

I received my race number today: 1059.  You can follow me on the Aquaphor New York City Triathlon app for iPhone or Android.  The Husband will also be tweeting on my behalf throughout the course of the race. You can follow at @inspiredbylaura on twitter.

If you are going to be in NYC and want to root for me or other athletes, below is the link to the spectators guide. The guide does say the west side highway is not a good place to watch but last year I saw people all up and down at the exits. Just be careful, only the northbound lane will be closed.

Now for some stats.  I was surprised myself to see how far I moved over the last sixteen weeks.

By the time Saturday rolls around I will have swum 36,140 meters or 1,446 laps, biked 3,186 minutes or 800 miles and run 2,384 minutes or 238.5 miles.  You would think I would be ready! Fingers crossed.

This will be my last blog until Monday when I send out race details.

See you at the finish line!

Laura

 

 

Race Week

Hi. It's Laura.

 

Last week may have been a short week for most people but when you are training for a triathlon and it’s around the corner there is no time off.

 

Although tapering has begun intensity has waned.

 

Last week's end of week runs were just brutal. I felt like a human barbeque. Marinating in sweat running up the west side and then baking in the sun coming back down the east side.

Regardless of what time I was out, it was just hot.

 

I managed to get my brick in first thing Saturday morning which finished off the last of the big workout for this training. Now it’s all about rest and panic.

 

Just to be sure, I am not overreacting with my panic. I reread some of my blog entries from last year and realize that I am right on-time with my panic both in intensity and duration.

 

Although this year, I believe that sheer panic only kicked in last week where as last year I believe it was the entire month before the race.

 

Trying to assuage some of my fear, I spent some time on the NYC Aquaphor Triathlon website yesterday. I can't say that it helped.

 

I had a dream last night that I made into transition 1 but there was a mandatory shower and that my time in transition was more than an hour. In the dream I was freaking out about how long I had to wait in line to take a shower and how ridiculous it was to take a shower before going out on a bike ride.

 

Perhaps spending time on the website was not a good idea after all.

 

I did do some calculations based on information provided about times and starts. I am 9 age groups ahead of where I was last year. This means I am in the water sooner, probably about 6:15 to 6:20.

 

I am hoping to improve my times from last year. Last year: 27 min for the swim, 1:44 for the bike and 1:15 for the run. First transition was rough it took my nearly 15 min to get from the swim finish to T1 and 2 ½ minutes out of T2. I would like to shave some time there too. The run from the swim to T1 is barefoot in a wetsuit and about a 1/2 mile. It sucks.

 

I am hoping to shave time off of all the areas. And if the weather cooperates that could happen.

My goal is take at least 5 minutes off my swim, 15 off the bike and 15 off the run.

 

I would like to transition out of the bike to the run in less than 2 min and, for T1, I would like to complete in less than 10 min.

 

I ran into some issues last year with really bad cramps in my hamstrings before taking off for the run. I just hope that all of the strength training I have done over the last 16 weeks has helped.

 

There is not much left to do this week except rest and wait for the organization to email out my number for the race. Mandatory athlete briefing is on Friday. Mandatory bike check is on Saturday. I will keep you posted when I get my number and spectator information

 

Laura

 

12 Day Countdown

Hi. It's Laura.

In what is supposed to be a quiet holiday week in NYC as it turns out is not.

Everywhere (the park and the pool) seem to be filled with people.

I was able to squeeze a 70 minute ride in the park on Monday morning before the rain started.

Having learned my lesson from last week, I decided to get it done first thing in the morning instead of waiting for the weather to get worse.  Oh wait! You don't know because I didn't tell you.  Last Monday I decided to hit the gym first thing in the morning and head out for my ride second.  Huge mistake.  Last Monday was very hot if you recall.  I rode 90 minutes: once around the park and up and down the west side.  I was at 74th & West End before I made my first stop. When I did stop and felt the 90 degree sun hit my face, I thought it was going to melt right off. 

This Monday I got it right: Bike, then gym all in an effort to manage the weather. 

Tuesday morning I headed out for a one hour run but not without my own personal drama to start the morning.  So last week I was super excited about my new toy and the fact that it had a new strap for the HR monitor.  In my over zealousness and fervor, I neglected to put on any lubrication on the strap.  So the word of the day is “ouch”.  I have an irritation from last week and because of the humidity this morning, I have new one on top of the old one (well not exactly on top).  I felt it forming, just like a blister, about 2 1/2 miles into my run so I decided to slide it down just a tad.  Duh.  Now I have a matching set. 

From the park to the pool. 

I have been very lucky this year in the pool so far. I have encountered a lot of cooperative people until today.

I am not sure if it because of the holiday week or that it is just summer but the pool today was just chaos.

It started off pretty quiet. It was just me and another woman in my lane. She jumped in right before me and took off like a shot, or so I thought.  I am always initially intimidated by other swimmers.  It turned out she was just a little too slow for the fast medium lane

Right next door is the fast lane.  There were two men in that lane, in addition to some others, that kept jumping back forth from their lane (fast) to my lane (medium fast).

At one point, I was taking a rest between sets and an older man in the fast lane asked me if I was going to go. I looked at him and asked him directly what do you care, you are not in my lane.  He says he wants to go. I said go, you are in a different lane. So he jumped under the ropes and cut me off.  WTF?

There were too many people, by the end of my swim, swimming in my lane that didn’t belong there. I was very happy to be getting close to the end.   During my cool down, I caught one of the women that should not have been there.  At the wall, I stopped to rest; she asked me if I wanted to go. I said “no, go ahead”. She started to insist that I go until I told her I was cooling down.  I managed to avoid her for the next 150 meters. People!

12 days left go.  Panic comes and goes. 

Late last week the organizer of the race sent out the "athlete's guide"

The athlete's guide let's you know what to expect: the schedule of events for the weekend, the location of the mandatory athlete's orientation, the expo and security procedures.

Of course this year there are new security procedures due to the bombing in Boston.

Nothing huge or outrageous, just asking everyone participating to use clear plastic bags to bring their gear into the transition area. Once in transition, you are free to use your own bag.

Like I said, no biggie.

The biggest change for me this year is my start.  Apparently old ladies go before young ladies and most men. The only age groupers in front of the 45-49 year old woman are men ages 40-44. It looks like there are a lot of them because there are three groups of them.  I have moved up to the 9^th wave to start which is 9 age groups  ahead of where I was last year.  An earlier start means an earlier finish. Time trial starts are schedule for a 6:04 am start. I am guessing I will be in the water by 6:30ish. 

For the most part, the biggest parts of my training are finished.  I have only one 90 minute bike ride left and one brickwork out this Saturday which by comparison is not that bad. A 90 minute ride with a 15 min run and then it’s all about rest and not getting hurt. Oy.

Laura

 

Red Ryder BB Gun with a Compass in the Stock

Hi it's Laura.

 I have been struggling this week with what to talk about.

Do I talk about the heat? I started to write one blog about the heat but it sounded like a big whiny complaint. So I ditched it. I started another entry but it too sounded like complaining. And since nothing remarkable has happened, I am lost for a good story.

When I finally sat down this morning, I decided to write. I decided it was best to start with happy news that made me dance instead of whining news. I am not going to attach the accompanying video because well, it's just too embarrassing. Let's just say the guys at the restaurant got a good laugh at me for the dance.

I will start at the beginning. The Husband passed down to me his Garmin Forerunner 301 a few years ago.  The Forerunner 301 is a GPS device that tracks your runs, cycling routes and heart rate (even though we call it a watch it actually does not tell time). The F301came out on the market in 2005ish, state of the art at the time. The Husband passed it down to me in 2008 when I did my first half marathon. He of course got himself the latest and greatest at that time.

Don't get me wrong. I did not care. I am not a huge gadget person. I like my iPhone and my iPad but the Garmin with the GPS was kind of above my level of interest. I did not care how far or how fast I was running, just that I was.

I had a pretty standard polar heart rate monitor and that was good enough for me. The Garmin 301 is big. It's at least 3 inches long and 1 5/8 inches high and straps to your wrist with Velcro. It took some getting used to because the thing is a brick. I was very self conscience wearing for the first time in Central Park. I felt like it was so big that everyone was looking at me.

In addition to it being old it is well used. The chest strap for the heart rate monitor is constantly chaffing at the bra line. Over the years I have tried a lot of different lubricants to prevent the chaffing which can be very very painful especially when it first hits water (for those of you who grappled with me, it’s the same thing but on your chest instead of your back). My old formula of just Glide stopped working. I am now on some chamois lube with a French name and I top that with Vaseline. For now, that works. (Vaseline alone gets absorbed into the skin and does not make a good barrier to prevent chaffing.)

With all of that being said, I count on it now. I could not go for a run or a bike ride without.

I will not call myself obsessed but I certainly like to see what I am doing on any given day. Am I running fast because I am well rested? I am riding slowly because I had a bad night sleep? The one biggest drawback being a triathlete (OMG I just totally called myself that) is that the Garmin Forerunner 301 is not water proof and not capable of being used in the pool. Plus it was never designed to do so. But the Garmin Forerunner 910XT is designed for water.

I was quite flabbergasted when The Husband got one for me. He surprised me with it earlier this week. I felt like Ralphie on Christmas morning when he finally got the BB gun [Editor’s note: It is 200 shot range model air rifle!]. Not only does it track riding and running but it also goes in the pool (Ralphie's bb gun came with a “thing that tells the time”  but the Garmin still does not tell time BTW). I swam with it Thursday morning and was so excited to see how far and fast I was swimming, I was positively giddy.

It may not tell time but it has amazing bells and whistles that I never even thought of before. You can set it to automatically change sports during triathlon. Very exciting.

 So exciting in fact, The Husband and I met for lunch Thursday after my swim. I originally recorded a reenactment of the dance in the restaurant and then thought better that you use your imagination.

Laura

 

90 + 40

Hi. It's Laura.

Happy Monday.

Saturday morning was my last large brick. 90 minute bike ride followed by a 40 minute run.

Up until Saturday, I was a little worried about the race itself. I have not reached full-on panic mode just yet. I do have moments of sheer terror. Why? I have no idea exactly why.

I am doing the work that is required so I should be able to finish just fine.

So far every brick except for the last one have been very difficult. I ask myself how on earth I am going to make the 6.2 mile run if I can barely get through 1.5 miles for these Saturday morning brick workouts.

Seemingly every weekend, I have cramps in my sides, cramps in my hamstrings and I always feel like I am moving super slow. When I look at my GPS, which gives me my pace, I am actually not running all that slow. The Husband and I have a theory: because my legs are moving crazy fast on the bike, when I hit the ground to run it only feels slow. Right now it’s all I've got. I like it and I’m sticking to it.

This past Saturday morning, I head out normal time, 1/2 hour past the time I want to get out.

The alarm went off at 5:20 but I was not pedaling until 6:34. Coffee and more coffee, finally propelled me out the door. I do this every Saturday and it drives me crazy. I want to be out by 6:00 A.M. I know by 6:30 there are going to be bike gangs everywhere. That 1/2 hour makes a big difference.

But there I was, 1/2 behind already, with the work still needed to get done.

I decided to change things up a bit this weekend by doing the brick in Central Park. I wanted to run part of the actual course after the ride. I started my ride on Riverside, made my way up and back then into Central Park for one loop on the big loop incorporating the big hill. I wanted to add some hill work to the workout as well because there are definitely hills on the race course. If I remember correctly after the first big hill on the course its rolling hills from then on.

I would like to let you in on a little secret, I am very competitive. Whenever I get passed on my bike or on a run, I assess if that person should have passed me or not. Tall men get a pass because, of course, they have long legs and are going to pass me. That’s a given. When I get passed by women, I don't let it go as easily. The west side of Central Park is a series of rolling hills after a big hill. Climbing on my bike is always a challenge for me. The story goes: I was climbing the hill after the big one and got passed by a pretty normal looking person. Not happy about it, nor can I let it go. I used the downhill for momentum and hit a pretty nice climb speed but alas she passed me again. Still not letting it go. On the third hill, again using my momentum from the downhill I chugged it out and passed her on the climb and woohooed myself through the imaginary finish line. I know she knew I was racing her and I thank her for making me work just a little harder.

The Husband was waiting for me with my transition spot completely set up. I have a wonderful team. Every week The Husband and The Dog are waiting for me at my transition point and, until this past Saturday, usually stick around for the run finish as well. This week, because the run was so long, The Husband left The Dog behind and did not stick around to wait 40 minutes for me to finish. I can't blame him. [Editor’s note: This was the plan so it wasn’t a surprise.]

I took off from the transition into the run shaky as usual. I started at the hill at 72nd Street and ran north. The conversation in my head went something like this: “It’s not race day, calm down.” “You are not racing anyone else in this park so just relax.” “They can pass you.” “They probably did not just bike for an hour and half before they started their run today. “

So calm down I did [Editor’s note: My wife just turned into Yoda. I don’t know why. “Fast ride you did!]. I already had one race today, I don't really need another. And it was getting hot. Although I was shaky, I did not have any side cramps nor did I have any hamstring cramps. I allowed myself a nice easy pace because the goal today was to get it done, not finish first. I ran the side of the park that I biked.

Saturday was my best brick to date and I can't begin to tell you how happy that makes me. I have been worried that I was not ready to race. Although I am tired and hungry, I believe now I am ready or pretty damn close. I walked home from the park and laid down on the floor tired, sweaty and hungry.  Nap ensued.

One more week of big training sessions before I start to taper. We’re getting close (ok that was a panic moment).

Laura

 

I Read Most of an Internet Article

Hi it's Laura

For those of you who only read the first paragraph: Monday strength training at the gym @6am, 75 minute bike ride at 9am; Tuesday 9 mile run followed by a 1200 meter swim; Wednesday 2 hour bike ride at 6am, strength training in the afternoon; Thursday 6.5 mile run @ 6am followed by a 2050 meter swim. Coming up on Friday a 30 minute run plus strength training and Saturday morning a brick workout which will include a 90 minute bike ride followed by a 40 minute run. Needless to say, I am tired and I am hungry.

It came to my attention the other day the some people only have time to read the first paragraph of my blog. So there is my week in a nutshell. I was a little annoyed by that fact. I can say that here in the second paragraph because the people who only read the first paragraph have already stopped reading. And then I remembered why I started documenting training in the first place. Part of it was to share my experience with my friends & family but it was mostly to be able to look back and remember, at some point in time, how I was feeling and what was going on. It tracks if I have personally grown, establishes credibility as a trainer and puts the word out there that I know what I am doing.

I am over the insult now (if I was ever really insulted in the first place).

I am hungry constantly and I am exhausted. Because I am so tired, I am turning stupid. This morning, I tried to put my dirty dishes in the refrigerator instead of the dishwasher. Granted, they are right next to each but it was not the first mishaps of my week. I find myself staring off into space like The Dog looking at a squirrel. Now, I am wishing for Sunday so I can rest.

I know last week I made a comment about craving a little more exercise because of recovery week. I certainly knew this week was coming but didn't realize what it was going to do to me. I am sleeping very well (not like I have choice being so tired).

Today, Friday, is a bit of a break with a short run and some strength training. I am grateful for the break but also a dreading my brick workout on Saturday. A 90 minute bike and a 40 min is almost the triathlon distance. If I could actually move faster (I do try), that time could actually cover the distances.

At this point in my training, I know I have mentioned that I have amped it up from last year, I am finding I have very little time for anything including sitting down to write this. When I am not swimming or biking or running, I am eating. I am constantly consuming. I am fascinated by the body and how it talks to you. I am not just hungry with a little tummy growl. I actually feel a deep hunger that comes from my body not my stomach. My muscles are screaming for nutrients and so I let them have it. I am eating two breakfasts and a morning snack. I renamed my green smoothie a POWER SMOOTHIE for all the stuff that goes into it. There is lunch, two afternoon snacks, dinner and dessert (sugar free fudge pops with natural peanut butter with fat free whip cream, yum).

I have clients that will have half a Muscle Milk and be full. I am a little jealous. I wish I could be full these days on just that little amount of food.

I am being careful. I eat all of my meals at home that are whole foods with lean proteins, fruits and lots of leafy greens. Alcohol is pretty much off the table, except for Saturday nights. In these last few weeks, the effects of alcohol are too dehydrating to indulge in not to mention the potential for a hangover and the GI issues it can cause.

I would have loved to regale you with stories from my week but sadly today most of the entertaining stories have been forgotten already. If I don't get to them right away they kind of fade. Perhaps next week…

Enjoy the weekend.

Laura

 

Brick Workout #5

Hi. It's Laura.

Happy Monday, I mean Tuesday.

Be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it. I could almost kick myself for saying that I was craving a bit more of a workout at the end of last week. The beginning of this week has proved so far exhausting but that can wait until tomorrow.

I finished off last week with a lovely brick on Saturday morning. I try to get out of the apartment as early as I can on Saturdays. The Husband is usually meeting me at the end of the ride to hold my bike while I go for the run portion. And I hate for him to ruin his entire day, so I get up regular time and I try to be out the door by 6:00. Realistically I am always forgetting something so it’s more like 6:15/6:30.

I was on Riverside Drive by 6:30 and on my way. My original plan was to head over the GWB and into Jersey to go up 9W. It was a lovely Saturday morning. The temperature was perfect & no wind to speak of. I was about 10 minutes into my ride when I was passed by a bike gang.

They were about 7 people, a mix of men and women. I am not sure where they came from. It was quiet when I left and I was not going that slowly.  They caught me and passed me (but not really). I was actually kind of stuck at their tail. Their slowest person was just a little slower than me. I tried to slow down and let some distance get between us but I kept catching them and becoming part of them.

I am opposed to bike gangs. I always feel like I am being pushed around a little and they make me very competitive. That morning, I did not want to give all-out effort on my bike with a run still ahead of me.

I decided to pull over and let them get well ahead of me. Bad move. As I was stopped at the traffic light, I was passed by two more guys on bikes riding together and then two more after that. Ugh. So much for a quiet ride early on a Saturday morning.

I knew the bike gangs were going to be out because it was so nice out but I thought I would have at least until 8:00am before being overwhelmed by the gangs.

But wait, there is more. I take off from the traffic light only to be passed by a group of at least 7  women.

I was so annoyed. I sacrificed Friday happy hour and wine with dinner in order to get out early. Could I please have one hour to myself?

An opportunity presented itself. I used the road and the hills to get some serious distance between myself and the gang of women. I hit about 25 mph on a downhill and was able to maintain 18 to 21 Mph for the next 10 minutes or so. This put a lot of distance between me and GOG (Gang of Girls).

At that point I decided I was not going over the bridge into Jersey. If it was already this bad at 7:00am the Jersey route would be a nightmare. Once I hit Fort Washington Avenue I headed to Fort Tyron Park. I started arguing with myself about “how I am supposed to get a decent workout if I let these bike gangs intimidate me”. I have as much right to cross the bridge as they do. I decided to go across the bridge.

I crossed with no drama except for the wind. The wind was wicked and very loud. So loud in fact I could not hear my music.

I was happy I made the decision to cross the bridge. This gave me plenty of a continuous riding time instead of starting and stopping.

In order avoid the large crowds of cyclists heading up 9W, I decide to go straight on East Palisades Avenue. All I could think all the way down East Palisades Avenue was little piggy's going all the way home. Weeeeee!

I hit a solid 28 mph on the downhill and then it hit me. I will have to go back uphill with "all that fun" once I turn around. Uh oh.

I turned around and headed back. 5mph was all I could manage on the climb. I think at one point, I may have hit 6mph on the climb. It was a bitch of 10 minutes up hill in the sun. I was so happy when I hit Hudson terrace, which is the road immediately off the GWB.

The trip back is always amazingly fast. I was back in Riverside Park within 30 minutes.

I really wanted to track this ride accurately so I stop my GPS watch whenever I stop my ride to get an accurate read. Sadly I forgot to turn it back on until after I was over the bridge. So I missed about 20 minutes of my ride.

So much for knowing exactly how far I went or how much energy I used. Oh well…

The run portion was the best so far. No side cramps, no dizziness, nothing other than sheer panic.

I realized that Sunday was exactly one month out. I don't remember if I was this panicked last year. If I was, it was for entirely different reasons. Last year I really had no expectations and this year I know exactly what to expect.

Let the countdown begin.

Laura

1 Strike, You're Out

Hi, it's Laura.

I honestly thought Monday and Tuesday we're going to be my difficult days this week.

With having too much fun on Sunday putting me behind and playing catch up and the work piling on, they should have been. Wednesday and Thursday proved to be just as difficult.

As you have heard me complain, I feel like, endlessly at is point, the weather has done it again. Before I continue, I love sunny days. I don't like to sit in the sun anymore. I can find way better things to do on a sunny day at does not involve laying out and getting a suntan. Golf, a leisurely bike ride, sitting in the shade and reading a book. I also love rainy days. There a so many different things to do on rainy days. Sit inside and read a book, cook, clean closets and fun stuff.

So when I complain about the weather, the only reason I am complaining is because it is stopping me from executing my very well thought out training plan.

Wednesday, I was scheduled for a bike ride. My training plan only required a 70 minute ride. I told The Husband I would take The Dog for him on Wednesday morning so he could get a workout in for himself. Completely selfish on my part. As competitive as I am, I admittedly did not want to ride in Central Park in the morning with all the other cyclists. It can be a real zoo some days (like Monday through Thursday). Since it is a recovery week, I was perfectly happy to ride in the afternoon. Although the park can be packed with tourists on bikes and The West Side bike path can be just as a bad. I was willing to take my chances.

Before The Husband set out for the office Wednesday morning, he donned his panama hat. I warned him that it was quite windy out and he may want to rethink that idea. I should take my own advice sometimes.

After "work", an afternoon dog walk and lunch (procrastinate much?), I get myself together for an afternoon ride.

I thought perhaps the wind had subsided some from the morning hours. I was wrong. The winds were just as strong. I checked the weather app on my phone one more time before I took off, 20 MPH North West winds. Ugh!

I figure I would get the hardest part of the ride out of the way first and head north up Riverside. Riding against the wind is like going uphill. You fight and fight and get nowhere pretty quickly. What would normally take me 28 minutes, against the wind, took me 40. Sadly heading north my average speed was 11MPH. The ride back was a different story. I averaged 17 MPH and made it back in less than 28 minutes.

Thursday morning, more weather. The forecast was for torrential rain all day but, according to the weather channel app, it was not supposed to start until 8 or 9am with potential thunder storms in the afternoon.

Ok, I have plenty of time to get my workouts done. I head for Central Park and of course the rain starts. The weather man was calling for about 3 inches of rain. So out of character, I decided to head back home and run in the gym. I really didn't want to run 7 miles in the rain. Since it is a recovery week, I figured it would be ok and I headed to the gym with little guilt.

7 miles done, I head to the pool.

I moved my longer swim of the week to Thursday this week due to "too much fun" on Sunday. I reckon moving the swims around is not so much of a big deal this week as long as they get done.

I had 1200 meters of my 1400 meter swim complete when I see feet and a yellow kickboard in front of my face. I have no idea what this could possibly be. The pool is so lovely quiet. Aqua class is happening in the first two lanes. Me and one other woman are swimming at the same pace in the medium lane, never running into each other and playing very nicely together.

It’s the life guard. She needs everyone out of the pool. Apparently there was a lighting strike. The JCC rules say if there is lightning everyone out for 20 minutes unless there is more lighting then the clock starts again.

Uh oh! I get out and race down the stairs to the showers. The aqua class ends at 10:30 so I try to time myself to be out of the pool no later than 10:15. These classes are quite large. At least 15-20 women and they all shower at the end of class. If you don't beat them to the showers, there is usually a wait and then a wait for the hair dryers. My goal is to be on the hair dryers before they let out of class.

Half of the class decided to wait it out, the other half decided to not wait the 20 minutes and head to the locker room. I managed to grab a shower before any of them can get downstairs. I can also move a lot fast than all of them. Half way through my shower, I hear "there are people out here waiting to take a shower". I empathize but I can only wash myself as fast as I can wash myself (and they don’t hurry when they beat me to the showers). I didn't dilly dally and got out of the way as quickly as possible. The weather they predicted for day time never materialized here in Manhattan. It was one bolt of lightning and one rain shower at 11:00.

My swim workout thwarted, I chalk it up to an interesting if not successful week. Recovery week is working because I don't feel like I have done a ton of work and I am kind of craving bigger workouts.

Weather, once more, impacts Friday morning. The Husband sent me a text from the morning dog walk: "no rain. Park is quiet. Cool, very cool" I'm excited for an empty park, cool temps and no rain. Woohoo!

I head out for my short run (30 minutes) and I bet you can guess what happens.

Rain, Rain, Rain of course. I don't care. The park is lovely, quiet, cool and the rain is not that hard. [Editor’s note: It also stopped for my commute to work so I was dry all morning.]

One more workout for the week, a brick on Saturday, a two hour bike ride and a 15 minute run. No weather predicted. Halleluiah!

Enjoy the weekend

Laura