In Da Club

I'm thinking of joining a triathlon club just to have a group to work out with. There's one that meets around here and I've been emailing back and forth with one of the guys who helps organize things. His daughter is actually a Scottie, so we sort of have something in common. They've got a meeting Thursday night that I may try to make just to meet people and get a feel for the group. If I like them, I'll start training with them.

I haven't heard back from the IronGirl people about volunteering, so I may send them another email. I'm really anxious to see a tri in action and help out. There's a big group going to Knoxville, but I think I might just stick with IronGirl since it's just at Lake Lanier.

I missed my training today because my digestive system has been acting up. I dunno if it's a bug or just something I ate, but it was bad enough I skipped camp this morning. To put things in perspective, I didn't skip camp when I sprained my ankle and bruised my right knee so badly it would barely bend. I'm hoping to feel back to normal tomorrow so I can swim and go to spin class. I'm not sure what my plans are for tomorrow night. I may go to dance, but part of me will just get depressed because I have to quit and pay for my car. *sigh* I guess I should go and enjoy what little time I have left. I haven't been in several weeks between my ankle injury and knowing that I went to the effort to pay for unlimited classes and then life got in the way. Anywhoo...

Time for more stomach meds.

Race Recap

I had a really great time at my first race. I ran into (not literally) two of my fellow FitWitters. What are the odds of that in a race with 1600 runners? Apparently just good enough. I wasn't really nervous, but it was nice to have people to talk to instead of just wandering around before the start.

I managed to get a spot toward the front of the start, so it only took me a few seconds to cross the starting line. I kept a good pace. The course wasn't super hilly which I liked. I kept a good pace and only had to walk a few times. It was probably because I didn't warm up well enough. Now I know for next time that I need to make sure I'm nice and warm. Perhaps I should've gotten Stacy to lead us in a dynamic warm up. :P I finished in 37:33, which is respectable considering I didn't exactly train for this race. Now that I have an official time and a training plan for my tri, I have something to shoot for in the next one. It'll probably be the Sweetwater 420 Fest 5k or the Take Back the Night 5k that benefits the Dekalb Rape Crisis Center. Both of them are at more reasonable times, too. I got a cool shirt, a bag, a bunch of Larabars, and the satisfaction of knowing I'm now a competitive runner. It's one small step toward my tri.

I didn't get to train today. I was supposed to swim and bike, but it was raining, so biking was out. By the time I did everything else I had to do today, I didn't have time to swim either. I'll just get it in tomorrow. It's not supposed to rain, I don't think. I'll bike before yoga and swim after. Tuesday I'll be back to running and my calves should be okay by then. I was supposed to participate in an unofficial 5k this morning, but when I woke up my legs were feeling pretty sore. Maybe next time.

I'm hoping to finally settle into my training schedule this week. Obviously I can't control the weather, but I'd like to stick as close to the plan as possible. I'm thinking of taking a couple swimming lessons just to refine my technique a bit. It certainly can't hurt to take a bit of a refresher class.

Donations, Races, and Other Such Joys

I got my second donation in! Just when I was starting to feel like I was doing something wrong. Thank you Anonymous donor who gave $75. Whoever you are, wherever you are, your generosity is deeply appreciated. :D

My very first race is tomorrow and I'm not nervous...yet. I'm sure I will be when I get there, get my number, and start milling around. I'm going to try to keep a 10 min/mile pace. I think that's about what I was doing when I ran the last time and crashed and burned. I don't think that should be a problem this time around. At least, I hope not.

Because of the race, I skipped my training run today. I'm going to try to swim or bike after the race tomorrow, if I'm not totally dead. Life is starting to get in the way a bit, so I'm not sure. It's supposed to rain on Sunday, so I may want to wrestle with the bike first and then swim on Sunday. One of my FitWit buddies is hosting an unofficial 5k on Sunday, so I may walk/hobble that and enjoy a mimosa at the end. :P

I'm hoping to settle into a better training routine next week. Barring injuries and acts of God, that should happen. I really need to spend more time on the bike, but every time I get a chance it seems the weather is nasty. I guess I'll just take my chances tomorrow.

Another Frustrating Day

*sigh*

Today's training goal was a 16 minute run and then to take my two favorite dance classes. After camp this morning, my right IT band made it clear that no such thing was going to happen. I got a foam roller, a knee strap, and a new ThermiPack. Yes, that means I'm actually icing something and trying to rehab it properly. I think most of my problems stem from the fact that I overpronate like there's no tomorrow. I'm sure the new shoes are helping, but I haven't been in them long enough to see any real improvement.

There's no way I'm not running in the 5k on Saturday. I think as long as I keep the regimen of roller, ice, knee strap, and Darvocet up, I should be fine. It also should be safe to tool around on the bike Saturday afternoon. It sucks that I'm only just starting and I'm already having problems. It's not like joint problems are new for me, but meh.

Hopefully my plan will work and I'll be feeling better sooner rather than later.

Dine Out / Cure Cancer

My date is officially confirmed for Palate. If you're in the Atlanta area, please, please, please consider attending. Here are the details:

Where: Palate Cafe & Wine Bar, Decatur, GA
When: Tuesday April 20, 2010 from 6pm-close
Why: Palate has graciously agreed to donate 15% of the proceeds from diners on this night to go toward my fundraising. Just let your server know that you'd like 15% of your bill to go toward Team in Training.

If you haven't been to Palate, they have an amazing patio, wine selection, and the food is awesome. It's a great time of year to have a glass of wine, take in spring, and all for a good cause.

Tonight is another round of swimming. Eep!

Wake Up Call

Swimming:

Holy hell, swimming is no joke. I managed to swim 10 laps in 13 minutes which is way over what I'll have to swim in the real thing. However, I had to keep stopping to catch my breath. I also find I'm a stronger backstroker than freestyler. I'm going to have to practice my freestyle since I need to see where I'm going in open water. My next swim session is tomorrow morning and hopefully they haven't changed the pool schedule on me. The old folks swim from 6-7, so I'm shooting to be in the pool by 530 and done by 6. My time goal is 16 minutes and my personal goal is to swim as many laps unbroken as I can.

Biking:

The weather was much better today, so I took Gunter out for a spin. This is super embarrassing because I couldn't even get on without using the curb. I think the seat is set for more of a racing height than a regular height. I'm going to try lowering the seat and see what happens. I'm also going to find a parking lot to practice in away from traffic. Between watching for cars, having trouble getting on, and feeling painfully self-conscious about my lack of skills, I only managed to get about 20 feet in 20 minutes. I'm hoping the bulk of my problems will be solved simply by lowering the seat. And gaining a little more confidence.

Running:

My right IT band is bothering me. For those unfamiliar, it's a ligament that runs down the outside of your leg that runs from your hip to the outside of your knee. I managed to get my run in this afternoon, but I had to walk because it was bothering me. It's not pain, but tightness. The good news is it's relatively easy to manage, but it can be a sign of an overuse injury. I need to get a foam roller and just make sure that I'm massaging it regularly to keep it loose. Runners and tri folks swear by it so I trust them.

It's going to be a long, hard road to get there. I don't know why I thought it would be easy. All this stuff is straight up no joke. I think I'll feel a ton better when I get a hang of the biking again and can ride without feeling like I'm going to crash. Obviously if I learned it before, I can get it back. I just need to be patient with myself. I've got plenty of time to refresh myself and there's plenty to focus on with my running and swimming as well.

My fundraising has stagnated. I've sent out emails to family, friends, and businesses and still only have $25 to show for it. I'm sure once I confirm with Jill and start spreading the word about Palate, things will pick up. I need to check with the branch manager about my breakfast fundraiser idea as well. I'm gonna keep harping on this because it's the truth. It's not the big donations that make the difference, it's the little ones. Even if you can only afford $10, that's $10 that goes toward a cause that saves lives. It's also $10 less the IRS counts on your taxes. :D

Fully Outfitted

And now I'm fully outfitted and ready to go! I got my goggles and a swimsuit. The swimsuit is definitely cut differently than I'm used to, so I think I may need to start doing some serious glute toning exercises. :P

I got foiled out of my bike ride because of the weather. It's cold and rainy/sleeting. I'm gonna head over to the Y in a bit and do yoga then swim. I also missed camp this morning because I had to go to the dentist. I'll be back at it tomorrow though and out with the running group. The one thing I don't have is a watch. I should've picked one up at Dick's as I have no way to tell how long I've been out. Might be useful, no? Of course, that won't matter when I'm swimming. I'm sure I'll cave and invest in something waterproof along with a heart rate monitor and other fun accessories. I'm already looking at tri shorts and tops. I'm especially a fan of these:



I guess I could do 24 min on the spin bike just to get my time in, but I'm still not sure how to adjust those things. I think the more road practice I get, the better. Plus, a little yoga never killed anyone.

I Got My Bike!

Yesterday was a stressful and traumatic day, but I finally got my bike. The shop was recommended to me by one of my boot camp buddies and I'm glad I checked it out. They had a bike that fit my needs on sale for $200 down from $500. It's not an ideal tri bike, but the general consensus is I don't need to be investing in something until I know I'm going to stick with it. I also got a helmet, shorts, and a pump. Of course it's raining today so I can't get out and ride him, but that's okay. I'm sure the weather will clear up soon enough.

I also got fitted for actual running shoes. The woman who helped us was really good and I ended up with a pair that I didn't expect I would. I'm pretty excited to see if it helps my ankle pain, which I'm sure it will. Again, would love to test them out, but it's raining.

I still don't have a swimsuit and goggles, but I can pick that up tomorrow. Then I'll be fully outfitted and ready to throw myself into training.

You Train, You Sprain

Yup, one sprained left ankle. I've got a lace up brace, 2 kinds of pain medication, and instructions to wear said brace when I'm going to be super active. I'm also supposed to do physical therapy 2-3 times a week for 6 weeks, but I just can't afford it. My insurance only covers so much. I still have my therabands and exercises from when I broke it 2 years ago, so that should give me something to go on.

Today was pay day so I can *finally* go shopping for everything I need. I'm definitely getting a performance swimsuit, goggles, a helmet, and new running shoes. If there's a bike in my price range, I'll get it as well. There's a store that's got a bunch of stuff on clearance and some of it in my price range. I'll probably end up doing that on Sunday or Monday. It'll most likely be Monday because they can spend more time with me. I'll definitely be able to hit up spin class and the pool, so that's a start. I need to make a training calendar with my daily goals on it.

No more donations yet, but Meg has helped me put together a letter to send out to restaurants to get them to participate in the dine around. Hopefully more of them will agree to do it. I also haven't heard back from any family members yet, which is a little surprising. Usually they jump on stuff like this, but whatever. I've still got over 4 months. I also haven't tapped my co-workers yet or done any kind of raffle/auction. It's times like these I wish I were more patient.

Tomorrow's plans really depend on when I get out of bed. I'm not going to push myself super hard since I am recovering. If I get up way early, I might go to yoga. If not, I'll probably dance for a little bit then get fitted for my new shoes. Considering it's not even 7pm and I'm already exhausted, I think it's wise to be easy on myself for a bit longer.

Until next time!

Oh Push Ups, How I Loathe Thee

To preface this, my official training won't begin until May. Until then, I'm on my own. I've been doing fitness camp since the first week of January and that has definitely whipped my butt into shape quickly. Today's workout, for example, was a fun one.

The main event was the push up / wall ball challenge. The "wall ball" exercise is tossing a medicine ball against a wall, catching it while going down into a squat, and repeating. It's about as pleasant as it sounds. We alternated those with push ups in descending reps. But wait! There's a catch! For those of us who are still doing push ups on our knees (*cough* me *cough*), we had to 40 reps each time. So my rep count looked like:

40 push ups
50 wall balls
40 push ups
40 wall balls
40 push ups
30 wall balls
40 push ups
20 wall balls
40 push ups
10 wall balls

Needless to say, my arms were a wee sore after that. I did it in under 20 minutes and wasn't last, so I guess I can't complain too much. As if that wasn't enough fun, we then went down to the basketball court and did an 8-4-2 touch drill. Again, not that simple. Not only did we have to carry a medicine ball for the 8, we had to run backwards. Yes, run backwards. Hilarity ensued. I was no dumb bunny and partnered up with one of the fastest runners in the group. As a result we were the second team to finish, even though my slow self started us off.

Then during my lunch break, I went and ran on the treadmill. I managed to go 1.66 miles in 20 minutes, which was a bit slower than I've clocked in the past. I think part of it is being able to see the minutes tick down. I know exactly what pace I'm going at so then it messes with my head. When I'm running outside and have a route to complete, I think that actually makes me work harder.

Tomorrow's plan:
Sleep in :P
30 min bike during lunch
3 hours of dance

There's a group meeting for a 3 mile run tomorrow, but I think I'll pass. I probably should go, but my ankle is feeling more off than usual. Plus, a good night's sleep is vital to successful training. I definitely didn't have that going for me last night.

First Donation In!

A huge shoutout to Eugenie Viener for being my first donor. You rock hardcore, girl! I can't say it enough that every little bit helps. It's not the $1000 donations that make a difference, it's the little ones.

I spent all day brainstorming on fundraising ideas and I think I've got a couple good ones.

Date Auction:
I'll be auctioned off on the eve of April 2 to support a fellow TNTer's efforts. Tickets are $10, so if you'd like to purchase me or just heckle me, let me know and I'll sell you a ticket.

Mother's Day Basket Raffle:
I'll have this together by the end of April. For $10, you get a shot at winning a basket full of goodies for the mom in your life who really needs it. If you're feeling really ambitious, buy 5 tickets for only $40. I haven't solidified the exact details of what will be in the basket, but definitely a $50 Bath & Body Works gift card, a candle, and a gift certificate for a nice dinner out. Full details will be posted when I have it assembled.

Dine Out for A Cure:
This is still in the works. Ideally, I'll get 5 local restaurants to participate over the course of 5 months. I'll make flyers and on the selected night, 10-15% of the proceeds from participants will go toward LLS. You have to have the flyer, though, otherwise the restaurant won't know to include you. One restaurant is all in, we just need to set an exact date. I called another and they seemed amenable to it. I'll know for sure in a few weeks. I have a fairly long wish list of places, so I'm hoping 5 of them will agree to participate. I'm about to go write up the participant fact sheet to have when I visit in person.

So that's the latest on the fundraising front. I'll cover my training in the next post. It definitely deserves its own entry.

Nation's Tri, Here I Come

It's official! I'm registered with Team in Training for the Nation's Triathlon in September. I don't know how many people read this thing, but I figure it's worth plugging here as well.

Please, please consider making a donation. The proceeds benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Even if you haven't been personally effected by blood cancer, it's still an amazing cause. Every donation is, of course, tax deductible. Whether you can give $10 or $1000, every dollar makes a difference. Cancer research is something very, very close to my heart with both my father and grandmother as survivors. To donate, follow this link:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/ga/nattri10/emilykelly

Thanks in advance for your generosity and support. Oh yeah, and fuck cancer. ;)

Late Nights & Time Changes Don't Mix

So, thanks to a late night last night coupled with the time change, I woke up too late to make it to dance. I also lost all my motivation to go to spin and run because I was just that exhausted. I'm amazed I'm still awake right now. I'll probably go to bed early and that will sort me out so I'm ready to take on the week.

In other good news, I got my iPod shuffle charger back. It's a lot easier to run with that one than my nano. I love my nano, but it requires pants or a jacket with a pocket.

Apparently, sign up sheets for the June show at the dance studio went up this week. It figures the one week life gets in the way is the week the sheets go up. Even though there aren't any classes I'm interested in tomorrow, I'm still gonna stop by and sign up. I think I'm going to limit myself to three both for financial reasons and time commitment. Rehearsing 3 pieces will take a lot of time and probably a good bit of time away from my training for the 1/2 marathon & triathlon. We'll see, though.

Tomorrow's another day and the day I get myself back on track for good. No more useless carbs, no more excuses, and no more just having dreams. It's time to work myself out and turn a dream into reality. Yes. I. Can.

Life Lesson #76

Digest before deciding to run. I was inspired to make pancakes, then figured I should go out for a run while the motivation was there. And by motivation, it was probably a sugar rush. Those pancakes almost came up for a return tour about half a mile in. I finished out the mile and called it good. Now I know better. My pace wasn't bad. I ended up averaging about an 11 minute mile. It's no great shakes, but there was a time where a 15 minute mile was usual for me. Tomorrow's goal is to finish the full 3.3 miles. Just don't eat first.

I'm also thinking of joining a running group or running with some of my fellow FitWitters. I know several of them participate in various groups, so I'll ask around on Monday. There was a group training for a half marathon, but it's being run next weekend, so I figure they're way out of my league. Too bad I didn't know about it before. They always get breakfast after the runs (wait a sec...). I think I'd do better with the accountability of a group, much like with FitWit. If I'm left to my own devices, I'll make excuses. I can't make excuses if I'm going to do a triathlon, run a half marathon, or even finish a 5k. It just doesn't work that way. That said, my training goals for the rest of the week:

Tomorrow: 1 hr spin class (since I don't have a bike yet), 2 hrs of dance, 3.3 mile run
Monday: 1 hr camp, 30 min treadmill (to see how far I can sustain at an 11 min/mile), 1.25 hr yoga
Tuesday: 1 hr camp, running group
Wednesday: 1 hr spin class, 3 hrs dance
Thursday: 1 hr camp, 3 hrs dance
Friday: 1 hr camp, 3 hrs dance
Saturday: Running group (?), 30 min swim if I have goggles and a more practical swimsuit by then

The dancing doesn't really count as training, but I love it and it's a nice way to make sure I stay stretched. I don't do yoga nearly as much as I should, but dance warm ups seem to have kept the true pain at bay.

On that note, I should pull myself together and get ready to dance.

If At First You Don't Succeed

I've decided to train for a triathlon. Yes, I've lost my mind. Daddums doesn't seem to think I can do it, which hurt my feelings a bit. I'm running my first 5k two weeks from tomorrow. I'm shooting to run one a month in addition to longer runs. I don't have a bike yet, but hopefully I'll have one by the middle of April. Until then, I'm going to take 2-3 spin classes a week just to get myself used to cycling. Will's dad was a competitive cyclist and he was hooked on spin classes, so it has to be fairly legit as a form of training. I need to figure out the Y's pool schedule for lap swim. Looking at it makes absolutely no sense. I'll just talk to a person and determine when the best times are to swim. I joined Beginner Triathlete and they have some training plans for every level.

I'm considering joining Team in Training as well. I've been going back and forth with one of the women in the office and I'll probably do the Nation's Triathlon in DC in September. It's an Olympic distance which is a .9 mile swim (1.5 k), 25 mile bike ride (40 k), and 6.2 mile run (10 k). A sprint would probably be better for my first one, but the shortest one they're doing for the fall is Olympic. I'm planning on running in a 5 or 10 k every month for the next 3 months. I may even try and get a number for the Peachtree if I post a good time in one of the other races. The fundraising part of TNT intimidates me a bit, but I think I can do it. I really wanted to do the Rock & Roll half marathon in Seattle in June with them, but I don't think I could raise the funds in time. If I went on my own, it would be about $1500 for the flight, hotel, entry fee, and whatnot. A more feasible option would be the Biltmore 5k in May. I can drive up there, get a good deal on a hotel from HotWire, and get to see the estate.

So that's where I am right now. I've been lazy this week because life got in the way, but I'll be back in full swing tomorrow. I'm gonna try and make a spin class tomorrow morning, then dance, then who knows? Gotta start somewhere if I'm gonna pull off this crazy goal.