Year in Review (Thursday 13)

January – Ran my first 20 mile. Also had a wonderful trip to Colorado with Dude (pic) to do some skiing and snowshoeing.




February – First marathon and Jason and I ran every step (pic). We did miss the 5-hour goal by 3 minutes but c'est la vie. Most important though, there was a new addition to my family. Penny arrived on 7 Feb at just over 18 pounds (pic).

March – Big training month and finally back to riding outdoors (pic). Unfortunately the weather never agreed so the riding was miserable (you can't tell in the pic but it was cold). I also started getting a sport massages every other week and bought a bunch of gear during March!

April – Race season has begun - Cherry Blossom 10 miler (pic) and Rumpass in the Bumpass (still the best named triathlon) – had a blast on the Olympic relay, serious fail with the sprint. This was not the best training month in terms of performance but I got it done.

May – First 70.3…and I got injured (pic). YIKES! Took some down time, then eased back into training. In other news – I planned and arranged our post Ironman vacation to Lake Como, Italy.

June – Second 70.3 and it was Awesome! (Sang in a high pitched voice) (pic). Then came the final long days of training and the expected angst leading up to race day. That angst turned into an odd calm as THE day got closer.


July – I AM AN IRONMAN!
Oh, and I had a fabulous vacation to Lake Como (pic).




August - Basked in the glow of being an IRONMAN. Also did some local exploring and found some incredible places. Due to those finds, I cooked a lot this month (pic). Dude and I also went to Pennsylvania for a Metric Century and I even managed to get some marathon training in.

September – Two firsts this month – my first Olympic distance tri (other two I participated in either cut the swim or turned into Duo) and my first 10K run. Decided not to do Marine Corp marathon. Highlight of the month was going home and hangin' with my highschool friends (pic).



October – PID set in…BAD! Barely trained, hell, I barely exercised. I also cut out a lot of socializing. I injured my jaw and I think I spent most of the month in pain and depressed.

November – PID still there - Depression sucks!! Managing to do some exercising on my own and a little bit of socializing. On the positive side, Dude and I have decided to buy a house together – but it will be awhile until we are living in sin - must sell two places before buying one.


December – Typical in that there were a lot of parties (pic), socializing, eating and not a lot of exercising. Developed my New Plan. Had a massive snowstorm on my birthday weekend. Celebrated Christmas with Dude and his family. And am planning a quiet evening to bring in the New Year.



Plans for 2010 are in the works. Continuing with “The Plan”, increase training with Team Z, a couple races, selling/buying a house, try to squeeze a vacation in, work on 101 in 1001, and enjoying the happiness I’ve found with Dude.

I wish everyone a safe and Happy New Year!

Bring it 2010!

Last Minute Gifts / Early Thursday Thirteen

In case you were looking for a last minute gift for me here's my wish list...

1. Team Z Sweatshirt - Large with ES embroidered on the arm.

2. Entry into Ironman Florida 70.3

3. Thing so I can connect my iPod (Shuffle) to my car stereo

4. Open Kitchen Gift Cards

5. Gift Card to Jouvance Spa in Reston

6. This triathlon bracelet

7. Ski vacation to Colorado

8. $343.10 - One year supply of 7-11 Coffee

9. Borders and/or iTunes Gift Card

10. Winning Mega-Millions Lotto Ticket

11. Yoga Classes

12. World Peace

13. Well wishes for an incredible 2010!

You'll notice the lack of tri-gear. I guess the good news is after training for and completing an Ironman, I am all stocked up on gear.

T-H-I-R-T-E-E-N

1. I’ve become addicted to this game called Bananagrams. It’s basically Scrabble without the board. And you create your own words and can take them apart to reuse letters. And there are no points – you either win or lose.


2. I got called out on my last post about my weight. Let me go on record to say that I know I’m not fat or overweight. It is an obsession of mine though for a number of reasons. Mostly because less then four years ago I was pushing 170 pounds which is a healthy weight if I was over 6’ but I’m only 5’7”. I have this irrational fear that I’ll wake up tomorrow and be back up there.

3. If anyone wants to know how to get up to 170 pounds it entails a bad marriage, travelling for work over 50% of the time, and a (un)healthy dose of cheeseburgers and wine.

4. To lose the weight took eating less and exercising more. I also got out of the marriage and changed jobs but the eating less and exercising more are what truly made the weight come off.

5. I’ve worked out every night this week - ran Monday, swam Tuesday, and ran/did speed work last night, spin class tonight. Woot!

6. I swam on my own and in the same amount of time of practice I managed to put in an additional 500m. Holy sore arms and back! I’m not sure the additional meters is a result of not chit-chatting between sets or that I had nobody to pace off of so I was going a little faster.

7. My Christmas spirit is missing. Still no decorations up (at either house), no cards sent, and the gifts I’ve bought are kind of lame and predictable. Usually I do a lot better!

8. I thought I had some people interested in my house but they decided against it. It’s officially going to be on the market at the beginning of the year – I just don’t have the time/energy right now to finish fixing what needs to be fixed and doing that “big clean”. New Year’s Day is always my alone day (Anniversary of my Dad’s death) so I’ll get some good cleaning in that day.

9. I have a craving for Korean food but I don’t know anyone else that likes it. Anyone? Anyone?

10. Work seems to be crammed full of non-stop…work! Spreadsheet after spreadsheet yet I feel like I’m getting NOTHING done!

11. I miss having parties. I use to throw two a year – a Mexican Fiesta in late Spring and a Wine Tasting at Christmas. Since moving here I’ve thrown one. Why is that?!

12. I need a vacation!!!!!!

13. Unless something amazing happens between now and Sunday, the next time I blog I will be 38 years old. That’s almost 40!!! How did that happen?!

New Plan

If you’ve noticed in the past couple months I have been aimlessly getting by when it comes to fitness. I’ve been blaming it on PID (Post Ironman Depression) but I believe it boils down to I’m not working towards anything.

Motivational Failures:
- Marine Corp Marathon – I was still injured and it was too much after IMS
- Training for the Shamrock 13.1 - after last years uber-exercising 13.1 miles is JUST 13.1 miles (I’m still doing it, it’s just not a strong enough focus)
- Worrying about my weight – it’s just depressing and makes me want to eat more

So in looking back at what got me to/through Ironman (other then the debilitating fear) what kept me motivated was #32 in my 101 in 1001 – money towards Finisher Gear (which, by the way, I only spent ½ of what I had earned).

Apparently, my career in finances has rubbed off and it’s all about money. So here’s my new plan:

Starting on 14 December, for every workout I finish I put $5 in the coffer (ok, I document it in a spreadsheet). Next year, on 13 December, that money will be used to buy myself either a really BIG gift or a substantially smaller one.

The missing piece to this plan is still a goal though. You see, I’m one of those people that rarely ever WANTS anything. And on those rare occasions when I do, well, quite honestly, I’ll just go get it. For this to work I think I need to be able to say, "The money is going to go towards…"

- a long ski weekend vacation for Dude and I ($1,000) = ~4 workouts a week
- cooking class once a month ($1,200) = ~5 workouts a week
- a spa day every other month ($1,500) = ~ 6 workouts a week
- a cycling vacation($2,000) = ~8 workouts a week

What should it be? Then again, perhaps it will be more fun to keep an on-going list...

13 - Should be 39 Since It's Been 3 Weeks!

1. It’s been 3 weeks since I posted…did you miss me? Actually a lot (by a lot, I mean not much) has been going on I just haven’t had time to share.

2. Working out update: I did...
- An 8-mile running time trial a couple weeks ago. It was great – negative split by over 5 minutes and my last mile was at a 9:40 pace (shut up all you speed demons out there).
- Swim practice twice. I vowed to go once a week but I missed this week…and last week.
- Rode for two hours – easy going.
- A Thirsty Thursday Turkey Trot – Drink a beer, run a quarter mile, repeat 3 more times. My time was 16:40 – first beer/quarter mile in less then two minutes; last beer/quarter mile 5 minutes 40 seconds.
- Some miscellaneous trips to the gym, and
- A 4-mile hike with close to 800 ft of elevation gain.

3. Have I ever mentioned that I love Thanksgiving? Well, this year I was lucky enough to celebrate twice. I cooked for some friends on Thursday (and other then the green beans it was fabulous) then we spent the weekend in Shenandoah and had a second Thanksgiving. Mmm, mmm good!

4. Weight – 21 days since the last post, 6 workouts, 2 Thanksgiving dinners, 1 Wine and Food pairing dinner, and 2 Happy Hours. I don’t want to talk about my weight!

5. House should be going on the market within a week. I waffled between selling and renting and after getting another notification about an increase in HOA dues I just want OUT!

6. I’m so proud of Dude – this Saturday he is getting promoted to Purple Belt in Jiu-Jitsu! YEAH!

7. I wonder what belt I’d be if triathlon had a Belt System. What would it be based on? Different Belts for different distances? Ability? Years experience? Speed?

8. I wish Coach Ed would post next years race schedule so I can figure out my plans. Doesn’t he know it’s All About ME!

9. I am finally getting a hair cut tomorrow – at least 3 inches off! I have never had hair this long and it is driving me CRAZY! (But I still like having it long)

10. This time of the year I really miss Colorado. A couple reasons – the snow, the skiing but mostly because I miss my friend Linda. I have friends out here but (aside from Dude) none that I am as close to. I just really miss having a “girlfriend”!

11. I have NO IDEA what to get Dude for Christmas. On the other hand, I have no idea what I want/need either. ***I’d like for us to give each other a trip out to Colorado!!!***

12. UGH! I should have stuck with my Lean Cuisine for lunch. Skipped it and went and grabbed a turkey wrap from the café. Holy Upset Tummy!

13. I managed to avoid the Croc craze because, well, I like cute shoes (especially heels) and those are just UGLY! Now, I’ve been reading about those Vibram shoes and I start thinking, hmm, I like being barefoot these might be cool. But then I look at them and I have to back to I like cute shoes (especially heels) and those are just UGLY!