Excuses for Sale…

First the shoulder, then work, then a cold, now I’m back to the work excuse. As much as I try to be good I just keep coming up with excuses to slack off from training and apparently keeping up with my blog!

Since last post - the rest of Thanksgiving week did not go as planned. Skipped the spin, made Melody’s party. Due to too many wines, I slept in on Thanksgiving and missed the swim and 5K. I did run on my own that morning but certainly not at the speed that I would have had I raced. Meanwhile, my cold was getting worse but I forced myself to run 10 miles on Saturday and spin 2 hours on Sunday. I will say the run was my first test of mental strength. I felt like a Nyquil commercial and did not want to run. I did an out and back so for each mile I went I had to do the same distance back. My mental dialogue went something like this:

OMG I’m not even going to make 2 miles. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
Just make it the 1 ½ marker to get 3 miles in. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
You’re not stopping until you can get 4 miles in. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
Screw that, you can do 6. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
At this point I stopped thinking about the return trip. Dialogue continues:
First 3 are the hardest, see how mile 4 feels. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
If you finished 4 you may as well get another ½ in. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
10 was the goal, just make it to 5. Cough, cough, hack, snort.
Made it to the turn-around and felt surprisingly good. Still, with each ½ mile increment I had to convince myself not to walk. Finally made it back to the car without walking. But, if any of you are on the W&OD trail, be on the lookout for a portion of my lungs.

The next week was a recovery week in which I recovered from my cold. The only things I did Tri related was Happy Hour and the run on Saturday.

First build week – Let’s face it, I just haven’t found the schedule to include strength training – maybe someday. So didn’t do those, or the Tuesday run, or the Sunday bike. SLACKER! The Monday run I pushed myself and ran with Harriet at a much faster pace. – felt great though. Two tough swims – again pushed myself harder then usual. Track and spin included lots of speed work but felt awesome. By Friday I was looking forward to a day off of working out!

Sat. I ran my first 16 miles and have I mentioned that I love running. Felt great, stayed a little ahead of my pack with little to no pain. That was followed by the Team Z holiday party (mmm, Bloody Mary’s). After that I was just physically exhausted and still had another party to go to. Due to the sheer exhaustion I managed to lock myself out of my house but Dude saved me until I could get my spare key from Shawna on Sunday (hence missed the ride). I then had to work and never found time/energy to spin.

Second build week – Work got in the way - again. Let’s just say I made the Monday run and I will make the Saturday run. Beyond that, I either have already missed it or no guarantees that I will make it. Maybe I’ll do the build workouts during recovery next week. Hmmm…

Birthday is Saturday and Christmas is just around the corner. If you happen to win the lottery, or find some spare change and want to buy me presents here’s my wish list:
Cervelo P3C
Zipp 404’s
Zoot Compression Tights – Active and Recovery
Team Z Sweatshirt – Embroidered with Es
Add-on Fuel Belt nutrition bag (separate attachment for my fuel belt)
Extra Fuel Belt bottles
Maid service for a year

If you don’t like any of those ideas, how about
Loving thoughts and best wishes since that is what you’ll be getting from me!

Happy Holidays to all!!!

Catch up...

blllsblbllllblbllblbllballblblbllb - that's the sound of my brain rewinding to what's happened since my last post. Let’s see, easy run, easy ride, start of first build week….

First build week – I’m still boycotting strength training for my shoulder’s sake. I did all of the other workouts until the Sunday 4 hour ride. I ran my first 14 miles on Saturday and felt FABULOUS!!!!! I love running. While Jason hobbled in to breakfast after the run I nimbly walked. Only my feet hurt which I guess is understandable after running that distance! As for Sunday’s ride – my true excuse is I had too much to do - sleep in with Dude, shop for Thanksgiving, take my friend Shawna to the airport, finish some work stuff, etc. Add that it was 30 degrees plus wind and I’m glad I had too much to do.

Side note – I went to Wegman’s to do my T-Giving shopping. Usually Wegman’s is my happy place but it was the Sunday before a holiday that revolves around food so this experience was not so great. The place was packed to the gills. Thankfully, they have a great wine section that offers tastings throughout the day. Unfortunately, the sommelier recognized me when I went back for my 3rd tasting. Obviously he had not been in the fresh produce section in awhile because nothing warrants a 3rd tasting like those crowds.

Second build week – BAD, BAD, BAD! Work is getting CRAZY!!! Monday, instead of getting my run in, I worked 11 hours. Tuesday, instead of swimming I slept in because I was tired after the long day before. I then worked 10 hours but managed to make up my Monday run at the gym. It’s now Wed and I’m working a ½ day, prep cook what I can for tomorrow, spin for 45 minutes, then head to the city for Melody’s birthday party. The only damper on that plan is I’m getting my traditional Thanksgiving head cold – seriously 10 years in a row!!! Started last night and is getting worse by the hour.

Another side note – I found out that my little Fairfax County Parks access key fob that I was given for morning swim practice is good anytime of the day – I had thought it was just for swim. I can now go to the gym for FREE. I LOVE FREE!!!

Remainder of the week: Swim T-Giving morning, Centreville Turkey Trot, get home and cleaned up and have the bird in the oven by 10:30. Eat. Reflect on all that I’m thankful for (so many things!). Easy run on Fri (make up for Tue), 10 miles on Sat, 3 hour ride on Sunday.

So I lied...

Well, recovery week is coming to a close and I did not keep up with the run training. I've done nothing this week. Wish I could say it's because of the shoulder but in truth it's just been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week.

I'm back though. Running in the morning with Jason at Burke Lake, easy ride on Sunday then it's game time. Full steam ahead for the next round of build training. Focus chica! 239 more days till IMS!

I signed up for my first marathon - Myrtle Beach on Valentine's Day. It's official, I'm certifiable because I am really looking forward to this!

Ready for more recovery

Week Five continued…
The good news is the shoulder is not broken. Pulled, sprained, pinched – whatever. The constant ache is now intermittent. I ran 12 miles on Sat and it hurt but not to the level of the beginning of the week. I decided to skip the bike on Sun just to get a bit more rest.

I did get Ruby fixed this week. When the chain broke it got stuck on the front derailleur and bent it so that had to be replaced. Of course, they didn’t have a 105 derailleur so I upgraded to the Ultegra model. Still haven’t ridden to see if I notice a difference.

So, the only training I did was the run. I felt good during and after. I do need to learn (and do) more hip flexor exercises. Next week is recovery week. I have Tuesday off of work so I’m going to do ½ of the bike ride that I missed on Sunday. Still going to skip the swim but will keep up with the running.

TTFN.

I'm not a kid anymore!!!

Week Four/Week Five:
This week’s blog brought to you by Toys R Us – Apparently I don’t want to grow up!

Build week – blah, blah, blah. I trained hard through Sunday, only missed one workout, then low and behold I may have fractured my scapula (that’s shoulder to those of you that were not addicted to ER in its heyday).

So, there I was, barreling down a hill on my bike at 48 mph in full aero position when a blind child darted into my path. I swerved and lost control…. No, I’m just kidding. I wish it was a cool story like that! Actually, I was at Cox Farm for Pumpkin Madness (this Northern Virginia place that does hay-rides, corn maze, pumpkin smashing, slides, rope swings, etc.) with Dude, his son, and his nephews. We were goofing around on the slide and I went to do a running jump so I could go really really fast. As I was landing I put my arm down to cushion the impact. When I got to the bottom I could no longer use my left arm. Searing pain, swelling, etc….

Went to the Dr. on Mon, got x-rayed and was told there may be a slight fracture. I’m now waiting for my CT results to find out for sure. The horrible pain and no mobility that was there on Sunday afternoon thru Tuesday is now gone. I can move “OK” and the pain has reduced to a constant ache. I can’t take the muscle relaxant during work hours because I will fall asleep, so by the end of the day I feel like someone used my shoulder for punching practice allllll day!

Needless to say, training is on hiatus. I will try to run on Sat. Swimming is out until the shoulder heals. And biking…well, I would be comfortable doing spinning but both bikes are being worked on (broke Ruby’s chain on Sunday before the shoulder incident and Grace is getting pimped out with new cables, pedals, and seat).

This SUCKS!!!!