Spectacular Signs

 

 

This Christmas morning was one of those morning that make you go “hmmmmm.”  It’s not uncommon for me, or most people for that matter, to think about those we have loved and lost, as well as those who are struggling over the holiday.  I am keenly tuned into the feelings and energy of others, even if they live hundreds of miles away.  When someone’s life of whom I am connected with is weighing heavy on them, it’s not unlike me to absorb that weight.  Sometimes, I feel as if I am right in the boxing ring with them, feeling and fighting their struggle. 

 

I choose to spend a lot of time alone. No need to pull out the tissue box or start playing your violins. Alone time is not to be confused with me being lonely.  I choose to spend a great amount of my time each day alone, away from “life noise” so that I can process my thoughts, reflect, express silent gratitude for all the positives in my life, and recharge my internal energy battery.  I spend time alone to recharge often so that I can be one hundred percent present with and available to others.  I choose time of solitude so that I am better able to share and radiate positive energy when I am present with and available to others. My hope is that this energy is absorbed and spread – like a bee spreading pollen for germination.

 

This Christmas morning, I decided to take a long walk on the beach.  The weather was the perfect kind of crisp, clear blue sky winter morning – I felt completely alive being out in the sun, close to the water and the waves. I also felt some form of energy source pulling me to the beach today. Normally, I’d head out for a jog or perhaps hop on my bike trainer to work off the hundreds of calories of Christmas cookies that I’ve been consuming. Today, however I was called by some force, to the beach.  Now, I know what’s happening here. You readers out there are thinking I’ve lost it and that you need to come to the Jersey shore ASAP to save me from going over the total deep end.  No, I didn’t “lose it!”  I actually connected with the spirit of Christmas …. Or frankly, just the spirit and power of energy connection.  Here’s how it went down.

 

As I veered off of the boardwalk and headed onto the sand towards the ocean, I was thinking deeply about those whom I am connected with and who are struggling right now.  This walk was my alone time for the day – my time to reflect, process and recharge.  On my way to the water’s edge, I decided that I wanted to find some brilliant sea glass as a sign to all of those who are coping with personal battles that they are on my mind.  I wanted it to be a sign that I was connecting with them on a higher level – directing my energy towards them.  I then “asked” to find sea glass colors that I have never found before – specifically a BRILLIANT BLUE (as is dark blue) OR a BRILLIENT RED.  I took it a step further and asked that my mother send me this sign – this piece of brilliant sea glass.  My mother passed away when I was ten years old. I always think of her over the Christmas holiday and she had been on my mind this morning when I woke up.  So, off I went walking down the beach by the water’s edge at a moderate pace (not lollygagging).  My only focus was finding that red or blue piece of sea glass. I actually spoke out loud – asking again for that sea glass to present itself to me (checking over my shoulder to make sure no one was around me).  About a mile or so into my beach walk, I saw something bright red directly in front of me.  It turned out to be a lone rose petal.  I took five or six steps more and found a couple more.  Not ten steps later did two BRILLIANTLY RED ROSES wash up to shore, right in front of me.  I took it as a sign. Despite asking for red sea glass, I was presented with two gorgeous, bright red roses.  You don’t often come across those on the beach.  As I made my way to my turnaround point, I saw the most beautiful, thick piece of BRILLIANT BLUE/GREEN sea glass laying in the wet sand. The water had just washed over it so that it was shimmering right there in front of me.  I’ve never found a combination of blue green glass like this catch.  It wasn’t the dark blue color that I was asking for, however it was certainly a spectacular find.  On my way back, I never gave up hope of finding the red or the dark blue piece, but my time was running out. Just as I was about to turn off the water’s edge and head back to the boardwalk, low and behold,  a piece of a bottle neck sat right in front of me and you guessed it, the color was dark BRILLIANT blue.  My mission was complete. I walked home with my two beautiful red roses, my unique piece of blue sea glass as well as a few other treasures I collected along the way.  I felt as if my request for deeper connection to my mother and those who have been on my mind was granted. Or, perhaps I created that energy force myself through pure thought and will.  I felt like my dog Lulu must feel when she rushes home from the beach with a piece of driftwood or a shell that she’s found on the beach.  I couldn’t wait to get home and take a longer look at my “finds!”   I did just that and then took a couple of pictures so that I could share this story with others.    As I took my coat off, I realized that I had not opened my Christmas gift that was sent to me from my father and his wife.  I unwrapped the gift to find that it was a black and white family photo of my mother, my father and my siblings from 1970.  My eyes were immediately drawn to my beautiful mother.  Today, this Christmas day, we connected.

Allowing for Flexibility within a Structured Training Plan

I’ve written hundreds of training plans over my coaching career.  I think that I can vouch for most coaches by saying that the majority of triathletes out there do not lack in the motivation department!  Many athletes come to me more than ready and excited for the challenge of attempting a first time event or the desire to ramp up his or her performance from previous years. It is my job to write out a plan that allows for balance on several levels, taking into account numerous variables such as work hours, family life, sleep quality, social life, travel etc. There is no doubt that having a clear, well thought out structured training plan takes the guesswork out and allows for training with intention.

 

One of my biggest challenges as a coach is to help athletes trust in their gut instincts of backing off if their body is telling them it’s tired or feeling off.  THIS, in my experience, is the biggest hurdle for highly motivated athletes to clear.  Sticking with the training plan is not the issue, however veering off it slightly and allowing for flexibility can be difficult. Certainly injury, chronic fatigue and potential burnout can be prevented just by listening to that inner voice which says, “I think I need to rest more today.”  That inner voice often will send an SOS signal calling for either a brief physical or mental break. Many athletes ignore these signs and feel that they must, under any circumstance, stick with the plan.  Most surround themselves with other athletes in training and feel pressure to keep up with the workouts, or feel guilty about missing a workout.  I often do my best, when reading athlete logs, to try and pull out those red flags and make adjustments. Often times, I’m pulling the reigns BACK on athletes, suggesting a workout option that is more playful and in line with active rest.  Athletes need to understand and trust that it’s OKAY to back off.  Listening to that inner voice and allowing for that flexibility can mean the difference between having a full, fun season of racing and training versus sitting on the sidelines with an injury.  Often times, the best barometer of feedback is not in watts, heart rate data or fancy graphs. Some of the best feedback comes from our gut instincts.  Finding the joy in training and being opening more flexibility in a training regimen is just as important as all the hard interval work or getting in the volume.

Here are some classic examples of listening to that inner voice:

“Suzie’s plan called for a 2800m swim with a main set of 10 x 100m at threshold pace. During the warm-up, her right shoulder was bothering her a bit and continued through the first three 100m repeats.  Suzie opted to hop out of the pool and not take the risk of adding more pressure to her shoulder. She took two more days off of swimming and felt back to normal again during her next swim.”

“Bob woke up feeling beat after a horrible night’s sleep.  He was scheduled to meet his regular, 6:30am Tuesday track group for an interval session.  His body felt off just walking around the house.  He opted out of the track session and did an easy spin on his mountain bike, exploring some carriage trails.”

“Carol has been prepping for her first ironman for the 5 months. She’s been feeling pretty tired from the past two weeks of higher volume training. Fortunately, she is on a back-down/recovery week in her plan, however she just does not feel excited about getting out for her 60 minute spin. She has not had a chance to spend much time with her non-athlete friends and misses those connections that help to make her feel balanced in her relationships.  So, she opted for a 45 minute walk on the bike path with her best friend.”

 

Often times, I’ll throw in recovery workouts on a plan for the bike that say “With a bell and a basket attached” so an athlete gets the hint that the ride should be easy and fun. Another example of one of my recovery suggestions for the run is “Run with an imaginary friend who is much slower than you.” 

 

The best advice that I can give to athletes is to speak to themselves as if they were their own best friend.  What would they say to a good friend if she or he felt pressure to so something on plan, but knew deep inside what they really needed? What would you say to your friend if he or she said that she was really, really tired and not up for doing something you had planned together?  You’d probably say that “it’s okay – we’ll get it in another time.” The best athletes, who perform well consistently, often follow a structured training plan. However, they also have learned the art of listening to that inner voice and allowed for flexibility within their plan.

The Power of Paying Attention

Me with my father

 

Recently, I had the honor of being inducted into my high school athletic hall of fame.  I was asked, as were all the inductees, to give a short speech which caused for a fare amount of reflection on my part. The actual induction was, no doubt, a very special event in my life. The fact, however that I had to spend time thinking about how I went from a shy, somewhat reserved young girl into a confident young adult was what brought greater depth to the occasion for me.  I have decided to post my speech, not as a way to boast about the honor, that's not who I am. I have decided to post my speech in hopes that the message of my story is heard and perhaps a lesson is taken away from any adult who is a part of a child's life.

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When I was eight years old, I picked up my mother’s guitar, which sat in the living room, and strummed the low E string over and over.  After a bit of time, I began singing a Halloween song that I had learned in music class to that E note.  I remember sitting for a long time in that living room, playing that guitar. My mother noticed and not too long after that day, I was signed up for group guitar lessons at my elementary school.  We played and sang in several school concerts. Playing the guitar, singing and writing songs became something that brought me a lot of joy when I was a kid. It was something I became pretty good at doing.

When was 10 years old, my mother died.  Around that time, my father began running more.  I would join him for his weekend runs on the beach when we were on summer vacation in Rhode Island. I’d follow his footprints until they washed away, then would turn around and head back to our meeting spot rock and wait for him. We’d do push-up and sit-ups after his run, hit the ocean for some body surfing and then walk back to our little rental cottage for a big breakfast.  I was probably the only kid who anxiously awaited the time of year for the Presidential Fitness Test so I could put sit-ups, push-ups and all that running to good use! I absolutely loved those few days of exercise testing and secretly, I wanted to crush the records. My father and I began running more regularly together on weekends and often entered road races together.  I can’t say that I loved those weekend runs (after-all, I was a teenager), but I knew it was our special way of spending time together.

During Junior High School, I tried to form a cross country team. Two kids showed up and lasted about a week.  So, one of the teachers would stay after school and watch me run around the fields. When I entered Northampton High School, I was the only girl on the cross country team, so I ran with the boy’s team and although I fit right in, I was always envious of my competition - those girls who were part of big teams, cheering at the starting line, painting their faces school colors and laughing a lot!  I struggled in high school. Academically, I was lost, sinking, not able to retain or comprehend a lot of the material.  I was not playing the guitar, and socially, I felt out of place even though no one on the outside would know it.

My father knew that I was struggling – especially with my poor grades.  He took me to Boston where I had some comprehensive tests done to determine my strengths and weaknesses and we came to the conclusion that I might fare better at a private school.  So, I applied to Northfield Mount Hermon, Suffield Academy and Williston.  I was rejected at both Northfield and Suffield, but Williston accepted me. I took my junior year over, which was hard on my pride, and spent two years here as a boarding student.  Boarding was the considered the best option for me because of the structured study time at the end of the day and increased opportunity for tutoring.  It felt a bit strange, considering I only lived a bit less than 7 miles away. The good thing about that was I could literally run home on weekends from time to time.

I thrived here. Williston did exactly what my father and mother did for me as a kid. The community supported and nurtured ALL of my interests. I joined the cross country and track teams, ran with both the boys and the girls teams. Greg Tuleja, my coach, was there to calm me down when I ran away five minutes before the start because I was so nervous.  Al Shaler, the boys coach, was always there at the finish line of every home meet to give me, and everyone else, a big bear hug.  I sang with the A Cappella group, played my guitar in coffee houses, made lots of friends and had teachers who were so dedicated to helping me become a stronger student. Shame on those other schools for not seeing the potential in a young adult.  Williston however, did! I wasn't at Williston out of privileged, I was there because I was a drowning kid who needed some hands to pull me out of water, towel me off, and get me standing securely on my feet.

I went on to have fantastic collegiate running experience with a big, successful, fun women’s team. I also had an amazing eight year journey as a pro triathlete and traveled all over the country and the world. 

Any success that I had was due to these three things:

1)    Support and love from my coaches, family, friends and community – a lot of it! 

2)    Daring to put my foot on the starting line – to take risks and step way out of my comfort zone.

3)    Luck that I had people close to me in my life that knew enough to pay attention and help me find my way.

The lesson that I have learned from my journey is that every child, every young adult has all these little sparks inside them which represent their passions or interests.  It is up to us as adults, parents, coaches and teachers, to help be the catalyst in turning those sparks into big, beautiful, colorful bold flames!  We need to pay attention and nurture those sparks of interest in as many different and creative ways as possible. 

I am so honored to be one of the initial inductees into the Williston Hall of fame. Thank you for considering and choosing me. Thank you for always supporting me. 

Top 15 Lessons From the Coach

These are in random order and based on my year's of experience as an athlete and a coach.  


1. Appreciate the good days. The one’s when your body feels “on” and your motivation is high. You know, those days when you feel like you are flowing. Don’t worry or beat yourself up on the days when you feel like your body has been put through the washing machine on high spin and your feeling out of sorts. If you didn't have those days, you wouldn't appreciate the good ones.

2. Cultivate support. Find a training partner or group that you really look forward to being with - one that leaves you feeling “high” after a workout, not just from the workout, but from being together and sharing in the experience.

3. If something hurts you when you start working out, and continues to hurt after 10 minutes - stop and go home.  Is it really worth the risk of long term damage to forge through?

4. Work on skills - always ... and be patient. Continue to be open to learning and trying new things. Do not fear challenging yourself in different ways. Part of the fun is overcoming the challenge.

5. Vary your workouts. Don’t get sucked into the notion that unless you’re not breathing hard, the workout isn't productive. A healthy diet means nurturing your body with a variety of nutrient rich, quality foods.  A healthy workout schedule means getting rid of “junk” workouts and replacing with a variety of purposeful ones.

6. Quality sleep is just as important, if not more than the training itself.

7. You can be the most fit person in a field, but without belief in yourself you’ll never reach your full potential.  Focus on yourself and your own performance and not what everyone else is thinking or your fears about what might happen in a race. 

8. Be competitive, but be kind.

9. Never give up on yourself. You have to be your own best friend and talk yourself 
through things sometimes. 

10. Make sure to incorporate fun workouts - such as a destination bike ride, hike or run. Take a few weeks of the year just to play and give your body a rest. Organize a game of Ultimate Frisbee or Capture the Flag. Put a bell and a basket on your bike and tootle around.

11. Find someone just a bit faster than you to push you a bit on those days you need to be pushed. Find someone slower than you to keep you honest on the easy days. 

12. Say thanks to those who show-up for those early morning workouts expecting to see you. Being accountable can be a great motivator.

13. Try not to test out new shoes, or a new bike or even a new swim suit for the first time in a race or long workout. It could be a very painful lesson. 

14. Whatever your goals are, have a thought out plan of action. It really does help keep you focused. Write down your vision or your goal in BOLD marker and keep it where you see it every single day.

15. If something stops being fun, it’s time to move on to something else or a sign to take a break or switch things up.  Don’t fight it. 

It's Not About The Medal

"Education does not exist to provide you with a job ....Education is here to nourish your soul." - Ruth Simmons, 1st female president of Brown University, 1st black president of an Ivy League School.

I recently read this quote from Ruth Simmons in the local newspaper.  Ruth Simmons became the president of Smith College just after I finished graduate school there in the early 90's.  I wish I had the opportunity to hear her speak, not only because she had already broken so many barriers, but because (from my understanding) she was very, very well liked by the college and local community. Something about this quote struck me from an athlete's and a coach's perspective. 


First, let me say that I actually do feel that education can and many times does exist as a path and means to getting a job. Her statement does, however bring out important message, which is to open ourselves to letting education feed all aspects of our being - doesn't matter what level or what kind of education (high school, technical/trade school, college and beyond).  Sadly, I think I let that part go when I went to both undergraduate and graduate school. I was focused primarily on my sport (running) and my specific studies and duties in grad school.  I let my  inner somewhat quiet passion for music and writing fall by the wayside.  I never took advantage of taking other courses that would nurture that part of my soul.  Certainly that focus of pursuing my major, being a top runner and of course, surviving graduate school was pretty important. I also went into a field that ended up being totally related to what I do for work, however I wish I had a bit more fun and taken advantage of what my educational institutions  had to offer.  I recall walking out of a day of classes and studying from the building at Smith where most of my courses were held.  I'd always walk by the music hall on my way home and hear students practicing the piano, or taking a voice lesson or playing a cello. Sometimes I would sit on a step near-by and just listen ... wondering what it would feel like if I was in one of those rooms taking a singing lesson or guitar lesson.  It was something I used to do in high school (sing and play music).  When I left those sessions I had the same kind of feeling I got when I finished up cross-country practice, which was one of being totally relaxed and somewhat uplifted! Sadly, I still have left those aspects of my earlier life by the wayside. My guitar sits in a closet in a dusty case and I have not joined any local singing groups! Maybe I'll joing "Young At Heart" if I live to be in my 80's!


I have noted in previous blogs that while I was able to compete at the top level as a triathlete, I never allowed that experience to nourish my soul completely. I was caught up in National and World rankings. I was caught up in who would be my next sponsor, how to get my next sponsor, if I would place high enough to bring home a check and how to become a faster swimmer so I wouldn't get dropped from the top tier pack in races. People often remind me that those stresses are normal for someone competing at that high level.  This is true, but so many of my competitors knew how to have fun and really enjoy the experiences of traveling, developing friendships despite being competitors, having a few beers after a race, not getting caught up in the stress of the race. I had an amazing coach for eight years who tried to remind me to connect with the full experience and have more fun, but I really feel that I was just slower in my maturity process as an athlete. Racing  for me now is not about placing or getting a medal when I cross the line. I pay that big 'ol entry fee for the whole race experience package!  I know so many that do this sport for personal recognition and for the medals.  Kind of leaves me feeling empty when I think about it! Making the choice and having the opportunity to compete and be a part of a triathlon or any athletic event is about nourishing the soul. It's about getting up at 4am to drive to a race, being a little nervous, eating strange foods that seem like a normal part of our diets (like gels and shot blocks), standing in line at the Porto-Potties and making small chat, working at the top of our fitness limits and not being afraid to do so, having a beer post race (if available), and enjoying the car ride home in stinky clothing. Now that's nourishing the soul!  I think anything we do in life and many of the choices we make must somehow nourish our soul .... at least this is how I try to live mine. 

Finding Balance

As a coach, it's easy to feel as if I've failed and athlete if she or he does not have the performance they are capable of or expect. I feel the same way if someone struggles to reach a certain fitness goal.  I tend to be pretty hard on myself with this issue and often have to talk some sense back into myself while taking a bike ride or a run.  On the same note, I share with equal enthusiam and excitement when an athlete or fitness client reaches a milestone. 

I can say with confidence that every program I create is done with great intention.  I'm also careful to consider a person's work and family life not to mention much needed "chill" time and all the extra time needed just to do things like grocery shop, get your car oil changed, walk the dogs, make meals etc.  I try to write programs that allow for balance.  I have learned that people really appreciate and enjoy having some structure with regard to their training, racing or fitness goals. It's nice to have a calendar that notes the progressive structure of  daily workouts with included heart rate/effort zone, and occasional added drills.  I have to admit, I love having that kind of structure and often feel and peform better when I do that for myself Too bad I don't that often enough!  What I can't control is what goes on in a person's life outside of the training aspect, and this is what I have to remind myself of constantly.  This is the part of my job that causes me to struggle. Wouldn't it be nice if we had a nice, neatly packaged plan that kept us balanced in all aspects of our life?  Let's face it, life is hard and we are thrown challenges constantly.  Finding balance and staying balanced is an ongoing process and sometimes it's harder than others.  As much as I feel a plan is appropriately structured for someone, I can't control if their kid was up all night vomiting, if they had to pull an extra shift at work, if they broke a toe while sleep walking or are struggling with something on a very personal level.  What I can be is compassionate and empathetic because I also have had to find and create that balance in my life over and over.  I have set certain priorities in my life which have really helped me stay in,or come back to balance when I've felt that that I was slipping.  Great performances often do not happened because "balance" just was not present in his or her life.  I find that most injuries  or illnesses occur when some significant part of someone's life is off balance. Those that bounce back, heal and regain balance the fastest are the ones who have learned how to become a resilient individual. I also fee strongly that balance can be restored faster for those that are proactive about seeking support, whether it be physical or emotional therapy. 

I recently had dinner with an athlete that I have coached for about two years. He started with me having never owned a bike and now has the typical triathlete's fifteen pair of running shoes in his garage (as well three different types of bikes hanging on his wall).  He's made some of the biggest and fastest improvements I've every seen in any athlete in a very short period of time.  With this being said, we are both waiting for him to put together that peak performance in which everything comes together  at the level we both believe he is capable of achieving.  He's come very close.  During our dinner conversation we talked about some things that make a really great performance happen.  Sometimes it's just as simple as "it just happens" when you least expect it.  More often however it happens because we set ourselves up for success.  Most people don't realize that they are sabotaging their chances of a great race or the chance of racing well on a consistent basis. This is why when someone calls me after a race and says that it did not go so well or as they had hoped, I start asking questions. Usually, the answers as to why come to the surface.  Here are a couple of examples.

The athlete I noted above who has yet to have his peak day (and it's coming) disregarded his usual pre-race plan the night before a half Ironman.  Instead of chilling, resting up and storing his mental and physical energy the day before the event, he went out on a boat with friends, did some tubing, ate poorly and just totally got away from "his game."  Part of his reasoning for doing so was because friends had come a long way to see him race and he felt obligated to hang with them, even though he knew what he really needed to do was rest up.  He sabotaged his taper and ultimately, his race. Lesson learned? Sometimes you have to be selfish the night before a race.  Another athlete I coach placed second in a race he probably should have won. Sounds harsh I know, because second place at a championship event is pretty impressive. He noted that he felt flat on the bike and had nothing on the 2nd half of the run. So, I began asking questions.  Apparently the swim was delayed for over a half an hour and participants had to sit on the beach and nervously wait for fog to lift.  I asked him if he stayed hydrated, made sure to take in calories, walked away from the nervous energy (knowing he gets very nervous).  The answers? "No," "no", and "no."  As a matter of fact, he forgot to hydrate even and eat even before the delay. He sabotaged his race.  Lesson learned?  Have a fueling and eating protocol for every scenario and go find a chill space. I will say that I have witness people who have sabotage their chances of reaching their goals out of fear of failing to be succesful. Sound twisted? It's a whole other can of goodiess for discussion.

Everyone has a different way of keeping that pre-race balance. Sometimes it takes a while and serveral experiences to figure out those elements.  I used to get horribly, horribly nervous before my races when I was competing at the pro level.  I managed to figure out that I usually performed better if I stayed with a host family (versus in a hotel).  I also found that watching a funny movie the night before relaxed me and took my mind of the pending event.  I'm not racing at that level anymore so I don't have to deal with those kinds of nerves these days, however I still try to set myself up for success by staying as balanced as possible on all levels.  What happens if the balance is thrown off by something out of our control (for example your child waking up in the middle of the night with nightmares and disrupting your sleep?)  You go to "plan B", which is to "go with the flow."  I work with a couple of athletes who are amazing at doing this and while they may not have felt on top of their game, they didn't allow the uncontrollable elements to steal any mental energy.  The balance might have been thrown off a bit, but the resiliant side of them kicked in!

I often say to athletes who are competing in and Ironman that there will be periods during the event where things will feel balanced then there will be periods of lows, when they may not feel they can take another step. It is at that point that they need to aske themselves, "what do I need?"  Figure it out, switch things up.  It's the same with life, don't you think?  When things are off balance, ask yourself what it is that you need ..... and  you will probably find an answer.

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes you don't finish!

Well, I'm back from my little NJ beach excursion and accomplished all that I wanted to since I last posted. Enjoyed some time walking on the beach and collecting sea glass with Lisa.  Lisa won the prize for finding the best piece of sea glass of which I forgot to take a picture.  It was white, large, thick and really worn out..... the kind you want to keep in your pocket and rub with your thumb all day.   We have quite a collection going in a glass bowl at our house.  I had a bit of down time from my computer and spent A LOT of time trimming some overgrown lavender bushes on the side of the house.  Of course Lisa warned me of the poison under each bush and I ignored, clipping and clearing away in my shorts.  Wouldn't you know I woke up the next day itching all over.  I also woke up scratching my lower leg in the middle of the night only to find some kind of major bite.  My lower leg swelled to the size of a football so I put on some anti itch cream and popped a Benedryl at night.  My leg is no longer swollen, but the nasty bite is still pronounced. It was not until I had my best friend over for dinner last night that she FREAKED saying she just saw a piece on Good Morning America regarding dangerous spider bites and mine looked like one of them. Here is a picture I took of it last night (the little bumps on the right are what I think to be, poison oak).

Gross huh? So, with all this being said, I'm going to see the doctor tomorrow to have it checked out. 

On to the piece of this blog that has to do with the title (forgive me for the long blog that I am about to write, however there may be lessons to pull from it). Lisa and I ended up racing at the Eagleman Half Ironman Triathlon in Cambridge, MD on June 12th.  I wavered about it for months but started to feel like I was getting in pretty darn good shape, so I committed to doing it and was glad that I did so.  The good news is that I felt absolutely INCREDIBLE during the swim, bike and the start of the run. The bad news is that I had to pull out just before mile 3 of the run because my soleus (calf) muscle started knotting up to the point where I could not walk normally.  I made the mistake of running a track workout on very little sleep a few weeks ago. It was a humid morning and although I prepped with a few electrolytes, my calf muscle gave a little pinch about halfway through the workout. I stopped immediately (having had done this before), and let it rest and calm down for 8 days. Took a mini test run, 3 days before the race and all seemed okay.  Obviously it was not ready to run after a 1.2 mi swim and a 56 mile bike ride.  Bummer city to say the least but that's how the dice roll.

Oddly, my worries before the race had to do with my right knee and not AT ALL with my soleus.  I had a short bike interval workout planned on the Wednesday before the race. Lisa and I went out to do it together and just after the first interval, I flatted (45 min from our house).  I pulled a a spare tube from my kit only to find that the tube had the wrong kind of stem (did not fit through my deeper rimmed wheels).  Pulled out my 2nd spare only to find it was the wrong size.  So, Lisa rode home and came back in the car to pick me up. I sat on the side of the road for an hour. It was 30 min before anyone stopped to see if I was okay. Jeez, that was a long time.  I felt like a dork standing there.  Picked off one tick that found it's way to me which grossed me out. What is it with bugs and me! 

Anyway, I was determined to do my intervals (more for a confidence booster) so I hopped on my Computrainer and off I went, feeling super strong. Found I was pushing more watts than than in the past for these efforts.  The next day, I taught a spin class on a bike I don't usually ride. I completely forgot to switch out the instructor bike to one that felt good for me.  Next morning, my knee really, really hurt going downstairs and walking on flats.  I strongly feel I had a bit of tendinitis going on from the combination of my Computrainer workout and my spin class.  Freaked me and still could feel it slightly on race morning. 

On to the race details. 

Pre Race: Felt calmly excited despite being a bit worried about my knee.  My race went off at 8am, which was 1:10 after the pro wave and 1 hour after Lisa's wave.  I continued to sip on sports drink, made sure to get in some pre-race calories.  I organized all of my bike and run stuff in my transition spot (which happened to be prime real estate just out of the swim and near the run exit spot. I spent about 15 min under a shady tree doing some visualization of my swim to bike transition and my bike to run transition.  Also went over my nutritional plan in my head one last time.  I was set to jet!

Swim:  There were no wetsuits allowed because the water temperature was 82 degrees. Lisa and I spaced on packing our speed suits but fortunately, I did pack my one piece, very tight fitting (slightly sexy .... okay .... not sexy) tri suit. Unfortunately, the color is BLACK which did not bode well for the hot and sunny conditions that day, but I wasn't going to drop $100 on another tri suit.  Lisa ended up buying a one piece tri suit at the expo that looked fab on her AND totally matched her bike and cycling shoes, which is super important for triathletes. We both admitted, when taking a closer look, that the seam structure had a bit of an early 80's, Jane Fonda aerobic suit kind of design.  Cracked us both up!  Anyway, I guzzled about 10oz water right before entering the water and swam out  to the front of my age group pack, lining up with the buoys. While waiting for the start, I did ask myself why the heck I continued to do this sport, especially these longer races. The answer was simple; "Because I can .... because I am able to do so."  A greater calm came over me at that point.

Once the horn sounded, I got right into my groove but had one little friend to my left that kept whacking the crap out of me.  So, I did a quick shift to the right to get rid of her and found my space.  After about 5 minutes I opted for a wider line, staying away from the mass. This worked well for me as I was really able to focus on a strong but relaxed rhythm.  I knew I could lose a bit of time with my chosen line, yet at the same time I thought I might benefit because I was not getting caught up in other swimmers.  I swam into folks from the two age groups that started prior to mine by the last 15 minutes. I stayed calm as I navigated, trying to quietly swim by them so not to make them nervous. I swam right up onto shore and remember thinking that it was the first time in a long time that I enjoyed the swim. It felt just like all of my half Ironman practice swims in the pool. I looked at my watch just before running onto the timing mat and saw 32:27 .... my fastest 1/2 IM swim in years! Yahoo! Oddly, when I looked at the results, my time was listed as 35:39 .... not sure where that came from in comparison to my watch. 

So, off I went into transition (apparently 4th out of the water in my age group).  I downed a gel, took 2 electrolyte tabs and a swig of sports drink.  As I was running out of transition, a volunteer noted that my race number belt was missing.  Duh! During my visualization session I was imagining myself putting on the number belt at the start of the run, not the bike.  Goes to show you just how effective visualization practice can be! So, back I went (about 2 bike racks away) to put on my number belt and then get the heck out of there and on the course!

Bike: FANTASTIC! Stuck to my plan.  I happened to catch a bit of the pre-race pro, media talk the day before the event. Those that I heard speak noted they had a coach, had a plan and stuck to that plan. I can't stress enough how that hit home for me.  At about mile 5, Donna Kay-Ness came roaring by me.  I VOWED that I would not respond to her this year if we ended up next to each other (we always end up next to each other on the bike, playing the cat and mouse game).  I wanted to race my race, at my heart rate zones and my pace.  So, once again, I stuck to my plan!  I have to say that I really, really enjoyed this bike ride.  I did feel discomfort in my knee for the 1st hour and worried a bit, then I think the adrenaline kicked in and I was relieved when the pain went away.  I was cruising along at 22-23.5 miles per hour comfortably at a target heart rate range of 152-158.  Not once did I feel fatigued.  Not once did an head winds bother me.

Run: I headed into transition excited about my ride (I came off the bike in 3rd place in my age group ... did not know it at the time) anticipating the start the hardest part of the day, the run. I did feel a very, very, VERY slight tightness in my calf as I ran my bike into transition but tried not to focus on it.  As I removed my cycling shoes, I noted that my left big toe (on the bunion) was totally bloody, as was my shoe. Hmmm, that never happened before! Funny how "things"  come up during races. Again, did not focus on it and just hoped it would not be a major issue later in the run. I took my time heading out on the first mile, adjusting my little fuel pack on my waist, stopping and fixing my shoe lace. Checked my heart rate and it was a bit high so I tried to settle down a bit.  Thought I was running at about an 8:30 pace and was surprised to see 6:55 with the stopping and adjusting.  I chatted a bit with a guy I was running next to during the second mile.  He was on his way to a personal best if he could nail the run.  My only goal was to NOT SUFFER on the run as I have in years past.  I immediately felt spring in my legs, which was a good sign. Unfortunately, that little tug in my calf started and quickly progressed to a full blown tie up (just as it did on the track).  It did not take me more than another mile to make the decision to call it quits.  The choice was to risk tearing my soleus muscle and be out for the season, or to stop, let it mend for a couple of weeks and have a season to look forward to.  A no brainer in my book as bummed as I was to have to do so. I'm not a quitter.  So, I hitched a motorcycle ride back to transition (you can imagine how I looked on the back of it wearing a helmet in my tri-suit).  I changed and waited for Lisa and another athlete (Matt) that I coach to finish.  Lisa had a great day despite having to battle some nerves about swimming without a wetsuit.  Matt had a good finish despite throwing up most of the day. I give him credit for his mental toughness. He learned a lot of lessons during the event as well as the days leading up to the event.  He did not stick to his plan with regard to his pre-race ritual and paid for it.

Later that day I bumped into Donna Kay Ness, who won our age group.  I hated having to say that I had to pull out ..... hated it.  I wonder what might have happened on the run if my calf was okay.  I wonder if I could have made up the 3 minutes she gained on me during the bike.  I wonder how it all would have turned out.  Who knows, maybe I would have fallen aport. All I know is that I felt great and that in itself was proof that I am in pretty good shape.  That in itself makes me happy. 

Unfortunately I do not have any pictures of the day or those days leading up to it. I'm terrible about taking pictures. But hey, I did post of my gross spider bite!