Creatures of Habit

As a general rule, I think most people are creatures of habit. I know that I am. I often run the same run route, drive the exact same way to work, eat the same meals for dinner most weeks and usually eat the same thing for lunch everyday.

Why?

Because it is easy ... and familiar. No surprises. Why try something new and risk disappointment when you have a good thing going, right?

The problem with this is that it can be too much of a good thing and we are reticent to try new things that may actually help us improve (in terms of training) or that we may actually like better!

One of the best things about being on Team Trakkers (besides the camraderie of my super cool teammates) is trying new products from our sponsors. I will tell you with 100% honesty that I was very nervous to try new products. I had been wearing the same brand of shoes for close to a decade. I was using nutrition that I liked. I wore the same goggles ... the list goes on and on.

I am happy to say that this experimentation has been great for me. I have discovered new products that I swear by that I would not have otherwise known about. Not everything new I try works for me - and that's ok too - sometimes I learn more when trying something that doesn't work than finding new things that do.

Be on the look out soon for an "Anne's Triathlon Favorite Things" post that I will use to share with you well, my favorite things. Unfortunately, unlike Oprah, I won't be giving away my list of items, but I do encourage you to think outside of your routine and perhaps try something new!

The Big Dance in T minus 1 Month

When life gets so busy that keeping all the balls in the air feels like a nearly an impossible task, what do you do?

Keep your head down, stay focused and work hard.

So, that is exactly what I have been doing for the last month. While I have had to make some sacrifices on the training front, my main focus has been to be active during the week in s/b/r and nailing my long workouts on the weekends.

The temps in Texas are starting to soar and I can definitely feel it on my long runs, but my pace is still holding up. My long bike rides have been strong and consistent and I got to ride two loops of the hilly section of the IMTX course last weekend. While there are some hills, there are downhills as well, with lots of opportunities to pick up some good speed.

I don't know if I am going to be a trained "ready" for this race, but I have never been more ready for a race to arrive!

Hope your training and racing has been going well - stay safe, train hard and may the wind be at your back! Hope to see a lot of you on the IMTX course one month from today!

The Verdict Is In ...

Thank you so much for all of the great advice on whether I should race IMTX 70.3. I found myself being swayed back and forth as I read the various comments. Ultimately, I have decided not to race it, but after much deliberation I feel confident that I am making the decision for the right reasons.

Primarily, my reasons for not racing are: 1) save the money 2) save the time (avoiding a weekend in Galveston away from my kids, especially since I am traveling most of the following week) and 3) for $275 I want to race not be conservative.

After a month of 80+ mile bike rides, followed by good brick runs and two recent long runs of 16 and 17 miles, I am feeling more and more confident about my fitness. I even had a wonderful swim this weekend despite being out of the pool for over a week.

I am definitely finding the family / work / training balance more difficult this IM go round, but am happy that I have two finishes under my belt so that I can be more flexible with my training without losing confidence in my ability to have a good race.

Thanks again for the advice - I will miss the fun and the atmosphere in Galveston, but it is the right decision for me this year. Have a great training week!

Decisions, decsions ... help me make one!

Ok, tri friends, I need your help again.

IMTX is 10 weeks away (yikes!) and IMTX 70.3 is 6 weeks before IMTX, making it 4 weeks from now. I did this race last year and had a great day, even PRing the race in my goal time (sub 5:45)

I have not registered for the 70.3 yet and I am on the fence on whether I should race it ...

I only did two races last year, one in the Spring - IMTX 70.3 in April and one in the Fall - Rev3 Cedar Point in September. So while technically my 140.6 was not my first race of the year, I clearly did not do one as a part of my build or peak leading up to my iron distance race.

Part of me wants to do the race so IMTX won't be my first race of the year, but I also have a whole list of reasons not to do it ...

- Save the money (two big vacations this year, fall races?)
- Not necessary
- Don't feel ready to race (would a poor race affect me confidence for IMTX?)
- Closer than I would like to IMTX

If this was my first IM distance race, I think I would definitely go for it, but since IMTX will be number 3, I need help deciding if I "need" to do a tune up race.

If I am being perfectly honest with myself, it also has something to do with the fact that I don't feel like I am in as good of shape as I was last year (e.g. If given similar race conditions and I felt the same, could I beat last year's time?).

My training doesn't feel like it has been as good and consistent as last year, mainly due to my travel schedule. Although, looking back, my training volume is similar, if not higher (since I was not training for an IM at this point last year, my hours were lower).

I can easily talk myself into or out of the race - I have twice while writing this blog post. So, give it to me ... should I race the 70.3 or skip it this year?

Remember Me?

I have just wrapped up one of the busiest months in as long as I can remember. The juggling act between family, work and training hit a serious peak over the last month between wrapping up a major project for work, traveling, two birthdays and two birthday parties, our whole family fighting the flu, oh and of course, training for a little race that is just around the corner.

I had my longest brick to date this weekend - 80 miles on the bike followed by a 5 mile run. I am starting to feel at home again in the saddle, but I am not quite to where I was leading up to Cedar Point.

Starting at the end of March, I plan to spend the two months leading up to the race doing as many of my long rides on the IMTX course as possible.

I am looking forward to catching up on all of your blogs and sharing a few product reviews that I have been working on. Long rides give me lots of time to think - lots of blog fodder!

Happy Monday!

Good News, Bad News and a PSA

I will keep this short because I am cuddled up in bed, resting and getting ready to watch The Big Bang Theory with my family.

I will start with my bad news -- I have the flu! The is the first time in as long as I can remember getting sick like this. I struggle with my sinuses like the rest of Houstonians, once or twice a year, but other than the congestion, it does not affect my ability to work or train or live life in general. I have been varying levels of miserable since Sunday night. The kicker is that I get a flu shot every year without fail, but I just didn't get around to it this winter. So, my PSA -- get your flu shot!

The good news is that I feel much better about my ride last Sunday now. My misery on the bike was probably in large part due to my coming down with the flu.

In more bad news, I was supposed to get 13 hours of training this week and all I have been able to manage is 1:45 of very easy spinning on the trainer. I am going to see how I feel over the next several days, but at best will get a bit more easy trainer time in. I have never had to miss significant training volume like this in a given week, but ...

In more good news, it is just one week. With IMTX just 100 days away, I have just enough time to build and peak without letting this illness set me back.

Here is to getting healthy ... and don't forget to get your flu shot!

On the Road Again

Today marked my first ride on the open road of the year and of the new season ... and it sucked.

I had a 4 hour ride and 45 minute run on the schedule and the temps indicated that it would be a good day for an outdoor ride. I purposely started later than usual because the morning temps were cool in the 40s, but the forecast had them climbing to 70 by Noon.

I went into the ride with low expectations. I knew I would not have the power that I had in late August leading up to Cedar Point and I didn't want to be disappointed. I also knew to expect some wind. Both expectations were met. I felt pretty flat for much of the ride and the wind, oh the wind. There were points that I just didn't want to keep pedaling, but I suffered through the wind.

My body ached during the ride, probably from gripping the aero bars so hard in the windy sections- and it still aches now. I was wiped after the 4 hours but ended up with a decent run, probably because I was just happy to be off my damn bike. I was thankful that I downloaded a new audio book for this brick because I really needed the distraction today.

My boys have been sick with coughs and fever all weekend and I have started coughing tonight. In retrospect, I have been a bit sluggish and sleepier than usual this weekend. I rarely experience aches on the bike, so I think my body was telling me something.

So, the bad news is that my ride sucked. The good news is that "skunk is off the porch" and it should only get better from here (or at least I am going to keep telling myself this so that I will keep getting on my bike!).

One thing is for certain, the next time I am stuck on the trainer I will not complain!

How far is too far to run with your dog?

I mentioned recently that my chocolate lab Indy loves to run and it seems like she can run for days without getting tired. She makes for great company on a long run but I am worried about pushing her too far.

I gradually increased her mileage and we are now up to 10 miles, which is about 1.5 hours. My gut says I am probably starting to push the limit on how far I should let her run even though she seems great at the end of our runs. Maybe 2 hours max?

I will definitely ask her vet at her next visit, but I am worried that it will be like asking a doctor that doesn't run about overcoming a running injury. Without perspective or passion for the sport, the short answer is usually very conservative and not patient specific - usually something really creative like "stop running".

Do you have a dog that loves to run? How far is too far to run with your dog?

Honeymoon Training

If you have ever planned a wedding, there probably came a time when you thought ... "after the craziness surrounding all of this planning, I get to celebrate with my loved ones at my wedding AND I get to go on the honeymoon!" ... and that thought alone was enough to get you through the stressful times.

For me, training for a big race like Ironman can get overwhelming, stressful, tiring , but usually I really enjoy it. It is probably an 85%/15% split on love/hate.

I don't enjoy endless hours indoors on the trainer and I am getting itchy for the open road, but when I start getting frustrated I remind myself that I get to celebrate all of my training by racing an Ironman (the wedding) AND this year, right after IMTX I get to go on a second honeymoon to Belize (we celebrated 10 years of wedded bliss in December)!

So, when the temps get hot and the miles get long, I will be thinking of two things to get me through - the IMTX finish line and a hammock outside of a beachfront cabana in Belize.

If you have ever been to Belize, I would love your input on what to do / where to stay /etc.

The first month of Ironman training is in the books, coming in around 44 hours. Not bad for my first month back. I got the majority of my workouts in and didn't miss any of the "important" ones. I am not nearly the slave to my plan that I once was, but I still make time to get er' done. I could probably stand a few more days a month in the pool, but as many before me have said ... it's all about the bike.

Happy February! I don't know about you, but I can already hear the sound of the waves ...

Dancing in Heaven - Q-Feel

It never ceases to amaze me how different I can feel running (or swimming or biking for that matter) from one day to the next. One session makes can make me feel like an Olympic champion and the next makes me feel like the kid who got picked last in gym class (well, as a tomboy, that wasn't me, but I felt for the kids that did).

If you like bad 80s movies, it reminds me of the lyrics of the song Dancing in Heaven (Orbital Be-bop) by one hit wonder, Q-Feel, featured in my all time favorite movie as a child, Girls Just Want to Have Fun. I can't tell you how many times I have seen the movie, but there were plenty of nights growing up that I would watch it multiple times in one night. I *really* wanted to be a dancer.

Anyhow, back to the lyrics -- part of the chorus repeat is "Slow - slow - quick, quick slow" and that is how my workouts sometimes feel (check out the You Tube link to hear the song), although thankfully my workouts are more like "Quick, slow, quick, quick, slow" ...

The good news is that I try to remember the words of Caballo Blanco from the book Born to Run (I am paraphrasing here because I listened to it on Audio book, so I don't have the book to look up the quote), "When you feel like running fast, run fast, and when you feel like running slow, run slow."

Don't get me wrong, there are definitely times for intervals and speed work, but what I took Caballo's words to mean were simply, listen to your body.

Week 3 of IM training is behind me and my muscle memory is coming back. Getting up early is getting easier, although I do miss the extra sleep. Happy training and thanks for reading!