Looking Back

My, what an interesting year it has been!  Turning 40 was the impetus for a pursuit of becoming an Ironman – a process that enriched my life in so many ways.  Although there were a couple of DNS races – NYC Tri and the marathon, to name two, overall, my year in sport has been a good one – full of learning, striving, and even a little achieving.

Recapping my goals from the beginning of the year…

1.  I had 2 goals for trapeze a mod catch out of lines and a layout full catch out of lines.  These were both quite lofty goals, which required a significant investment of time and energy - both at the rig, and in complementary pursuits like trampoline and acro.  However, given that I was also pursuing an Ironman finish, I had to make a choice about the best uses of my time.  Trapeze training which followed Ironman training, was not only ineffective, but even dangerous.  I found myself in some scary situations that I hadn't been in before, and made the determination that once the indoor rig was closed down I'd go on a trapeze hiatus, with the hopes that TSNY would find a permanent space by the fall.    However, no permanent space panned out, and returning to the outdoor rig made me realize that while I enjoyed trapeze, that burning desire to improve, reach farther and do bigger tricks, wasn't driving me as it once was.  Maybe 5 months away was too much to come back from at the time.  I'm not sure.  But I do know that three classes back found me full of excuses not to go all out mentally or physically, and looking for excuses not to fly.  Maybe if there was a convenient indoor space, I'd feel differently.   But at this point in my life, trapeze is not worth an evening away from my daughters, or a trip into one of the outer boroughs.

2.  Triathlon:  My goals regarding Ironman were:
a. Finish Ironman Mont-Tremblant - check
b. Enjoy the experience - double check
c. Finish sub-14:00:00 - FAIL.  I couldn't do it on that day.  Not after being sick the month before (and mostly because of the way that affected my confidence than my physical state).  BUT... that fail had me sign up for Ironman Lake Placid 2013.  I know I can go sub-14, but hope for more impressive feats than that... (hmm... maybe if I put it out there, I'll be more likely to achieve it?  Sub-13.  There.  I said it.  Now let's make it happen!)
4. Sub 2:40 on NYC Tri- well, due to acute bronchitis, I DNS that race.  We can carry that goal over  to 2013, since I deferred.  On the plus side, I did take my age group at the NYRR Sprint, and placed 2nd in my AG at the Montauk Oly tri.  Small fields in both certainly helped, but hey, I'll take it.

For 2013 in triathlon, I hope to be fitter, stronger and faster. That's going to happen by doing the following:
1. Adding strength training back into my life;
2. Building a solid foundation pre-season (that's going on now - running 3-4x/wk, and cycling 3x/wk, w/a swim thrown in here and there - thinking about joining a masters swim group to increase swim time/mileage).
3. Monitor my rest/health/etc.
4. Be better about making my workouts.  Audiobooks have helped with run motivation this fall, and December was a solid training month for me, and I plan to continue that momentum into the new year.
Races already signed up for and on the horizon include 2 HIMs, 1 oly, 1 sprint, and of course Lake Placid.  First 1/2 marathon is at the end of January, and the 1st HIM is in mid-March.  Early season motivation!

As to my less concrete goals - I did do more volunteering in 2012 than 2011, including helping out post-Sandy as well as opportunities up in Harlem.  I also knitted and donated 50+ hats and a dozen scarves to the needy, and plan on continuing those pursuits in the new year.

Although I haven't mastered a new language, I've started listening to podcasts on a bunch of topics, and have been taking advantage of iTunes U to learn about lots of interesting things.  It was also a big year for non-fiction books on my reading list- I nice change from the usual brain candy that I indulge in.

Looking forward, I plan on taking advantage of the momentum that built up in 2012 and bring it forward and ahead.  Overall this December 31, I find myself happier, healthier, more relaxed and balanced than last year, and plan on more of the same, as well as some different in 2013.   

IM Mont-Tremblant Race Pictures!

Woo hoo! Race pictures are finally here! As unphotogenic as I am, I decided to get them this time as a memory of a fun race (and my first Ironman).  As you can see, I wasn't kidding when I said I was enjoying myself - I smiled throughout the race (okay, sometimes it was a grimace...)

Swim out

Gotta stay hydrated!

This is on the second bike loop - not the disposable bottle in the cage... still smiling :)  I took in about 80 ounces of fluid while on the bike.

Bike to run transition

On Le P'tit Train du Nord Path, about 4 miles in

Start of second run loop (based on wet pavement)

Me an my walk buddy (we walked about 3 miles together)

Nearing the finish

Okay, at this point I was half smiling, half crying

P.S. Yes, it looks funny with my top tucked into the shorts, but Sugoi makes these tops kinda long, and they roll up and expose belly and back if not tucked in.  This is a much better look, trust me.

Ironman Mont-Tremblant Race Report!

After months of training, the time finally came for the big race. I was getting progressively nervous during all of July and the first half of August, wondering how on earth I would finish an Ironman, particularly after being benched during a critical build period. The answer, it turns out, is the same as for anything else - one bite at a time.

The day after cheering on my Team in Training teammates and volunteering at the aid station at mild 23 of the run (an incredible experience - I definitely plan on volunteering at other races), I packed the girls, the dog, all my triathlon gear and of course my bike into/onto my car, and we headed north toward Mont-Tremblant. We arrived there late Monday night - I thought it would be nice to combine a vacation with som course recon and training.

Lac Tremblant, where the swim was being held was open to us starting on the Monday before the race from 7-5, and buoys were set up so that we wouldn't get smashed by the motorboats. I quickly figured out yet again that the sleeveless wetsuit was the better option for me. The water was a lovely 72 degrees, and relatively clear. Each morning , Tuesday through Friday I headed out to that lake before the girls woke up for progressively shorter and shorter dips. I also threw in short bikes or runs to keep my legs fresh, and the rest of the time we explored the Tremblant resort area- we went luging, zip lining, on an aerial ropes course, as well, of course, shopping, eating, and walking around. Mont-Tremblant is a pretty and charming area, and everyone we met was friendly and gracious.

A couple of days in we received a great surprise- my parents would be driving up for the weekend to cheer me on and hang with the girls on race day! Since it was so last minute, it was fortunate that the room I was in slept 6 (this is primarily because I wanted a room with a kitchen so I could prepare meals that my ultra-sensitive stomach could handle). We quick reshuffled our stuff, and I was sleeping with Amit in her bed (so pretty much no difference as before she was sleeping with me in mine).

After a few days of build up, expo shopping, and even more anxiety, race day finally came. Buffered by the well wishes of my team, after a 3:45 wake up, mediocre attempt at eating, final bottle prep and hair braiding, I headed out on the hotel shuttle to transition. As usual, I got there just after transition opened, organized my things quickly, and had way too much time before the race started. I bumped into Claire, who was with me on Terrier Tri last year, ands we spent most of that time catching up, talking about how our year had gone and possible plans for next year. We took our time heading down to the swim start. I drank my Living Fuel shake to get some more calories into me before the race, visited the john, put on wetsuits, threw our morning clothes bags into the correct bins, and it was off to the swim start. With 20 minutes to race start, I had 1/2 of a Accelerade gel with some water, said goodbye to Claire who was a very strong swimmer and comfortable toward the front of the pack, and found myself a spot toward the back.

The buoys were well spaced out, and you could see the yellow line of outbound buoys stretching toward the horizon. A fighter plane came zipping towards us, the cannon went off, and the pros were running into the water! After a quick applause, I adjusted my cap and goggles and moved even further back to avoid the trampling. Before long, that fighter plane was back for us, and the age group race was on!

The water was a fabulous temperature, and going out found me swimming easily, finding feet for large portions, avoiding being beat up, and counting breaths between buoys (35-40). Pretty soon, and much faster than I expected, we were at the red turn buoy, making a right toward the next, and the orange buoys that would be pointing the way to shore. The way in was a bit choppier,but totally manageable - there were feet to find, and sighting to do. Petty soon we we back at shore w it hour any mishap. I aw several men wading in, but chose to swim in as far as possible. Running up the beach, I saw that my swim time was pretty much what I expected it to be, and was pleased about that.

We ran through the line of wetsuit strippers - a bizarre experience. They wanted me to lie down and put my feet up, and peeled my wetsuit off me. Okay then! After a red carpet run into transition, I quickly dried off best I could, sprayed on the sunblock, and lent it to the ladies in the transition area with me, put on my helmet and shoes, chose not to use arm warmers, and was off to my bike.

The bike course was beautiful- parts of it felt like riding on 9w in terms of the rollers. The region repaved a huge section of the highway for this race and the 70.3 that is one loop of the same course. At so many points along the way there were people cheering us on in English and French (Go, go, go! Allez, allez!). I started focussing on my nutrition and hydration. I figured to eat 1/2 a bar - Lara bar or Bonk Breaker, which I precut and froze so that they wouldn't be mushy while I was on the course - every 15k, and drink to thirst. When I felt my energy flagging a little, I took a couple of e21's (very similar to salt tabs, with a slightly different electrolyte composition). Pretty soon, I was at 42 miles heading up toward the super hilly part of the course. I thought it would be a good idea to take those hills nice and easy, recovering on the flats and downs. Well, there was no taking those hills easily. They kicked my butt! At one point i also got off, and hit my wheel, which was rubbing against my frame - truly not something I Fortunately, though, after their turn-around, we had a primarily downhill stretch toward bike special needs and the start of loop 2.

Receiving my special needs back, I took my time transferring my bars and tabs, replenishing my Accelerade in my hydration system, and then it was out again for the second loop. I made it approximately 4 miles when I felt the back wheel rubbing again. I stopped to try to figure it out, taking a moment to stretch, but everything seemed to be in order to my untrained eye. Honestly, I was in a pretty bad place at this point the hills at the end of the first loop did a number on me and i was just starting to feel its effects. Two miles later I stopped at an aid station, used the porto-john, and asked the bike mechanic to have a look at my back wheel. It turned out that it was misaligned. Although it was an 18 minute pit stop, it left me feeling better and able mentally and physically to continue the bike course. By the turn around on route 117 I was singing to myself on the bike, chatting with people who passed me or who I passed, and in a much better head space.

When I got to those hills in the last 14 miles of the bike, I decided that I'd handle them in a different way than the first go around. I decided to attack the downs and flats like I was being chased, and carry as much of that momentum as possible over the short but steep hills. Well, it worked. Really well, in fact. All of a sudden I was passing people, saving my legs and making up some time. I made it into T2 after just over 7.5 hours on my bike. And YRden and Amit were there to greet me! I hugged them and ran to change into socks, running shoes and a cap and grabbed my mostly defrosted Accelerade. I chose to keep on my tri shorts rather than changing into running shorts.

I said hi to my parents and girls coming out of T2, and started running. It was just over 9 hours after starting the race at this point, and I was feeling good knowing that there was no way I wouldn't finish. At around the 1 km point, I saw the first women coming in toward the finish, so applauded them. At the uphills, I opted to walk, and then started running at the first flat and continued running for until the 7 mile point when I stopped for a bathroom break. I took in coke twice, and water a couple of times as well. Also banana twice and one slice of orange. But the chicken soup didn't agree with me at all, and pretty soon I was done with all the options at the aid stations (but still thanked the volunteers for being there whether or not I stopped). I just wanted real food, and no more of the sweet stuff.

After the 7 mile point I did more of a run walk combination. I haven't run more than about 15 miles since December, so didn't want to be so broken down at the finish that I staggered through. I finished the first loop of the run in 2:38, and told my family to expect the second to take much longer.

A little bit later, it started raining, and then a double rainbow appeared in the sky. I had been appreciating the incredible Ironman experience all day long, so grateful that I was healthy enough to be there, that I was getting through each leg with a decent amount of competence and minimal discomfort, of the wonderful weather, location and crowds, and that rainbow really capped it off. Although I was able to jog, I stopped and walked a few miles with someone, borrowed his heat blanket, and heard his story, then said goodbye, jogging again, and repeated the process. I probably should have felt an urgency to run, but was content to alternate, until 5k from the end, when I hoped to be able to make it to the finish before the 15 hour mark and started running again. I almost did, too, but came in just after the 15 hour mark at 15:00:18.

It as an emotional finish, happy tears, hugs to the kids, the all-important medal, and the poutine that I've wanted to eat the entire week. Could I have raced it faster? Yes. But who cares? I had exactly the race that I wanted - a joyful, appreciative experience, and a wonderful first time experience.

First time? Yes, that's right. With my daughters' permission, I'll be racing another 140.6 next summer. Did you really think I'd do just one?

(For my coaches, aside from mile 62 on the bike, I was at an up 4-5 the entire race-some GI issues in the run, cramping, etc. lead me to believe that I have to reevaluate some of my nutrition choices, and maybe they brought me to a 3 physically, but not mentally. Also, the run course was great - a bulk of it on a really well-groomed carriage path, lots of aid stations, etc. It was definitely a race worth doing.)

Travel, Race and Illness, Oh My!

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this space on what’s been going on.  While I’d like to claim that it has been so long only because I’ve been training so rigorously for Ironman, the truth is, there have been a host of reasons for not checking in.

After the girls got out of school in June, we took a week off and went out west for a camping trip at Bryce, Zion, and the Grand Canyon led by my favorite active travel company, Backroads.  Once again, they did not disappoint.  We had a great group of families, with plenty of kids for my girls to hang out with.  And the landscape was unbelievable.  Bryce in particular.  I felt as if we had landed on Mars.  Between the red-orangey color of the rock, the hoodoos that formed bears, queens, cats and other imagined creatures, and the intense heat, it definitely felt like we were on another planet.  

Fortunately that week was an RRR training week – low mileage, which translated to high-ish Backroads mileage allowed me to keep, for the most part to my training plan while still enjoying quality vacation time with the kids.  And the higher elevation – starting out at the 8000’ mark, definitely made it feel like the hikes and bikes were giving me a workout.

There was even a day, climbing to Angel’s Landing in Zion National Park, where the mental fortitude I had to show to make it to the top, acted as excellent mental training for Ironman.  What many people might not know is that even though I’ve been doing flying trapeze for several years, I have a pretty big fear of heights.  Each new rig is an adjustment, and little changes throw me off, have me gripping onto the riser for dear life etc.  

Still, I was completely gung ho about climbing to Angel’s Landing.  The view from up there was supposed to be amazing.  And I knew that physically I was in good shape, and there was no reason for that hike not to be like any other.  Granted it’s higher, but so what? 

After hiking up to Scout’s Landing via a series of switchbacks, which were a little challenging but mostly just fun, it was time to move on to part 2 – Angel’s Landing.  The latter was reached via a somewhat steep path with a long drop on either side for most of the way.  You support yourself by holding on to a chain that’s embedded into the rock to ensure that you don’t lose your footing and pitch yourself off the side.  The Parks department posted warnings on the busses that you take to the start point telling you how risky it is, and believe me, those warnings did nothing to help my comfort level.  

The first part of the climb out of Scout’s Landing isn’t so bad.  Learning where to place your feet and realizing that physically the climb isn’t arduous definitely gave me a boost.  A few minutes later, we reach a vista, and I say to one of the leaders “Oh, are we here?”  Not even close.  He points far ahead, past an extremely narrow section to the top.  I had myself a mini panic attack (Or maybe not so mini).  The path looked so frightening, so dangerous.  I thought there was just no way I’d be able to do it.  Then he suggested I turn back. 

What? Turn back? No way. No f’in way.  Deep breath, and time to go on, even with tears in my eyes.  I decided to just look at the 5 foot area directly in front of me.  It definitely helped that one of the leaders was right behind me cheering me on the entire time.  Again, physically, it was easy.  Another 5 minutes in and I was able to start joking, and a little later we were at the summit.  Relief.  Deep exhale, and let me see where I’ve come from and where I am.  

After enjoying some strawberries and some trail mix, it was time to head back down, which was much easier than the way up.  I was able to be chatty, take in the view, and slow down my heart rate to normal levels.

Learning moment:  Obviously if thousands of tourists climb to Angel’s Landing every year, it’s not that dangerous.  Yes, you shouldn’t do it while drunk, in high winds or rain, but on a normal day, there was nothing preventing me from making the climb easily.  Except my fear.  Like most of my life’s experiences, the biggest obstacle I come up against tends to be that voice in my head that tells my why I can’t do something… it’s too scary, it’s too hard… I’m not strong enough.  With Ironman Mont-Tremblant approaching in a little over three weeks (!) that voice has been getting louder and louder and I’ve been getting more and more fearful about finishing, or at least finishing with dignity.  

So I’ve started taking steps to quell that screaming voice.  For me, having done something once makes me believe I can do it again.  If you ask me to climb Angel’s Landing again, I will.  It wasn’t hard, and now that I know that, I’d actually enjoy doing it while looking around and taking in the view.

Well, due to a pretty bad case of bronchitis, I’ve been doubting that I can do Ironman -  I had to abbreviate workouts for a week (though I did win my AG at the NYRR Sprint Tri), and cancel workouts for another week (including deferring the NYC Triathlon the weekend of my birthday – a real bummer), and could feel my muscles atrophy and my fitness wane.  It was a dark time (I’m saying this somewhat tongue in cheek – may this be as sucky as my life gets – it’s still pretty awesome!), and I was worried that I wasn’t getting my key workouts in before my race.  

But as soon as I got the all clear from the doctor, I was back to it.  At this point I have one 2.4 mile swim in the books, as well as a century ride.  Both were done at an easy pace, in preparation for Ironman.  But they were completed.  I know that I’m capable of swimming 2.4 miles without stopping.  I can ride 100 miles without shredding my quads.  Unfortunately, the run was not quite the same success.

However, based on my times for the first two, I think that even if I slow jog/walk the run, I will easily finish in under the 17 hours.  While originally I was hoping for an under 13 hour time, as the season went on, it was very clear that there was no way that was in the cards.  I simply don’t have the fitness and speed for that kind of time at this point.  (And more to the point, I’ve skipped too many workouts this year.  There’s a reason for all of them, and they build speed as well as endurance – had I kept it honest, and put in all the time I was required to, we’d be having a different conversation… or is this a monologue?)

The ride and the swim – getting those miles into my head more than my body, have gone a long way to reassuring me that I am capable of this.  In a couple of weeks I’ll be volunteering at the TNT aid station 2 miles from the finish line, and cheering on my teammates as they reach their Ironman dreams.  That will hopefully be another puzzle piece in place. 

In the mean time, I’m keeping it smart, but playing with speed and hills on my shorter rides (both fun for me), doing what needs to be done without over doing it.  

Rev3 Quassy 2012 Race Report

So I owe you a run through of May races - there were 3! And I'll get to it eventually, hopefully soon.  But I wanted to write a race report for Quassy while it was still fresh-ish in my mind.

I came into this race hoping to blow last year's time out of the water.  I was very unprepared last year for the hills on the bike course, and this year, between training hill repeat on River Road and 9W with Team in Training, and the Quassy course preview two weeks earlier, I was fairly confident that I would have a better showing on the bike than I did last year.

After pouring rain Saturday, race morning on Sunday was a lovely Sunday day - not too cool.  Unlike last year, I stayed up in Middlebury the night before the race.  My roommate for the night had booked a room at the Crowne Plaza, and was gracious enough to share with me.  We had lots of fun putting on the extremely sticky race tattoos the night before and posing, prepping our transition bags, and getting excited for race day.

We made it to the transition area minutes after it opened, snagging a much-coveted parking spot in the main lot.  We saw Coach Scott and JP at the entrance to transition  As usual on race morning, I had a hard time getting down my breakfast - rice cakes with choco-almond butter and sliced bananas, and a cup of joe, but continued nibbling as I set up transition.  I was in the second-to-last wave, starting at 7:30, so was not in any real rush to finish eating quickly.

One comment on the "service" pre-race compared to last year - last year there were huge water coolers for us to get drinking water prior to swim start, both to drink then or to fill bottles.  This year they weren't provided, and the water fountain at the amusement part wasn't turned on.  The only place to get drinking water was the bathroom sink.  Less of a big deal was that last year there were volunteers with  spray-glide that sprayed you prior to you wearing the wetsuit, and they weren't around this year either.  Don't care about the glide, but really hope that there is an available cold water drinking source by transition next year.  I was pretty thirsty after transition closed and prior to my start time, and there was nothing to drink.

After a quick warm-up swim, I watched the pros take off, cheering Meghan on, and then hung with the Team for a bit before hitting the toilets one last time before my wave went off.   The water was a gorgeous 71 degrees, and I felt good in it.  I noticed that the sighting buoys weren't exactly in line with the turn buoys, so thought it would be a good strategy to sight off the turn buoy in order to swim in the straightest line.  And it would have been a great strategy if 1. I was a good sighter 2. I hadn't doubted my sighting skills 3. I could sight smoothly while swimming with proper form and 4. I hadn't spent a third of the race swimming into the sun.  Instead, I zig-zagged back and forth.  However, I stayed well within myself, and felt good throughout the swim.  As I turned for the third leg of the swim, toward shore, I started using my kick to wake up my legs for the bike.  Swim time: 42:07 (IDENTICAL to last year!)

Coach Scott was at Swim out and it was nice seeing him there and getting a cheer.  After a quick in and out, I was on my bike, and out on the course (T1: 2:43)

Previewing/preriding the course a few weeks before was absolutely critical to my performance on race day.  I knew where to push and where to take it easy, and could tell myself that the hills were tolerable and doable.  There was one 4-mile hill about 25 miles in, and I was surprised when it was over, as I expected it to be a lot worse.  The bike was definitely more about passing than being passed, though I only managed to gain 2 places.  Nutrition was the Chia Charges at the :30, 1:15 and 2:00, with sips of Accelerade, then watered down Accelerade, as I refilled my Speedfill passing through aide stations.  At about 3:00 on the bike I figured it was time to take something in again, so managed just over half a Lara Bar (Chocolate Peanut Butter, of course), but didn't want anymore after that.  I finished the bike feeling strong, and as if I could have given it more, but wanting to save my legs for the run.  Bike time: 3:27:15 (Last year: 3:48:11)

After a chatty transition, (talking up Anne from Terrier and seeing Lauren race out past me!) it was off to the run.  T2: 2:39

Coach Scott was cheering at about Mile 1, which was on a down-hill, and I was trying to get my speed and heart rate in check.  He told me that I looked strong, and that I'd keep going like that.  It made me feel good to hear that, though I was terrified to disappoint.  And I managed to keep running past the 2 mile mark, and to the 3rd aide station, where I used the port-o-potty (yes, 40-60 oz. of liquid will eventually catch up with you!), downed a couple of of salt tab, and ripped open yet another water bag with my teeth, then split it between drinking and pouring on my head.  Pretty soon though, with a sharp right-hand turn,  the lovely flats and downhills came to an abrupt end and we hit the dirt road (which I enjoy) and the hills (um, not so much) - it was time to walk.  I resisted at first, but even walking, saw that my heart rate was creeping up toward 170.  I wanted to have enough juice in my legs to make it to the end - better to finish strong then power through those hills.  So I employed the same strategy as last year-run the flats and down hills, and walk the ups.  Mile 5 came after most of the hills were done, and Mile 6 saw me visiting the port-o-potty yet again.  I was alternating water, coke and gatorade at the aide stations, with an occasional piece of banana thrown in.  My body has a pretty good sense of what it needs, and I tried to respect it (though given how fatigued I was for the first 8 miles of the run, I probably should have shoved in more calories during the bike).

Mile 8 saw me picking up the pace, and deciding that there would be no more walking.  Aside from the port-o-potty break at mile 9, I kept to that, picking up the pace to what felt like a sprint (but really, really wasn't anywhere close!) for the last 5k.  That found me finishing the run 5 seconds faster than last year at 2:29:43.

Total time: 6:44:26 was over 25 minutes faster than last year's time of 7:09:40.

I met up with some Team people and we waited for a few more people to come through, then got a couple of hamburger patties (great idea), potato salad (not so good) and green salad, and headed to cheer on the last few TNT runners.   Unfortunately, it started pouring then, so that mission was aborted, and instead, I headed to Transition to pick up my soaked gear and head home.

Last minute thoughts:  I'm still fairly new to this sport, and this is the only half course I've done, though I've done it twice now.  While I am very interested in trying other halfs next year, I am equally interested in improving my time in this race.  I've proven to myself that I can shave a significant amount of time off the bike leg, and even off of the transitions, but the swim and run times were eerily identical to last years.   I'm confident that I  can improve my time on both of those as well as trimming down the bike time even more.  There's also a certain satisfaction in completing a challenging course, and Rev3 really does put on a well run race!

Other little things:

1. They were offering  free quickie A.R.T. massage sessions, and I had my guy work on my right leg - calf, glute, psoas, IT band, which all tend to give me problems, particularly as I fatigue.  I felt no pain at all on my right side during the tri (though my left achilles started acting up a bit).  While uncomfortable when being performed, I think A.R.T. is pretty friggin miraculous, and I'm searching for a go-to person in Manhattan for tune-ups.

2.  I'm not sure about the calf sleeves during the race.  Maybe this brand is a little thick for my liking and doesn't provide quite enough compression.  I have a set by CEP that are thinner and snugger.  I went with these on race day because I thought that they'd be easier to put on.  However, I will say that I've started running in them in training and feel significantly less calf soreness than before.  Maybe I should explore the full sock option instead of ankle socks and sleeves.

3.  Potty time ate a lot of my race time - easily 10 minutes.  I have to learn how to make this a non-issue. (Putting it delicately - use your imagination.)

High Flying

I've tucked my flying away for a while so that I could properly focus on my Ironman pursuits this year and so that the fly rig could remain a sanctuary of joy in my life rather than a source of stress and frustration. However, in celebration of recovery week, my itchy fingers clicked on the sign-up button for Sunday's intermediate fly class out on Pier 40.

After a relatively relaxed but restless week, I eagerly rode my bike downtown, backpack full of grips, twisting belt, lock and knitting.  Windy conditions greeted me on my ride, but I thought nothing of them.  Arriving at the rig, I was happy to see several familiar faces that I had missed nearly as much as the rig itself.  And still, until I climbed that ladder and stood on the platform, I didn't recognize how much of an impact the wind would have on my psyche.

If I thought coming back after a month without flying would be frightening, it was nothing compared to being on that board with the (mostly irrational) fear of being blown off during a particularly powerful gust.  While each turn found me a bit more acclimated, a little more at home than the one before, it nonetheless felt like each was a tour of duty from which I needed to recover when getting down.  Truthfully, I haven't felt quite this nervous flying in years, and I felt a little like a beginning flyer - nervous on the board, worried about not being able to get that second hand on the bar, and oh so relieved to be in my belt.

Layouts were the order of the day -reminding my body what was expected from it on the rig.  While mediocre,  I was relieved to discover that I hadn't forgotten 8 years worth of training in a single month.

And now, a few days later, muscles that were neglected still complain about being woken from hibernation, while my soul thanks me for taking to the air.

Recovery Week a/k/a Withdrawal

If I ever doubted that one can be addicted to exercise, I doubt no longer.   While I welcomed this recovery week on Monday (well, sort of, since I was doing the past week's long run that day - I'm not sure if a 2:15 run then timed swim qualifies as an "easy" day), by today I've been chomping at the bit to get back to it.

Tuesday was a 1/2 hour indoor spin, since the weather was icky out.  Not even enough to get a decent sweat on. (Not that I was allowed to go too hard anyway).  Wednesday was an easy jog over to a lecture at Yarden's school for the 1/2 hour prescribed for that day.  Thursday, the timed hour bike, and now today.  It's supposed to be a dinky 1600 meter swim.  I probably won't get to a pool today, as pool time is limited but I'm thinking that it might be a perfect opportunity for some yoga.  Oh, wait, no.  I have a massage scheduled for 6, to work on my overly rested muscles.   So that means I'll pull out the TRX and get some strength in.  And maybe do some handstands at work.  And maybe run up and down the stairs.  All I know is that I'm really looking forward to a really meaty week next week.

I guess that's part of the purpose of recovery.