Satisfaction

In the tent, I was focused, deftly putting on socks, compression calf sleeves, running shoes, and then I grabbed a volunteer to help me with sunscreen....... And immediately realized how much skin had been missed when I applied SPF the first time around. I felt two rings of fire on my back, between my shoulders blades and my tri suit. I told the volunteer to apply as much sunblock as possible, while I put my visor and sunglasses on to head out the door.

To give you all some perspective, when I was leaving the change tent to head out on my run, the Voice of Ironman was announcing the arrival of the Female winner, Heather Wurtele. That is how fast these pro women are, able to swim-bike-run the whole race faster than I could swim-bike-apply sunscreen. It gave me goose bumps to hear the crowd cheer her on, and I harnessed that energy to start my run.

The run, my first marathon, in my first Ironman, how does that work? Let me tell you. Having been unable to complete some of my run training due to injury, I knew that I would have to have a plan for this run, and I did. Walk through the aid stations and bigger hills, otherwise, run, and keep running. I left the oval running, ready for the immediate downhill, which ends just before the first aid station. No walking break here. Although I can't recall whether I saw them at the beginning of the first or second loop of the run, it was great to see the cheering section from the club in Ottawa as I made my way past!

I took the first 3k of the marathon to find my running legs, and get into a rhythm that I thought I could sustain for the hours to come. About 2k in to the run I approached our cottage, where I could see our neighbours, out on their lawn chairs waiting for their athlete to run by. I stopped for a second to ask where my husband was, and they snapped a picture of me starting my run. I told them to tell my hubby that he was fired, and he'd better be in his spot for when I passed by again. Next, I came across the hotel where my parents were staying. I could hear my Mom cheering from about half a kilometre away! She's been practicing this cheering method for years, I was so happy to see her smiling face.

Just after my Mom I saw my cycling partner, who gave me a huge smile and a cheer, “Nicole! You look great, just keep that pace! You have lots of time!” She was rocking her marathon as I knew she would, I gave her a quick cheer and kept on going.

From there it was all downhill….. No, literally, it was basically a huge downhill as we made our way toward the Olympic Ski Jumps, past the Lake Placid Horseshow Grounds, ultimately turning left onto River Road.

At this point in the race it was remarkable to me to see so many people of different ages, shapes and sizes. Each one of them was making forward progress, some looking strong, others looking green. By some miracle, I was feeling good, and relatively happy with my pace when I came upon a young ginger haired guy, at the peak of fitness, walking. He said to me “are you feeling anywhere near as bad as I do right now?”, I couldn’t lie, so I said, “actually, I’m feeling pretty good right now, happy to be running”,  I’m pretty sure I didn’t make his afternoon, so I continued on my way.

Now, the aid stations on the run were really something to behold, first, the portable facilities, hydration options and ice, then the food, everything from PowerBars, to Gels, to pretzels and fruit, and finally, sponges soaked in cool water. At around the 3 km mark, I took water and a sponge – fabulous! I kept that up for every second aid station from then on.

Hitting the River Road, I was thinking about my race plan, and exactly what constituted a large hill, and for some reason, I decided to take a walking break. No aid station or hill in sight. About 20 seconds into the walk I heard a voice behind me, “come on Nicole, any kind of run is better than a walk, let’s go!”… uh oh, caught walking, I thought.  It was Glen, I started running again and we stayed together for a bit talking about our days, and then he was off in his streak of black, red and white.

I kept his voice in my mind as I made my way down the road, which undulates through a lovely neighbourhood.  It was great to see the community out, many sitting at the end of their driveways – partly because they had no way to leave with the road closed to traffic!  They cheered us on as we made our way to the turnaround and headed back into town. Just before I hit the turn I saw Glen again and he said “That’s it Nicole, you look great! Keep it up like that and you’re going to be an Ironman!” and I knew that he was right!

The run back into town is a challenge, because the steep downhills that I’ve already described become steep uphills. At this point, the miles begin to wear, and you see other competitors walking, in various states of discomfort. I set my sights on the next spot I would see my family and kept moving. Coming up on our cottage again, I realized my watch was dead, so I awkwardly removed my heart rate strap – which had become a chafing nightmare –  and my watch, preparing to hand it off to my husband. It was great to see him, in shutterbug mode at first, and then hear his words of encouragement. I quickly passed him the dead watch, and made my way back into town.

The energy from the spectators coming up the hill was crazy, their cheers, taunts and general madness pulls you up, and revs your engine for the turn onto Lake Placid Club Drive where you turn around and do the loop all over again. Right in the thick of the crowd was my Mom, walking with me up the hill, willing me onward and upward.

Just after the turnaround I saw my riding partner again, she was coming to the end of her race, and I was blessed to run with her for what was almost the last 500 metres of her first Ironman. “You’re doing great, Nicole!” she said, there were tears in my eyes knowing what she’d put in to get there. I cheered like crazy, finally saying, “Go get it Ironman, I’ll see you in a few hours”. She rocked it, with a 12:09 finishing time. So proud of her!

That energy was all I needed to keep me moving, what an exhilarating feeling! Once I’d choked down the tears, it was time to hit the downhill on Sentinel Road and start my second loop. As I approached our cottage for the penultimate time that afternoon I heard my name, it was Grant, our neighbour for Ironman week, who was just coming to the end of his second loop on the run. We stopped for a minute for a check-in, he knew it was my first IM, and asked how I was doing. It’s amazing to think that he took time out of his race to ask about mine, these people are really quite incredible.

Seeing my family on this pass was amazing. My husband keeps saying that I smiled the whole race, but if I hadn’t been wearing sunglasses, he’d know that every time I saw him out there, my eyes filled with tears. Your feelings are heightened when you’re out there alone for so many hours, at least mine are, so seeing this amazing guy who has supported me unwaveringly through this process hit me really hard every time. He’s kind of a ninja spectator too, his words of encouragement come through as a quiet calm, but underneath I can always tell he’s pushing for me to do my best.

The second time on the downhills I knew what to expect, and some of the sites were familiar from the first pass. As we made our way toward River Road, I came upon a walker, the woman who had asked me for a GU at the start of the swim! She started running again and we chatted for a bit, “I’ve been watching you, and I can’t believe you’re still running”, she said. I told her about the game plan and how I was determined to run as much of the race as I could. Unfortunately, she’d been experiencing some stomach issues, and had been slowed to a walk for a while at that point. The funny thing was, I had pulled into the bike special needs station at the same time as she had that afternoon, and I noticed that she’d been eating dried fruit and stuff on the ride. I made a mental note NEVER to try that, given the resulting marathon walk.

Shortly after that, I found myself thinking, I can’t believe it’s almost over, what am I going to do now? Just then I passed a lady who said “I can’t believe it’s almost over! What are we supposed to do after this?” It was hilarious, I laughed with her, telling her I’d just thought the same thing. She ended up finishing just before me, and we’ve got veritable flip book photos of her finishing dance, she was clearly stoked!

Darkness eventually took over, and I found myself running toward the light. The light brings aid stations, and ultimately the finish line. Every light you hit brings you closer to the announcement you’ve been waiting to hear all day long. Something happens at the aid stations at night, I’m not sure whether the volunteers succumb to being out in the sun all day, or being on their feet for so long, but the party definitely ramps up. They were dancing and singing, and…..GIVING ATHLETES M&Ms!!!! I cannot tell you how amazing that was; I think they were the best M&Ms I’ve ever had in my entire life. Throw in a few pretzels and I was set.

Hitting the turnaround, I was so excited, I yelled “I’m going to be an Ironman!” to a guy running a light-up message board displaying words of encouragement to the athletes – I’m sure he thought I was nuts. I feel like I flew from there to our cottage, where my family started to walk on the sidewalk next to me. My dad was walking a bit ahead, which I’m fairly sure was to appear stoic/hide the tears in his eyes. As I mentioned, he’s the strong, silent type. My husband walked beside me on the sidewalk, with my mom on the other side of the road, both invisibly pushing me along. I kept running, and was stoked to see Nat and Brent from Ottawa volunteering at the aid station just before the last big climb. I got a huge cheer from their entire group and made my way up the hill. At the top of the hill, three guys from Quebec joined me, declaring that I looked beautiful tonight, and that I was really glowing. Thanks boys, I’m married, but this really helped! And then came the last turn onto Lake Placid Club Drive.

Just past the swim start, at the end of Matt Long’s driveway – see post # 1 –  there were a group of spectators making margaritas with a blender attached to the back of a bike. They’d been at it all day, both making and imbibing. “Have one!” they declared, and I said “won’t be long now!” running past them toward the turnaround. Hitting that turnaround was another Tour de France moment. What seemed like all the residents of the surrounding houses were packed around a solitary pylon, cheering at the top of their lungs. High fives were given all the way around. Back at Matt Long’s house, one of his buddy’s spotted a guy in front of me and said “Girl, you stay with him! You got this!”, and I did! Coming down onto Main Street I felt like I was flying, “Right Turn Here!” said the volunteer, and I choked back tears to thank him.

As I hit the track I could hear Mike Reilly saying, “Here she comes, this is Nicole Delaney from Ottawa, Canada! Come on Nicole! Nicole Delaney, from Ottawa, Canada, You Are an Ironman!!”

If the video doesn’t lie, and the photos are telling the truth, this finish was one of the most exhilarating and fabulous experiences of my life. I celebrated from the moment I hit the track, arms in the air, high fiving with the crowd and finally crossing that finish line as an Ironman. Time: 15:26:12.

Almost immediately, I was whisked to a medal, a t-shirt and a finishing photo by a volunteer. After that, I finally got to see my husband and parents. Hugging him for the first time after the race was even better than finishing – true story, we’d been in this together for so long, it was such a team effort. I never could have done it without his support. We make the best team. I can’t wait for the adventures to come!

You Can't Always Get What You Want.

Coming out of the water, it was time to see hit the strippers, wetsuit strippers that is! Basically, I ran over to a line of about 50+ volunteers, and then one of them grabs the arms of your wetsuit, says "lie down" and they yank your suit off in about half a second! Hilarious experience, basically having some strange dude tear your wet clothes off. With my suit off, I threw it over my shoulder and ran across the LONG carpet back to the transition area.

Once into transition I grabbed my bike bag and headed into the change tent. The sun was out, so it took a while for my eyes to focus in the shade of the tent. I grabbed a spot and started getting changed. In hindsight, I’d have worn my trisuit to swim, but this time around I was set on having dry clothes at least to start out with on the bike. I did my best to wriggle into my clothes (dry clothes/wet body equals slow going, thankfully a volunteer grabbed me and helped me get sorted) and slapped on my sunscreen, praying that I’d gotten it on every part of my skin. I threw on some Chamois Butt'r (do not leave home without it), grabbed sunglasses, emergency pharmaceutical ziploc (i.e., Zantac, Advil, Imodium) and a couple of extra Gu Gels. Finally, helmet on; I headed out to get my bike, yelling "226, 226!" so that a volunteer could grab it for me.

The bike mount line felt like the beginning of a rodeo bull ride, you literally get your leg over your bike, clip in and catapult yourself down a ramp, where you make a quick right hand turn and torpedo into the first downhill on the race course. After the race, my family was telling me about all the riders who had run into the hay bales at the bottom of this hill, which I apparently had been totally unaware of, in fact at breakfast the next morning I remember saying “what hay bales”? From there it was all about getting comfortable on the bike and settling into a rhythm as I made my way out of town toward the long descent into the village of Keene. During this first pass by the cottage we’d rented for the week I looked but couldn’t find my fans, it turns out that my family had taken up a roost near the aforementioned hay bails and they had cheered me on in silence as I came down the hill.

The trip up Keene was an interesting one, I’d come out of the water after a strong swim, but so did everone else it seems, and had one male competitor literally say to me “you must have had a good swim”, which immediately had me thinking, "skinny roadie, what the hell does he mean by that??"  Which led me right into a mantra of “beat ten men, beat ten men”.

As we approached the crest of the descent into Keene I heard “Hey, Nicole!”, it was Glen, another coach who I’d worked with in the spin studio over the winter. I yelled “Hey, have a great race!” and he was gone in a red-white-black Sugoi streak, on his way to a stellar finishing time in his first IM.

Now, I love the descent down into Keene, and the first one was just as great as I remember, I took advantage of the free speed, pedaling to the extent possible on the downhills, and moving through the semi-flat sections really comfortably. Arriving in Keene we all made a left and started moving through the flatter part of the course that takes us out the out-and-back section running into Ausable Falls, a sort of "blink and you miss it" hamlet that allows Ironman to take its main road over on a summer Saturday.

En route to Ausable Falls I made a quick stop at what became my favourite aid station to use the, ahem, facilities. I slowed to a stop and a volunteer immediately grabbed me and my bike saying "what do you need, can I fill anything up for you while you're in there?", talk about service! I asked for some water, and went about my business. Afterward she helped me get back on my bike and on my way. I can't say enough about the volunteers at this race, they truly make the athletes feel like superstars, and take care of pretty much every need - they even pick up our trash!

Through this section I ate, drank and stayed in an aero position as much as I could. I remember looked at the competitors as they passed me in the other direction as they returned from Ausable Falls, it was nice to see a lot of familiar faces in that group. This was also where I managed to start to make some gains, passing some people, and really starting to enjoy the ride. It wasn’t all fun and games though, this was about the point in the ride where I began having issues switching into the big ring on my front gears, which I typically use to gain speed on the downhills and carry speed over flatter bits, so I carried on, occasionally trying it out, but having less and less success each time I tried it. I have to cop to using my bike shop's name in vain a few times too I guess.

Once we made the right turn to head to Wilmington, the climbing legs were tested, and testing continued until we all got back to Placid just in time to do it all over again. Coming back into town there are 5 so-called rollers, named Little Cherry, Big Cherry, Mama Bear, Baby Bear and Papa Bear - if not the exact order, that is pretty close. And can I just say, there is nothing little, or familial about any of them!

There was a silver lining,  at the top of Papa Bear, athletes were greeted like it was the Alps in the Tour de France, people right on the road cheering, running alongside riders with noise makers, flashing lights and crazy costumes, it was an amazing rush! Arriving back in town I heard the announcer say my name as I came around the corner to start my second loop - which brought me to tears and covered my arms in goosebumps, it was a great feeling to hear people cheer me on as I rode by.

I wish I could say that the second loop of the ride was uneventful –  that it was as smooth or smoother than loop one – but I can't, although I did finally see my family, first Mom at the bottom of a hill, madly cheering and filming video, and then my husband who mouthed “Love you”, while my Dad waved and silently cheered (he's the strong silent type), with our two pups standing on their hind legs to look out the open rear window of our truck, patiently waiting for me to zoom by.

I think part of me was worried about the marathon to come, and my ride overall may have been more conservative than it should have been, but it being my first race of this magnitude, I didn't want to blow it all on the bike. I was also frustrated with my lack of big ring, and too worried about losing time to flag down one of the technical support vehicles to have a look, so the second loop was frustrating. To add to the fun, a headwind had developed through the day, which made it a bit more difficult to maintain the pace I’d hoped for. In fact, my second descent down into Keene was an entire 10k per hour slower than it had been in the morning, talk about wind.

I saw the funniest thing on that descent though, there was a guy riding in front of me for a while, who had decided to do his bike leg in running shorts, like the short kind that the Kenyans sport at marathons. And, he'd obviously gotten sort of cramp in his leg, because just as we were about to start the big descent, he had one of his legs out of his pedals and extended backward in a stretch. I guess he was having a hard time getting comfortable. It was entertaining to watch, I was cracking up. Ultimately, I made a move to pass him right before the hill got steeper, just in case he took a fall as a result of his acrobatics.

To conclude, the second bike loop did not go as planned and was much slower than the first, but through it my body felt good, my nutrition and hydration were really bang on, and despite some struggles in the winds and hills through the High Peaks Gorge, I came off the bike smiling.

Ok, I was dying to give Stan away to the first available volunteer, and happy to get started on my run, I'd eaten and hydrated well, so I was ready. I actually think I heard Stan yell “Go Engine Go!” as I ran away from him toward the change tent, 183.8 kilometres down, 42.2 to go!

Start Me Up

At just before 10:30pm on July 24, I became an Ironman. And, if the pictures are any indication, hearing the Mike Reilly, the Voice of Ironman calling my name as I arrived on the finishing track was one of the most exciting experiences in my life so far. It really was, but as you all know, it’s all in the getting there, so, here is how that went. I'll be posting in three parts this week.

The week leading up to race day was eventful, short workouts to ensure that my body remembered how to swim-bike-run, and the requisite preparation that comes before a week long roadtrip/holiday. And then, two nights before our departure, our car was broken into. Laptop gone, camera gone, and window smashed. T-minus 36 hours before departure for Lake Placid. Resulting in insurance calls, a new window, and rapid replacement of technological items the day before we left. This was more than a little bit inconvenient.

We arrived in Lake Placid on Thursday afternoon, and took the time to settle in. We rented a (very) small cottage for the week, and it literally had just (barely) enough room for luggage, two bikes, two dogs, one athlete and one amazing husband. Some of you probably know that it was sweltering in the week leading up to the race, and being in the Adirondacks, very few places were blessed with air conditioning, remarkably though, the ceiling fan and the shade of the surrounding trees made our little spot very comfortable, particularly in the evenings, when restful sleep was so important.

Friday morning brought (Iron)golf for my hubby, and a quick trip to the grocery store for me. Post-golf, we headed to Lake Placid High School to check in and pick up my race kit. Standing in line surrounded by hundreds of fit people all tapered to a fine point, and as many green shirted Iron Crew volunteers, it hit me, this is Ironman, the big moment had almost arrived. Even the lady who affixed my athlete bracelet to my wrist said “I’ll be praying for you on Sunday”. Just for me? Who am I? I think I freaked out just a little, but then I blushed, said thank you, and quietly made my way around the gym collecting my stuff. Friday night, the athletes and family support were entertained and inspired at the Welcome Dinner. If you’ve never heard of firefighter Matt Long, look him up, it will remind you that anything is possible.

Saturday in Lake Placid brought the arrival of my parents, two of the best fans I could ever hope for, and the tale of a dinner ruined. Wanting to eat something relatively plain on Ironman Eve, I had purchased some chicken during my quick grocery run on Friday, but come Saturday evening, after a visit with my parents at their hotel, we found out that the chicken was frozen. It was just about dinner time, and we had no dinner. My ever resourceful husband then made a mad dash to Chair 6, the restaurant right at the end of our cottage’s driveway, to beg for a table. We were lucky, they had just had a cancellation for the next sitting. So, although the rice and chicken wasn't made by me, it was the exact meal that I’d planned to eat the night before the race. Thank You Charlie! We had a lovely meal, made our way back to the cottage to relax and take the dogs for a short walk. Before bed I took a bath to visualize the race one more time.

At 4am on Ironman Day, I got up to have breakfast (one and a half bagels with peanut butter, one banana, a cup of coffee and water), hit the shower and transfer my water bottles into a bag. I was actually amazed that I was able to eat, it felt like a relatively normal day. I opted to wear a swimsuit under my wetsuit, rather than wearing my tri suit in the water, so I threw my sweats on over that to wear for the walk over to transition at the Olympic Oval.

It was hard not to feel like that walk was more of a death march, I knew what I had ahead of me that day, and was struggling to harness the butterflies in my stomach and keep them from ejecting my breakfast. Once we got into town though, I started to feel much better and methodically moved through dropping off my special needs bags, and headed into transition to check on Stan, my trusty steed, who was waiting patiently for me. Got a good luck hug on the way in from Brenda from Ottawa, a coach who I'd trained with at the spin studio over the winter, which was just what I needed at that moment!

Walking into transition, race organizers were informing athletes that due to the high water temperature, the race would a non-wetsuit swim for those competing for Ironman World Championship spots, and age group awards – the tension was palpable. Given that many of the girls in my age group would have had to trip and fall in front of me for me to win an award, I opted to wear my wetsuit, along with the majority of other racers.

Seeing Stan that morning, my eyes filled with tears, and I was stoked to find that I had no flat tires, despite my unfounded concern that they had exploded in the hot sun after bike check-in. I topped off my tires and headed out to get body marked.

Race numbers inked, it was time to get into my wetsuit, and eat a gel. I was standing next to another woman at this point, who longingly asked if I had an extra gel, alas I didn't have one to spare. Pulling on the wetsuit, I realized that shorts would have been a wiser warm up outfit than pants, as I struggled to get my suit up over my clammy skin! It took about twice as long as usual, but I was finally wetsuited and it was time to kiss my husband and head toward the start. The walk to the beach was a long one, between two barriers which were lined by a carpet to protect our feet on the run back. It was one of the weirdest walks of my life, I could still see my husband, I think I hugged him like six more times, but all the same, I felt very cut off from the spectators who were lining up for prime spots to see their athletes come out of the swim. Freaking out at little bit at this point, I spotted a friend from Ottawa and we hugged it out, wishing each other luck. From then on, it was like being in a funnel, hundreds of athletes making their way into the water to await the start. In the water, I did my customary dip, allowing the water into my wetsuit, and then I walked out toward the beach to let some of the excess water drain out the bottom, learned this trick from JMac, and it’s become a habit. Scanning the crowd, I was finally able to spot my cycling partner, and we gave each other huge good luck hugs and words of encouragement, drawing from the all the hours and kilometers we'd logged out on the road together – I am certain I cried. It was the perfect way to start the race.

At 7a.m., to the sound of Start Me Up by the legendary Rolling Stones, the gun was fired and Ironman Lake Placid 2011 began. The feeling of 2500 people moving from floating upright in the water to freestyle swim position was incredible, contact was inevitable and basically continuous. As expected, I was easily able to grab onto a draft and find a rhythm in the water, even making eye contact with my cycling buddy and saying “You’re good!” mid-stroke. About 500 metres into the swim I got kicked in the face, which pushed the left socket of my goggles up into my eye, lovely! But, the hard knocks were reciprocal and I’m certain that I kicked, punched and swamped my fair share of swimmers that morning. Not to that a lot of folks had opted to swim sans wetsuit that morning, which creates all kinds of contact you don’t want to know about!

In terms of the turns, and protocol around course markers, it doesn’t actually matter whether you’re racing 100 people or 2500, someone ALWAYS stops at the buoys to have a look around, honestly, you need to look when this much white water is basically propelling you around Mirror Lake? I literally yelled “Why are we stopping?” at the first buoy, as I turned my head to take a breath. It was the same at the second buoy, and at both turns on the second loop of the swim.

As I finished the first loop of the swim, I heard the announcer call my name as I ran up onto the beach to start the second loop, that energized me and pulled me all the way around Mirror Lake one more time.

Before I knew it, after about 1:15 (woohoo!), I was out of the water the second time and running across the beach in the direction of transition, to be reunited with Stan.

16 Days to Go!

Well, race day is 16 days away, and I have much to tell you all about. While the blog has been quiet over the last couple of weeks, life has been anything but. First of all, my left leg is improving by the day; a consistent cocktail of physiotherapy, stretching, massage, water running and my foam roller have helped me to get to the point where I can run comfortably, so much so that I ran 10k in a session last weekend. I know that from the perspective of having an Ironman looming in my future, 10 k may seem like a pittance, but for me, it was happy moment, I feel more like a triathlete, and less like a cyclist who swims, or a swimmer who bikes. So that’s the leg sitrep.

In other news, I had my first fall on my bike a few weeks ago, and while it was at a relatively low speed, it hurt both my body and my pride – after coming to a stop sign I was turning a corner on a rural road and ended up too close to the edge, so I slid off the road. What a weird feeling, it was definitely one of those slow-motion moments, ending in a rather hard connection between my left elbow and the road. On top of that I got caught in my right cycling cleat and my riding buddy (Thanks J!) had to come and unclip me. I sat down in the shade to lick my wounds, have a drink and a bit of a snack to quell the woozies, and waited for the pit crew to collect me. I wasn’t badly hurt, I had full range of movement, but my elbow was quite sore and I didn’t feel like I would have been able to support myself on my handle bars well enough to feel safe. At home I iced, took some anti-inflammatories and iced some more, and then it was off to a wedding – which was fabulous by the way! Congrats to L and M!

The next morning, I’d lost some range of movement and the swelling had increased, so we went to Emergency, just in case. After some xrays, the physician informed me that there was evidence of a microfracture, and I wasn’t to swim/bike/run for 7-10 days. I totally freaked. What do you mean none? I don’t have that kind of time left! Cut to the next scene, post-freakout - I negotiated with the Doc to stationary bike and water run, at minimum. By Tuesday, I was back to running outside, and after a visit to the orthopaedic surgeon who said “I don’t see any break here, so you can just go back to what you’ve been doing, cause you’re going to anyways”, it was business as usual. Yay!

On the weekend of June 25, my riding buddy and I had our initiation to the Lake Placid Ironman swim and bike courses. What a great couple of days, it really helped us put into perspective the things to come, and gave us a great sense of comfort, because now we’re prepared for what’s ahead. I’m not saying it was an easy breezy weekend –  it was hard work, but now I feel ready to plan and pace appropriately.

A test run of the swim distance in open water this week showed that I'm ready to cover 3.8 kilometres very comfortably, with lots of energy to spare - which will be hugely important on race day.

So here we are. Race day is about 16 days away, and in an average day I experience excitement and nausea equally, thinking about July 24. In a lot of ways, much of the hard work is done, the question of whether I've done enough lingers, but at this point, I have to be confident in the work I've put in since January. 

My main focus for the next two weeks will be to get to the start line feeling healthy and rested. In the words of one of my training partners on Tuesday “For the next 18 days, we are china dolls. Encapsulate yourself in a bubble.” I’m not breaking out a roll of bubble wrap or anything, but I will definitely be approaching everything I do with a little extra care and attention.

I’m likely to be pretty giddy over the next few weeks, so you’ll probably see a few extra blog posts as we get closer to the day! Have a great weekend all. Have fun and be safe!

Race Report! June 11 Swim-Bike.

So,  Saturday, June 11 was my first race of this season, having been sidelined from the National Capital Half Marathon due to the issue with my left leg. The event: an Olympic Distance Swim-Bike at the Ottawa River Triathlon, being held at Britannia Beach in Ottawa.

This being a bit of training day, I trained as normal in the week leading up to the race, but knowing that I would be putting in a hard effort on the bike during the race, I left my trainer ride out, using my race bike leg as my hard ride.

After a failed attempt to get to Britannia on the night before to register due to construction season in Ottawa, I arrived at the venue early on Saturday morning to secure my entry and get my bike and race kit down to the transition area, which gave me some time to wander around the site, catching up with some friends and training partners prior to the race. It was great to see some people that I haven’t seen in a few months and catch up, if only briefly.

A quick stop at the race orientation, just to get the scoop on the swim course – three loops, including an exit at the end of each loop, quick run around two fluorescent green (Name of Sponsor Here) buoys and back into the water… dolphin dives anyone? This was great practice for the Big Event, since we will be doing two loops of Mirror Lake including an exit from the water and brief run in between. This was to be my first Olympic-distance swim in a race situation, so I was a bit anxious, and keen to get it over with. This was a normal feeling of course, as I’ve always viewed the swim as a necessary evil in triathlon; it’s never been my favourite of the three sports.

At the start, I wished my riding buddy good luck, and a big smile washed across my face, this was going to be it, the first race situation test of my months of work through the winter and spring. Loop One, the gun, or horn went off, signaling the start of the race. I began diving into the water, a few quick dolphin dives (check them out on Google) and into a starting pace, after about 30 seconds, I settled into what would be my race pace for the swim. I was well positioned to draft off a few people, and made it comfortably to the first turn, where for some reason everyone ALWAYS slows down, and in a lot of cases pop up like they are coming out of a gopher hole. I stayed in my rhythm and did my best to get around the human pylons, er, additional obstacles, and set my sights on the next buoy. At the second turn the water was quite shallow, which meant people were standing in the water and walking around the buoy, causing issues for those coming after them. I made the turn and headed for the turn at the fluorescent green (Name of Race Sponsor Here) buoys. For a split second en route to the turn I remember thinking, three loops? Really? How can that only be 500 metres… Reaching the turn, I got up and around the buoys and into the water to quickly start loop two. The second loop felt great, except for the moment where I had just adjusted my goggles only to have someone kick them off my face, but moments later, I’d finally settled into a rhythm, and I found myself relishing the second turn and third loop. Before I knew it, loop three was done and I was running for my T-zone spot to get my bike. That’s right, I RAN to my bike, which was the best feeling ever after having been basically run-free in training over the past three weeks while recovering my left leg. The pictures of that swim exit speak volumes, I don’t think I’ve ever smiled that widely in a race photo before. I found out later that the swim was actually 1600 meters, which meant it had gone even better than I’d expected.

On to the bike, once I’d run across a boardwalk and several meters down a recreational path, I got on the bike and made my way down the pathway until I reached the entrance to the road where we would complete four loops of approximately 10 k. I won’t mention the fact that we had to ride across grass and off a curb to get onto the parkway, but I will mention that there seemed to be a headwind in both directions and that four 10k loops can get ridiculously boring at a certain point. Yes, grass and curbs, definitely not my idea of ideal race course terrain, but it was what it was and we all sucked it up to get’er done. Once I got into a rhythm, that is exactly what I did, and knowing that I didn’t have a 10 k run waiting for me after the bike, I did what I could to leave it all out there on the course. I finished the 44.4k bike in about 1.5 hours. Overall it was a fun day, probably the most fun I’ve had on the race course in a while.

What I learned… I learned that my progress is swimming has been fantastic, I felt comfortable and confident throughout, and I’m very pleased with my final result. I learned that I was nutritionally short on the bike, now I know I need to carry at least two gels on the bike in an Olympic distance race, one would suffice, but will now carry two just in case. And, finally, I learned that the swim-bike discipline is awesome, it allows you to test your limits on the bike without having to worry about saving your legs and some gas for the run…. And, there’s tons of room at the massage tent when you finish!

 

On the run....

So, this week I got clearance from my physiotherapist to try a short run, 2 kms, no further. Ok, I thought, so I got up early on Tuesday morning to do it before my strength training and core work.

I completed the two kilometres, but I am not going to say I was completely satisfied with it, at times I felt like baby deer out on a frozen lake. It definitely showed me how far I'd come in the recovery process, but it also reminded me that I'm going to have to be patient, and adjust some of my expectations for my training over the next 6-plus weeks, as the race becomes nearer and nearer.

I experienced some discomfort and tightness following the run, and at Wednesday morning's session, my physio worked on my alignment, and ran me through the gauntlet of eletrodes, exercises, ultrasound and deeper tissue work that focused on particular areas. I ran again Wednesday evening with mixed results, but I completed the distance with a more consistent rythm than I had on Tuesday. Stretching and some work with my new foam roller seems to have helped, as my leg feels as normal as it has in weeks this morning, I can't tell you how good that feels.

The Ottawa River Triathlon is this weekend, and I will participating in the Olympic Distance Swim-Cycle event, I am leaving off the run for now, just to be safe in the longer term. I'm looking forward to seeing how all the work from the last number of months translates onto a race course. Let's hope the weather cooperates on Saturday morning!

Puppies, potholes, physiotherapy... Oh My!

Greetings! I hope you’re all well, and enjoying what seems to be late Spring/Early Summer like weather finally, at least in Ottawa!
 
The past number of weeks has been pretty eventful, they’ve included my initiation into riding in the Gatineau Hills – which I loved, craziness at the office, a new puppy at home, a minor running injury, and some changes in my race calendar as a result of said injury, and a ginormous hole in the road in Gatineau Park. Go figure, the year I’m ready to do the Meech Lake Triathlon, it gets cancelled.
 
The Sunday before the Victoria Day, I went out for my long ride, heading out along the Rockcliffe Parkway, into downtown and hanging a right at the War Museum – where I met up with my riding buddy, to make our way to the Park. It being the first time for me, we headed up Promenade de la Gatineau until we hit Meech Lake Road, turned around and headed back into Ottawa. We retraced our path across the Rockcliffe Parkway to Montreal Road and headed home from there. Great ride, the first dry afternoon in almost two weeks, and we made the most of it.
 
Following the ride, I threw on my running shoes and headed out the door for a transition run (T-run). All was well until about halfway home, when I started feeling a twinge in my lower leg, at the top left of my calf muscle. Uh oh, I thought, and stopped to give it a stretch, which seemed to help, so I carried on, fairly gingerly, spending some time running on the grass beside the sidewalk. By about 4.3k in the pain had increased, so I stopped again and gently stretched the area, but that time it didn’t actually help, and low and behold, I was ultimately walking home. Gentle stretch, elevate, rest, ice upon arrival.
 
I had felt something on the Saturday, during my long run, but it hadn’t discomforted me enough to worry, but I guess it was actually the start of something, as evidenced by how things went on Sunday.
 
I made the earliest appointment I could with my Doctor on the Monday, and by Wednesday morning was in Physiotherapy.
 
Verdict? Not a pulled muscle, but an issue in the alignment of my hips, and tightness in my illiotibial bands (both sides, you could use them to play a tune), which was causing inflammation of my peroneal nerve, which also affected the fibular tip and the area where the nerve wraps in front of the knee. I think I have all that right…. Anyhow, it explained why I was feeling discomfort. I’m not an expert in these things, so please take my explanation with a grain of salt, this is my understanding of the situation.
 
Solution? No running for the time being, swimming, water running and biking allowed, but no hills – she actually said “So, no riding the Gats”, my heart sunk – I had only just gotten a taste of how much fun those hills were.
 
Progress? I’ve had a few more visits and I’m happy to report that it’s progressing well, and I’m on track to making a gradual return to running – no National Capital Half Marathon this weekend, but hopefully back to running next week – and will be good to go for the Big Show on July 24.
In the meantime, I’m working hard at putting my best into the things that I can do, which means bonding with my bike, spending lots of time in the pool and working on upper body and core strength and my flexibility. The running will come, I’ve laid a foundation there, and hopefully when I can get back to it, gradually of course, I will still be able to draw from it.
 
I’ll be out on the streets of Ottawa this weekend, cheering on the runners, including my Mom who is doing her first 5k race. We are so lucky to be able to participate in these events, and I hope to be out there again this time next year.
 

75 days....

Ok, more like 74 days, three hours, etc.... But, it's a milestone I wanted to acknowledge.

A more significant post is coming later this week, but I wanted to share the following with you all....

75 days? What the? Gleep!!

Spring has sprung..... sort of.

Spring has sprung here, although you couldn't tell last weekend, which brought a funny mixture of blustery hail snow mixed with rain. But I swear it, many of us have been running in shorts of late. And then we woke up Thursday morning to a light dusting of snow on the ground and hedges in the back garden. Needless to say, I'm really looking forward to some true spring weather, and almost out of principle have decided to banish running tights from the wardrobe... which lead to a slightly chilly run on Tuesday morning when the temperature was only about -2.

In other news, I'm a very lucky girl, not only because I get to throw myself into a frenzy of spandex-wearing endurance training a minimum of 6 days a week, but also because...... my new bike is now rideable! Having spent some time getting custom fitted,  I finally put it through it's paces on the trainer last Saturday, and except for the usual discomfort getting used to the new saddle, it was a great ride. I hope to get out on the road this weekend, and except for the forecast for Saturday, it looks like it will definitely happen.

With Spring here, so is the 2011 racing season, and while my primary goal is reaching the finish line in Placid, I've picked a few local races to test out my legs, make sure that my equipment (including of course, the engine), nutrition/hydration planning and wardrobe all work well together. So, without further ado, here is my race schedule.

May 29 - National Capital Half Marathon

June 11 - Ottawa River Triathlon - Olympic Distance

July 2 - Meech Lake Triathlon 

July 16 - Bring on the Bay - 3km Open Water Swim

July 24 - Ironman Lake Placid

Now, the races leading up to July 24 are all in preparatory, my main focus remains the preparation for the big day, just a way to sort of shake the rust off, but not in a manner which is going to infringe on the quality of the IM specific training. For instance, the half marathon on May 29 will likely be followed by at least 5 km of a cool down run. I chose the swim on July 16 to simulate the experience of swimming in a group of people - while this group will be no where near as large as the one in Mirror Lake on race day, it will help me remember that in terms of contact during the swim, it's a matter of expecting it, accepting it, and getting over it... some of you might recognize whose wise words those are. Those who know me know that I have tended to dread the swim in the past, so I figured that the more I do it, the more comfortable I would be. 

Ottawa is a great city in terms of the availability of running and multisport races, and I know that I will be seeing alot of friends and training mates out on the course, which really adds to the fun of it - it's always awesome to hear someone shout your name followed by a "woooohoooo". 

I know that spectating the Ottawa Race Weekend for the first time made me want to be a racer, and despite the throngs of participants, it remains one of the highlights of the Spring season for me. If you haven't watched/run/walked it, I encourage you to go for it.... with registration sold out for this year get out there and cheer, and throw it on your race calendar for 2012!

I hope that everyone has a great Easter Weekend with family and friends. I know we'll be taking advantage of some extra time for swim/bike/run, but the in between will be filled with Easter chocolate, food and fun!

Overcoming FOMO

 “It’s not fair! I never get to….”  This is something that my husband has heard me say a lot over the past few weeks, as I lamented the loss of a night on the town, a sleep in, a day on the couch, a ski day, or brunch/shopping trip, even staying up past 10:30 p.m. on a Saturday night. And through it all he reminds me that my free time has been spoken for – by choice -  and will be until July 24, when I lay all the work on the line.

Not an easy thing to hear when you’re someone who sometimes experiences a high degree of FOMO. Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is something that I’ve had to deal with over the past few weeks, and it’s made me pretty cranky – so I apologize to those closest to me, who have steadfastly stood by as I ran around spouting bile with a black cloud over my head. Let’s just say, it wasn’t pretty. It probably has a lot to do with the blog going silent for a few weeks too, you know the old adage – Nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all. Another contributing factor has also been the recent return to winter here in town after a hint of spring, we’re all itching to get out on the bikes, and run without tights!

I’m starting to come to the other side of it and have had to realize – again – that I’m not actually missing out; I’ve just made a conscious decision to spend my free time doing something else in order to achieve a goal. By the end of last week, I’d finally made peace with that, and my mood has been markedly improved since. Rather than bitching about what I’m not able to do, it was time to look at what I can do, look forward to what’s to come, and really get excited about it. But, not in an annoying way, of course.

In other news, I’m happy to report that the run is really coming along – many of you know that this is not my favourite discipline. I had a great interval run Tuesday, and a great moderately paced run Saturday morning– I actually finished with a smile on my face. This euphoria didn’t last long though, as we were immediately put through the paces on the bike with a two hour ride including a full hour of standing climb to complete the brick. Fun times. Ok, not exactly fun, but definitely worthwhile.

With all this talk of looking to the future, here is a look at the minimum of what’s on tap this week:

Today – Swim – In terms of effort, I view this as recovery from a weekend on my feet.

Tuesday – Run and Swim – Toughest/sweatiest run of the week in terms of effort

Wednesday – Bike and T-run – Tough bike intervals, run is short/light-moderate effort

Thursday – Weights and Swim – Hardest swim of the week

Friday -  Bike – Low intensity – active recovery

Saturday – Long Bike/Run Brick – group session – let’s me know I’m not in it alone.

Sunday – Long Slow Run and Weights – weights post-run - focus on form when I’m tired.

The nice thing is, I know that next week is recovery week, which includes a big fat rest day! So, I can push my efforts this week, knowing I have that to look forward to! That and the fact that the pool by our house is finally reopening next week! This will shave at least two hours of travel time off my entire week!

In the Zones!

Remember the Beep Test? Where, in a so-called test of fitness, the phys-ed teacher put the class through a running test during which you had to run between two set lines on the gym floor, beating out the gradually quickening 'beeps' while doing so?

Well, imagine the gym floor was on a grade, moving under your feet, and you're running between beeps that are minute and a half apart. Throw in a basement in a semi-renovated state, a medium sized fan, my hubby monitoring my progress while he and the pup cheer me on, and you have me doing a run test to determine the heart rate zones that I should be hitting during various training sessions. This run test was last week, and I'm happy to report that I'm solidly 'in the zone' and have some marks with which to ensure my exertion is where it should on the run.... the bike test, as you may recall, was the week before.

We've reached week 11 in my plan, which will effectively mean the end of the adaption period, which from my perspective is a huge part of the base building I needed to prepare me for what is to come. I built up for five weeks prior to hitting my prescribed adaption phase of 6 weeks,  and by doing so I feel that I've given my body ample time to adjust, I am fairly comfortable with the routine, and now the workout frequencies feel normal. Next week will bring the beginning of the next build, with the volume increasing, and a few more workouts added.

Up to now I haven't wanted to bore you with such details, but I wanted to make sure that I shared some progress, for accountability sake. So there you have it.

So far so good this week from a training perspective, we finally had clear skies during our post-ride run on Saturday morning, the sun even peaked out at the end of it, which was a welcome site after almost a full week of rain. Sunday's run only had a few hiccups, one rock in my shoe and a moment of 'aw, man, do I gotta?' which I pulled myself out of after only a minute of two of slowing to a walk. Thank goodness this was after I'd run into Coach B.  Tried a new pool tonight, which was more bath than pool temperature-wise, but got me home 30 minutes earlier for dinner. Really, it was a win all around. And then we had ice cream... win, win, win!

And so, it's onward and upward, with hopes for a change in the weather, a ride on the road would be so good right now.... until then, I think our next tri related investment will be............ a gigantic fan.

Life is good.

It has occured to me over the last few weeks that in life, the most important thing is to realize how lucky we are to be able to seize every day and live it to it's full potential, and appreciate everything and everyone it has to offer, because in truth, you never know what's going to happen next. 

This has never rung out as clearly to me as it has over the past few weeks, when one of the brightest, most positive lights I've ever had the pleasure of sharing the company of, went out. We'll miss you M.I.L.R, you meant so much to so many, and will be missed by the two of us and our whole family. And never forgotten.

It's been a week of reflection, at home, at work, on runs, in the pool and on rides - endurance sports give you a lot of time to remember. It reinforced to me how fortunate I am to be able live a full and happy life, including training for this sport, backed by a support unit that is stronger than I ever could have hoped for. Although I must admit that I wasn't as certain of my husband's support as he was 'ahem' coaching me through my ATR bike test the other night.That was tough stuff, nothing pretty about it.

Last weekend, it looked like spring was in the air, and I had a great run along the Canal, watching and listening as the skaters made their way up and down the ice. This was followed by a massive snowfall on Monday, which basically meant that winter was here to stay, at least for another six weeks. I think Ian would have wanted it that way 'all the better for skiing on' you see. 

Big weekend of training coming up, and run test next week. We're in for some tough workouts, which I'll regale you with soon. 

I appreciate you all letting me take this moment to remember. Be sure to carry the sunshine in your pocket.

The Early Bird.....

Here we are, at the beginning of week eight, and I guess now we can call all the sessions, rest, work, and fun something of a routine, not 'routine' in a negative sense, but a structured routine. What I have noticed most is that scheduling and completing training sessions in the morning prior to work does wonders for my energy level, which seems to sustain me through the day. I'm sure I'm not the only one out there who's work doesn't get them super primed all the time - though who wouldn't love a job like that, so the idea that my training helps drive my mood and energy level makes it all the more appealing - especially at 5a.m., when it's dark, and I'm reticent to leave the warmth of the covers.

The only one that is a bit of a pain is the Monday morning swim, which requires forethought on the wardrobe front - not my strong suit, a car ride, and then a 'lovely' shower at the Rec Centre. Blech.  Not exactly my idea of a fabulous start to the week. Tack on getting stuck in traffic on the way home afterward, and voila..... 'wrong side of the bed without caffeine' scale irritability. Now, the nice thing about that Monday morning swim is that no one talks to you, so there aren't any run ins with any random 'Super Swim Coach' types, instead, everyone just gets in, grinds it out, and hits the showers. In some ways, those mornings make me want to chop off my hair, to shave precious moments off the prep time, so I can get home and not have to hoover my cereal as I put on mascara, feed the dog and do up my boots. But, in the name of vanity, I have so far vowed to keep my long hair, which is honestly so much easier from a styling point of view.... regardless of how long it takes to dry.

Doing sessions in the morning also allows me an hour or two on my own to get my head together, before the other creatures begin stirring in our house. My husband is a night owl, so he catches some extra winks while I'm in the basement, and then we're on the same wave length by the time we both sit down for breakfast and coffee to hash out the day. Everybody wins. At the moment, I allow myself Fridays as complete rest days, meaning I sleep until 7a.m., which while a treat at the time, results in a very tired me by about 1:30 p.m., so I'm still figuring that one out.

Over the past few weeks, I have noticed some changes in my level of fatigue, which I initially attributed to picking up a bug that has been making it's way through our family. And then I started to have some weird dreams, and when that happens I always find that I wake up more tired than I was when I went to bed.... maybe it was the creative juices telling me that I was once again late with a post..... or maybe it was because I'd had dairy before bed.... Anyway, the point is, I've noticed it, and am taking steps to ensure the bod gets what it needs in terms of rest.

Training wise, it's been a productive time, I had been experiencing some discomfort in my right leg while running, especially during faster pieces, but with a stronger focus on the stretch, and some massage, it seems to be on it's way to normal. 

Two swims, at least two rides (including two hours with the Cast Iron gang on Saturday), weights and three runs yet to come this week, follow me on Twitter - @nicolesdski -  for details/dirt on those workouts.

Have a great week. Let's enjoy what's left of February, clear roads are in our future!

Swim-Bike-Run-Ski?

Ok, I admit it, a week has blown by without a post. I could blame overwork, lack of internet connection, even writer's block, but truth be told, I went skiing. My father-in-law has been visiting from the UK and we took him skiing, night skiing, bitterly-cold day skiing, and an Ottawa rarity, powder skiing. This resulted in my falling asleep on the couch at least three evenings in a row, a function of keeping up with my swim-bike-run and extra cross-training/fresh air from skiing. Not a lot of fresh air available when one spends most weekdays in a highrise office building. Unfortunately, that time has passed and now I'm back in the highrise office building for at least 7.5 hours a day. I should mention that, I've had full endorsement of skiing from the director/head coach of my triathlon club, Coach G says it's great cross training!

On the IM training front, I had a good week that lead into very productive weekend, my weekend ride ramped up, and will hit two hours next Saturday. This may not seem long, but there are a few factors, for one, it's February and second, my training plan is explicit when it comes to keeping indoor trainer rides to durations that will not result in the rider "going mental", honestly, it's right there in black and white. After month three though, I think all bets will be off, the "going mental" is implied.

My long run, finally, was just that. I managed to get in just over 14 km, which in the past would have had me whining about soreness in my legs, and overall fatigue. I'm very happy to report that overall, it felt great, both during and after. I find myself truly buying in to heart rate training, and this has shown that limits I thought I had before (having been a long time run-walker) can actually be surpassed. That's not to say that I'm blasting through any speed records, but I'm feeling alot more comfortable on the run. I'm well ahead of where I have been in Februarys past, and if I can stay healthy and injury free, I should be in great shape once spring hits, and the more competitive season starts.

Come spring, in fact, I may have another competitor on my trail, in recent weeks, my Mom has started walking, and I see big things for her. This could be the first year of mother-daughter participation in an upcoming race! I'm stoked for her, and I look forward to her first finish line.

I hope you've all had a great week, more posting diligence on my part is planned for next week!

Building the village.

When you are in the decision making phase of this process, coaches, athletes, magazines, training literature and the internet will tell you many things, but the most interesting thing is something you’ll find in all five information sources. This is the idea that the one of the most important aspects of a successful Ironman campaign is having the support of your closest friends and family as you go through your training, your mental preparation and the all important “what am I going to wear on race day” anxiety. OK, so maybe the fashion problem is a stretch, but the point I’m trying to make is that whoever “they” are, they’re right. It takes a village. Yes, I know there was an article in one of the tri magazines recently that describes this is great detail, and I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiment and ideas therein.

A supportive spouse/significant other is necessary to keep you on track, make sure that you’re well fed, that you don’t leave the dog outside when it’s -40 and most importantly, to kick your tail out of bed when the alarm goes off at 5 a.m – if you’re lucky enough they will continue to love you even when you head to bed at 10:30 every night.

If you’re like me, your Mom will miss the impromptu visits and shopping dates, and instead will give you really great hugs when you see her, and your Dad will ensure that when you come over, there will be enough food to keep your engine going. Regardless of if you’re hungry or not

Your friends will need to be understanding when you tell them that you can’t see them because you haven’t been home in 14 hours and you’re really just looking forward to some downtime on the couch with the PVR, the hubby and the dog. But, you will also count on them for laughs and support throughout the season, squeezing in weekday lunches, or planning for beer and barbecues following events on summer weekends. You might even convince some of them to swim, bike or run with you…. Just not at 4:45 in the morning, that’s simply insane – keep that to yourself.

From my perspective, having been working on this campaign consistently for almost four weeks (actual Ironman directed training, workouts previous to this are deemed pre-IM), I find that the biggest challenge is getting through the first half of the work week, having trained through the weekend. By Wednesday evening, I’m pretty much sapped. To counter this, I’ve put together an alternative work schedule with my boss, which will afford me a three day weekend every second week. I count myself lucky that I’m able to do this, and I’m already relishing the idea of Monday mid-day swims where I don’t have to squeeze my workout into an hour, coupled with some extra relaxation to add a little bit more juice to my batteries.

Training this week has been interesting, I’m trying out different pools, and it turns out that I favour one over the others, my workouts there seem more consistent, and I’m able to find my pace very easily. It’s worth the commute through Little Italy to get there at least twice a week. I’m anxiously awaiting the reopening of the city pool near our humble abode though. It will feel like I’m swimming in my own back garden, it’s so close.

The weather in Ottawa last weekend made for some chilly outdoor workouts. I ran with a group prior to our spin session last Saturday and within 8 minutes my sunnies had fogged up and frozen over – this was compounded with a slight tear in the leg of my tights, discovered only as I was getting out of the car at the studio. I opted for the treadmill for Sunday’s long run, and in some ways, the mental challenge of running in place for that duration made the workout that much more fulfilling to finish. The deep freeze seems to have broken in the last couple of days though, so I’m hoping to be back on the road both Saturday and Sunday.

Week five starts on Saturday, let's go!

Are you going to eat that?

I became to be involved in this sport innocently enough, it was one part of the pursuit of a healthy and balanced lifestyle, eating right, with a balanced exercise regime, primarily to stave off the stresses of my job. The idea of working toward a goal was much more appealing to me than spending hours in a gym, working up a sweat without direction (the opinion expressed is that of the participant). Races became milestones, participation the rush, and results became reward. The science behind nutrition was a bit of a mystery though, carbohydrate requirements, proteins, and limit caffeine and alcohol? Well, I beg your pardon, I belong to a tri club with a long standing relationship with a great local coffee shop, and many of our races have a great pub right on the bike course. And what about now? Well, the times, they are a changin'.

I have to tell you, with three weeks behind me, I find myself hungry, like, ALL THE TIME. That may be a stretch, it is not truly a 24/7 thing, but I find myself panicky in the morning if I haven't got enough time to pull together a reasonable lunch, usually a medium/large size salad, protein of the day (read: can of tuna/chicken breast/sliced turkey breast ), and some healthy snacks. Without planning, I tend to be a little bit lost, foraging for food in downtown Ottawa, usually faced with some sort of pre-made sandwich/soup or sandwich/salad combo - with the ever present danger of some kind of over-sweetened caffeine powered mochasugar cup as a chaser. We all know that those sandwiches and salads rarely measure up to the healthy options we can pack from home. And without pre-planned snacks, all bets are off. Hello ginger molasses cookie, how I've missed you.

So I supposed the more appropriate description is that I'm not hungry all the time, rather I tend to be pre-occupied with meal planning alot of time, particularly in the morning when I'm negotiating with myself for those extra few minutes of sleep, using all my power to convince myself that I can pull together some decent food ideas for the day in no time flat. So I will finally admit that the coaches are right, the key is really in the planning. None of this willy nilly stuff anymore!

Fortunately for me, I married someone who loves to plan, and relishes the opportunity to help me stay organized, and thus focussed, on every detail. Given the task at hand, I couldn't ask for better.

And as far as the plan goes, all is well, another solid weekend of training - Saturday brick and strength training and by far the most successful long run I've had in a while, despite the absolutely frigid temperature on Sunday morning. According to the schedule, I'm on a recovery week, but I'm not exactly feeling like it's less.... in fact my running intervals this morning and my strength training all added up to more! But, I'm committed to the process, so on we go.

199 days?

Early last week, I clicked on the Ironman Lake Placid website, which is equipped with the coolest little gadget, that counts down the days, hours, minutes and seconds to the start of the swim on race day.

It was at that moment that I came to the realization that I no longer had over 200 days to train - at that exact moment, there was the faintest flutter in my stomach. I think somehow, seeing that number click over to 199 made the endeavour all the more real, and it kind of consumed my thoughts during my first day back at the office.When I mentioned it to my colleague, she said, '199 days? That's not long at all, you know!'. Now, I don't know about the rest of you, but hearing that set my teeth on edge. In my heart, I knew I had a plan, but what I really wanted to say to her was, 'Oh yeah, well, we planned our wedding in 6 weeks flat, from engagement to 'I Do' and if I can do that, then I can do anything'... True story.

So by Sunday, I had successfully completed all of my prescribed workouts, seven over the course of six days.  In total, I logged approximately 7 km in the pool, several hours in our basement torture chamber, with my bike, treadmill and freeweights, capping it off on Saturday with a two and a half hour group workout involving a snowy (read: mucky/snotty) run, then an hour spin, on bikes with quite possibly the most uncomfortable seats known to man, followed by a spot of weights and stretching.  On Sunday morning, the plan called for a long distance run, just for good measure.

It seems kind of exhausting when you look at it all bunched together in a paragraph like that, but I can honestly say, I feel none the worse for wear so far, in fact, it was kind of a relief to start into the routine that I'd really been craving since the off-season began. I went to bed last night knowing that I had started off on the right foot, and while I had to be in the pool at 6am, I found myself looking forward to it, the start of week two.

No one told me, however, that the pool I'd chosen resembled the Don Valley Parkway at rush hour during the very early mornings. Given my workout plan, I had chosen the medium speed lane to start my workout, and rather than moving comfortably with the current of other swimmers in my lane, I spent the morning hitting the feet of other swimmers, and now and then feeling the odd graze of someone else's toenails at my elbow, and yes, 'Ew' is the right reaction to that. By the end of the workout I'd migrated into the faster lane, and was happily moving with the current, rather than risking impalement by toenail. Ok, I promise, that is the last swimming story for a while.

So now, with 194 days, and just over 8 hours to go, I'll see you next time.

Let the Games Begin!

Happy New Year!

I hope that the festive season was enjoyable, filled with family, friends, feasts and fun. Mine definitely was.

Although I had preliminary plans to spend lots of time hanging with friends, socializing and stuff, I found myself becoming almost fiercely protective of the time I spent with those closest to me, my hubby and our dog, and my family just being together. Boxing Day shopping, dinners, renting movies, skiing, going for walks, anything and nothing, I think in the back of my mind I knew what was looming right around the midnight corner on New Year's Eve. The kick-off to the next seven months of our lives, the first real and true step toward Becoming Irongirl. Workout number one.

Now, you might be thinking, 'but, you've been training throughout the fall, what makes this workout different to the others?' My answer is this, in my mind, the success or failure of this initial session will set the tone for the weeks and months to come, and while I acknowledge that true momentum won't come from a single workout, I believe that a training program is all the more successful if it starts on the right foot, or in my case, with the right stroke.

At 9:00 this morning, I started the ball rolling with a successful 3500 metre swim, fitting I suppose, given that it all starts in the water on race day. A mixture of small to medium sized swim sets, the warm-up alone took about 30 minutes, I have some difficulty with the kick that accompanies breastroke, so there were times when I felt I was being pulled backward, rather than progressing down the lane, swearing underbreath all the while. It's always at times like these when someone dons their 'knight in shining armour' cap and attempts to coach the random stranger in hopes of improving said kick in a matter of minutes. While I appreciated this gentleman's advice, I watched as precious minutes were snatched away from me on the clock, and my workout, which should have taken less than 90 minutes dragged on as a result. He did however make a few adjustments to my backstroke, which is now ten times more comfortable than it was. Thanks Mike.

By 10:40, it was all over, and I am quite satisfied with how it went. I have to confess, as far as volume goes, it presented a challenge, but the mix of different strokes, set distances, and some drills to finish made it all quite manageable. At no point during the workout did the words 'give up, you're tired' cross my mind, which is probably what I'm most proud of at this early stage of the game.

Tomorrow morning starts with a run and some weight training, and then it's back to the office after a 10 day vacation. Which do you think I'm more excited about?

Happy 2011! I hope it proves happy, healthy and prosperous.