Busy Busy

I have been too busy to post lately. Let me start by saying that Briar did great in his triathlon this weekend and we all had a terrific time!! I will have a race report and pictures as soon as I get a chance. He is doing another youth tri this coming weekend.

I got a 7 mile run in last Friday before we left for Atlanta, but I didn't do any working out on Saturday, as we had to be at the race site early and we spent the rest of the day playing at the water park. I got a short bike ride in on Sunday after we got home, and I did an interval workout on the treadmill tonight at the rec center. I am hoping to get a swim and weight workout early in the morning. I am still undecided about what events I am going to do in the near future. Hopefully I will decide soon.

Congratulations to Michele - who placed 3rd at the Cedars of Lebanon Tri this past weekend! She is rocking these courses lately!!

That's More Like It

2 days have elapsed since I last posted. I'll start with yesterday. Yesterday I intended on getting up and either riding 30 miles or doing a 20mile bike/4 mile run brick. Neither of them happened. The alarm went off, it was still dark, and I made every excuse in the world as to why I should not get up and ride. I felt bad all morning, so when I took the boys to swimming lessons at 11 a.m., I jumped on the treadmill and ran 5 miles in 42:14. The treadmill had never felt easier, actually, and the pace I held really got me in a better mood. So good that I made it out of bed this morning for an early morning ride!! I met Michele and Kim at 5:10 a.m. at the rec center, and we rode the Normandy loop for 20 miles in 1:09. I really put out a good effort, was in a good mood, and was pleased with the ride. A few more workouts like that and I'll have the lazy streak defeated, I promise.

I am doing a long run tomorrow morning, and then we are heading to Hotlanta! Briar is going to participate in the Tri4Gold youth triathlon, and then we are going to spend the weekend playing around in the big city. This was kind of a last minute decision...a "well, why not?" kinda little trip. Hopefully Briar will enjoy the triathlon and Bo will not be too upset that he is not old enough to do it yet (he doesn't like to be left out).

On another note, I have to mention how excited I am about some of the things going on around me. First of all, my mother has lost 20 lbs! For about 3 months now she has been working out faithfully. She has completely changed her eating habits and has improved her blood sugar count, her cholesterol, etc. I have to say that this is SO inspiring to me, because it is a tough thing to do at 50+ years old. But she is dedicated, and I am so happy for her! It won't be long until she is up to running a mile on the treadmill without stopping - Awesome! Another thing is, my uncle Eric, who has been losing weight and getting into terrific shape during the past year, is going to be doing his first 5k race next month! He and my aunt have changed their diet and have been working out extremely hard during the past couple of years. I was so excited to hear that he had set a goal to run a 5k, and I know he is going to do great - he is naturally a good athlete anyways. I have to warn him to be careful, though, he might not realize how contagious that "running bug" can be!!! And to make things even better, I got a call the other day from one of my best friends from High School. She has decided to start running and getting in shape also, and was wanting some pointers on getting started. How cool!?! I get so excited when I see other people committing to changing their lives for the better like this because I know what a positive change it has brought about for me. I mean, it's life-changing, is it not? It's not just "oh, I'm gonna break a bad habit" or "I'm never going to eat a carbohydrate again" - it's changing your way of life. It's controlling what goes in your mouth instead of it controlling you (easier said than done, I might add, as I easily fall off the wagon here). It's saying "I care enough about myself to do what it takes to be healthy." It's about celebrating the gift of health that God gives us and making the most of it...fullfulling our potential in whatever way that we can...it's about setting a goal, and putting in the time and effort required in each little step to reach that goal...it's about increasing your mental fortitude...it's about saying "you think I can't do that? Bring. It. On."...it's about respecting yourself.

I love it.

Mission Accomplished

Whew. We made it out of bed this morning! I have to admit I did hit "snooze" one time, but I got on up after the 9 minute delay. I made it to the rec center by 5:30, and had enough time to get my heart rate up a little, work my abs, then swim. I did 1500 yards in the pool. I concentrated on my form during the first 1000, and didn't time it. I tried the bilateral breathing some, and focused on keeping my elbows high. I believe that I have been drastically dropping my right elbow when taking a breath on the left side (the only side I normally breath on). It felt very akward keeping that elbow up, but I am hoping it might help the bilateral breathing come along easier. I timed the last 500 yards, still focusing on keeping my elbows up, and finished in 10:56. I think that's about the same time I usually have.

I am getting up early tomorrow morning too - maybe it will be a little bit easier. Thanks to all of you guys who held me accountable!!!!!!!

Backup Plan

My plan for today was to run 5 miles ending at the rec center, go in and lift weights and do lunges, then run the 2 miles back home. I have become lazy, however, and opted to stay in the bed yet AGAIN. It is official, folks, vacation has ruined me. Feeling a compelling urge to punish myself for "snoozing" this morning, I went to the track during lunch and set out for 6 x 800's. It was not nearly as hot and humid as it has been lately, so I caught a break there. Here's the numbers:

1 mile warmup: 9:08
6x 800's:
1.3:35
2.3:37
3.3:37
4.3:38
5.3:39
6.3:41

I am pleased with those numbers, considering the last time I ran 6 x 800's, numbers 2-6 were all over 3:40. Plus, I felt better this time. I was relaxed, and my perceived level of effort was not at the "I am gonna die" level, like it was the last time.

Tomorrow, I am going to get out of bed when the alarm goes off. No snoozing, no excuses. I am going to do the weights I missed out on today, and then do some swimming. Hold me accountable, please.

One more thing...in a time when I am trying to decide what my goals are, where my focus belongs, and why I should get up at 5 a.m. each morning, I was reminded by TriSaraTops - If you haven't already, go check out her latest post: Check Me In .

Is it humid or what?

Whew...80% humidity about got to me this morning. The alarm goes off at 4:45. I wake up, wide awake, and think "I'm awake, but I'd rather stay in bed. " So I hit snooze. Yeah, same ol' same ol'. And there for a minute I actually considered going back to sleep and not getting up to run the 8-10 miles I had planned on - planned on, and absolutely promised myself before going to sleep that I'd get up and do it - and stop this streak of sleeping in. So by 5:10 I felt enough pressure from myself to go ahead and get up and get dressed. By the time I got ready, though, 10 miles was out of the question, as J.T. had to be gone by 6:50 this morning. So I decided to do my 8.25 mile route. I have to stick to the routes that I know, since I still haven't replaced my Garmin. The first mile felt fine and was a little over 9 minutes. The second was about the same, but soon the humidity started getting to me. And my legs didn't really feel fresh at all. I figure that was probably due to the intensity of my bike ride yesterday. But, sweating profusely, I grinded out the 8.25 miles in a not so pretty time of 1:19:18 - a 9:36 pace. I saw Michele out running as I looped through town...I wonder if she felt the humidity too, or if it was just me?

Upon returning home, I made my first ever fruit smoothie! Not sure if I did it right, but I used a banana, a peach, 2 heaping spoonfuls of nonfat yogurt, some SunnyD (we had no O.J.) and ice. If nothing else, it was pretty tasty!

Sleeping, and sleeping, and more sleeping

I have been sleeping 9 - 10 hours a night now for almost 2 weeks. I can't get enough! Good grief, it's not like I'm training for an Ironman...or even a HALF Ironman. I don't know what my deal is. The Mental Fortitude Meter is way low lately. Maybe it was the vacation...I don't know. Anyways, the only thing I did today was a hard 16 mile bike at lunch with a coworker who really pushed me. Yesterday, I swam 2000 yds while the kids were doing swimming lessons. And Tuesday, I actually had a good early morning workout. So good that I pulled something my quad, but it's feeling better now. I ran 4 miles to the rec center, went in and had a super strength workout, including lunges, and then the 2 miles back home. I discovered that running after doing lunges sorta feels like biking after lunges. Ofcourse, I am still sore from that one. Monday I rested, other than a leisurly 11 mile bike with Briar, who is in training for his youth tri on Aug 5th.

I have decided not to do the Sundrop Triathlon this weekend that is on my Race Schedule. I am feeling a little bit tired, and maybe a little bit of burn out...so I am going to skip that one. I need to take a step back and re-evaluate my goals for the rest of the year anyways. Plus, I am going to trade in some of my training time to work with Briar more on his swimming, biking and running. His triathlon, for the next 2.5 weeks or so, is going to be my priority.

Vacation Pictures

Here are some pics from our vacation at the beach...

Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon 2006

I have yet to get all my vacation picture together, so I'll post those soon; but for now I'm gonna go ahead and give the race report from my FIRST OLYMPIC DISTANCE TRI! I was pretty excited about getting this one under my belt, even though I had been on vacation all week at the beach and hadn't done a whole lot to keep myself sharp. But oh well, I just figured I'd do the best I could and see what happened.

Michele and I had agreed to drive down to Chattanooga the day before and stay all night since the trip would include changing time zones and such. I might can get out of bed at 5 a.m. fairly regularly, but don't ask me to get up at 3 a.m. and then do my first Olympic Dist Tri. So we got to the packet pickup just in time before they were shutting down, and headed on over to the Hilton where we had reserved a room at a ridiculous rate (it was all that was available). I went inside to check in, and they tell me they have overbooked and our room wasn't available. I was about to get upset, but they said they had reserved a room just one block down at the Clarion and they would pay for it, I shut my mouth and said "I'll take it." I love getting a good deal!!!
So anyways, we had dinner at the Bluewater Grill (it was wonderful, by the way) and turned in for the night (at our free hotel room - woo hoo!).

The alarm rang at 5 a.m. the next morning. I got up and showered and got all my stuff ready. We took our bikes down and rode to the race site. I loved that, by the way...no parking hassles and I got to use my new cool back pack to carry all my stuff in. It was very crowded at the transition area. This is, by far, the largest triathlon I have ever done. There were almost 1,000 participants. I was really loving the atmosphere, but we had to get our transition set up quickly because our bus to the swim start left at 6:25. We boarded and were there in no time. There was alot of waiting around, but being that my number was 212 (and Michele was 220), we got started pretty fast. It was an interval start, and I was off. I felt really good in the water. I got into a rhythm fairly quickly. However, I guess I was so into my rhythm I didn't pay well enough attention to where I was going and ended up going under one of the bridges on the wrong side. I realized it about the time I got there, and tried to swim back around to the right side, but it was no use - the current wouldn't let me...it pushed me on through the other way. I worried for a minute that I might be disqualified, but figured there was no use in worrying about that at this point, so I swam on. I got back on course shortly, and finished the 1.5k swim in 25:07. Keep in mind, that was with a nice little current at my back.

Volunteers were pulling us all out of the water, and we ran up a bunch of step to get to T1. There were lots of people cheering and encouraging everyone - I was pumped! Michele was already there when I got there, and I gave yelled "Nice swim!!" to her and got down to business. I got in and out of transition in 1:29.

I took off on the bike and felt great. Lots of people cheering again. I wasn't very sure how to handle this ride, since it(40k) was longer than I have done in a race before, and since I would be running 6.2 miles afterwards instead of the normal 3 - 4 miles I have been doing in the sprint tris. But I decided to just hard and solid and see what happened. It was mostly flat with a couple hills, and I didn't have much of a problem. I was a little upset with myself for forgetting my hammer gel in T1, but I just drank Gatorade on the bike instead of water. I figured that would be fine, and it was. I finished the bike leg in 1:16:24. I'm not disappointed with that, but I want to cut that down atleast 4 minutes by next year.

I dismounted my bike and as I pushed it into T2 I hear "GO LANA!! WHOO HOO! GOOD JOB LANA!!" I turn around and see that my mom and dad have made the trip! I wasn't really expecting that!! So they continue to cheer for me as I run out, and I see my Dad snapping pics. About a quarter of a mile into the run there were steps, and more steps and even more steps. Whew! And when I got to the top of the steps there was a short steep hill. Ouch. I felt sorta zapped upon reaching the top of that hill, and just paced myself through the next few miles. It was hot. I drank Power Aide at every water stop, and I have to admit that I struggled. On one of the last hills before the end of the run, I opted for walking it - which almost never let myself do - but I had to decide if I wanted to walk the hill and then finish strong, or run the hill and be zapped at the end, and I decided to walk the hill. (Next year - I will run the hill AND finish strong.) So after walking the hill, I said that's it - you've got a half mile to go - get your butt across the finish line. I gave it all I had until the end, passed everyone I could, and finished the run in a disappointing 55:47. I really wanted to do that run in around 52 minutes.

Official Race Finishing Time: 2:40:38

16th in my age group out of 45 30 - 34 year old women, and 387th out of 888 overall participants.

My goal was somewhere between 2:30 and 2:40, so I came up just short. But oh how many lessons I learned - one of them being that I have much more work to do! Michele and I hung around for the post race party, we each won a door prize, then headed on back home.

My Dad, Me, and My Mom after I finished


Stuffing my face with an orange!

Reporting in from the Redneck Riviera...

We're having a nice vacation here at the Gulf Coast. We drove down early Sunday morning and played up until the evening. Ate some local seafood, and had a good night's rest. I got up Monday morning and ran 10 miles. An out and back from our condo into Orange Beach and back. It felt SO good. I haven't done more than 7 or so since the Moon Pie 10 miler, so I was due. I ran it in 1:33:30 - faster than I figured I would. I definitely sweated out anything that needed to come out. I love that feeling. Then we relaxed, rode the waves, and played hard.

Today, Briar started his training for the Kids of Steel Youth Tri on August 5th. He got up and we ran 1 mile down the beach barefoot, and then walked back. We then went to the weight room here at the condo and did some strength training and situps. It's been all relaxing and riding waves from there. Pictures to come when we get home...

Manchester Star Triathlon: Close, but No Cigar

I got 2nd overall female in the Manchester Star Triathlon. And what sucks about that is that my time was the same as the first overall female. She beat me by, like, half a step. Yeah, tough to swallow. But half a step is half a step, right? That's right. But it was a great race.

I was without my Dad who takes such great pictures for me, because he went on a 4 wheeling trip this past weekend, so no pics for this one. J.T. was supposed to be there, but he and the boys didn't make it either. I hadn't felt all that great this past week, but I awoke feeling pretty good Saturday morning. I didn't rush to the race site, as it was only 3 minutes from my house. I just took my time, got down there and went through all the packet pick up, body marking, bathroom visits, etc. This race was a reverse tri, so the run was first. I was nervous about this, because I am used to giving the run absolutely everything left in me. But that wouldn't work this time - I had to stay under control. So we all lined up (58 participants) and took off. I took off nice and easy, not too fast, not too slow. I caught up with a girl that looked pretty competitve and passed her around mile 1. She would turn out to be the one beat me. I think the mile markers were off because my splits didn't seem to look right, but I kept trucking, keeping my heart rate just below lactate threshhold. With about 3/4 mile to go, the girl I referred to earlier caught me. We chatted a minute, wished each other good luck and came to the end of the run together. My run time turned out to be a 5k PR! Run Time: 23:19

The problem starts here. The girl I'm competing with gets outta transition way faster than I do. I was a little winded from the run, and took a cup of water from a volunteer when I should have just waited until I got on the bike. After a mile or so, I spotted the girl and proceeded to try and catch her. Around mile 8 I did. I hung with her for a couple miles, then passed. We were both aware at this point that we were fighting for the first spot, and she didn't let me get too far away. We battled back and forth, but rolled into transition at the same time. I knew she was a better swimmer than I am, so hopped off my bike, racked it, and frantically pulled off my bike shoes, grabbed my googles and swim cap, and raced to the pool ahead of her. T1 + BikeTime + T2: 49: 39

As I made the turn to the swimming pool, my friend Sarah who was volunteering said "Go Lana...she's right behind you!!" So I dove into the pool and water filled goggles. "GREAT!!! Oh well, no time to fix them!" I started swimming and felt like I was getting nowhere. I was kicking like I was still pedaling the bike. At the wall of the first length, she passed me. At this point, I settled down, fixed my kick and drafted behind her. I never was able to pass her, but did get close enough that she kicked me in the head a couple times. When I reached the wall before the last length, I pushed and gave it everthing I had. I guess she was doing the same, because when I came to the end I saw that she was getting out of the pool. BUT - as she gets out, she falls....and I am getting out at this point. I almost catch up, but she regains her composure and crosses the finish line a half step ahead of me. Swim Time: 3:49

Total Race Time: 1:16:47

Here's what the little devil on my shoulder says "2nd place? What? You're kidding me. 2nd place is the 1st loser, baby! You should've beaten that girl....my gosh, she was 40 something years old. There was a million ways you should've gained a half step on her. You coulda dove over the finish line, ya know."

But I'm not buying it. I'm competitive, and I LOVE the competition. That's why I love triathlons so much. But this is just my second season. I'm still learning, ya know. I'm still improving. Next time I see that girl out a course, I'll figure out a way, it it fits into my goals for that race. And the next time I am neck and neck with someone the whole way, maybe I won't let them stay with me for so long, if I can help it. And I've got to do something about my slow swimming. That, in itself lost the race for me. And about that diving over the finish line...I did that in the 6th grade...on the pavement. It was the qualifier for the county fair events - 50 yd dash. I was running as fast as I possibly I could, but couldn't hardly keep up. Something came over me as I approached the finish line, and I dove, head first...and ate the pavement...ouch. I got up covered in blood....and it still didn't get me there in time. I learned my lesson that time. So instead of doing that again, I'll just go back to the training, make adjustments, and get her the next time. Or get whoever it may be the next time.

I was not a good training partner...

I agreed to meet Michele this morning @ 5 a.m. for what was supposed to be a 30 mile bike ride. I knew when the alarm went off that I was going to have issues. I felt like I had just gotten to sleep, and my legs were still sore from lunges I did 2 days ago. But since I promised, I went on. As I walked outside, I realized that it was cold! It was 59 degrees, and the wind made it feel cooler. I got woke up once we started riding. We did our normal Normandy route, but decided to take a different way that we had talked about. This way took us back by the rec center, our original starting point) at 18.62 miles - BIG MISTAKE. As we get close to the rec center I start thinking about going back home, getting back in bed for a while, etc. So I say "Michele, want to just call it quits at the rec center?!" She is hesitant, but with a little prodding, she gives in. So our intentions of a 30 mile ride turned into less than 19 miles. Ugh.

So I rushed home and jumped back in bed hoping to sleep another 40 minutes or so, but I couldn't get warm. I shook and shivered for atleast 20 minutes, then I finally gave up and decided to take a hot shower and get on with my day.

The Manchester Star Triathlon is tomorrow. It's a reverse sprint distance - 5k run, 15 mile bike, 200 yd swim. My friend Leslie is the race director, and my sister Holly is going to be volunteering on the bike course. It is Manchester's first real triathlon. After the tri is over - me, J.T. and the boys are headed to the beach for vacation!

It's July 4th!

Today I finally got myself out of bed early for a change. Michele and I had planned a 30 mile bike ride for 5:30 a.m., and I managed to actually be up and ready on time. It was so much nicer to be out early than in the midday heat like I was yesterday during my 5 mile lunch time run. So anyway, we didn't have a route planned, but took off through our Normandy loop and then stayed on highway 55 instead of heading back like we normally do when riding 20 miles. We rode all the way down to Wayside Rd, cut through Maple Springs and then took Old Woodbury Hwy back to Hwy 53 and then on to Hwy 41 ending at my house. I am so anal about ending on an "even" mile, that when I looked down and saw "30.86" miles, I decided I would ride to the end of my street and back until it hit 31 - BIG MISTAKE. As I played with my computer, I ran into the curb and not so gracefully skidded along the side and then fell off the bike into my neighbors yard!! Ouch! It was quite amusing...I just hope my neighbor wasn't out of bed yet, because I'm sure she got quite a laugh, if so. Anyways, we rode about 31 miles in a little over 1:50:00 I think.

Michele had to get home so Ronnie could go to work, and I decided to go ahead and go for a run. I ran down to the greenway and back - 4 miles in 36:26. My legs didn't feel too bad at all, but I was ready to be finished when I got back home. Running a 10k after a 25 mile bike at the Chattanooga Waterfront Tri in 2 weeks is going to be interesting to say the least. Let's just say my goal is survival.

I'm It...

I have been tagged by Leah and also by Rice...so here goes:

four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Software Programmer
2. Website Designer
3. Airforce Clerk
4. Wal-Mart Clerk (that's where I developed my hatred for Wal-Mart)

four movies I watch over and over:
1. For Love of the Game
2. The Lion King
3. Harry Potter and... all of them
4. Enough

four places I have lived:
1. Manchester, TN
2. Nashville, TN
3. and that
4. is all

four TV shows I love to watch:
1. The Andy Griffith Show
2. Fear Factor
3. 6:00 news
4. Oprah

four places I have been on vacation:
1. Jamaica
2. Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands
3. NYC
4. Panama City, FL

four websites I visit daily:
1. http://blogger.com
2. http://coolrunning.com
3. http://yahoo.com
4. http://google.com

four of my favorite foods:
1. Fillet Mignon
2. Alaskan King Crab Legs
3. Mushrooms
4. Sonic Orea Blast

four places I would rather be right now:
1. The pool
2. The beach
3. At the ball field practicing baseball with Briar and Bo
4. At home

four favorite bands/singers:
1. Tom Petty
2. Hank Williams Jr.
3. Leonard Skynard
4. Stone Temple Pilots

four bloggers I’ll Tag
1. Michele
2. DaisyDuc
3. Scott
4. Lance

Sporatic

My training has been sporatic lately, to say the least. It's all or nothing. Kill myself one day, do nothing the next. Ugh. I haven't been running like I should lately. I've gotten in a couple 4 - 5 mile runs, but nothing much over that. I need a good 10 - 15 miler, but I have no idea when to fit that in. I got a couple good swims in last week, one good bike ride, and a couple "I am doing absolutely nothing" rest days. I guess that's what happens when you aren't following a schedule. I suspect I will see the effects of this in some of the tri's I have coming up soon.

To make matters worse, some kind of virus has invaded my body, causing chest congestion. Great. As if I wasn't already having enough trouble breathing during my workouts.

I am going to have to get myself into a better routine - ASAP. No more excuses.