Long awaited Cedars of Lebanon Sprint Triathlon Recap

It's only taken me nearly 3 weeks but here it is...finally...the recap of the sprint triathlon I wasn't even sure I was going to do.

I decided that I couldn't just skip something I had signed up for. For me, that would signify that I'm a quitter. A quitter in many senses of the word. It would have not only been me skipping the race, but me throwing up my hands and saying, "I give up, this period of weight re-gain wins."

So I had to fight.

Surprisingly, I wasn't too nervous on race morning. I just approached it as leisurely as I could. I was just participating and hoping to finish, not "racing" anyone or myself. So it took the pressure off.

My typical race morning routine was off. I had spent the 2 weeks leading up to the race house/dog sitting so I had been out of my element for approximately 11 days. The night before the race was the first night I had spent in my own bed in over a week. My race tradition is I have a whole grain bagel from Brueggers with peanut butter and a banana, but I forgot to get a bagel from Brueggers on Friday. So I stopped at a gas station and got a Peanut Crunch Clif Bar on the way out to the park. I ate that on the way and ended up having my banana around 7:30 once I got settled in transition.

One thing that made me nervous race morning was that it had been raining the day before and morning of, which meant wet and possibly slick roads. I overheard some guys at the swim line-up mention that the first stretch out on the bike was downhill that goes into a sharpe right turn. Took mental note of that one.

Another thing that caused a bit of anxiety was the pool swim. Silly I know. Usually people get nervous about open water swims. Chalk it up to the fact I've been swimming and water skiing in murky water since I was 6 months old, but OWS don't phase me. When contemplating how I was going to tackle the swim, I wasn't sure how it would go - darting under ropes and with so many people in the pool at once. I didn't practice going under the ropes, but I should have.

Source: Team Magic Multisport

 

 

If you click to enlarge the above photo of the swim start, you can see me waiting in the blue swimcap (in the yellow circle).

I was in the middle of the pack on starting time, so my number was 625. I waited a good while and was able to see how the "pros" were tackling it. Touch wall, push off wall underwater, go diagonally into the next lane. Simple?

I should have been further up in the swim time. I passed people, and had trouble passing people I could have passed because of congestion. It was much worse on congestion than the OWS last summer at Wet Dog. I think I estimated my swim time around 6 minutes, and I finished in 4:55.

I walked the whole way to T1. I worked hard on the swim and I knew the bike would be rough so I wanted to save energy. I'm sure I looked silly and it certainly didn't help my T1 time (5:05), but once I got to my bike, I was quick. Baby powder in the socks helped this time!

Bike started out ok. My legs are always cold when I start on the bike in a race. I need to warm them up better - which I intended to do this time - but I didn't have time before they closed transition. The bike course was a two-loop 4.3 mile course. Easy enough right? It had been described as FLAT, which I was silly to even believe because, hello this is Tennessee. It was not flat. A lot of it was flat. But those 3-4 rolling hills (mostly at the end of the loop, back-to-back) killed me. If I was trained better I'm sure it wouldn't have been a big deal. But I wasn't trained so alas a lot of people passed me (some twice, I'm sure). But I didn't have to walk my bike and I finished without any incident. It took me 52:26 though.

I started the run out easy and my legs quickly acclimated and I was able to keep a pretty steady 3/1 run/walk pace. The run course is mentally tricky because you have to go left out of the transition area, go about 0.2 miles and then loop back past the transition area. The run course overall is pretty flat except for one hill at the end right before you run into finish.

My run time was 29:20, which I can't be mad about because the weekend before I ran 2 miles on their own and my time was right around 28. So not bad for swimming 200 yards ad biking 9.6 miles before running 2 miles.

I finished. I was glad I was done and also that I did it. I didn't use any nutrition on the course besides water and a little powerade. So I ate my honey stingers right after finishing in the transition area and packed my stuff up to go home.

Overall time: 1:32:55

Thoughts: I'm just glad I did it and I was able to finish. I would have had a lot of guilt and self-hate if I had decided not to do the race. So it was just good for me mentally to get out there and do it. My original plan for this season was to do an Olympic distance in September, but it's clear that isn't going to happen. My travel schedule at work ruined any focus I would be able to have on training for one. And two, personal travel has ruined my focus on saving for a road bike and I really don't think I can ride 25 miles on my current bike. It's too heavy - about 50 lbs! It certainly isn't a goal I've given up on, it just won't happen this season. I do hope to do one more sprint triathlon in August or September before the season is over. I'm continuing to run (joining a local C25K program) and swim. Biking has been neglected, but the summer is still young!

Have you ever done a race you weren't properly trained for? If so, how did it go? Did you surprise yourself?

Ironman March Challenge Wrap Up

As a reminder, I committed to participate in Caitlin's (from Health Tipping Point) Ironman March Challenge where I will complete the Ironman distances in swimming, biking, and run/walking during the month of March.

I didn't give a Week 4 update, but you can see previous weeks' updates here, here, and here.

The last full week of the challenge, I hit a wall. Well, it actually started out great the first three days with a 1,000 meter swim, 14 mile spin ride, and 2.85 mile run respectively. Monday the 25th was my normal yoga class, then Tuesday I skipped the 6 am spin class I've been trying to make my "normal" class and just figured I would go to the 5 pm one. But then I started the juice cleanse Tuesday morning...

I was so weak by time I left work on Tuesday, there was no way I would make it through a 60 minute spin class. "I'll just go tomorrow," I thought.

Well after only 4 hours of sleep because of hunger induced insomnia (seriously, I was so stupid), I didn't feel like doing much Wednesday either. Then Thursday I missed the 6 am spin again and couldn't find an evening class, so I just went to yoga (my favorite instructor is going to be out for 3 weeks and it was her last class).

So I ended Week 4 with just an additional 1,000 meters of swimming, 14 miles biking, and 2.85 miles running to add to my totals. Not the best week for the challenge, but looking back it's not horrible for this point in my training calendar either.

For the last 3 days of the challenge, I started out at the pool Friday with a 1,200 meter swim, thus completing 4,100 meters this month, a few laps over the 2.4 miles required for the challenge.

Friday after coming home from the pool, I was still in my flip flops and had a little clumsy incident that involved a chunk of skin the size of a quarter being ripped off the top of my big toe on my left foot. So there's that now.

Saturday, I only got 5 miles of biking in. But the good news is I picked up my bike from being tuned up and it's riding great! I just timed the ride way too wrong and I hadn't eaten in several hours and didn't have any energy to do a longer ride. (All excuses I realize.)

Admittedly I have had a very lazy week and weekend, and that carried over to today with the holiday and the crummy weather we have, I didn't get out and do anything today.

So my final challenge totals were:

Swimming: 4,100 meters
Bike: 58 miles
Run/Walk: 19.49

So obviously I didn't complete all of the biking or running totals. After the showing I had the first two weeks, I really had no way to hit the bike totals, but if I hadn't hit that wall this week I should have hit the run totals.

All that to say, I do think the challenge was a success because it helped jump start my triathlon training. I went from swimming and biking very low totals to swimming 1,200 meters at a time and biking 20+ miles a week. So I'm proud of myself for that.

I have 6 weeks until the first race on my calendar this season, and being that it is a mini spring triathlon (200 yard swim, 10 mile bike, 2 mile run), I know I am ready for it and I can start focusing on my 2nd race (TBD), which will be a longer sprint triathlon, and maybe even an Intermediate distance race at the end of the summer.

I can't wait until May 18th and I'm out there again!

Ironman March Challenge - Week 3 Update

As a reminder, I committed to participate in Caitlin's (from Health Tipping Point) Ironman March Challenge where I will complete the Ironman distances in swimming, biking, and run/walking during the month of March.

You can check out the original Ironman March Challenge post and download the printable training plan on HTP.

So yesterday concluded Week 3. We have 10 days left (including today).

The goal again this week was to swim 872 meters, bike 25.3 miles, and run/walk 6 miles. Plus, I still needed to catch up on a lot of biking, let's see how I did.

March 15-21:
Friday: Rest
Saturday: 12 mile bike ride on the greenway near my house
Sunday: 1.75 mile run and 650 meter swim
Monday: Nothing - missed yoga due to a GMAT prep class went to
Tuesday: 10 miles in Spin
Wednesday: 2.25 mile walk/run as part of C210K
Thursday: Nothing - missed yoga because of a meeting that ran long at work and I was too lazy to go to the gym

So my weekly totals were 650 meters swimming, 22 miles biking, and 4 miles run/walking. Yikes I'm behind.

My week was a bit hectic. I had plans Mon-Wed nights and having that much on my social calendar just tends to throw me off. I was also REALLY sore from my weekend workouts and without my gentle/stretching yoga on Monday it was hard to motivate myself by Thursday to do yet another day of cardio. I know, excuses, excuses, but it is what it is. This next week should be MUCH better because I have NOTHING on my calendar in the evenings. I plan to focus, focus, focus.

10 days to do 1,962 meters of swimming, 73 miles of biking, and 9.56 miles of running!

Here's my plan for the rest of the month:

March 22-28
Friday:  1,000 meter swim
Saturday: 14-16 mile bike ride
Sunday: W3D3 of C210K (approx. 2.25 miles) and 600 meter swim
Monday: Yoga
Tuesday: 45 minute spin (10-12 miles)
Wednesday: W4D1 of C210K (approx. 2.75 miles) and 5 mile indoor bike
Thursday: 45 minute spin (10-12 miles)

March 29-31
Friday: W4D2 of C2K (approx. 2.25 miles) and 600 meter swim
Sat: W4D3 of C210K (approx. 2.25 miles) 14-16 mile bike
Sun: 45 min spin (10-12 miles) or bike

I realize my biking miles are VERY heavy in order to finish the Ironman distance. All I can do is try on that front. I'm confident I won't have any problems with the swimming or running (funny how biking is my weakest sport and the one I'm most behind on).

At least this challenge has kept me on task for triathlon training and really that's more important than being a few miles short of riding 112 miles in a month.

Ironman March Challenge - Week 2 Update

As a reminder, I committed to participate in Caitlin's (from Health Tipping Point) Ironman March Challenge where I will complete the Ironman distances in swimming, biking, and run/walking during the month of March.

You can check out the original Ironman March Challenge post and download the printable training plan on HTP.

So yesterday concluded Week 2. We have 17 days left (including today).

The goal again this week was to swim 872 meters, bike 25.3 miles, and run/walk 6 miles. Plus, I wanted to "catch up" on my biking since I didn't get much in the first week. Well, my body had other plans this is what my week looked like:

March 8-14:
Friday: 2 mile walk/run as part of C210K
Saturday: 1,000 meter swim in 30 minutes. (I was damn impressed I was able to go this far. I'm chalking it up to my new fancy goggles.)
Sunday: 4 mile walk/hike
Monday: Active rest/Gentle Yoga
Tuesday: Spin class - counting as 12 miles (see below)
Wednesday: 1.72 mile walk/run as part of C210K
Thursday: Active rest/Yoga

I was on a roll until I hit the spin class on Tuesday. I knew the class would be hard. Spin is hard. But I love it just the same. I always say that it's the only group exercise class I'll get up at 5:30 AM for. Seriously, you don't see me going to Body Pump at 6 AM do you? :)

So, it was hard. 45 minutes is a lot longer than I've ridden or done cardio for since December. I knew it would wear me out. But I wasn't expecting what happened after I got off the bike to happen - I almost fainted.

I've had the symptoms before - twice to be exact. Once from having an reaction to Penicillin and then a milder version after the Country Music Half Marathon on April 2012.

While we were stretching after our ride, I started to feel dizzy. I tried to shake it off by stopping my stretch to no avail. The room started to get fuzzier, and I started to feel more like crap. I exited the room to find help (I didn't want to make an embarrassing scene in front of the class). And found the staff member overseeing the fitness area. I told him what was happening and he was about as unhelpful as a pile of wet rags. I repeatedly asked for medical assistance/first aid and he repeatedly told me they weren't trained for such incidents. His exact words were "well if you have a cut or need a band-aid or something". REALLY Middle Tennessee YMCA?!! You don't have ONE person in the building at ALL TIMES trained for first response medical care in case one of your members has a heart attack or stroke on the floor? What about if one of those kids that come in after school to play basketball drop from an undiagnosed heart condition? After he left me alone (yes really) to "go try and find someone" I started feeling normal again, so I just went back to the classroom to gather my things and left.

Although I felt tired the rest of the day, I didn't have any other symptoms. The next day while running, I felt a little off so I didn't push myself very hard and did walking intervals for the last half. My intent was to wear the heart rate accessory with my Garmin, but I forgot the watch on the charger Wednesday morning.

Honestly, I was scared to go back to spin. I don't know if it was just the extra histamines in my body from seasonal allergies attacking me post-exercise, if it was low blood sugar, or if there is a more serious issue I need to be concerned about. Bradycardia (when your heart rate drops to below normal levels - usually in the 40s or under) runs in my mom's family - both she and my aunt have been diagnosed with it, but it only presents symptoms for them when their body is under stress. Exercise = stress on the body. It's something I need to get checked out, but I am dragging my feet.

My original plan was to spin Thursday, rest today. Since I didn't want to risk spin again, I did yoga yesterday and gave myself extra rest. Then, I planned to get in the pool this morning (at 6 AM mind you) and I got there and the pool was closed? So frustrating! I realize they probably posted signs for weeks, but since I wasn't planning on swimming during the week this week, I probably didn't pay attention to them. Why don't they send email reminders to the members when parts of the facilities are closed???

So it's been a rocky week that has pushed me further behind on the bike portion of the challenge.

My weekly totals are 1,000 meters swim, 12 mile bike (1 spin class), and 7.72 mile run. My totals overall are 1,250 meters swim, 17 mile bike, and 12.64 miles run.

I don't know if I'll "catch up" on my bike totals. I will try my darnedest if I feel alright at my next spin class (maybe Sunday), but I'm not going to risk my health.

Here's to 17 days and 2,612 meters of swimming, 95 miles of biking, and 13.56 miles of running left!

Ironman March Update - Week 1

I committed to participate in Caitlin's (from Health Tipping Point) Ironman March Challenge where I will complete the Ironman distances in swimming, biking, and run/walking during the month of March.

You can check out the original Ironman March Challenge post and download the printable training plan on HTP.

On to my update for the first week (March 1-7).

The goal was to swim 872 meters, bike 25.3 miles, and run/walk 6 miles. Since I am just getting back to the gym from winter laziness/ankle sprain 2013 this is what my week looked like:

March 1-7:
Friday: nada
Saturday: 250 meter swim (first time in the pool since September and my goggles broke)
Sunday: 3 mile hike/walk
Monday: Active rest/Yoga
Tuesday: 5 mile indoor bike
Wednesday: 1.92 run/walk on treadmill
Thursday: Rest

So obviously my totals are 250 meters swim, 5 mile bike, 4.92 run/walk. And I'm starting out behind.

I'm not too concerned since I'm just now gearing up back at the gym. I'll hit the pavement tonight for another approximate 2 miles, then swim tomorrow (and hopefully get out for a hike in the afternoon), and probably do a spin class Sunday.

I'm going to try and add a little more to the outlined weekly totals so I don't have to play "catch up" all during one week. Overall I'd say the challenge has kept me motivated to keep moving forward with training for my mini spring Tri on May 18th. Anything to motivate me at this point is a good thing!

If you are interested in participating in the Ironman March Challenge you still have time! Check out the original post and commit today.

Ironman March with @caitlinhtp

I signed up for my first Triathlon of the season waaaaaaaaay back in early December. I find the earlier that I sign up for a big race, the more I tend to slack in beginning my "official" training. Mix in the fact I was sick for the first 6-7 weeks of 2013 and had a sprained ankle I was recovering from, it's been hard getting back on the horse.

I even wrote out a training calendar for the month of February. It's now the last day of the month and I didn't even attempt to follow it.

I'm getting better about getting into a real schedule again. I've made it to yoga this week and out running twice. I have another yoga session and another run planned already for the week.

But, if I want to be confident at my May 18th mini tri AND be ready in late summer for an intermediate distance (1.5K swim, 40K bike, 10K run), then I need to GET ON IT.

Enter fate.

Yesterday Caitlin at Healthy Tipping Point posted her challenge to herself to complete an Ironman OVER THE COURSE of the month of March. Yep, 31 days to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, and run 26.2 miles.

It's just the right level of a challenge to get me back in the saddle. I'll be going back to the Y for access to the pool and spin classes (oh how I miss thee).

If you want to join in, visit Caitlin's blog and print the handy PDF tracking sheet. She's even already done the math for you to break the mileage out week by week.

If you're going to do this, let me know here or on Twitter @emtucky.

First Triathlon Recap: Wet Dog Triathlon

Remember that triathlon I was getting ready for?  Wonder what happened? Oh yeah, I killed it. (Of course "killing it" is in relative terms to my own self.)

The epic less-than-24-hour whirlwind time-span leading up to, actual, and post event was, well, epic. It started Friday night with my bike racked for it's first trip out of Nashville (and first time using the bike rack for a long car ride) and a pre-getting on the road stop at Mirko for some carb loading.

Amazing pre-race support from office mate.

Whole wheat penne with meat sauce and meat balls...so yummy.

We arrived in Decatur around 8:30 pm and we checked into the Best Western of Decatur. High class accomodations in Decatur going on! After messing with what we thought was a broken AC, I finally settled into bed and fell asleep around 10:30 or 11.

Alarm was set for 4:45 am for a 5:15 depart time. I got up and did my normal pre-race routine - coffee made, getting dressed, teeth brushed, peanut butter and bagel prepared, and gear gathered. It felt weird leaving for a race not with my running shoes on, but with flip flops. Loved that feeling actually.

Got to the race site right around 5:35 or 5:40 and I went directly to pick up my race packet. There were no lines and it was in and out. They handed me 2 bibs and my timing chip. It felt so official. I had no idea what the 2nd bib was for. So I asked. I thought the volunteer said "one goes on your front, and one goes on your back" but clearly the 2nd race number went on my BIKE, which thankfully I figured out in the transition area before embarrassing myself. :)

Pit Crew Member KG and I got my transition area set up. At this race the transition area was first come, first served so I choose the 2nd rack on the side closest to the bike exit. After racking my bike and laying everything out we found our way over the the body marking area.

Arriving to the race site.

Before shot with the bike.

Body marking fun

Transition all set up (that's my green and pink flamingo towel, naturally).

The thing I found about this race was even though it was tagged as a "beginner" race there was limited signage/direction so figuring things out was generally just taking your best guess or following the groups of people. Luckily, I had been researching triathlons for months leading up to my race and had volunteered at a race back in May so I was familiar with the general layout of a triathlon and tasks to take care of before the race start.

Around 6:15 I headed down to the beach area to check out the water. They hadn't gotten the buoys out yet so they weren't quite ready to let people in the water to warm up yet, but I hung around the water and chatted with some other racers. The water seemed calm to me and eventually they got the buoys out to let us in to warm up.

I wasn't really nervous before the start of the race until I visually saw how far out the buoys went. The swim course was an out and back 400 meter swim. I quickly squashed the fears down and tried to focus on just getting out there to warm up. I swam half way out and waded around a little, but that's pretty much it.

The finally called for racers to line up according to their race number (lower numbers were the first starters and fastest swimmers). At this point they were running late, but I'm not sure how late it was since I didn't have a watch on. I lined up in my general number range and started chatting with a fellow first-time racer, Sheila (hey there!). She was doing this race in preparation for a triathlon she's doing with her cousin next month in Erie, PA. Go Sheila!

Proud of my body markings.

Meet Conehead Emily

In the swim line waiting to start.

After a short wait, which I have no idea how long it was, into the water I went. The. swim. was. awesome. I felt really strong and since I overestimated my swim time by 7 minutes or so, I passed a lot of people that seemed to just be out there doggy paddling it (not hating - way to get it done!) I had to do my normal self talk of not rushing out of the gate too fast, but by time I got to the turn-around I was actually surprised in how short it felt.

Coming out of the water you had to run from the beach through the park entrance to the transition area. This probably added about a minute to my swim time, which was 11:19.

Off to the swim

That's me in the swim (middle, closest yellow cap in picture)

Coming out of the swim.

In transition number 1, I attempted to dry off a little, rinsed the sand off my feet and dry them to put on my socks and shoes, pulled on some athletic shorts and threw my helmet on. I assure you although it is quick to read about all the steps I took, I was sloooooooooooow in T1. It took me 4:03.

The first mile and a half on the bike was a little rough. In hindsight, I should have warmed up my legs up. It was a hard start, and I felt like I was really working to not go at a very fast pace. Early on I decided to save my legs for the run and just do the bike at a leisurely pace. So all those people I passed on the swim? They got right back on me during the bike. Another issue I had during the bike was the fact I didn't think through my hydration system. I had frozen some water and Gatorade bottles, but I didn't think how I would unscrew them while on the bike. Also, since I don't have a double bottle rack I borrowed KG's bottle holder that straps onto the handle bars. But it took two hands basically to get the bottle in and out. After the turn around I dropped my still half full bottle of water. Ooops #1.

The bike did go quicker than I though, but it was a very flat course. KG later informed me on my way back into transition, I didn't dismount at the right point, essentially entering transition ON my bike. Oops #2. Because this wasn't a USAT sanctioned race, they didn't do anything about it, but it's definitely something to keep in mind for future races. My bike time was 42:52. Actually a little faster than I estimated for myself.

T1

Bike start

Bike finish

Transition number 2 was kind of weird. Since I bike and run in my running shoes I didn't have any clothing changes so I just racked my bike, took off my helmet and downed some water and stood there for a second. I definitely could have done it faster, but it ended up taking me 1:24.

Despite drinking in transition and the water stop outside of transition at the beginning of the run, I felt THIRSTY starting the run. I had set my Garmin to 3/1 minute run/walk intervals and I knew I was going out fast, but I was able to keep to my 3/1s. The run was along the river and on a gravel trail with well marked roots. It was also primarily flat. The nice part was that there were about 4 water stations during the 3.1 mile course. This was really nice for me, who felt really underhydrated. I plowed along, but it really didn't feel that bad. Mostly, it was mentally difficult because the course twisted and turned so just when you thought it was time to turn around, you were really just going around a corner. There was a lot of fellow racer support during the run, which I appreciated. Since I had no idea what time I started, I had no idea how long the race had taken me at that point.

Starting the run.

Although I certainly wasn't last, I was in the back of the pack, but there were still a few people cheering runners in at the finish. Including Pit Crew Member KG. I was all smiles as I crossed that finishline. I was a triathlete.

Still smiling as I round the finish.

Crossing the finish line.

So excited to be a triathlete!

During races where I am particularly pushing myself to earn a new accolade (a PR, first time finish, etc.) I always think int he middle of the race I may cry at the finish line because I am so grateful to be at this point in my life that I can do exercise for 1, 2, or even 3 hours at a time and ENJOY it. However, the finishes always seem anticlimactic for some reason. Either way, I was glad to be done and to still have a smile on my face!

Of course, every race finish deserves an epic post race meal. And this one deserved a happy shopping trip to H&M in Huntsville.

Po Boy Factory - Crawfish Po Boy, Jambalaya, Fries (two kinds), and Fried Pickles.

So, I'm officially a triathlete. Yes! Where to from here? Of course in the days immediately following completing the race I begin to have thoughts of...well maybe I could do that race in September? What about doing an International (Olympic) distance next year? Could I do a half-Ironman in 2014? Will I ever be crazy enough to do an Ironman?

Slow. Your. Roll. Emily.

Honestly, in the first 7 months of this year I've completed 3 half-marathons and a triathlon. I could do that sprint tri in September, but I think I honestly need a break from endurance racing. I'm not signed up for any long distance events until December, and I think I am content in keeping it that way. My bank account and body need a break from the cardio fest it's been having. I want to learn how to focus on strength training. Also, I think if I back off of a strenuous training schedule maybe I can focus on losing these last 45 pounds I want to get rid of from my body. These two things can only make me stronger when I DO return to racing this winter and triathlons next season.

But honestly, I couldn't have done it without the support and encouragement of friends and family. This wasn't a solo journey in the least. Friend Jenne went on my first swim with me and taught me how to breathe in the pool (yes, really I had to learn to breathe), plus accompanied me on a-many-more swims. Of course KG took time out of her weekend last week to go to Decatur with me, help carry equipment and took all the pictures in the post (she took a total of 92 pictures!) not to mention spotting me on my first OWS before race day. And my long-distance coach, Heather, who I got to ask crazy triathlon related questions to and she always happily answered and gave me advice. I can't even begin to list everyone that gave me encouragement, good luck wishes, congratulations wishes, etc. You all SERIOUSLY rock.

In the end, it was an amazing experience and I am hooked. If you have ever thought about doing a triathlon I highly recommend you to find a beginner race you are comfortable with and start training today. (I'm no doctor though, so make sure everything is A-OK before beginning any exercise program.)

Triathlon, I'll see you next year!

After shot with the bike.

Another brick...with an epic open water swim!

Although I have done one mini open water swim on my vacation over 4th of July, I wanted to get a serious open water swim (OWS) in before the triathlon this weekend (5 days...OMGZZZ). So, I enlisted good friend, KG in spotting me out at Percy Priest lake on Sunday.

Source

So we headed to a nearby recreational swimming area at the lake at 8:30 Sunday morning after drinking a pitcher of margaritas the night before. Haha, we know how to train, y'all.

There were already a few people out in the water when we got there (and a couple cars in the parking lot with "swim, bike, run" stickers...I felt like I was crashing a cool kid's party). One intense woman was running out of the water when we approached the beach area and when she came running back she said a friendly, "hello!" I had no idea what 400 yards looks like (the distance of the race), so KG asked professional triathlete lady about it. She gave great guidance I was confident with.

After figuring out what approximately 400 yards would be (or so I thought) I set out into the water.

It's a bit blurry, but it's also an AWESOME photo of me, haha!

I have this issue in the water where I go out way too fast. Well, actually I do that in every sport. So, I swam from the beach to buoy #1 to buoy #2 back to #1 and back to the beach for what I thought at the time was approximately 400 yards. I was huffing and puffing when I got out of the water because I rushed it and my breathing rhythm was off. The swim felt labored and KG reported it took around 6 or 7 minutes or so. Hmmm...that seems awfully fast for me on a 400 yard swim. My average time in the pool for that distance is about 9 1/2 minutes. What happened?

Well, my morning brain THOUGHT I had estimated 400 yards, but really it was 200. Ooops....back to the water.

This time, I started down at the end of the beach to swim out to buoy #4 then back. Easy peasey. I made myself slow down and just swim rhythmically. I typically alternate what side I breathe on every 3 strokes. I'm still learning how to sight in open water, but I practiced that too. It was a lot better than the first run. So much better that I passed buoy #4, got a little past buoy #5 and realized I was way farther than I intended to swim out. Ooops #2

But no worries, I got back to land safely.

Swimming in

Back on 2 feet!

Out of the water

I feel confident in the open water, but I am still expecting the worst on Saturday because swimming in a calm lake is nothing like swimming in river with potential current AND with 600 other people flailing around in the water.

After the swim, KG joined me for a 2 mile run. Can I tell you how much I hate putting socks on damp feet? Ugh. I struggled with the run and walked a lot more of than I hoped for. It was hot by that time (9:45) and I was under hydrated. 2 miles got done though and back to the car we went.


All in all it was actually a lot of fun (well, except for the run part) and I'm really looking forward to Saturday (in an excited/scared sh*tless kind of way). And I think I found a great new place to get some swimming in without having to be a member of the Y!

Open Water Swim

No weigh in this week - I'm still away from home, but I just got back from spending 4 glorious days at Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri. My family owns a house there that my grandfather built 25 years ago. I have been swimming in this water for 25 years.

It is my happy place.

So of course I wanted to take the opportunity of having a scary, murky lake 50 steps from where I was sleeping to do an open water swim. And of course I put it off until the last day.

So yesterday before packing up, while we were swimming off the dock, I decided to throw on the goggles and do a real swim.

It was short, it was hard, but it gave me a great idea what I'm up against in 12 days.

I swam diagonally from the dock to a "No Wake" buoy. Then, straight from that buoy to the next one and then diagonally again from that point back to the dock. I have no idea how far it was. I'm estimating a few yards less than 200?

It wasn't timed, but my unofficial spotter (my mom) said it probably took less than 10 minutes. I stopped to catch my breath during it. I didn't freestyle the whole time. I may have doggy paddled. I definitely breast stroked. But I did it.

And now I know what I'm up against....and I need to get some really good quality workouts in the next 12 days or this race may be a disaster.

First BRICK & Triathlon Training Update

Saturday I did my first "brick". A brick is triathlon speak for when you do a workout that combines two disciplines of triathlon. Most commonly people do bike/run bricks because from what I've read that is the hardest transition - going from jello bike legs to strong run legs. I'd also like to try a swim/bike brick.

I originally wanted to try out an open water swim on Saturday, but I'm still sorting out logistically how to tackle that. Admittedly, I haven't stuck to the training schedule much in the month of June because of three back-to-back trips. So the thought of exercising in the extreme heat we are having was even more UNMOTIVATING so I took the workout indoors with a 45 minute spin class and treadmill run. Not ideal 3 weeks before race day, but better than doing nothing.

I started out 15 minutes early to spin class so I just started riding after I got my bike set up. The instructor took us through several "climbs" (where you increase the gear slightly at an interval) and some "sprints" pedaling as fast as you can at an interval. I am really starting to love spin class (a far cry from my first class) and I could see myself doing it a few times a week even after triathlon season is over. The instructor commented that her computer showed over 12 miles for her ride, but I was on the bike a good 15-20 minutes than her so I'd say my ride was about 13-14 by a conservative estimate.

After the class, I refilled my water bottle and hit the treadmill. I started out at a 4.5 pace for 5 minutes, then walked 1 minute at 3.6 pace. I repeated this twice and did 1.25 miles in 17:25. I felt like I could have done the whole 5K, but since it was my first brick and I hadn't been training very well lately, I didn't want to overdo it.

Today, I got back in the pool (2nd swim for the week). My swim on Wednesday was rough due to the weird back pain I've been having, a crowded pool, and just generally not swimming for over a week.

Today's swim though was great.

After a 100 meter warm-up, I did a timed 400 meter (the length of my race swim) in 9 minutes and 30 seconds. After a 90 second rest, I did another timed 400 meters in 9 minutes and 45 seconds. These times surprised me since I put my race swim estimate at 18:00. But, expect to swim slower in open water, so maybe it will take me that long? Who knows. I feel strong in the water. I've always been a "water baby" and I swam on the neighborhood team for a few seasons during my childhood. So, I'm pretty confident in the water. Today it occurred to me that maybe I'm too confident about the water. Maybe I'm too confident about this whole race?

19 days...holy crap!