We haven't found a cure, so I have to do longer races!

Welcome back, friends! I'm back for another season with Team In Training. This time, I'll be participating in a Half Ironman Distance Triathlon, the Augusta 70.3 Triathlon. That's 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles of biking, and 13.1 miles of running. All in one day!

As you know, all of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. I am completing this event in honor of all individuals who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

Please make a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress. Thanks for your support!

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May 17, 2010

Monday was our first group swim. It was so great to see so many people on the Fall teams; we have well over 100 participants! On the first night, the mentors hand out personalized swim caps with our names written on them. As I am allergic to latex, I let my mentor know not to make a cap for me.

After introductions to our coaching staff and to the workout, we all jumped in the pool. I wasn't feeling 100% when I started the workout, and things didn't improve. Although I have spent a few seasons in the pool with no problem, apparently the concentration of the new latex in the pool was enough to trigger an allergic reaction. My tongue and cheeks started to swell up after about 1/2 an hour.

As I've had this reaction before, I noticed it fairly early. I jumped out of the pool mid-workout, went over to my gear bag, and popped a benadryl (which I always have on hand as my first line of defense). Knowing that I would get super-sleepy in the matter of 1/2 an hour, I left practice early to head home. A rough start, to be sure. But not nearly as rough as having to face treatment for cancer. So I'll head back next Monday to try again.

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June 25, 2010

It is incredibly hard to coach and train at the same time. While I'm getting my training in, I don't feel like I'm quite focused on my goals for Augusta. I have been able to go to the Monday night swims (and they've got me in Lane 6!!! For those of you who know my swim journey, this is a big deal. Mentally, I still don't think I'm a good swimmer...so I'm either getting better OR we just have a lot of newbies, so they're getting me out of the way ;). I start off well in the lane (and I've met a fellow sinker, David. I have gotten him to walk on the bottom of the pool with me a couple times :), but by the end of the night, I get pretty tired. It's exciting, though. I'm really trying to improve my pull, my lead arm breathing technique and my speed. It's wearing me out, but in a really satisfying way.

Biking has become...painful. I am not fit correctly on my bike, and I need to fix that. Today, I plan to buy a shorter stem, which should help in my positioning. I'm also hoping to put aero bars on the bike in the next couple of weeks.

As for the running, I guess I just don't think about it that much, which MUST mean it's going well :) I have a wonderful group of women that I run with (for our long runs) on Sunday mornings. We have so much fun, that the miles just seem to fly by. Running is still my comfort zone, and I hope that I'm able to complete more solid 'brick' training (biking followed by running) so that I can incorporate solid running at the end of the tri.

But of course the real goal of any event is to raise money to find cures for cancer. And I thank you for your support every step of the way.

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July 26, 2010

Last weekend was my first weekend of training with the Fall Team. Up until last Saturday, I'd been coaching the Summer Season; it was so great to head to a training session where I got to receive coaching. I wasn't in charge. I just had to 'do.'

And I did! We had a workout that consisted of Brick Repeats. This means we'd bike 9 miles, then run 1. Then bike 9, then run 1. Then bike 9, then run 1. You get the idea. Our coach, Mike, explained it this way, "For the first two miles of the bike, just go out easy. Get your legs moving. On the last seven miles, push. When you get off your bike, the first 1/2 mile of the run should be steady. The second 1/2 mile, you should push. But don't worry. You'll get back on your bike and be able to take it easy again for two miles. And then you'll push." Ha.

Since a recent adjustment to my bike, I have not minded pushing on the bike. I'm no longer experiencing lower back and shoulder pain. So I did as Mike instructed. I wasn't as successful as I had hoped, mistakenly grabbing my water bottle (from a new cage -- that I haven't quite gotten down in terms of hand/eye/drink coordination yet) right before a rather intense downhill (during which I held both the water bottle and the handlebars simultaneously. I'm skilled like that.) But I did okay.

I got on the run, and all I know is that it was hot. H-O-T, hot. So I was able to do the steady 1/2 mile, but when it came to the 'push,' well, I just didn't have it. But I finished the first brick, and set off for the second, feeling warmed up, stronger, and ready to kick some tail. I completed the repeats three times....oh, except I skipped the last run. I knew I'd be running distance the next day (and I ran 10 miles as a result), so I opted for a popsicle (or two) and a little rest.

Tonight, I'll head to swim practice, which remains the hardest of the disciplines for me. If I could just stop thinking...and just SWIM...I'm pretty sure I'd be fine. I haven't mastered the mental discipline yet. But I still enjoy going. For instance, last week, we ended our team swim with a tea party at the bottom of the pool (I have fun teammates) and 50m sprint relay -- and I use the term 'sprint' loosely.

But none of this is about being able to sprint. For Pete's sake, I'm training for a 1/2 Ironman. I'll be taking my time on event day. Likewise, the journey to find a cure for cancer is not a sprint. It is an endurance event all its own. One to which we must remain dedicated, fighting season after season, until we have won. Thank you for staying true to this journey with me. I couldn't do it without you.