Brick and Swim

Today, I swam a mile, and then I rode 10 miles and ran 2. :) Felt good to be back at it as I hadn't done anything since my run on Saturday. I am getting a bit of a chest cold. GRRR...Hoping it goes away soon.

Universal Studios Run

I think today's run gets extra credit. You see, last night, I was with the two Mike's - brother and husband. Oh man....wine, wine, wine, oh, another bottle? Sounds fun. Went to bed late...

Next thing you know, the alarm is going off. Really? Already? Ugh...I decided that I wasn't QUITE ready to gtet up, so I did hit the snooze for 30 minutes. I knew that I should get up or I might not have time, but I just couldn't do it. My head hurt. My stomach hurt. I was tired. I didn't know where I would run. What if I got lost? Was it too hot? Too cold? Raining? You get the idea. :)

I finally decided to get up, and then I couldn't find my freaking clothes. GRRRR....I am tearing my suitcase apart. Looking all over the room. Didn't I get my clothes ready last night? I could swear I did. Hmmm....

Mike says, "Are you looking for what is in the chair?" I say, "What chair?" He tells me to take the pillow shams off the chair. WOW! There are my clothes! All of them. Nicely laid out and everything. My wine-filled brain did something right.

I finally get going, and the front desk staff at the Royal Pacific Hotel gave me a sheet with two running paths - 1.5 miles and 3.8 miles. I think...hmmmm...maybe I will do one and then the other and then see how I feel at 5.3...

Well, I must not have understood the first one, and I had to go to the restroom already. Lovely. So, at a whopping 3/4 mile, I went inside. After my quick stop, I am confused as I don't see where the other 3/4 mile is. So, I decided to do the 3.8 loop. Hmmm...I think I must have missed the turn. I finally just go ahead and turn at some Universal sign. I find my way back to the hotel, and I am there at 4.8. Must have done somthing right. I decide to do at least 2 more, so I start off on the path that goes to Universal thinking it might be fun. I haven't even gone a half mile before a policeman tells me that I can't run through CityWalk. BUMMER. So, I turn BACk around and just do par of the 3.8 loop and head back. The last mile and a half, Morgan is texting me that I need to hurry. She was sweet though and asked what I wanted for breakfast. She and Mike were haing breakfast. Mike did 3 miles too. He seemed to enjoy it, so I was excited to hear that.

I ended up doing 7.27 miles. I then walked all over Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. Fun day!

NYC Run

I have been doing quite a lot of travel lately, and it is rather hard to fit in along with the rest of my life. However, as I have been running, it is really pretty cool to check out cities as you run them. I keep thinking of something a c0-worker said to me when I wasn't a runner (HA - don't you love me calling myself a runner now). Anyway, he said, "I like to run a city and then drink a city." Unfortunately, I keep getting that order reversed. Ugh, Wine is the death of me!

Anyway, Nick and I ran together, and we did a little over 7 miles. It felt really good. I was bad and didn't work out yesterday, so I felt like I needed to more than my normal run. We went about a mile and a half through the city and then we ran a path by the water. It was AMAZING! I loved it!!!!!!

I know it is silly, but I kept laughing when I saw a track there by the water and all the tall buildings, a baseball park, a whole foods store. I always think of those items in suburban America, and I am not used to seeing them in that environment. NYC is an amazing place to visit. I think I just might have to do a race there sometime. Very cool.

Of course, my hangover was much better once we ran. Thank goodness because I had to rush t get ready (Nick gave me 20 minutes, and he actually was ready - I was NOT!). We ate breakfast and then went to the meeting. Thanks for the run Nick!

Brick

Tonight, we did a 10 mile ride with a 2 mile run. I forgot to put my Garmin on, but we were going pretty fast on the way back. I was amazed. It was kind of windy on the way out. My new seat seemed pretty good, and I liked my seat being higher. Tobey came and rode her new bike with us. We had a good time (missed Carmen though).

The run was hard for me tonight. Not sure why but it really seemed challenging on the way back. Of course, it might have been made worse by this evil snake that scared the crap out of me while we were running. I was so paranoid after that happened that Brian had to switch places with me. I can't believe the Fort Desoto is in a little over 2 weeks!

Swimming

Today, I swam again at LA Fitness. I have really enjoyed my 7 day trial there. The pool is nice, and it doesn't seem to be too crowded. Plus, there is an awesome hot tub next to it that feels fantastic after a workout. :) I need to figure out our gym life, since we now belong to the Y and to Sport and Field. I certainly can't add a third place. :) Of course, Chris is now going to the Y, so I don't want to get rid of it. I guess we will have to see. I have gone swimming more times in this 7 day period than I have all year so far, so maybe I need to learn from that. It is way more convenient and easier to fit into my schedule as it is close.

Anyway, today, I only swam a little over a half mile. My right shoulder was having some mild pain in my shoulder blade, and I was nervous that continuing might make it worse and then cause me to not be able to swim. Ironically, I was swimming more because I thought it would be less stressful on my body. Hmmm....Anyway, i have found my love for swimming again. It feels INCREDIBLY good to swim for a long time. I had so forgotten that feeling. Too long without long distance I guess. I am back up to 1.5 miles, and I want to be swimming 2 miles several times a week prior to St. Anthony's. I am thinking that surely 2 miles in a pool would equal 1 in the ocean?

Rain, Running, and Swimming

Today, Travis and I went for a run. We haven't ever run together despite many attempts to make it work. So, I was excited to FINALLY get to run and talk with him. We used to talk so often, and now it is weird not talking to him much.

Anyway, it was pretty gloomy, and i thought we should go to the gym and do the treadmill even though I hate the treadmill. However, Travis pulled his typical, "How bad could it be?" routine. So, we decided to give it a shot. About 5 minutes in, it started raining. It wasn't too bad though and we could see it wa clear ahead. So, we went out 2.5 miles. We decided we should turn around and we could just do it again if the weather was ok. I am SO thankful we turned. When we got about 1.5 miles from the car, the rain started again. About a mile from the car, it was REALLY coming down. Big drops. Lots of them. THEN, the thunder and lightening started. I took comfort in the thought that Travis was taller than me and that lightening would probably get him first. HA!

The last quarter of a mile, my shoes were so very heavy. I told Travis that I thought a mile with heavy shoes should count as two. :) We finally made it to the car, and the storm was really coming fast. Thankfully, Travis had a towel he loaned me as I was SOAKED.

On the way home, I decided to finish my 8 miles by doing 3 on the treadmill. :) I was so proud.

Then, tonihgt, I swam a mile and a half! I really could have kept going. Amazing. It took me about an hour to do 1.5 miles, so I wasn't flying but wasn't too pokey. Plus I stopped a couple of times to chat with Stacey.

Anyway, an overall great day!

25 mile brick - Check!

I have been a mental case about the bike portion of St. Anthony's because I haven't been riding through the COLD Florida winter this year (yes, I know it isn't cold compared to the north but for Florida it has been cold. We don't have the appropriate gear to ride in cold here). So, over the past couple of weeks, I have gone from no riding, to 11 miles to 20 miles, to 25 miles! Today, I ran about 2.5 miles after the bike. It felt pretty hard for the first mile, but then I actually felt pretty good. I could have gone for a while, especially if I had done the 5 min run, 30 second walk method. However, I have my long run tomorrow, so I figured i would be better off just running 2.5 and stopping.

Tomorrow, on to the long run!

3 weeks to Fort Desoto
5 weeks to St. Anthony's
8 weeks to Marine Corps Half

Swimming

Today, I swam a mile again. It felt really good. I think I need to step it up to add 400 or so the next time. I just can't seem to find enough TIME to do all of these workouts. I really like the variety that triathlons bring, but it is difficult fitting in all three things 2 - 3 times a week. If I can just get the biking down, I think I will be ok to do the St. Anthony's race. I am still nervous about it, but I am feeling better as my swimming gets stronger. We are going to run longer after the bike tomorrow, so that should be good practice as well.

3 weeks until Fort Desoto
5 weeks until St. Anthony's
8 weeks until Marine Half

Three Mile Run

Today, I ran 3 miles. Our instructions said to do speedwork, and I wasn't sure what to do. So, I decided to do a little flip on the 5 minutes and 30 seconds we do for our long runs. I set my watch to beep at 5 minutes and to beep at 1 minute. I jogged slowly for the 5 minutes and then I ran hard for the 1 minute. I was surprised at how quickly the 1 minute passed - well excpet for one of them that seemed like it was TEN. :) I wish I had been able to do one more mile. I ran out of time, but I was really enjoying it. I think the interval concept is good for my brain. I enjoyed this 3 mile run better than most. :)

Swim and Run Day

Today, I ran 5 miles with Heather over by Wiregrass. It was so nice to have a chance of scenery! Talking with Heather also made it go much faster than running by myself.

At lunch, I met Stacey at LA Fitness for a swim! I swam a mile. I focused on lenthening my stroke. I got a few 25m trips under 20, but most were around 20 or 21. It felt REALLY good swimming today though, and I could have easily gone longer. :)

BRICK

Tonight, the Wesley Chapel Tri Team rode 10 miles and ran 2 miles. My tummy was hurting during the run, but that probably had to do with eating a ton of chocolate covered pretzels that Morgan got after school before I went. DOH. The bike ride and run felt good though!

9 Mile Long Run

Today, I got up and did a 9 mile long run. My legs were a bit tired today after my 20 mile bike, 1 mile run, and 1 mile swim yesterday! I did pretty well, but it was harder than normal. I am not sure i could have done 4 more miles. I guess it is good to do that the day after biking, since in 6 weeks I have to run 6.2 miles after biking 25!

Today, the Wesley Chapel Tri Team met to bike. We did TWENTY miles!!!!!!!! I had never biked more than 11 miles, so that was a pretty big jump for me. It felt pretty good. A few times, I really could have slowed down, but I kept pushing.

After the bike, we ran a mile to get the brick affect. MAN, my legs were NOT happy. :)

Later in the day, I went and swam a mile. WOOHOO!

Run - 4 Miles

Today, I ran 4 miles in my cheap Walmart tennis shoes, my $7 Walmart pants, and my $7 Walmart tshirt. I also had a sports bra ($5), and socks ($5.50 for 3 pair). My luggage was lost, so this is what I got so that I could run. I felt very proud that I bought that stuff just so that I could RUN! Crazy. I did the 4 miles on the treadmill.

Swimming

Today, I swam a mile. I focused on lengthening my stroke, and I worked hard on making my stroke smoother. It felt good to be able to do the mile again.

Biking - Real Bike!

Today, the Wesley Chapel Tri Team biked! We went to Flatwoods, and we rode 11 miles. It was the first time I was on my bike since December. Oops. It actually felt really good, so I was pleased. :)

Swim, Bike, Run

Today, I got up and swam a mile. I hadn't been swimming in a long time, and I might not have been ready for a mile. But, i did it. It really felt great. About 1200 meters, I hit a stride. I felt really good. I hope that is a good sign for the triathlon in April since I am pretty scared about the swim in the bay.

Then, I rode the stationary bike for about 30 minutes. I set it on hills, and it really worked my legs. After that, I jumped on the treadmill for about 10 minutes just to get the "brick" effect. I had to hurry to get Morgan ready for competition, so i didn't get to ride or run as long as I would have liked. However, after the swim, it was a pretty good workout. :)

8 Mile Run in DC

I was in DC for a cheer competition, and I was staying at the Gaylord Hotel. I asked if there was a safe place to run, and they told me to go out front and ask them to point me to the jogging trail. They pointed me toward the river and said there was a path to the bridge. I didn't really understand what that meant until I made it quite a way down the path.

The first part was pretty windy, but it wasn't too bad. The path went around the harbor. After a little over a mile, there was this hill going up, and then there was a circular onramp looking path that went up to a bridge that went above the interstate. Then, you went back down on the other side just to have the path go BACK up onto the Woodrow Wilson bridge. It was SO incredible to be running on such a huge bridge. I went across (it was quite cold in the middle), and then I turned right. I wasn't really sure where I was going, but there were signs to Arlington Cemetary and the Pentagon. :) I ran down the cute street in Alexandria past many shops and churches. It was such a nice run. There were a lot of people who were out.

I turned around at approximately 4 miles, and I finished back at the hotel at 8 miles (I did have to run the two piers to make it 8 miles). It felt FANTASTIC. I was on a runner's high for the ENTIRE DAY!

Post Race Workout

Monday and Tuesday, I rested. :) Well earned I figured. :)

Today, I decided that it is triathlon training time! So, I got up and rode the stationary bike at the hotel for about 30 minutes. Then, I ran a mile on the treadmill. It felt great!