My Road to 70.3

Fact:  I am almost 44 years old and have been a triathlete for almost 7 years.

Fact: I am still challenging myself in my sport. 70.3 is up next.

Me and my Tri Teammates, the K's

I've lost count of all the races I've completed.  My medal hanger is overloaded.  I had to stop hanging my race numbers because it started to look like wallpaper.  I've done many Sprint distance triathlons, mini, regular and super, and several Olympic distance triathlons.  I've done duathlons, tri-relays and half marathons, and swim-only races.

I've always said I'm not great at any one of the three sports, but I'm pretty good at all three together.  I don't race to win, but it's nice if I get a top ten age group place, or as with my relay team, an actual top 3 medal.

The fun of triathlon is training with my friends, discussing our triumphs and our disasters, and being outside moving and enjoying exercise.  I can chat up a stranger at a race expo, or a bike shop or running store, because once you race triathlon, you just KNOW.

My tri-buddies come in all shapes and sizes.  Some have done mini-tri's and I respect them deeply for doing it.  Some have done the big daddy, Ironman, and I am in awe.  My bestie K started training for her first Sprint tri with me one year, and within the next year she'd completed several Sprints and an Olympic tri (which I hadn't done yet even after 3 years of racing) and then she signed herself up for Ironman! Whoa!

Ironman K

I watched her train, mostly alone, because the schedule for Ironman is relentless and time-sucking.  I would meet her on her long runs to run alongside for the time period I had available, and then she would continue running to get her planned miles done.  Finally she went to her race.  Me and our other relay teammate went later in the day to find her on the Ironman course.  No point in going until the end of her bike course (112 freaking miles) because we'd never see her.  So we positioned ourselves to cheer her through the marathon.  Late into the evening we cheered her every time she came by.  We cheered even louder when she ran through that finish line, and became an IRONMAN.  Truly awesome.

My busy-mom schedule does not realistically have space for Ironman 140.6.  But I have allowed myself the challenge to find the time for Ironman 70.3.  The Half-Ironman.  Not enough to get the M-dot tattoo, but still nothing to snort at.  I watched several of my friends do the Galveston Ironman 70.3 two years ago and I knew I could do it.  Now in 2014, I am.  Luckily I have a huge group of training buddies also doing it, so there is no shortage of training-mates.  No excuses either.

Its the end of January already, and the race is April 6th.  I thought, oh April that's 4 months after the new year.  Um, not really.  April 6th is right at the beginning of April so really we had 3 months.  I was running and biking before Jan 1st, but not consistently.  I ran a tough half-marathon in December.  But that isn't training for 70.3.

My weeks now consist of weekday running and swimming (at the pool since its cold), and biking on weekends.  Its still getting dark by 6pm so biking after work is out of the question.  The alternative? The dreaded bike trainer, indoors.  My bike mounted on a contraption that allows me to pedal as long as I want.  I've gotten a total of 30 minutes on there so far.  So boring and unrewarding.

I can run anytime but still choose to go after work, trying to beat sunset.  I look for hills and have even done some speed work at the track.  I'm kind of doing running workouts loosey-goosey without a plan . I know this isn't recommended but I get in what I can.  If I was a SERIOUS Ironman-in-training, I'd be getting my ass out of bed at 5am and running a set amount of time on a set amount of days.  Apparently I'm not that serious because I prefer to sleep at 5am.  In my defense, I consider sleep part of my training too.

I go to the pool and swim.  I do the swim workouts I learned while taking a 5:45am adult master's swim class these last two summers.  I put in the laps and stretch my arms and legs out to try to go faster.  I never have been a fast or efficient swimmer, and I probably won't improve that much, but I get through my long swims in a good enough time to not worry about a cut-off time in an Ironman race.  And it feels good.

In Texas this year it's been colder than usual this winter.  Bike rides have been harder to come by.  I'm generally not going to ride in weather cooler than 40 degrees.  I know triathletes and cyclists in other states probably think I'm ridiculous.  You all bundle up with multiple layers and boot covers to get out and ride in sub-30 degrees.  Good for you! I'm waiting til later in the day or another day to ride.  So far I've gotten several cool 25+milers in, and plan to build up to 50 and 60 milers in these next months.  That's also 3-4 hours of my Saturdays or Sundays (or both), so it comes when the kids' schedules allow.

This is my hometown beach, Galveston

My first 70.3.  I picked the Memorial Hermann Ironman 70.3 Texas in Galveston. I grew up on Galveston Beach.  I was there volunteering and cheering for my friends 2 years ago and know what it looks like.  It's a flat run and bike course and the swim is in the warm-ish Galveston Bay.  That April I was there I watched the pros, like Lance Armstrong and Chris O'Donnell (who won) do it in under 4 hours.  My friends did it in under 7 hours.  It was a long, hot day for them, but I stayed to see them finish and I can visualize that while I prepare for my race.

I have SWAM 1.2 miles before.  I have BIKED 56+ miles before.  I have RAN 13.1 miles before.  I have not tried to do all of the above in a span of 7 hours in one day.  My brick-workouts will get more intense and more time-consuming.  I will have to pick and choose my social activities these next few months and watch what I eat and drink.  I will have to plan nutrition on the long bike rides and runs.  I will have to get my wetsuit out and head into the lake to open-water-swim.  I have 10 weeks to be ready.

I can do this.

I Heart Triathlon

I heart Triathlon.

I sat on my couch watching the recap of the Kona Ironman Championships and am so proud to be in this sport. The complex mix of training for three different sports and the camaraderie of the triathlon community has given my mid-life a meaning that belongs all to me.

I am a proud Mama of two really talented and interesting girls, and I have learned I need to stay talented and interesting myself for us all to have a healthy balance with each other. Triathlon and other racing do this for us.

My one and only mud race...Chillgirl did it too and we agree- NO MORE MUD RACES!

I may never be an Ironman, but that's okay.  My Ks and other friends are racking up 70.3s (half-irons) and 140.6 (fulls) and I'm so proud to watch and cheer for them.  I was with the Ks when they did their first few sprint triathlons and I've trained and raced with them all along their journeys to their big races.  We still do sprint and olympic races together.  Our training and race-prep are our version of what other girlfriends do with shopping, or book club, or Bunko.  We yak and yak, catching up on kids, ex-husbands, boyfriends, dating, nutrition, and exercise plans.  Its priceless time to unwind and workout the body and mind.

My triathlon season is over for the year.  It goes from about April (if I'm ambitious) to September or October (if I'm still feeling it).  Its hard to believe I've been doing triathlon for SIX years.  I'm up to 24 or 25 tri or du races at this point.  You would think I'd be an expert by now, but no, this sport evolves, and as I go into new seasons and try new races, I always am learning more.

This year my big revelation was that I do not plan to aspire to larger and longer races.  After years of spring distance tris, I had it planned to spend 2012 doing olympic-length races.  I did three.  That is a lot because this length is not offered very often.  I did no Sprint-lengths until the very end, the last weekend of September.  I did it and it felt great.  The olympic races did NOT leave me feeling great.  I worried about my times and conserving energy and eating/drinking enough.  My swims were steadily improving thanks to my lessons and my cycling was the same as always (read: I kick ass and take names), but my running was all over the place.  The first olympic I did I ran/walked and felt really good with that.  The second one I ran the whole way and was thrilled.  The third I ran/walked the first 5k, but punked out and walked most of the second half.  I was irritated that as the season went on, I did not feel I was improving.

The sprint I did at the end of the season wasn't the easiest one I've done.  It was in a new venue and it was raining at the start.  But it was OVER in an hour and 42 minutes! What's to complain about there?  I was on to the free beer by the time I would've been starting the run on an olympic race!

I began with sprint distance triathlons back in 2007.  I loved them.  Fell IN love with them.  I started doing them brand-new to the sport and slowly figured out how to improve my times and train better for a multi-sport.  Then along the way I thought they were getting too easy, and I should "graduate" to a longer race.  Much like I feel about doing 5Ks as I have graduated to10Ks, 10 milers, and half-marathons.  I'm not even a runner, so why do I think I need to run longer to make it worth my while? Insane.

I know the desire to go bigger in triathlon was the influence of my tri buddies who are doing halfs and full-Irons.  I thought I must keep up with them.  Guess what? I can't.  Ooohhh, the big-bad word CAN'T.  Yeah, I said it.  Its true.

This guy looks like me too, about to fall over on the run....

No, I don't mean physically.  I CAN physically sloth through a half-Ironman.  Its not that much longer than an olympic on the swim, its double the distance on the bike, and a little more than double the run.  I've done all those distances individually many times before.  A half-Iron was my pinnacle goal before this season started.  I think I'll shelve it, but its possible it will come out again in the future.

The full-Iron? Well that's another story.  Its an unknown at this point if I physically COULD do it, but mentally I DON'T WANNA.  Twice my longest swim, 112 miles on the bike (that's just not fun), and a full-marathon, which I've never done.  Nope.

But if the olympics are not getting easier for me and yes, even though this is only the second season I've done them, I question my reasons for pushing it?  I probably will do another olympic but I will choose different ones.  No more CapTex or Austin Tri.  Same-ish downtown Austin routes, too many participants, over-priced and basically not FUN.  Waco, yes. That was fun, although the bike was cut short with a rainstorm.  Kerrville, possibly.  Marble Falls, hopefully.

If I want to continue to "heart" triathlon, I need to be smart about it.  Do what keeps you sane, builds your confidence, and gives you a self-esteem boost to keep you wanting it.  I can only train so many hours a week in this stage of my life.  To be realistic, I shouldn't even be prepared for olympic tris or half-marathons, but I'm doing both.

Out of the many hats I'm wearing these days: Mom, audiologist, board member, teacher, coach, or friend, Triathlete is all for ME, and I want to keep it that way.  Doing it for me, which makes me happy, which makes me a better whatever-hat-I'm-wearing person, which makes it all worth it.

Crazy Little Thing Called Tri

I've been so caught up in school starting and getting my meager training in and reading OTHER people's blogs about how much training they are doing, I haven't posted in a while.

I love reading athlete blogs.  I have one I read that the girl did the Augusta 70.3 yesterday, and I'm eagerly awaiting her report.  I read another of a friend I've met in my running community about her badass splits on mere training runs, let alone winning or placing in all of the 5ks and 10ks she does.  Another blog is about a lady's adventures while going through her divorce and she swims in the Pacific and hikes Northwestern California's peaks. Fascinating.

So I better get back to reporting on my own athletic endeavors.  This past weekend qualifies.

Waaayyy back in June I was convinced by my two best tri girlfriends, K and K, to sign up for a Half-Iron close by in Kerrville, TX.  My biggest races have been olympic, also called quarter tris, and that was mostly just this year.  My intention was to train and work up to a half-iron, or 70.3, triathlon by next year.

I've been doing sprint level tris for 5 years so this year I'd decided to only sign up for olympic level ones.  Sprint are usually a 500m swim,14-15mile bike, and a 5k run.  The olympic races are usually 1500-1600m swims, 24-28mile bike, and a 10k run.  Almost twice as much.

Last May, I reported here that I did my second olympic tri here in Austin and wasn't thrilled about my swim but otherwise was happy I'd gotten through another big race.  Swim lessons with a tri coach in June gave me confidence to sign up for the Half with K and K.  Now I said it was a Half, but I wasn't signed up to do the whole 70.3, mind you, only the swim leg.  I had gotten better and more comfortable and extended my lessons into July and now swimming is my favorite of the 3 sports.  Shhh, don't tell my bike.

So I volunteered (not really, I had to pay for this) to start off our team 70.3 with the swim portion.  One point two miles in the Brazos River.  I've come to realize all our lakes and rivers around central Texas are pretty gross.  The prettiest I've swam in was Aquarena Springs in San Marcos...a cccold spring with the turtles and fishies and seeing clear to the bottom...but even that had plant life that threatened to rope me.

I kept up my swim class, and did some biking and running too.  I did two more olympic tris, and still didn't feel a groove in that distance.  Except for my swims, my times didn't get better, so my frustration grew.

The Ladies of Tri...and Stevie

Truthfully, I had been slacking way off on the biking and running.  I can ride any day of the week, any distance you throw at me, and all I've ever done was one, maybe two training rides a week.  Cycling isn't a weak spot for me.  Running...jeez running continues to elude me.  I go out on my own and feel okay but in my races I'm sluggish and internally whiney the whole time.  I'm not often happy with my times and I've lost the ability to capture a "runner's high" which I used to get a lot more. But training for running once or twice a week doesn't seem to help.  So I swam.

During our grand plans for the Kerrville Half Relay Tri weekend we got caught up in the nerd-speak race-talk with our training group, Blue Moose.  A pack of all ages/all abilities, we are just a fun group of friends who get together to train and do runs, rides, and tris.  K and K and I decided since we were going down there, we'd go early and do the sprint tri the day before the relay.  Why not? We're badasses, right?  Also it gave me a reason to throw in a ride or run or two while I practiced to swim my one point two miler.

As this past week progressed, the forecasts of rain became more and more dramatic.  90% rain was predicted for Saturday, the day of our sprint. 20% chance on Sunday morning, when I'd do my half-iron swim. I had a million things to do with the kids, as usual, and the idea of trekking 2 hours into a rainstorm, only to have the race cancelled wasn't appealing.  I was getting in a foul mood about the whole weekend.  But the hotel was reserved, the entry fees were nonrefundable and already spent.  I get reimbursed from my BEEF team but not if I don't do the race.  The chance was slim that Saturday's race would be a go, but one of the K's convinced me Kerrville was wine country, so the weekend would not be a bust.

I took a half day off work Friday, which is always a bonus.  Got home and loaded up my car with everything I'd need for two rainy muddy races.  Picked up K and got some serious girl-time talking done on the 2 hour trip down.  You know you'll keep a friend forever when you can talk nonstop about work, kids, men, weight, working out, racing, and wine in the span of 2 hours.  The other K was driving down after work but we kept tabs on her via GPS so we would know when she got in.  The rain began lazily as we pulled into the hotel lot.

Once we all three were there, we got our packets from the on-site registration pick-up and realized we had to rack our bikes before dinner.  It was raining more now.  The bike racking was literally next door to our hotel so we walked our babies over there and left them in the cold unforgiving rain.  We paid some cashola for those babies, so to leave them outdoors uncovered in a deluge of rain is NOT okay with us.  Normally we house them in our living rooms at home for gosh sakes!

This race set-up was different than any of the others I've done.  The bike racking was T-1, or transition 1, and the running start was at a separate, T-2 which was two miles away.  After consulting some race officials and several maps, we figured out where T-2 was, and dredged over there, in the rain.  Yes we drove but in an unfamiliar town, with low dark clouds and constant rain, I was starting to get irritated again.  We had moisture-proof bags with our run-out gear to leave in T-2.  By the time we got back to our car, I'd been in and out of the rain fully clothed and not swimming, biking or running for less than an hour, and it was already pissing me off.

Off to Mamacitas for dinner with Blue Moose and a margarita to calm me down.  I never drink before a race but I had convinced myself it wasn't going to happen, so why not?  By the time I finished my rita, I felt guilty and thought, the law of averages, it would stop raining and we would race, and I'd be hungover.  I quickly switched to water.

As we drifted off to bed, earlier than I would've at home (because of the margarita?), the rain was light but continual and the forecast now predicted at least 60% most of Saturday.  The race officials had said short of lightening the race would go on, but me and my Ks were pretty sure we wouldn't ride our babies in the rain and risk life and limb on slick unfamiliar roads.

Saturday at 6AM we suited up and poked our heads out to see light drizzle.  We know the diehard community of triathletes would smirk at such wetness and persevere.  We are just competitive enough to join that school of thought.  We took the remaining gear over to T-1 and were happy it wasn't cooler since we were starting out wet as it was.  Body-marking done and we had time to make another bathroom break back at the room before putting on our wetsuits.  Well, I did.  The other two were brave enough to go in without.  The water was 75 degrees which is relatively warm but wetsuit-legal.  I figure why not use the sprint to test out my wetsuit which I fully planned to use the next day for the must longer 2K.  I swim at the pool in 82 degrees, and I think that's cool for me.  The temperature outside was about 70 so getting in the water wasn't a shock and off we went.

500 meters is a really short distance for a race. If you can freestyle, like me, you're done in 8-11 minutes.  Even with all my training, I was on the 11 minute side of that.  Too many turns and since I'm not out front I'd get caught up in the traffic and then you are changing direction to avoid flying feet and arms.  If you can't freestyle, like one of the Ks, you are still done in 15.  Easy peasy.  Up the hill (seriously, a hill up to transistion? Thanks!) and on the bike.  I had to stop and let the "strippers" take off my wetsuit.  Literally 4-5 people stand there outside the water and turn you around, unzip you, force you to sit and pull the suit off you lickedly split.

I took off on my bike breathing hard (from that damn hill) and soaking wet.  No need to dry off since it was still spitting slightly.  It could've been worse, the rain was barely noticeable as we took off.  Fast swimmer K was right behind me.  The course was loopy and lots of in-town turns and repeat loops but otherwise I made it through the 15 miles in about 48 minutes.  Apparently many people (without computers on their bikes telling them the mileage) were confused and turned toward the bike finish before they'd done the 2nd outer loop.  Inexperienced riders should invest in a $20 bike computer, so they don't accept awards when they only rode 8 miles instead of 15 (this happened in the sprint relay my training mates did- MY friends did it correctly).

Into T-2, threw on my running shoes and a visor and saw one of the Ks ready to go too.  The other K was just coming in, she made up some serious time from her slow swim on a super fast bike.  I took off with K and the other K came up and passed us both, as she usually does.  She's a runner, hence her doing our run-leg of the relay the next day.  Me and K started out slow and I told her to go ahead if she needed to.  She doesn't like to leave me but she's slightly faster than me so I feel I'm holding her back.  Through the trails and back she was a bit ahead of me, but within sight.  The other K was way ahead and we saw her only after the turnaround.  Her overall time beat us both, I was the slowest of us three, thanks to my run.  But at 1:42 I was pretty happy, since my past sprint tris have all been 1:45 or less.

I had an epiphany after that finish.  I like sprint tris.  I feel good after I'm done and during I don't dread the next leg coming.  In my age group I'm not the slowest.  Sprints are typically what beginners start with so the chances of me placing better are higher.  I know that sounds silly but there are professionals who excel at sprints and continue to do them while they rack up more trophies.  Same with 5ks.  I've placed as high as 7th in a sprint in my age group, women 40-44.  Its usually a fairly large division since triathlon is a popular sport among the just-divorced or bored-with-my-life crowd.  Saturday I placed 9th in my division. Whoo-hoo!

I did all those olympics earlier this season because they were the "next step".  On my way...to what?  Ironman?  I have already decided after watching and reading about friends who are training for Ironman that I don't want to devote that much of my life to triathlon.  As in, I don't want to ruin it.  Its still fun.  Or it was when I was doing sprints.  The olympic races are daunting for me.  Faster, more authentic athletes go for the olympic races.  They are training for half-irons and irons.  Olympics are their stepping stones.  I felt fat and slow at my last few.  At the sprint, I felt great, drizzle and all. I think I've (re)found my niche.

K, Me, and K- Team KiCK It

Next up:  I must work on running more efficiently just as I did the swimming.  I have seen the results in my swimming since my classes started.  I have a friend who is willing to give me a running plan and work with me at the track.  I'm all for that.  I just want to feel better running, like I wanted to feel better swimming.  I got the swimming down and even learned to be faster.  On Sunday, I swam my relay leg for my team.  I felt good, I used my techniques, I kept sighting well, I stayed out of the fray as much as I could but followed buoy to buoy until I finished.  Toward the end I felt good, and I felt like I hadn't swam 1.2 miles.  So much better than I'd felt in previous shorter 1600 meter open water swims.   My friend says he can get me there with running.  Cool beans.

Back to Saturday after our amazing sprint (my training mates relayed it and got FIRST PLACE in spite of those 1-looper bike dummies) my friends and I checked out one of the local wineries.  You throw a rock around that area and you're gonna hit a winery.  This one came highly recommended by my training mates.  They took us there and we did a tasting.  All the while talking our nerdy race talk.  We've been training together for over a year now so there's plenty of material.  The wine loosened us up and we talked for hours.

A few grapes at The Chisholm Trail Winery

This adult-time is precious and so necessary for me to grow as an athlete and as a 40+ adult.  I missed Sinatra immensely because I know he would've loved every minute of it, but he was home being a dad to his kids.  It wasn't his time to nurture his me-time.  He fits in with this crowd perfectly and we all have such good times.  We will have other weekends and he will be there.  These are my friends for life and the fact that they are my friends have enriched my life just as much as triathlon has over these last 6 years.  There's more to learn in my training, in my races, and in my friendships.  Cool beans, and pass the wine.

In My Mind's Eye, I Totally Work It

In my 40s I have been challenged with my weight and my physique, watching it go up and down, in and out, but never landing where I want it.  I have figured out my Hormones and my Hunger are in control and my Mind who wants to wear sundresses and bikinis and only a sports bra to run in, has to sit in the back seat while the other two hoodlums do the driving.

I think I look like this...

But I really look like this...

I work out, yes.  But lately nothing changes whether its a lot or a little exercise.  I don't feel good if I work out only a little so I continue to try to do SOMETHING almost every day. I weigh myself every day.  I fluctuate 4-6 lbs over the course of a month.  Its maddening.  If I am not changing much of my routine or my food, then why do I float around in the 150s that much?  

Thanks Brightroom!

Food.  I do like food.  I have done Weight Watchers, juicing, and online diet plans and dropped down some, but only at most 8-10lbs max.  Then I bottom out.  Eight to ten pounds is a lot on my frame, and I have loved it when it works but as I've crept into my 40s, it takes grander and more extreme dieting to make a dent.  Did I mention I like food?   Its about portion control and the healthy food pyramid I am certain.  But I know I'm not willing to sacrifice like the pros.  Not many people would, so I'm not alone there. I'd love to juice at least once a day, but who has time to clean up that damn juicer?

As much as I like food (and because I do), I hate race pictures.  They are the over-priced "professional" pictures taken by the photography companies that work 5Ks and marathons and triathlons.  Sometimes the photographer lays on the ground to get that shot of us running or cycling by.  This never works.  Depending on how close they get to me when they snap the shot,  I look like a two-ton gorilla, or my head is too big for my body, or my leg fat is billowing in a downward motion.

As in the photos displayed here,  I tend toward a hulkish rather than girlish figure, all massive arms and popping booty in a form-fitting wetsuit or on a skinny little bike.  I am well aware I weigh twice as much, if not more, than that bike.  If it wasn't for the bike, I'd never make it up those hills, that's for sure.  Don't get me started on how unforgiving spandex is.  Thank God everyone out there wears pretty much the same thing so I'm never the worst one.

Lots of Junk in that Trunk

I have been in better shape than I am currently but I never have nor will look like Ms. Desiree Ficker (see above), multiple Ironman top-five finisher and awesome triathlete from my town of Austin, TX.  Underneath all my mass, I might look like her, but I have yet to find the secret to unlocking my potentially (and alleged) tiny underframe.

Work that bike, Girl...

When I pose for pictures I can turn my angles and work it so I look more fit than I am.  Like an overweight mom who's Facebook profile picture is her happy face over the shoulder of her child, who's she's hiding her body behind, I use props to camouflage certain undesirable body parts as well.  Thank you Skinny Bike! Sans the props, I go for the legs together-facing front-biceps at my side-neck prolonged, I look like I have more muscle than fat.  I can work with that.

I just rode 36 hilly miles here, so who cares if I'm fat?

But alas, in the professional race picture, when I am in flight, my limbs out of my control, and angles nowhere in sight, you get what you get.  It ain't always pretty.  But so disheartening when you have felt like a champion and finished something you didn't think you could, but then see pictures that make you look like someone people may think didn't even train for this.  Or didn't train enough.  Or didn't take it seriously.

Happy I'm almost finished and out of the spandex

NOT my best angle

Of course I shouldn't compare myself with the super-fit elite athletes who don't eat anything preserved, and  grow their own organic veggies in their backyards, and who workout every day for hours.  Again, not likely to ever be me.  I do take my racing seriously, and within the scope of my life, with my kids and job and dogs and boyfriend and boyfriend's kids and parents and friends, I do all I can and make the best of it.  I have been more fit in the past, but I've never been this busy.  

My Hunger and Hormones will eat do what they may, but I must champion my Mind to see the healthy girl I am, not magazine cover-perfect, but strong and worthy of being out there with all those other athletes of all shapes and sizes.  Mind, free yourself.

You're still a BadAss, lumps and all