I have been quite lazy since Ironman and have only been out running and riding a couple of times, and the weigh scale shows it. It's easier for me to train when I have a goal to train for and right now I don't have a goal because I haven't registered for an Ironman next year. Oh sure, I'll do shorter races next summer, but I haven't planned on any yet. I know what will get me out running - a race!
I jumped on the Internet bandwagon searching for a race, any race - anything to get me out there. Ah ha, the Running Room's Fall Classic. I don't generally do Running Room races because, well, I don't like the Running Room or its business practices, but I figured I'd do it because winter is coming to town and there won't be much opportunity for me to race before the snow flies.
So, on Thursday I registered for the race on Sunday. It was a choice of a 5 or 10 mile walk or run. I don't do the walk thing, and it didn't take me long to decide I wasn't going to run 10 miles. OK, 5 miles it is.
The run was very scenic in the Beverly Heights district and the weather was fantastic. A good portion of the run was on Ada Boulevard. There was some young buck behind me for most of the run. He only passed me because I walked for about 3 seconds while drinking some water. I eventually caught up to him again and I slowly got farther and farther ahead of him, but I could still hear him breathing, so he wasn't that far behind me. "I have to get even farther ahead of him", I was thinking. "I can tell he's digging deep to try and pass me". As I approached the end of the race I picked up the pace a bit and got even farther ahead of him, but when I got about 30 feet away from the finish line he upped the ante and sprinted. I think he was thinking "I can't let a girl beat me". He crossed the finish line a mere second before me. He was a good pace bunny though because I didn't want him to pass me and that kept me running fast. Well, I don't feel bad by losing to a guy by a second, especially when he's in his 30s.
My finishing time was 41:52 - an 8:22 minute/mile pace. Not too shabby for someone who hasn't ran very much in two months. I haven't lost my speed, I've just lost my endurance. I don't think I'd be able to keep up that pace for a half marathon.
Where's the food, I need food. Pancakes, yogurt, bananas and sausages were on hand. That's the kind of post-race food I like.
Vernazza
Monday, October 18, 2010
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Post-Ironman
I'm still pretty sore and it will likely take several days to get back to normal, but at least I'm mobile. Yesterday, on the way home from Penticton, we stopped at a lake in the mountains for me to soak my legs in. Can you say cccold! My legs are better this morning though.
Here are some additional pictures from Penticton. The first picture is of the orchard chalet where we bought our fruit. It reminds me of something in Europe, or at least what I imagine. The second picture is of me wearing my Ironman Finisher T-shirt with my medal around my neck and my Finisher's cap.
Check out my results at http://www.nasports.com/results/results.php. There were 2,731 finishers. The run is my best discipline, and as you can see, I caught up almost 30 places in my division and 500 places overall.
Here are some additional pictures from Penticton. The first picture is of the orchard chalet where we bought our fruit. It reminds me of something in Europe, or at least what I imagine. The second picture is of me wearing my Ironman Finisher T-shirt with my medal around my neck and my Finisher's cap.
Check out my results at http://www.nasports.com/results/results.php. There were 2,731 finishers. The run is my best discipline, and as you can see, I caught up almost 30 places in my division and 500 places overall.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Ellen Ainsley... You are Ironman
My body is broken and sore and I feel like an Ironman hit me... guess it did!
On a day that saw race favourites falter at Subaru Ironman Canada and weather that included rain, hail and wind, we saw some surprises in the results here in Penticton. Some of the pros didn't finish.
SWIM
The day started out great. Despite the fact that I hadn't swam for five months, I still managed to pull out a 1:28 on the swim. That's faster than a couple of previous Ironman swims of mine, so my new philosophy is to not train in the pool - only problem with that is that my arms get sore when I swim long distances. I went off course quite a few times on the final leg and that slowed me down. All of a sudden, after only 5 strokes, I was headed towards the kayaks. I need to lift my head and sight more often. When I got out of the water and saw my time, that's when I thought "this is going to be a great day".
BIKE
The bike started off good; not a lot of wind, and sunny. 2:26 into the ride, at the bottom of Richter's Pass, I wasted valuable time waiting at a porta-pottie - 10 whole minutes! If I had known that in advance I would have stopped in the ditch, as I did several times later on. I'm not waiting in line to do what Mother Nature intended me to do, not to mention wasting valuable time when I could be farther along on the course. It may not sound like a lot, but when you add up all the time I could have spent in lines, it adds up. That's why I chose the ditch route.
The out and back section at Keremeos was wicked. There were gale force winds at our face and the wind seemed to turn when I turned because I seemed to have a head wind coming back too. The start of Yellow Lake climb wasn't too fun either. It started raining and it was cold, but that soon subsided. Riding down the other side was fun - I got up to 70 kph before I decided to touch my brakes. Some guy passed me like I was standing still. The traffic was moving very slow and we were passing vehicles. What a great feeling - moving faster than a car. Finally, up in the distance, Penticton - what a sight for sore eyes. The down hill was great. One lane was closed to traffic and it was smooth sailing. But man oh man! The wind coming down main steet was terrible. It almost blew me off my bike. I was joking that we might have a nice tail wind on the way out on the run, but the wind died down.
RUN
My run started out fantastic. I was on pace to reach my goal of 4:45. I was running slowly, but steady - just what I planned, and my legs felt great. Every time I reached a mile marker I looked at my pace band and I was four or five minutes ahead of pace. Maybe I'll be able to do this in 4:30. That would be fantastic. By the half way point things turned quickly. I was only one minute ahead of pace and my legs were so sore I could barely pick them up, so I walked quite a bit. I couldn't stomach the Smarties in my special needs bag. In retrospect, maybe I should have slowed down a tiny bit going out, but it's hard to tell because my legs always get sore after a long run. My pace band was based on a marathon alone, not a marathon after a 180km bike ride. Then it dawned on me that stretching would help. I stretched at every aid station. I started running again, but slower than on my way out. The upside is that I didn't get dehydrated, and at least I was able to run.
About five volunteers at various places along the run course asked me if I was OK. I was wobbling. I usually wobble when my legs feel like they've been smashed with a two by four.
My finishing time was 14:51:01. It wasn't what I was hoping for, but I am still a FINISHER. I didn't give up through all the challenges of the day. Giving up is not an option. Anybody that knows me knows that I'm not a quitter. That's the sign of a true champion. I have learned to not make a goal with an Ironman race. Anything can happen to throw that notion out the window - whether it be weather, sore knees and legs, hypothermia, heat exhaustion, flat tires, or dehydration.
The awards banquet was on Monday night and I didn't feel one iota of guilt taking advantage of the disability placard in the window of my parents' vehicle. I feel disabled! Note the tense. I have a case of DONS. That's an acronym that stands for Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness and it's getting worse. After dinner I entered a draw for free entry into Ironman Canada 2011 and five nights in the Penticton Lakeside Resort, which couldn't be a better location as it's at the race site, and that means I could sleep in until at least 4:30 am. Maybe I'll fail the skill testing question! I can only hope, since I wasn't planning on doing another Ironman for a few years and it wasn't going to be in Canada, but I couldn't walk by the entry kiosk without entering. "Why", you ask, "would you torture your body like that over and over again?" The answer: Because I can.
Tomorrow morning we leave to go back home and I'm going to make a pit stop at a mountain stream somewhere along the way so I can soak my legs. It helps unbelievably with the sorenes.
I got no sleep at all last night. It hurts to roll over.
Signing off - Ellen "Ironman" Ainsley. Til next time.
On a day that saw race favourites falter at Subaru Ironman Canada and weather that included rain, hail and wind, we saw some surprises in the results here in Penticton. Some of the pros didn't finish.
SWIM
The day started out great. Despite the fact that I hadn't swam for five months, I still managed to pull out a 1:28 on the swim. That's faster than a couple of previous Ironman swims of mine, so my new philosophy is to not train in the pool - only problem with that is that my arms get sore when I swim long distances. I went off course quite a few times on the final leg and that slowed me down. All of a sudden, after only 5 strokes, I was headed towards the kayaks. I need to lift my head and sight more often. When I got out of the water and saw my time, that's when I thought "this is going to be a great day".
BIKE
The bike started off good; not a lot of wind, and sunny. 2:26 into the ride, at the bottom of Richter's Pass, I wasted valuable time waiting at a porta-pottie - 10 whole minutes! If I had known that in advance I would have stopped in the ditch, as I did several times later on. I'm not waiting in line to do what Mother Nature intended me to do, not to mention wasting valuable time when I could be farther along on the course. It may not sound like a lot, but when you add up all the time I could have spent in lines, it adds up. That's why I chose the ditch route.
The out and back section at Keremeos was wicked. There were gale force winds at our face and the wind seemed to turn when I turned because I seemed to have a head wind coming back too. The start of Yellow Lake climb wasn't too fun either. It started raining and it was cold, but that soon subsided. Riding down the other side was fun - I got up to 70 kph before I decided to touch my brakes. Some guy passed me like I was standing still. The traffic was moving very slow and we were passing vehicles. What a great feeling - moving faster than a car. Finally, up in the distance, Penticton - what a sight for sore eyes. The down hill was great. One lane was closed to traffic and it was smooth sailing. But man oh man! The wind coming down main steet was terrible. It almost blew me off my bike. I was joking that we might have a nice tail wind on the way out on the run, but the wind died down.
RUN
My run started out fantastic. I was on pace to reach my goal of 4:45. I was running slowly, but steady - just what I planned, and my legs felt great. Every time I reached a mile marker I looked at my pace band and I was four or five minutes ahead of pace. Maybe I'll be able to do this in 4:30. That would be fantastic. By the half way point things turned quickly. I was only one minute ahead of pace and my legs were so sore I could barely pick them up, so I walked quite a bit. I couldn't stomach the Smarties in my special needs bag. In retrospect, maybe I should have slowed down a tiny bit going out, but it's hard to tell because my legs always get sore after a long run. My pace band was based on a marathon alone, not a marathon after a 180km bike ride. Then it dawned on me that stretching would help. I stretched at every aid station. I started running again, but slower than on my way out. The upside is that I didn't get dehydrated, and at least I was able to run.
About five volunteers at various places along the run course asked me if I was OK. I was wobbling. I usually wobble when my legs feel like they've been smashed with a two by four.
My finishing time was 14:51:01. It wasn't what I was hoping for, but I am still a FINISHER. I didn't give up through all the challenges of the day. Giving up is not an option. Anybody that knows me knows that I'm not a quitter. That's the sign of a true champion. I have learned to not make a goal with an Ironman race. Anything can happen to throw that notion out the window - whether it be weather, sore knees and legs, hypothermia, heat exhaustion, flat tires, or dehydration.
The awards banquet was on Monday night and I didn't feel one iota of guilt taking advantage of the disability placard in the window of my parents' vehicle. I feel disabled! Note the tense. I have a case of DONS. That's an acronym that stands for Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness and it's getting worse. After dinner I entered a draw for free entry into Ironman Canada 2011 and five nights in the Penticton Lakeside Resort, which couldn't be a better location as it's at the race site, and that means I could sleep in until at least 4:30 am. Maybe I'll fail the skill testing question! I can only hope, since I wasn't planning on doing another Ironman for a few years and it wasn't going to be in Canada, but I couldn't walk by the entry kiosk without entering. "Why", you ask, "would you torture your body like that over and over again?" The answer: Because I can.
Tomorrow morning we leave to go back home and I'm going to make a pit stop at a mountain stream somewhere along the way so I can soak my legs. It helps unbelievably with the sorenes.
I got no sleep at all last night. It hurts to roll over.
Signing off - Ellen "Ironman" Ainsley. Til next time.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
I'm here and the countdown is on
In case you haven't noticed my ankle, this is a picture of the Ironman Canada tattoo.
As we drove into Penticton yesterday there were dozens of triathletes riding their bikes in last minute attempts to get their legs prepared for Sunday. Now that I mention it, our legs are already prepared. Any riding now is just to keep the muscles loose and blood flowing. I went for an easy 30 minute ride this morning; in fact it was so easy that after only 10 minutes of riding, I stopped for half an hour to visit a friend who runs a local campground. Penticton is a bicycle-friendly town. Drivers aren't honking at riders and there are separate bike lanes on the streets. It would be nice if Edmonton would recognize bikes as vehicles and grant a lane for them. With all the road construction, you'd think they could make a lane wider for us. I also wish some people who ride bikes knew what the laws are regarding sidewalks and crosswalks.
Next on the agenda - a local orchard to buy fruit. Every time we are here in Penticton we stop by Matheson's Family Farm to buy fresh fruit - peaches, nectarines, plums, cherries, apples, coronation grapes. When I say fresh, I mean fresh. They pick fruit early every morning. It's not like the local fruit stands or the stuff you buy in the stores - fruit hasn't been laying around in bins for days. The peaches and nectarines are so juicy that the juice runs down to your elbows. I've had to wipe up a juicy mess on the floor more than once. I could handle living here.
After stuffing my face with fruit, I picked up my race package. For $681 I got a triathlon magazine and a nice "Subaru Ironman Canada" bag, as well as a plethora of local literature, which promptly went into the recycle bin. Part of my registration includes a pre-race carbo loading dinner, a Finisher's medal, a Finisher's t-shirt, a Finisher's cap and an awards dinner the day after. Worth $681? Yes. The feeling of accomplishment, learning unusual types of time management skills, being super fit, being worry-free of calorie counting, not to mention a lifetime of pride and bragging rights definitely makes the registration fee worth it.
For dinner tonight we had a spinach salad, pasta and fruit salad for dessert. Mmmm... Here's a picture of everybody staying at the house: My Mom, me, Warren, Val and Aaron and their two kids.
Tomorrow is sort of a free day. The morning is free and then I have a massage at 3:00 pm, but before that I am meeting a couple of friends from Edmonton for coffee. They are down here volunteering for the race. They are going to be wetsuit peelers. Wetsuit peelers are at all the long races. As athletes run into transition after their swim, they take their wetsuit down to below their hips and lay on the ground, legs up, and the peelers pull off their wetsuits. No worries though - there's no public nudity - we have our shorts and jerseys on under our wetsuits.
Next time you hear from me, I'll be an Ironman - six times over.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Ironman, here I come
Four days, 19 hours to go, but I'm not counting. Yikes! It's almost here - the most gruelling day of my year - Ironman. Be afraid, be very afraid. I'm feelin' it. It's going to be a great day.
There are 3,011 athletes registered in the race, and 162 of those are women in my age group that I will be competing against to qualify for the world championships. It's actually a good thing that I'm not serious about qualifying, because my odds are low that I'll make it to Hawaii.
I have heard that, despite the forest fires in B.C., the air quality in Penticton is good. That's good news. I hope it stays that way.
I'm leaving for Penticton tomorrow morning. When I arrive, the town will be flooded with athletes and their families, and there will be an excitement in the air that can be cut with a knife. You can't help but be drawn into it. This is how Penticton butters its bread. I'm excited, but excitement quickly turns to nerves and 'Oh my Gawd, Sunday's going to be a long day', but it's a fun day. Oh, sure, you mock my idea of fun, but pain is temporary - pride is forever! I'll be up at 4am on race day to eat breakfast, get to transition and mentally prepare myself for the long day ahead. The race starts at 7 am local time.
More Ironman escapades will come, so stay tuned.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
It's all down here from now on ...
Volume of training, that is. Nineteen days left and my longest bike ride and run are out of the way now and I have now started to taper for the next three weeks in preparation for the big day.
The volume has been high for the past several weeks and my longest run was a week and a half ago at three hours in the morning and half an hour in the early evening - the theory being to get my legs used to running on tired legs. I did that about three times. I haven't been swimming at all, but I'm not worried about that because I have a swimming background and I know I will get through the swim with no problem. It may not be the fastest I have ever done an Ironman swim, but I will make it before cut-off.
My longest ride was this past week-end. I rode 190 km from Acheson to Sylvan Lake, taking secondary highways. I was hoping for a tail wind, but I wasn't that lucky, and it was very hilly. I thought I would be able to ride it in seven hours, but 7:50 was the final time. The ride was supposed to be 198 km, but my parents were worried that I wasn't at our pre-determined meeting spot by 4:00, so they drove out to see if they could find me. Eight km out and they found me. I was never so happy to see them as I was then. I just threw my bike in the back of their vehicle and said "who needs this shit!" My legs were sore, my butt was sore and I was tired. I was then supposed to do an hour transition run, but opted to not do it. Surprise, surprise!
My training volume for the next three weeks will decrease, but I have back-to-back rides, meaning I will ride on both Saturday and Sunday, whereas I used to only ride on Saturdays, but at least they won't be six or seven hour rides. My max will be three hours.
Now, my body is ready to suck up those carbs for glycogen storage.
Stay tuned.
The volume has been high for the past several weeks and my longest run was a week and a half ago at three hours in the morning and half an hour in the early evening - the theory being to get my legs used to running on tired legs. I did that about three times. I haven't been swimming at all, but I'm not worried about that because I have a swimming background and I know I will get through the swim with no problem. It may not be the fastest I have ever done an Ironman swim, but I will make it before cut-off.
My longest ride was this past week-end. I rode 190 km from Acheson to Sylvan Lake, taking secondary highways. I was hoping for a tail wind, but I wasn't that lucky, and it was very hilly. I thought I would be able to ride it in seven hours, but 7:50 was the final time. The ride was supposed to be 198 km, but my parents were worried that I wasn't at our pre-determined meeting spot by 4:00, so they drove out to see if they could find me. Eight km out and they found me. I was never so happy to see them as I was then. I just threw my bike in the back of their vehicle and said "who needs this shit!" My legs were sore, my butt was sore and I was tired. I was then supposed to do an hour transition run, but opted to not do it. Surprise, surprise!
My training volume for the next three weeks will decrease, but I have back-to-back rides, meaning I will ride on both Saturday and Sunday, whereas I used to only ride on Saturdays, but at least they won't be six or seven hour rides. My max will be three hours.
Now, my body is ready to suck up those carbs for glycogen storage.
Stay tuned.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Holy humidity!
I'm watching the Tour de France as I'm typing this. The riders are on stage 14 of the tour. There are 2,235 miles of riding, numerous crashes, and one overall winner. The scenery is absolutely spectacular. Makes me want to go riding in France. A funny commercial just came on - a Specialized commercial where Alberto Contador ticks off the hills he climbs. Now, for those of you who aren't familiar with Alberto Contador, he is the Spaniard who is one of the greatest climbers in the tour, but Andy Schleck is giving him a run for his money, because Andy is the overall leader. Right now the riders are travelling at 35 miles per hour, yes 35 MILES per hour. Yikes! I'm ecstatic when I'm riding 35 kilometres per hour. Sheesh!
This blog entry is letting you in on what I did this week in terms of training, now that I am approaching the big day, which of course is Ironman on August 29. I start tapering soon, so that means I am getting close to peaking. My rest days lately have been on Mondays, so this week's training started on Tuesday. I LOVE rest days. Those are the days I get to do what I don't usually have time to do.
Then Tuesday came. All day I was checking the hourly forecast on The Weather Network. I don't know why I even bother because more often than not, they are wrong. Meteorology must be the only occupation where you can be wrong more than 70% of the time and still have a job. 5:00, 6:00 - forecast rain. Oh great! What am I going to do now. Ironman is only 47 days away, but I'm not counting - I can't afford to miss any workouts at this stage of the game. I know... I'll stop by my parents' house and pick up my other bike and wind trainer and set up in my living room, put on a good movie and spin my legs off. After directing the fan towards me, I started my workout. Riding my bike indoors is not quite the same as being on the wide open road, but it'll do when Mother Nature doesn't co-operate.
Wednesday came and wouldn't you know it; more RAIN - on and off all day. By the time I drove home after work, the sun was shining, but just when I got home, the deluge started. Since running isn't as time consuming as riding, I waited it out until the rain subsided, and it did just long enough to get my 45 minute workout in. My workout was 8 minutes very hard, then 6, then 4, then 2; all with half the time spent recovering from the hard part, meaning 8 minutes hard, 4 minutes easy; 6 minutes hard, 3 minutes easy, etc. I like speed workouts, but holy humidity; I was sweating more than usual. I finished just in time for the rain to start again, but this time there was lightning. Rain is one thing, but lightning, now that's an entirely different story.
Thursday brought hill repeats on the bike and I wanted to do them in the river valley area so I took my bike to work. After work the sky looked ugly so I thought I was going to have to forego a workout, but by the time I got to Westmount the sky was somewhat clear so I parked my car, took out my bike and rode down Groat Road and started my hour and a half bike ride, which was to include 8-10 hill repeats on various hills. I rode up Emily Murphy twice, Groat Hill, Victoria Park Hill, Keillor Hill, 103 Street, 107 Street, Fortway Hill and finally up Groat Road back to Westmount. If you want a good workout, try riding up 103 Street. I thought my heart was going to burst out of my chest. Every Thursday for at least the next three weeks will include hills with at least 2 additional hills each time.
Friday was another run day. I had a 25 minute run at half marathon pace plus 10 seconds, but first I wanted to see the movie "Inception". It was a complex movie, but the special effects were great. One advantage of going to a movie by myself is that there are always seats available. Couples are looking for double seats and I just bypass them and go for the single seat. It pays to be single, in more than one way. After the movie was over I did my run. It was nice and cool and didn't seem as humid.
Saturdays are always my long ride. I had a five hour ride and started from my place and rode east and ended up at Highway 44. When I got to Yellowhead Trail I saw a sign that said "local traffic only" - Hmmm...I wonder where it leads. I chose to be adventurous and follow the unknown road. With all the riding I do, I find places I didn't know exist. The road led to Highway 60 to Devon. Oh, I guess I'm going to Devon. The road was closed to traffic because CN was replacing the tracks. Being on a bike though, I was able to ride the road, so I had the road all to myself. Hmmm.. I didn't know I'd be cyclocrossing today. When I got to the train tracks I had to carry my bike across. Blog interruption - the Tour de France riders are going up a 7% grade to Port de pailkeres. The coverage from the air is fantastic. The riders are going around switchbacks and it looks so cool when the peloton moves together. Not only that - they are travelling at 20 kph on a 7% incline. Another funny commercial was just on TV. Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck were competing... who could climb hills faster and eat more. It was a commercial for Specialized. Oooh, oooh, Lance Armstrong is pulling up to the lead pack.
Back to the life of everyday mortal, Ellen Ainsley. I ended up about 45 minutes southwest of Devon before turning around. I had a cross-head wind and when I got to the turn-off towards the River Cree Resort and Casino, I decided that a tail wind would be nice. It was nice until I ended up on Whitemud Drive. Whaat! I don't want to ride on Whitemud. I made a quick decision to ride on Anthony Henday because that leads directly to my condo. Well, it was scary. I don't think it would be as bad if there wasn't so much construction, but some of the lanes were really narrow, not meant for a bike and a car. My advice for you - don't ride on Anthony Henday Drive.
My workout for the day was not over yet. I then had a 45 minute run immediately following my ride. Transition runs get the legs used to running after riding.
Sunday has arrived. Thank goodness tomorrow is a rest day because I need a rest. This morning I had a 2.5 hour run and then later this afternoon, I have a half hour run to complete the day. OMG, they are on a 10.5% incline now.
They're on another climb now - 1.9 km to go. Alberto Contador attacks and Andy Schleck is always on his wheel to counter-attack. It's so exciting now. Who will win the stage? Christophe Riblon from France takes the stage. Andy Schleck is still the overall winner though. Yippee.
That's it for my commentary of the Tour de France. Til next time, Ellen.
This blog entry is letting you in on what I did this week in terms of training, now that I am approaching the big day, which of course is Ironman on August 29. I start tapering soon, so that means I am getting close to peaking. My rest days lately have been on Mondays, so this week's training started on Tuesday. I LOVE rest days. Those are the days I get to do what I don't usually have time to do.
Then Tuesday came. All day I was checking the hourly forecast on The Weather Network. I don't know why I even bother because more often than not, they are wrong. Meteorology must be the only occupation where you can be wrong more than 70% of the time and still have a job. 5:00, 6:00 - forecast rain. Oh great! What am I going to do now. Ironman is only 47 days away, but I'm not counting - I can't afford to miss any workouts at this stage of the game. I know... I'll stop by my parents' house and pick up my other bike and wind trainer and set up in my living room, put on a good movie and spin my legs off. After directing the fan towards me, I started my workout. Riding my bike indoors is not quite the same as being on the wide open road, but it'll do when Mother Nature doesn't co-operate.
Wednesday came and wouldn't you know it; more RAIN - on and off all day. By the time I drove home after work, the sun was shining, but just when I got home, the deluge started. Since running isn't as time consuming as riding, I waited it out until the rain subsided, and it did just long enough to get my 45 minute workout in. My workout was 8 minutes very hard, then 6, then 4, then 2; all with half the time spent recovering from the hard part, meaning 8 minutes hard, 4 minutes easy; 6 minutes hard, 3 minutes easy, etc. I like speed workouts, but holy humidity; I was sweating more than usual. I finished just in time for the rain to start again, but this time there was lightning. Rain is one thing, but lightning, now that's an entirely different story.
Thursday brought hill repeats on the bike and I wanted to do them in the river valley area so I took my bike to work. After work the sky looked ugly so I thought I was going to have to forego a workout, but by the time I got to Westmount the sky was somewhat clear so I parked my car, took out my bike and rode down Groat Road and started my hour and a half bike ride, which was to include 8-10 hill repeats on various hills. I rode up Emily Murphy twice, Groat Hill, Victoria Park Hill, Keillor Hill, 103 Street, 107 Street, Fortway Hill and finally up Groat Road back to Westmount. If you want a good workout, try riding up 103 Street. I thought my heart was going to burst out of my chest. Every Thursday for at least the next three weeks will include hills with at least 2 additional hills each time.
Friday was another run day. I had a 25 minute run at half marathon pace plus 10 seconds, but first I wanted to see the movie "Inception". It was a complex movie, but the special effects were great. One advantage of going to a movie by myself is that there are always seats available. Couples are looking for double seats and I just bypass them and go for the single seat. It pays to be single, in more than one way. After the movie was over I did my run. It was nice and cool and didn't seem as humid.
Saturdays are always my long ride. I had a five hour ride and started from my place and rode east and ended up at Highway 44. When I got to Yellowhead Trail I saw a sign that said "local traffic only" - Hmmm...I wonder where it leads. I chose to be adventurous and follow the unknown road. With all the riding I do, I find places I didn't know exist. The road led to Highway 60 to Devon. Oh, I guess I'm going to Devon. The road was closed to traffic because CN was replacing the tracks. Being on a bike though, I was able to ride the road, so I had the road all to myself. Hmmm.. I didn't know I'd be cyclocrossing today. When I got to the train tracks I had to carry my bike across. Blog interruption - the Tour de France riders are going up a 7% grade to Port de pailkeres. The coverage from the air is fantastic. The riders are going around switchbacks and it looks so cool when the peloton moves together. Not only that - they are travelling at 20 kph on a 7% incline. Another funny commercial was just on TV. Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck were competing... who could climb hills faster and eat more. It was a commercial for Specialized. Oooh, oooh, Lance Armstrong is pulling up to the lead pack.
Back to the life of everyday mortal, Ellen Ainsley. I ended up about 45 minutes southwest of Devon before turning around. I had a cross-head wind and when I got to the turn-off towards the River Cree Resort and Casino, I decided that a tail wind would be nice. It was nice until I ended up on Whitemud Drive. Whaat! I don't want to ride on Whitemud. I made a quick decision to ride on Anthony Henday because that leads directly to my condo. Well, it was scary. I don't think it would be as bad if there wasn't so much construction, but some of the lanes were really narrow, not meant for a bike and a car. My advice for you - don't ride on Anthony Henday Drive.
My workout for the day was not over yet. I then had a 45 minute run immediately following my ride. Transition runs get the legs used to running after riding.
Sunday has arrived. Thank goodness tomorrow is a rest day because I need a rest. This morning I had a 2.5 hour run and then later this afternoon, I have a half hour run to complete the day. OMG, they are on a 10.5% incline now.
They're on another climb now - 1.9 km to go. Alberto Contador attacks and Andy Schleck is always on his wheel to counter-attack. It's so exciting now. Who will win the stage? Christophe Riblon from France takes the stage. Andy Schleck is still the overall winner though. Yippee.
That's it for my commentary of the Tour de France. Til next time, Ellen.
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Great White North Half Marathon
My run was spectacular. I know it's not cool to brag - nobody likes a bragger - but the reason I started this blog is to let all of you know what I'm up to.
On Sunday I was on a team in the Great White North Half Ironman triathlon. I hadn't planned on doing the triathlon, but my physiotherapist told me about someone who can't run because of an injury and he needed a runner to complete the race, so I jumped at the chance to run a half marathon. I thought it would be a good training opportunity to run at race pace for two hours. I wasn't sure how the run would go because my legs were still sore from my track workout on Wednesday. My legs always take a long time to recover after a hard workout. I stopped to stretch a few times, and every time I looked at my watch, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was ahead of pace. My finishing time was 1:56:14, a personal best. The last time I ran a half marathon that fast was in 2005 at the World Masters Games in Edmonton and that time was 1:56:23 - nine seconds slower. My average heart rate was 155 and my maximum was 174. What's that well known saying about fine wine? It improves with age or something like that?
Psychologically, the most difficult part of the run is at about the 18 km mark, when the first part of the run has to be completed again. When I got to that point, I knew my time would be sub-two hours. I dug deep and ran fast for the last kilometre, and finished strong. When I crossed the finish line, a volunteer escorted me to the post-race food. He said "Ellen, did you see your time? You had a great race". "I wish I could do it that fast", I said. "I just did the run, but I did have a great run". I had a few pretzels, cookies and a banana, but the best part was the strawberry daiquiri, non-alcoholic of course, that is on hand at the finish line every year.
I would like to think that I could do the marathon at Ironman Canada in four hours, but it doesn't quite work that way. Twenty one additional km is a long ways to go, especially following a 180 km bike ride. If I ran Ironman as fast as I ran this race, I would blow up. I am looking forward to Ironman in August though. My training has been going well and hopefully my race will go well too. It's difficult to predict how I will perform because there are so many variables - wind, nutrition, possibilty of flat tires, old injuries rearing their ugly head - and the unwritten rule is to expect the unexpected. No matter how good my nutrition is, gastrointestinal problems are always a possibility, and it always occurs on the bike when you don't realize it's happening, then suddenly the run doesn't go quite as well as you thought it might. That's what happened in Oliver and I don't want that to happen again. One of my upcoming big rides is 185 km and that will be a good opportunity to try the same nutrition I will use at Ironman.
Eight weeks to go until the big day - Ironman. Some big weeks of training are ahead of me. I'll keep you posted if I can muster up enough energy to type.
On Sunday I was on a team in the Great White North Half Ironman triathlon. I hadn't planned on doing the triathlon, but my physiotherapist told me about someone who can't run because of an injury and he needed a runner to complete the race, so I jumped at the chance to run a half marathon. I thought it would be a good training opportunity to run at race pace for two hours. I wasn't sure how the run would go because my legs were still sore from my track workout on Wednesday. My legs always take a long time to recover after a hard workout. I stopped to stretch a few times, and every time I looked at my watch, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was ahead of pace. My finishing time was 1:56:14, a personal best. The last time I ran a half marathon that fast was in 2005 at the World Masters Games in Edmonton and that time was 1:56:23 - nine seconds slower. My average heart rate was 155 and my maximum was 174. What's that well known saying about fine wine? It improves with age or something like that?
Psychologically, the most difficult part of the run is at about the 18 km mark, when the first part of the run has to be completed again. When I got to that point, I knew my time would be sub-two hours. I dug deep and ran fast for the last kilometre, and finished strong. When I crossed the finish line, a volunteer escorted me to the post-race food. He said "Ellen, did you see your time? You had a great race". "I wish I could do it that fast", I said. "I just did the run, but I did have a great run". I had a few pretzels, cookies and a banana, but the best part was the strawberry daiquiri, non-alcoholic of course, that is on hand at the finish line every year.
I would like to think that I could do the marathon at Ironman Canada in four hours, but it doesn't quite work that way. Twenty one additional km is a long ways to go, especially following a 180 km bike ride. If I ran Ironman as fast as I ran this race, I would blow up. I am looking forward to Ironman in August though. My training has been going well and hopefully my race will go well too. It's difficult to predict how I will perform because there are so many variables - wind, nutrition, possibilty of flat tires, old injuries rearing their ugly head - and the unwritten rule is to expect the unexpected. No matter how good my nutrition is, gastrointestinal problems are always a possibility, and it always occurs on the bike when you don't realize it's happening, then suddenly the run doesn't go quite as well as you thought it might. That's what happened in Oliver and I don't want that to happen again. One of my upcoming big rides is 185 km and that will be a good opportunity to try the same nutrition I will use at Ironman.
Eight weeks to go until the big day - Ironman. Some big weeks of training are ahead of me. I'll keep you posted if I can muster up enough energy to type.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
What a great race
I raced in the Element TLC Triathlon today at the Tri Leisure Centre in Spruce Grove and I had a fantastic race. I didn't get dehydrated like I did in the race in Oliver a couple of weeks ago. Good thing triathlons start early or I may have gotten dehydrated with the weather being as hot as it was. The distances - 750 metre swim (15 laps); 20 km bike; and 5 km run. The day started out great, other than the fact that I had absolutely no sleep the night before. Actually, I'm yawning as I type this.
I swam 45 seconds faster than I thought I would and lapped two of the swimmers in my lane. Time - 16 minutes and change. I was sure I would be way behind because I haven't swam for about two months. I plan on starting to swim on a regular basis this coming week. My swimming background has served me well.
There was a killer hill on the bike course. I remember thinking 'my legs are burning; I don't know how well the run is going to go after this' - yikes. The downhill coming back almost made up for it, but not quite. Nothing seems to make up for a long climb. There was a head wind coming back into town, but I still managed to get up to speeds of 55 kph coming down the hill, ticking one person off at a time. I love speed and I seem to pass a lot of people while traveling that fast. It turns out that the bike course was at least 21.5 km instead of 20, so I was extra pleased with 47 minutes. My goal is to lose five pounds and I will be a fiend on the bike.
The run was a two-loop course on paved running paths. One woman, two women, three women, tick, tick, tick. I think I had a negative split, which means that my second lap was faster than my first. I felt strong through the entire race and I finished really strong and fast. Again, if I lost five pounds, I would be a force to reckon with. My running has really improved. Time - about 26.5 minutes. When I train, I just don't run, I do speed work and track workouts.
I came in third in my age group out of 10 women and 42 overall out of 104 competitors. There wasn't a higher age group than mine, so I may have been the oldest, or at least one of the oldest, competitors in the race. Check out my results.
Angela and me.
My Mom volunteered by being a lap counter for the swimmers. Most lanes were paired up with another person, but she was by herself. Along comes a young buck and is basically putting my Mom down, as if she can't do the job. She finally had it with his superiority complex and told him "I may be 80, but I've done this many times before". Way to go Mom (high five). Some people come across as thinking they are superior, but I think they must have an inferiority complex to have to put people down like that.
Elise at Element knows how to put on a great triathlon. She also manages to get great food for post-race as well. Strawberries, grapes, pancakes and of course sour gummie worms.
After the race I came back home with my Mom and cut the grass for my Dad. It is Father's Day, after all. When I finished doing that I went grocery shopping to buy picnic supplies for the office picnic I am organizing tomorrow. The day is supposed to be splendid and we are going to have a lot of fun. I am planning all sorts of activities, including pinata smashing, three-legged races, the egg race and sack races, not to mention eating hamburgers and hot dogs. Beats working in the office all day, don't you think.
Sheesh, no rest for the wicked!
I swam 45 seconds faster than I thought I would and lapped two of the swimmers in my lane. Time - 16 minutes and change. I was sure I would be way behind because I haven't swam for about two months. I plan on starting to swim on a regular basis this coming week. My swimming background has served me well.
There was a killer hill on the bike course. I remember thinking 'my legs are burning; I don't know how well the run is going to go after this' - yikes. The downhill coming back almost made up for it, but not quite. Nothing seems to make up for a long climb. There was a head wind coming back into town, but I still managed to get up to speeds of 55 kph coming down the hill, ticking one person off at a time. I love speed and I seem to pass a lot of people while traveling that fast. It turns out that the bike course was at least 21.5 km instead of 20, so I was extra pleased with 47 minutes. My goal is to lose five pounds and I will be a fiend on the bike.
The run was a two-loop course on paved running paths. One woman, two women, three women, tick, tick, tick. I think I had a negative split, which means that my second lap was faster than my first. I felt strong through the entire race and I finished really strong and fast. Again, if I lost five pounds, I would be a force to reckon with. My running has really improved. Time - about 26.5 minutes. When I train, I just don't run, I do speed work and track workouts.
I came in third in my age group out of 10 women and 42 overall out of 104 competitors. There wasn't a higher age group than mine, so I may have been the oldest, or at least one of the oldest, competitors in the race. Check out my results.
Angela and me.
My Mom volunteered by being a lap counter for the swimmers. Most lanes were paired up with another person, but she was by herself. Along comes a young buck and is basically putting my Mom down, as if she can't do the job. She finally had it with his superiority complex and told him "I may be 80, but I've done this many times before". Way to go Mom (high five). Some people come across as thinking they are superior, but I think they must have an inferiority complex to have to put people down like that.
Elise at Element knows how to put on a great triathlon. She also manages to get great food for post-race as well. Strawberries, grapes, pancakes and of course sour gummie worms.
After the race I came back home with my Mom and cut the grass for my Dad. It is Father's Day, after all. When I finished doing that I went grocery shopping to buy picnic supplies for the office picnic I am organizing tomorrow. The day is supposed to be splendid and we are going to have a lot of fun. I am planning all sorts of activities, including pinata smashing, three-legged races, the egg race and sack races, not to mention eating hamburgers and hot dogs. Beats working in the office all day, don't you think.
Sheesh, no rest for the wicked!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
The Day Started Out OK
The day hadn't turned out the way I had hoped. My finishing time was 6:56:39. When I knew there was only 10 minutes to go until the seven hour mark, I had to dig deep.
The half marathon was a beautiful course along the canal and on a combination of dirt and paved paths. The weather was just spitting a bit and was windy, but it was the perfect temperature. The first lap of the run was great; I felt strong and my turnover was quick. I was actually thinking I may be able to do this in a sub-six hour time. Well, then came the second lap. About three km in, my stomach started flip flopping and I couldn't run. My stomach hurt with every step. "Maybe it'll go away", I thought. I forced myself to run, but just couldn't do it. 'This is a very familiar feeling', I remembered thinking. 'This is the same feeling I had when I did my first long distance race and then again the same year at Ironman'. It had to be my nutrition on the bike, but then again, maybe not.
The bike went OK. The course was absolutely beautiful. It's the most picturesque bike course I had ever done, including Ironman Canada. The ride was through tons of vineyards and orchards. No fruit was on the trees yet, which may be a good thing because I might have got off my bike to grab an apple. Just kidding. My maximum speed at one point was 65 kph. It is such a rush going down a long hill in the aerobars, no brakes, rounding bends in the road at that speed. I can't allow myself to think about crashing, but I tell you, I am very focused when traveling at that speed. There were times when I was passing younger men on the course and that made me feel pretty darn good. I can tell they were younger because of the race number on their legs.
My shoulder didn't bother me at all in the swim and I was very happy about that. Sighting on a regular basis, I didn't go off course at all for the first leg of the swim. I went off course a couple of times in the second leg because my left shoulder was getting fatigued so I veered to the right without knowing. All of a sudden I would put my head up and a lady in a kayak was telling me "No, you don't want to come over here. Go over there". D'oh, there's two minutes gone. The third leg was uneventful, but I was glad to get the swim over with.
Transition was long. It must have been a three minute run to the bike. Maan! My heart rate was elevated before I even started the bike. At that point, I decided to walk, like a lot of other people. Better to have a low heart rate to start the bike leg.
My coach has totally reassured me after my complaining about my performance. There are so many things to consider - from nutrition at breakfast to how hard I may have ran in the first half of the run, or even that I didn't drink enough on the run. He also checked out everybody's results and was surprised at how slow the overall times were (except for Paul Tichelaar, our local Olympian, who by the way finished the race in 3:58 and change). I guess the moral of the story is to not be so hard on myself. Oliver was a lead-up to Ironman, because Ironman is my "A" race. A bad race gives me a chance to tweak what may have went wrong so Ironman will be a good experience.
Check out my results here.
The half marathon was a beautiful course along the canal and on a combination of dirt and paved paths. The weather was just spitting a bit and was windy, but it was the perfect temperature. The first lap of the run was great; I felt strong and my turnover was quick. I was actually thinking I may be able to do this in a sub-six hour time. Well, then came the second lap. About three km in, my stomach started flip flopping and I couldn't run. My stomach hurt with every step. "Maybe it'll go away", I thought. I forced myself to run, but just couldn't do it. 'This is a very familiar feeling', I remembered thinking. 'This is the same feeling I had when I did my first long distance race and then again the same year at Ironman'. It had to be my nutrition on the bike, but then again, maybe not.
The bike went OK. The course was absolutely beautiful. It's the most picturesque bike course I had ever done, including Ironman Canada. The ride was through tons of vineyards and orchards. No fruit was on the trees yet, which may be a good thing because I might have got off my bike to grab an apple. Just kidding. My maximum speed at one point was 65 kph. It is such a rush going down a long hill in the aerobars, no brakes, rounding bends in the road at that speed. I can't allow myself to think about crashing, but I tell you, I am very focused when traveling at that speed. There were times when I was passing younger men on the course and that made me feel pretty darn good. I can tell they were younger because of the race number on their legs.
My shoulder didn't bother me at all in the swim and I was very happy about that. Sighting on a regular basis, I didn't go off course at all for the first leg of the swim. I went off course a couple of times in the second leg because my left shoulder was getting fatigued so I veered to the right without knowing. All of a sudden I would put my head up and a lady in a kayak was telling me "No, you don't want to come over here. Go over there". D'oh, there's two minutes gone. The third leg was uneventful, but I was glad to get the swim over with.
Transition was long. It must have been a three minute run to the bike. Maan! My heart rate was elevated before I even started the bike. At that point, I decided to walk, like a lot of other people. Better to have a low heart rate to start the bike leg.
My coach has totally reassured me after my complaining about my performance. There are so many things to consider - from nutrition at breakfast to how hard I may have ran in the first half of the run, or even that I didn't drink enough on the run. He also checked out everybody's results and was surprised at how slow the overall times were (except for Paul Tichelaar, our local Olympian, who by the way finished the race in 3:58 and change). I guess the moral of the story is to not be so hard on myself. Oliver was a lead-up to Ironman, because Ironman is my "A" race. A bad race gives me a chance to tweak what may have went wrong so Ironman will be a good experience.
Check out my results here.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
The Big Day is Approaching
I got up early this morning and went for a 45 minute ride on part of the Ironman course. It's nice seeing a lot of other riders training for the same race and they are so friendly. Penticton is triathlon central and I'm very comfortable being around all the other triathletes here.
Following my bike ride I went for a 20 minute run. Now that my exercise for the day is out of the way I can concentrate on organizing my gear piles for tomorrow's race. Hmmm, maybe I should take a shower and then start getting ready for the rest of the day. We have to check our bikes into transition later. The forecast for tomorrow is rain, but we are in Canada, after all. It could change. Unlike Edmonton, when it rains here, it is warm at this time of year. In a little more than two and half months from now, I'll be here again, but it'll be for Ironman instead of a half Ironman. I'll be fitter and more race-ready. It is a well known fact that it is better to go into a long race like this undertrained than injured. Well, I'm undertrained AND injured. It'll be fun to see how that goes.
We went to our favourite latte shop, Blenz, for a latte. The weather was beautiful today so we sat outside. Next stop, the Bike Barn, Penticton's local bike shop. The Bike Barn is the dedicated technical support for tomorrow's race, as well as for Ironman Canada. If anybody gets a flat or needs technical assistance for any reason, hopefully they will be nearby, or the athlete could be waiting a long time for assistance. That's why it's important to be self-sufficient and be able to change your own flats.
Time to check my bike in. There must be a half a million dollars worth of bikes here. I have a great spot at the end of the rack so I can put my gear at the end of the row and not worry if my next door neighbour is going to run over my transition area. My bike fits under the rack too so I don't have to take the extra .574 seconds it takes to unrack my bike and turn it around and head towards the exit. All I have to do is unrack my bike and move it forward under the rack.
Now, that's out of the way. Let's go down to the lake and watch all the swimmers. Here's a picture of the lake. You might be able to see the line of swimmers practicing near the left side of the picture.
Oh, oh, the pre-race meeting is in 15 minutes. We better get going. The pre-race meeting will tell us what time our swim starts tomorrow, as well as other pertinent information we need to know. My swim starts at 7:50am and I have until 9:00 to finish the swim - two km - piece of cake. There are three waves of swimmers because the beach isn't big enough to accommodate all the athletes at once. There's about 1,200 competitors.
Time to go back and eat supper and get ready for tomorrow. I've set my alarm for 4 am.
Stay tuned for my results tomorrow. It's off to bed for this little girl.
Following my bike ride I went for a 20 minute run. Now that my exercise for the day is out of the way I can concentrate on organizing my gear piles for tomorrow's race. Hmmm, maybe I should take a shower and then start getting ready for the rest of the day. We have to check our bikes into transition later. The forecast for tomorrow is rain, but we are in Canada, after all. It could change. Unlike Edmonton, when it rains here, it is warm at this time of year. In a little more than two and half months from now, I'll be here again, but it'll be for Ironman instead of a half Ironman. I'll be fitter and more race-ready. It is a well known fact that it is better to go into a long race like this undertrained than injured. Well, I'm undertrained AND injured. It'll be fun to see how that goes.
We went to our favourite latte shop, Blenz, for a latte. The weather was beautiful today so we sat outside. Next stop, the Bike Barn, Penticton's local bike shop. The Bike Barn is the dedicated technical support for tomorrow's race, as well as for Ironman Canada. If anybody gets a flat or needs technical assistance for any reason, hopefully they will be nearby, or the athlete could be waiting a long time for assistance. That's why it's important to be self-sufficient and be able to change your own flats.
Time to check my bike in. There must be a half a million dollars worth of bikes here. I have a great spot at the end of the rack so I can put my gear at the end of the row and not worry if my next door neighbour is going to run over my transition area. My bike fits under the rack too so I don't have to take the extra .574 seconds it takes to unrack my bike and turn it around and head towards the exit. All I have to do is unrack my bike and move it forward under the rack.
Now, that's out of the way. Let's go down to the lake and watch all the swimmers. Here's a picture of the lake. You might be able to see the line of swimmers practicing near the left side of the picture.
Oh, oh, the pre-race meeting is in 15 minutes. We better get going. The pre-race meeting will tell us what time our swim starts tomorrow, as well as other pertinent information we need to know. My swim starts at 7:50am and I have until 9:00 to finish the swim - two km - piece of cake. There are three waves of swimmers because the beach isn't big enough to accommodate all the athletes at once. There's about 1,200 competitors.
Time to go back and eat supper and get ready for tomorrow. I've set my alarm for 4 am.
Stay tuned for my results tomorrow. It's off to bed for this little girl.
Friday's Adventures
Up and at em - well at least I am. Susan sleeps much longer than I do. Think of all the extra stuff I get done. I had a great sleep. Maybe it was the comfortable bed, or maybe it was the wine, but who cares.
The weather sucks. It's raining and overcast. The good news though is that it's going to clear up tomorrow, which is a good thing because I have a 45 minute bike ride followed by a 20 minute run, just to keep the blood moving in preparation for race day.
After breakfast, first thing's first. A stop at a local coffee shop for a latte. I had a latte macchiato with maple. Maan, was it good. Next was Peach City Athletics. Susan had to pick up some swim goggles that she ordered. I bought some sunglasses. Next stop, Winners to see if that have any home stuff I might like. The only thing I bought was a yoga mat. Well, I guess that could be called home stuff.
Now, a cool 30 minute drive off to race package pick-up in Oliver. A big race like this has an expo with vendors from all sorts of athletic companies: Oakley, Zoot triathlon clothing, gels, running shoes and any other triathlon gear you can think of. Of course I made the big mistake of going to the Oakley table and trying on some sunglasses. $235 later and I am the proud owner of a pair of yellow flak jacket sunglasses with blue iridium lenses. They look sooo cool - I'm a lean, mean, yellow racing machine. The only descriptive words in that sentence you use to classify me are yellow and racing. I'm definitely not lean, but my helmet and bike both have yellow on them, and now I have yellow sunglasses to add to my kit. Competitors, watch out; I mean business.
Down to the lake to check out the temperature of the water. Tuc-el-nuit Lake is beautiful. It isn't very big and it has a lot of beautiful homes on the edge of the lake, with weeping willow trees lining the beach.
We ran into some fellow Edmonton Triathlon Club members. It's nice to see people from home when I'm travelling.
Time to head back to the motel for supper. Mmm, I'm hungry.
The weather sucks. It's raining and overcast. The good news though is that it's going to clear up tomorrow, which is a good thing because I have a 45 minute bike ride followed by a 20 minute run, just to keep the blood moving in preparation for race day.
After breakfast, first thing's first. A stop at a local coffee shop for a latte. I had a latte macchiato with maple. Maan, was it good. Next was Peach City Athletics. Susan had to pick up some swim goggles that she ordered. I bought some sunglasses. Next stop, Winners to see if that have any home stuff I might like. The only thing I bought was a yoga mat. Well, I guess that could be called home stuff.
Now, a cool 30 minute drive off to race package pick-up in Oliver. A big race like this has an expo with vendors from all sorts of athletic companies: Oakley, Zoot triathlon clothing, gels, running shoes and any other triathlon gear you can think of. Of course I made the big mistake of going to the Oakley table and trying on some sunglasses. $235 later and I am the proud owner of a pair of yellow flak jacket sunglasses with blue iridium lenses. They look sooo cool - I'm a lean, mean, yellow racing machine. The only descriptive words in that sentence you use to classify me are yellow and racing. I'm definitely not lean, but my helmet and bike both have yellow on them, and now I have yellow sunglasses to add to my kit. Competitors, watch out; I mean business.
Down to the lake to check out the temperature of the water. Tuc-el-nuit Lake is beautiful. It isn't very big and it has a lot of beautiful homes on the edge of the lake, with weeping willow trees lining the beach.
We ran into some fellow Edmonton Triathlon Club members. It's nice to see people from home when I'm travelling.
Time to head back to the motel for supper. Mmm, I'm hungry.
Friday, June 4, 2010
The Road Trip to Penticton
Well, we arrived safely in Penticton, but not until after we had an lengthy unscheduled stop - the story of my life. We were stranded in Summerland. My car doors locked by themselves while we were switching drivers. I know, I know, you're probably thinking "Oh, yeah sure! Your car locked itself. How gullible do you think I am that I would believe that?" Well, yes, it acually did lock itself. Susan was driving, and since I know how to get around Penticton, I said I would drive, so we stopped in Summerland to switch. She left the car running; who knows why. I got out of the car and we both decided to stretch after the long drive, so I shut off the ignition and closed the door. Suddenly I heard 'bleep bleep'. That's a familiar sound, but I thought I was hearing things because I didn't press the "lock" button. The next thing I knew was that the car doors locked themselves. SHIT! Must be a security feature, but what kind of security feature would lock the keys inside the car. Theoretically, a thief could break in and voila, the keys are there for the taking. This had never happened before. Something went awry. Strange, but whatever. We were stranded in front of a house and I asked to use the phone to call a tow truck. Good thing it was warm weather because it was about an hour before the tow truck arrived. The driver was in and out in 3.27 seconds. The alarm went off so I shut it off. Maan, it would be nice to have one of those slim jim thingies in case this happens again. Then came the bill, so I paid the man $40 and we were on our way.
Now, let's try to get to the motel before we have any more mishaps. Finally, we're here. Going to Save-On Foods was on our "to do" list, so we unloaded the car and were on our way to buy some groceries and then the liquor store. Time for a late supper, some wine and bed.
See you tomorrow.
Now, let's try to get to the motel before we have any more mishaps. Finally, we're here. Going to Save-On Foods was on our "to do" list, so we unloaded the car and were on our way to buy some groceries and then the liquor store. Time for a late supper, some wine and bed.
See you tomorrow.
Monday, May 31, 2010
This should be a 2-blog entry
Boy oh boy, I have a lot to update.
First of all, I moved into my new condo. It is wonderful. I am so pleased with the paint job and flooring. It's like a brand new place. Here are some pictures in the order they appear - kitchen, one end of the living room, the other end of the living room, my bedroom, and the den. Notice the nice white baseboards and flooring. I love the flooring. I don't know what's up with the pictures because some things don't look straight - the baseboards and fireplace - but you can bet that they are.
I have almost finished organizing everything, but still need to put the mirror on my dresser and attach the headboard to my bed. Oh yeah, I also need to hang all my pictures. I can't bring myself to hammer that first nail in my nice newly painted walls though.
I needed an additional piece of furniture to store all my sporting equipment/clothing (or at least as much as would fit), so I thought "Ellen, Ikea might have something cheap that would make do, and at the same time look nice". The first few months of home ownership seem to be the most expensive, or at least I hope it's only the first few. I found the perfect piece for my budget. Note to self: Don't buy Ikea furniture ever again. Assembling Ikea furniture is a lesson in patience. I started assembling on Sunday and am almost finished, but the almost-finished last drawer doesn't look right, and the directions (who am I kidding - what directions) are very unclear. Anyway, I'm going to disassemble the last drawer to figure out if (and that's a big IF) I went wrong, but I don't see how I could have went wrong because apparently the directions are idiot-proof. You can call me an idiot if you want, but labelling the pieces "A", "B", "insert letter here" would be very helpful, but apparently Swedes don't do that. UPDATE FROM LATE LAST NIGHT: I figured it out. I had the correct pieces on, but they were on the opposite sides that they should have been. Remember that comment I made earlier - something about idiot-proof? Well, I guess I can offically call myself an idiot. I now have a completed cupboard for my den to hide all my sports paraphernalia.
On Sunday I was supposed to race in a triathlon - Coronation triathlon in Edmonton - but I woke to snow, so it took me .37 seconds to decide I wasn't going to do it. Coronation isn't my "A" or "B" race anyway, so it wasn't a big deal that I didn't do it. Oliver next week-end is my "B" race and a much bigger deal. That's the first time I haven't raced in a triathlon that I was registered for. I don't relish the idea of having numb fingers and feet for an hour and a half. Been there, done that. Memories of the "Splash, Pedal and Gasp" triathlon in Lethbridge a few years ago quickly came flooding back. It was cold, windy and rainy on race morning, but I travelled all the way there, so I couldn't NOT do it. My fingers were so numb by the end of the bike that I could barely use the brakes and couldn't change gears and it felt like I was running on golf balls for the first three kilometres after the bike. I eventually thawed, but it definitely wasn't a personal best like I was hoping.
I am leaving on Thursday morning to do a half Ironman on June 6 in Oliver, BC. Oliver is about half an hour south of Penticton. I'm 99.99763% sure that the weather will be much warmer there. I'm looking forward to it, but I don't know how well I'll do. I am usually very disciplined with my training, but the weather has been crappy and my shoulder has caused me a lot of grief, so I haven't even been swimming. I don't mind riding in cold weather because I can dress for it, but cold, windy and rainy is another story completely. You can't really dress to stay warm. Good thing Oliver is only a half Ironman. Did I say "ONLY". Please forgive me - that's a damn hard race, especially in the heat, and I'm sure it's going to be hot. One year it was 40 degrees and there was a record number of drop-outs - otherwise known as DNFs (did not finish). I'll report in and post my results when I get back or maybe I'll do the geek thing and take my laptop with me and post an update from Penticton while drinking a latte at some overpriced coffee shop. I will be in Canada so I'm presuming there will be free wireless internet, not like Australia.
First of all, I moved into my new condo. It is wonderful. I am so pleased with the paint job and flooring. It's like a brand new place. Here are some pictures in the order they appear - kitchen, one end of the living room, the other end of the living room, my bedroom, and the den. Notice the nice white baseboards and flooring. I love the flooring. I don't know what's up with the pictures because some things don't look straight - the baseboards and fireplace - but you can bet that they are.
I have almost finished organizing everything, but still need to put the mirror on my dresser and attach the headboard to my bed. Oh yeah, I also need to hang all my pictures. I can't bring myself to hammer that first nail in my nice newly painted walls though.
I needed an additional piece of furniture to store all my sporting equipment/clothing (or at least as much as would fit), so I thought "Ellen, Ikea might have something cheap that would make do, and at the same time look nice". The first few months of home ownership seem to be the most expensive, or at least I hope it's only the first few. I found the perfect piece for my budget. Note to self: Don't buy Ikea furniture ever again. Assembling Ikea furniture is a lesson in patience. I started assembling on Sunday and am almost finished, but the almost-finished last drawer doesn't look right, and the directions (who am I kidding - what directions) are very unclear. Anyway, I'm going to disassemble the last drawer to figure out if (and that's a big IF) I went wrong, but I don't see how I could have went wrong because apparently the directions are idiot-proof. You can call me an idiot if you want, but labelling the pieces "A", "B", "insert letter here" would be very helpful, but apparently Swedes don't do that. UPDATE FROM LATE LAST NIGHT: I figured it out. I had the correct pieces on, but they were on the opposite sides that they should have been. Remember that comment I made earlier - something about idiot-proof? Well, I guess I can offically call myself an idiot. I now have a completed cupboard for my den to hide all my sports paraphernalia.
On Sunday I was supposed to race in a triathlon - Coronation triathlon in Edmonton - but I woke to snow, so it took me .37 seconds to decide I wasn't going to do it. Coronation isn't my "A" or "B" race anyway, so it wasn't a big deal that I didn't do it. Oliver next week-end is my "B" race and a much bigger deal. That's the first time I haven't raced in a triathlon that I was registered for. I don't relish the idea of having numb fingers and feet for an hour and a half. Been there, done that. Memories of the "Splash, Pedal and Gasp" triathlon in Lethbridge a few years ago quickly came flooding back. It was cold, windy and rainy on race morning, but I travelled all the way there, so I couldn't NOT do it. My fingers were so numb by the end of the bike that I could barely use the brakes and couldn't change gears and it felt like I was running on golf balls for the first three kilometres after the bike. I eventually thawed, but it definitely wasn't a personal best like I was hoping.
I am leaving on Thursday morning to do a half Ironman on June 6 in Oliver, BC. Oliver is about half an hour south of Penticton. I'm 99.99763% sure that the weather will be much warmer there. I'm looking forward to it, but I don't know how well I'll do. I am usually very disciplined with my training, but the weather has been crappy and my shoulder has caused me a lot of grief, so I haven't even been swimming. I don't mind riding in cold weather because I can dress for it, but cold, windy and rainy is another story completely. You can't really dress to stay warm. Good thing Oliver is only a half Ironman. Did I say "ONLY". Please forgive me - that's a damn hard race, especially in the heat, and I'm sure it's going to be hot. One year it was 40 degrees and there was a record number of drop-outs - otherwise known as DNFs (did not finish). I'll report in and post my results when I get back or maybe I'll do the geek thing and take my laptop with me and post an update from Penticton while drinking a latte at some overpriced coffee shop. I will be in Canada so I'm presuming there will be free wireless internet, not like Australia.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
St. Albert 10 Miler
My first race of the season was on Sunday - the St. Albert 10 Miler Road Race. I had taken a couple of weeks off of running because my knee has been causing me problems. After about an hour of running, the outside of my knee would hurt enough to stop me in my tracks and I would have to hobble home. I was hoping my knee was healed after the time off and the exercises I was doing.
I even bought a knee brace to give my knee support. Hell, at this point I'm willing to try anything. Well, that was a joke because with every step I took, the brace would fall down, so that came off pretty quickly. Good thing it was during my warm up.
The weather was fantastic, and so far so good - I had no knee pain. My heart rate was pretty high, but I have a lot of endurance so I wasn't too worried that I would tucker out. I also had my foot pod on to tell me my pace. It was anywhere between a 7:30 - 8:20 minute mile. This is good. I'll be able to finish this faster than last year. Yeah! Then my knee pain came back to haunt me, and it was only 16:20 into the race. What happened to the hour it used to take???? It wasn't painful, but I could feel a twinge and I was hoping it wouldn't get worse.
By the time 54 minutes came around, about 10 km into the race, my knee was so sore that I was considering stopping and walking home. Whaaat, I run 10 km in a triathlon faster than this. I guess I have more time to warm up in a tri! A sign on on the road said "If you were doing a 10 km, you'd be finished now". Yeah, yeah, nice sense of humour. I looked up the hill to the finish line and there was a runner headed towards the finish line - whaaat, 10 miles in 54 minutes. I've got four miles to go. That made me think, "maybe the pain will subside in a few minutes", and I continued running. I had to walk a couple times because of the pain, but it subsided and eventually went away. I'm a glutton for punishment and I suspected I would pay for it later. Pain from injuries just doesn't miraculously go away.
Miles 6-9 are a gradual incline, but mile nine is the hardest because it is all up hill and it isn't gradual, at least it doesn't seem like it at this point in the race. Mile 10 is partially flat and then down hill so you'd think it would be the easiest, but not so grasshopper. Your legs are toast by then - at least mine were.
I dug deep for the last 1/2 mile because it was down hill and I had gravity working with me. Not only that - my house is on the last little bit of the course, so I couldn't let my parents see any weakness. Who am I kidding, they've seen me at my worst. My Mom is a great cheerleader and all the runners appreciate her cheering everybody on.
Finished - finally. After the run, my knee was excruciating. It probably took me 20 minutes to walk home, where it would usually take 10. I went for my free dilly bar and then walked home. Check out the overall results. Here are the age group results.
Oh, remember that foot pod I told you about? It isn't very accurate because it said I ran 10.9 miles, and with my finishing time, I knew my pace was wrong. I finished 24 seconds faster than last year - so much for my foot pod. I also have to get this knee issue fixed. I definitely can't run a half marathon or marathon with a knee problem.
Next race - Coronation Triathlon in Edmonton. That's always a fun race because the bike course is closed to traffic and I get to ride down the curvy part of Groat Road. Stay tuned.
I even bought a knee brace to give my knee support. Hell, at this point I'm willing to try anything. Well, that was a joke because with every step I took, the brace would fall down, so that came off pretty quickly. Good thing it was during my warm up.
The weather was fantastic, and so far so good - I had no knee pain. My heart rate was pretty high, but I have a lot of endurance so I wasn't too worried that I would tucker out. I also had my foot pod on to tell me my pace. It was anywhere between a 7:30 - 8:20 minute mile. This is good. I'll be able to finish this faster than last year. Yeah! Then my knee pain came back to haunt me, and it was only 16:20 into the race. What happened to the hour it used to take???? It wasn't painful, but I could feel a twinge and I was hoping it wouldn't get worse.
By the time 54 minutes came around, about 10 km into the race, my knee was so sore that I was considering stopping and walking home. Whaaat, I run 10 km in a triathlon faster than this. I guess I have more time to warm up in a tri! A sign on on the road said "If you were doing a 10 km, you'd be finished now". Yeah, yeah, nice sense of humour. I looked up the hill to the finish line and there was a runner headed towards the finish line - whaaat, 10 miles in 54 minutes. I've got four miles to go. That made me think, "maybe the pain will subside in a few minutes", and I continued running. I had to walk a couple times because of the pain, but it subsided and eventually went away. I'm a glutton for punishment and I suspected I would pay for it later. Pain from injuries just doesn't miraculously go away.
Miles 6-9 are a gradual incline, but mile nine is the hardest because it is all up hill and it isn't gradual, at least it doesn't seem like it at this point in the race. Mile 10 is partially flat and then down hill so you'd think it would be the easiest, but not so grasshopper. Your legs are toast by then - at least mine were.
I dug deep for the last 1/2 mile because it was down hill and I had gravity working with me. Not only that - my house is on the last little bit of the course, so I couldn't let my parents see any weakness. Who am I kidding, they've seen me at my worst. My Mom is a great cheerleader and all the runners appreciate her cheering everybody on.
Finished - finally. After the run, my knee was excruciating. It probably took me 20 minutes to walk home, where it would usually take 10. I went for my free dilly bar and then walked home. Check out the overall results. Here are the age group results.
Oh, remember that foot pod I told you about? It isn't very accurate because it said I ran 10.9 miles, and with my finishing time, I knew my pace was wrong. I finished 24 seconds faster than last year - so much for my foot pod. I also have to get this knee issue fixed. I definitely can't run a half marathon or marathon with a knee problem.
Next race - Coronation Triathlon in Edmonton. That's always a fun race because the bike course is closed to traffic and I get to ride down the curvy part of Groat Road. Stay tuned.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Penticton out .. sunny Alberta in!
Extra, extra, read all about it! The long range forecast for Penticton is all about rain, so by unanimous vote Ellen Ainsley and Susan Roberts have decided to stay in sunny Alberta to train.
Ninety percent possibility of precipitation doesn't excite me too much. If it's going to be wet in Penticton, I'd rather stay in Edmonton where it's going to be drier. If it does end up raining in Edmonton, at least I'll get wet and cold at no charge, but the forecast looks better here than there.
My knee is causing me grief too. I don't know what the problem is for sure, but I suspect my IT band is the culprit. After about an hour and a bit, it's painful to run. I guess I better get in to see my physio therapist. He'll get me up and running (pardon the pun). On the bright side, I have Tuesday and Thursday evenings free this week because my coach told me not to run and aggravate it. Playing mind games with myself is a regular occurrence to help me get through all this training, so I always put a positive spin on anything that may be a downer. Ice will be my friend for the next little while. I hope my knee is healed in three weeks or else I'll be poppin' pills because I have a 10 mile race on April 18th.
I've secured the painter for my condo, which was a rude awakening. It is a lot more costly for painting than I thought it would be, but it is going to look amazing. I just don't want to do it myself. I know nothing about painting and frankly, I don't have the time. My new rule, as suggested by Susan, 'whatever you think the price of renovations will be... double it'!
I also got a second opinion on the flooring, simply because I didn't have a good feeling with the lady who originally came in to measure my condo. I guess I better take the flooring sample back and give her the bad news before she sends the cavalry out to get me.
Signing off until next time.
Ninety percent possibility of precipitation doesn't excite me too much. If it's going to be wet in Penticton, I'd rather stay in Edmonton where it's going to be drier. If it does end up raining in Edmonton, at least I'll get wet and cold at no charge, but the forecast looks better here than there.
My knee is causing me grief too. I don't know what the problem is for sure, but I suspect my IT band is the culprit. After about an hour and a bit, it's painful to run. I guess I better get in to see my physio therapist. He'll get me up and running (pardon the pun). On the bright side, I have Tuesday and Thursday evenings free this week because my coach told me not to run and aggravate it. Playing mind games with myself is a regular occurrence to help me get through all this training, so I always put a positive spin on anything that may be a downer. Ice will be my friend for the next little while. I hope my knee is healed in three weeks or else I'll be poppin' pills because I have a 10 mile race on April 18th.
I've secured the painter for my condo, which was a rude awakening. It is a lot more costly for painting than I thought it would be, but it is going to look amazing. I just don't want to do it myself. I know nothing about painting and frankly, I don't have the time. My new rule, as suggested by Susan, 'whatever you think the price of renovations will be... double it'!
I also got a second opinion on the flooring, simply because I didn't have a good feeling with the lady who originally came in to measure my condo. I guess I better take the flooring sample back and give her the bad news before she sends the cavalry out to get me.
Signing off until next time.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Spring's Here
Well, since March is almost over, it's probably a good time for a February update. I'll let you in on what’s going on in the life of triathlete extraordinaire, Ellen Ainsley, or on second thought, maybe that should be ordinaire.
I’m getting fitter and fitter each week and I train about 11 – 12 hours per week. Once I get out on the road, my training volume will increase significantly. Road riding is always longer than on the wind trainer during the winter months. Here's a picture and video at one of my spin classes.
It’s spring so outdoor riding is fast approaching. As a matter of fact I’m going to Penticton on the Easter week-end with a friend to get some training in. We’ll welcome the warmer weather with open arms, not to mention the lack of pot holes. Of course there will be swimming, running, lattes and shopping involved too. Then it’s off to Oliver, BC a month later for the Half Ironman.
I’ve taken about three weeks off of swimming because my shoulder was bothering me and I just returned to swimming this morning. I should have eased back into swimming after taking two years off instead of going as hard as I did. I have now backed off and demoted myself to the slow lane. Hopefully it won’t take long to feel comfortable enough to promote myself again.
I’ve registered for a couple of races already – the St. Albert Ten Miler Road Race on April 18 and the Coronation triathlon in Edmonton on May 29. This year’s 10 Miler will be my 9th consecutive year. I always strive to beat my previous year’s time – sometimes I succeed and sometimes I don’t, but at the very least it is challenging and that’s how I get faster – by pushing myself out of my comfort zone and into the taste of blood.
The Coronation Triathlon is another race I’ve done on a regular basis. The distances are a 1 km swim in Coronation swimming pool, 26 km bike on Groat Road and 8 km run down Groat Road into McKinnon Ravine and back. The bike is the best part because the road is closed to traffic and it is really fast down the snaky bit. Of course, you have to come back up on the other side and do it three more times.
I’m still deciding what other races to do besides the Oliver Half Ironman in June and Ironman Canada in August. I like to do about five or six races in the summer. If you want to get faster, do lots of races. My coach always says "Pain is weakness leaving the body", and I've never quite known if he means it or not. I suppose if you want to be fast, you do have to feel discomfort; hence the taste of blood.
I recently bought a condo in St. Albert. I'm sooooo excited to have my own home. My possession date isn't until April 30 and I'm getting new flooring and painting done before I actually move in, so I'll probably move in the first week of May. It's much easier to do those things when there isn't furniture to contend with. I meet with a painter and the flooring person tomorrow for estimates and measuring. I hope the painter is reasonably priced because then I get to use his interior decorator, free of charge, to decide what colors go on which walls. Well, I'm sure her cost is absorbed into his price. As you all know, I like bright colours, but walls aren't the place for bright colours, so I think I need a decorator because I'm not sure I trust myself. Yikes! If I can't trust myself though, who can I trust.
Oh, time to go. CSI: Miami is on! Stay tuned for more of my adventures as my race season progresses.
I’m getting fitter and fitter each week and I train about 11 – 12 hours per week. Once I get out on the road, my training volume will increase significantly. Road riding is always longer than on the wind trainer during the winter months. Here's a picture and video at one of my spin classes.
It’s spring so outdoor riding is fast approaching. As a matter of fact I’m going to Penticton on the Easter week-end with a friend to get some training in. We’ll welcome the warmer weather with open arms, not to mention the lack of pot holes. Of course there will be swimming, running, lattes and shopping involved too. Then it’s off to Oliver, BC a month later for the Half Ironman.
I’ve taken about three weeks off of swimming because my shoulder was bothering me and I just returned to swimming this morning. I should have eased back into swimming after taking two years off instead of going as hard as I did. I have now backed off and demoted myself to the slow lane. Hopefully it won’t take long to feel comfortable enough to promote myself again.
I’ve registered for a couple of races already – the St. Albert Ten Miler Road Race on April 18 and the Coronation triathlon in Edmonton on May 29. This year’s 10 Miler will be my 9th consecutive year. I always strive to beat my previous year’s time – sometimes I succeed and sometimes I don’t, but at the very least it is challenging and that’s how I get faster – by pushing myself out of my comfort zone and into the taste of blood.
The Coronation Triathlon is another race I’ve done on a regular basis. The distances are a 1 km swim in Coronation swimming pool, 26 km bike on Groat Road and 8 km run down Groat Road into McKinnon Ravine and back. The bike is the best part because the road is closed to traffic and it is really fast down the snaky bit. Of course, you have to come back up on the other side and do it three more times.
I’m still deciding what other races to do besides the Oliver Half Ironman in June and Ironman Canada in August. I like to do about five or six races in the summer. If you want to get faster, do lots of races. My coach always says "Pain is weakness leaving the body", and I've never quite known if he means it or not. I suppose if you want to be fast, you do have to feel discomfort; hence the taste of blood.
I recently bought a condo in St. Albert. I'm sooooo excited to have my own home. My possession date isn't until April 30 and I'm getting new flooring and painting done before I actually move in, so I'll probably move in the first week of May. It's much easier to do those things when there isn't furniture to contend with. I meet with a painter and the flooring person tomorrow for estimates and measuring. I hope the painter is reasonably priced because then I get to use his interior decorator, free of charge, to decide what colors go on which walls. Well, I'm sure her cost is absorbed into his price. As you all know, I like bright colours, but walls aren't the place for bright colours, so I think I need a decorator because I'm not sure I trust myself. Yikes! If I can't trust myself though, who can I trust.
Oh, time to go. CSI: Miami is on! Stay tuned for more of my adventures as my race season progresses.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Hard Week
Last Saturday after spin class I told my coach that I was suffering from lack-of-motivation syndrome lately. He told me, in jest, that I need a stiff kick in the ass - yikes. Yes, Dad. It was a good idea to talk to him about it because since then I have been very disciplined, and no, my Dad isn't my coach (smiles).
On Sunday I did my long run of 80 minutes and after that had no problems getting up early to either lift weights or swim. Well, that's not completely true. I had a problem on Thursday - I got out of bed then went back to bed, but only for 3 minutes before I talked myself into getting up again.
On Monday and Wednesday mornings I get to sleep in until 5:40 am because the swimming pool is only 5 minutes away. I just put on my swim suit and go. Believe me, with my schedule, that is a sleep-in. The latest I ever get up is 7 am, and that's on the week-ends. On Monday morning we had a 600 metre time trial, followed by a short rest and then a 100 metre time trial. I was amazed I made it through in a decent time. Since I had only been swimming with the group three times, 600 metres was a daunting task. The 100 metres after that seemed like a piece of cake. I dug very deep and found my endurance coming back. It'll be interesting to compare my results the next time we do a time trial.
Wednesday was a very hard workout and I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. Ambulance please. We had 21 intervals, with every seventh interval getting faster. I made it through and felt like I definitely deserved a huge breakfast. Our coach works us hard, but it will be worth it by the time triathlon season gets here.
I am always super rushed after swim practice because by the time I get home after practice I only have a matter of 15-20 minutes to get ready for work. I usually don't have time for breakfast so I eat it at work.
Tuesday and Thursday mornings are weight days. I've decided to see a personal trainer because I need something different to replace lifting weights because I'm getting bored with weights and don't feel like I am achieving the results I want in order to advance to the next level. Changing up my routine will jump me ahead a bit.
Tuesday and Thursday evenings are run nights, but I did my Thursday run at lunch because it was very short - only 3 hill repeats. There is a method to my madness though for running at lunch - it means that I will get almost two days off instead of only one because Friday is a rest day.
Wednesday evenings are spin class. This past Wednesday was a hard ride.
When do I get a rest, you ask! Fridays are my rest day, Woohoo! That could change at any moment though, depending on what my coach wants to give me for the week. Between training; sleeping; eating; living; and oh, don't forget work, I definitely have my work cut out for me. I'm also tackling an 18-month Leadership Challenge program through work, so hey, maybe I'll be a leading triathlete ha ha. It's all about time management and I have become a good time manager.
Tomorrow morning I go to spin class and start this whole routine over again on Sunday, while progressing through the year.
This week I trained close to eight hours.
On Sunday I did my long run of 80 minutes and after that had no problems getting up early to either lift weights or swim. Well, that's not completely true. I had a problem on Thursday - I got out of bed then went back to bed, but only for 3 minutes before I talked myself into getting up again.
On Monday and Wednesday mornings I get to sleep in until 5:40 am because the swimming pool is only 5 minutes away. I just put on my swim suit and go. Believe me, with my schedule, that is a sleep-in. The latest I ever get up is 7 am, and that's on the week-ends. On Monday morning we had a 600 metre time trial, followed by a short rest and then a 100 metre time trial. I was amazed I made it through in a decent time. Since I had only been swimming with the group three times, 600 metres was a daunting task. The 100 metres after that seemed like a piece of cake. I dug very deep and found my endurance coming back. It'll be interesting to compare my results the next time we do a time trial.
Wednesday was a very hard workout and I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. Ambulance please. We had 21 intervals, with every seventh interval getting faster. I made it through and felt like I definitely deserved a huge breakfast. Our coach works us hard, but it will be worth it by the time triathlon season gets here.
I am always super rushed after swim practice because by the time I get home after practice I only have a matter of 15-20 minutes to get ready for work. I usually don't have time for breakfast so I eat it at work.
Tuesday and Thursday mornings are weight days. I've decided to see a personal trainer because I need something different to replace lifting weights because I'm getting bored with weights and don't feel like I am achieving the results I want in order to advance to the next level. Changing up my routine will jump me ahead a bit.
Tuesday and Thursday evenings are run nights, but I did my Thursday run at lunch because it was very short - only 3 hill repeats. There is a method to my madness though for running at lunch - it means that I will get almost two days off instead of only one because Friday is a rest day.
Wednesday evenings are spin class. This past Wednesday was a hard ride.
When do I get a rest, you ask! Fridays are my rest day, Woohoo! That could change at any moment though, depending on what my coach wants to give me for the week. Between training; sleeping; eating; living; and oh, don't forget work, I definitely have my work cut out for me. I'm also tackling an 18-month Leadership Challenge program through work, so hey, maybe I'll be a leading triathlete ha ha. It's all about time management and I have become a good time manager.
Tomorrow morning I go to spin class and start this whole routine over again on Sunday, while progressing through the year.
This week I trained close to eight hours.
Friday, January 8, 2010
First Post of 2010
Well, this is my first post of the new year. It's going to be hard to top 2009 because it was such a great year - what with the good races I had and the places I traveled to.
I have been starting to train for my 2010 triathlon season, namely the Oliver Half Ironman in Oliver, BC on June 6 and Ironman Canada in Penticton on August 29. There will be many other races, and my training will prepare me for those as well. I started training in December after returning from Las Vegas, and it was just meant to stay fit. January is when the real training started. Right now I am training about seven hours a week, slowly progressing throughout the year, tapering in early August.
Training has been going well, except for the swimming. I haven't been able to get my butt out of my warm, cozy bed to go swimming, which is kind of odd because I have been able to get myself out of bed to go running or to lift weights. Must be the cold weather and getting wet that subconsciously disallows my brain to think SWIM! My intentions were good though earlier this week, when I put all my swimming paraphernalia at the front door ready to go the next morning. I awoke at 6:34 am. What the *&#! happened to my wake-up call - my alarm, that is! Was it broken? No! I forgot to set it the night before. Was that subconscious??? I'll never know. If I was to go swimming, I would have had to get up an hour and a half earlier - at 5 am. Ahhh, the life of an athlete! Good thing I'm not one of those people that needs a ton of sleep.
I have hardly swam for two years since my shoulder surgery, but I still managed to perform well in my triathlons in 2009. 2010 will be a different story though with Ironman looming in the distance. The swim portion of that race is 3.8 km. I have a background in swimming so I am sure I can get through the swim, but if I don't start swimming on a regular basis, my swim time will be slow and my heart rate will be high going onto the bike - something that I don't want because that will be followed by a 180 km bike ride and then a full marathon). My shoulders will also likely be sore if I don't build up the endurance.
I am not much into making New Year's resolutions because I think that if you want to improve your life, why not start NOW, so there it is - now that I have put it into words, I will start swimming next week. I'm sure all of you will keep me accountable to my words, won't you?
Running has been easy. I only have 30 or 40 minute runs in heart rate (HR) 1 - so low I almost have to walk. It is easier to run fast. After my runs I have drills. Enter bum kicks, skipping and high knees. Bum kicks are where I, well, kick my bum with every step. The skipping is where I bring my knees up while I'm double-stepping with the other foot. The high knees are the same as skipping except that I don't skip. All of these drills are done fast so my leg turn-over gets faster.
On Wednesdays and Saturdays I ride my bike. Getting on a bike after three or four months is not an enjoyable experience. My butt was sore. I was no longer a hard ass, but I am getting there! Whoa! Hold your horses. Before you get excited and think I am crazy enough to be riding outside in -30 degree weather, think again. I actually ride in circles in the basement. Just kidding. I ride with 30 other over-achievers - that's what we as triathletes are known as - over-achievers. We hook our bikes up to wind trainers, which simulates riding on the road, as we follow our leader's lead through drills, endurance and strength sets. This is all done to music, which helps with the motivation. We have been doing 60 second wall sits for strength and maaan, those aren't fun. My legs are usually shaking by the fourth set.
I'll keep you posted with my progress throughout the year, so stay tuned.
I have been starting to train for my 2010 triathlon season, namely the Oliver Half Ironman in Oliver, BC on June 6 and Ironman Canada in Penticton on August 29. There will be many other races, and my training will prepare me for those as well. I started training in December after returning from Las Vegas, and it was just meant to stay fit. January is when the real training started. Right now I am training about seven hours a week, slowly progressing throughout the year, tapering in early August.
Training has been going well, except for the swimming. I haven't been able to get my butt out of my warm, cozy bed to go swimming, which is kind of odd because I have been able to get myself out of bed to go running or to lift weights. Must be the cold weather and getting wet that subconsciously disallows my brain to think SWIM! My intentions were good though earlier this week, when I put all my swimming paraphernalia at the front door ready to go the next morning. I awoke at 6:34 am. What the *&#! happened to my wake-up call - my alarm, that is! Was it broken? No! I forgot to set it the night before. Was that subconscious??? I'll never know. If I was to go swimming, I would have had to get up an hour and a half earlier - at 5 am. Ahhh, the life of an athlete! Good thing I'm not one of those people that needs a ton of sleep.
I have hardly swam for two years since my shoulder surgery, but I still managed to perform well in my triathlons in 2009. 2010 will be a different story though with Ironman looming in the distance. The swim portion of that race is 3.8 km. I have a background in swimming so I am sure I can get through the swim, but if I don't start swimming on a regular basis, my swim time will be slow and my heart rate will be high going onto the bike - something that I don't want because that will be followed by a 180 km bike ride and then a full marathon). My shoulders will also likely be sore if I don't build up the endurance.
I am not much into making New Year's resolutions because I think that if you want to improve your life, why not start NOW, so there it is - now that I have put it into words, I will start swimming next week. I'm sure all of you will keep me accountable to my words, won't you?
Running has been easy. I only have 30 or 40 minute runs in heart rate (HR) 1 - so low I almost have to walk. It is easier to run fast. After my runs I have drills. Enter bum kicks, skipping and high knees. Bum kicks are where I, well, kick my bum with every step. The skipping is where I bring my knees up while I'm double-stepping with the other foot. The high knees are the same as skipping except that I don't skip. All of these drills are done fast so my leg turn-over gets faster.
On Wednesdays and Saturdays I ride my bike. Getting on a bike after three or four months is not an enjoyable experience. My butt was sore. I was no longer a hard ass, but I am getting there! Whoa! Hold your horses. Before you get excited and think I am crazy enough to be riding outside in -30 degree weather, think again. I actually ride in circles in the basement. Just kidding. I ride with 30 other over-achievers - that's what we as triathletes are known as - over-achievers. We hook our bikes up to wind trainers, which simulates riding on the road, as we follow our leader's lead through drills, endurance and strength sets. This is all done to music, which helps with the motivation. We have been doing 60 second wall sits for strength and maaan, those aren't fun. My legs are usually shaking by the fourth set.
I'll keep you posted with my progress throughout the year, so stay tuned.
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