Tri-Dogmom

If you ask every triathlete that you know about themselves, I bet that 90% of them will say they are "Type A" "Type A personality, also known as the Type A Behavior Pattern, is a set of characteristics that includes being impatient, excessively time-conscious, insecure about one's status, highly competitive, hostile and aggressive, and incapable of relaxation. [1] Type A individuals are often highly achieving workaholics who multi-task, drive themselves with deadlines, and are unhappy about the smallest of delays. They have been described as stress junkies. Type A personalities are the leaders, risk takers, and independent thinkers. They don't like to waste time with the details, and often look for better ways to solve problems. A type "A" person can multitask, moving from one thought to another and back without missing a beat. These people dislike routine, but will take on a routine task in order to achieve a greater goal. The Type B personality, ...

So, here we are. The start of week #4, well almost. It is still my "rest" day. I have to admit, I'm feeling pretty darn good for my day off. I feel rested. My muscles are a little tired, but no soreness. I'm actually looking forward to my next week starting. This week was a big running week for me, but next week I back it down a little on the run & build on my cycling. The following week is a build week for swimming. That won't be difficult, because with my shoulder feeling much better, the increase in swimming mileage as never been an issue. Last night we had a "girls night dinner." It was Sara (also training for IM CDA ), Stacey (she's doing the Ragnar Relay with us), Natalie (Ragnar Relay & long run buddy) & me! We met at this fantastic family Italian place, Giuseppe's . It's a small little place with an intimate setting. Best part - you can bring your own wine, and there is NO cork fee! So, Sara brought a fabulo...

I hope everyone gets a little humor out of this post. I'm pretty sure my running buddies from this morning did. Every morning, the first thing that I do is make my spark . I was introduced to this product by a friend of mine a few years ago. Come to think of it, maybe it has been like 4 years. Wow. I never used to drink any caffeine. No coffee, nothing. But, when I started training like a mad women those 4ams became rather hard to do. Spark did the trick. Not only did it give me the quick morning boost I needed for my runs, but it also helps out with the pre-run bathroom issues. Takes care of everything within 10mins. No need to go any further with this topic. So, my couple times a week habit turned into an everyday morning ritual. I like the way it makes me feel. It makes me alert & happy. It is full of great vitamins & minerals, and the caffeine is not overbearing. You'll find just as much caffeine in this drink as you will in only 1 cup of coffee. Th...

Yesterday was a very sad day. It started out great. I met my friends Natalie & Mike for my 50min tempo run. Somehow we miscalculated & ended up going 65mins, but I lowered my HR for the extra, so hopefully it's ok! I'm usually VERY good about sticking to my schedule. That's what it's for right? Anyway, on this run we were talking about the upcoming Relay we are doing in a few weeks. My friend "T" emailed me several months ago & asked if I would like to be part of this 12 person relay, that goes across about 180miles in 24hours. Of course I was like "sure let me see who else I can get!" So, in about 5 emails & less than an hour we had our team of 12. We are all SUCKERS! It's the whole CDA training group, plus; Stacey, Natalie & her husband Jeff, Mike & our team captain "T". We decided on the team name "Runnin' Ragged." Not for any reason in particular, but because we didn't come up with anythin...

Ok, so nothing too exciting since my last post. Yesterday I swam at my gym rather than go to masters. It was kinda nice. I was able to compare my old times, with some new ones. I'm used to swimming meters, and masters is a yard pool. Yes, the difference is pretty simple ~10%, but when you are trying to compare times. My workout was 2500Meters WARMUP 200easy swim (3:35), 200 kick (I did drills) & 200 easy swim (3:38) 4x50 :20 rest, 1x400 1:00 rest, 4x50 :20 rest My 50s were dead on :51seconds, and my 400 was 7:25 MAIN SET 2x500, slight acceleration every 4th lap they were 9:05 & 9:08 COOL DOWN 100 easy.. I was pretty happy with my times. I think my 500s were about :30-:40 seconds faster than I used to be, so I'm pretty happy with that! As for today. I did my 1:45 ride with Melisa & Sara. I got a flat. I was having trouble with the CO2, so I just said screw it & rode with it not totally inflated. Well, just out of curiosity I checked the pressure when I got home. ...

Those are the words my massage therapist said to me just minutes after my 90min deep tissue TORTURE began. They were closely followed by, "Do you stretch AT ALL?" I chuckled and said, "Of course! Well - maybe not as much as I should, LATELY!" Oops :-) Then, I thought about it, what HAD I done to myself over the last 6 days? Here it goes: Swim: 7,950 yards Bike: ~80miles Run: ~20miles Weights ~2hrs Hmm , guess THAT would explain why I was such a mess! Anyway - the 90 mins went by fairly quick. Except the 2 hours (or what seemed like) that she spent on my left shoulder area. As I mentioned before, that is the side that has been messed up for a couple of weeks, due to my puppy! Well, I was actually starting to get very worried I was going to be making my way back to my second home, Metro Physical Therapy. Thankfully, the massage helped a lot, and I can now safely say that the injury is muscular. I just need to be VERY careful. It's sore today, but much better, wi...

Here's a picture from my previous post - my friend Natalie & her beautiful daughter Baby Kate. Funny thing, we actually ran into them on Sat night at our favorite pizza place, so we ended up sharing dinner with them!

It's week 2 & I'm very proud to say that I have made 10/10 workouts, with one more to go. Tomorrow is my long bike ride - 2:30 mins . Our group is heading up into "Fountain Hills" to get some practice using those quads! Right now my quads are saying that is a BAD idea, however, I know that I will be proud once we are finished! AND, the be st part - I am treating myself to a 90min deep tissue massage on Sunday. Now how's THAT for a day of rest? Actually, it's not quite as pleasant as it sounds. 'S' & I found this place a couple years ago, and have been going ever since. See, I'm picky when it comes to my massages. After being in physical therapy for 3, yes THREE years with my IT Band issues I became fortunate enough to know what my body needed. I had the most fantastic PT assistant/trainer who also did massage. She new my body, what needed worked on,what was broken, etc. I trusted her, and was afraid to let anyone else work on my frail (a...

Today is February 14 th . I used to think there were 3 types of celebration on this day. For some it means a hot date night with their loved one (that's me). For others it's the dreaded day where everyone that is a COUPLE spends a lot of money on food, flowers & presents - while those who are single, dread this day("D-DAY!" as I USED to call it). And lastly for those Retail gurus out there, it is a day of commercial bliss. Every year things get more expensive, more obnoxious and it also seems like everything becomes available as soon as the day after Christmas. Well I now, after today, have a new appreciation for this Holiday. The funny thing is that I haven't even celebrated it yet with my husband. Today started out pretty normal. In fact, I didn't even think about it being a "holiday." I went out to do my fun, hilly run for the day. I actually drove somewhere, just a few miles from my house - 1. So I didn't have to feel guilty for leaving t...

What the heck is a Runner's High?? Well, for anyone that runs - you've been asked this question before. There really is NO way to describe it, or at least no RIGHT way to describe it. It's just that feeling that you get while you are out there. Like nothing else matters at that point in time, but taking in everything that contributes to the experience. So, I decided to google "runner's high" and see what the heck came up. I came across this article & decided not to keep looking at the search results. It's very funny, actually. How scientific it all sounds. I decided the best way to describe a Runner's High is really an individual feeling or experience. It's personal. It's related to the reason so many of us continue to challenge ourselves on the road. Why we are obsessed with Pace Calculators , Runners World Magazine, weather.com, PRs & cute outfits (insert my new running skirt obsession). They are all related to the experience, and ...

Wow, I never realized how much fun I was missing out on in this cyberworld. I've already had some great comments on my blog from fellow "bloggers," friends, triathletes. It's nice to know that there are people out there interested in the same things that I am, or at least that they are bored enough to read about what I am doing to myself during this IM training journey. Either way, it's fun, enlightening & inspirational sharing my stories, getting feedback & also being introduced to so many others out there who are writing down their thoughts & adventures for all of us to read as well. So, to all of you out there - THANKS! It's now Thursday, and by the way my body feels, I'm having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that I am THIS sore AND I missed out on 4 workouts due to being sick. What would I feel like had I not missed those workouts. Well, maybe - just MAYBE I wouldn't have done to myself what I'm about to share. So - W...

So today I woke up knowing I got to get back on the training wagon. What a great feeling that was, especially after 10 hours of sleep! Yup, that's right - 10 solid hours. My body is taking this rest time seriously! It took me about an hour to get my lungs opened up enough to go for a run. So, at about 8:30am I headed out for my 50min EASY run. I left the kids behind today. 'S' took them last night, so I didn't feel to guilty. They are so much fun to run with, but at the same time it's more of a workout. They like to go FAST, and Abby who's not yet 2 is still learning the rules of the road. In fact, my left shoulder is having some issues right now due to her skillful act of bolting to the left, then the right while I'm trying to go STRAIGHT! Anyway, I knew it was going to be a SLOW run today, and I was going to try to keep my HR is the lower end of zone 2. It was beautiful out today. So nice, I was able to shed the running tights for the first time in a coup...

So, here we are Tuesday- Day 2 of training. I really think this will be my last missed workout (for now, of course). I had a break-thru last night. Now it wasn't exactly fun, but boy was it worth it. It was a coughing fit that started at midnight, and lasted until about 3am! My lungs were finally breaking free! Today has been so much better than the past few days.. I'm not as fatigue (now that I'm finally getting enough O2), and the 2 day rest has finally turned into boredom! So, what did I do to celebrate? I made it out of the house about 4pm to go get my toes done! Why not, I thought - I had my birthday gift certificate that momo got me & I had not seen the outside of my home walls since - oh, Saturday! So, now my body is on the mend, the weather has turned the page to where I like it (no more COLD days here in AZ) and I now have pretty Red toenails to start the training off with. Of course we all know what happens to those poor toes as the training wears...

So, here we are Day one of the training & I am SICK! Kinda ironic (if you read my last blog getting sick is one of my fears) if you ask me. Anyway. I did get my long ride in Sunday & I knew something was off. We did a very challenging ride up into North Scottsdale, Cave Creek & then Seven Springs. It was basically 21miles of UP HILL! When we got to the top I was done! My lungs were burning & I started coughing & I had not taken a gel soon enough. Of course I made it back down, but not the same FUN way I would normally enjoy a decent like that! Thank God for my friend (and training buddy) Sara who is a nurse practitioner. She called me in an antibiotic yesterday to help clear this up. I can't believe this silly little cold went into my lungs!! I went to bed last night at 7:30 & only woke up a couple times between that & 7am this am! How's that for resting my body? So, here I am Monday where I have to put a big RED X on my Monday missed wo...

Happy Friday! Not sure how all of your mornings started off, but here's what has happened in my day so far: Woke up, Ran 90mins (thanks for the company Natalie), did some work, ate, went to masters swim (this took some motivation, but I am glad I went!), ate -- do you see a pattern here? Tomorrow it starts all over again. Wake up, eat, go for a 3hr bike ride, eat... However, there is a little fun planned for Saturday night. We are meeting at our favorite wine bar Terroir to celebrate our friend Stacey's birthday. So, not only will it be a fun night with great company, good wine, pizza & maybe even some chocolate - it will also be a nice farewell to life as we know it right now... You see today is Friday, and come Monday I am in for a big change. Monday is Day 1 of my 20 week Ironman training schedule. Was it really 7 months ago that I registered for this thing? Really? Well, believe it or not I have made it this far with out any big freak out moments, or any thou...