Tired.

I am moving from my lovely apartment, however, I would like to note I still swam my 2500m today.

Tomorrow I am taking off since I am going to finish the move & then Saturday is a 65 mile ride & Sunday I am going to ride (not sure the distance and run)

Next week is Texas Iron Triathlon Camp!! WOO-HOO!!

Mental Monkey...DARN IT!!!

“It is our own mental attitude which makes the world what it is for us. Our thoughts make things beautiful, our thoughts make things ugly."

Let me set the stage for you folks:

This was my first Hill workout since the Austin Half.

Time: 545 AM
Place: Wilke
Workout: 1 mile warm up, drills, 8 times up Wilke, 1 mile cool down.
Colleen's Thoughts: Ugly.

I don't know what it was. Maybe it is that I have a lot of different things coming at me this week? Maybe I was just tired, cranky girl who didn't want to challenge myself this morning but I let my mental game get to me.

I felt ok during the warm up, but I just don't like this up and down in the weather. Seriously, back to 40 degrees?? I mean, I just ran in 70 degrees on Monday. I couldn't feel my hands or my toes.

Got to the hill, was told 8 repeats and given the plan for how to attack each one. Going up the first time I felt like my feet were moving through mud. So immediately, I said..."Colleen, you cannot do 8. you will do 6." WHAT????? This is not me? Who stole my confidence from me this morning? Please, give it back!!!

By the 4th repeat, I am sure the look on my face was total defeat as "attack the hill, high knees, strong recovery at top" were not a part of my mental vocabulary. It was more like, "I can't wait for coffe! What will I eat for breakfast? Why am I here?"

End result.....I did finish all 8. I am too much of a perfectionist to not complete the workout, but had I switched over my mindset and tried to enjoy it it could have turned out better for me in the end.

The mile cool down back to my car all I did was beat myself up over the bad attitude that was on display all over Wilke this morning.

I think it was Churchill that said "attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." ouch. I could have used that this morning.

Good thing is, I am back at Wilke next Wednesday, hopefully a different report will be coming your way!!!

Anyone? Core? Tonight? J&A's? 530 PM?? See you there!!

Hungry.....

....and it's only 8:30. I had my first morning swim with the T3 Training group. I am going to continue swimming with them for my Ironman training. I need the accountability in the water the most. I would rather not swim, however this is not going to help me complete 2.4 miles.

I showed up at 545 AM, jumped in the water and completed a 2700m workout. It was good and hard at the same time.

Then I quickly went home, showered, had some oatmeal with strawberries, a bit of Kale on the side, took my vitamins and I am now sitting at work at 830. And guess what folks, I am hungry, I want to eat both my left and right shoe.

Is this normal? I am going to be hungry all morning, I don't think I packed enough snacks? Will I need to make a trip to Whole Foods?

On a completely different note, last night I had good workouts. 30 minute run & then core class. Then went to Casa with many good friends. I had missed Monday night Casa for some time now, and so it was good to be back!! Many good laughs...I have such good friends.

Recovery week....sort of.

Monday- 50 mile ride (after 13.1 mile run on Sunday) tough ride, Dam Loop with River Place & Swim Clinic...about 1500 m

Tuesday- rest, + 30 minute Yoga (this was super smart)

Wednesday- 30 minute ez run, core class & final swim clinic. 1900 m

Thursday- Texas Iron Core & Strength workout. 1 hour, 15 minutes

Friday- 2300 m swim & Yoga.

Saturday- 50 mile bike ride, (same ride as Monday)

Sunday- 7 mile run, easy...super easy.

Totals:
Swim- 5700 m
Bike- 100 miles
Run- took some recovery this week because of Half Marathon, I did 1 hour 30 minute & 7 miles.

iPods + Bike Riding= No

I just don't get it, I really don't. It was an absolute beautiful weekend in Austin, not too hot, not too cold. Not a cloud in the sky and well, you can smell spring. It's here and that means LOT'S of bike riders out and about. This week I rode the 50 mile Dam Loop (with the wonderful, hilly add on in River Place....quite awesome this weekend since my legs were more recovered from the Half marathon.) as I approached the top of 620, I see a cyclist in front of me, with head phones on...not just one ear bud (even though it's equally as dangerous) but with both of them in. I yelled "on your left"...nothing. No acknowledgement, no moving over to the right a bit as he was hugging the left shoulder to begin with. He said nothing. I got alongside him, startled him and THEN he gave me a dirty look. REALLY? Don't make me get off my bike and kick your ass kind sir!! I am riding safe, not you!! I called out where I was, and because you were jammin' out to Miley Cyrus's latest album you didn't hear me. Why then the dirty look? Or was that because I was passing your ass....I digress.

A few moments later I saw another cyclist that I recognized....wearing headphones, and this was a coach for a training group in town. At least set a decent example?

I don't get wearing your iPod for a ride, it's just asking for it. Music can make you zone out and truthfully you can't race with it, so why choose to wear it during training. If you want music, go sit in a spin room at a gym and pedal to your heart's content, but DON'T put my life at danger out there because you can't spare a few hours without the tunes.

Here are some things you can do on the bike that require no tunes:

Especially on those unbelievably beautiful days, just take in all that is around you.
Meditate or Pray. (God will be ok if you do either of these with your eyes open)
Maybe focus on your cadence or mph in a way you haven't before.
Set goals for the season.
Or just enjoy the fact that for those few hours you have no cell phone, no computer, no TiVO..nothing digital holding you down. You are completely FREE for that time. I know this is one of the reasons why I really love to ride. I cannot be reached & it is 'me' time.

If you are a friend that is reading this and rides with headphones, please stop...it's cause I care, cause I want you around for life. I don't want to lose you to some kind of accident because you could have prevented it had you known what was going on around you.

It's official...I GRADUATED!!

As you all know, I had signed up for the T3 swim clinic last fall, that clinic was cut short by a nasty bike crash that had me sitting on my couch for about 5 weeks. I came back the end of January to complete it because I want to be able to swim with T3 for my Ironman training.

On Wednesday, February 20, I became the first class of 08 to graduate from this clinic. Pretty exciting folks....and what is awesome is my underwater videos showed major improvement! I just need to build up endurance now and continue to focus on good technique.

My goal with this clinic was to feel more efficient (which I do) and to be able to do a race, and not start my race after the swim portion. I think by the end of this Tri season that goal will be accomplished. I will always be an average swimmer, but that is way better than my first 2 seasons of Triathlon.

I highly recommend T3's swim clinic for those that may not be sure of the water and their efficiency. Mo & Chrissie will break your swim down only to make you faster.

So glad I graduated....now I gotta swim 2.4 miles in June!!!

Confessions of "the one who Slept in"

Carrie, you gave me props for Dam Loop and then Wilke. I have to be honest... I had every intention of getting to Wilke in the morning. It didn't happen, the alarm went off at 5 AM and I quickly turned it off and then didn't move from my bed until 7 AM. Yes, it just so happens that 7 AM is now considered sleeping in!! Since 4 of the 7 days a week I am up at 5 AM, sleeping in is 7 AM.

I still had a productive day of working out, ran 45 minutes before Core Class. Went to Pat Evoe's core class, which totally rocked. It was the right kind of tough that I needed....some recovery and some kicking my ass. Then after core, I went to my final night of the T3 swim clinic. Yes, everyone I graduated and now I am able to swim with the big kids. It's quite an accomplishment as many of you know, swimming is NOT my thing. I am actually glad it is over, I learned a lot, but I also learned I really hate swimming at 715 PM. I am too tired and not focused at that point. I really love swimming early mornings, which is what will start for me this coming week all the way through my Ironman. Anyone want to join?

I am looking forward to a weekend of beautiful weather!! I will be out on my bike on Saturday, a 50 mile ride and then 60 minute run on Sunday.....maybe a swim if I am feeling up to it! Oh, and Yoga with Hannah on Friday night, that is going to be awesome!!

I am moving apartments next week, so be patient with me if the blog is at a standstill.

Happy almost Friday & onto our weekend o fun!

Recovery Ride?

So the plan was to ride an easy 40-50 miles yesterday, Monday, after crushing the 13.1 miles. Note to self: You do not ride with Jeff W. if what you want is a recovery ride. We ventured out to do the Damn Loop....(it is actually Dam Loop but I choose to spell it the other way because quite often during the ride, that is what I am saying....Damn, I am awesome!! right Chad?)

After climbing up 620, and on my way to 2222, the traffic was getting crazier, so we opted for a nice stroll through River Place. (this is a neighborhood you can cut through to avoid the scary downhill that is 2222) I asked Jeff, "are there any crazy climbs, cause my legs are feeling the pain of yesterday." Jeff replies, "nothing too crazy Colleen, a few rollers, that's all."

Jeff lies.

The picture above is of River Place, you must go way down to eventually climb back up to then go down to reach 2222. In all truthfulness, this a ride I will do again, it is perfect for training and a very safe neighborhood. I certainly felt my legs last night in any movement. No worries, I am not in pain, just pushing my body where I have not gone in awhile. I am resting today. Only some yoga this morning to stretch it all out.

Thanks to Vanessa for being on this ride with me. It was nice to have a friend that would yell at Jeff alongside me...however, you are married to him and had to look at him all night. I got to say goodbye once we hit J&A's shop.

Thanks to Chad for not passing me, even when I "kindly" told you to. (I know it may have sounded like shouting or yelling, but really I was just trying to talk over all the wind and traffic!)

Thanks to Jeff for not telling the truth about this ride and in all seriousness, thanks for the "help" when my legs were shot. Thanks for pointing out the deer on the side of the road when I could care less. Thanks for riding your mountain bike and always going faster than me on my road bike.

Thanks to Janessa. Janessa is the coolest couple in Austin, and I loved being outside with them on such a perfect day.

Tomorrow morning, Wilke.....gulp.

Total Mileage: Week ending Feb. 18 ( I will include the holiday)

Swim- 4500 m
Bike- 40 miles (I did one less spin class because of Austin Half)
Run- 25 miles (with one really awesome Half Marathon!)

No beers until AFTER the big race, and I took down 2 Shiners with friends to celebrate!!

GOOD GOOD WEEK!

1:55. Austin Half. Delivered.

***Disclaimer, I know my race reports are way more detailed. Mile by mile, yada yada yada, however, this race.....as you will see was more than mile by mile for me, it was a huge breakthrough of believing in who I am and what I can do. here it goes!!

Uh Huh. That's right. Having made the decision to just work for a solid Half (knowing that the Ironman will bring a Full Marathon, you know, after a small 112 mile bike ride, whatever.)....what a great day this was for me. Here is the back story friends, my PR was at the OUC Half back in um....2003, running a 1:48. I haven't been able to come close to that since dear old cancer of two years ago. Well today was my day. I just wanted under two hours, and I wanted it BAD. I have been working on attacking hills and I could hear coach Jeff in my head, "high knees Colleen, relax the shoulders" and each hill I encountered, I absolutely KILLED. I was excited to be passing people rather than just wanting the pain to be done. Today, February 17, 2008, I stopped doubting myself and what I can do. I didn't let the mental game play me, I played it and this time...I won!! I felt worn out at the end of this half, and I knew I left EVERYTHING out there on the course. Probably one of the most emotional finishes I have ever had, EVER.

I have this new found confidence for my big race in June and I could hear that kick ass Journey song in my head...."Don't Stop Believin'....Hold onto that feeling!! " yes friends, today rocked. Oh and by the way...OUC Half in 2003 pretty much flat, Austin Half, NOT flat, not even close to flat. So I am stronger...uh huh, I am!!

A few shout outs if I may....

My new friend Carrie for killing 20 miles today. She is doing Ironman AZ in April and had 20 miles today so she did 7 before the half and then ran the half. I actually ran into her before and after the race which was awesome! We have been keeping up with each other on our blogs....her link is to the right, Tri To Be Funny.

Mandy W. for taking on the full and totally rockin' it!! Way to go!!

Johnathan D. for finishing with a 3:25, so stinkin' proud of you, how do you get that fast? Man!!! You rock! Way to go!!! So proud of you man!! (insert High Five!!)

Desiree B., mother, wife, killer athlete, over-all smart & fun lady that also just happened to survive cancer. She rocks. 4 hour marathon. Way to go!!

And last but certainly not least...Miss Magzilla, FIRST Marathon, pulling a 3:50 on a tough course, running as a Gazelle! So glad I got to see you Finish!! Ironman CdA, here we come....you know what Maggie? Shake 'n' Bake!!!

I'm so excited....

and I just can't hide it, I'm about to run Austin Half and I think I like it....OH YEAH!!

(sung to the tune of Pointer Sisters, I'm So Excited.)

Tomorrow is supposed to be beautiful weather and I got 13.1 miles on my plate.

I am ready....and of course I know you are waiting, anticipating......the full race report.

Until then....good night Austin

Austin Half Marathon

After a tough Wednesday morning workout, I took the rest of Wednesday to rest the feets. I didn't go to core that night. I got up early Thursday morning, went to the pool and did my swim workout of 2200 m. Crazy to think I need to go twice that to really get the 2.4 + mile distance in for the Ironman. Swim was the only workout I did on Thursday.

Today, Friday, I got up and went to the track to do an EASY 25 minutes per my schedule. I may or may not have skipped during a few moments on the track! :) I just felt carefree and like I am gonna rock the race this weekend. I feel I am playing things really smart and have given myself good recovery but will go in with not completely rested legs, which my coach says is smart training for my A race in June.

I got home around 2:00, (called it an early day at the office due to many mornings, weekend and nights)!! I went through a 20 minute Yoga tape to just relax my soul and do some visualization. It was helpful as I needed to calm my heart.

Now just relaxing at home, I have an early morning with teams for TNT, then AT&T expo, then Pasta Party and home to rest.

Early morning on Sunday....a shout out to Maggie the Marathoner...her FIRST marathon!! Kick ass!!

Barton Springs...545 AM

This was the second week at Barton Springs and what a great workout! I am really starting to enjoy the pain-fest on Wednesday mornings! Today was a 1 mile warm-up, and then a 1.5 mile loop X 4. During the 1.5 mile loop, the hills we encountered were to be attacked and then 75% effort on the flatter sections. By the third lap I could tell I was working hard. My running partner, Mandy, helped with the pacing. Mandy, do you think you could come run the 26.2 in Idaho with me at the end of my Ironman? Each loop we stayed in between 11 & 12 minutes, which I was VERY happy with. As I am training in these first few months, I know that strength is very important and with each of these workouts I can see that building!

Swim clinic is tonight & then I will rest up for the Austin Half Marathon on Sunday!!! I am feeling good and hope to finish as close to 2 hours is possible! But if not, then it is good to be outside, alive and healthy!!!

Is it Monday again???

Yup...Monday's always seem super slow. Hard to get up and motivate myself to get up after a long weekend of training and go into work.

And then work seemed to tick-tock, tick-tock by ever so SLOWLY.

Finally it was time for me to head down to J & A's for a 30 minute ez run and Core class, which the instructor didn't show up for and so my friend Randy taught, which was fine except that I found myself modifying a lot of things because he was going back to the old skool Adam Reiser teaching and my body doesn't need that before The Austin Half this weekend.

After that is was off to T3 for some swim action. We learned a few more drills and we only have 3 classes left before I can just join the training group and SWIM.

I somewhat lost count but we did around 1500 m last night at swim. A lot of stopping to learn new stuff but that's ok.

Alright, that's all. Pretty boring Monday. Tuesday is my day of REST and I am ready for that!!!

Totals

Forgot to put this.....

Total Mileage this week:

Swim: 4000m
Bike: 65 miles on the road, 1 Spin Class
Run: 20 miles

2 Core/Strength classes
1 Yoga class

& 3 beers!! :)

Weekend Warrior!!!

It is Sunday afternoon and I had 2 really amazing workouts this weekend.

First- 50 mile bike ride from Progress Cafe (followed up by a delicious sandwich and a cold beer). It was nice and flat and not too challenging, just getting in the distance. I rode with the Half Iron team for TNT and it was cool to see a few of them take on the 50 miles for the first time. I ain't gonna lie, this team is strong. I focused on high cadence and really maintaining that throughout the ride. I was the sweep for this ride, so I had some time to work on this. :) It was an absolute beautiful day to ride in Austin. Weather was in the 70s by the time we finished and not cold when we started.

Second- 90 minute run today. I got up at 6:00AM and drove down to the Veloway to run 90 minutes before the Cap Tex team had a bike clinic. (I work with TNT for those that don't know, so this was the first week on bikes) I was excited to do this run on my own because I needed to clear my head and really push myself without help of friends or coach. And I succeeded in just that! I ran along the feeder on Mopac (with my headlamp OF COURSE!). The feeder is quite rolling when you are running it and my legs took a few minutes to adjust to the asphalt since I had been running on Trail for the last few weeks. But about 15 minutes in, I felt super strong and kept a consistent pace for the 90 minutes.

I am hoping the "tired" and "medical" scare was just that....a scare. I felt solid this weekend with my 2 workouts. Tomorrow I will swim, and I am excited about that!! Gonna try and go 2500 m tomorrow!

I will sit back with some salmon, asparagus and glass of wine this evening and enjoy the Grammy's!

Cheers!!!

Texas Iron...Run/Strength

Tonight rocked and I actually got through the workout feeling really good. We met at Clark Field at UT and had a circuit of different Core exercises followed by one lap of the track. We did the Circuit + Run 4 times, and I felt really strong through each round. I actually think I had a few more rounds in me....but I didn't tell the coaches that, especially since I was still feeling my legs from the Hill workout on Wednesday morning, THANKS JEFF!!!

Could the "not feeling too tired after 4 rounds of the circuit" mean I am getting stronger and 1 year of Core workout is paying off? That certainly feels good.

Thanks for all the emails & calls about Dr. stuff. I have no answers yet, I just know that my vitals are not exactly normal, my blood work is weird and I am tired 90% of the time. Since my history calls for them to be worried, they are running my tests through EVERYTHING. I should know something early next week? Or at least know what the next step is.

Well, it is 1030 PM right now, and that is LATE for me to stay up!! Tomorrow is an early morning swim at 6 AM. Good times. Can't wait.

Actually, I am excited cause I missed my T3 swim on Wednesday night due to my car not starting. And I was really mad I couldn't get there.

Tomorrow is Friday which means....THE WEEKEND! I am doing a 50 mile ride with a few friends on Saturday & an 8 mile run on Sunday.

And the weather looks like it is supposed to be AMAZING! YIPPEEEEEEE!!!

Wildflower Wednesday

515 AM alarm goes off. Got up. Drove to Zilker, Barton Springs Parking Lot for a workout with the TNT Wildflower team. It kicked my ass. 1/2 mile warm up. 10 repeats of an 800m loop, with a fun hill. 1/2 mile cool down. 6 miles total. My legs are TIRED, I am TIRED. By the 8, 9 and 10th loop I felt as though I might throw up (there was no food in my stomach to throw up however). Mandy was my running partner and good Lord did I need her this morning.

It was one of those workouts where you really dig deep and then you leave it all out there. Got my coffee and my breakfast tacos, now I am going to sleep for a few hours and then on to the Hospital for some tests.

I still feel pretty week, but don't know if it's something medical or just from the workout.

I still got Swim practice tonight with T3, so hopefully I can make that.

Tired Tuesday

I am tired today.....and don't know why. I didn't go to Texas Iron tonight cause my body is exhausted. Ugh. I will get up and do a hill workout with the TNT Wildflower team tomorrow. Hopefully that will go ok.

I am getting some tests run at the Hospital tomorrow. Good thoughts that all is ok.

Monday, Monday

As the old Carpenter song goes, "rainy days and Mondays always get me down..." but not on February 4, 2008. It was a good Monday. Got up and "slept in" until 745 AM. Went to work, got quite a bit accomplished and the day went by fast (thankfully).

Met my friends Thiele, Randy and Vanessa for a really great 3 mile Tempo run, then Core Class at Jack & Adam's (and what I call my Monday night date) to find out that yes, I was getting stood up. Sigh. The normal instructor was not teaching and the guy that taught...yeah, he is kinda a tool. Still a decent workout though but I missed Josh.

After this it was off to T3 Swim Clinic. We ended up putting in about 1900 m because we were able to swim for an hour, 15 minutes. We learned a few new drills and I am really starting to see a nice rhythm with my strokes. We are doing a lot of 75 m drill sets but I can feel it all beginning to click...which is GREAT!! 2.4 miles is a long way to swim!

Today (Tuesday) I have a run workout with Texas Iron tonight, which should be fun and challenging as well!

Good start to my week, it is nice to be feeling 100% again!!

She's Baaaaaaaaack!!!

Well, after a week of letting all the crud move through my body (which by the way is the super smart thing to do) I was able to get out on my bike and do 35 miles yesterday and today, I did a 10 mile run. And truthfully felt really really great. It was hard to take Sunday through Friday and not do anything except a few core classes and two yoga classes. My dr. said yes to these because I was able to keep my heart rate down. Accelerated heart rate actually hurts you when you are sick, that is why rest is best and you will come back stronger.

It was a perfect day for a bike ride and I rode from Jack & Adam's to Westlake & 360 to meet up with the Wildflower team where they were doing Bee Caves repeats....and then back to Jack & Adam's, making sure I did a repeat of Lost Creek out there and on my way back. (It is a rule for me on the bike, if you ride past Lost Creek, you must do one repeat!!)

And then today, just kept it on the trail and ran with my friend Mandy, it was a nice easy pace and 10 miles was PERFECT!! Plus, it was overcast and a slight breeze. Great day for a run.

I am gonna rest this afternoon cause it's time to ROCK OUT to Band of Horses tonight at La Zona Rosa. It's the end of my birthday week....sigh.