What I learned and next steps

I won’t lie and say I wasn’t disappointed and some things because for those of you that know me, you would immediately say “bullshit.”  I can say I didn’t think of anything like that during the race, and to this minute, I hold no regrets and am proud of myself for finishing.  That being said, I am not happy with certain things and know I could have done better.  But, that is what makes me go and makes me want to do another one.  It’s the complete thrill of it all.

Preparation

I think I packed everything I needed and, in that sense, was good to go. I do need to figure out better what to eat the night before and the morning of.  The 10am start threw me off because I am used to exercising first thing.  My next races (half marathon, sprint tri, etc.) are all early morning starts and I think that will be better for me.

Swim

Ugh.  I really wish I just didn’t suck at this.  Matt took a long hard look at people’s times and, except for the people that came in the top 5, most people had one or two super strong events and then fell off in one.  That made me feel better.  But, really… why do I just suck?  Why can’t I get this? It is so frustrating to me.

I know a part of this swim was my inexperience with open water, so I have signed up for some open water clinics.  The first is in a few weeks and will just give me some time with an instructor in open water.  I’m also going to try to get out a few more times where I just swim in a lake, maybe bring Ellen.  I need to do this because it was such a bad experience for me.

Type A, texting before the race

But that doesn’t help with the endurance factor.  I think part of it is just plain boredom.  This happened with running until very recently. I am SO f’ing type A (um… some of you can stop laughing).  If I wasn’t so heavily medicated with my migraine medications at night, I would NEVER fall asleep because of thinking of other things.  It took a dear friend (of now 17 years… holy shit) to suggest listening to a book on tape for me to really enjoy running.  I can completely zone out to the book.

So – where is my solution while swimming?  I start off fine. I can think of all the corrections (and there are a lot!!) I’m supposed to be making to my stroke, and I realize I’m a lot stronger than most people in my lane.  Oh… but then I get SO bored.  And my mind starts to wander.  And I forget everything.  And when your stroke isn’t right when you swim, you become inefficient really quickly.  And then you get tired really quickly.  And… it’s over.

I’ve been thinking about trying (this is a HUGE operative, “trying”) to learn to meditate.  There are courses on meditation while running.  I wonder if the same can apply to swimming.  Obviously not a deep mediation because I’d sink to the bottom of the damn pool – but some kind of mediation where I can focus better and control my thoughts and my breathing.  Focus on what I’m doing deeply.

If anyone has thoughts or has read on this, I’d appreciate insights!

Bike

Running in from the swim to the bike, my legs were pretty wobbly, but I know how to work on that. I was pretty happy with my mount on my bike.  Where I failed completely was my gears and shifting.  Luckily, I have a man who understands bikes, and a brother who is a pretty accomplished cyclist.  I feel very confident that I can greatly increase my ability in this area and therefore cut my time significantly fairly easily.

I have seriously strong legs (not bragging, it’s just a fact. I think it’s genetic because my brother does too). If I have one thing going for me as an endurance athlete – triathlons, marathons – it’s my legs. More time on my bike will allow me to use those to my advantage.  I’m trying to talk Hubs into researching and buying a bike.  He won’t buy a road bike, but is interested in exploring cyclocross, which is growing in popularity around here. I’d love to be able to go on rides with him!  And I’d learn to get my damn water bottle out of its damn holder so I wouldn’t be so damn dehydrated! HA!

Run

A lot of my struggle with this was the fact it was trail running and that I was dehydrated.  I wasn’t thrilled with my time and know I could have definitely pushed myself harder.  It was hot (oh, cry me a damn river, slacker… yes, that is another internal conversation), I really, really needed some water (that is a serious thing), and my legs felt like jello.  The whole jello thing is something I can do something about. 

I know I didn’t train well enough for transitioning between events and that was just that I don’t have enough time.  But I WILL do more bricks – where you do some of one event and go immediately into another, and do it again (ex: bike 5 miles, immediately run 1 mile hard. Repeat 3 times).  I think I did bricks two times, 1 swim/bike; 1 bike/run.  Um, yea.  Obviously not enough.

So, while I am obviously not getting more time in my life, and I start a marathon training program on the 28^th for my 1^st marathon on August 19^th, there are things I can add to my workouts that I think will make me a bit stronger for next time!

• Research what to eat night before and pre-race
• Keep plugging along with swim practice.  Look into meditation
• Participate in open water swim clinics and exercises
• Work on gears and shifting bike
• Get in at least one ride a week on bike, even if only 10 miles of speed work
• Schedule in brick workouts
• Smile and HAVE FUN!

·         

The Run - Race Day Roundup

I knew pretty much the minute I “ran” (again, said lightly) into Transition that things were not going quite according to plan.  T1 had gone fairly smoothly.  But as soon as I got to my rack, all hell broke loose.  I tossed my helmet and it ended up on the other side of the rack so when I tried to rack my bike (which is odd in itself – you rack it by the seat, which is odd), it got caught, Matt told me later, on the helmet.  I spent a good 30-45 seconds trying to get my damn bike racked!  I WAS SO FRUSTRATED!  I seriously almost just tossed the M-Fer to Matt across the rail.  I was pissed.  Finally, got it racked and bent to take off my bike shoes and put on my sneakers.

And then, a cramp gripped my middle.  Remember when I said I hadn’t had any water? Um.. yea.  I started to feel it REALLLY bad.  And out loud, under my breath, “Oh shit.”  I had to run!  But, got on my shoes, grabbed my hat, and off I went. 

It was hot, man!  Matt told me later that had I been in 10 minutes before, the clouds were still over the sun for the most part, but it had opened up and it felt brutal!  Thank goodness I had picked up a hat to run in on Saturday morning.  I hit the first water station and grabbed a little sip of water and down the hill I went, back toward the water.  The first part was ALLLL gravel, not a great running surface.  And then back up a hill on gravel, but at the end was more water, so that was a great incentive to keep going.  That first section was a bit difficult because I was still getting my legs back after the bike, it was all gravel, there was a hill, but at least it was shaded.

Next section was grass and flat… woo hoo!  And I picked up some speed.  Also, every once in a while I could hear a family member (read: Ellen or Matt) yell.  Funny how inspiring that was during that run.

Then, the looooong third section.  All dirt and rock and in the open so HOT!  Going down the hill wasn’t bad.  There were two water stations and it was just put your head down and run.  I could feel the heat and I could feel the rocks and reminded myself that I truly hate trail running, especially when, at mile 2, my ankle rolled (I still feel it).  I knew I needed more water, but just took little sips and splashed the rest.  I kept telling myself, “Dude, this is only 3 f’ing miles.  You can run 20. Just stop bitching and finish this shit.” (Yes, I have entire conversations with myself).

The way back?  Different story.  I had to plead with myself a bit more.  My body had decided that the people walking were MUCH smarter than I was.  But, I refused. Seriously – the run was where I was strong! NO WAY was I going to walk!  And I didn’t. 

So, back up the hill I went.  And I started to hear the familiar sounds of my man and my big-mouth beautiful daughter.  They saw me and they started to cheer.  And cheer me the whole way in they did.  And as I turned the last turn, I saw everyone else at the big ‘ole finish line, screaming me in. 

And you know what.

I finished.  I did what I came to do.  I became a triathlete.

Hell yea.

The Bike - Race Day

Coming out of the water, my legs felt a little wobbly, but after a few meters (it was 75 meters from the water into Transition), I felt much better.  I had to find my transition area first… but I will admit, it was a little disheartening to run in and it be… empty!  Sure, I know I was in the last group, but I expected it to be this bustling hive of activity. There weren’t many people there as I did start 15 minutes after the first wave and while there were many people still left in the water (some from groups that started before me… no, I wasn’t last!), I guess I just expected more people.  Strange, huh?

Anyway, found my area, peeeeeelllleeed out of my wetsuit (easier than I feared), got my shoes and helmet on and grabbed my bike and started the slow jog out of Transition.  I decided long before that I wasn’t going to try any fancy advanced techniques like already having my shoes clipped in or anything.  Nope, nothing like that for me.  And, my T1 time wasn’t all that bad.  I had studied transitions a lot – videos, reading, etc.  I don’t think much can really prepare you for them though other than just experience.  Sure, I was actually REALLY happy with where I placed my gear at set-up and what I brought, but it is shear experience.

So, up the hill to the road.  I could have run faster and could have really pushed it harder.  I will take this more seriously next time.  I mounted my bike really well (for me) and I was off!  Again, best thing I did for this whole tri was have Matt drive me around the bike path before the race.  I understood the route, the turns, where big gravel lay, the hills.  It was really helpful to feel the route beforehand and will do this on every future race – triathlon or running – from here on out.

But, I did come to really feel my inexperience on the bike.  First of all, I do not completely understand the gears and shifting.  I am fully comfortable with one ring on my super uber fancy shmance gear system, but there is a second ring, and one that I don’t even know how to get into. BUT, I did realize that I REALLY NEED IT.  There were many points that I felt I was spinning and spinning my pedals but it wasn’t doing a damn thing.  Luckily most of those times it happened, I hit a hill or something and it ended up being okay.  But the last two miles, I NEEDED THAT TORQUE.  It got so frustrating that I was actually swearing out loud.  I was pissed.  I know 100% I could have made up at least 5-8 minutes on the bike.  And that is frustrating to know, just because!

Second is that I needed water. Desperately. I hadn’t had any after the swim and it was our first truly hot (way over 80 degrees) day in months. And while I have a water bottle and it was full, I was terrified to reach down and grab it for fear of falling.  I could feel that I was totally dry and knew I still had a run, albeit short, coming up.

The third thing is that my girl parts hurt.  Road bikes are not the easiest thing for some girls, me included.  And I Googled on the way home, being in some pretty serious pain, that while on upright bikes (like cyclocross, mountain bikes, etc.), you are supposed to sit on your butt bones, road bikes like mine, you sit forward, right on, well.. yea, you get it.  So, I’m going to try a few things and hopefully figure out a way to alleviate this. I can work through pain, but I don’t want to.

12 miles done, it was a downhill dismount… and I dismounted well!  If you have read, you know my hate-hate relationship with my clips, so this was big.  But WOW!  What crazy legs I had when I got off my bike.  I actually said, “WHOA!”, making the volunteer laugh.  But I “ran” (said lightly) down into the Transition Area, my family cheering, to start T2. 

 

And, I made it through the bike.  Again, HUGE learning experience.  All in all, I really enjoyed the bike and know I can really kick it up where I can do damage to my own time with some pretty simple corrections and things to work on.  

The Swim - Race Day

The swim portion of this triathlon was an in-water start.  Some start on the bank/beach where athletes run in and then dive, but this one, we stood in the water in our group (gray swim caps – last group) until the group ahead of us went and then waded out to the start area, treaded water for a few minutes and then the horn.  Being in the water for a few minutes before heading to the start got me used to the 66 degree temperature of the lake.  It really didn’t feel that bad to me – a combo of the wetsuit and adrenalin – and good ‘ole Yankee blood, I’m sure.  Then we headed out to the start!

I was having fun at this point.  The announcer gave us props for being first timers, and I yelled, “WAIT!  This is a TRIATHLON!?!?! What the hell?” which gave everyone a good laugh. As always, when I get nervous, I have to laugh.  I looked back to shore and saw my whole loving family, yelling and screaming, and I gave them a HUGE wave. I searched and searched for Matt, but couldn’t find him.  My wonderful husband was searching for the perfect photo op spot! HA!  Then, just a second before the horn went, I yelled, “GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!” and everyone in the water cheered. I do love being an extrovert sometimes. :-D

And we were off… and for the first maybe 2 minutes I felt great.  Like, “All RIGHT! I’ve got this!” Yea, I was kicked in the head and the body.  And I was running over people. But I felt ok.

And then it went downhill. Fast.  I couldn’t see where I was going.  There were no lines on the bottom.  It was dark.  It was cold.  There were no people on either side of me. And my heart rate started to sky rocket. And my breaths started coming WAY to quickly.  So – I did what my friends had told me to do – I flipped over on my back and started to kick…

And for about 65% of the 750 meters, I stayed JUST like that. L

I’m telling you what – the open water kicked my ass. Hard.  Every time I flipped over, my heart started to race and my breath started to come too quickly.  I know I have a strong stroke and I could have made up SO much time, but I really started to have to tell myself, “this is not going as you planned.  Finish this any way you can. Just finish.”  So I did.  I would flip over occasionally and swim. But as soon as I felt uncomfortable, I would go back on my back and kick hard.

Soon enough, the end was near.  I took the last turn and swam with everything I had left.  I started to hear the wonderfully LOUD booming voice of the love of my life and then the sounds of the rest of my family screaming, yelling me in.  And I was soon running up the stairs (wobbly legs, wobbly legs…), on the grass mats to T1. 

Frigging A.  It may not have been pretty, but I did the swim

It's RACE DAY - Roundup

Pulling into the race area was intimidating.  While the night before there weren’t many people there, by 9:10am on race day, there were thousands.  Cars everywhere, people of all shapes in sizes, wearing all sorts of fitness gear walking with bikes and backpacks.  I was trying to act cool… like I knew what I was doing.  I was determined to be like Chrissie Wellington – I was going to smile, always.  I was feeling calm and relaxed for the most part.  The sun was shining, I felt good… and that was really all I could ask for.

First thing I did was rack my bike and get my gear out in my area.  I knew the fundamentals of my transition area, but didn’t know how THE TRANSITION AREA worked.  What I found out is that you are racked based on your number.  So, I had to find where my number was in this huge area of bike racks and that was my little space.  And then unpack how I see fit without crowding anyone.  Six bikes per rack – and my little space.  I didn’t even know how to get my bike ON! But, I learned by watching, got my gear out and I was good to go. I think I did okay, too.

Walked over to get my timing chip (goes on your left ankle with a special strap and stays on the whole time) and to get marked (permanent marker – your number on both arms and front of both legs above your knees, then your division/age group on your left calf).  Then, I went on a little jog.  Nothing fast, more to get my legs moving and the blood flowing.  It felt GREAT to move – and it was probably good to run on the trail a bit to get used to it.  I was probably only running 5 minutes, but in the process completely lost Matt.  I got really frustrated – nerves.

But, in the meantime, my brother and his girlfriend (who I was meeting for the first time – and who is wonderful – thank God because it would have sucked had I not liked her on THAT day of all days, right??) showed up.  My brother is my inspiration in a lot of things and having him there to keep me calm and basically tell me to grow a pair and shut up was helpful.  He is pretty much the only person in the world that can, or will, do that.  And I love that about us. 

After seeing them both, and yet another visit to the bathroom (er, porta potty), it was time for me to go get into my wetsuit. After one mishap (um – I put it on backwards.  THAT would be nerves, folks), I was in.   And… the rest of the family showed up!  Three little girlies and my mom and dad!  Initially I hadn’t wanted them there, but as soon as my huge cheering section showed up, I was so very happy they were there.  I knew seeing and hearing them was really, really going to be wonderful.

And, after munching down a mini Cliff bar (if you haven’t had these, you should – 100 calories, they are the perfect size for me before and during workouts), we headed down to the start!  It was about a 5 minute walk from the Transition Area to the lake start and I was calm and joking, which I thought was good.  By the time we got there, music was playing and the announcer was just about to start instructions.  So, I took a few pictures with everyone (we joked that nobody looks good in wetsuits) and then had to walk away.  I really had to start focusing. 

 

Because I was swimming “Novice” – the designation for those of us that are total newbies – I was in the last start group of 6.  That was good for me because the first horn went off at 10am and I had a full 15 minutes to get my breath, cheer a bit, and see what was doing!

So…. A lot of big hugs and kisses, and I sent people away!  HERE WE GO!

Pre-Tri Roundup

Well, in case you haven’t heard (heh), I finished my triathlon yesterday. And I am happy to say that I went into it and came out of it with exactly the right frame of mind.  I finished.  I didn’t go in trying to race a clock or anyone else.  I didn’t come out angry that I didn’t do well or my best on certain event.  I am really happy that I finished.  And I really had a great time!  It was fun.  I didn’t expect to come out saying that, but it was!

I’m going to take this post to just give a little overview of the weekend before leading up to race day, then race day, and then am going to dissect each event in later posts.  Those are more for me to remember and learn… they may bore the hell out of you (sorry!).  I know that’s a lot, but I want to remember certain things about each event.

Saturday was a whirlwind day – First soccer game of the year for #1, running here and there.  Being, well… mom!  When we finally got home, Hubs ran out to find the perfect bike rack for our cars.  It is the first time we were traveling and he wanted to get one for mine (which we were planning on bringing, a sedan) and then one for his – our family SUV. But, due to the fact my bike is made of carbon fiber, they don’t recommend putting one on the back of a car… who knew?  So – my car was out and UP it goes on top of the SUV.  I love that my man is a researcher; I trust that whatever he gets is the right thing.  By the time he got home to install the rack, I had the baby down for her nap and had packed my transition bag.  While I had seen checklists and had been purchasing things for months, actually having everything together in one spot, in one bag was CUHRAZY.  There is so much you need for actual race day to go into one bag.  I mean, seriously!  I am so glad I had done my research, and even happier I decided to buy a transition bag at the last minute.   It was very smart to have everything in one place, easy to reach, where I knew where I had packed it.  Took some anxiety out while I was setting up.

So – we had seriously JUST decided on Friday night to go down on Saturday.  Because the race didn’t start until 10am, I had always just assumed we’d get up early and go… but as it got closer, I started to get a teeny bit anxious.  And it ended up being a great move.  The directions they gave us were bad, so off the highway, where it should have been 25 minutes, it took us on Saturday afternoon, almost an hour to get to the race site.  I would have been PANIC CITY!  Not what I would have needed.  Plus, it obviously let me sleep and not worry about getting up early (not that I’m not used to it) and drive for 2.5 hours before the race.  So, all in all, a good move.

Got to the race site on Saturday at about 5:30 and checked in.  While Matt called around to find us a hotel room, I got my number (the West Virginia area code, obviously the first thing Hubs pointed out) and looked  around a bit.  There was a pre-race meeting, mostly attended by us newbies and I learned QUITE a bit.  The biggest thing was that… um, OH – the run was all trail running!  This was a big thing for me because I don’t run off road, I am a road runner.  And, as I have mentioned, I was counting on the run to help me.  Ugh.  But, not getting disheartened.  Everything else seemed like I had learned looking at maps, and after the meeting, Matt and I walked down to the lake…. To just peer at my nemesis ;-).

To the hotel he found, threw our bags and my bike in, and off to “the steakhouse.” See, we were basically in the middle of nowhere.  The town we ended up staying in is a trucker town – caters to truck drivers. So, we asked the lady at the front desk of our hotel for somewhere to eat, she said, “there’s a steak place or a pasta place.”  A steak and baked potato sounded perfect to me… so off we went. Um, well… so… We pulled up to a $9.99 for a 16 oz. steak place.  And let me just say, I know I am spoiled now for living in Washington, DC, but wow.  I ate MAYBE a 1/8 of it and the potato.  It was the absolute worst.  But it was hilarious.  We laughed the whole way through. 

Back to the room, a bit of prep for the morning, and off to sleep.  Okay, I won’t lie… I took some nighttime cold medicine to help me sleep.  Antsy-pants.  And My Man was there all night to hug me back to sleep when I rolled over.  I seriously have the best husband in the world, hands down.  He was there to anticipate, to do, to be.  He had no idea WHAT I needed or WHAT to expect… but he sure tried.

Morning came, up and at ‘em!  And off to… Denny’s. No, seriously.  Denny’s had the healthiest food in the area.  Oatmeal with apples, raisins and honey. Which, coincidently, is what I eat most mornings (but, after I workout).  The whole timing of this race had me a bit anxious.  As you know, I workout super early, then eat.  Of course I would have SOMETHING on my stomach before any race, but having to eat a full meal, then wait around for hours?  Eh… not cool.

After a shower (yes, I shaved my legs… um, hello?), packed up the car and off to the race site.  We got there earlier than I had to, so one of the best things I did was ask Hubs to drive the bike course.  VERY smart move because it let me feel it out a bit.  While no huge hills (Thank you Lord Jesus), there were some ups and some crazy turns.  Also a lot of gravel that it was good to know about.  Plus, being a first timer, I didn’t know what “chalk lines” actually looked like.  Seeing them on the road was helpful.

So – then into the area!... and time to post this beast! (if you’re still here… thanks for being a trooper).

It's TRI TIME!

Well… it’s here.  So funny because I know I’m only doing a Sprint, but my heart is racing a mile a minute.  I didn’t get some of the last minute training – or training in general – done I really wanted to do.  I still don’t know how to transition into the bike (T1).  I just ran out of time!  I am still not uber convinced I am not going to sink to the bottom of the lake during the swim.  I have been warned that I may panic during water entry, I have been told so many times that I will be kicked and punched and swam over and, when I do the same, I can’t stop and say I’m sorry, because it is expected. 

I feel fairly confidant in my physical ability, in my conditioning.  I have really been working hard.  Have I done everything I have wanted? No.  I have time limitations that I came to grips with early on.  But I am in better shape in many ways than I have been in in a very long time. 

But I am nervous.  Very nervous.  And I know it is because it is my first triathlon since I decided to take this on seriously.  I made a commitment to this 4 months ago and it is here.  And my heart is racing and my mind is racing.  I need to calm myself and remember that so much of this me being able to focus.

I need to remind myself that tomorrow is not about time.  I am racing Novice, not in my age group.  I did that so that I won’t focus on time or standings.  I gave myself ONE race where it doesn’t count officially towards anything.  So that I can take a deep breath and ENJOY THIS!  Be proud of the fact I’m a mom of three that, just 15 months ago weighed 110 pounds more than I do now and could barely walk up my stairs without breathing heavy – and now I’m going to run in with a smile on my face after 2 other events.  I am going to be proud of myself that I am going to get on this frigging bike that I LOATHED when I bought it just a few months ago and now race it.  And I AM going to finish this half mile swim, dammit!  I really do want to enjoy this.

So, my transition bag is packed (HOLY CRAP you need a lot of shit for race day!!), I’m about to pack my bag for our stay in some crappy hotel down near the race site,  and… we’re off! 

To everyone that has sent me texts, emails, commented here or on Facebook, sent a prayer or positive thought my way, I want to thank you.  I am a person that really does better when I have people cheering me on, questioning me, being there and letting me know I’m not alone.  And you all are helping me along the way.

Pray I don’t sink tomorrow!