The Perfected Self

Hi It's Laura

I had lunch yesterday with my Brooklyn friend

It is always great to catch up friends that you don't get to see every day but it always special when they also inspire you.
I left our lunch with renewed hope, a unique perspective and some very interesting ideas. Thank you again, my friend

She also shared an article with me that I found utterly fascinating and that I am sharing with you.
When have 15 minutes to spare,please take a moment to read the article and think about other ways it can applied to your life not just to weight loss.

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/06/the-perfected-self/8970/

Play hard!
Laura

Open Letter to the Mayor

Dear Mayor Bloomberg,

I applaud your effort to make NYC a bicycle friendly city. Unfortunately it is not quite there yet. Personally I mostly ride on the West Side, from Battery Park up into the 120's, and that section is beautiful. I remember just a few years ago how disconnected it was from 59th street up. What a huge difference now.

Perhaps you would like to do the same thing for the East Side? During a recent bike ride, I started out on West 75th Street to CPW and went north. Rode across town on 110th (little scary up there and really dirty but I think sanitation is a letter for another time).

 

I found that, once I hit the FDR and the East River promenade, I had to carry my bike up the stairs to cross the FDR. Why no ramp? Would you prefer cyclists ride with the cars on the highway or in the sidewalks with the pedestrians (rhetorical really no need to answer that one)?

I finally made over just to windup on pavement stones. Do you know how uncomfortable pavement stones are on the tush (again rhetorical)? I passed by your place (you should do something about the sidewalks).

 
Odd, after I passed your place I had to carry my bike down yet another flight of stairs (good thing I'm strong!) only to hit more paving stones and super narrow pass ways. How on earth do you expect two bikes to pass each other (please answer that one)? I had to get off my bike and wait for all the incoming traffic before I could proceed (road rules are yet another letter).

And then all if the sudden the bike path ended! There were no sign informing me where to go! I stopped and asked one of your neighbors which way to I should go. She was very helpful. I wish I had gotten her name but didn’t know I was going to write you at the time.

I found the bike lane out on 2nd Avenue. I really think it could be a wee bit safer. The garbage truck blocking the bike path forced me out into traffic. This did not make me feel very happy or very safe. I kept looking for the signs to take me back to the bike path along the river. I must have missed them because I never saw any. So I went the only way I know which is down East 23rd Street. There is an entrance to the promenade there by the gas station. I think it is the only apartment building on that side of the FDR.

I would like to say that the bike path got better but I cannot. The areas that I used to know when I biked on that side of town are in need of some serious "pothole repair". If you thought paving stones gave you a sore butt try the water filled pot holes on the only path were I am allowed to take the bike. Yikes!

I finally made it down to the Seaport area. Lovely little stretch for the tourist but what happened to the southern tip of the island? Once again the bike path disappeared and once again forced into traffic. I have to say, livery drivers in that area are very unforgiving of cyclist. They just pull right out without looking. Mr. Mayor, please put more signs up in that area or at least on the bike path. I live here and have a difficult time finding it. I cannot tell you how relieved I was to finally be back on the West Side where there is a designated bike bath that is clearly marked.

Some things you make want to add to the brochures you hand out to tourist when they arrive:

·         On your left means, I am an your left (not move to your left)

·         Look BOTH ways before you cross any road in the city. There are people everywhere (not usually on the tops of the buildings either)

·         Lastly, sidewalks and pathways are pretty narrow so try not to walk three or four cross. Try single file or at minimum two across.

Your attention to these matters is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely
Laura Irving, cyclist at large

p.s. if you ever want a personal training session the first one is free

Middle of Nowhere

Hi. It's Laura.

Happy Tuesday.

So as you read we were gone for the weekend and sorry for the last late positing. You know how I like to keep you updated.

I mentioned the hills in VT and being in the middle of nowhere. Let me tell you about the middle of nowhere.

There was of logistical planning for our trip to VT. We only have one car and, once the bike is on the back of the car, we cannot access the trunk. The Husband was planning a round of golf for Saturday  morning and I had my brick. The plan is I drop him at the golf course then go back, get myself ready, rack the bike and go.

The sun is out and the temp is about 62 degrees, absolutely beautiful out. I am really looking forward to this ride. Plus I know a round of golf can take about four hours. I can do my brick, get home shower and enjoy a quiet morning while The Husband is out.

I get down to the parking lot of the Skyeship Base Lodge only to find it packed! WTF? We had completely forgotten about the Killington Stage Race going on all weekend long. Doesn't matter, I have to go. I am at least an hour ahead of their start time so I head out.

Down US 4 into Bridgewater; Beautiful views along the Ottauquechee River; Long stretches of flat and rolling hills; No people other than a few cyclist and passing cars which were not that many comparatively speaking. At the 8.5 mile mark I hit the end of Bridgewater and turn around to head back.

I am enjoying the scenery and taking in some of the leftover damage from Hurricane Irene that devastated the area last fall. It is amazing how quickly they were able to put some of the properties back together. It is also so sad to see so many homes still lying on their sides waiting to be demolished. The day is absolutely gorgeous and I see some of the cyclists of the race have already started. They are on the opposite side of the highway so I have safely avoided getting caught up in it.

With 10 minutes left in my ride which is about 3 miles from where I started, I get a flat tire. Not happy about this but I have a solution. I have CO2 cartridges in my saddle bag so I can just inflate and go.

I am on the shoulder of a major highway in VT with my bicycle leaning against the guard rail while I attempt to inflate my tire with the CO2. First cartridge does nothing. I curse. I walked a little way up the road to a pull off area just to tempt fate a little less. The second CO2 cartridge has no effect either. Now I am stuck in the middle of nowhere on a highway with no phone. Not that a phone would help at this point my husband is on the golf course and I have the car.

I did the only constructive thing I could think of. I throw a small temper tantrum on the side of the road. It was pretty classic: feet stamping, yelling, kicking and then I stopped.

How the hell am I going to get back? I have over three miles to walk in bike shoes. I decide to take them off and walk in my socks on a rock filled shoulder, stupid. I put my shoes back on and continue walking, not happy. I keep talking to myself about what to do. I consider hitch hiking (bad idea). Now mind you, this whole time, cars are passing me as is the bike race. No one stops to help me. I almost start to cry. I finally decided to ride on the flat figuring if I hurt the rim I will have to replace it once we get back to the city. I ride two miles on the flat and remember there is a bike shop coming up. I get absolutely giddy!

I walked into the store and begged for help. I forgot I was in VT not NYC. The First Stop Bike Shop fixed my flat tire on the honor system (after my shower it was the first stop we made in a day of errands and paid for the tube and the labor).

I pedaled the last mile to the car and made my transition to the run. I really did not think that was going to happen on this day with the setback but it did and I was very happy about that.

Time to relax and enjoy the weekend, which we did.

I hope you enjoyed your long weekend as well!

Play hard!
Laura

US 4- Late posting

Hi, it’s Laura,

NOTE:  I wrote this Friday morning and was waiting for my "editor" Apparently he was away for the weekend.

I really, really did not want to run six miles this morning. Last night (Thursday, 5/24/2012[Editor’s Note: This submission is late due to me]), we arrived in the mountains and the car ride up was rough. During the ski season we make the trip every Friday night and we are conditioned for it (you can train for anything). This drive seemed to last forever. When we arrived, although we were tired, we were wound up as sat up until about midnight.

One thing about being 4,000 feet above sea level is it has a different effect on your body. One glass of wine at this altitude is like two glasses at sea level which would explain my monster headache this morning. Three Advil, two cups of coffee and a bottle water and I'm getting there. Don't mention the rain yet. It’s absolutely pouring. I drink more water and more coffee. By the time I finish the rain has stopped. Time to go.

I have been planning this run for at least week. If you don't know, Vermont has a lot of mountains. So avoiding hills in Vermont is like trying to avoid the heat in Hell.

With my knowledge of the area, I decide that going down into the valley would be my best bet. I can avoid the “oh so treacherous” East Mountain Road and even the “just as annoying” Killington Access Road.

US4 is relatively flat with a nice wide shoulder. I head out in a nice bright orange shirt so I can be seen by the cars and trucks. Oh yes trucks, big ones, moving at 50 MPH coming right at you. In a word: scary. Did I mention the fog? Yes it foggy and I am running in the shoulder of a major highway in VT (genius).

I am very fortunate to live in NYC and have designated running paths. I got a taste today of how people who live in rural areas have to train. If they do not belong to a gym, they are running or riding outside in the middle of nowhere. I felt very alone out on that highway. it was just me and my iPod down the stretch of highway.

It was a daunting enough task. Add the fog, the slight hangover and some hills and I was ready to call it a day 15 minutes into the run. Of course I rationalize that with my two different training plans one says 30 min run today and the other says 6 miles I figure “at the 15 min mark you’re good and you can turn around”. I was actually not feeling all that bad so I kept going. I made the turn at mile 2.5 and start heading back. I knew the hill was steeper going back and I wanted to finish my run….Downhill!

At mile 4 I noticed cars had their windshield wiper on. I did not notice the rain at first because the humidity was so high it already felt like rain. Then it started to pour. For the next two miles it was “Cats and Dogs” and finally stopped when I got back to the car (of course) .

But now the run is done and just a Brick left for the week yay!

Enjoy the long weekend

Play hard!
Laura

Bits & Pieces

Hi again, it’s Laura

I have a plan for water consumption based on Bob Harper's skinny rules. I certainly am not going to run out and buy his book. That would silly. I think he gave away some of best tips for free on the Today Show (can you tell I watch the today show? I think I mention it every day).

He says drink a glass of water before every meal or something like that. I am taking the idea to increase my water intake and I am going to challenge you to do the same. Bob Harper is using water to help people lose weight, I just want to hydrate. So the challenge is to drink one glass of water before I start drinking my morning coffee. So this morning I turned on the tap, filled the cup and chugged the water. That’s one. I generally don't drink anything with my meals so I am going to have at least one glass of water with each meal. And if I have to measure out the water than, gosh darn it, I will.

Hopefully in a couple of weeks this will turn itself in a good habit.

Yesterday the last thing I wanted to do was swim 900 meters. I walked around the apartment nearly stamping my feet and carrying on like a child. The only problem with that was the only one a temper tantrum was annoying was me. I gathered my gear and headed out to the pool. I was very happy to see the pool was nearly empty. One to two people per lane.

As you know this is not usually the case. Since I was so tired I decided to swim in the medium slow lane. This was a smart idea. I just was not feeling the swim. I was six laps in and decide that I don't want to do this anymore and I will just quit now. I rest at the wall and start rationalizing my decision. I can't. There is nowhere to "makeup” a swim. Pools are pretty hard to come by and the only other one I know of where we are going can be swam in two strokes. I stick it out.

By the time I hit 250 meters I'm into it and happily swimming along, until...

I heard a whistle blow, I think. The next thing I know the guy who was swimming in the "fast” lane is now in the "medium slow" lane doing the back stroke. WTF? Apparently he was chased out by the lifeguards (odd, I didn't think they actually watched the water in my experience). He was too slow for the fast lane and in my opinion he was too slow for the medium slow lane. Annoyed and being slowed down not just by him but another woman as well, I hop into the "medium fast" lane. I did not want to work this hard but I actually found it easier to swim faster than to slow down my pace now that I was warmed up.

900 meters done. Yay!

Today I am waiting to ride, as of my writing, it is raining.  When does it actually ever rain when the forecast says only a 20% chance? I have a two hour ride ahead of me today. I am nervous to ride on wet roads with my slick tires so I am waiting for the rain to stop and the roads to dry out a little. I am also nervous about the route that I am taking today. I know that I can make it from my apt to the South Street Seaport in a half hour. On a weekday, going downtown is just dangerous with all the buses and commuter traffic. I have two hours and going back forth to the seaport is just not going to cut it.

I am headed north over the GWB and up 9W. I have heard of people doing this ride before and I have always wanted to try it. So today I am. I have no idea where I am going once I get over the bridge but I am sure I can figure it out. It may take me two hours to figure it out but I will eventually.

We leave tonight for the mountains. I am sure I will have some interesting rides over the weekend going up and down those mountains. I will keep you posted.

Play hard!

Laura

No Rest for the Weary

Hi, Laura here!

While everyone is heading to the beach this weekend, The Husband and I are heading for the hills and not a moment too soon. Today I’m a hater. Everyone is annoying or stupid or rude. I would really like to pull this girl’s hair on the subway for being so unaware of her surroundings (I really wanted to but I didn't). I would also like to smack the guy who is wearing too much cologne (still on the subway not in the gym).

Exercise is supposed to make you feel good. But these last couple of days, I am just too tired. I am looking at my day ahead. Even though I have already had a gym session in the morning I still have a swim to get through this afternoon, not to mention everything else that needs to get done. So I guess, not only am I tired and cranky today, I am slightly overwhelmed. I have noticed that this is a trend on Wednesdays for me an right now and I cannot change it.

I worry about myself because I know why and what happens when I am tired.

First the why, I am most likely dehydrated. I eat my fruits & vegetables, I drink plenty of coffee and tea and I drink water while I am working out. It's the rest of the day that is water deficient.  I find it very hard to drink water all day because I am constantly on the go, which makes bladder management sometimes an issue. I know I need to do a better job. I preach water but I am probably the worst offender. I am thinking of a challenge for myself on water consumption when I figure it out. I will invite you to join me. Right now the only person I know (I think) who drinks not only his share but mine as well is The Husband. [Editor’s Note: I love the stuff. I have finished 50 oz so far today.]

I also worry about myself because, when I am tired like this, I tend to overeat. I think I am hungry but it is not my body need for food. It is just the mind craving calories to keep me awake (the mind lies!). I have discussed this in previous blogs as it causes overrating when tired.

So far today I have eaten: 3 oz egg whites, two slices of turkey bacon, one whole wheat English muffin , a half a glass of milk , a Kind bar, oh and a Grande Earl Grey from Starbucks with two Splenda and a little skim milk to cool it off.  Add on a Muscle Milk Light and it is all tolled about 680 calories. This is actually not why I am still hungry and still tired. My total caloric intake is usually about 1400-1500 calories and with lunch and dinner on the horizon I am not doing too badly

I am praying for a great night sleep before my 2 hour ride tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

For now, it's off to the pool. After that, it is on to pack for our journey north with running shoes and bike in tow. There is no vacation from training.

Play hard!
Laura

A Bad Day

Hi. It’s Laura.

All I can say about today is ugh, Tuesday.

Waking up tired and sore is generally not the best start to the day. Fortunately for the first hour of my Tuesday, I am not the one who has to do the work. It’s the dog!

So another rainy day, I don my rain hat (yes a rain hat; have you ever walked a high energy 55lbs puppy and try to carry an umbrella) rain coat and my Wellies and head out the door to the park (in this family everyone runs in the park). The dog is reluctant at first and I can't say I blame him, not a huge fan of the rain when I have 9 mile run in front of me.

The nice thing about the rain is that the park is quiet. Only some die hard runners, usually a cyclist or two and other high energy dogs that have to go out and don't mind the rain are around.

All through our one hour walk I was trying to convince myself that I can run in the rain today.

My thoughts: “What if rains on race day, am I not going to go?”; “I should practice running in the rain.”; “I'm tired. I don't want to run at all today.”; “Maybe I will go home and eat breakfast then run.”; “Maybe the rain will die down” and on and on I go.

Walking around the park, I keep thinking I have no idea how I am going to get a 9 mile run done today, I 'm exhausted. All my fault too, I found American Ninja Warrior on TV last night and I could not resist watching, so stayed up too late (yeah yeah I know 11 is not that late).

I conclude that I will go home and have breakfast then head out (or not). I'm ready to go and it is pouring outside. “NO NO NO not the treadmill again!”

Yes, it’s the treadmill again. I can think of at least 100 things that I would rather do than run 9 miles on the treadmill. For example: getting my teeth cleaned, have ingrown toe nails removed, getting punched in the face, leg or basically any other body part. I think you might get the point.

To make things a little more clear for you, I am following two different training plans simultaneously. I have one for the Tri and one for the 10K I am running on June 9.

The running plan calls for the 9 miler and the tri plan calls for 60 minutes.

I set up my treadmill: TV on with closed caption of the Today Show, water in the pocket with the towel so it doesn't make too much noise and bother me, tissues in the other bottle holder because my nose always runs when I run and my iPhone resting on the console so I can take my turn at Words with Friends (still not happy about the treadmill). I think I’m good. wait, gotta pee.

Back on the treadmill, I start my run. I am listening to music and watching "the Professionals" debate on the Today Show. Nice! a whole half mile in, uh oh. gotta pee again. This can't be, I just went. I let myself go at the mile mark and by the time I get back my machine has shut off. I get it started again.

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. I about a mile and half in (technically 2.5 miles) and I have to go again. This time I leave the treadmill on. I get back and only .15 miles have passed, not bad.

At mile 2.5 (technically 3.5) I am thinking about how long this is taking and how not into I am today. Maybe I don't have to do 9, maybe I could just do 6? Could I handle the guilt later on?

I rationalize that the Tri plan only asked for 60 minutes and the 9 is for a race that I is not my primary goal. I compromise. Since the machine finishes at the hour mark, I will keep going until it shuts off. This I can live with.

After all is said and done, 7.5 miles ran and well over the 60 minutes on the treadmill. You know if I don't finish the Tri I will blame this day. Half way through the morning and I am living with the guilt just fine. I am still very tired and pretty sore from yesterday.

Just one more swim, two long rides, another long run from the end of the week, I cannot wait for Sunday or maybe just a good night's sleep tonight.

Play hard!

Laura

S@#% Happens

Hi. It's Laura

Happy Monday. or not..

The weekend plans were all centered around my having to get up at 3:30 on Sunday morning. It started Friday night taking it easy and going to bed early. One of my favorite things about Sunday is staying in bed with coffee reading the paper (it’s actually on the iPad so it’s much neater). Since I was not going to be able to do that this week, I stayed in bed a little longer on Saturday. With the Brick workout still ahead of me for Saturday, the relaxing didn't last as long as I would have liked. I know I had to get out there before everything got too crowded. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and I know both the Park and the West Side would be crazy if I waited.

Finally, at 7:30 am, I moved. One hour bike ride and 15 minute run. A public thank you to The Husband, whom without, I have no idea how I would get the brick workouts done. He waits for me to finish the bike ride and then hold the bike while I go for the run. Always when I pull up he has a huge smile on his face which makes the transition pretty awesome, considering. [Editor’s note: The Dog comes along too and isn’t quite as helpful.]

I was super happy with the brick this week. So far every one that I did, I would start to cramp on the run portion, not this week! YAY! It is actually getting easier. With that done, onto breakfast and the rest of our day.

Because of my early rise time for Sunday morning, we ran some errands and went out for lunch thinking dinner out would just be too late. When we got back from lunch we decided napping was not in the cards if I needed to get up so early. So we relaxed and watched a documentary that I have been dying to see. We were about half way through when I decided to re-check my email and figure out where I needed to go in Brooklyn. As I am reading the email, I turn and ask The Husband the date. He says the 19th. Uh oh.

The Brooklyn Half Marathon is on May 19th NOT Sunday May 19th. I missed it.

I felt awful and immediately sent an email to the volunteer organizer apologizing profusely. The head of volunteers was really sweet about it and said he has even done it himself. Although that this nice, I still felt bad. Well, my Saturday night was now open. Yeah, we did nothing. We already had our plan so why not just stick to it just not the part when you get up at 3:30 AM.

I got stay in bed a little longer on Sunday and enjoyed my coffee and my paper.

FYI, the plans we had for Sunday afternoon also fell through.

Back to work on Monday: 1150 meter swim and a new strength training regime for the

Next four weeks. Just six weeks to go.

Play Hard!

Laura

The Dilemma

Hi. It's Laura

Happy Friday.

I know I say it over and over, my runs are therapeutic for me.

Things that you don't even know you need to process seem to make their way to the forefront of your mind. Never mind the endorphins that get released that make you feel good, solving a problem or an issue that has been hanging around feels even better.

I know I share quite a bit of information with you most of it related to my training and not so much my personal life and today I will share something a little more personal.

Yesterday, I interviewed with one of the health club chains (do not ask me which one I will not tell you). When I first got certified I also interviewed with two of the major chains here in the city and I was very turned off by the corporate machine. The first interview with the first club went well. It went so well that they scheduled my second interview during the first interview and I was scheduled to meet with the general manager the following week.

I arrived the following week 15 minutes early so I occupied myself in the neighborhood so I wouldn't be crazy early. I checked in 5 minutes before the scheduled time and then I waited. and waited and waited and waited. Apparently the GM had a very important workout with the CEO and couldn't find two seconds to: A) inform anyone or B) have the common courtesy to call the front desk and respond to his page. He finally arrived for the interview 45 minutes late.

Needless to say, I was angry. Did I really want to work for a company where the GM doesn't respect a prospective employee? I don't think so. I went through the interview but was less than enthusiastic and quite bitchy. (I know shocker)

The second club I interviewed with actually required me to wear workout clothes. Having been in staffing for so many years I thought this just wrong so it made me uncomfortable. The interview went well enough but like so many companies I just never heard back. Not a yes not a no, just radio silence. This is ok since they were in a part of town that is difficult for me to get to.

After all this, I was accepted into the NYC Tri and launched Inspired!.

So the interview yesterday lasted an unprecedented 2 1/2 hours. During my run this morning I re-interviewed myself and re-played the interview in my head over and over. This morning I was very charming, very knowledgeable and had all the right answers. Aaah hindsight!

I will say that my interview yesterday was probably one of the worst I ever had. I could not answer any questions; I was nervous and giggled a lot and I was actually shy about talking about myself (who was that person?). It should have been great. Not only do I know what I am doing I am good at it and not afraid to talk about myself. I was in staffing for seven years! I have prepped hundreds of candidates for interviews, what to say, how to say it, what not to say, how to dress and how to sit. All of this in an effort to land the job and yesterday it was like my first interview ever.

I have written the thank you notes over and over on my run this morning after I finished re-interviewing myself over and over. The thank you notes of course are eloquent and thoughtful. They clear up and misgivings the interviewers might have had.

They said they would let me know on Monday. With that sentence alone, they are better than the last two I interviewed with.

So now, if they offer the position, do I take it? I have the weekend to decide if that is the direction I want to go. I will let you know on Monday

Play hard!

Laura

Does Sugar Make You Stupid?

Hi. It's Laura.

Could explain alot, huh? 


Does Sugar Make You Stupid?

Play Hard! 

Laura

The Grind Starts to Take Its Toll

Hi. It’s Laura

So it has happened sooner than I thought but it has happened. It started yesterday morning.

I knew I had a 9 mile run in front of me for Tuesday and the forecast was for heavy rain in the afternoon. Fingers crossed that it holds out.

It was my day to take The Dog in the morning. The Dog and I set out to chase squirrels and birds in Central Park (please note it is The Dog doing the chasing of squirrels not me). The temp was coolish but very humid. I was excited that I might be able to get my 9 in before the rain started. It sprinkled on and off for the next hour. And of course on the way home, the sprinkle turned into a heavier sprinkle. Still not bad, I can run in the rain. Got home, lubed my feet, lubed other body parts, ate my GU and looked out the window. Pouring!

I consider it for a half a second and then think about how long 9 miles takes to run and doing it in a heavy down pour, off to the gym I go.

I can't say that I have never run 9 miles on a tread mill. I have. I trained for my first half marathon on the treadmill because I was afraid of doing the distance outside. I figured if anything happened indoors I could get medical attention immediately. As I trained for that half, I grew to hate the treadmill. People say running is boring because, I bet, THEY RUN ON THE TREADMILL.

To keep myself occupied, I watch TV and listen to music. I put the closed captioning on the TV so I can read what's being said and focus more on the music during commercials. I even occasionally take my turn at word with friends if I slow my pace enough.

So not only is the treadmill boring but it shuts off after an hour. Oops. I imagine that is my cue to get off but since there was no one around and it's not prime time I just restart it (I had more than my share of arguments with fellow club goers when I was training at NYSC).

At mile 7 or mile 2 since I had to restart the machine, I felt a very unpleasant rubbing on my toe. No, no, no it can't be. I keep going but now I am completely focused on my toe. Mile 8 seems to take forever. Mile 9! Thank god! I sit down on the end of the machine to examine my foot. Sure enough, I have a blister on my 4th toe that is the size of my toe and it hurts a lot. To pop or not pop that is the question. I check a few runners’ websites and conclude it needs to be popped.

After I performed minor surgery on my toe, it felt quite a bit better and has progressively gotten better since then.I hope you understand a blister generally is not a big deal but since I decided to do the “surgery” myself I risk infection which could completely derail my training.  Yay! But now I feel like I am running out of time. I have so much training to do and feel like I don't have enough time each and every day to get it done.

Last night, I tossed and turned with wicked dreams and awoke exhausted. I had a lifting session that needed to get done in the morning and a 105 minute (1 3/4 hour) bike ride to get done today. All I want to do is to nap. I started my strength session this morning with no clue as to how I was going to get through the day. I dug deep and somehow got it done. Now, the bike ride should be interesting.

Play Hard,

Laura

1000 meters

Hi. It's Laura.

I don’t often talk about my swimming other than the drama that happens in the pool and that I am swimming.

I must have turned a corner because any drama that has happened in the pool has not involved me for the past few months. As a matter of fact, my swimming has been pretty enjoyable lately. I don't mean the actual swimming part but more the social interactions in the pool itself.

A couple of months ago, I realized that I needed to get serious, about the swimming portion, if I was actually going to do this triathlon. I would find all kinds of excuses to not swim: tired, no time, don't feel well. Now mind you, I always went because I knew it had to get done. But I am pretty good at finding an excuse.

Once in the pool, my goggles would fog, my swim cap would slip, it was crowded and the people were mean. The only real thing I was saying with all of those excuses is “this is hard and I don't really know what I am doing and I'm scared”.

Of all the excuses though, the crowded one was the truest. When I am good at something, I am very competitive, whether I want to be or not. I find myself even racing myself if I am alone, whether that is running or riding the bike.

A crowded pool is tough to deal with. There are a lot of people with their head in the water, not looking up and not paying attention to anyone else around them. This all leads to potential for getting kicked in the face (at least in my mind). The crowded pool makes me very uncomfortable because I don't think I can keep up with people in my lane. So I swim very fast and get out of breath. Then it takes me forever to recover and I start all over again.

I resolved to focus on the swim and started treating a crowded pool like a training arena (I have been told that I won’t be the only person in the Tri with 3,000 swimmers also signed up). I moved from the medium fast lane to the medium slow lane. Why did I really think I was medium fast (it is because I am but I needed not be for a little while)? In the medium slow lane, I slowed down considerably. Once I did, I found my stroke.

I tried reading how to swim and it just wasn't making sense for me. I tried looking at videos on line and that didn't work. Taking a lesson was not going to happen. So every day I would go to the pool and every day I would swim (not literally every day, just a few times a week). Some days it is quiet other days it is not. Today was not a quiet day and I have finally figured out my stroke.

I know which arm stroke works best and how to turn my head to efficiently bring it out of the water to breath (except when I’m tired then all hell breaks loose with my arms and legs). I have even dabbled with other strokes. My fear of the water is subsiding and I am growing more comfortable every time I go. Today I swam my longest swim to date: 1000 meters.

I know this only the beginning of more long swims before the big day but I finally feel like I have had a breakthrough in the swimming world.

Play hard!

Laura

Not in the race

HI. It's Laura.

Happy Monday!

I ended last week's training with a six mile run. I chose to switch Friday  & Saturday's workout winding up with the run on Saturday just in case there was a race in the park. Slow, cranky and slightly hung-over from the fundraiser we were at the night before (not enough food, a little too much wine).

How right I was!

The Healthy Kidney Race was just about to get underway when I entered Central Park.

I run the loop clockwise because that is the direction most races are run in the park. The normal flow of traffic is counter clockwise. When I run in the opposite direction of the general flow, I stay as far right as I possibly can (aren’t those the rules of the road, stay right pass left?).

I asked one of the volunteers which side of the cones I should be on, she said the left but I saw so many people running the normal route I decided to go back to hugging the curb. That and the cyclists cursing me for running on the way opposite side in the wrong the direction.

Having made that decision, I settled down a little, when all of the sudden whistling and shouting from behind, the race was underway, time to get out of the way. I went back to the left side of the cones. I do believe Saturday will be the one and only time (other than television) that I will be at the front of the pack of a running race.

First the bikes with whistles come and clear the route, followed by an ambulance and a police car, then a truck. A truck? Apparently the truck leads the pack and it has the timer on it. The man who was at the front of the pack was at mile 2 and I saw 8 minutes had passed on the clock. I didn’t really need to read the clock, he passed by me, like I was running in place. WOW! The pack was that was fighting for second place was also impressive as was the smaller packs fighting for third and fourth places.

Around mile 3.5 on my route the bigger crowds started catching up with me, these people are still running 8 & 9 minute miles and the thundering footsteps of couple thousand people can be quite inspiring. I climbed the big hill and the "hill no one talks about" on the East Side running right alongside the race. The difference of running alongside the race and running the race is that the racers had their own lane while I was busy dodging pedestrians, cyclists, other runners and volunteers. grrrr.

Some sections of the race were cordoned off to keep the runners together and everyone else out of their way, other areas only used cones. When it was only cones, the runners would drift out in the non-racers land. The park can get very narrow in some areas. Hey, if I can't run in the cones you can't run outside of them.

To their credit, just before I got very cranky about it,  the cyclist that was clearing the path in the beginning was chasing the runners back inside the cones. Thank you!

By the time I hit mile 5, I was done with the crowds, the park down the south end is very narrow, they had put the tape back up to the keep the runners in, but the crowds were just so annoying ( remember slightly hungover) . I knew I was close to the finish line because the music blasting out of the speakers were drowning out my iPod. I decided to leave the park and run along CPW.

This was a mistake. I forgot there are traffic lights and cars that I have to stop for. jeeeeez. I just want to finish ( I was having a small fantasy about pancakes)  . Traffic lights forced me onto the sidewalk and more traffic forced me to the sunny side of the street. I am so close to the end. Now I am dodging pedestrians, cyclists, strollers, traffic, traffic lights and more runners. I finally hit my street and it’s shady and quiet. Aaaah. I ended my run in the usual spot and realize I have run an extra half mile. Oops.

Running the race without running the race gave me an interesting perspective and allowed me to see the front of the pack which I won't see at my current running pace (very unlikely to change). What I did see however, was my pace changed. I ran my 10K on Saturday at a much faster pace than I normally run. Thank you racers for helping me pick up the pace. And breakfast turned out to be 2 scrambled and corned beef hash.

Last week's recovery week is over and I am moving on to more intense training with only 7 weeks left to go.

Play hard!

Laura

Duh!

Hi. It's Laura.

As we get closer and closer to July 8  (triathlon day) the more obsessed I become.

During every swim, run and ride, I am imagining myself during the actual race. In my mind's eye, I finish every time. YAY me. I have not imagined and injury or a crash and my superstitious mind won't allow me too either.

Every day I get up and go practice one of the three disciplines sometimes two in the same day. Sadly there are not just three disciplines there are at least five. Transitions are the fourth discipline and getting up at 3:30 in the morning is another one. How on earth do you train for early rising you ask? You can and you can't.

You already know that The Husband and I are early risers, he is definitely better at it than I am. He also has the dog to help. Regardless we are both out of bed by 5:30 am and, if not already going, getting ready to go.

The start time for the Tri is 5:00 AM for the elites and the rest of us will be following shortly thereafter. It looks like I will be entering the water around 6:30 AM. But there is a whole lot more that goes in front of that. At this time, I am not sure if I have to actually go to the "hosting" hotel and be shuttled into the start area or if I will be able to get to the start area on my own (I will find out at the athlete briefing in July). Regardless the transition area, where you set up all your gear around your bike, closes at 5:30 am. So now is the time to practice getting up in the middle of the night and getting out the door.

An opportunity came through to me via email yesterday from the New York Road Runners. If you volunteer for this year's Brooklyn Half Marathon (13.1 miles) you are guaranteed entry in to next year's half marathon. Of course I may not want to run a half marathon next year but I might. So I signed up. Well, well much to my surprise, I have to be in Brooklyn at 5:00 am to help set up the fluid station.

I was flabbergasted at my own stupidity at first. I then decided to treat this as a training situation. What better way to practice getting up in the middle of the night than getting up in the middle of the night.

So next Saturday night while some of my friends will still be out on the town and some of them will be sleeping soundly, I will get up at 3:30 and get my tired, sorry, butt to Brooklyn to pour fluid for athletes that have been training for months to complete their own personal goals. And while all of you go out for brunch, I will be taking a nap.

See. You can put a training plan together for any discipline if you try hard enough.

Enjoy the weekend and sleep well.

Play hard!

Laura