Catching Up... T Minus 32 days to IMCdA

[KSH]

I think about the journey a lot now that I'm coming to the end. Debating signing up... and taking the plunge. Committing to a training plan that started right after a marathon. Riding 3-4 hour rides on a trainer because it's still snowing. Giving in and running 2 hours on a treadmill because it's 2 degrees, icy, and snowing (just 2 degrees and snow isn't enough). That first ride outdoors... only to have to ride the trainer the next day because it was... snowing. Watching the miles increase... the times decrease. Doing my first HIM on the way to IM (homegrown, since it was so early in the season). I can't say it wasn't hard, and I can certainly say that I learned a lot about myself and what "limits" actually are.

My next scheduled event after IM is a sprint (7 weeks from IM, lots of time). It's going to be a little strange trying to regroup and train for such a short distance after those 100 mile weekly rides. Not having to do the second loop... ahhh, that'll feel nice! I'll probably suck it up and schedule a late season HIM that's my real goal, depending on how I feel.

Some days I don't feel crazy. Mostly Mondays, which are my days off and I "pretend" to be a normal person (with insane hunger and ginormous thighs). Or, when I come here, or go to the bike shop.

WOW Colby! Really great reflections there. A lot of rung true with me... and the journey I have had.

Back in Jan/Feb/March I was doing 3-4 hour trainer rides... thanks to rain. Not to mention, I'm a cold weather whimp. If it was 40 degrees with 20 mph winds, I rode inside. Yep, did the 2-2.5 hour treadmill runs due to bad weather.

It is going to be weird to get on a bike to only ride 2-3 hours. Or less? HA!

Normal... yea... when I get ready at home versus the gym it just feels WEIRD. What? Shower at my house and eat breakfast at home? What?

I'm sure the other IM ladies who have finished or are training for one can relate!

[colby]

http://www.kxly.com/Global/story.asp?S=8514134

Summary of this week: I have no brain.

[KSH]

Oh yea, I posted this in my BT Training Log the other day... maybe you can relate?

Ironman Training- The Ultimate Mind F*ck*

What does that mean?

Well, anyone who has trained for or is training for an IM, can possibly understand what this means. Anyone who wants to train for one might want to know what it means.

What a roller coaster of emotions! For a good 8 months! There are days I feel strong and ready to tackle the race. Days where I feel so tired it's all I can do to get out of bed to go train.

I worry about finishing. I run my times for each discipline through my head... while I'm running, riding, swimming. What will my finishing time be? Can I do it? What are the cut off's again?

Then I remind myself that I can do it. I'll be fine. I have been training hard. I CAN DO IT!

I train and start to think about finishing and I get all teary eyed. ME? AN IRONMAN!? I am starting to tear up as I write this. I can't see how I won't be crying the whole race. HA!

I start to think about how long this journey has been and that the race is getting close. How does one hold it together the last couple of weeks, the last day before the race? How does one not just go insane? Then I remind myself that I can hold it together. I just won't think about it. Is that possible?

So yea.... Ironman training is the ultimate mind f*ck. A roller coaster that goes on for months! I'm ready for it to end, but also sad to know it's going to end.

[colby]

Oh yea, I posted this in my BT Training Log the other day... maybe you can relate?

YES. The rollercoaster could in and of itself exist in a 5 minute period. One minute, I'm awesome, the next minute, I'm afraid.

I have managed to get through this week by pretending it's just something normal people do. Thursday or Friday, check in, Saturday, bike check, Sunday, Ironman. What's so abnormal about that? This week, people put up Ironman signs in their shops... I just say "wait, there's an Ironman here?"

"Stick with the plan" is my other coping mechanism. Just keep reading and doing the plan, don't think about the fact that it runs out in 8 days. I've been practicing "stick with the plan" for the last 6+ months, I'm good at that.

If I think about it too much at night, I actually wind myself up so much I can't sleep. Before a lot of my long bike rides, especially after I got my new bike, I was thinking "I really am doing this" and it'd keep me restless for hours with that "pre-race" jitters, even though the race was far away.

I'm not ashamed to admit I got teary exactly like you describe finishing my first marathon (I don't remember any other events quite so significantly). It was such an amazing and grueling experience for me. It makes me teary just thinking about it, and the same for finishing Ironman - watching OTHER people finish anything significant (to them) makes me teary if I put myself in their shoes. I was clear eyed by the time I found my family, but those first few steps in the finish chute after I realized I finished... awesome... in the original sense of the word.

I have just been working on the assumption that I'll finish. If something comes up that prevents it... so be it. There's another one next year. But, if you train for it, it's doable.

8 days, 13 hours.

[colby]

This week, I chose a new theme song for IM. She'll be Comin' Round the Mountain. -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/She'll_...d_the_Mountain

Six white horses is a great visual for the bike. And I certainly will be saying hallelujah when I get there, and there will be lots of people out to greet me. Not so sure about the chicken and dumplings.

15 days, 12 hours.

This weekend, shorter ride, shorter run. Supposed to be a 40-50% chance of rain Saturday (my bike day) and a 10-20% chance of rain Sunday (my run day). I'll probably swap them and try to swim Saturday or Sunday afternoon depending (dragging husband out on kayak in rain not likely to be enjoyable and I can't swim alone).

I am almost disturbed by the amount I look forward to conquering the course and putting my own doubts permanently behind me. I dream of conquering the hills -- twice. I dream of running 26.2 scenic miles. What happened to me?

My biggest concern at this point is the cold swim, so I'm going to work on conquering that. Next week's weather is supposed to be similar to this week, damp and dreary, upper 50s to mid 60s. It's supposed to clear up by the end of next week to 70s, but that will only leave one week for the water temp to increase significantly. I would also hate a wet 112 mile bike ride, but that's really less of a concern (been there, done the wet hilly ride). You can always pack an extra pair of socks and take it easy on the turns.

Bib numbers on Monday....

[Wahine]

Wooooooooo Hooooooo!! It's getting so close. I wish I was doing it with you!!!

ETA: Chicken soup on the run is actually really yummy. I think I'd stay away from the dumplings tho.

[colby]

10 days, 11 hours

It's officially official... I'm number 1828.

Sunday, I rode an easier/shorter ride, only about 4 hours, 65-70 miles, with some stopping (stupid lights that aren't on timers!!) it was probably about 17mph average actually riding. You don't get anything for free here, so one direction was into the wind, the other gradually uphill. I felt much better than the weekend before, which I started underfueled and straight into hills. Because it wasn't as rolling, I was able to keep my HR very well in line, which was my goal - not too stressful, but got miles in.

Saturday, shorter run, about 12 miles, in the freaking rain. It was cold, but my dog is getting faster, and sticking with me much better. I like having my running buddy again without being frustrated that she can't run for 2 hours straight without dawdling. It still poops her out, she walks funny and can't jump into the car for a little while. Running is uneventful, but apparently my new trick is a low heart rate.

Swam on Sunday after the ride, but not in the lake, didn't have time to pack the kayak and husband into the car. It felt good, even though my hip was a little upset and my legs were tired (good thing it's mostly upper body). I have serious mental problems and enjoyed my drills. I was watching someone else swim with a weird kick pattern... that must be the "two beat kick" that I've read about but could never do, probably because I swam competitively and that's just not how you swim.

I was good about stretching after my ride and run, my chiro and massage dude were very pleased at my hip flexors, less pleased at my quads, especially the one on the outside-top, which is actually harder to stretch anyway. My patella moves very cleanly, my hip flexors do great rotation, but I still have to have regular adjustments/massage to improve my hip function, but I am hoping if I reduce mileage after IM that I can return things to a stable starting point and stay good about keeping them in line.

(My during the week workouts are pretty boring... Monday I pretend I'm human. Tuesday I run. Wednesday a short transition/brick. Thursday I ride. Friday I run. One or two of those days, I swim - usually only one because I'm trying to keep my shoulder safe.)

Wardrobe... I'm not sure my tri top (and requisite sports bra) is supportive enough for a marathon, but not convinced enough that I'm willing to switch to something else. I'm somewhat concerned about the weather possibilities - it could be 55 and wet or 80 and sunny. At this point, the most likely is 65 and sprinkles, but our weather does seem to be opening up (as I write that, mother nature reminds me she's in charge with some thunder). I'm mentally prepared for the possibility that I have to wear long sleeves/arm warmers/knickers... but I don't really want to. I also don't want to freeze in the water.

I am somewhat concerned about not carrying any protein on the run, I felt kind of drained on my HIM - but I had also not consumed as much protein on the ride as I will be now. I suppose I could buy/try accel gels or carry a fuel belt with some protein calories... solid food is a no-no for me running unless I leave time to digest (not happening during a race). Or, just gels. I know I can run a marathon on water and gels alone.. it's the 114 miles before that...

There are two reasons for tapering: the first one is preparing your body physically for the activity ahead. The second is preparing your body mentally by convincing you that you are super awesome because suddenly everything is really easy and you go super fast.

My (7.5 month) pregnant friend is threatening to paint a big m-dot on her belly to cheer me on during the race. I told her she'd probably get on TV if she did... and we'd be famous.

Tomorrow... single digit days remain. This weekend, I will probably take Lucy for a final check up (she has some tendency to slip in a couple of high gears), have a 2 hour ride/30 minute run, a 1 hour run on its own, and I swear I will swim in the lake. I will probably try to swim in the lake a couple of times in the next week, and hit the Gatorade OMG It's So Close swims.

Sorry it's so long, sorry for all the ellipses, and thanks for reading.

[Wahine]

This weather has been really crumby for training. You're almost there.

[Skeezix]

Wow, it's so close!

God, I love tapering.

[KSH]

Nice number Colby!

If you haven't been doing protein in training... I would say you might not want to try it on race day. Nothing new on race day.

I know for some, protein can upset their tummies.

I have some protein in my Infinit mix that I do, but I have lowered that a lot because I don't like the foam it produces in the drink. I also think it makes the drink taste funny.

Now I do the Accel gels with protein and my tummy does those fine. If you don't have a sensitive stomach you can probably pull those off race day.

But... nothing new race day.

[colby]

Nice number Colby!

If you haven't been doing protein in training... I would say you might not want to try it on race day. Nothing new on race day.

I know for some, protein can upset their tummies.

I have some protein in my Infinit mix that I do, but I have lowered that a lot because I don't like the foam it produces in the drink. I also think it makes the drink taste funny.

Now I do the Accel gels with protein and my tummy does those fine. If you don't have a sensitive stomach you can probably pull those off race day.

But... nothing new race day.

I have to mix up the protein drink the night before and let the foam reduce. The amount that is generated after that is pretty negligible, but I do have to mix and let it sit for about an hour. It's annoying. I do well with protein on the ride, even if I start out on a relatively empty stomach, but I do alternate every 15 minutes between just gels and drink with protein. I believe I was underfueled on my HIM anyway, and that will make a HUGE difference come the run on race day this time.

So far I can tolerate all gels I've tried (my stomach can, even if they taste terrible - curse you orange creamsicle flavor!!), and all sports drinks I've tried (though I am not a huge fan of lemon lime gatorade!), along with the protein on the ride... I just can't do solids. Maybe I'll pick some up and try them this weekend/next week and make a decision... I swear I'm making it all 26.2 gosh darn miles either way, and I can always go with my tried and true Hammer raspberry-banana. What's 5 more hours of raspberry-banana?

Weather looks nice today (today's run was in actual tri shorts and actual sleeveless shirt), but... WINDY. We can't win!

Yesterday I did get confirmation they are expecting the water to be sub-60 degrees, are requiring wetsuits, recommending neoprene caps, and allowing booties. I haven't swam with booties before... anyone have thoughts on that? I will definitely score a couple neoprene caps before I go out swimming this weekend (I WILL swim in open water this weekend).

[colby]

I'm using the breathing techniques a pregnant friend of mine is learning in her child birthing classes to get through the week.

Swam in the lake (not the same lake as the IM, we had technical difficulties locating and affixing our kayak rack and opted to stay local). Yeah, it was cold. My fingers and toes were a little chilly in the deeper water. I did not wear a neoprene cap, but will be buying one to wear for sure next weekend - I think that would help with the extremities. Not sure on the booties. Maybe I'll order some up to have just in case, and try swimming with to see the difference. Once I start swimming I can't really pee in my suit to warm up, though I imagine if I stopped after a hard effort I could. Something in my body turns off that reflex once we're moving...

I wore my heart monitor for some objective information. When I first got in, OMG cold, and swam some breaststroke and tried to switch, it was in the 140s. After I was comfortable swimming and would stop to talk to my husband, in the 120s. That "expose yourself to the shock before you start swimming" technique has a measurable difference. For my first OWS (yeah yeah, I know it's close to d-day, but everything was so cold), it felt really good. The wetsuit sure is a pain in the rear to put on, and take off, next step practice removing top while still wearing watch and running out of water.

Wetsuit lesson learned: bodyglide the poop out of the back of my neck (and wrists, and ankles). I learned this lesson last year, and forgot. My neck looks like it has hickies all over the back because of the chafing in my hairline. Ow ow ow... using some Burt's Bees magic to help me get over that ASAP so I can slap the suit back on. I will wait until it's healed (can't afford to make it worse and be MORE uncomfortable) - should be fine tomorrow.

Yesterday's brick felt good! 2 hrs bike, 30 min run (then an hour or so of swimming... too bad it wasn't in the right order, it would have been between a sprint and oly!). Riding Lucy sure does benefit my legs on the run, they feel tired (relative to starting a run fresh), but not stumpy. That or my brain has also adjusted to the concept, and that's just what we do, run after we bike. Who doesn't do that?

Lucy needs to go to the bike shop for some tuning in her "standing while climbing a short climb or riding into terrible wind" gears, not the super granny but the set right above. One or two of them want to slip if you apply too much pressure, which doesn't really help in either of the above situations, it's hard to get rhythm. We'll be going in tomorrow, worst case have to leave her overnight. Thank heaven for small (good) shops.

We saw an IM commercial on TV last night. Signs everywhere now. At lunch, we went to our local sandwich shop, who also know about my IM... love them to death, but "so are you excited about Sunday?" sure is a loaded question to be asking at t-minus 6 days!

Easy week this week, I am adjusting my sleep schedule earlier so the 4-5am start on Sunday doesn't seem so rough (you know it's going to anyway, but I'm going to TRY). I don't think too much about what's coming or I get the butterflies. Stick with the plan! As I told my husband, this is first-timer's syndrome that I have right now, I've felt it before. Everything is so unknown... after I get through it, the next time (if there is a next time) won't be like this.

Hanging in there... I think?