Check out all those acronyms!
BB = Basketball (practice) Brick = Too much going on with my work lately + some slacking + Susan having to go to the hospital on her day off to deal with critically ill baby (so many prayers sent) + rescheduled basketball practice at YMCA = 1 hour bike/run brick workout on Friday afternoon while Coach Terry tried to keep the girls interested in his confusing defense strategy.
Forgot my music (boo!). I warmed up on the track with a quick 0.5 mi. Then, I decided I should cut myself a little slack so I put the stationary bike on a random workout with an average level of "6". Was able to get closer to the 14ish mph that I can do on my bike. I went 6.3 miles. Decided to knock out a mile on the treadmill (1% incline - variable pace though I tried to keep 5 mph which is tough for me). That was it - practice was about over.
MMNW = Monday Morning Naked Weight = 166.0 = UGH! I have been dancing all around the low-ish 160's for ages. I haven't been consistent with my healthy eating (ha ha ha - what is that?) and have indulged in too many cokes, etc, etc. And now it is catching up to me as I trip back up past 165 for the first time since last spring. Grrr....which brings us to:
HBBC12 = Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge 2012 = Amanda at Run to the Finish is hosting this event once again. This year, she is charging a nominal fee, but is packing the HBBC with more opportunities to share, connect and win prizes. Truthfully, the prizes are a nice touch, but what made me sign up is that if it weren't for HBBC11, I wouldn't have lost 7 lbs between last Thanksgiving and New Years last year! I think having a challenge (silly as it might be) out there will help motivate me to get in more produce (man, my body has nearly forgotten what a vegetable is!) and more exercise. I'm totally up for friendly competition so if you want to join me, check out the info on it HERE. If you decided to sign up, use the coupon code RTTFFAN and get $10 off. Then come and share with me this journey towards a healthy holiday season.
My weekend was full of mom duties and not much exercise. Today was crazy with work and I'm worn out. It is cold and dark and I am wishing I would've made it to the pool today like I had planned before work got the better of me. Oh well, at least we got our jack-o-lantern carved. Too bad the girls don't have basketball practice tomorrow.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 691.9 mi / 1000
Run: 291.4 mi /
350
Monday, October 29, 2012
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Basketball Brick
As usual - life can't ever go according to plan. Some kind of major equipment failure at the water treatment plant in town left about 75% of Jeff City without water (thankfully, not our house) and they called off school at 11 AM. I was planning on working while the kids were in school and sneaking in a swim before coming back to town. Thankfully, a neighbor brought them home, but I didn't want to leave them unattended for too long lest the all out war begin. So I headed home.
Then had to take my daughter to a Scout thing and then to basketball practice. Here is where I did luck out. Basketball practice is at 7:30 for an hour at the YMCA. We signed in that we were there for practice, but no one looked twice when I (a non-member) snuck off to do a workout while the Superdad that is our coach took on 8 girls (with other parents there to help so no worries of me shirking my duties).
I started with a 0.5 mi warmup on the insanely short track (1/14 mi per loop at this facility). Then I went and found a stationary bike to knock out 6.3 miles on. I remember having this issue during CTER's Ironman last year - not really knowing what "level" to put the bike on to try to mimic riding outdoors. I put it on a "random" workout averaging between "Level 7" and "Level 10" (out of possible 25?). I felt like I pedaled hard, sweated a lot and had a decently elevated heartrate so it was annoying for the machine to tell me I was averaging 11-12 mph and that it took me over 30 min to get in the miles. I really prefer outdoor riding!
Went back to the track so I could watch the end of basketball practice (track is above the courts) and knocked out another 1.5 miles before they were huddled up for their end of practice "Go Angles!" Our schedule continues to be completely fubar'd by school crap going on this week so who knows what I'll be able to get to tomorrow or Thur, but at least I know there is another hour set aside at the YMCA on Friday afternoon when we have another practice!
I saw all sorts of pics this weekend of my friends' kids going off to homecoming and it occurred to me how soon my son will be in high school (3 years) and so quickly behind him his sister (another 3 after that) and I know I will *BLINK* and they will be off to live their own lives. So while being a mom makes being an athlete a bit more of a challenge - I will really try not to wish these years away and be so thankful that they are with me every day. Had a friend post on FB yesterday a video with what I think needs to be my new parenting mantra: "The days are long, but the years are short!"
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 685.6 mi / 1000
Run: 289.9 mi / 350
Then had to take my daughter to a Scout thing and then to basketball practice. Here is where I did luck out. Basketball practice is at 7:30 for an hour at the YMCA. We signed in that we were there for practice, but no one looked twice when I (a non-member) snuck off to do a workout while the Superdad that is our coach took on 8 girls (with other parents there to help so no worries of me shirking my duties).
I started with a 0.5 mi warmup on the insanely short track (1/14 mi per loop at this facility). Then I went and found a stationary bike to knock out 6.3 miles on. I remember having this issue during CTER's Ironman last year - not really knowing what "level" to put the bike on to try to mimic riding outdoors. I put it on a "random" workout averaging between "Level 7" and "Level 10" (out of possible 25?). I felt like I pedaled hard, sweated a lot and had a decently elevated heartrate so it was annoying for the machine to tell me I was averaging 11-12 mph and that it took me over 30 min to get in the miles. I really prefer outdoor riding!
Went back to the track so I could watch the end of basketball practice (track is above the courts) and knocked out another 1.5 miles before they were huddled up for their end of practice "Go Angles!" Our schedule continues to be completely fubar'd by school crap going on this week so who knows what I'll be able to get to tomorrow or Thur, but at least I know there is another hour set aside at the YMCA on Friday afternoon when we have another practice!
I saw all sorts of pics this weekend of my friends' kids going off to homecoming and it occurred to me how soon my son will be in high school (3 years) and so quickly behind him his sister (another 3 after that) and I know I will *BLINK* and they will be off to live their own lives. So while being a mom makes being an athlete a bit more of a challenge - I will really try not to wish these years away and be so thankful that they are with me every day. Had a friend post on FB yesterday a video with what I think needs to be my new parenting mantra: "The days are long, but the years are short!"
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 685.6 mi / 1000
Run: 289.9 mi / 350
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Powering Through
I may have overestimated my abilities yesterday. By the time I sat on the cold metal bleachers (well - not that cold, it was nice at the game), I was stiffening up pretty good. The hike up and over the hill at the stadium back to the car made me wince a little. By the time I was in bed trying to sleep, I was really regretting the extra running. Every time I'd change positions, the various spots of soreness were fussing at me. It made for a bit of a long night.
The boys headed to the gun range to sight in rifles for deer season so we (the girls) slept in and hung out with the newspaper and such this morning. We went to mass when they got back and then out to pick up some pumpkins and gourds for our fall decor. Struck out at our usual patch so just went to the grocery store. The down side of 11:30 mass is that half the day is gone before you even really get started.
Came home and really wanted to take a nap, but there wasn't time. I laid down for about 10 min, but was afraid of sleeping for too long so I got up and dressed for my bike ride and assembled my water bottles before loading my bike into my car. I got out to Summit Plaza about 2:45 and waited until almost 3 before Bruce showed up. We waited a little longer and Walter, Brie, Eric and another lady that Bruce and Walter work with showed up. So we started a little late.
Then Brie led us astray at a Y intersection. I wasn't sure of the route, but wondered if it had been wrong. No biggie - we decided to double back. After we were back on the road we had meant to take, Eric's tire blew. The cloud cover was coming back in and it was a bit windy (not as bad as last week though). I visited with Brie while the other guys got the tire changed. But then we got going again and flew down the hill to Hwy 94. Traffic was heavier than usual so we stuck pretty close together and powered through towards Hwy 54. No one was too keen about getting on the highway, but we got back onto the side roads pretty quickly. The hill by the winery was kicking my ass and by the top I was totally sure I was not doing another loop. Bruce needed to get home too and by the time we bailed, I think the motivation to go further was draining from the group.
We had planned on doing two - 11 mile loops, but with the backtracking on the first, it ended up being closer to one - 18 mi loop. I got home in time to put everything away, shower and sit down for a bit before my husband put dinner on the table. It wasn't very fun, but I powered through and got it done. Not quite the 22 I was shooting for, but all in all - I'll take it. I just hope that sleeping comes a little easier tonight and I can get my butt to the pool tomorrow. Will take some ibuprofen in a little bit with hopes of it kicking in about bedtime.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 679.3 mi / 1000
Run: 287.9 mi / 350
The boys headed to the gun range to sight in rifles for deer season so we (the girls) slept in and hung out with the newspaper and such this morning. We went to mass when they got back and then out to pick up some pumpkins and gourds for our fall decor. Struck out at our usual patch so just went to the grocery store. The down side of 11:30 mass is that half the day is gone before you even really get started.
Came home and really wanted to take a nap, but there wasn't time. I laid down for about 10 min, but was afraid of sleeping for too long so I got up and dressed for my bike ride and assembled my water bottles before loading my bike into my car. I got out to Summit Plaza about 2:45 and waited until almost 3 before Bruce showed up. We waited a little longer and Walter, Brie, Eric and another lady that Bruce and Walter work with showed up. So we started a little late.
Then Brie led us astray at a Y intersection. I wasn't sure of the route, but wondered if it had been wrong. No biggie - we decided to double back. After we were back on the road we had meant to take, Eric's tire blew. The cloud cover was coming back in and it was a bit windy (not as bad as last week though). I visited with Brie while the other guys got the tire changed. But then we got going again and flew down the hill to Hwy 94. Traffic was heavier than usual so we stuck pretty close together and powered through towards Hwy 54. No one was too keen about getting on the highway, but we got back onto the side roads pretty quickly. The hill by the winery was kicking my ass and by the top I was totally sure I was not doing another loop. Bruce needed to get home too and by the time we bailed, I think the motivation to go further was draining from the group.
We had planned on doing two - 11 mile loops, but with the backtracking on the first, it ended up being closer to one - 18 mi loop. I got home in time to put everything away, shower and sit down for a bit before my husband put dinner on the table. It wasn't very fun, but I powered through and got it done. Not quite the 22 I was shooting for, but all in all - I'll take it. I just hope that sleeping comes a little easier tonight and I can get my butt to the pool tomorrow. Will take some ibuprofen in a little bit with hopes of it kicking in about bedtime.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 679.3 mi / 1000
Run: 287.9 mi / 350
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Homecoming 5K + Bank 5K = 10K!
So this week totally got away from me. I had quite a bit of work to do so that was part of it. It remained pretty windy with rain coming in to the mix too. But mostly I just wasn't getting out there to get it done. Thursday I totally had the opportunity around lunchtime, but just put it off and put it off until it was too late. I lucked out that my daughter's basketball practice was at the YMCA that evening though. I saw another mom do a quick warmup on the short track that goes around the basketball courts (1/16 mi) so I went up to join her, but she'd already left to hit the elliptical. I did about a half mile and then went to find her and did a couple miles on the elliptical while watching the Cardinals game. She had to leave to get her other kids so I went back down to watch the end of practice, but I'll put it in the "partial win" column. I'll only count the 0.5 mi of track running towards my running goal though. I'm not sure the elliptical counts.
Friday was an early release day so I didn't get much of anything done because kids had to be picked up at 1 PM so the teachers could have the rest of the afternoon to work on grade cards which come out next week. They are off part of next week for parent/teacher conferences too. Ugh. Then we headed out to the homecoming parade in the evening. My mother-in-law went with us and I convinced my daughter to go spend the night with her so I could have the morning free to head out to the Helias Foundation Homecoming 5K.
So technically, this isn't MY homecoming. I went to the public high school here in Jefferson City, but my husband went to the Catholic high school as will my children. The foundation helps support the high school and its activities which in turn helps keep the tuition as reasonable as possible (still about what I paid for college in the 90's, but I try to think of it as less than I paid for daycare when my kids were infants). Since my son will start there in 3 more years, I figure I have a vested interest in supporting the foundation and it was a good excuse to get a few running miles ticked off my goal.
Since the race didn't start until 9:00, I slept in a bit and then got dressed and read the paper before going over to register and get ready to go. I saw a ton of people I knew (some from our parish and some others including one family that we used to go to daycare with - their 11 year old finished in 22 min!). It was fun to chat with everyone before the race and before long it was time to take off. We started in front of the high school (oh, and so nice to be able to use the school bathrooms instead of port-o-potties!) and then went east on Swifts to Jefferson to Stadium (up a hill that doesn't look so long/steep in a car) to Southwest and back to Swifts to loop again, but then finished on the track. I held on to Julie from our parish (a little older, but a very consistent runner) for the first mile and I was pleased with that, but she dropped me on the hill. I tried not to walk too much, but it was hard. I think I might have PR'd. I will have to wait for the official time, but I saw 34:17 as I was almost at the finish and I think my PR is in the 35's.
Had half a chocolate chip muffin afterwards, but it was too rich so I tossed the rest and had a little grape juice and a bottle of water. Visited with more people I knew and then headed home. I was toying with the idea of running to the Walmart branch of our bank because I had two big checks that needed to be deposited. My son said I should definitely do it and I had time before I had told my daughter I'd pick her up from grandma's (half block from our house and on the way back). So I put my music on and headed back out. My hip flexors protested a bit, but the sunny and cool morning was really ideal for a run. I made decent time there, got a cup of water from their Culligan cooler while I did my deposits and then did ok getting back. Got to my mother-in-law's as they were heading out to lunch. My son joined them and I am catching up here.
Now I need to face the giant pile of laundry and get cleaned up myself while my husband is at work and the farm and before we head out to dinner and the football game tonight. Tomorrow I'm supposed to hit the road in the afternoon for a bike ride with Walter and whoever else he conned into joining us. He mentioned a "Heartbreak Hill" so I hope my granny gear can handle it. Then it will be time to come home and see if the Cardinals can come back from last night's loss and put the NLCS behind them. Fingers crossed.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000 (have got to get to the pool this week!)
Bike: 661.3 mi / 1000 (going to struggle to hit this goal)
Run: 287.9 mi / 350 (am not feeling worried about this one - hope it is still a "stretch" goal)
Friday was an early release day so I didn't get much of anything done because kids had to be picked up at 1 PM so the teachers could have the rest of the afternoon to work on grade cards which come out next week. They are off part of next week for parent/teacher conferences too. Ugh. Then we headed out to the homecoming parade in the evening. My mother-in-law went with us and I convinced my daughter to go spend the night with her so I could have the morning free to head out to the Helias Foundation Homecoming 5K.
So technically, this isn't MY homecoming. I went to the public high school here in Jefferson City, but my husband went to the Catholic high school as will my children. The foundation helps support the high school and its activities which in turn helps keep the tuition as reasonable as possible (still about what I paid for college in the 90's, but I try to think of it as less than I paid for daycare when my kids were infants). Since my son will start there in 3 more years, I figure I have a vested interest in supporting the foundation and it was a good excuse to get a few running miles ticked off my goal.
Since the race didn't start until 9:00, I slept in a bit and then got dressed and read the paper before going over to register and get ready to go. I saw a ton of people I knew (some from our parish and some others including one family that we used to go to daycare with - their 11 year old finished in 22 min!). It was fun to chat with everyone before the race and before long it was time to take off. We started in front of the high school (oh, and so nice to be able to use the school bathrooms instead of port-o-potties!) and then went east on Swifts to Jefferson to Stadium (up a hill that doesn't look so long/steep in a car) to Southwest and back to Swifts to loop again, but then finished on the track. I held on to Julie from our parish (a little older, but a very consistent runner) for the first mile and I was pleased with that, but she dropped me on the hill. I tried not to walk too much, but it was hard. I think I might have PR'd. I will have to wait for the official time, but I saw 34:17 as I was almost at the finish and I think my PR is in the 35's.
Had half a chocolate chip muffin afterwards, but it was too rich so I tossed the rest and had a little grape juice and a bottle of water. Visited with more people I knew and then headed home. I was toying with the idea of running to the Walmart branch of our bank because I had two big checks that needed to be deposited. My son said I should definitely do it and I had time before I had told my daughter I'd pick her up from grandma's (half block from our house and on the way back). So I put my music on and headed back out. My hip flexors protested a bit, but the sunny and cool morning was really ideal for a run. I made decent time there, got a cup of water from their Culligan cooler while I did my deposits and then did ok getting back. Got to my mother-in-law's as they were heading out to lunch. My son joined them and I am catching up here.
Now I need to face the giant pile of laundry and get cleaned up myself while my husband is at work and the farm and before we head out to dinner and the football game tonight. Tomorrow I'm supposed to hit the road in the afternoon for a bike ride with Walter and whoever else he conned into joining us. He mentioned a "Heartbreak Hill" so I hope my granny gear can handle it. Then it will be time to come home and see if the Cardinals can come back from last night's loss and put the NLCS behind them. Fingers crossed.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000 (have got to get to the pool this week!)
Bike: 661.3 mi / 1000 (going to struggle to hit this goal)
Run: 287.9 mi / 350 (am not feeling worried about this one - hope it is still a "stretch" goal)
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Gutsy...I mean gusty...Ride
Weather was crazy this weekend. Warm front came in and gave us 2" of rain (made my yard happy, but the MU Tiger and Alabama fans not so much). I did some work on Friday and picked up kids and spent the evening shuttling them around to an activity. Saturday was overcast and the usual Saturday laundry called for more of a chillax inside day.
Was scheduled to hit the road with Walter this afternoon, but he texted at lunch about 25+ mph wind gusts and voted to cancel our outing. It was clouding up and looked like another storm so I figured it was for the best. It also saved me from juggling chauffeuring duties for afternoon basketball practice for my daughter. But by 3 PM, the sun was back out and the rain looked to be past and I figured I'd brave the wind to knock out some more bike miles. I took my phone in case I needed a pussy pickup though.
Felt pretty good aside from my choice of jacket (it was in the upper 60's, but the wind was cool so I didn't know - though I like having the bigger pockets). I had my usual struggle on the hills, but kept plugging along. I kept changing my mind about how far to go. First I was just going to stay close to home and do some flat loops, but then I thought it would be mentally hard to keep going unless I did more of an "out and back". Then I thought I'd go out to the Y/M intersection in Taos which would give me 17 miles. Then I thought it is so nice and I am not needed back by a certain time so I'll just go out to the other end of Bode Ferry. Oh, what the heck - out to Kleffner Ridge. That last climb past the ballfields was a bit tough, but I made it out there in 55 min.
Headed back and toyed with the idea to stop and take pictures of the pretty leaves, but didn't want to ding my pace calculation. Let's just say that I am very blessed to live in such a pretty area this time of year. The good news related to that is that I rode mostly along a ridge (roller hills) and could look out over the Osage River valley treetops that were beautiful in the sunshine. The bad news is that through most of the "ridge riding", I didn't have much protection from the wind. A few gusts were pretty scary, but I powered on. I was running low on fluids (didn't really initially plan to go out for so long - note to self: take an extra bottle anyways!) so once I got back to the flats by Scholastic I didn't plan on adding a whole lot - just a loop or two.
It didn't matter though - because when I turned onto Algoa by the Guard, I was pedaling with all my might in my middle front ring just to make forward progress on a relatively FLAT section. Yikes that wind was brutal!! So I swung behind Scholastic to see if the trees back there would provide a break, but it was more like a FUNNEL for the wind! I swear that last 3 miles or so to get home was the WORST! And my music crapped out on the Wavco hill so I didn't have anything to distract me from the pain of the last hill and the wind in my face.
Got home and mapped the ride for a total of 24 miles! Yay!! Took me a stupid 1 hr 53 min for a wretched pace of under 13 mph, but with the wicked wind and some hills mixed in - plus a brief stop to drink twice (hard to drink on the bike when getting blown around) - I'll take it. Still way behind on the miles towards the goal, but that helps a lot! Why can't warm weather ever come without all that wind??
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 661.3 mi / 1000
Run: 281.2 mi / 350
Was scheduled to hit the road with Walter this afternoon, but he texted at lunch about 25+ mph wind gusts and voted to cancel our outing. It was clouding up and looked like another storm so I figured it was for the best. It also saved me from juggling chauffeuring duties for afternoon basketball practice for my daughter. But by 3 PM, the sun was back out and the rain looked to be past and I figured I'd brave the wind to knock out some more bike miles. I took my phone in case I needed a pussy pickup though.
Felt pretty good aside from my choice of jacket (it was in the upper 60's, but the wind was cool so I didn't know - though I like having the bigger pockets). I had my usual struggle on the hills, but kept plugging along. I kept changing my mind about how far to go. First I was just going to stay close to home and do some flat loops, but then I thought it would be mentally hard to keep going unless I did more of an "out and back". Then I thought I'd go out to the Y/M intersection in Taos which would give me 17 miles. Then I thought it is so nice and I am not needed back by a certain time so I'll just go out to the other end of Bode Ferry. Oh, what the heck - out to Kleffner Ridge. That last climb past the ballfields was a bit tough, but I made it out there in 55 min.
Headed back and toyed with the idea to stop and take pictures of the pretty leaves, but didn't want to ding my pace calculation. Let's just say that I am very blessed to live in such a pretty area this time of year. The good news related to that is that I rode mostly along a ridge (roller hills) and could look out over the Osage River valley treetops that were beautiful in the sunshine. The bad news is that through most of the "ridge riding", I didn't have much protection from the wind. A few gusts were pretty scary, but I powered on. I was running low on fluids (didn't really initially plan to go out for so long - note to self: take an extra bottle anyways!) so once I got back to the flats by Scholastic I didn't plan on adding a whole lot - just a loop or two.
It didn't matter though - because when I turned onto Algoa by the Guard, I was pedaling with all my might in my middle front ring just to make forward progress on a relatively FLAT section. Yikes that wind was brutal!! So I swung behind Scholastic to see if the trees back there would provide a break, but it was more like a FUNNEL for the wind! I swear that last 3 miles or so to get home was the WORST! And my music crapped out on the Wavco hill so I didn't have anything to distract me from the pain of the last hill and the wind in my face.
Got home and mapped the ride for a total of 24 miles! Yay!! Took me a stupid 1 hr 53 min for a wretched pace of under 13 mph, but with the wicked wind and some hills mixed in - plus a brief stop to drink twice (hard to drink on the bike when getting blown around) - I'll take it. Still way behind on the miles towards the goal, but that helps a lot! Why can't warm weather ever come without all that wind??
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 661.3 mi / 1000
Run: 281.2 mi / 350
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Thursday LSAR
Well, Tue and Wed were a bust. I got a lot of work done yesterday, but barely got dinner made/ate before Brownies (scouts not dessert) and then got home just in time to sign a few things from the bookbags and settle in for a TV show that I wanted to see (plus one that I watched because I was settled in). Tue wasn't much different other than I did more homework supervision and hoped to squeeze in a short bike ride after piano, but it clouded up and I didn't want to ride badly enough to risk getting drenched.
But my friend Susan came to the rescue. I was a little worried because yesterday at a school function she asked if I was going to "make" her run today. I told her it depended on how much work I got done Wed. But yesterday afternoon I texted her to ask where and when and how far. She said she needed some good "therapy" time on the Katy Trail so we headed out. Neither of us were really feeling it (that is the Long Slow Ass Run = LSAR), but we sucked it up for the full 8.4 miles. Here we are at the turn around:
The sun had been out when I took the kids to school at 7:30, but it had clouded up quite a bit while I made my soup and waited to meet Susan at 9. It is a shame because I STILL didn't get the picture to do the pretty leaves justice. It also made the 55° or so feel plenty cool.
Came home and ate my soup (Sante Fe Corn Tortilla) and showered up. Read some blogs and now am trying to figure out what I can get done before I have to pick kids up from school. Have a deadline on Monday that I should be chipping away at. It is supposed to warm up this weekend so hopefully there will be some biking! I'm thinking I may have overestimated my ability to get that mileage done, but underestimated the running. Guess we'll see!
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 281.2 mi / 350
But my friend Susan came to the rescue. I was a little worried because yesterday at a school function she asked if I was going to "make" her run today. I told her it depended on how much work I got done Wed. But yesterday afternoon I texted her to ask where and when and how far. She said she needed some good "therapy" time on the Katy Trail so we headed out. Neither of us were really feeling it (that is the Long Slow Ass Run = LSAR), but we sucked it up for the full 8.4 miles. Here we are at the turn around:
 |
| Christina + Missouri River |
 |
| Susan + Missouri River |
 |
| I drive by the bluff behind me every time I go to the survey office in Columbia and this always has the nicest color. I was worried the trees wouldn't be pretty this year with the awful drought last summer. |
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 281.2 mi / 350
Monday, October 8, 2012
A few more miles...
This weekend was pretty busy - laundry, fire dept 100th anniversary parade, more laundry, fixing a toilet (ok, well - my husband and father-in-law did this), church, stuffing myself with pizza (ugh) plus all day ATV ride for charity in the cool fall air with bright sunny, blue skies. That works for you though because I get to put off boring non-picture posts one more day. My husband and I did go for a nice walk before it got dark last night.
The boys took off right after he got home from work for a Scouts/Knights of Columbus project at church. I couldn't convince daughter to go to grandma's so I could get on my bike and kind of lost the desire once they got home and time was getting short. Thankfully, Stacy came through dragging me along for a 3.54 mi jog (ok, with some walking). So a few more miles down, but I am going to have to get with it on the bike mileage.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 272.8 mi / 350
Tomorrow is early release and daughter's piano lesson, but maybe I can squeeze in a short bike ride somewhere after getting my sewer plans submitted and some work on my site plan that is due on Friday and supervising homework after school. Deep breath....
 |
| Husband drove one with daughter on back |
 |
| Son drove our other ATV with me on the back This was at a nice break on the Gasconade River |
 |
| A self-pic of me and my boy |
 |
| There were almost 100 machines and the wrapped around this field and went up the hill behind us with several in front of us too. |
Needless to say, with kids home all day today - it was hard to get much done today that didn't involve them (though I helped my daughter knock out part of a big project for school - yay). Stuff ourselves at lunch with daddy today too. Ugh.
The boys took off right after he got home from work for a Scouts/Knights of Columbus project at church. I couldn't convince daughter to go to grandma's so I could get on my bike and kind of lost the desire once they got home and time was getting short. Thankfully, Stacy came through dragging me along for a 3.54 mi jog (ok, with some walking). So a few more miles down, but I am going to have to get with it on the bike mileage.
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 272.8 mi / 350
Tomorrow is early release and daughter's piano lesson, but maybe I can squeeze in a short bike ride somewhere after getting my sewer plans submitted and some work on my site plan that is due on Friday and supervising homework after school. Deep breath....
Friday, October 5, 2012
Prison Break Race Report
I still think that Superkate had the best race report for this event. It can be found here. I also thought I had taken more pictures than I did, but such as it is - here is my race report. I went the night before the race and picked up my shirt. They were pretty cute gray technical t's. Check it out:
They weren't very organized and I had to kind of bug them to get my stuff. They had grilled some hot dogs and were having kind of a gathering, but again - not very organized (ie. I was almost done eating my hot dog when someone realized that they hadn't handed out the chips.) And while I got my shirt, they didn't hand out race numbers so I still had to get that in the morning.
This being the inaugeral running of this race, it was a pretty small event. I heard 150 people registered. Since I had already turned in my waiver and gotten my shirt, all I needed to do was pick up my number and get my "mug shot" taken. I may or may not have butted in line.
While we waited around in the prison yard of the historic (no longer in use) Missouri State Penitentiary, I visited with Eric and Bree (former co-worker and bike friends). Before long, Superkate and her crew showed up after their early morning drive from the St. Louis area. Later they told us to go down to one of the old housing units. Some people got to put on old prisoner shirts, but there weren't enough to go around and it seemed like more hassle than it was worth. And after corraling us there, it was time for us "maggots" to march with the fake correction officer down to the dungeon in housing unit 4.
We waited down in what must have been solitary confinement and we joked for quite a while about what sorts of things prisoners must have done in there to pass the time. Let's just say that I am glad there were no black lights (though the strobe started driving a few of us a little bonkers). After what seemed like forever in the stuffy dungeon, we saw folks start moving out. Never did hear any kind of official starting "horn" or whatever. And while this was, in theory, a "timed" event - there was no starting time mat so it was just your total time from whenever they "started" the clock. Odd.
Pretty soon we got to a water stop and what was supposed to also be a fence climb. I wasn't broken up that they didn't make us do this. Then we had to crawl through a 20' length of storm culvert (30" HDPE) and then another that was smaller (24" I think) that was running uphill. Not quite big enough to crawl fully on your hands and knees. These were TOUGH - and I had bruises on my knees from it. Not fun on the kneelers at mass the next day! Funny to admit that I've done this kind of obstacle MANY times in my actual job - just never in shorts!
As we ran around the park on the trail, there were a few poorly marked turns - seriously people, a couple pieces of chalk could have fixed this. But I could see Bob and Kate and most of her crew ahead of us so I had an idea where to go and we didn't cut the course short like some people we saw. We ran around the park, around the pool and up the ampitheatre stairs to the first slide. It wasn't quite wide enough nor angled correctly and as you slid off the edge into the grass it hurt and was very muddy. I snapped this shot of David heading down - didn't really intend it to be such a butt shot. Oops.
Then it was time for this bit of fun. There were little strings you had to crawl under (had to kind of lift them). Then at the far end, you dug out a map with the rest of the running directions. I gave my camera to a lady who offered to take a pic of me crawling, but apparently a $10 disposable water/mudproof camera was too difficult for her to operate even with me coaching her. Oh well - you get the idea.
Then we ran up a hill and had a chance to hose off a bit - I mostly just did my shoes that were caked with mud. I figured less mud would be nice to run with. But some people were trying to make it a finish line shower! The final slide was even more of a disaster as far as width/angle. You can kind of see it on the hill in the right of the above pic. I rolled off and ran the last third of the hill. Ouch on the "grass burn".
But then we ran across the driveway (dodging the flag football families coming and going) through a patch of grass in the background of the mud pit pic and headed out on the hilly run back to Prison Brews. There were no other obstacles other than the steep roads. This was just a lot of tough running. Taylor Street was the worst hill, but I've run parts of some of the other streets and knew it wouldn't be too bad after that. David and I walked and jogged and talked about how neither of us were really "runners" (guess he's more of a bike guy). But before long we were at the final turn and could see the finish line. David ran ahead of me and finished a few seconds in front of me, but it got me to run a little harder at the end. Then we took some nice group pictures and talked with the Superkate/Virtus gang.
When I got into the finish area, there was no water left in the jugs. They got that fixed pretty quickly. I heard that the "free appetizer" we were given a coupon for (and which I had left in my car) was actually just free pizza (and not much of that). I got a couple small slices and ate with a guy I used to work with (Andy - survey tech). Once standing still, it was pretty cold out so we hugged the outdoor heaters after the last few people came in. They handed out the awards (growlers) and there was some confusion when the guy who they said got first said that another guy came in ahead of him. No worries that I was jipped out of a prize with my slow five miles. A bunch of us piled into the Team Virtus van (thanks Luke!) and got dropped off back at our cars. He was very brave to let this bunch of dirty bodies into his family vehicle (though yes, his gaggle of kids obviously don't keep it spot free). I tried to take a pic of my dirty leg, but the mud has dried a bit and its hard to see with the crappy camera (or was I trying to show off my wicked blister which is even harder to see):
Later, after a bit of a bath in my garage mop sink (so nice when a race is literally like 5 min from your house), I changed clothes and arranged to meet Kate and some of the gang for lunch in Holts Summit at a mexican joint. We had a nice visit and lunch (with one margarita). It was a pretty great day with friends - definitely more of a "party than a race"!
If they do this next year and if all the fun people want to do it again, I'd be up for it. I do hope they take some constructive criticism and put it to use. But it was a solid first try. And what a neat venue - lots of history at that prison!
Four days in row now. I knocked out 1500 yards at the pool today at "lunch". I struggle with counting especially when a wierd old guy stops to talk when I am stretching out a cramp in my foot. But I was there 45 min or so and I got at least that many yards in. Yay me!
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 269.3 mi / 350
Now back to your regular boring blog posts without tons of pictures. However, I've started looking hard for a waterproof digital camera because I fear film going the way of the dinosaurs and the pics I got were pretty crappy anyway. Any suggestions? I'd like to spend $150 give or take. Are any at that level worth a damn?
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| Slipped this on with my jeans and that weird bump in front is my belt buckle. LOL Oh, and when do children learn to take pictures in focus? Oh well. |
This being the inaugeral running of this race, it was a pretty small event. I heard 150 people registered. Since I had already turned in my waiver and gotten my shirt, all I needed to do was pick up my number and get my "mug shot" taken. I may or may not have butted in line.
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| They emailed these to us a couple weeks later. Nice touch! |
We waited down in what must have been solitary confinement and we joked for quite a while about what sorts of things prisoners must have done in there to pass the time. Let's just say that I am glad there were no black lights (though the strobe started driving a few of us a little bonkers). After what seemed like forever in the stuffy dungeon, we saw folks start moving out. Never did hear any kind of official starting "horn" or whatever. And while this was, in theory, a "timed" event - there was no starting time mat so it was just your total time from whenever they "started" the clock. Odd.
We ran past the old showers and up the steep dungeon stairs and through the housing unit. It is hard to believe that people lived in here as little as a decade ago. We ran out into the fresh air and around the end of Layfayette Ave. Since Kate and a couple of her friends stopped to pee on the way out of the prison yard, I got ahead of her and snapped this pic after I hit the turnaround. It was also the only time I was running with Bob and Luke (Kate's fellow Team Virtus members). Luke ran with TP that had been thrown around the housing unit dangling behind him.
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| Front of the historic MSP with Superkate running down to the turnaround before heading out |
We ran down Capitol Ave and back into the prison yard. One big loop around what is now a big parking lot and then back out to head towards Riverside Park. I started running with Kate's friend David in here somewhere and we walked the steep ass hill together, but I tried to get him to do some jogging along while we chatted. Turned out that he works for an aerial mapping company that I am familiar with so we talked a few min of shop.
Pretty soon we got to a water stop and what was supposed to also be a fence climb. I wasn't broken up that they didn't make us do this. Then we had to crawl through a 20' length of storm culvert (30" HDPE) and then another that was smaller (24" I think) that was running uphill. Not quite big enough to crawl fully on your hands and knees. These were TOUGH - and I had bruises on my knees from it. Not fun on the kneelers at mass the next day! Funny to admit that I've done this kind of obstacle MANY times in my actual job - just never in shorts!
As we ran around the park on the trail, there were a few poorly marked turns - seriously people, a couple pieces of chalk could have fixed this. But I could see Bob and Kate and most of her crew ahead of us so I had an idea where to go and we didn't cut the course short like some people we saw. We ran around the park, around the pool and up the ampitheatre stairs to the first slide. It wasn't quite wide enough nor angled correctly and as you slid off the edge into the grass it hurt and was very muddy. I snapped this shot of David heading down - didn't really intend it to be such a butt shot. Oops.
 |
| Note the busy parking lot from the flag football families. Also note the big muddy area to the right of the bottom of the slide where you went off and got "grass burn". Not cool! |
Then it was time for this bit of fun. There were little strings you had to crawl under (had to kind of lift them). Then at the far end, you dug out a map with the rest of the running directions. I gave my camera to a lady who offered to take a pic of me crawling, but apparently a $10 disposable water/mudproof camera was too difficult for her to operate even with me coaching her. Oh well - you get the idea.
Then we ran up a hill and had a chance to hose off a bit - I mostly just did my shoes that were caked with mud. I figured less mud would be nice to run with. But some people were trying to make it a finish line shower! The final slide was even more of a disaster as far as width/angle. You can kind of see it on the hill in the right of the above pic. I rolled off and ran the last third of the hill. Ouch on the "grass burn".
But then we ran across the driveway (dodging the flag football families coming and going) through a patch of grass in the background of the mud pit pic and headed out on the hilly run back to Prison Brews. There were no other obstacles other than the steep roads. This was just a lot of tough running. Taylor Street was the worst hill, but I've run parts of some of the other streets and knew it wouldn't be too bad after that. David and I walked and jogged and talked about how neither of us were really "runners" (guess he's more of a bike guy). But before long we were at the final turn and could see the finish line. David ran ahead of me and finished a few seconds in front of me, but it got me to run a little harder at the end. Then we took some nice group pictures and talked with the Superkate/Virtus gang.
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| My new race friend - David. Glad Kate conned him into coming as he was the only one of her "group" that ran my pace. |
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| Sarah, David, me, Bob (Virtus), Lukas (Virtus), Kate (Virtus) and Lindsay Prison Brews pub outdoor patio/bocce ball area to the left of this pic where everyone stood around and froze post-race |
When I got into the finish area, there was no water left in the jugs. They got that fixed pretty quickly. I heard that the "free appetizer" we were given a coupon for (and which I had left in my car) was actually just free pizza (and not much of that). I got a couple small slices and ate with a guy I used to work with (Andy - survey tech). Once standing still, it was pretty cold out so we hugged the outdoor heaters after the last few people came in. They handed out the awards (growlers) and there was some confusion when the guy who they said got first said that another guy came in ahead of him. No worries that I was jipped out of a prize with my slow five miles. A bunch of us piled into the Team Virtus van (thanks Luke!) and got dropped off back at our cars. He was very brave to let this bunch of dirty bodies into his family vehicle (though yes, his gaggle of kids obviously don't keep it spot free). I tried to take a pic of my dirty leg, but the mud has dried a bit and its hard to see with the crappy camera (or was I trying to show off my wicked blister which is even harder to see):
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| Check out my sexy leg! |
Later, after a bit of a bath in my garage mop sink (so nice when a race is literally like 5 min from your house), I changed clothes and arranged to meet Kate and some of the gang for lunch in Holts Summit at a mexican joint. We had a nice visit and lunch (with one margarita). It was a pretty great day with friends - definitely more of a "party than a race"!
 |
| Kate, Lindsay, David and Sarah (forgot to do this before Bob left for work - doh) |
Four days in row now. I knocked out 1500 yards at the pool today at "lunch". I struggle with counting especially when a wierd old guy stops to talk when I am stretching out a cramp in my foot. But I was there 45 min or so and I got at least that many yards in. Yay me!
YTD
Swim: 14,700 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 269.3 mi / 350
Now back to your regular boring blog posts without tons of pictures. However, I've started looking hard for a waterproof digital camera because I fear film going the way of the dinosaurs and the pics I got were pretty crappy anyway. Any suggestions? I'd like to spend $150 give or take. Are any at that level worth a damn?
Thursday, October 4, 2012
FINALLY! PICTURES!! Epic Mud Run 2012
Yeah, yeah - I know I've been promising these for a month. I snapped off the final three shots on the disposable waterproof camera and spent half the afternoon trying to find a place to do one-hour film development and put them on a CD for me (only two places apparently still do that here). I have lots of pics so I'll break it up and give you something to look forward to. I'm working on a proper race report for Prison Break. But also, I've since gotten some pics from the Ultramax Flicker page that will be fun to share. So starting off with Epic Mud Run pics (and lots of them):
I had a great time at this event. So did my husband who is already talking about doing it next year. I hope we can recruit some other friends to do it with us and try to get in the same wave. Maybe we can even do matching bright colored shirts :)
Today was a three-peat. Susan and I went out to the Katy Trail. We didn't intend to do such a long run (if you can even call it that - we did a lot of walking/talking). But we covered 7.1 miles! It was a beautiful morning and couldn't ask for a better partner. Trees were pretty on the bluffs - hard to see, but I tried to get a couple pics (last of the disposable camera and all):
YTD
Swim: 13,200 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 269.3 mi / 350
Stayed tuned for the Prison Break race report tomorrow!
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| Free Race Start Corral Pic from Ultramax Sports I'm in the back on the left (green shirt) People were throwing "color" here. |
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| My left arm and my husband in the start corral |
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| Running up this muddy/wet hill was hard - forgive the fingertip. |
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| Free Race pic on the "Fire Hose" hill |
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| Free race pic on the "Fire Hose" hill |
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| Fairly early (still have the "color" on my cheeks); wade through mud/water pit and then climb over that hill. Key was to have the rope between your legs as you used your hands to pull yourself up. |
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| Husband going over an obstacle on what was otherwise mostly a "run" portion of the event. I think some used to have signs that said to go under, but we went over most of them as the instructions weren't there. |
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| Made this pic XL because it was the BEST part of the whole Epic Mud Run. Husband (and I) just FLEW down this slide. You were going so fast that you had no choice but to land in the big mud/water pit at the bottom. BEST SLIDE EVER! |
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| Husband captured me climbing down into the section of single track/ditch we had to go through. I love that I look like I am having fun! |
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| Husband getting ready to go under the obstacle in what I think is the mud/icewater pit. There was just enough room that you didn't have to put your face in the water if you didn't want, but the back of your head was in it. |
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| Camera lens is getting pretty fuzzy here, but me going over one of the wall obstacles in another section of "run". |
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| I'm sliding down the last obstacle and spinning around to take a pic of hubbie coming after me. This landed in a big swimming pool thing which was a nice way to get the worst of the dirt off. |
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| Better pic of the last obstacle with our friends almost to the bottom. |
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| My favorite of the free race pics - this is where my husband ran into me on the last slide |
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| Didn't expect to go under in the final pool, but apparently my husband was expecting it because check out him holding his breath. |
Today was a three-peat. Susan and I went out to the Katy Trail. We didn't intend to do such a long run (if you can even call it that - we did a lot of walking/talking). But we covered 7.1 miles! It was a beautiful morning and couldn't ask for a better partner. Trees were pretty on the bluffs - hard to see, but I tried to get a couple pics (last of the disposable camera and all):
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| And I'm even wearing my Mud Run tech T |
Swim: 13,200 yds / 25,000
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 269.3 mi / 350
Stayed tuned for the Prison Break race report tomorrow!
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Two days, two workouts - Hell Yeah!!
Tuesday morning I recommitted myself to training. I was still not "feeling the love", but trying to "fake it, til I made it". Then with a new goal, I decided it was time to get with it. Texted Stacy and asked about a run. Never heard back. Called - didn't hear back. Checked phone just before going out on my own and had a missed call (must have been while changing clothes). She said she'd go with me if I waited. So at our usual 8:30 PM start time (not ideal, but so much nicer to go with someone), we headed out towards Walmart. When I go with her it is a little over 5K (like 3.3 mi) because she makes me do the hill behind the store whereas when I run to go to the bank, I go in the front of the store and skip the hill. So check off another 3.3 miles towards my goal of 350.
Then today was supposed to be the warmest of the week and with highs the next couple of days in the 50's so I decided I'd better get my butt on the bike. I had invited a friend, but never heard back. Is my texting working? Oh well - on my own is ok too. I dawdled a little longer than I planned and left just a minute or so after six. I rode out to Taos and on through to the Hwy M/Hwy Y intersection before turning around because I was burning the last of the daylight. I passed the bank clock about 10 min to 7 and it said it was still 72°, but my knees felt cool (wore shorts). I'm thinking it was colder than that, but forgot to check my home thermometer when I came in. Was too anxious to map it because I didn't know how far it was. Turns out it was 17.1. I was kind of bummed because I felt like I pushed the pace a fair bit, but I guess with the hills (a couple monsters and some rollers) slowed me down (though I screamed back down them which I figured would average out). It took 1:15. I couldn't have ridden any longer. The bike light was glowing on the pavement pretty good by the last mile or two. I really need to leave closer to five if I am going to go very far (not to mention that the sun will set earlier each day). Not a lot of traffic even through town so that was nice. Had to yell at two dogs that weren't tied up, but such is life.
So my new YTD totals:
Swim: 13,200 yds / 25,000 (trying to figure out if I can get to the pool on Friday)
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 262.2 mi / 350 (meeting Susan on the Katy tomorrow after my haircut - yay!)
Absolutely promise to use up the last 3 pics on the disposable camera and drop it off to get developed tomorrow!
Then today was supposed to be the warmest of the week and with highs the next couple of days in the 50's so I decided I'd better get my butt on the bike. I had invited a friend, but never heard back. Is my texting working? Oh well - on my own is ok too. I dawdled a little longer than I planned and left just a minute or so after six. I rode out to Taos and on through to the Hwy M/Hwy Y intersection before turning around because I was burning the last of the daylight. I passed the bank clock about 10 min to 7 and it said it was still 72°, but my knees felt cool (wore shorts). I'm thinking it was colder than that, but forgot to check my home thermometer when I came in. Was too anxious to map it because I didn't know how far it was. Turns out it was 17.1. I was kind of bummed because I felt like I pushed the pace a fair bit, but I guess with the hills (a couple monsters and some rollers) slowed me down (though I screamed back down them which I figured would average out). It took 1:15. I couldn't have ridden any longer. The bike light was glowing on the pavement pretty good by the last mile or two. I really need to leave closer to five if I am going to go very far (not to mention that the sun will set earlier each day). Not a lot of traffic even through town so that was nice. Had to yell at two dogs that weren't tied up, but such is life.
So my new YTD totals:
Swim: 13,200 yds / 25,000 (trying to figure out if I can get to the pool on Friday)
Bike: 637.3 mi / 1000
Run: 262.2 mi / 350 (meeting Susan on the Katy tomorrow after my haircut - yay!)
Absolutely promise to use up the last 3 pics on the disposable camera and drop it off to get developed tomorrow!
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
My New Goal - Thanks Kovas!
If you have read anything on this blog in the last several months (believe me - I just reread a fair bit of it), you will have noticed that I just haven't had that drive to train. It seems like it disappeared in the spring when it should have been going into hyper-mode. But this morning I was inspired to set a new goal to keep me going at least through the end of this year. It will likely fit well with doing the Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge (hoping Amanda at Run to the Finish does this again).
I was reading Kovas's post found here about him working to meet the goals of running 1000 miles and biking 1000 miles in 2012. And I laughed at Bob's suggestion that he should include swimming that mileage too. But it got me to wondering how far I've actually gone this year. I track most of my workouts right here on my blog so it just took sitting down and skimming through posts to add up the numbers. What I found was that I had ran way more than someone who claims not to be a runner should have and I have seriously been going longer and longer on my bike. I've been a bit of a pool slacker, but what better than a little self challenge to get that back on track?
So here are my current YTD (as of 10/2/12) stats the best I can come up with:
SWIM: 13,200 yards (give or take - several workouts the laps weren't counted so I used some averages based on how long I said that I was in the pool)
BIKE : 620.2 miles (what was most impressive to me was how few of these rides were under 15 miles when last year my LONGEST ride was about that)
RUN: 258.9 miles (I ran very few of these solo which is probably what made a big difference, but I was blown away by the number of times I drug my ass out the door to get this done)
MISC WORKOUTS: 27 (P90X DVDs, Just Dance, AbRipperX, Pole Class) - Winter sometimes requires indoor workouts and when Stacy and I want to sweat, this works for us in a pinch.
Earlier this year, I did the Iron distance over the course of four weeks. Kovas says there are 14 weeks left. So I did some averaging and rounding to pretty numbers and came up with a new goal. Anyone who knows me knows that this Type A gal really needs a goal. My new goal (drumroll please) is to finish the year with the following stats:
SWIM: 25,000 yards (averaging just 843/week - I usually do a min of 1000 each trip to the pool so I just need to make it once/week and I'll exceed this goal, but no slacking and skipping. Funny though - it is only 14.2 miles total. Can't imagine trying to swim 1000 miles - ouch!)
BIKE: 1000 miles (averaging just over 27 mi/week - it shouldn't be hard to do two short or one long workout each week to get to this - plus it would be cool if I could do the same amount of total biking as Kovas! Maybe we can keep each other honest.)
RUN: 350 miles (averaging just over 10K/week - one long or two short runs each week should be doable. Plus there are a lot of 5Ks this time of year so I may just race to train.)
MISC WORKOUTS: Unless weather becomes an issue, I don't plan to spend a lot of time on these. But I know my core and some of my stabilizer muscles could use some work so my goal is to get in 13 more of these - about one/week - I like round numbers though so my end goal is 40.
Well within my capabilities, but enough of a stretch to get me off the couch on the days that I'd rather not go. I may try to front load some of the bike time given the fact that Nov and Dec may start getting dicey as far as weather, but otherwise I'll aim for the weekly averages. Yay - so happy to have a plan of attack! I can feel the mental funk cloud lifting already.
I was reading Kovas's post found here about him working to meet the goals of running 1000 miles and biking 1000 miles in 2012. And I laughed at Bob's suggestion that he should include swimming that mileage too. But it got me to wondering how far I've actually gone this year. I track most of my workouts right here on my blog so it just took sitting down and skimming through posts to add up the numbers. What I found was that I had ran way more than someone who claims not to be a runner should have and I have seriously been going longer and longer on my bike. I've been a bit of a pool slacker, but what better than a little self challenge to get that back on track?
So here are my current YTD (as of 10/2/12) stats the best I can come up with:
SWIM: 13,200 yards (give or take - several workouts the laps weren't counted so I used some averages based on how long I said that I was in the pool)
BIKE : 620.2 miles (what was most impressive to me was how few of these rides were under 15 miles when last year my LONGEST ride was about that)
RUN: 258.9 miles (I ran very few of these solo which is probably what made a big difference, but I was blown away by the number of times I drug my ass out the door to get this done)
MISC WORKOUTS: 27 (P90X DVDs, Just Dance, AbRipperX, Pole Class) - Winter sometimes requires indoor workouts and when Stacy and I want to sweat, this works for us in a pinch.
Earlier this year, I did the Iron distance over the course of four weeks. Kovas says there are 14 weeks left. So I did some averaging and rounding to pretty numbers and came up with a new goal. Anyone who knows me knows that this Type A gal really needs a goal. My new goal (drumroll please) is to finish the year with the following stats:
SWIM: 25,000 yards (averaging just 843/week - I usually do a min of 1000 each trip to the pool so I just need to make it once/week and I'll exceed this goal, but no slacking and skipping. Funny though - it is only 14.2 miles total. Can't imagine trying to swim 1000 miles - ouch!)
BIKE: 1000 miles (averaging just over 27 mi/week - it shouldn't be hard to do two short or one long workout each week to get to this - plus it would be cool if I could do the same amount of total biking as Kovas! Maybe we can keep each other honest.)
RUN: 350 miles (averaging just over 10K/week - one long or two short runs each week should be doable. Plus there are a lot of 5Ks this time of year so I may just race to train.)
MISC WORKOUTS: Unless weather becomes an issue, I don't plan to spend a lot of time on these. But I know my core and some of my stabilizer muscles could use some work so my goal is to get in 13 more of these - about one/week - I like round numbers though so my end goal is 40.
Well within my capabilities, but enough of a stretch to get me off the couch on the days that I'd rather not go. I may try to front load some of the bike time given the fact that Nov and Dec may start getting dicey as far as weather, but otherwise I'll aim for the weekly averages. Yay - so happy to have a plan of attack! I can feel the mental funk cloud lifting already.
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