Sparrows Experiment

So ARE ya feelin' better?

Not as much as i think I should be :( I just can't really shake it and its draining me like mad. My son woke up with pink eye today. I now have that too! mannnnn. luckily we already have the antibiotic drops.

Today I did spin class for 50 min with very minimal resistance and even that killed me. sad sad sad. I'm not giving up hope yet. I registered for my race today. I always put it off to the last minute. I needed to commit and get my head in the game. I still have 3 days to kick this thing. I'm going to think positively.
 
Thanks.

I'm feeling better today and the funny thing is that last night I didn't even get to sleep until 3am...and had to get up at 5:30 for morning practice. I'm not sure what I'm running on, but the lack of sleep seemed to give me energy. ha. I was anxious last night just thinking about the race and stuff.
Today we did a light swim in an open pool. No lane lines..so it was really wavy..like it will be on the lake. After that I ran 2 slow 10 min mile pace miles and stretched. Looking forward to bedtime.
 
Dang, I'm happy if I can do 2 miles at a 15 minute pace, and a 10 minute pace is slow to you - good on ya!

:D Are you still running Stingo? I'm so out of the loop on others' diaries :( I usually have just a few minutes to post and get off. I'm proud of those 15 min miles man! How far you've come!
 
:D Are you still running Stingo? I'm so out of the loop on others' diaries :( I usually have just a few minutes to post and get off. I'm proud of those 15 min miles man! How far you've come!

I wouldn't say still, especially since my cardio training's all screwy this week, but I did do my first ever jog on the treadmill for 30 minutes (had one foot off the ground at all times) which was a big psychological barrier for me. Yeah it was probably a fast walk for some (4.2) but for me it was a good way to see if I could actually do it.
 
I wouldn't say still, especially since my cardio training's all screwy this week, but I did do my first ever jog on the treadmill for 30 minutes (had one foot off the ground at all times) which was a big psychological barrier for me. Yeah it was probably a fast walk for some (4.2) but for me it was a good way to see if I could actually do it.

It takes baby steps but I know you'll do it.
 
ERRR. I had to go back to the dr today. My ear hurt way more today. My ear drum ruptured and a bacterial infection is in my outer ear now. I'm discouraged. My body isn't recovering well and everything from my shoulders up aches. The race is the day after tomorrow. I'll let you know what happens from here...after Sunday.
 
Well it was an okay race. I felt great in the swim. It felt like forever though. We left in waves within our age group every 5 minutes I raced with the 30-34 year olds since they go by your age at years end. We were right behind the guys. I passed a lot of guys and even some people in the wave 10 min before me. I was early out of the water in my age group. Had a good transition, and strapped on a camelback for my bike ride. It was my savior. I stayed very hydrated on the 25 mile bike even through a very hilly, very windy course. I felt strong and prepared for the ride. I kept my place until the very last few miles when a few gals started passing me. Another good transition and initially I felt great heading out of the transition area into my 6 mile run. But suddenly I bonked. I had strategized to eat a "gu" packet right out of the swim..but someone had rested their bike on it and it had exploded in the heat! So out on the bike at around 9am I only had water and hadn't had anything to eat since 5:30am! I was going to use my water belt for the run (which had more gu packs in it) but I ditched it because it felt too heavy for how I was feeling. I didn't realize my fuel was missing until about a mile into the run...when I completely bonked. It was literally like hitting a wall. I've only experienced this a few times in my life. It was such a helpless feeling. The run was HOT and hilly and all dirt and rocks. Very challenging in and of itself, not to mention at the end of an already long race. I had to walk up most hills and ran down them. I hit all 3 aid stations and walked through them to get my water, tried gatorade once...but only once because it started coming back up instantly. Very hard course. way harder than advertised or explained to me. A friend who raced yesterday for the sprint tri ran in the last mile with me. Thank goodness cause I was ready to give up. I had a strong sprint finish as they announced my name and time. I was 10 min off my time which bummed me initially but then I realized that with allll the walking and the lack of nutrition, I actually did pretty good! haha. I finished and thats the successful part. I finished not being dehydrated which was the most important part and I've downed over 2500 calories today no problem. Over 1000 of them was a chipotle burrito :)
I'm glad I did it. I won't do it again this year at that course. It sucked. I'll be doing an adventure race with a friend in August and plan on another olympic distance on my 30th birthday in Sept. ELSEWHERE. photo attached
 

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Congrats on finishing the race - considering the situation that was an achievement in and of itself. I'm reminded of a story told to me by a friend of mine of a woman who was leading most of a race (not sure if it was a triathlon or not, but no matter) and who bonked within sight of the finish line. She collapsed and was reduced to crawling toward the finish line, even as the 2nd place competitor came into view. And then things went from bad to worse... so finishing upright and in reasonably good condition is a victory in and of itself.
 
I'm sore, but its not as bad as I thought it would be. Tells me the bonk was more about nutrition yesterday than ability. I did 45 min of moderate spin and then coached. My heart rate sky-rocketed with any extra resistance so I kept it pretty low. Still waiting for the results from yesterday. Although I'm not sure I want to see them
 
Today I went to tri class. It was a bit like I remember swim practice after a big swim meet over the weekend. Everyone showed up wearing the shirts they got from the race busily talking about how it went, slapping each other on the butts and giving out "good jobs" ha. Ok I'm kidding...about the butt part ;)
Did spin for 40 min and then did a pretty intense run workout with hills and speed for 30 min. I'm still fairly tired from the race. I'm sure it takes a good week of active rest to get back to normal.
I feel really water retained and I'm wondering if thats from the fatigued, sore muscles.
Trying to eat healthfully, but feel a bit of entitlement towards some junk as well :)
 
Hey Sheri, I just found the results. They weren't posted all day. I came in
8th in my age group. I raced with 30-34 yr olds even though I'm not 30 yet..but they go by your age at the end of this year since its one of those "official" races sanctioned by the USAT. Even if I'd raced with my REAL age group, I'd still have come in 8th. I'm not sure how many were in the age group. There were 350ish participants, thats all I know. I'm contemplating doing it in July, its just so hot then so I may do the sprint distance that month and do another olympic one in September on a flatter course. Thanks for asking :)
 
Back to the gym. I've decided to continue training and see where I'm at July 15th for the next race. I can actually register race day so thats my plan if it all looks promising and its not going to be a thousand degrees that day. My goals for the next month are to:
**maintain my current fitness but increase my weight room time (its nearly zero at the moment)
**increase my hill running as well as transition from bike to run
**run in the heat and learn how to be successful at that
**eat a bit cleaner to get leaner
**practice eating during training
Today I swam 3000 yds and it was so wonderful. I miss actually SWIMMING. I'm around the pool a lot but I don't get to get in much!
My appetite is out of control this week. I'm trying to put a clamp on it.
 
Good luck on the goals...I know you can do it.
 
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