1 training session down, 429 to go (or something like that)

Day 1 is over! Wooooo! I'm one step closer to IM! Alright, maybe I shouldn't be that excited. Or maybe I should :)

It was a good workout day. Started the day out with Aunt Martha at the gym. 8am. That's the earliest I've woken up (7am) since I've been home. But it felt great. We did the eliptical for 30 minutes, and then lifted upper body. I also taught her my favorite thing ever: Swiss ball pikeups!! Like this, only more graceful :) And we were wearing shirts.

It's always fun to workout with someone! Wish I was here more to work out with her, but alas, I am not.

Then I had my run workout scheduled for today. Drill stuff. I thought "meh..piece of cake!" Well it was a little more difficult than I thought. I came home and took a nap and now I can feel some soreness in my legs from some of the drills. So I'm actually kind of excited that it was such a good workout even though it was only for 40 minutes. I know if I do all the things my coach tells me to do...I'm going to ROCK IM. And THAT is worth every drop of sweat, tears, and blood. Because there will be all three. It is an Ironman, after all. Until training session two..........................

P.S. Ironman training starts TOMORROW

!*$&*!%&*#!&$*&!%*&#*

Yeah...IM training starts TOMORROW. December 31st, 2007. Look at me, starting a year before the event! Kinda. Ok not really. Exactly 8 months until race day. I seriously feel like tomorrow is a whole new ERA for me. Training for an Ironman??? Yeah, done the marathon thing. It was hard, but I knew I'd be doing something harder so I took it kind of lightly. Done a century ride before, but that was a whole day event for the MS150 so it wasn't a race per se. I've swam a whole hell of a lot before so that doesn't bother me either. Let's put them all together, after 8 months of extra long main sets in the pool, numerous long rides that end just before the daylight does, and long runs thru muddy trails at 6am....then give me a 17 hour deadline and call it a day! Yeah...that sounds good.

But that's what we do. All these people are doing it for the same (and some additional) reasons. We want to prove to everyone we can do it, when they thought we couldn't. We want to show that its possible for an everyday normal person to hold a full time job and still train for this grueling race. But most importantly we are proving to OURSELVES that we can do this...even though two years ago, we didn't own a bike, never set foot in the pool unless it involved a beer and a bikini, and couldn't run a mile to save ourlives. And by "us".....I mean me. Unless that also includes anyone else...feel free to share your story :)

I will do it. Don't even bet against me. If you do, you can go ahead and mail your check to me because I could use the money to buy gels or accelerade or something useful to get me across the finish line. Thank you.

Raise your hand

Raise your hand if you ate too much: *raises hand*

Raise your hand if you didn't work out as much as you wanted during Christmas: *raises hand*

Raise your hand if you are going to work out for 8 hours tomorrow: *raises hand...slowly*

Actually...I am excited because I just got my first workouts for next week with my coach! Yay! It makes me really excited for next season. It's so much less stressful to have my workouts planned for me. I don't have to worry about what I'm going to do that day and if its going to properly train me to peak at the right times or even prepare me for the big race. So basically I have the easy job...just do the workout! Oh, wait......

See ya in the pool....and on the road.....

P.S. My sister got me this shirt for Christmas! Funny thing is, on Christmas eve I told her that it was my favorite shirt and I wanted to get it! Only thing is, I feel as though I cannot wear it until after IM. Any thoughts??

Dirrty water

I went down to the river today for lunch with my high school diving friends. It was so nice to see them! We had some good times reminiscing about high school days and what's currently going on...man am I out of the loop! Kinda glad though..it sounds like the same craziness is going on from when I was there. Anyway...on the way in to Don Pablo's, I took this picture:

Yeeeeahh...I have to swim in that!

Ok, I do admit, it is a little cleaner down the river a bit in Louisville, BUT STILL. I think I'd rather be swimming in the Gulf, or in the Ocean in Australia...anything but the Ohio River!!!

Oh well...I think as long as I take antibiotics for the week before the race, I should be good???

mwa ha ha

My family is so cute as elves (minus Ami, you can only do four elves...and since she's not in town yet...well she got booted)

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1657900302

Frustrations with racing

Not the actual race itself...I love that part! It's the figuring it all out months before it will happen. Usually this isn't too big of a deal, but seeing as how I graduate in May, and must enter the real world (enter scary music)...I have no clue where I'll even be come June! Since I'm talking with my coach tomorrow, I'm pretty sure she's going to want to know my racing plans for next season. So I made a schedule (see new column to the right) based on the fact that I will be in Memphis at least all summer. This wouldn't be a bad thing considering I have an apartment until July 31. And I wouldn't even mind sticking around Memphis another year or two...I've kind of grown fond of one of the most dangerous cities in America. I think I did a pretty good job of picking races I don't have to travel far for. In fact, the only ones I'd have to spend the night for are the TN state sprint championships (in east TN, hopefully I could find someone that I know there so I could crash at their place) and Ironman. IM is already taken care of as far as booking a hotel room, so that's a plus. I just don't want to travel too much due to the fact I'm still poor. The half marathon is a maybe. I already ran a road race a few weeks ago, but I stuck it in there just in case I feel up to it. Ole Miss sprint will be so fun because supposedly a lot of my classmates want to "tri a tri" (little triathlon humor there...) and we all decided this would be fun! I'll do it even if they don't because it was a nice little break the ice for the season race. Memphis in May...obviously doing this one. Best race I've ever done. Plus, my coach will be here for that one! Yeah! I didn't think the Mighty Mite and Dragonfly were that big of races, but apparently they are! They are both about 45 min to an hour away, so I can drive that morning. Which saves a ton of money! So I'm excited to do those. They are both between sprint and oly distances. Should be good. Besides that....FORD IRONMAN LOUISVILLE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Obviously, that one will happen :) And I will be an Ironman. Because I'm a rockstar. Or because I'm crazy. Or both...................

Tea Update

**First off I would like to let everyone know that the Spears' family has done it again...16 year old Jaime Lynn Spears is pregnant! Get those children a chastity belt!**

So I found a tea I like! YAY! I found that I like herbal tea. Black and green teas are just too strong (tea scent AND taste) for me yet. I have to build up to them. It's like beer...its an acquired taste. Start with the light beers and build up. So I'm starting with the light teas and building up. At least that's the way it works for me! Also, one splenda (thank you Laura!). Perfect. I'm so happy. Now I can get my over abundance of antioxidants...yes!

Also, I'm home in KY. It's nice but I'm kinda bored. The last 2 days I've slept until 10am...which never happens in Memphis! Went to the gym yesterday and lifted. I'm really sore today. Also saw some really ugly lifting. I wanted to go around the room and tell people how to improve their lifts, but I didn't want to get kicked out the first day of being home for 3 weeks. I need to go back!

Of course everyone is happy that Junior is home. I walked in the door and my mom said "oh come here puppy!!!" I said "nice to be home, thanks mom!" But its ok...Junior is far too cute :) See? Here is our holiday card picture I sent out.

Add it to the list

So you're always supposed to try new things, right? Well, this is what you need to know leading up to last night. When I moved in August, I had about 3 loads of dirty laundry that I just didn't get time to do at my old place. It took us about 3 weeks to get our washer and dryer here, so that 3 loads built up to probably 6-7. Every week I would do on average 3 loads of laundry, but run out of time during the week to catch up. So, by the end of the week I was right back where I started: 6-7 loads.

This brings me to last night. I was originally supposed to go home today, but decided to wait a day because of the weather...well that was my secondary reason...the primary reason being I wasn't packed! Surprise! I wanted to get all my laundry done before I left for home. I knew it would take me 3 days to get all those loads done, and my roommates were both trying to do laundry yesterday.

Here's the part of "adding it to the list" meaning the list of things I've never done before. I went to a laundromat. Shocking I know. How can I be almost 24 and never been to one? Well, obviously had one at home until age 18. Then I was a spoiled Kansas student who had a nice laundry facility in the basement of my dorm (I wouldn't technically consider it a laundromat, b/c there weren't creepy people and it was clean). Then I've always lived in houses/apartments with a washer and dryer in them. So here I am. I googled a laundromat in Bartlett because I was going to be up that way. I found what seemed like a decent one. Nice part of town, on a nice road. No problem!

Well, I drove past it 3 times because the place had a horrible sign advertising it. That should have been my first clue. I finally found it, and started taking my two overflowing laundry baskets AND a garbage bag full of clothes inside. People were staring at me. I was bring dirty laundry to a laundromat...there's not weird about that people! Well, it turns out, nearly half the machines were "out of order"...neat. Wouldn't it make sense to have twice as many machines working?? No? Ok. Then there were some interesting things on the floor. 37 used dryer sheets, several used cups...random puddles of water. COOL. I would have just left but I really didn't want to put all that laundry back in my car...unless it was clean. So I started.

Long story short.... TEN FREAKIN LOADS OF LAUNDRY. TEN?!?!?!?!? I didn't even realize I owned that many clothes! Ok to be fair, 2.5 loads were towels, and one full load was workout stuff. So that leaves 6.5 loads of clothes. WOW. I saw clothes I forgot I had because I hadn't worn them since August! That was a little exciting.

Anyway, I met a nice guy who's money wouldn't go into the change machine, so I switched change for a crumply $5. Then he tried to buy detergent, and after giving it 3 times the amount of quarters, I offered my detergent. He was nice...maybe just a little creepy. Creepy people all over.

Lesson learned: Keep up on my laundry!!!!!!!

pics from the Marathon

Here's the only other one I look athletic in (the rest I'm walking haha). Yeah I kinda look like crap...but I just finished a marathon...who wouldn't!?!?

What I woke up to this morning...

Apparently, last night, Junior did not sleep as well as I did. He was much too busy performing open stuffing surgery on the poor bear. He must have been a surgeon in a previous life...look at that fine line directly down the middle...And that was with teeth! Imagine with a scalpel!

I woke up to a floor covered in snow (stuffing). And of course...Junior was finished and on my bed at this point...he just stared at me and gave me those big puppy dogs eyes that said "I SWEAR it wasn't me..." or maybe they said "haha! I DID THAT!!!"

Then I came across this ---->

I thought to myself...what is this?? Oh...right...its the SQUEAKER. But to Junior, it was the prize. You see, like many dogs, Junior LOVES to chew the squeakiness right out of the toy. But this time...he knew what he must do. Get the squeaker. Well, he won first place...and mangled the squeaker beyond recognition. I guess I can't be mad at the little guy. He takes after his mama. Set a goal...and will do ANYTHING it takes to reach that goal. Even if it means staying up all night....

Things

I hate resting! Well, not really, but I feel like such a slug. I actually felt guilty about riding for more than an hour yesterday (shh! Don't tell the coach). But it felt so great! I took it slow, but it was amazing to be outside again riding in warm weather!

I'm just getting ready for the trip home for Christmas. I still have Christmas presents to work on, much cleaning to do, and much sleeping to do (still). And what am I doing? Reading blogs. Yeeeah.

I am excited, however, because a bunch of us from the Ironman Louisville Blog are getting together over break to ride the Louisville course! So excited! I'm excited to meet people that are doing the race. I am so jealous that Court and Julie got to do the race together, so now I get to find people to do it with! And Mary Sunshine lives in the 'nati so I think we're getting together other times, too. Overall, I'm just ready to get home and work my a$$ off, literally!!!

Squeaky Clean CAR!

Finally cleaned out my car! Only because I have to drive Corey to his surgery in the morning so I guess he should have a place to set his bum leg. Anyway...I decided if someone were to ever steal my car (God forbid) 1. They wouldn't want it because its so dirty and 2. They would quickly get caught because they would not be able to explain all of the triathlon related things. For example:

• No less than 12 open (and eaten) gel packets
• 3 moldy water bottles
• 2 pairs of running shoes
• 3 clif bar wrappers
• 4.5 pairs of socks (not one matching pair, mind you)
• 5 sets of mapquest directions, to various locations...all of them races.
• and a partridge in a pair tree

Basically...a triathlon exploded in my car.

Sleeping Disease

I'm pretty sure I have one. In the last 24 hours (from right now), I've slept for 16 of them....NOT COOL. Well, it is cool, except I'm not getting anything done! grrrrrr........................

I feel like I'm in a fish tank

Last night, I went and swam. Yeah! It was nice to be active again after a 2 day hiatus. So I'm just chugging along, doing a long, continous set when I notice a guy had jumped into the lane next to me. He was a decent swimmer, but nothing spectacular.

After a few laps, I noticed he was just sitting at the wall. Ok, he's probably just taking a break. I swim down to where he's sitting on the wall, do a flip turn, and as I turn to push off the wall....there he is. Under water, holding his nose, just staring at me! To say the least...it was a tad bit creepy. This continued for about 3-4 laps. I figured out he was trying to watch my flip turns because then he just stayed at the wall flipping over and over again trying to mimic what I was doing. I guess I should be flattered? Ok, I have to admit, I put my best flip turns on for him from that point on....but was still a little creeped out.

In other news.........

I'm a failure at tea. Bill, if you're reading this, our discussion from last week did nothing for me. Sorry :( I've tried 3 different kinds and I just don't like it. The thing is....I WANT TO LIKE IT. I know it has great nutritional benefits (i.e. antioxidants, which I'm obssessed with trying to take in as much as possible) and I need something besides another cup of coffee during the day (so I don't become too dehydrated). But I just can't take it! The smell of it just doesn't seem appealing to me. It's kind of like eating fish. When something has a really fishy smell, it turns people off of it. And, knowing that fish can be mild in flavor (not very fishy taste)...is tea the same way? Am I wrong??? So if anyone has any tea suggestions, let me know!

It's going to be a long 9 months

Today....post marathon training begins. I will swim for 30 minutes...yeah! That's like the shortest workout EVER. The next month or so will be mostly base training, getting back on the bike and swimming more, and losing some pounds (I say this as I eat my cinnamon scone from Starbucks...shhh!) I actually haven't been too terribly bad in my post marathon eating. But I suppose I should get back on the wagon because the Holidays are coming very quickly!

So anyway, pretty easy stuff planned the next two weeks. No more than an hour a day either swimming or biking. I cannot wait to start lifting again, and just be a triathlete! The season is just around the corner, right???

St. Jude Marathon Race Recap

So, maybe I am a runner? Or, should I say, I could be a runner. Yes I finished the marathon on Saturday. 5:49:26. I’m soooooo glad it’s over!

Race morning: 5am wakeup call. Saw my downstairs neighbors coming HOME from the bars as I was taking Junior out. Long story short…one of them is a former student of mine. He was wasted and wanted to study…? He even left a sign on the stairs for me saying “GO ROBYN!!!” That was nice.

I dropped Junior off at the house he was staying at. I could have been optimistic thinking I would finish in time to get back and let him out at a reasonable hour…but I didn’t want to take the chance. I headed downtown and found the parking garage, which I was nervous about. I hate driving downtown! I headed to the Peabody where MIM was meeting up. We were ready!

Finally, we headed down to the start. It was a bit chilly but I had my throw away gloves and paper DFT jacket. I ended up getting rid of them shortly after mile 1! We started in corral #9 and finally, we were off! I’m glad I remembered to start my watch! I was running with Bill, Brian, Lori, Kelly and many others. The guys started to take off faster than Lori, Kelly, and I wanted to go, so we let them go ahead. I saw Dee with an MIM sign about mile 1..that was so great!

The first 10 miles FLEW by. I didn’t even expect a mile marker and there it was! That was a great feeling because I felt so good. After mile 2, we settled into 3/1’s. Nothing too exciting happened until mile 15. I started to hit a wall. For some reason, I just could not stomach gels on Saturday! That’s never happened to me before. After taking 2 or 3, I just did not want to eat another one. I needed something solid, so I ate a few pretzel peanut butter sandwiches. That helped, but I needed instant energy. I forced another gel down and that helped.
At mile 18 I thought we were getting shot at, but it turns out it was someone working on their deck with a nail gun…hey its Memphis, you can’t be too sure! At mile 19, Kelly’s family was there with some food and a nice COCA COLA!!! I drank a half of one and that really settled my stomach. I’m going to have to remember that for Ironman next year…. Definitely helped the stomach. The girls and I had made a pact, that once we go to mile 20 we could b*tch all we wanted. As soon as mile 20 hit…we let it all out!!! That was kind of fun…not to mention the songs Lori kept singing…..

Meanwhile, Rose and Ruth had caught up with us, and we sort of ran together, they’d pass us, then we’d pass them, etc. At mile 22, all the sudden I got a burst of energy! I told Lori and Kelly I had to go and they understood. I took off! I felt phenomenal compared to just 7 miles earlier. I probably only walked 2 or 3 times in the next 2 miles and I was holding a much faster pace. Mark caught up with me on his bike and said “I knew you’d get a 2nd wind! Take it in girl!” Well, that was great advice, except mile 24 came. Mile 24-25 was FOR SURE the worst of them all. I knew once I got to mile 25 I was home free. But getting there? That was a different story. I think it took me 45 minutes to get thru that mile. Finally, I saw Bill up ahead. I decided to run until I got to him. I caught him just before mile 25 and he was struggling. I tried to put on a good face for him and tell him to keep going. I knew he’d be fine so I said “See ya at the finish line!” and I took off. That last mile was long, too, but I kept thinking “Anyone could run a mile if they had to. I can do this.” I thought even my sister could run a mile with her jacked up ankle…so I just had to keep moving. I only walked once during the last mile, just to get my HR under control so I could coast into the finish. Everything hurt so badly. My hamstrings and back especially were killing me….so tight! I thought about the girls and hoped they were doing ok.

Finally, I came up on the Redbirds stadium. Mark rode with me for a bit, and tried to embarrass me by saying “Marathoner coming thru! Watch out! This is my marathoner!” I had to break the news to him that it would take a LOT more than that to embarrass me. I finally turned right into the stadium, and I saw the balloons! I was there! The finish! I ran thru the finish and Lucia and Natalie were there with my medal and cut off my chip. It was so nice to see people I knew at the finish! Brian was there waiting for Lori and Bill came thru shortly after me. It was so nice to be DONE. I wasn’t as excited as I thought I’d be…mostly because I know it’s just a step closer to Ironman next year. I was happy I had done a marathon, but just anticipating next year!

I have to thank Memphis in Motion, and Mark, for training me for this race. Couldn’t have done it without them! I met some awesome people and Mark really prepared me well for this race. I’m not sure I would have ran a marathon if it had not been for Ironman next year, so I’m glad I have another accomplishment to my résumé of races. Also, the best part….another sticker to my car!!!!!!

Here’s a picture from the finish: Only in Memphis will you have not one, but TWO Elvii (haha as Debbie so nicely put it) at the finish! Congrats to my fellow MIMers!!!! And now…on to tri training and IRONMAN!!!! (Other race pictures to follow)

I think you have me mistaken for a RUNNER...

Yesterday I went to the St. Jude expo to pick up my race packet, goody bag, and the bets part of all....shop at the expo! I controlled my spending by only taking $30 in cash. I'm getting much better at this whole "ooooh shiny" complex as my sister calls it.

After gathering all my bags (you always feel like a bag lady at expo's) I walked in and out of booths, looking at all the spectacularly great deals on race clothes. I bought this nifty shirt that wicks away moisture..its not dry fit, but some soft material. Also bought some run shorts...ended up being a bit snug right now, but it gives me something to shoot for as I lose some lbs over the next few months. And most importantly...my new sticker addition after tomorrow... a "26.2" sticker to add to my car. I do the races for the stickers :)

A lot of booths had charms (to make necklaces) of runners, triathlons (swimmer biker and runner) etc. I end up at one booth, and had a little conversation that went like this:

Me: Do you have any triathlon charms?
Lady: Yes we have these. But we have a lot of runner charms, too.
Me: Oh I'm not a runner.
Lady: Which race are you doing on Saturday?
Me: The full marathon.
Lady: Oh, well you're definitely a runner then!
Me: No, you may have me mistaken as a runner but running just happens to be the last 1/3 of a triathlon.

She just kind of looked at me...confused. I get that a lot...mostly when I mention that I'm doing an IM next year. So, don't worry, Lady, you are not alone.

I'm excited for tomorrow, mostly so I can go back to being a triathlete and not just a poser...er..I mean runner. I'll write tomorrow afternoon (or most likely on Sunday) my race recap! Pray for me!!!!!

T - 2 days

In a few hours, I'll head down to the expo to pick up my race packet (and partake in some amazing deals on running clothes, hopefully). I must be honest...I didn't think I'd be that excited. I'm running 26.2 miles for pete's sake. Who would get excited about that?

But, as it draws closer, I am getting a little excited. I love racing. Competing. Anything to do with it. From packing up bags the night before (Court, remember teaching Ash all about packing, and repacking our transition bags at Halfmax???) to driving there to waiting for the gun to go off. Its so incredibly exciting! Maybe that's why I only lasted a WEEK after finishing my 17 year diving career until I joined a new team.

I also swam last night. It was only a 1500, but I really didn't want to overdo it and ruin my race taper. My body performs better with more rest, so I didn't take the chance. It was more of a "get wet" workout...just move around for 30 minutes type of deal anyway.

So, now while I should be going to turn in my thesis (for the 4578932748923rd time) I'm dreaming of Saturday wanting it to come, and then pass quickly...after all, I am running 26.2 miles!

Things I'm thankful for (post Thanksgiving)

1. That Moto is alive and kicking after a ridiculous car accident (See Moto's blog below to see pics)
2. Coffee
3. My parental units for sending me the best pre-race cookie EVER
4. Electric blankets
5. The fact that my gels WILL be here today...I was worried they were not going to make it before race day!
6. Having my athletic trainer from Jr. year on speed dial (THANK YOU DENNIS)

And so it begins....

Court warned me about this. How IM starts to take over your life. Well, I'm about 9 months out, and yes, it has begun. You can't escape it. First off, at Thanksgiving, I'm not even sure how it came up, but it did. And it was discussed for approximately 20 minutes. I felt bad...because its still 9 months away and I feel like its the center of my life already. Even on the phone last night, my dad said "are you ready for your marathon next saturday?"........a few things said.......and BAM!!! Ironman talk. I don't know how it happens. It's like it seeps out of my pores and it HAS to be brought up.

Then....Saturday night, I had an IM dream. I'd say it was my first one. I drempt that next Saturday morning is my marathon (which it is), and Saturday night was my IM!!! I woke up with so much anxiety...but in my dream, I did it anyway. I think I won both races, and then married Mr. Potato Head, but hey...a girl can dream??? (about winning, that is). So, I'm sorry to those of you who will cross my path in the next 9 months...because I suppose it only gets more intense from here...........

"November is the new September" -Katrina

This was the quote of the week from fellow MIMer Katrina because it has been so warm this week! I cannot believe it has been so warm. Yesterday, I rode outside in shorts and short sleeves, and was HOT! It was unbelievable.

I've ridden on my trainer the last few weeks and while its nice to just watch tv, it is SUPER boring. I was so excited to get out and ride. Lately, I've only been riding for about 45 minutes, which is usually less than 10 miles on the trainer. It was so nice out yesterday, I rode 20 miles in about an hour and a half (Mark, if you are reading this, I did not kill myself!). It was just an easy ride...enjoying the weather. It felt great to get out there...did I mention that?

So ready for break tomorrow and Friday. I'll be doing a lot of sleeping, cleaning, laundry-ing, etc. Oh yeah, also a little thesis-ing...got my comments back today. I was only sans thesis for four days...but it was a glorious four days.........

Ok, back to dreaming about turkey, sleeping, and training....until I decide to go home. Maybe sooner than I thought.

Next stop...Marathon!

I'm getting pretty excited for the marathon. T - 11 days!! I didn't think I would, but I am! I just really want to race! Then I want to get back to tri training, not just focusing on running and maintaining swimming and biking, and I haven't even been doing a great job at that! Other noteworthy things of this weekend:

1. I slept...A LOT. 4-hour nap on Saturday, 3-hour nap on Sunday. YESSSS.
2. Did not clean at all...guess that's saved for this long weekend coming up (Yes, I'm staying in Memphis for Thanksgiving. Hanging out with the boss and the wifey. It'll be great!)
3. Had a great run on Saturday morning with Alissa...she's fun.
4. Junior finally understands sleeping thru the night and not crawling all over me. FINALLY.
5. I am now a lover of soy milk. I was always scared to try it, but I like the taste way better than regular milk! Plus, extra anti-oxidants, more protein, less sugar, and more omega-3's!!! YES!
6. Nascar is over for the season..and I'm actually pretty happy about it. The season turned out boring, with a domination by Hendrick's Motorsports...give me 2008, I'm ready.
7. Decided I need to jump back on the only healthy food bandwagon. I maintained my weight this week..so I need to start losing again....

Whew!!!

I know I haven't writte all week, but I have about 78 good reasons as to why. Here's the short of it all, starting with last Friday night...

I leave my boss' house, and I have a flat tire. Neat. He changes it, but since his wife was out of town all weekend, he let me drive around the subaru all weekend, since he didn't want me driving on a spare until Monday (when I could get a new tire). Not a big deal. Well, to make a long story short, when I went to pay for my tired on Monday, my wallet was gone. Not cool. After searching and searching, and cancelling credit cards, turns out the wallet had been riding ON TOP of Leslie's (Boss' wife) car for TWO DAYS. Sunday night, I had gone to Kroger, and I usually set things on top of my car, but I see them before I get in. She has a roof rack, so I didn't notice the wallet. Good thing the roof rack was there, because it prevented my wallet from falling off the car!!! SO CRAZY. She drove around for two days in MEMPHIS of all places, and no one took it and it didn't fall off. Thank you Lord for that one.

Then, Wednesday I had my thesis defense! Finally. I was so stressed out. The presentation went great, but the questions afterwards were a little tough. I get very flustered and nervous when I don't know what's coming at me. They sent me out of the room to discuss if I passed or not. Well, I did. After the rest of the committee left the room, my boss was talking to me and I just started crying! I wasn't happy or sad, just so stressed! I didn't know what else to do! Brian said "why are you crying?! You passed!!!" It was crazy. So just some finishing touches today, then I get to turn it in only to receive more changes! Oh how I love it.

Anyway, it's been a crazy crazy week, and I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend this weekend. After our "dress rehearsal" run tomorrow, of course! The 6-mile course. Yeah. So excited! (Sarcasm). I'm just ready to race!!!

um...

Definitely getting the itch to race. I've never done a marathon before, but I really hope it fulfills my racing needs until my first tri of the season.

Oh, P.S. Jayhawks are kicking major *ss right now!!! Going to be 10-0!!! First time since 1899!

From My Ironman Corky

P.S. I'm the friend she refers to calling one mile into the 14 mile run :) And I'm sure I'll be calling her over the next year.

Guidance I Received, What I Learned, What I Wish I Knew & Advice I Should Have Listened To:

-You only get ONE first IronMan.
-Jelly fish don't hurt. That bad.
-In the 4 weeks before my race I was admitted to the hospital, puked and pooped my guts out, got the worst sinus infection I've ever had. In that time I swam less than 3000 yards, biked no more than 90 minutes, and ran less than 10 miles- TOTAL. Rest is your friend. When you've been training for a year, a 4 week taper is just fine.
-Let people go the first 30 miles on the bike. You'll pass them back in the last 30.
-People get hurt doing IronMan. People die in the race. This is serious shit.
-Get the tattoo. It will be the most meaningful one you'll ever have.
-Do the race with a buddy. He/she will become one of your best friends, and ultimately, the only person in the weeks leading up to the race you don't want to choke.
-You'll cry when you see them finish even if you don't cry for your own.
-Aero wheels are good.
-If you don't have aero wheels don't worry, you'll pass people with aero wheels and helmets anyway.
-Sodium. You need it. Start taking it at least two days before your race.
-Ride your bike over 100 miles before the race. Twice.
-Take Tylenol, Advil, whatever. You'll want an emergency stock for bike and run.
-Develop a nutrition plan. Train with it. Use it exactly as you have trained during the race.
-The most expensive part of an IronMan? Nutrition. Gels, bars, salt tabs. Not to mention your grocery bill will double.
-Apply for sponsorships. You might be surprised what you get.
-Modesty does not apply to you.
-You will poop in the woods when you train. It might happen in the race. Train to poop in the woods.
-It's ok to piss on yourself.
-Be flexible.
-Don't budge.
-You will eventually piss on yourself even if you don't want to.
-You don't need toenails. Hell, you don't need pinky toes. They serve no purpose.
-Take you time in the finish chute. Celebrate the moment.
-Unless you have a superb base fitness (Leslie), you will want a 30 week training plan. Use the first 10 weeks to ease into schedule.
-Prepare to give up your social life. Not a little- all the way. I wasn't fully committed to my training until I stopped the after work happy hours, the Saturday night movies before a long ride, and stopped seeing my friends all together. Training doesn't stop when you take your run shoes off.
-Make sure your spouse is with you 100%. You can't do this by yourself if you don't live by yourself.
-Understand the new meaning of being poor.
-Invest in 10-12 pairs of quality running socks. You will never have enough.
-Get a condo/house as close to the race site as possible. Like, walking distance close. Parking is a bitch, and just loading up the car is even worse.
-You will want to cook for yourself, have a refrigerator/freezer and oven.
-Day after race buffalo chicken pastry puffs are good.
-The day after the day after race buffalo chicken pastry puffs is NOT good.
-When your race website converts for the next year's race, your heart will break.
-Death before DNF (unless there is a physical emergency.)
-Don't get psyched out by all the fit people. Someone there is looking at you thinking "I wish I was as fit as her"
-Don't run/ride the day after a race. It doesn't make you look like a hard ass, it just makes you look like an ass.
-Finisher's merchandise costs twice as much as you would think and sells out even faster.
-IronMans are hard. No, seriously.
-The pre-race pasta party and mandatory meeting are not mandatory and the food is bad. Go anyway. Prepare to stand in line, sit in tightly packed chairs, and listen to foreign people talk in your ear. Same for the post race awards party.
-Call your friend 10hrs away less than one mile into a 14 mile weeknight run bawling because you're scared and tired and not sure of yourself. She will make you feel better. Repeat next week.
-Repeat for next 12 weeks.
-Call from 8 weeks on telling her how ready you are.
-You will explain what and IronMan is, and how long it is no less that 2,378 times in the year before your race.
-People will still ask you if it's hard.
-Get used to being called Crazy. Maybe even stupid.
-You will feel the need to do another one. Immediately.
-You might not get your special needs bags back, so don't plan on it.
-Water is your friend. Drink it. All day, every day.
-If you have visitors stay at your house, make sure that they understand you have to (run, swim, bike, lift) at x day for x hours. Don't waffle.
-Dont be upset when they think you're being a bad hostess. You are. Go with it.
-Your mind can be your worst enemy. It can be your best friend.
-Visualize your race. Do this at least once a week starting about 3 months out. Do it every night for 30 days before your race. Go through every situation possible.
-No body cares about Ironman as much as an Ironman and a to-be Ironman. Don't drive your spouse/coworkers/friends/dogs crazy talking about.
-Other IronMen love to hear about it. Talk excessively to them about it.
-Don't finish in the daylight. You'll miss out on a glow stick.
-You'll want socks on the bike. Even if you have never used them before, you will want them.
-Long runs will kill your legs. Longest run should be no later than 5-6 weeks out. Don't be afraid of a 18 or 22 mile run. Be very afraid of a 20.
-If, on a 20 mile run, you find yourself sitting on a park bench in the middle of the day in Brookside, and you still have 4 miles to go, do not despair. Someone will walk by with their 70 lb bulldog named Snuggles. Snuggles will be wearing a tutu. You will stop crying.
-Older, fatter people will beat you.
-Younger, fitter people will beat you.
-Wash ALL of the sand off your body before you get dressed for the bike.
-You are somebody's hero before you even race.
-You will be your own hero when you finish.
-The local race venue WalMart will run out of easy open Gatorade bottles. It doesn't matter, they don't carry the flavor you want anyway.
-Inevitably the day after the race, you will be wearing a finisher's hat and shirt, and you will walking like your entire foot fell off. You will be smiling.
-Somebody will ask you if you raced. You'll be so happy you won't even be a sarcastic ass back.
-Congratulate other racers the day after, the night of, even in the finish chute.. They did the same distance you did.
-IM will be your number 1 priority. The house chores, the husband, the friends, the cat, even your job. Things that SHOULD be a number priority no longer will be. Don't kid yourself. You can't make it all the top priority.
-You don't like cleaning as much as you like running.
-You'll watch a re-run of the previous season's American Idol and think that it's current and live.
-Buy a DVR or say goodbye to an entire season of Grey's, Housewives, and Nip/Tuck. Unless it's an episode involving IM. Still waiting on Housewives to do a show with that.
-You will lose weight and increase muscle.
-Your periods might stop. You are not pregnant.
-You will find yourself mooing at cows in fields during rides. You will panic when you realize that bull actually did just run through that fence.
-You will find out that your anaerobic threshold doubles when said bull is running behind you. Up Hill.
-Stay for the last finisher.
-Cry when the clock turns to 17:00 and you can still see people coming in.
-Frank Farrar and Madonna Budder are amazing. Learn from them. They have a lot to teach and even more to say.
-All the hard work, the countless hours of training, the missed dinners with family, the vacations trips you passed up. all of it will be worth the sacrifice of becoming an IronMan.

Back in the swing of things

This week, I decided I have to get back to a routine. Lately, I've been taking it somewhat easy and mostly just running. I haven't been on my bike in a few weeks, and I haven't swam since I got out of the lake at Halfmax.

Monday, I ran with MIM. Tuesday, I worked out for 2 hours while watching Biggest Loser! I love that show. Rode for 50 minutes, then did some strength and core work. I felt so good afterwards! And last night...I SWAM. Lucas (office mate) didn't believe I'd actually go, because in the past I've made up excuses every time, but I DID IT. And it felt GREAT to be back in the water.

Running and biking is great...you feel free. But nothing compares to the quiet when you are immersed in hundreds of thousands of gallons of water. Nothing compares to that. Maybe it's because I grew up a water mammal? Maybe it's because my mother says I turn into a b*tch when I'm out of the chlorine for too long? Or maybe it's just because when you are in the water its like you're flying, like you're in space with no gravity. Whatever the case may be...it was SO great to swim again.

I swam a 2000. I actually felt really good. It was like I hadn't skipped a pool workout. I felt tapered. Lucas and I decided this morning, that about the 3rd or 4th workout...I'll feel those 2 months off! Until then...I'll enjoy this feeling.

Training Advice

I just received the best training advice EVER for Ironman Louisville from my friend Tiffany. The conversation went a little like this:

Robyn: Did I tell you I signed up for IM Louisville?

*after explaining what it was*

Tiffany: Sounds easy..where do I sign up?
Robyn: Too bad, it's full. Did I also mention I have to swim in the Ohio River?
Tiffany: ewwwww. I can't believe you have to swim in that cesspool.

*weird things are said...pretty standard for T. Diddy and me*

Tiffany: I think you should stick your head in the toilet to train for the race in the Ohio River...build up your immune system.

Thanks T. Diddy! Who says I need to PAY someone to coach me thru the IM. A little biking, a little running, and sticking my head in the toilet every few days...I'm good to go!

A few updates

1. Corky and Jules fly back today from Florida! Yeah! That means the rest of the week, I have people to email all day!

2. Still obsessed with Pumpkin Spice Lattes...yup.

3. Good training run last night...very happy with it. I feel like I'm getting stronger...and considering it was only two days after running 24, I felt AMAZING.

4. Thesis defense scheduled for next Wednesday! WOOOOOOO!!

5. 24 days until St. Jude Marathon!!!

6. LESS THAN 300 DAYS UNTIL IRONMAN LOUISVILLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bad prep for a decent run

I had my longest training run on Saturday morning...and I do mean morning... 5am.

Well, the bad prep started on Friday night. I was going to babysit and had to be there at 5:15. I had planned on packing my run stuff before I left to babysit, but I feel asleep for an hour and didn't wake up until 4:45-ish. No time for that. I left, thinking the parents would be back about 9, just like they were last time. When I got there, the mom told me they wouldn't be home until 11:30. NEAT. Once the kids were in bed about 8, I watched a little tv and tried to sleep. Sleeping on an uncomfortable couch at someone else's house does NOT work for me. I didn't sleep at all, and the parents didn't get home until midnight!! By the time I got home, packed my stuff and got to bed, it was 1am!

Wake up call: 4am. 3 hours of sleep...NEAT again.

I actually didn't feel too bad. Actually, the first 14 miles were great! I ran with Bill and he kept me laughing the whole time (as we were laughing at Patrick leading the group, trying to flag cars away so they wouldn't run us over). Oh, I should mention Bill saved my life twice..with me not paying attention to oncoming cars as we ran on Humphries...oops.

Well, about mile 18, I hit a MAJOR wall. Nutrionally, I stayed on schedule. It was the lack of sleep. I had already ran longer than I had slept the night before! I think that's probably a bad thing...

We ended the run going thru the blue trail which I had never been on. That made it worse because I had NO clue where we were. The group got ahead of us a bit in the last mile because my hamstrings and back started cramping up, not to mention I felt like I could fall asleep WHILE running... Tony stayed back with, because (in his words) "He couldn't leave me to die on the trail"...that's a happy thought :)

I got back to the car and I have NEVER been so happy to be done with a run. I was happy I got 24 miles in, but I was sooooo tired. I came home and ate, showered, and laid down. I actually had a lot of trouble sleeping because I was hurting so badly.

To finish off my Saturday, I tracked Court and Jules online during Ironman Florida!!! They ROCKED it out. Court finished in just under 14 hours, and Jules finished in 16 hours. I'm so proud of them and I cannot wait to go through this next year so I can experience what they felt crossing that line, hearing "YOU are an Ironman"....

The race before the race

Yesterday I get a text from Courtney asking me to look up someone's race number. She thought it was a pro and wanted me to find out the name of the GUY. Turns out, she read the number wrong because when I looked up number 31, it was actually a woman. But that's a whole other story.

Come to find out, apparently there is a competition to come up with the most ridiculous (most of them not real) job title possible. Silly me, I put "student". Here's a list of the best (or worst, however you want to look at it) in no particular order from Ironman Florida participants:

BADMUTHA (Someone's full of themselves)
DEAD BEAT HOUSE HUSBAND (I'm sure his wife appreciates him being honest!)
JAPANESE GAME SHOW CONTESTANT (Now that sounds pretty sweet)
BEER TASTER (How do I get that job???)
COUCHWEIGHT (I actually know people who would excel at this position)
FEISTY GRADUATE STUDENT (I definitely should have put this!)
BAMF (Another person full of themselves...*sigh*)
COOKIE MONSTER (hahahahahhahha)
STINGRAY WRANGLER (apparently there are a lot of wranglers in the triathlete world..you'll see)
GIGALO (also lots of these...)
MONEYSHOTFLUFFER (WOW)
ADULT ENTERTAINMENT (DANCER) (That's kind of bold...)
DRUG DEALER (hope they don't come after you dude...)
HERDER OF CATS (um....)
MER...MAN (should do well on the swim, eh?)
JELLYFISH WRANGLER (that's 2 for the wrangler list!)
ROCK FARMER (How's that working out for you?)
PROFESSIONAL SNIPE HUNTER (Does "Professional" really make a difference here?)
DAREDEVIL (You're in the right sport, then!)
MALE EXOTIC DANCER (I'm going to have Courtney take a picture just to prove it...)
USED CONDOM SALESMAN (This has GOT to be the most creative! I hope its not a real job..)
WILD LLAMA TAMER (HAHAHAHAHAHHAHA)
WIFE LOVER (Someone got MAJOR points for this one, unless he's talking about OTHER people's wives....)
I DON`T KNOW WHAT I WANT TO DO WHEN I GROW UP (*Note: this person is in the age 35-39 category...)
SEMI PRO BINGO CALLER (Didn't realize there is a semi pro AND pro circuit....)
CHIHAUHAU WRANGLER (#3)
ICE CREAM TASTE TESTER (Ok I'll take this job over the beertaster)
HOMEY (Loser...)
GOAT WRANGLER (#4)
ROCKET SCIENTIST (Actually, there were 3 listed..so that's why NASA is sucking these days, they're all training for Ironmans!)
WILD LLAMA (Watch out for the wild llama tamer!!)
SECRET AGENT (This is FOR SURE my favorite one!!!!!)
BED WETTER (hahahahahaha)
SMOKIN' HOT NASCAR WIFE (liar)
SUPER FLY MONKEY (WHAT?!?!?!)
SICK F**K (At least he's honest...a little too honest maybe)
MICKEY MOUSE'S LACKEY (hahahahahahhaha)
MAN BEAST (yeeeeahh....)
MIME (HAHAHHAAHHAHAH)
TURTLE HEARDER (Turtles and cats...hmmm...)
EVIL VILLAIN (get out your lazer gun!)
BAD WIFE (Her husband must have signed her up....)
LUMBER JACK (This dude's from Atlanta...I expected North Dakota....)

Last night I was almost in tears laughing so hard at these. I mean, you can't make these up! I might have to do another IM just to come up with a really good profession.....

weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Who just turned in her 1st draft of her thesis?

THIS GIRL DID.

Granted, I WILL have changes to make over the next few weeks, BUT this is a big step. 10,962 words and 42 pages later....

Dedicated to Corky and Jules

Last night's workout was around 5 miles, and included 4x1 mile repeats. Our course included running around the Agricenter. I had a volleyball game at Hope at 8, so I didn't want to get there early and go home, only to leave shortly after. So I got to the workout at 6 and it was already getting dark. While running, I realized how the workout was symbolic of what the next year will bring me.

When the 1 mile loop first starts, you just run around the parking lot, and its about .35 miles long and you end up where you started. Sometimes training is like this...you feel like you are just running/biking/swimming in circles. But you keep going.

Next, the loop starts to go around the building. Its well lit and there's a lot of things to look at. Again, training is like this. You can see where you are going...you see whats up ahead. You are very aware of what's going on around you. This is a comfortable part of training.

The loop ends by going around the other side of the building...where all the lights outside the building are burnt out (or not on) and you can't even see your hand in front of your face. A good portion of the run is on this side of the building. You can't see whats on the road in front of you. I'm sure most people have experienced training like this: You have no clue what you're doing or where you're going. You could run right into a hole and twist your ankle...but you take that risk. You kind of want to just stop and say "what am I doing? I can't even see where I'm going". But you don't. You continue, because you trust your training, even though you have become distracted and can't see your goal up ahead of you. This isn't a fun part of training, but I think many (if not all) people experience it at some point.

Training for an IM, so I've heard, is one of the most difficult, time consuming, and trying times in an athlete's life. You have to dedicate so much time, energy, and feelings to this one race. You could feel like you're running in circles, like you're not going anywhere or gaining anything from all the training. You could feel like you're running in a well-lit area and everything is going so well in your training. Or you could feel like you're running in complete darkness and you can't see where you're going or what you're doing...and you just want to stop and give up. But something....something keeps you going. That drive and determination that endurance athletes have to race a ridiculous distance is unlike any other. Sure, all athletes have that will and want when it comes to athletics, but the desire to keep going, when you've already gone 100 miles, and you still have 40.6 miles left....THAT is pure passion for the sport.

Good luck at IMFL Corky and Jules!!!

I've got the itch

No, not an itch that you wake up wondering "where did THAT come from?" By no means...I'm way too boring of a person these days to go out partying so hard I don't remember the night. So don't worry parents, that's not it.

THE itch. The Ironman itch. The training my *ss off itch. Yeah, I'm training right now. For a marathon. JUST a marathon. No big deal, right? I mean in 306 days I'll be doing a marathon... after swimming 2.4 miles, and biking further than anyone in their right minds would care to. Which is why I'm itching to train. I think its far too early to start killing myself on a regular basis, though. Court and I were talking this weekend and we decided I should look for a 30 week training plan. Which would put me starting "official" training February 3rd, or somewhere there abouts. But with Court and Jules competing THIS Saturday in IM Florida, I feel like I should be right there with them! But alas, I'm a year behind. I can't lose weight to save my life right now. I'm maintaining, which is not bad, but I'd like to lose a few more pounds. I'm just not training enough. I have my long runs, and my weekday runs, and I try to bike once a week. Still haven't made it back to the pool. I just don't want to get burnt out by, say, June.

Needless to say, even though I'm JUST training for a marathon, I'd rather be training for my IM. Oh well, I guess I should live it up until February 3rd...looks like Cheetos and bon bons on the couch for the next 3 months?

Walls are tall, impenetratable, and they SUCK

Today, I hit probably my first major wall while training. Hard to imagine it took me this long. I mean I've had workouts where I'm like "I don't really want to do this", but I always do and it's not too bad.

Today was so different. Usually, I take in calories like clockwork...every 45 minutes. I have to or I die. Only a few times have I not followed this routine, and it was for much shorter workouts, so there were no real effects. I ate a cliff bar for breakfast and took a gel before we ran. Since many people we run with only eat when we stop, this can be anytime really. I keep my gels in my pocket of my camelback, and its hard to reach around and get them unless I walk and take off the camelback. I just did not realize that I hadn't eaten in over an hour and a half! About mile 7, I hit this thing (see picture) hard....I mean running headfirst into it without a helmet...twice. All I wanted to do was sit in the middle of the road and pout.

I slowly dropped back from the group, and they seemed like they were holding a 5 min/mile pace. I was sooooooo frustrated, but I knew that wasn't going to help the situation. So I walked and took a gel, took a good drink of water, and started running again. At this point, the group was ahead of me by about two tenths of a mile (0.2). I ran thru one walk break and closed in on them, then we got to a downhill and I basically sprinted down the hill and finally caught up to Jim, Alissa, and Jack. I stayed with them until the end of the 6 mile course, and then Jim went on with the other group who was running it again. We had already run 4 miles before the 6 miles course, and including the 1.25 running to the course, we had gone about 11.5-ish. Running back to the cars would have only given us about 12.5-ish, so we ran around the neighborhood behind Lowe's. I was still dying. I think once you get behind in nutrition, you're screwed. And I was. We got in about 13 today, which we needed about 14 so not too shabby.

Lesson Learned: EAT EAT EAT

Running in the rain

Apparently the rain Gods do not read my blog.

It was still raining last night, and I had to get my hill workout in. Couldn't save it for today for a few reasons:

A. I would not have done it, because I would have found numerous excuses not to.

2. I have a long run tomorrow and it would have affected that.

Thirdly, Friday is my lounge around day = no run!!

To endurance athletes, and any type of athlete for that matter, I am considered completely normal (see picture below...see, completely normal!) for doing my workout even while rainy and dreary.

But to the "normal" population, those who think "yes, its raining! I don't have to go run!" or those who don't even work out...I am considered completely and utterly INSANE (see below).

Back to last night.... I drove down to Lowe's, only to see very few cars from the MIM run group. Usually, people are there early and run over to the course to get started. I ended up running to the course by myself. Not a big deal. It's 1.25 miles away...really good (LONG) warmup. I noticed only a few water bottles, so there were only a handful of people on the course somewhere. The workout was to run up the big hill, jog back down, run up again, then run around the course where you run up two more hills. We did this twice. So, I ran up the big hill and jogged back down. I felt AWESOME. Almost like I was tapered. My legs were fresh, I had the energy..it was great! I guess I'm FINALLY recovered from halfmax...gee only took SIX WEEKS. Ridiculous.

When I got to the bottom of the hill, I found the others who had been out on the course. Too bad they were finished! Luckily, Jack ran the course with me again. It was nice to have someone to run with! The second time up the big hill, it was definitely not as easy as the first, but still not bad. After the first loop, more people had shown up. I ran the second time with Karla.

Long run tomorrow morning! wooooooo!

Enough already!

I'm kinda sick of the rain. I do not enjoy how we had a total of, what, 3 days of fall? That's it? Come on Memphis!

Ran in the rain last night. This is pretty much verbatim of how it went.

Had to run a one mile test...basically go as fast and as hard as you can, without dying (still have energy left at the end). After a longer warmup, I was ready. Of course, mind you, it was like 50 degrees and rainy..not enough the steady type of rain, but that annoying and cold misty rain. I'm over it. So, I start the one mile run. I was going hard..my HR was probably about 85% of max...I thought to myself... "This has to be a world record mile run!!! I'm going so fast!" Not to mention, I felt like yacking the whole time because I was anaerobic for so long.

When I got to the end, I looked down at my split time only to be extremely disappointed... 9:04!!!!!! WTF?!?!?!? I swore I was going a 7:30 mile. DANG. That was disappointing. Oh well...guess it gives me a goal for next time? Like, to shave off two minutes?! Is that possible???

Also, check out the funniest commercial on T.V. right now...I can't stop laughing at it!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcZRgUHesDo

What they say is true

I've turned into my mother. Last night, I found myself washing the dishes (while the dishwasher is running with an entire load, mind you) at about 10:30. I had a hand towel draped over my shoulder, which I can picture from my earliest childhood memories of my Mom. I was thinking "Do I need to send out invitations for people to put their dishes in the dishwasher...or empty it when its clean so I don't have to wash dishes at 10:30 at night??" Then it hit me.

Oh God, I've turned into my mother.

This is not a bad thing (I love you Mom - she reads my blog)...I just thought I could be the only female in America to escape this fate....I was wrong.

This late-night dish saga made it all worth it, though, when I woke up to a clean kitchen this morning. I didn't have to scrub last Thursday's breakfast off a spoon before using it. So, I guess I cannot complain that I'm mimicking a woman who raised me right.

I mean, there are worse things. My mom could be a mass murderer who escaped prison to join the circus as the "Bearded Lady"...........

A few things accomplished...

Thesis Proposal...........................................................check.
Recovery Run last night............................................check.
A call to Gram.............................................................check.
Figuring out what to do once I graduate.................ok, not yet.
A good night's sleep....................................................check.
Pumpkin Spice Latte..................................................check.
Swim Workout.............................................................probably not going to happen.
Figuring out what to do once I graduate..................still nothing.

Just.....be.

What a fantastic day I had! Way too many reasons why, but just believe me :)

Tonight, however, I was so tired. I didn't sleep well last night, and didn't nap because Wednesdays are my late work days because of Bible Study in the morning. I got home, and the last thing I wanted to do was get on my trainer. There was only about an hour of daylight left, and I still had to get ready and air my tires. It was getting pretty cloudy and I knew rain was coming... "Great, my excuse will be its going to rain". Checked the radar...Not for a while! Well, can't use that excuse!!

So, I thought to myself....what would an Ironman do?? GET ON THE FREAKIN BIKE AND RIDE!!! That's what an Ironman would do. So, I sucked it up, realizing in the next year I'll be this tired (or more) many, many more times, so I better get used to it. What else was I going to do? Lay on my bed and watch Oprah...and fall asleep for way longer than I should. Then I wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. So, I thought I should use my time wisely and train.

I started out and though I'd try to get a solid 45 minutes in, probably between 10 and 12 miles. I'm definitely in the IM thinking of "That's not even worth putting on my bike clothes and getting on my bike!" But, I knew that I needed to. I told myself I'd ride once a week until the marathon is over, just to stay cycling-active (I'm not sure you can hyphenate those two words...oh well, its my blog, I can do what I want....So, don't judge me!). Anyway, getting off track...I rode and after about 25 minutes, and with it getting darker and more clouds coming, I thought I should turn around and head back. Although I felt great. I've had so much running through my mind today (just ask my bible study ladies - I just starting spewing out stories/info/questions today!). It was so liberating to be on that bike, in perfect weather and not have to think about things. That's one reason I love to train...its MY TIME. I can get away from all the worries of the world, and just be.....

You know, I was trying to think of a good word to describe how I feel when I'm training, but it is "be"...when I'm hammering on the bike, or only hearing the sound of my feet on the pavement at 5am....that's all I am. So, try it...Just BE.

Pictures and more

Well, Junior survived his haircut in the ghetto yesterday. Although he looks kind of ridiculous, but he needed it all cut off. Here's the cute pup (although he looks really pissed at me).

Recovery run this morning... 5.5 miles at lower than 75% HR. It was kind of rough because my joints were still sore from running 20 on Saturday. Oh well. What are you gonna do?

Oh yeah, this is "old Junior"...actually he destroyed a ball I bought him...stuffing was flying everywhere, and this is him oblivious to the stuffing on his face. Oh I love this little guy!!

What a weekend!

Friday:
I did what I always do, but never want to do: fell asleep after work. As great as it felt, and as much as I tried to avoid it, I slept for about 2 hours. So that meant I didn't fall asleep Friday night until about 11:30, and by 11:30, I mean midnight. Next thing I know, my alarm is going off at 4am Saturday.

Saturday:
Yep, definitely had the voice going "what the hell are you doing?! It's Saturday, and it's 4am...the only people awake right now are those working overnight and those coming home from the bars. GO BACK TO SLEEP." Of course, I ignored this voice, just as I always do, and I got up and started getting ready for the longest run to date: a 20 miler. I got to Lowe's to find a nice crowd of people. This should be fun! I'm so glad I am running with MIM because otherwise, I would have slept until about 9, and I wouldn't have ran! We got about 4 miles in until we went back and picked up the 6am group. Man, were there a lot of people this week! I'd say about 35-40 people were running. That makes for a large, chaotic long run! But so much fun! I ran with my girl Katrina for most of the run. She was doing 18 and I was doing 20. Everything was going pretty well (although I have to say mentally I was not in it to win it this week...I hate that!), until about mile 12. I started getting really tight in my hamstrings, which made my lower back extremely tight. Every few miles, we stopped to stretch and that helped, but it wasn't too far down the road and I'd tighten up again. This didn't make me too excited to run a marathon in 46 days, not to mention a freakin' Ironman next year! The miles slowly but surely passed, and soon we came up on Lowe's again. Ah! Freedom! I'm done with the longest run of my life (so far)!!

*SIDE NOTE* Remember how Katrina was doing 18? Well, we hit mile 18 in the middle of the trails...she ended up going 19...yeah girl! YOU ROCK!

We get to Lowe's and our mileage is right at 19 miles. Time wise, we had been running for about 5 hours and 5 minutes. But that wasn't good enough for Bill, Daniel, and me. We decided to hit that 20 mark. So we ran around Lowe's twice to add another mile. After some painful stretching in the back of Mark's truck, I was DONE.

*Thanks to Daniel and Bill for getting me to finish that last mile!!*

I went home and showered, fell asleep for an hour, then it was off to the St. Jude Dog Expo with Junior! He had so much fun! I felt like a parent with a child at a carnival for the first time. He wanted to run around and do everything and play with every dog there. I made a donation to St. Jude and he got to run this track like greyhounds do when they race. He chased a ribbon around on this zip line. The first run he was just trying to figure everything out. The second time, he was determined to get that ribbon! Well, turns out, he did! The zip line broke, which meant the ribbon stopped. He grabbed that thing and ran it all the way around the track and dropped it at the dude's feet. He had a look on his face like "Look Mom I won I won!!!" It was priceless. (I'll post pics when I get home, don't have my camera with me!)

Went to the Men's Soccer game Saturday night. They beat UK!!! Yeah! I definitely fell asleep Saturday night at 9:30. I'm such a winner!

*Also, Ironman World Championships at Kona were Saturday. I watched the coverage on the Internet off and on all day Saturday. Congrats to Liz and Chris, and everyone who raced for that matter!!

Sunday:
Normal Sunday. Woke up at 6:30, went to Church to volunteer in the nursery during 8am service, then went to the 9:30 service. Came home and napped, and was extremely lazy the whole day. Just how I like it!

Good 'ol hills

There's nothing better than a hard workout. That feeling of accomplishment at the end. You know the one...the "I just kicked that workout's ass" feeling. That was last night for me. It's an endurance week (yes Mark, I know that means LONG workouts) and Thursday are hill workouts. We park at the Lowe's and run to the course for warmup..its about 16 miles to get there. Kidding...but it really is 1.25 miles..quite a warmup if you ask me! Our workout was to do 4 circuits of running up a long hill, walking down, running back up then around the block. Each circuit was about one mile long. After the cooldown, of 16 miles (haha), our total workout ended up being 7 miles.

Most people would feel quite accomplished to do a 7 mile workout. Not the MIM'ers! That didn't matter so much. For me, it was the pace I was holding. Yeah, hills kick my ass (see October 5th post), but I was actually holding really good pace times (for me). I was holding about 10:30-11 mi/min going uphill, and then on the flats I was actually holding 9:30's! My old pace time was back! Now, I probably couldn't hold that for any length of time anymore, but I was just happy that I felt good holding that pace!

After a nearly 2 hour workout (and a 16 mile cool down), we were back at the cars. I was S-T-A-R-V-I-N-G. I got home and chowed down - on a protein shake, crackers, and salad..mmmm! Oh the life of an endurance athlete....

20 miler tomorrow at 5am....to be continued.................

Definition of Memphis drivers

Idiotic (id-ee-ot-ik) adjective

1. Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of an idiot.
2. Senselessly foolish or stupid.
3. Driving style of Memphians.

Memphis drivers are idiotic.


I've always known this, but yesterday was one of the worst riding experiences yet. I decided to go for about a 20 mile ride, just to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather. I rode a pretty normal route for me, which entails riding on a pretty busy road. It was probably my mistake to ride at 5pm, but I would only be on the busy road for a few miles. I had probably 3 cars beep at me to tell me to get off the road...awesome. Not to mention people buzzing past me in the SAME lane going about 50mph. Neat. Ok I deal with that kind of stuff all the time. So I said a little prayer and kept going.

Well, the real kicker was when I reached the point in my ride where I get to ride in a bike lane. There aren't that many in Memphis, so I get pretty excited when I don't have to fear for my life as much. Again, the traffic was a little heavier than normal because it was rush hour. Let me reiterate that I was riding in a bike lane. This is a very residential neighborhood, so there are side streets every few hundred feet. Well, an older woman comes up behind me and has to drive past me (as I'm in the BIKE LANE) to turn onto a side street to my right. She comes up right next to me so we are side-by-side coming up on a side street. I just thought she was slowing down because she was riding next to a cyclist. NOPE. Of course not. This is where the definition comes in...She turns onto the street anyway, and narrowly misses me by about 2 feet! She HAD to see me because she came up from behind me! I threw my arms up in the air and yelled, only to realize it didn't do any good. IDIOTIC MEMPHIS DRIVERS. I was so frustrated I held a 23 mph pace for the next 3 miles. So in a way, it was good, but not really because I almost died! *sigh* do I have a target on my back when I ride??

Idiotic
1. Driving style of Memphians.

I am NOT a bug

I was slightly angry this morning during my workout. Actually, the anger started last night when I was supposed to go meet Memphis in Motion for the workout, but it was raining, and I had a volleyball game. So, I decided to wake up early and do it this morning.

It was speed/pace work, which in itself is not the most fun, especially by my lonesome. I didn't feel like filling up my fuel belt, so I just took a water bottle down with me (I was running on the street that my apartment is on. Its a little over a half mile long, so perfect for this workout). I set it at the end of my street, which has a huge circle and a business sitting at the end of the circle. I began my workout, and each time I came back to where my water was, and took a drink...obviously.

Well, where I became angry was I had 2 one-mile circuits left, and I saw a pesticide truck (they were spraying the grass for bugs I'm assuming?) and the dudes looked DIRECTLY at me while I was taking a drink from my water bottle. Ok, nothing to worry about. They saw this is mine. Boy, was I wrong. I even moved the bottle away from the grass. So I go out for my second to last one-mile run, and on the way back, because it was 1,000% humidity, I was sooooo looking forward to a huge drink of icy cold water. I come closer to the end, where my bottle is sitting, and I see the pesticide truck sitting right next to it. I think to myself "surely, they did not spray near my bottle, or they at least moved it." WRONG WRONG WRONG! I pick my bottle up, to see beads of liquid - the prettiest shade of blue. NEAT. They sprayed frickin' pesticide ON MY WATER BOTTLE!!!! Even though they SAW me drink from it. Awesome. Spectacular. What a great start to my day. Then I realize, I have another one-mile interval left. FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC.

I don't know if those dudes realized this...but I AM NOT A BUG. Thank you very much!!

A long run with Sponge Bob.

Three things I realized by 9am:

1. (5:45 am) One of the top three reasons I race ridiculous distances is simply for the sticker to put on my car....because you can never have too many ridiculous distance stickers, or RDS's for short.

2. (8:00 am) I find myself finishing a 12 mile workout solo, and also find myself with the "Sponge Bob Squarepants" themesong on repeat in my head, but only one line of it: "Who lives in a pineapple under the sea SPONGE BOB SQUAREPANTS!!!" Do not ask me where it came from....but for the last 6 miles, that's all I had.

3. (9:15-ish) As I walk...let me re-phrase: SHUFFLE thru Kroger looking for bisquick because I had been craving biscuits since mile 10, I realize that 14 miles ALL on pavement makes you hurt...A LOT. I never thought I'd want to run on trails so badly.

And now for my annual laying around on a Saturday afternoon...

OH SNAP! KU just intercepted the ball against K-State with only 1:12 left...YEAH!!!!! Ok time to watch the domination!

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea.....

A message to my gluteus maximus

Dear Gluts,

Yes, we had a hill workout last night. I thought it was going to be worse than it was, but I was surprised. It was not easy, but I definitely expected worse considering how terrible I am at hills, whether it be on a bike or on foot.

This morning, however, I did not appreciate waking up to the sound of "What were you THINKING?! Why don't you just continue to be bad at hills, so we only hurt like this a few times a year?" Well gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus...oh man especially medius...I am standing up and reminding you of all those races where people passed me as I was walking up a hill...and I say:

"NO! I will not stop trying to be better at hills. So deal with it! Suck it up! You are, after all, Mr. Gluteus Maximus, the biggest muscle in the body!! So gather your brothers (Mr. Medius and Mr. Minimus) and help get my ass up those hills!! LITERALLY!!!"

Sincerely,
Robyn

My Personal Top Ten

Robyn's Top Ten Reasons of How You Know You are a Triathlete:

10. 6:30am is sleeping in.
9. You can't remember the last time you went out, mostly because you have an early workout the next morning.
8. A Clif Bar is a perfectly acceptable supplement to Lunch.
7. You feel like you are constantly eating, yet always hungry.
6. You spend more money on a sports bra than a regular bra. Wait, regular bra?
5. You ride to work and knowing you have to ride home, you just wear your bike shorts around all day.
4. When asked what your favorite smell is, you respond "chlorine".
3. Dressing up for you is jeans and a shirt that you do not work out in.
2. You take your bike rack off the car for the winter and think your car now makes you look unathletic.
...and the number one reason:
1. You think about purchasing something (i.e. dress clothes, school supplies, new sheets after your dog chews up a pen and there is ink on them, etc) but you quickly realize what you could buy related to triathlon training, and buy that instead.

Not that I've EVER done ANY of these......

marathon...check!

Finally signed up for the St. Jude Marathon today. Thank goodness! I'm not as nervous anymore for it. It's like "26.2? Meh. I'm going to do a freakin' IRONMAN! That's nothing." Catch me at about mile 20 on Dec 1st though, and I may feel a little differently. Also, ordered new shoes, so now hopefully I won't hurt as much after runs.

Let's see...nothing really new this week. Probably hop on the trainer for about an hour tonight. Hill workout tomorrow...gooooo. Not looking forward to that, even though its really good for my training. Friday, swim. And Saturday, long run!!!! Weeeeee! Way too excited about that.

Well, here's a photo for you:

This is the girls who competed at Halfmax with Sister Madonna Buder. She's a 77 year old nun/triathlete. I just googled her, and found out she's done over 200 triathlons, including 13 IRONMANS!!!! Her most recent one, was at the 2006 Kona race (LAST YEAR) where she became the oldest woman (age 76) to complete the race, just one minute shy of the cutoff time.

WOW. If that's not motivation, I don't know what is.....

What is the world coming to??

Last night as I was going to bed, I had the news on. I hear coming in as breaking news that someone had been shot and killed on my campus, not too far from my building. Neat. Well, I tried to stay up to hear about it, but I failed.

This morning I woke up as normal, thinking its a usual Monday morning. I got all ready (even got dressed up cute!) and left. Just after I turned out of my complex, I hear on the radio that classes are cancelled at school today. I figured it was about the shooting, so I called my boss. Sure enough, they cancelled classes because it had been a football player and they were highly investigating the incident. Realizing my bulletproof vest was being drycleaned, I decided to head on back home for the day. Definitely took advantage of this day off and went back to sleep!

I have been receiving text messages all day asking if I'm alright, seeing as how shootings on university campuses have been happening more often. Everyone is saying "oh I'm so sorry". Well thank you. It's sad and my condolences go out to Taylor Bradford's family. But what REALLY worries me, is how unaffected I am by all this. I heard about it last night, and after the initial shock, it was like "ok, what next". It's so sad that I feel this way, and that's what upsets me the most. Recently, the city of Memphis won something. A number one ranking in the nation for most violent crimes. I guess the hoodlums in this town are trying to show the rest of the world how proud they are for this "achievement".

Meanwhile...back to training tonight. Shorter technical workout scheduled for this evening..then volleyball!

T - 335 days!!

I can't believe it.....I officially registered for IRONMAN LOUISVILLE 2008!!! Thanks to my amazing sister, who let me put it on her credit card until I raise all the money!!! Ok, so things going through my head at this moment:

1. I'm going to yack.
2. I need a new bike...scratch that, WANT a new bike.
3. How many gels and clif bars will it take to get me to August 31 2008??
4. I am going to need all my friends and family's support for the next 335...no 336 days (including post race "take care of Robyn" day)
5. As scared as I am....I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!

I just want to thank everyone who is going to donate money to the cause, as well as all the support I know will be there from friends and family. So....stayed tuned over the next year or so to keep up with my training!!! Thanks again everyone!!!!

~Robyn~

Please help :)

Ok, apparently I'm getting desperate. An email I sent to family and friends. Help if you can!!

An Ironman race is described as long, grueling, difficult, the hardest thing you will ever do…It should be considering it is a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 mile run, continuously. After my first triathlon, I was hooked.
I’ve gone through every step most triathletes go through, including the desire to compete in longer distance races. This brings me to the reason for this letter. I have been thinking about competing in an Ironman race for several months, but I realize it is a large commitment. Not only physically and mentally, but financially as well. I am finishing up my final year of graduate school and do not have a “real job” as of yet. An Ironman entry fee is probably the most expensive of endurance races: $475. The reaction I always get when I tell someone this is, “You have to pay that much to go through pain for 17 hours!?” Well, yes. An athlete has up to 18 hours to complete the race. Think about how many aid stations, police officers, and paper cups are needed to last that long? The general rule applies here: the longer the race, the more expensive the entry fee.
My desire is to compete in Ironman Louisville on August 31, 2008. I have never wanted to work so hard for something before. Training for triathlons is the hardest, but one of the most fulfilling athletic achievements I have come by. So I am asking, will you please help me reach this challenging, gratifying, and most courageous athletic aspiration? Any amount, whether it is monetary or simply prayer, I will greatly appreciate. Thank you so much for your time and I will keep you updated on my Ironman status.

All the love and thanks in the world,
~Robyn~

Ironman Woes (and I'm not even signed up yet!)

Basically.....$$$$$$$. Or lack thereof. I really really want to do IM Louisville next year ('08) because I think I'm in a great place in my life training wise. However, that entry fee is killing me right now. Not to mention, wanting a new bike for it. Ok, I can wait on the bike. But I'll need that entry fee asap, before spots fill up. Which reminds me, I need to check again today to see. Might already be filled up! I hope not. Still holds out hope for me.

So, if anyone wants to contribute to the "Robyn wants to race for 16 hours in Louisville in 2008 so she can refer to herself as an ironman" fund....you let me know...... :)

Rock my world!

Totally got rocked last night at my first group ride with these FAST guys. I know Matt thru church, and he invited me out to ride with his Tuesday night group. He rode with me for a while, and I was thinking "I hope I'm not holding him back".

Turns out, I kind of was.

We rode a few miles to this loop, called the "Big House" loop, and were holding about an 18-19mph pace. Not bad. I felt really good considering I hadn't been on my bike since Halfmax. Well, that didn't last long!! We get to the "Big House" loop and its about a 2 mile loops, in somewhat of a rectangle layout. A brutal uphill, flat, downhill, flat. Well, I guess the uphill wasn't that bad, but I definitely did not look forward to any hills after Innsbrook. The first loop, Matt stuck with me to make sure I had the route down (not that it mattered, it all looked the same thru my blurriness due to a practically maxed out HR).

Then he said "Ok I'm going to take off with these guys, I'll be back to get you".

He takes off going like 100mph, or about 32mph, but whatever.... I never saw those guys again. I got dropped so fast, it was ridiculous. And whats frustrating, is I was holding about 20-22mph (minus the uphill)!!! I hung back with another newbie for the night and we were hammering away. We did several loops (like I said, I couldn't tell one part of the course from the other) and finally it was getting pretty dark.

The guy I was riding with said "well, they probably left us, let's start back". This dude acted like he knew where he was going, I certainly did not. We exit the subdivision one way, and he stops and says "you know, I don't know how to get back going this way. Let's go back thru the subdivision and go out the other way." NEAT.

So we head back into the subdivision and met up with Matt. I knew he wouldn't have left me! I rode back with him and we chatted about tri's and what not. We parted a few miles from my apartment so he could go back to his house and drink beer...*ahem* excuse me! I mean re-hydrate as they like to call it.... I was definitely invited, but I was so hungry and just wanted to go home and collapse!

I learned SOOOOOOOO much on this ride. Most importantly, I learned how to hurt. Granted, I have a long ways to go, but since I'm used to riding by myself, I don't realize when I'm slowing down because I'm hurting. There were several points during the ride where I just wanted to lolligag around 15mph, but I kept hammering. Disregard the fact I was anaerobic for a straight hour and wanted to yack....

I will definitely get faster by riding with these guys. Did I mention many of them are CAT 3 and 4 cyclists?!?!?! I can't wait till next Tuesday so I can get dropped again! But hopefully not until at least half way thru the first lap!!!

Thanks Matt!

So sleeeeeeepy

I really don't know why, but I'm SUPER tired all the time. Like, way more than usual. The last few mornings, I've woken up from about a 6.5-7 hour sleep, standard for me, and I feel like I haven't slept a wink! I was training way more than I am now a few weeks ago and I wasn't this tired then! It's really putting a strain on my already unmotivated self....any thoughts/comments/suggestions/concerns???

The Weekend

First off, Friday was Junior's birthday! He's the big 1!! I got him a cake and he loved it. It was from Three Dog Bakery in Collierville. That place smelled delish even though it probably tasted like dog food. I took him to Petsmart to get a new toy (or two) and then we played at the park...so spoiled!

Saturday morning was a 4:15am wakeup call. My first long run with Memphis in Motion. It was different than I thought it would be. Not in a bad way...just different. We just ran around for the first hour, because you have the choice of coming at 5 or 6. We went back and picked up the people that came at 6, and total there were probably about 25-30 people running. SO much better than running by myself. Plus, with the run/walk technique Mark uses, my body wasn't trashed after 5 or 6 miles. I couldn't find my garmin that morning (I have since located it) so I didn't know how far we had been. I asked a guy when I was about to go back to the car, and he said we had gone 13.5. I felt really good for just running a half marathon!! One guy and I ran back to the cars, the rest of the group had longer runs to do. All in all, it was a 16 mile morning. Needless to say, I went back to the apartment, showered, and crashed for 3 hours. It was a lazy and unproductive day...

Yesterday started out with volunteering in the nursery at 8am service at church, then I went to 9:30 service...went home for a quick nap (those kids always wear me out!) because I had to be back at church at 12:45 for my soccer teams pictures. They were so funny! All the boys had their hair slicked down and combed...which is funny because not 45 minutes later, they'd be sweaty messes during our soccer game! Well, we got killed 13-3, but I think they had a 12 yr old on their team, because she alone scored 11 of their goals!! Mind you, I have a team of all 4 yr olds...my boys were scared of her. Anyway, they had fun, which is what's important.

Run group tonight. Just got the email of the workout...something about form drills...hmm...I really wish I would have joined this group BEFORE this past tri season!!! Just wait till next year...... mwahahahahahahahahahahaha!

I'm not sure that was necessary...