Run...Anything is Possible

Several years ago if you told me I was going to run from Rangeley to Oqussoc or that I was going to run from the camp to Saddleback Mountain and back I would have laughed. Both routes are about 15 + miles and have some good climbs. Now, 15 miles on a bike doesn’t sound bad at all; sounds doable, easy in fact, but running 15 miles? Wow!! I would have never dreamed of running either route even 2 years ago. The routes aren’t a huge deal but running 15 + miles was out of the question a couple years ago. Something I never thought I would be able to bike is now something I can run. It just goes to show that anything is possible. We are capable of more than we imagine! God created our bodies to do amazing things. Sometimes when I am running I just look down at my big old feet and my little legs plodding along and am so thankful for the opportunity to run!!! There are a lot of people out there who would do anything to have legs to run; God has blessed me with my short stocky legs and I hope to take advantage of them.

   Long distance running never use to appeal to me but now I love it. Part of me didn’t think I was capable of doing long distance runs. I also thought it sounded like physical and mental torture. With training it’s not that bad. Having said that I must admit, I still cannot fathom running anything longer than a marathon. Maybe 30 miles but that’s it!!  These ultra-marathoner’s blow my mind!! I have no idea how they run so far. To them 15 miles is merely a warm-up. That’s sick (and I say that with respect).

Jan- Feb Training

My intentions are to document each month of training and hopefully add some extra blogs in between my monthly summaries. January was not an actual training month so I do not have a separate blog entry for January. I will just include it in February’s blog. January was an intro training month. I biked and ran and went swimming but I didn't focus on time, distance, or anything. I was doing it to get daily exercise not really to train. I tweaked my training schedule in January to fit around my family and work. After switching several things, adding things, deleting things I pretty much got my training schedule figured out and ready to go for February. February was when the real training started!!! And boy did it ever start. Wow, the first week was a push for me but I have since gotten use to it and love the challenge. I developed my schedule by using the book Start to Finish Ironman. The book has been a big help but several of my Ironman training buddies have also shared their past training plans with me which I have used as well. Every plan has helped me develop my own personal plan. Now it’s going to be interesting to see if my plan works or not. I have posted some blogs in the past of my training plans but I will share with you my up-to-date plan. It’s all I can do with the time I have.  It looks something like the following:

Sunday: Long run (which will switch to Monday once the sun shines a little earlier)

Monday: Long bike (which will switch to Sunday once the sun shines a little earlier)

Tuesday: Run, swim, core training

Wednesday: bike followed by a t-run, and a long swim

Thursday: Run hills or threshold run, core training

Friday: Bike followed by a t-run

Saturday: OFF

In a month or two the above plan will change yet again due to longer distances, longer t-runs, earlier sun rise, later sunset, warmer weather, etc.

 February training went really well. I am starting off doing 2 weeks on and 1 week off. Soon it will change to 3 weeks on and 1 week off. I also take 1 day off per week. I am documenting each day of training on TrainingPeaks.com. The site has been very helpful. There is a free package and then upgrades for a fee. I am only using the free package right now.

February Gear Update: I finally bought a GPS unit and LOVE it!!! I need to return it because we don’t have the money for it but it is SO nice!!! Just with a quick glance I can tell how far I have gone, how fast, what my current pace is, what my heart rate is, max heart rate, average heart rate, calories burned, lap times, and so much more.

February Swim Update: Swimming is always going to be my weakness. I have been working on technique and distance this month. I don’t like technique days because they are so slow and I don’t feel like I’m accomplishing much. Goodness, I am in need of better technique though. It would be helpful to find someone to video my swim so I can actually see what I look like. It would be an eye opener for sure. Distance days are more fun. Currently I have built up to 3, 500 yards in the pool.  

February Bike Update: Since taking a break from training I have once again built back up to a 3 hour ride on the bike. It feels good but is boring on the spinner. I am using my old bike on the spinner so I really miss my tri bike!!! I am trying a new saddle right now. I like it but am not completely sold on it yet.

February Run Update: I started out doing my long distance runs on Monday evening. What a mistake!!! I hate running at night. I am such a morning person. I quickly re-schedule my long runs for Sunday mornings; so much better!!! Slowly I have built back up to 16 miles on my distance days. Tuesday and Thursday mornings I am running 7-8 miles. My focus on Tuesday and Thursday changes but includes threshold runs, hill runs, easy runs, etc. My t-runs feel great!!! I love t-runs for some reason. My longest t-run so far is 3 miles. Soon I will be focusing more on time then distance.

February Fuel Update: Well, I have failed in this section. I haven’t thought about fueling yet. I am watching what I eat the day before a long run and I only eat dessert on the week-end but that’s about it. I haven’t been using anything other than water during any of my workouts. I will have to start practicing my fueling soon.

February Rest Update: Somehow I am surviving. Except during recovery days I am awake before 4a.m. or at 4a.m. every morning. I have been trying to go to bed by 8 or 9pm. One good sign is I usually get up in the morning before my alarm goes off. If I wake up before my alarm usually I am getting enough rest. Once a week and if I’m lucky twice a week I take a nap while Tucker naps. These naps give me a much needed boost.

February Worship Update: Thanks to the good Lord’s help I have been doing better than ever on my personal worships. Usually I have my worship first thing in the morning; sometimes mid-day. Worships are a must for me. God gives me my daily bread, talks to me, answers prayers, loves me and gives me strength to be a mommy, wife, worker and athlete. We are so blessed!!! I am so thankful. None of the above would be possible without God helping me. He alone deserves all the credit for any of my accomplishments.

February has been a good training month. Currently I am in recovery. My next training block starts February 27. Yahooo!!!!

Ironman Year

This is the year that I am supposed to do an Ironman. Yahoo!!! I say ‘supposed to’ because so many things could happen between now and July 22 but I have full intentions of racing!! My training schedule is made up, I have training buddies lined up and it all begins tomorrow!!! Today, the first day of the year, is my last day of recovery!!! Currently I am fighting a cold so feel as though this coming week will be a little slower than anticipated but that’s okay.

  When I think about the Ironman I get excited and super nervous. During the coming year of training I want to work on calming my nerves.  I also have to work on making running my comfort zone. Currently, biking is my strong point. My goal is to become so comfortable with running that when I start that portion during the race I feel ‘at home’. I am including running in my schedule more than ever before. Hopefully, running will become second nature!!

  Ironman is going to take so much of my time but it will only be 7 months until it’s all over with. I hope to make the most of the next 7 months. It’s my understanding that I will have ups and downs but I hope to stay positive and do my best.   I am going to have to go to bed early, get up early, eat according to my training, take some naps, and put in hours and hours of training. This is what it all comes down too…the effort I put into training.  A real motivator is the cost of the race. Jamie and I really don’t have the money for me to be doing this but I have gotten extra jobs and am paying it all off.  Another motivator is that this is my last chance for awhile. We cannot afford doing an ironman yearly AND when I finish the ironman this year we are planning on baby number 2!! Kiddo number 2 is going to change a lot of things including our financial situation. It will be unfair to my family of 2 children to train so much so I will stick with half ironman distance for awhile. So this is my time and my chance to accomplish something I have dreamed about for years!!!

  Because of the magnitude of the race so much of my thoughts and energy is devoted to training. My goal is train hard when it’s time but to keep my eyes on God and to keep my relationship with Jesus first and for most. My pastor once said that one way to find idols in your life is to pay attention to what you dwell upon most, what you constantly think about, what your financial focus is, etc. To be completely honest with you I find myself thinking about ironman too much. Ironman is not our financial focus but it certainly does take a chunk of change to do it. So, even though Ironman is going to take more time then I like out of each day I want my primary focus (and my families focus) to be on Jesus!! We need hope in this world. I cannot imagine not having hope in a better future. There is so much loss, so much suffering, so much pain in this world. Early today I was watching a segment on morning news about this past year. It’s so sad; so much death, so much sorrow, so much grief. My ironman training matters little compared to what is really going on in this world. Being able to train and do the Ironman is a privilege. I thank the Lord for giving me this opportunity but may my focus be on what really matters: God.

  Happy New Year to you all!!! Best wishes toward your goals and aspirations for this coming year. Let’s make 2012 count in more ways than one!!!!

It Has Begun!!!!

 This past Sunday I went for my first run since the marathon. Some how I decided 5 miles was a great starter. It felt good but goodness I felt wicked out of shape. Usually when I run past someone I can easily say hi or good morning but this past Sunday it was a little different story. I saw a lady coming and as I approached I prepared to greet her. Finally I approached the lady and began to speak. But it wasn't so easy. I gasped for air first and then I said "Good (followed by a gasp) Morning (followed by a gasp). I couldn't believe the "ease" of speaking while running was gone. Long story short I have my work cut out for me. Feeling a bit out of shape makes me all the more determined though. Tomorrow morning I will be doing my first spin. I am excited about starting in but not excited about putting on my biking gear. It's going to be nice and tight. Haha!!! Oh well, just a friendly remind to pedal hard. 

  It's been 5 weeks since I have gone swimming, biking or running. The break has been wonderful in so many ways which I will write about in a future blog. My recovery is over but I won't start fully training until January. The month of December will  be just an intro back into swimming, biking and running. I hope to do one or two of each per week but that's it. My goal is to work only on cardio not speed or intensity. When January comes the training will be like none other I have ever experienced. So, it has begun. Let the training lead to a great first Ironman. Goodness I can feel my nerves a little bit right now!!! Can't believe that my next training season is for an Ironman. It has always been a dream of mine but something I didn't think we would ever be able to do. I say "we" because it's not a one-man sport like so many think. Jamie, Tucker, my dad and mom, and the whole family are all part of the team. We all are working together to make this happen. Can't believe the support I have felt for doing something so crazy. To God be the glory though. He is the only reason we are capable of doing anything. 

Let the training begin, Alicia  

Rest, Periodization and Future Training Plans

So, how is the rest period going? Great question and I will share. This is the first time I have actually totally set aside my swimsuit, bike and running shoes and haven't touched any of them for 2 weeks now. Mentally I was very ready for a break. And to this day I'm not exactly ready to jump on my bike for a long ride. I have been enjoying just looking at my bike and that's about it. The Specialized is sitting in my temporary kitchen (we are re-modeling our kitchen) so I can glance at it several times a day. Just looking at the Specialized gets me excited about the upcoming race season.

  My goal right now is to continue resting for about 3 more weeks. I am exercising, just not training. What does exercise consist of? Well, right now it consists of lots of walking, P90X, push-ups, lots of sit-ups, and hiking. That's it!!! On a day-to-day basis I am mostly doing a P90X DVD in the morning and an hour+ walk later in the day. It feels good to be active and yet not training.

  I haven't ever taken such a break but feel as though it is going to be very beneficial going into my first ever ironman training. What I am practicing is periodization. I am sure many of you have heard of it but for those who are not familiar let me explain what it is. Periodization is a year-long training plan that includes rest, recovery, foundation building, pre-race training leading to peak performance during race season. Basically, the idea behind periodization is to keep the athlete injury free, fit and in top condition during race season. Rest and recovery are necessary in order to reduce the risks of injuries, burn out, and overtraining. The plan breaks the year up into cycles. There are three cycles: macrocycles, mesocycles and microcycles. A macrocycle consist of the entire year of training; mesocycle consists of each month of training; microcycle consists of weekly training and/or daily training. During my off season I have been spending part of it designing and organizing my upcoming macrocycle, mesocycles and microcycles. I have my training mapped out from January to July. Each month is planned, each week, each day. Each month will vary in intensity and volume. I will be training fairly hard for 3 weeks and then take every forth week to recover a bit. During each week I plan on training everyday but one. I will be taking every Saturday completely off for several reasons. First of all because it’s the day I go to church and I firmly believe in keeping the Sabbath day holy as the Bible says. I, personally, cannot train on the Sabbath without getting too much into the sport leading my mind to dwell on other things rather than on God. I find that God blesses me beyond my wildest dreams when I listen, obey and follow Him. Second of all I love spending the day with family and friends. Also it gives my body a physical and mental break. Taking Saturday off prepares my body and mind to tackle another week of training.

 My weekly training will look something like the following starting in January: long bike ride every Sunday. I will be starting the season out doing only 2 hour rides and then build from there. Monday’s I will be doing a long run and an easy spin. Tuesdays I will be swimming in the morning and doing a run late morning. Wednesday I will be biking followed by a short t-run in the morning and doing hill runs in the evening. Thursday I will be swimming in the morning. Friday I will be biking and doing a t-run in the morning. Saturday I will have off and then Sunday I will start all over again. I will also be throwing some strength training into the above schedule here and there, especially core training. This schedule will continue to change during the year but it gives you the basic idea for now. I hope to be able to keep the above schedule up but it’s going to be tough to do while raising a 1 and a half year old, working 4 part-time jobs and taking care of the home, laundry, cooking, grocery shopping, and so much more. I will be blogging about it so you all can read whether it works out or not. My fingers are crossed and I am already feeling slightly exhausted thinking about it. 

  Once my above training schedule starts I will be going to bed when Tuck does and raising several hours before my boys do in order to train mostly before Tuck wakes up and before Jamie goes to work. There will be hardly any leisure time, every minute will matter. First of all I want to start each day with God in prayer and worship, once my early morning training is done then my goal is to focus on Tuck during the day and Jamie during the evening when he gets back from work. So, as you can see I will be squeezing in lots of training around my most important relationships then every other moment will be filled with other daily responsibilities. It’s going to be a roller coaster ride from January until July 22, 2012. I am ready for the challenge; feeling like exhaustion is going to be beating down my back door, but this is my one chance so I’m going to give it everything I’ve got. Here’s to hoping that periodization works!!!!!!!!

Smiles, Alicia

Off Season Can Be Tough

It's the off season for me as it is for alot of people. It's time to literally NOT be in peak condition, to lose fitness, and gain some weight (hopefully not too much). Sounds pretty good, or does it???

 

  I have really been struggling recently with feeling overly tired and purely exhausted. I have been trying to keep up my training (not at the same intensity as before) but continually find myself feeling more and more exhausted. I have to let go. It's okay to recover. In fact, if I don't recover I will be screwed going into my Ironman training starting in January and February. Just the same, something keeps telling me that I need to hold on to my long distance runs and bikes. Thing is, I just don't feel like it. 

 

  Today, I finally put on my "to-do-list" to Google 'triathlon off season recovery' and I found several interesting articles and video clips. All of them were saying that you have to take at least 3-6 weeks off. Off doesn't mean low intensity swims, bikes and runs. Off literally means off!!! In fact there is a 6 time world Ironman champion who literally takes 6 weeks off and does nothing physical except surfing. Seems to be working very well for him. Most of the articles I read also said that you have to lose fitness. You can not maintain your peak fitness during off season and then build upon that to become even more fit. No, it doesn't work that way. You WILL burn out!!! You have to give your mind and body a break, a serious break. This is called periodization!!!! I swear by periodization and have all my clients practice it. So why can't I?? Oh man, what a great question.

 

1. It's tough to lose the fitness you worked so hard on building.

2. It's not fun to watch clothes get tighter.

3. I'm feeling lost in the morning.

4. My days do not seem as successful without a hard training session.

5. As a mommy, if I don't exercise in the morning it often doesn't happen. So I am having a hard time finding something else to do later in the day with my little man.

6. I have to do something since it helps keep me sane.

7. Ironman is 9 months away and I feel its constant pressure.

 

But here is the truth to each above statement:

 

1.  Sounds like many experience the paranoia that lost fitness can never be gained back. Every race season proves that paranoia faulty though. Of course I will lose fitness but it doesn't take long to gain it back and possibly surpass it.

2.  Once training starts again the extra off-season pounds will melt away and I will feel as good as new. I hope. :-) It's expected to gain a little during off-season and especially during the holidays.

3. Sleep in for once and focus on spending even more quality time with Tucker.

4. Mark my success during the off season by getting as much sleep as possible.

5. I can walk, ride bike with Burley, snowshoe in the winter, cross-country ski, and so much more. I know there are options, I just need to be more creative.

6. Go for a walk in the early morning AFTER having an extra long worship.

7. I only need about 7 months to prepare for Ironman which leaves me 2 wonderful months to RECOVER!!!

 

As one of the articles said:

 

So, repeat after me.

“This is the off-season.”
“I will not be in peak condition.”
“I will lose fitness.”
“I will put on weight.”
“This is okay.”

It has to be okay in order to be a success (which means finish) at Lake Placid. So, for the next two months I am going to try really hard to focus on recovery not peak performance. I have to change my mind-set and just see it as a new and different challenge that is VITAL to my training.

 

Happy Off Season Everyone, Alicia 

The Maine Marathon

The weather man said sunny, highs in the low 60's for marathon Sunday. This was the forecast  predicted a week before the event. Day of event; pouring rain!!! :-) The alarm went off, I grabbed my stuff, jumped in the car and drove to Portland in the rain. I kept telling myself the rain would probably stop by the time the race started. Wishful thinking is a powerful thing. Once in Portland I walked up to the Sullivan Gym to get my race number, to pick up my goody bag and to use the bathroom. Needless to say it rained as I walked up to Sullivan Gym and as I walked back to the car. After getting my race number I had some time to spend so I bundled up in all my rain gear and walked around to see the start/finish line. Then I went back to the car to wait until 10 minutes before the start of the race. As I sat in the car the rain pounded down. For some reason the sound of the rain wasn't really helping me get too excited about getting out of the car to run 26.2 miles. I solved the problem by putting Skull Candy in my ears for the remainder of the time. Listening to music drowned out the rain and if I closed my eyes I could pretend it was a beautiful sunny day, then I could start to get my game face on. Well, in no time at all it was time to gear up, glide up and get up. I had to take the Skull Candy out of my ears and face the reality of a very rainy race day. As I was leaving the car I quickly grabbed a long-sleeve race top just in case. I'm so glad I did because I wore it the entire marathon. It was actually a bit windy and cold for me. 

  Once I surrounded myself with all the athletes the rain just didn't matter!!! It was just a little extra twist to the day. Right before the gun went off I saw Tom T. who gave me a big hug and some words of wisdom. He said "Alicia, don't get caught up in the half marathoners. Alot of them will be running by you at a pretty good pace. Be careful and pace yourself according to your training not according to the half marathoners. Don't go out too fast". Tom was so right!!! When the gun went off I started out, one foot in front of the other. After no time at all I glanced down at my HR monitor to see that my rate was well above where I should be. I was keeping up with most of the people around me which was not good. When I reached the first mile clock it said 7 minutes something.   Shoot!!! I knew I was going too fast. Tom's words of wisdom ran through my brain and I immediately pulled back and started relying only on my heart rate. I am not a 7 minute mile marathoner (I would love to be some day) so I knew if I kept up that pace I would screw myself. During my training I was able to keep up a 7 something minute mile for about 13-16 miles but not for 26 miles. Unfortunately my HR monitor wasn't working entirely. It wasn't telling me my pace, distance, etc. Would have been very helpful if it did. I am certain I could have finished in under 3:40. I felt like I had more to give during the marathon but I just couldn't tell what was going on. It was very frustrating to say the least. I also need to have negative splits and feel like I could have if I could have watched my pace very carefully during the entire race. Oh well!! No big deal but hopefully I can figure out how to work my new HR monitor very soon!!! 

  The run went really well for me otherwise.Within the first couple minutes I was soaked. Rain was dripping off my hat and my toes squished with every step. At times it poured, otherwise it was a steady rain.  I used nearly all the aid stations trading between water and Gatorade. My race belt had some pouches attached to it so I was able to carry my own fuel. Physically I felt great until about mile 22. I happened to hit a brick wall at mile 22 and it peaked at mile 24 to 25.  My legs were screaming at me to just walk a little bit. But my brain said emphatically NO!!! Once I reached mile 25 I felt pumped and was able to pick up my pace and finish strong. 

  Two of my Couch to 5k participants, Lisa C. and Kris M. drove all the way down to Portland in the pouring rain and waited for me at the finish line for about 30 minutes. It meant the world to me that they would take time out of their busy schedules to cheer me on. What good sports!!!

  

  Honestly, I am not very proud of my time, 3:43:47, but we all have to start some where. Next time around I hope to improve big time and race on a sunny day. Until then I have my work cut out for me.

   I would recommend the Maine Marathon to anyone. The course is beautiful, the volunteers are amazing, the goody bag was full of great stuff, the massage tent was pure bliss and the camaraderie of the athletes is addicting. Several of my teammates did the marathon with great times. Charlie did the race as well as Andy, Kim, Roy, Anne,  Kathy (who did it in 3:35), Tom (who placed first in his age group with 3:15), and Eric (who cut 30 minutes off his time). It was fun seeing them all there!!! Go MTC!!!

  Running the marathon was an amazing experience. I learned so much which I hope will help me with my Ironman training. I know the marathon portion of the ironman is a totally different beast compared to just running a marathon.  

Happy running, Alicia