Lake Placid Ironman 2012 Race Report

Pre-Race:
We got to Lake Placid early Thursday afternoon.  Picked up our packets.  Let me say for the first of many times...THE VOLUNTEERS ARE AMAZING!  When picking up our packet, the woman ahead of me started tearing up because it was her first Ironman and she was nervous.  The volunteer handing out packets came out from behind the table gave her a hug and some encouragement.  There were hundreds of volunteers that had a big part of making this race what it was, and not one of them was anything but 100% supportive.

We then headed to our house, which was 10 minutes or so out of downtown tucked away back in the woods.  Got some groceries, and settled in.  We went for a 30 minute run with Meg out on some trails near our house.  John worked on getting the race wheels ready and on the bikes.  Thanks Matt for procurring me some Zipp 808 Firecrests!!!

Friday morning we swam a loop in Mirror Lake.  It felt great, and my time was 34:xx which was right where I was hoping it would be.  I just didn't know how the crowds on Sunday would affect my swim time.

In the afternoon, John and I went for an hour bike ride, mainly to make sure the new wheels were working and to get a feel for how the race wheels might handle differently.

We started getting our many bags packed up--> Bike bag, Run bag, Morning bag, Bike Special needs and Run Special needs.  The bags along with the bike needed to be in Transition area tomorrow.

Bike bag: helmet, sunglasses, socks, shoes, vaseline, arm warmers (just in case),

Run bag: hat, fuel belt (wish I had NOT done a fuel belt), new socks (just in case) and a whole new running outfit (just in case)

Saturday morning:
WE SIGNED UP FOR 2013 LAKE PLACID, in the gym around 9:30.  We then took our bikes over to transition, racked the bike and then put the bags on their racks.

We spent most of the rest of the day relaxing at the house.  Connie and Liz arrived in the afternoon after going to the expo.
We had Ohio City fresh pasta for dinner, with sauteed vegetables, garlic bread and salad.  And headed to bed by about 9:15.

Race Day:
4am wakeup alarm.  I slept pretty well.  When I woke up I just did NOT let my  mind go through my race plan.  I tried to pretend that I was NOT going to do my first ironman race the next day.

Had coffee and oatmeal, and got stuff ready to go.  Our support crew is ready for the day:

We were all in the car and I thought I might have forgotten to put a hat in my Run Bag, so I ran back in the house.  This was when I noticed both our wetsuits sitting in our bedroom.  WE ALMOST FORGOT OUR WETSUITS!!!

Got to the site with just a short walk to transition.  Got body marked, put bottles on bike and on fuel belt in Run Bag.  Sunscreens up, and chamois cream on and walked over to the lake with our crew!
John and Meg walked our Special Needs bags down to that area.  I felt relaxed and excited to start the day.

The Swim:  Goal 1:10
After having a GU and a bottle of water, John and I entered the water together and said our goodbyes and good lucks to do a little warm up and try to find some open water to do our start.  My plan was to go just right of the midpoint of the start line.

After warming up for a few minutes, I spotted John standing on a rock near the edge.  We stood there for a while and then decided to move up to the start line.  It was incredible how many people just stayed standing around the edges all the way up to the time the cannon went off.
We went right up to the start line, held on to a paddle board as we waited for about 5 minutes until the cannon.  It was really pretty sparse up there, and all of us were wondering more people weren't out at the line with us.
I felt very calm and ready to race.  I knew I had done all my training, I was ready for each and just going to take each thing one loop at a time.

When the cannon goes off, I take off.  There is contact all along both loops on and off.  But it was always manageable.  I tried to be very aware of feet around my face so I didn't get kicked.  I also took a peek forward every 7-10 strokes to make sure I was swimming in open water away from others whenever possible.
I did find myself on the line here and there.  I also drafted on some feet on and off.  I felt good out there and tried to concentrate on my form.
I came out of the first loop at around 34 minutes.  Smiled and waved to the crowd and headed back in for the second loop.
I felt just a little fatigue coming back the last 500meters or so, but other than that I TOTALLY ENJOYED EVERY BIT OF THE SWIM!
Totally worth all the 4:15am wake up calls to get my swim in before school!!  I swam 3000-4000m three times a week (usually) starting January 1st.

TIME: 1:10.54

The Bike: Goal 6:15-6:30

Out of the water, then had my wetsuit stripped by another GREAT volunteer.  Walked/jogged the 400meter pathway to transition.  I grabbed my bag, and had a seat in the tent.  Another great volunteer dumped my bag and helped me.  Socks, shoes on, sunglasses on, helmet on, stinger stuffed in my pocket...and then even though I had peed a lot in Mirror Lake, I took a quick stop in the porta potty.

Grabbed my bike, with the help of another great volunteer.  I took it easy on the mount and down the hairpin turn and down the first long hill.  And I was off...

Took it easy on the hills out of town and just sipped on water for the first 20-30 minutes.  The view as you climb is amazing!!!

Then you get the descent.  It is 6-9 miles of long downhills.  I was about middle as far as speed.  I was passing quite a few people, but there were also people passing me.

Once I got down the descent, I settled into my aero bars for quite a long flat section.  Kept my heart rate in the zone 115-125 and with the tail wind I was going 21-25mph.  This section is so fun!!!

Nutrition plan was 1 bottle per hour of Accelerade followed by Ironman Perform handed up, and 1 GU per hour.  These were taped on my top bar using electric tape, which worked great.  This was about 350 cal/hr.

The last 12-15 miles into town there is a headwind and speed is frustratingly slow.  Finally got to Papa Bear and felt like the Tour de France as both sides are lined with FANS!!

Finished the first loop at about 3:09.  Stopped in special needs, wiped off my face and my bars (they were sticky from the first three GUs I had) Again, went to the bathroom (I am guessing this took at least 3 minutes.)
And headed out for the second loop.  Going through town on the bike is an awesome experience.

I felt about the same on the second loop as the first.  I was in aero all times except on some climbs and on the big descents.  I again LOVED the entire loop, UNTIL mile 100....
THE LAST 12 MILES FELT SO LONG!!!
The headwind was much stronger and I felt like Papa Bear was never going to appear.  The other bikers around me felt the same.

Around mile 100 I thought I had a good chance for about 6:15 on the bike.  But these last miles were SLOW.  I was not being passed, so I think everyone was struggling with these miles, uphill and headwind.

My stomache started to be a little off during these miles, and I did NOT TAKE IN ENOUGH NUTRITION DURING THIS HOUR.  (I think this was one of the big contributors to a tough run!!!)

Finally hit town, up Papa Bear and through town and into transition.

Bike: 6:27.55 avg 17.3mph


The Run:  Goal 4:20-4:45

My goal was to run the whole thing.  Possibly walking through a few aid stations on the second loop.

I came out of transition not feeling too bad.  I ran the first three miles at about 10 minute pace.  But was feeling weaker and weaker.  I could tell that my nutrition was NOT where it needed to be.  I began walking through aid stations (set up about every mile) and then WILLING myself to run to the next aid station.  The miles were not fast more in the 11-12 minute range.

At about 12-13 miles I really was feeling light headed and very weak.  I walked quite a bit.  I saw my fan crew and told them, "This SUCKS!!"  Stopped to talk to them for a bit, and told them not to worry if this second lap took a while.

I knew at that point that if I did not get some calories IN I was going to have trouble finishing.  So I focused on eating a whole bag of Chomps from the next aid station and getting in some Perform drink.

This really did seem to help and I could go back to running between aid stations (with a LOT of will power).

Coming up the hill at about 24 miles, hearing the crowd in the oval, and seeing my fan crew was amazing.  When I spotted my neon green crew as I ran/walked up, I got the most emotional of the whole day.  I knew I would finish.  They had their hands up in the air and big smiles on their faces.  And I just tried to take it all in and 'enjoy' the last two miles.

I call this picture, the Pain Finish...

Entering the oval, the crowds all cheering wildly.  It was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!

This was the HARDEST thing I have ever done!  Even harder than any of my three child birth experiences.

Plan to make this a better run for next year:

• Get in more nutrition on the second loop of the bike
• Lose 10-15 pounds
• Run more...I trained for Boston marathon through April and but then feel like I didn't put in enough miles during May and June

Run: 5:21.48

Results:
I was 22nd in my age group out of the water.  I was 15th in my age group after the bike.  I was 28th in my age group after the run.  (out of a little over 100 that started the race)

Final time: 13:14.16
I am gunning after a sub-13 race in 2013!!!

At first I was pretty disappointed with my race.  After seeing some data published on the web Lake Placid 2012 Results Analysis I felt quite a bit better.  The average finish time for everyone was 13:13, which was 29 minutes slower than 2011.  The average swim time was 1:17, bike time 6:47, and run time 5:09.  There were 11% of the people that started that Did Not Finish, compared to 6% last year.

There were winds on the second half of the bike to deal with and heat was also a factor on the run.

Some pictures of John's race, he had an amazing day going 10:59:

Thanks to all the people that supported this effort.

• John who patiently rode hundreds of miles with me on the bike and does lots of things around the house to make my life manageable.  
• All the friends and family who sent texts, phone calls and emails of encouragement.  
• Eve, Liz and Connie who were there on race day.  Seeing them cheering me on was definitely a necessary part of my race. 

• And my biggest supporter, my 13 yo daughter Megan.  John and I asked Meg before we even signed up for this race whether she was ok with this commitment.  This meant there were lots of hours that John and I were out training and she was a 'triathlon orphan'.  She was never anything but 100% supportive.  She did not hesitate to give the thumbs up for us to sign up for 2013.
• Thanks also go out to my older kids, Matt and Lizzie.  They are both tough stuff, both in their college work and their triathlon training.  They are very inspirational.  

I am blessed with an amazing family!!

And thanks to anyone who actually read this whole race report.  I wanted to get all my thoughts down to be able to look back at over the next year...so it is a bit LONG!

Steelhead Race Report and the Cyman triathlon at our house the next day:)

Not the race I was hoping for but I think there are some things I will take from this race.
Warning: This is long!

Pre-Race
We got into Benton Harbor on Friday and went straight to the Expo at 12:30, hoping to get there early and beat the crowds.  One of my only complaints about this race is how the registration was set up.  The line was already out the door and winding down the hall and around the corner.  You then proceeded to wait in at least 5 lines to get checked off, get your waiver, sign your waiver, turn in your waiver, finally get a nice spike bag with your number, cap, etc... then check your timing chip.  The whole process did not get complete until over an hour later.

We then hopped into anothe line for free food from Pizza Hut (pasta and salad) and then heard the pre-race talk about rules, the course, etc...

We bought a few things from the ironman shop.  I got two shirts short sleeve and long sleeve and John got a short sleeve and a pair of biking shorts.   They hadn't given us a shirt at registration, but we found out later we would get one at the finish.  I'm sure I had read that somewhere earlier, but had forgotten.

We finally got out of there well after 3:00.  Headed a few miles away to the transition area on Lake Michigan.  We took the bikes out for a short spin just to make sure everything was working after the trip.  We put the bikes in transition and covered the drive train and handle bars with plastic, then took a short swim in Lake Michigan.  It was a pleasant surprise.  Very clear, clean, with nothing growing in it and no smell at all.  It was a beautiful beach, with awesome, clean sand.

We headed to the hotel and it was much later than planned.  We got directions to a nice restaurant, had to wait a while to be seated and ended up eating much later than I would have liked.  We didn't get back to the room until 9:00.  Packed up and organized our transition bags, made out bottles and tried to get some sleep.

Race morning

We got up at 4:10.  I had some oatmeal and a little coffee and we headed out before 5:00.  It was just beginning to rain as we pulled into parking about a mile from the start.  We took a shuttle to the transition area.  By then the rain was pretty steady.  We set up our transition area and put plastic over as much as possible and then hung out in a tented area for about a half hour.

We finalized tranisition, put on wetsuits and cap which were much appreciated in the rain.  By then I was pretty much soaked through.  I put my Garmin into multi sport mode, left in on my bike and left the plastic bag on my handle bars.

We began the one mile walk down the beach by 6:40 to make my 7:18 wave.  At 7:00, I ate a Hammer Gel.  It looked like a herd of ants, all in our wetsuits walking down the beach.  The going was slower than I expected and we got there just as the wave 6 minutes before mine was taking off.  I felt very calm, and ready to go.

Swim

It was a beach start.  We all crossed over the timing mat and then stood right at the edge of the water.  I stood in the front row on the outside.  The announcer finally counted down for us and we were off.  I ran a little way in the water and as soon as it was deep enough did about three dolphin dives to get going.  I was on the outside and felt like I was swimming toward the inside, but still went wide around the turn bouy.  I had very little contact with anyone on the swim.  We swam out about 30 yards, then parallel to the beach past orange buoys, then red buoys, green buoys and then looking for a final orange buoy that we did a 90 degree right turn around to head back toward the beach.

I felt fairly strong on the swim, sighting easily, bilateral breathing, and keeping my heart rate low.  I was worried that I had taken the swim way too easily and I really do feel like I should be pushing my swim a little harder.  It is just so hard to know how to pace when you have a long day ahead.  I swam at a pace I could have kept up for a long time.  My only issue was I could feel a bad rash developing on my neck from my wetsuit even though I had applied body glide. 

Before half way we were running into the guys in white caps in the wave that had gone 6 minutes before us, and then not long after we began running into guys in yellow caps from the wave 12 minutes before us. That led to a little traffic here and there.

It went by fast and before I knew it I was swimming for shore and kept swimming until I no longer could.  As I exited the water, my watch said 33:xx and we had about a 100 yards UPHILL through the sand to get to the timing mat, so my official time was 34:41 which was 13/82 in my Age Group of F 40-44

T1. 

The transition are was LONG (very long) and thin so it was a very long way to run to my area, tear off the plastic, wetsuit halfway off while running, rest of the way off, socks on, biking shoes on, number on, helmet on, decided not to put sunglasses on because it was sprinkling.  Then run all the way down the line to BIKE OUT.  It seemed to take forever!! and it did my time was 4:29.  Need to get that down.

Bike

I love the bike leg!!  It was barely raining at this point and it stopped soon after I started.  The sun was actually out for much of this leg.

I got right down into aero position and started passing people.  I felt great right from the beginning.  I spent the first 20 miles keeping an eye on my heartrate, and holding myself back because I felt so good on the bike.  I was passed by a total of two women during the entire 20 miles and I passed more men and women than I could keep track of.  I hit the 20 mile mark at 58 minutes, and I really felt like I was not hammering.  At this point I felt like I was in a great spot.  I had an early wave and had passed a lot of the weaker bikers in the earlier waves.  I knew that there would be some stud guys starting to pass me soon.  But for the most part I was out of the traffic and had a open path in front of me.  I knew that a good bike was going to happen today and then it happened.......at mile 22.5

my front tire went flat....

Looking back, I am actually totally surprised at how calm I stayed.  I have changed a tire by myself all of ONCE.  I was out in the middle of a bunch of fields, and actually pulled over into a driveway where a bunch of immigrant workers were sitting on their front porch, watching the bikers go by.

I pulled everything out of my seat pack.  Used my tire iron to get my tire off, pulled out the bad tube and felt around to see the cause.  A piece of glass stuck in my tire.  I couldn't pull it out with my (then filthy) hand, I had no pliers, so...I used my teeth!   I didn't really even think about it, I just wanted it OUT of my tire.  I put the tube in, and pretty easily got the tire back in.  Got my CO2 tube and ready and filled it, to have it immediately go flat again...I was feeling defeated.  I didn't have another tube...

Here is the part I am so sorry to admit...I look down on the ground and there sits my new tube.  I cannot believe I did it...but I put my old tube back in...DUH!!!!!!

Calm...Deep Breaths.....I now put go through the whole thing again with the new tube.  Thinking just wait until I tell Matt (my son who works in a bike shop and changes tubes all day long) this story.  At this point I wasn't sure I would have enough air left in my Co2.  So I say a prayer and fill this tube...and a little 'bubble' of tube pops out right at my valve.  Now I begin to think I am going to have a DNF.  I DO NOT WANT A DNF!!!!!!

So I let out a little air, and stuff the 'bubble' back in as best I can.  I know I don't have enough air to let it all out and refill.  So I put the wheel back on my bike, ask the guys on the porch to throw away my old tube for me, and try to head out.  At this point I am filthy all over.  My legs, my arms, my fingernails....YUCK!

There is an aid station at mile 25 and by then I am hearing funny things from my front tire.  I stop and see that the bubble is back and so it was rubbing my brake with every turn of the wheel.  I ask if they have air and they say 'NO', but two guys there tell me I what I already know.  I need to let all the air out, tuck it all in, and MAYBE it will hold.  So I do that, and am about to start asking passing riders for air, when I decide to look in my bike pack and see that I DO have another Co2.  So I fill up the tire and hope it holds.

and to make a long, long story just a long story...it does hold.  I feel absolutely great on the rest of the ride.  I now have hoards of people that I have to pass and a few that pass me.  My Garmin has 'auto pause' and so I know what my ride "would have been".  I stayed above 20mph average for the entire ride.  and when I came into transiton my Garmin said 2:46, which is 20.2 mph average.  Unfortunately, the race clock said it took me 3:06.  So the piece of glass, my stupid wrong tube change, and my weak tire caused my to give up 20 minutes!!

Of course my kids at home tracking me, wondered 'What happened to mom on the bike?"  They knew I wouldn't be averaging 17.99mph unless I was hurting or some other mishap.

Final numbers for the bike  3:06   41/82  and I will say that I am proud of myself for getting through these obstacles, changing the flat (twice) and not giving up.

T2:

Again longer than it should have been, someone had put their bike in my space, so I had to move things over.  Change shoes.  At this point it was sunny and I which I had sun glasses to put on, but I had put my clear lenses in for the bike when it was raining earlier.  So throw on the hat and get out of there in 4:20.  Yikes, I know transition was a long run but I need to not give up so many minutes here!!

Run

John said he could not wait to get off the bike and start the run.  I felt the opposite.  I'd rather do the bike over again than do the run.

I really never felt good on the run, on the other hand I never really felt bad either.  I experienced not cramps, no severe pain anywhere.  I just felt like there were way too many people who just run faster than I do.  We did a lollipop type run, with two laps on the circle part of it.  Most of it was on the Whirlpool campus, some of it on asphalt trails.  Lots of aid stations, the volunteers were great.

There were three STEEP, but not too long hills. One at the beginning which I ran, and one on the loop which you did twice and I walked (along with many of the people around me) both times.  I also walked through some of the aid stations and drank water and gatorade.

My pace stayed pretty even.  My first mile was pretty fast (a little under 9:00) but then I stayed right around 9:30 pace for the whole run.  I like that my pace was even, I would just like it to stay around 9:00 or faster.  Looking back, I don't know if I might have had a better run IF I hadn't flatted and known my time was shot already.  I just don't know.  At the time I felt like I was doing the best I could.

I need to improve my run!!  By doing two things, losing 10-15 pounds and running more and faster.  If I want to get anywhere close to where I want to place in these races, my run needs to be well below 2 hours!

The temperature was a little warm out there.  But really conditions were very good today. 

The last mile seemed to take forever, but then we got back to transition and the crowds were great at the end, and I was smiling and couldn't wait to hit the finish.  And John was there waiting for me.

He showed me his watch for his race 4:59.22!!! He broke 5 hours, woohoo!!!! He had a great race.  Good swim, great bike and awesome run!!

Final run stats 2:05

and overall 35/82 in my age group with a total time of 5:55.24

even with my 20 minutes back I would have been 24/82.  there were A LOT of fast women in my age group at this race.  Quite a few UNDER 5 hours.  YIKES!!

congratulations to John for breaking 5 hours!!

The shower afterward never felt so good.  We had an awesome pizza dinner in St. Joseph's, which is a beautiful town.

We drove back on Sunday, and Matt put on a little sprint triathlon at our house.  We actually had more spectators than participants, but it was a lot of fun.  Matt and Liz had good workouts, and Megan (my 11 year old) did about half of it with John.  Then we had a picnic and corn hole games afterward.

Matt made a special trophy to give the 'winner'.  (He won, so he gave it to the guy who was second who has to bring it back next year to pass on)

for the winner of the "CYMAN triathlon" the M looks like the M dot of IRONMAN and it is an old bike frame he got from the bike store

getting ready to start...swimming in our pond

On a final note:
I signed up for an OLY triathlon on August 15th.  Matt and Lizzie (doing the sprint) were already planning on it.  Because of my flat and not getting a 'clean' race on Saturday I decided to sign up.  It has a challenging bike portion.  I haven't done an Olympic distance tri since 2008 so I am looking forward to it.

Heading out to Steelhead 70.3...feeling race-ready!

Tomorrow morning we are heading to Michigan.  I am fairly packed.  We will get the bikes loaded tonight and make the 5 hour trek to Benton Harbor.
Right now it looks like a close call as to whether the race will be wetsuit legal or not.  Lake Michigan is warmer than ever and it seems to be hovering right at 78 degrees.  I so wish I had a sleeveless wetsuit if it IS wetsuit legal.   I feel comfortable not swimming in the wetsuit, but I think John would not be very happy at all.

I love RACE EXPOS...I am so looking forward to hanging around at the expo.  I hope it is fairly large, although not sure how it will be.  I am also hoping to snatch some nice clothes.  We shall see.

So onto the race...if anyone is interested we can be tracked at ironman.com  You can search by last name 'Cymanski' 

And I am going to post my secret goals, although I have gone back and forth on putting these in writing.

I raced a 5:39 at Timberman last year.  I was very happy with my swim 34:59 and my bike 2:50, not so happy with my run 2:08.  My goal at Timberman was to break 6 hours, so I was very happy with my overall time.

My ultimate goal at Steelhead would be to break 5:30, and I will be happy with a PR.

I would like to equal my Tman swim.  I haven't worked as hard on the swim this summer as last and so will be happy if the time is close.  Steelhead is in Lake Michigan, so it seems like conditions could be much harder than swimming in the calm lake we had in Timberman.

I am hoping to beat my bike time from Tman, although I was shocked that I averaged 19.3 on the bike last year.  Tman has some hills to contend with.  Steelhead seems to be relatively flat.  But with the wind off the lake you never know about head winds.  I secretly hope to average over 20mph, but I have no idea if that is at all possible.
Mainly, I am praying for no bike malfunctions!!!!!!!

I REALLY want to beat my 2:08 on my run from Tman.  I will be REALLY happy with a 2:00 run, and I should be running UNDER 2 hours.  I have run a 3:51 marathon and qualified for Boston for goodness sake.  I have just not felt great on my runs most of the summer.  Hoping that my hamstrings cooperate.

My wave goes off at 7:18 and John's is off at 8:00.

John did a 5:16 last year at Timberman.  His swim was 38/bike was 2:46/and run was 1:47.  He was also not at all happy with his run last year.  He has run a sub-3 marathon and is looking to improve the bike and run leg at Steelhead.

John and I are going alone to Steelhead.  Last year we had our three kids there to cheer us on.  I am going to miss seeing them.  Lizzie is at Cross Country camp, Matt has to work at the bike store and Megan can't go without Matt or Liz going.  :(

I am feeling antsy from the taper.  Ready to race.  I have put in the workouts and want to see what I can do!

last year after timberman

Mom Pride...a recap of Lizzie's Sprint and Matt's Olympic Tri

I don't get to see my kids race their triathlons very often because usually I am racing it with them.  So it was such fun to get to spectate at the Miltonman Triathlon where my 16 year old daughter, Lizzie,  was doing the Sprint distance and my 19 year old son, Matt, was doing the Olympic distance.

While the kids were getting body marked and setting up transition areas, John and I did a quick 20 minute open water swim in Lake Milton. 

Lizzie woke up looking ready to race, she was relaxed and confident.  This is not always the case with her.  Sometimes she wakes up super grouchy and looking like she wants to do anything BUT race on race day.  Matt was his usual quiet self.  Getting the race face on, and concentrating on his race.

This is a small triathlon of about 150 people altogether in the Sprint and Oly divisions.  Men's Oly had 60 guys and Female Sprint had 30+ women.

Matt's Race

Matt's wave went off first and he had to do two loops of the 750meter course.  He had a good swim for him, the swim is definitely his weakest link and he came out of the water 9th place with a 25 minute swim.

coming around the halfway buoy

He had a little trouble mounting the bike, but still passed two guys during T1 transition. 

Because the Sprint and Oly guys ended up all mixed together at this point it was hard to tell what place he was after the bike.  We are pretty sure he was 6th place overall after the bike.  He had an 'OK' bike averaging around 22mph. 

A speedy T2 and he was out to finish with a 10K.

He was really hoping to have a good run, as he feels like he hasn't had a good run in a triathlon for quite a while. 

On his watch he ended up with around a 38 minute run, which he was happy with.  On the final results they had him at a 36:36 run time, even better!

He finished with a 2:12.52 and 5th place overall.  He won the 19-24 age group. 

He lost some of his big toenail on the failed bike mount and there was a LOT of blood on his bike shoes and his new racing flats.  OUCH!!

Lizzie's Race

Lizzie was planning on getting out fast in the swim and trying to find some feet to drag behind.  Well...she went out fast and there was noone there with her.  She led the way through the swim.  Finished the 750meters in 13:04 and came out of the water with a smile on her face.

those are guys from the oly swim in the background

She had a good transition and was out on her new road bike.  This is the first race she has had clip in shoes.

She had a pretty good bike and finished first off the bike, with a 19.1 average.  After a really fast T2, she was off to run her 5K.  She is a cross country runner, but really struggles to get in a good 5K in her triathlons.  She usually dies on the run.

But...she had a great run with a 23:52 and WON the FEMALE SPRINT race!!  She was so excited.  And this is such a good confidence builder for her going into her senior year of cross country season.

She finished with a 1:26.48. 

Here they are with their hardware, after we patched up Matt's toe.  Thanks to my mom and sister for coming to add to the support crew...

They are doing one more summer triathlon on August 15th and Lizzie is trying to decide whether to do the sprint or oly distance.  She would like to try the oly because she wants to compete at the college level next year and wants to see what she can do....but she is a little intimidated by the distance.

It was great fun seeing them race, and seeing them do so well.

On a side note:

We are 3 days out from Steelhead.  I will give a final post tomorrow on my last minute thoughts.

Four things necessary for a good race...

As I am about a week out from my A race for the year, I was thinking about my race as I was riding my bike yesterday for the first of three workouts for the day.   I came up with four things that are necessary for a good race on race day.  Some of them are totally in my control, and some are not. 

#1 (and by far the most important)  A good training plan, and executing the plan
This is a minimum of 12 weeks (if you are already at the point of having good fitness).  For me this has meant at my peak training,  per week:
3+ hours in the pool or open water swimming

100+ miles on the bike, including a long ride of 50+ miles and a speed work/interval day

20+ miles running, again which includes a long run of 9-13 miles and a speed work day.  For me speed work is either on the track usually doing 800m repeats with 400m recovery (6-10 of these) or a tempo run with 1 mile warmup, 3-5 miles at tempo pace and then 1 mile cool down.

I also do strength training 2-3 times per week and abs/core workout three times per week.

My time given to training is somewhere around 12 hours per week.  Some weeks a little higher and some weeks a little lower.


#2 GOOD Race Day Attitude
Now that the training is done.  Race day it is so important to be smart, get your race face on, and put yourself out there on the line.  In triathlon, this takes some experience.  You need to be able to really push on the bike and yet have some left for the run.  You need to be able to trust in your training and go for it, but not push yourself past that fine line that will leave you walking the last 4 miles.

I feel like I have to keep telling myself as I prepare to race, "YOU ARE AN ATHLETE!"  You need some attitude on race day.  You gotta believe!!

You also need to be able to dig deep during the second half of the run and beat back the demons that keep telling you to slow down.

love Chissie Wellington, I need her attitude!!

#3 RACE DAY NUTRITION PLAN
I don't know if everyone realizes how important it is on race day to have a nutrition plan, AND TO STICK TO IT as much as you can. 
I would like to stress, once you get behind on your nutrition YOU CANNOT GET CAUGHT BACK UP.  And it all goes downhill from there.  Your training and race day attitude cannot fix a race where you do not have any energy left in the tank.

My plan (which is still in the making for Steelhead)
Wake up and have bagel with peanut butter and banana.

15 minutes before my swim wave, I have a GU.

Out of the water in T1, I have another GU.

On the bike, I have a "disposable" bottle in my first water cage filled with 2 scoops of Accelerade.  Finish it before half way, ditch it at an aid station, drink my second prepared bottle of Accelerade by mile 45 or so, take a bottle of gatorade from an aid station to put in my now empty cage and drink it before the end of the bike leg.  I also have sport jelly beans in a baggie in the bento box on my bike and eat 2-3 of these every so often.

In T2, I pee as I change my shoes.  (If you don't do triathlons you may think that is gross, sorry)  and I have a disposable bottle of Accelerade that I grab as I run out.  I put ice in it, so that hopefully it is still cold.

On the run, I ditch the bottle as soon as I can get done drinking it.  And I take water and gatorade from the aid stations.  I usually will also eat the oranges they are usually handing out.  And if it is hot, I am doing everything I can to keep cool.  Pouring water of my head, sticking ice in my top, etc....

I am no expert at this, but I can say that when you are out on the bike you can get caught up in riding, and not 'feel like' drinking.  BAD MISTAKE!  You need to force yourself to take in nutrition on the bike even though you may feel like it is slowing you down or you don't feel hungry or thirsty.

#4 Outside conditions being in your favor
This is the one you have little control over and yet they can totally affect your race.  These are the variables that most scare me because, as anyone who knows me knows, I like to have total control over things :)

These include:
(my biggest fear) bike malfunction-such  as flat tire or other miscellaneous problem 

choppy water - Steelhead swim is in Lake Michigan and could be very choppy.  I feel like I am a strong swimmer but this could take a lot out of me

head wind - Yikes!!  I hate it.  I tend to think of the wind as a person when I ride and get very annoyed that the wind is slowing me down.  I know that is totally irrational, but wind just plain sucks for me.

sucky roads - almost as bad or sometimes even worse than a head wind are roads that are bumpy or just rough.  It is not comfortable for the seat, but it just sucks the speed right out of your wheels. 
A section of road near my house was just paved this Summer.  I am in HEAVEN when riding on this 'smooth as a baby's bottom' road!

hopefully no roads that look like this

body malfunction - I know this is a function of good training, and so therefore I have some control over it, BUT...I also fear being sick that day, a calf cramp, twisting my ankle, or any other way my body can play traitor to me.

Past, Present, Future-Fitness, Nutrition, Life

I seem to have a month between posts these days.  I have all sorts of posts go through my mind daily, but here is just a catch up post.  I hope to make some more 'informational' soon.
Fitness:
Past-I feel like it has been a long haul of having very structured workout plans.  In February, I started my official training for the Boston Marathon.  After racing it in April, and about a week or so of recovery I went straight into my workout plan for Steelhead half ironman on July 31st. 

Present-I have made it to the two week taper for Steelhead. 

After a late start on the swim fitness, I am feeling ready for the swim.  I had a lot of open water swims on our vacation in Canada, and have been going to the Hiram pool three times a week since school was out.

I feel VERY ready for the bike leg at Steelhead.  I have done many 50+ mile rides, many of them with a group that was pushing the pace.  I feel comfortable in aero position.  As always, my biggest worry is some sort of malfunction during the race.  For example, two weeks ago the seat bolt broke on my bike during a group ride.  My seat went flying off the bike with no warning.  Luckily, I didn't crash, but it was close. 
I am 'secretly' hoping for a 20mph avg. during the race.  I was at 19.3 last year at Timberman on a very hilly course.  But I will need to find the 'zone' and not have a huge headwind.

Liz and I after her first 30+ mile ride

The leg I am feeling the least comfortable with is the run portion.  I want to run under a 2 hour half marathon, but am having some hamstring/hip issues.  I am just not totally comfortable with my running right now.  I have had some very promising track workouts, and some days feel good.  But there are some days that a four mile run seems hard.  Hoping that this two week taper will help everything feel good going into race day.

Future-
Hoping for a great race on July 31st.  I really want to break 5:30, but it will depend on conditions at the race.

Then, I am planning on two weeks of recovery which will include our vacation in Maine.  I MAY do an Olympic distance triathlon on August 15th with Matt and Liz depending on how the half IM goes.

Then I am looking at keeping things pretty UNstructured for the Fall.  I am going to focus on getting my strength back, using P90x,  P90x+, and other beachbody products that I have.  I will lift heavy a minimum of three days a week.  I will continue to run three days a week and bike at least once a week while the weather is nice.  But I look forward to not training for anything big (unless by chance I make it to Clearwater World Championships in November, which means I have a REALLY good race at Steelhead)


Nutrition:
Past- I have been vegetarian and 'almost' vegan since February 1st, when I did a 21 day cleanse that is well documented in this blog.  In these six months I feel like I flucuate from eating very clean, to having way too much processed food and sugar in my diet.  There are many things I need to overcome.

Present- As the workouts this summer have really ramped up, I feel like the clean eating has gone DOWNHILL.   Too much sugar, too much processed foods such as bread, pretzels, crackers and too much caffeine in the mornings with my coffee to start the day.

Future- I am planning another 21 day cleanse that will begin late in August, after our trip to Maine.  I am not sure if it will be exactly like my February cleanse, or a little more structured following The Swiss Detox.  But it will include NO caffeine, added sugar, alcohol and of course no meat or dairy.  It will include LOTS of fruits and vegetables. 

I have 10-15 pounds on my body that are totally unnecessary and need to go!!

Life:
Past- This has been a great Summer so far.  It is so nice to have Matt home and so my whole family sitting down to dinner many nights.  It started off with the century bike ride which I got to share with Matt and John.  Then went on to my trip to Punta Cana with John which was very restful and fun.  About a week later the family went to our favorite place on earth with friends.  The cabin in Canada. 

the cabin

Megan just finished up a very successful fastpitch softball season.  She is a lefty pitcher and had a great year.

Megan pitching

 

I love so much about my life.

Present-Lizzie is going into her senior year and so is making decisions for post-high school.  She is seriously thinking about Westpoint.  She had her senior pictures taken last week and they are amazing.  Matt and Liz are competing in their first summer triathlon this Sunday.  

Future-
We are heading to Michigan for Steelhead, and then about a week later we are off to Acadia National Park in Maine.  This may be our last full family summer vacation :(  Matt will soon be doing summer internships and Lizzie may be only off a few weeks in summer if she is at Westpoint.

School starts back up early this year--August 19th officially!

My love affair with my bike...

I have had this post rolling around in my head for weeks.  I am finally done with school, and here I am on my first day of summer break getting to put these thoughts down.

I am on my bike 5 or more hours almost every week of the year when the weather is nice.  This winter I was religious about getting a GOOD hour workout in on the trainer three times a week.  So my bike and I have spent a lot of time together.  And I do feel a strong attachment to my bike and biking in general.

I think for me there are a few reasons that I put my love of biking above my love of the run or swim:

1.  First and foremost, it is a workout that I can do with the people I love.  I ride with John, Matt and just recently added Lizzie.  I can't run with them, they are faster than I am.  I can swim with them, but there is very little conversation going on during a swim workout.  But we can ride together, and do ride together FOR HOURS.  It is a very bonding experience, and I feel absolutely blessed that as a family we can share this.

John, Matt and I (along with some other guys we ride with) are doing a century ride this Sunday.  We did it last year also.  The experience of doing something that tough, together, was amazing.

2.  You can go so far on a bike, and see so much in just  a few hours.  A few weeks ago John and I went out on a Sunday 30+ mile ride.  We started in the NE edge of the county where we live and rode through a large part of the eastern part of the county.  7-8 different towns, and all kinds of different landscapes.

3.  You can ride for 3 or 4 or more hours and it isn't hard on your joints.  You may be tired if you ride hard.  And your 'seat' may be a little sore.  But...my knees and hips don't take the beating that they would if I even went out for a 2 hour run.

4.  I love going fast, and feeling the wind blow past me.  I like how powerful I feel on the bike.  It is an exhilerating experience.  It is definitely my strength in the triathlon.  And I guess we like the things we are good at. 


I do have two main enemies while I am on the bike-->  HEADWINDs and Sucky Roads that are in need of a good paving.  Both of those things just suck the joy out of a ride for me.  Of course I never mind a good tail wind.

John, Matt and I after a very rainy ride last year!

Half ironman training is going well.  I have a lot of running and a lot of biking in.  I am officially on week 7 of my 12 week training plan.  Unfortunately, there has been NO swimming in there.  No pool time available.  Next week we are in Punta Cana and so will definitely get some swimming in every day either in the pool or the ocean.  A few weeks later we are in a cabin in Canada, where we will do open water swims in the river every day with wetsuits on.  And now that school is out I will be able to get some pool time in.

Steelhead 70.3 is coming soon (July 31)!!

"Almost" Vegan eating continues...no meat and very little dairy or egg product.  Trying to kick my sugar habit to the curb...  That will need a whole post later!

I'm BACK!!

I was planning on posting at least weekly once my cleanse was over. That was 6 weeks ago.

I have found that there are very few blogs of VEGAN ATHLETES, so I am going to try to commit to keeping this blog alive.

So here is a brief update of how my life has gone over the last six weeks:

On February 21st the successful Quantum Wellness cleanse officially was complete. I reintroduced alcohol (once or twice per week), caffeine (with a mix of half decaf and half caff beans in the grinder), gluten (although continue to try to keep it to a minimum) and sugar (my downfall).

I continued to keep all meat out of my diet. As far as dairy and other animal products, I am keeping them out of my diet but not being too extreme about it. I will have bread that may contain some whey products or eggs, and when out to dinner I have had to choose some things that had dairy sauces.

The more I research and experience this lifestyle, the more I believe it is the best way for me. So now I am trying to take it to the next level. Get more extreme about keeping the animal products out, but even more importantly, get the sugar out, get all processed foods out, and work at getting to be consuming as HEALTHY a vegan diet as possible.

I will never be perfect. But my motto is NOT PERFECTION, BUT PROGRESS.

I have tried to use Thrive Diet and The Kind Diet as guides to, as The Kind Diet describes, Superhero diet. Lots of greens, grains, sea vegetables and other super foods.

I will try to regularly post the new foods I am trying, along with how my workout routine is going.

A little on the training. Boston marathon is less that 3 weeks away. I have received my bib number and the packet of info (so exciting). I had a little hamstring strain a little over a week ago, but did a 7 mile tempo run yesterday and all was well.
I have 6 miles easy today, and a 20 mile bike ride tonight and then on Friday a true test --> 22 mile long run. The weather is looking beautiful, almost too hot.

After that long run I am in taper mode. After Boston, with a week or so of recovery we then go straight into half ironman training. I REALLY want to get the weights back into my routine at that time.

getting started

After turning 44 last week, I have committed to making this a GREAT year. A year where I don't just maintain, but move forward. Make progress.

In order to start this off...I am going to do Kathy Freston's 21 day cleanse. In this I will give up:

*caffeine
*alcohol
*gluten
*all animal products including dairy, eggs
*added sugar

There are a number of reasons why I want to do this. #1 I want to get control over my eating habits. I think I can really look at food a different way.


I also want to see how my body reacts to eliminating these things. Do I feel more energy? Do I recover from hard workouts better? Can I sleep better? Do my stomache issues disappear? Can I tell in my knees and hips that there is less inflamation?

At the end of this 21 day trial, I am sure I will reintroduce some of these things into my diet. Maybe all of them, maybe only some of them.

One thing I will not let this experiment do is make my workouts suffer. I am 10 weeks out from the Boston marathon, and need to be running about 30 miles per week. I am hoping that this experiment will help my running. Of course I would like to lose some weight before race day. If I feel like I need to have some calories during my runs/especially my long run, I may have some sports drink at that time.

I am planning on blogging every day. Reporting how I feel, what I ate, what my workouts were...and will probably keep this blog going as I train for Boston, and then train for Steelhead 70.3 half ironman on July 31st.