Rest week has been good, but not a much rest as I have wanted and I guess I could blame myself, but instead I will blame Dave, the dogs, and work. and myself. But overall I have gotten a little more rest. I was able to enjoy a margarita last night at girl's night, and tonight I am going to go to another great party. (gasp- Damie is going out!) so, while I am not as rested as I want to be, I have allowed my focus to shift elsewhere for a minute.

And since I don't have much to say in the blog, I am going to attempt to explain my name- as I am usually asked the meaning about 10x a week.

I am named Damie after my great grandmother. No, I don't know what it means. Nor do my parents. So weird.

So, I finally looked it up the other day and it means the following:
1. soother or tamer (Greek origins....used as a boy name)
2. friendly (in French...girl's name)
3. Also a form of the name Damica (Spanish and English...girl's name).

So, I am no longer Damie, the girl that has a weird name with no meaning. I am Damie, the friendly soother and tamer.

:) Happy Weekend, and Happy(?) 5 Year Katrina Anniversary. We love and miss you New Orleans.

A Step Forward

(Pic from 1st 5 miler 2 weeks ago)

Last week was a big week for me. I threw everything I could at myself- dead legs, big days, and mental fatigue. I purposely made it my hardest week of the year- I wanted to see if I could wrap my brain around fatigue and come out on top. (and, of course, answer the question...can my knee take this?) By the time I lined up for the 5 miler on Sunday, my body and mind were shot. As I waited at the starting line (way back where I belong these days), I thought to myself " I sure do love Gina...this is my time to spend with my friend." and " I hate myself." Talk about tired.

Given the hard week and heavy bike legs, I started to wimp out on myself. "You can just jog this." But, I didn't. I made small goals...jogging is just not going to cut it anymore.
1. To run up every hill. No pitter pattering. I can do whatever I want to do on the flats, but I have to be passing people on the hills.
2. Good form. No heavy foot strike just because my legs are tired. (I knew this would actually be hard for me, but like swimming, I think good form should practiced with running as well.)

Mile 1- I was running up the hills. I wasn't dying, so I challenged myself more and added one more goal to the day. (I am not sure you are supposed to do that mid-race, but it sounded like a good idea at the time). I decided to make every following mile faster than the last. Mile 2, 3, 4 came...and I made each mile faster. 10-15 seconds faster per mile. By the time mile 5 came around, I had my first negative split run of the year.

The net time was not really any faster than the 2 weeks before, but the end result felt so much better. The legs were MAD and TIRED, but my brain was stronger. I wanted to jog, but I ended up descending my miles. Instead of letting everyone pass me, I started passing back. This is good stuff.

For me, any little success in running right now is a step forward. So, small goals are working well for me right now. Instead of saying- I will run x:xx per mile, I am saying, I will make sure to do qrs and xyz today. And I think the x:xx per mile will eventually follow.

The real highlight of my weekend was watching these 2 girls play (and DOMINATE) a regional game (Louisiana vs Arkansas). I used to coach these girls when they were half of my height...and 9-10ish years old. Now they are asking me..."Coach Damie, where should we go to college?" College? OMG- talk about feeling OLD.

I smile every time that I think I had a part in the lives of these young women. Not only are they AMAZING players- D1 quality, but they are beautiful, kind people as well. I will never know what part I had in their development, but big or small, I am so happy that I was able to contribute.

Happy REST week to me. Seriously. Call me only to go dog-walking this week.

Treasures

Ask any of my friends, and they will tell you I come home very, very tired on most days. Physically tired. Fall asleep at the wheel- brain dead- back hurting tired. I rarely work out in the afternoons anymore from fatigue, and I there are many days that my job is so stressful I am BEGGING for an office/cubical/boring job.

But the best part of my job is working with elderly patients. I love them. I laugh a lot. I also learn a lot. I have made many good friends with my patients.

And the other day, one of them wrote me a poem!!! About me!!! I am going to share it with you. This poem is an example of why it is great to be a physical therapist.

(and a few Cliff Notes- my patient calls me the "Warden". I do run a boot camp sometimes in there...for 84-year-olds. And, she actually wrote this poem to my husband, sealed it in an envelope, and made me promise to give it to him. And, keep in mind that even though I don't talk about my home life in detail with my patients, they all still have a ton of advice for me...such as cook more, keep a clean house, etc... all of the stuff I don't do. When you are in your 80s-90s, relationships are the MOST important thing that life has to offer- good lesson for us youngsters)

08-17-10 2:00pm

"My Warden's Other Half"

I wonder do you know just what you have at home?
You have someone who loves you dearly, if treated right will never roam.

She's very firm, but very fair
That's how she plays the game
But if you meet her half way,
You'll never be the same.

When I was weak, she's making me stronger each and every day
And with the help of my sweet Jesus, I know I'm on my way.

Just wanted you to know your loving a diamond in the rough.
So treat her kind, treat her gently, let her know you care.
Love her even when she's feeling bad
And you'll find she's always there.

PS: From one of her patients. (insert name which I will leave out on the blog). You must be a good guy. For my God has blessed you with a wonderful wife. A gift from God.

Super cool, huh? This one is going to go in a frame. :)

Trying Again..and Again...

I wish I could report that the run is improving and I am starting make some headway. Not so much here.

The 5 miler last Sunday looked something like positive splits and LOTSA people passing me. Move legs, move!!!! No response. I finished the new and easier 5 mile course about 4 minutes slower than the last time I ran this race. Right now it is against me and the clock- and the clock is kicking my butt over and over again.

If at first you don't succeed... train harder!!!!

Wednesday morning I joined the 18 minute 5k chicks for 6 x 800. I do not belong in this group- which is exactly why I am there. If that makes sense. And they are amazing runners and great company + motivation. So, their warm up was race pace for me (ha ha! hello 5:45am!). We picked a pace for me that would challenge me to break out of my slogging- and off I went...breathing and struggling and running well behind everyone. My leg muscles were screaming- muscles that haven't been used in forever! I finished my first set of good intervals since 2008, and I re-enlisted in the school of HTFU.

Try again!

Another day, another attempt. Yesterday I entered an Olympic distance triathlon in Arkansas- this was not an A race for me, but I really need more practice at the longer runs. I was really hoping my legs would show some signs of waking up from the dead.

Led the race until...yup, you got it...mile 4 of the run. Oh yes, my blazing 51 minute 10k could not hold off the eventual 1st place woman. It is just hard for me to believe that I am still running this slow. I have never run a 50+ minute 10k in my whole life until this year, and now I have 2 to my name.
Add the formation of a blister at about 2 miles into the run- it made for an interesting and painful 10k to say the least.

Regroup. Regroup. Realism. Several weeks of running does NOT turn around a year layoff. I know this- so we (me and my running self) are cool. I have a nice little plan that involves some miles+ tempo+ speed+ being kind to my knee +patience+ a lot of HTFU and suffering. Oh yes, and time. In the back of my mind, I just thought the run would come back easily for me since it was always easy for me to get in run shape before. A different body is my new reality, and I have to work with the changes.

I am not complaining. I can run. I cherish this no matter what the speed. The things in life that come easy are not as rewarding. It will feel soooo good when I finally have that one race where the run "clicks" again. I am looking forward to sharing that day with you!

So, I continue to set new PWs on the run, but I finished 2ndOA female. Looks like I am turning into a good aquabike participant! ha ha!!

This has been a good solid week. My base period started late, and went March through June, so I am finally able to start adding some faster rides into the mix. There is something to be said for being disciplined and not trying to go fast all of the time. Hard=hard and easy=easy. I am getting so much better at implementing that concept. So, now I have been mixing in 1-2 harder rides a week. (heeding Walt Rider's small lecture, I mean advice, on how I need to be challenging myself to harder rides 2x per week).

I have also picked up some new training partners which has been AWESOME! One of them is a neighbor, Rachel. She is one of the fastest runners in the city- and her husband races bikes. So, she has done a little crossing over into the cycling world (of course she is strong with such a great aerobic base). And it has just been awesome to have a good training partner live so close to me. Today we met for an early morning group ride, and then followed it up with an easy run and drills. Every week our plans seem to evolve, and we now have a standing date for Thurs am ride/brick with drills. It really helps me to have a motivated training partner- she is serious about her workouts.

So between my Sunday swim Olympian partner and my Thurs awesome runner partner...could you guys make me fast? Oh yea, I have to make myself fast. ;)

Yet isn't it funny how there are just some training partners that fit? Although she could outrun me with one lung, it does not feel weird or uncomfortable when I train with her. Her workout is about her- not about me. And ditto. It is super-refreshing to not spend my training time competing with other females. I have just been so fortunate lately to continue to meet great training partners. (of course my all-time, bestest, up for anything, training partner has moved away...but I still bug her almost daily with the ins- and-outs of my life and training :)

Surrounding myself with great people is crucial- in life and sport. I feel that I am putting in too much effort to be around people that bring me down in training. And yes, those people do exist. I hope I am not one of "those people" to someone else. If I am, then I need to do better!!!!

I would like to end this by saying that I am sadly taping my shoes as the sole has come off. I used to do this in soccer when I was broke. I went online to buy some shoes last night....and hence the tape. I mean, holy cow....I can't believe how much cycling shoes cost! Even on e-bay? Even used shoes!!!!!