April Showers

Whew! Memphis is a little crazy this time of year weather wise. Just when you are super excited to ride your bike outside, mother nature makes sure it is extra windy to give you just a little more of a challenge. I used to hate riding in the wind, but I have learned to just ignore the mph and enjoy the day outside.

This week we have moved from wind to storms. Real storms with huge downpours, hours of lightening, tornadoes, and loss of power. We have listened to tornado sirens many times the past 2 weeks. Of course you are supposed to take cover when you hear sirens. So when I was running yesterday, with lightening every 15 seconds and tornado sirens going off all over the city, I couldn't help but think that just maybe I am not right in the head. I spent one mile trying to figure out when to just go home.

I finally called it quits when I decided it wasn't worth explaining to Dave how the lightening and thunder were "such and such seconds apart so I was not in big danger." Never mind the sirens. Some battles just aren't worth it, plus I realized I sounded like an idiot.

At least we have our power back this morning. I have been sitting here listening to 3 consistent hours of lightening and rain. It feels good to just sit back, listen, and rest. Mother nature is pretty awesome.

Here are some pics from the past weekend- sunny and windy!!!

Los Locos at the Cycle for Safety. I am the midget in the middle.

I have been trying to strengthen my arms, I swear. But when I see myself next to Kevin, I realize that I still own chicken wings. However, Kevy looks great!

A new project for you!!!

Who doesn't need to clean out there closet and get rid of some gear that they do not use anymore? Once I started filling this box, I came across more and more things that I do not use enough to justify keeping. It is time to share!!! Bree is collecting running shoes and clothes for 200 Philippines children so that they, too, can experience the joy of running. Check out the details here. And send your box of stuff to the address below.

Bike Works
74-5583 Luhia Street
Kailua-Kona, Hi 96740
808 326 2453

PS- she needs this by May 15th!

Around and About

This week has been much better. I have gotten some needed sleep and rest, and it really made a world of difference to me. I stretch myself too thin sometimes hanging out with friends, but I really can't complain. I mean, what a problem to have, huh?

Oh, and I told Dave that I didn't want to do ANYTHING this week or weekend. Nothing extra. I would say "no" to every invitation. How is that working for me? Well, tonight I went to Bosco's to help send Laura off. Do I dare say no to the other invitations that came my way today: Girls' Night at Gayle's on Saturday and Easter dinner with my parents? Aghhh!!!! I am going to bed NOW to bank some sleep.

Saturday night Dave and I had some yummy, homemade Indian food with some of our old New Orleans/college friends. Good times!

I then jetted over to Cafe 1912 to have drinks with Joy (in town briefly) and Laura (moving to California for good this week!!!!!). See- see how I try to cram everything in? It was so worth it, though. I never get to see Joy anymore, and Laura is about to desert me as well. Looks like I will have to start booking some flights out west...

But really, besides the comings and goings of my friends, my life is just kind of humming along. There is nothing new to report. I am going to work every day. I train every day. I love my dogs. I love Dave. That just about sums everything up.

I have made some good progress with my running. I ran 36 miles last week. That is a huge number for me as I have not seen it since 2008. The best part about it is, I am no worse for wear. I actually feel good. You see, I have learned that I cannot build miles + go to track + worry about my speed + race. Every single time I have been focused on my running...even when I have been running well....I would get greedy. I would jump up to a 50 mile week and in that week I would also have a hard track workout and some sort of road race on the weekend. I would try to PR in the 5k and the marathon AS WELL AS do well in my triathlons. Super smart, yes? We have all done it. So, I am truly building a base right now. If you don't believe me, ask my friends. They have been very tolerant of my "I am staying at a low HR blah blah blah" training.

The best part of running for me right now is....drum roll...enjoying it! I enjoy it! I am not in constant pain, and running is starting to become joyous again! I am not completely pain free, and I don't think I ever will be, but boy what a difference.

Here is my favorite run of the week (and the best part about having some time in your season where you just get in some easy miles): me + my two dogs + no HR monitor + no care for time + trails + water/phone/camera.

Time FLIES when you run the trails with your dogs. I think the thought that crosses my mind most often on these runs is: who is the leader of this pack? Why am I in the back?

Water break!

Somehow...don't ask how because I have no clue...Rooney can manage to find a tennis ball in the middle of a forest hidden under a huge log WHILE we are running.

So, I hope everyone has a run this week that they enjoy. I hope your miles are going well and you are getting strong. Have a great week!

Karma Help

I have been a little overly stressed lately...I would say the past two weeks? I felt it coming on and couldn't quite pinpoint it. Last night, I finally reached that point where I thought, "I don't like work and I am miserable, my training sucks and I will never be faster, and on and on."

The thing is, I do like work (most of the time). If you asked me what I would do other than physical therapy, I couldn't really tell you. (except run my animal rescue farm one day- and I guess it is way too late to play professional soccer).

My training also does not suck, although when I am stressed, my training is sub-par. Like everything else, I have some successful runs and some poor runs. Making progress in triathlon for me is just not linear, although I want it to be. So, I have to take a step back and look at the big picture quite often.

Before I flipped my lid- and I was oh so close to doing that last night- I thought to myself...does everything about my training/running right now suck, or am I just stressed and need to sleep on it and rethink things in the morning? Dave and I decided the trip to Pensacola last weekend put things off center a bit- the travel, the stress of spending way too much money, the drinking, the rush back home, the disruption in our routine, skipping the grocery store and not having any good meals, etc....

So, I marched straight to bed with two missions that may just center the world a little bit for me.

Mission 1: write some long over-due thank you notes. I do not write these enough. I want to make a good habit of telling people thank you more often. I am taking them to the post office NOW!

Mission 2: give a little bit to others... Now, Dave Ramsey tells me to wait on this because I have not reached this baby step and I have not paid off my debt. But, sometimes just a little is okay, right? :) Check these good links out if you have a mind to share a little bit today:

• TEAM VICTORIOUS SECRET - to benefit SEEDS and SEE SAW. Check with Kari Mayhew for more information.
• EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS- Nate's College Fund- Check with Hillary Biscay for more information.
• MEMPHIS AREA YMCA- We Build People Campaign - Great cause for local Memphians.

Has my karma changed? Stressed dissolved? Hmm. I don't know, but I definitely feel better this morning after some rest than I did last night. :)

My mom posted an old soccer picture the other day. Love it :) I am going to have to go through her photo albums and find some other old ones. I think my parents have pictures of me as a child playing soccer, but there are almost ZERO pictures of me playing in high school or college. Maybe they were bored at that point with watching me...

Check out the black eye. Nice. Was that from child abuse or soccer? I have repressed memories...

So, I asked my mother the other day, "At what point do you remember me becoming competitive with soccer?" She answered, "the very first day you played in second grade."

My mom is prone to exaggeration. A LOT. (I get it from her). So I asked my dad, and I made sure to ask him without my mom around so I could get the true story.

He said, "You were competitive the first moment you played."

So, there we have it. In my child-like memory, I was eating grass and having fun. I was a goofy kid that just wanted to hang out with my friends. In my parents' memories, I was going for blood from day one. Nice.

Margaritaville

I am back from a great weekend in Pensacola for Holly's wedding with some of my best girl friends from college. We always have an absolute BLAST when we get together like this. It is just so much fun because these girls know me inside and out so it is just like slipping into complete comfort when I get to see them. I am also not sure which is scarier- the partying we did in college or the partying we are still able to do now...

Chrissy, Moe, Rebecca, Langer, Megan, Gombos, Holly, Laura, Molls, and me

Damie and Molly- this is my freshman college roomie. Unfortunately it only lasted one semester because I decided to drop every class that was a pain in my ass. It was a great plan until I almost lost my soccer/school scholarships for not carrying enough hours (I didn't know I had to stay about a certain level!), and then second semester I had to double my hours and go live in the dork dorm where I could get my work done. I am not sure how I got out of that pickle, but I sure did have fun that first semester! I LOVE Molls! (and don't worry, I managed to have some fun the other semesters too ;)

My soccer girls- Becca, Holls (the bride), Patty and me. We were freshman on the soccer team together. These girls really probably know everything there is to know about me. When you practice a sport with someone every single day for hours and years- you tend to really have an idea of what kind of person they are based on the way they handle stress and hard work on the field.

Patty and Damie....she is getting ready to move from the south to DC and I will never get to see her anymore :( Don't go!!!

Ha ha!!! I told Dave he should get a Diesel Fuel drink. Ha ha! I knew it was a bad idea, but I sold it to him! He earned the nickname Diesel Dave for the weekend.

I just had to post this picture of Aerin because, seriously, I love it. She doesn't know I have a blog so what she doesn't know won't hurt her.

So, I always pride myself on my pacing abilities in races, and I also pride myself in my pacing abilities with partying. Here we are- the LAST 3 alive at the end of Saturday night (well, Sunday morning). Even Diesel Dave had called it quits. The three of us kept the party going!

Back home- tired-happy. :)

Camp Musings- Riding THROUGH Transition

Damie and Justin Daerr. Yes, I am as tired as I look- and this is after 4 cups of coffee.

Before I share with you some things I learned at the Mississippi Heat Triathlon Camp a couple of weekends ago, I want to encourage you to attend a camp or lecture in your city. If there are not any available, spend some time with some experienced triathletes and learn from them. Ask questions! Get a coach and further your education. Read some of the blogs of professional triathletes and learn from their stories.

So, on this post I am going to share with you one thing (out of many) I learned from Justin Daerr. Please understand that my attempt to paraphrase Justin will not do his lecture justice. He was an excellent speaker and teacher.

On the topic of transition:

1. Ride THROUGH transition. How many times do you see fellow triathletes sit up in the last mile or more and stretch, spin, etc... as if the bike leg has already ended? While you want to be prepared to transfer from the bike to the run, the bike is not yet over. Many times in races we must go through a park or pass a landmark signaling that transition is near; however, transition may not be as close as we think it is. Do not fall into the trap of slowing down prematurely because you think you are close to the transition area. Do as Justin suggests: Ride THROUGH transition. Your ride is over when you prepare to dismount, not when you enter the park or think you are close to being finished.

In my most recent race, I wanted to practice this skill. I noticed as we entered Ole Miss campus that many cyclists slowed down immediately. Guess what, we still had almost a mile or more to ride! In that moment, I was able to clearly see what Justin had described. The landmark, Ole Miss campus, triggered a reaction in almost every rider in front of me: "I am finished."

I noticed another rider up ahead of me had slowed and was sitting up. I decided to ride THROUGH transition, and I was amazing the amount of ground I made up in that short period of time. I did not stop riding until I reached the dismount line, and I got off of my bike with that rider that had entered the campus well in front of me.

So, for your next race, really focus on this skill. Don't let it be an afterthought. Do not ride mindlessly; after all, you have probably put in a lot of training time and want to race well. Don't lose time in the last part of the bike because you think you are almost through.

I learned lots of great stuff at camp- more to share later!

Not a bad day. It was a good day with a little bad thrown in the mix. I am worried sick over a stupid, well-intentioned mistake I made. I am always striving to be a good person and a good friend, and when I fail, even in the slightest, I definitely take it very personally- and in turn can be very hard on myself. I just sometimes forget to be easy on myself...we are humans that sometimes make mistakes!

I found many quotes in a favorite book of mine, The Art Of Living, that have calmed my intense spirit down a bit for tonight. Here are just a couple...

- He lives on the principle of "nothing attempted, nothing gained" and is resolved that if he fails, he is going to fail while trying to succeed.

-It is being great now, being forgiving now, being tolerant now, being happy now, being successful now, instead of postponing positive and constructive living to some vague and indefinite future.

Thank goodness I came home to this box of goodies sitting on my door step. There is chocolate somewhere in there, and it is going to help me fall asleep in peace tonight. Bad things may pass through my days, but I have so many good friends that bad days just don't really happen much in my life. Dolly just thought she was sending me a present, and I bet she had no clue how much I needed this today!!!! It is the little things we do for each other that really help make life great.

At the Ride Into Spring yesterday, I actually rode into the frustrations of ironman training. Last year I had the pleasure of trashing myself with the roadies and making myself hurt since I needed to increase my speed for short course. I could kill myself on the road and did not have to think about all of the long runs I had to do. It was really great for me mentally, and it taught me how to hold a wheel until I died (sometimes literally). This year, that type of training does not apply to my goals, and I had to wrap my head around the challenges of group riding....yet riding within my training parameters.

And training parameters don't apply to group roadie rides, I mean, they are always just racing each other all of the time. So, I was having some trouble finding my place and my ride.

I left the day feeling a little pissy, although doing the ride (mostly) the way I was supposed to do it. Wouldn't it be nice if my long course pace was 25 mph at zone 2? Ha!!! So, while I wish my long course riding was more developed, it is not, and I have some work to do and I have to do it the right way. And maybe towards the end of the summer I won't have to let the group go at all...

I had to remind myself that I can't get caught up in the big group rides. It is not always fun to let the group go- but as I get ready to head out the door for a two hour run this morning, I am grateful that I put myself in "time out" yesterday before it was too late and I ruined my workout for today.

My little sister turned 30 yesterday! Yikes!!! I still have way more gray hair than she does, although who can really tell since she has a different hair color every month. ;)