MAKE IT HAPPEN

'Twas the nap before Christmas...

I LOVE napping on a Saturday afternoon. Dave is at work, and I am breaking all of the rules by having the dogs on the bed with me. Is it wrong to sometimes do things you know you are not supposed to do? Dave has one rule in the house. Just one. No dogs on the bed. I never follow it.

Just a quick shout out to my friend, Layla, who is moving to Nashville next week. Layla and Brian (in the above picture) were my first two training partners ever. It seems so long ago that we lined up together....none of us could swim, we did full clothing changes in transition, and we were just excited to "jog" the whole run. Times have changed, but the old memories are still wonderful ones.

This morning I did a 3 hour ride + 40 min run. While I don't love the 6:30am/30 degree mornings, Tim keeps telling me that being miserable is a choice. So, I get on my bike and try to convince myself I am not miserable in the freezing cold. And, actually, I am not. I am miserable because I recently had a new bike fit, and my private parts hurt like hell. (literally, it has been 3 hours since I got off of the bike, and I still hurt). My bike used to be my 3rd best friend (behind the dogs), but now I am ready to break up after 5 minutes. Long gone are the days when I could ride 6 hours smooth like butter.

So I am struggling on the bike a little bit right now, and I don't like it at all. Is it the fit....or is it that I just have an OOSA (out of shape a$$?). 6 months ago I was chomping at the bit to pull with the guys. Now I am just hanging on the back, cursing under my breath when it is my turn to pull. Time to get my fit right and spends lots of time with my bike again.

I did have a solid track workout this week, which brings my total days on the track for the whole year to a whopping 4. :) Tim and I really cut out the speedwork this year to keep aggressive forces to my joints at a minimum. Amazingly, I am not any slower for not being on the track a ton. I also am having zero knee pain. Nada. Zilch. It is amazing how much more work you can accomplish when you are healthy. And after a full year of my knee feeling great after surgery, I feel excited and motivated. I am going to round out the Christmas week with a 2 hour progression run tomorrow. That is truly an awesome gift for the year, as last year during this time I was only running up to about 1 hour.

And, I wanted to make sure I shared this with everyone. Below is a good read from my friend Sam on her recent Ironman Cozumel race. Yes, that required stitches. She is the fastest IM racer I know that has not qualified for Kona. Earlier this year, a top 10 finish overall at CDA, including pros, still left her out of the qualifying. This subsequent race had a bike wreck that again left her 10 seconds shy of the HQ. You just can't teach this level of tough. That is why I am making her blow off some of her law school studies to do some long training weekends with me this spring.


Merry Christmas to all- whether you are training or relaxing, I hope you have a fantastic holiday.