One-Year Anniversary

This Saturday marks my one-year anniversary with Triathlon. We’re getting pretty serious.I think I'll celebrate with the 1 year traditional gift: an almond croissant. Ok the traditional gift is actually paper, but I have to pay for it with paper, and I get a paper receipt. So... there you have it. Croissant it is. 

Most of what I say about my relationship to the sport parallels to actual relationships between people. It feels more like forever versus just one year, it's both rewarding and challenging at times, I've invested a lot of time and emotion (& weight gains/losses. Mostly gains.), and most importantly there has been a lot of personal growth.  When I look back, I only think of the good times we've had together and am hopeful that there will be more to come in the future.

It’s mind-bottling (“Yeah, mind-bottling. You know, when things are so crazy it gets your thoughts all trapped, like in a bottle?). I've been incredibly reflective this past week mostly due to my 10-year high school reunion combined with looking back on this past year. I didn't think I’d report back to classmates years later that I’m now a triathlete who loves Excel spreadsheets, yoga and vegetable juices. I still feel 12. I’m not sure how this happened. When I thought about my future reunion while still in high school, I pictured myself saying something more along the lines of “This is my husband and two children. We live in a mansion and, for fun, we like to sip martinis and talk about mortgage rates and politics.” Right.

Even looking back at one year alone I realize how much can happen in such a short period of time! I don’t even quite remember how I fell into the triathlon rabbit hole to begin with. I’m fairly sure that, besides myself, I can blame most of it on 2 people: Kate Heckman and Michael Simpson. Your teamwork of luring me in (Kate) paired with the wealth of information (Mike) has got me so involved now that I can’t possibly get out anytime soon. And I thank you both SO MUCH for that. I could be alone or part of the majority in feeling this, but it has really been life-changing. Of course I’m in better shape, healthier overall and have become more disciplined, but it has also given me so many new friends, a COUNTLESS number of people to look up to, and a sense of belonging not only in the club… but in the city, the sport… everything.

I remember exactly this time last year when I was preparing for my first ever triathlon: the Santa Barbara Triathlon long course. (*Side note: I don’t recommend starting with this course… haha. Normal people usually start with a SPRINT!) Needless to say, the race dominated me instead of the other way around but I still loved it all the same. I remember constantly telling anyone who would listen that I was going to be in a triathlon and would launch into all the race logistics that no one cared about. It completely consumed me! And now… one year later… I’m more like “oh yeah, I have a race this weekend. NBD”. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very excited about it and can’t wait to compare data from last year since this will be my first repeat race. It’s just that after doing my first half Ironman it doesn't seem like the biggest deal ever. Just as next year a half Ironman won’t seem as significant because I’ll be focusing on my first FULL Ironman. (IMAZ 2014! Well, hopefully. I don’t sign up until mid November.)

Anyways, as crazy as my plan is, it IS a natural progression regardless of how insane or ready I am to take it on. It makes sense to keep moving forward with something when you have a good thing going. I’m going to feel burned out from time to time a lot but can look to & get advice from people who've put in the "hard time" and are where I would like to be. And in turn, it’s such an awesome feeling to know I can be that person for someone else. (That doesn't happen a lot… I still get beat by 10 year olds). But STILL!

This has been a really amazing year. I’m continually surprised and humbled by life and wouldn't have it any other way. And I’m SO excited to race the long course again this weekend with so many friends and see how much I've progressed… but also still become humbled by hearing “on your left!”. Or who knows… maybe not! Crazier things have happened ;)

Here’s to another amazing year!!! 

En Garde, Whole Foods!

~A little diversion from race reports and workouts~

As I've mentioned before, triathlon training has become more of a lifestyle for me rather than just a hobby. The majority of my “free” time (aka when I’m not at work) is consumed with training, planning out when I’m going to train, how much money I can spend on more clothes and gear, choosing what to eat to properly fuel my body before, during and after training, and making sure I get enough sleep in order to recover and make it through the next day’s workout.

See what I mean? It didn't become a lifestyle on accident… I had to switch around a lot of things in order just to maintain my current level of training and fitness. Gone are the days of Margarita Mondays, Taco Tuesdays, Wet Wednesdays, Thirsty Thursdays… you get the point. Working out the hours of sleep needed and finding time during the day to complete a workout can be a bit tedious, but can become manageable and  (being childless), I can nail down a routine I can commit to. But the DIET! It’s a constant battle trying to combine eating for pleasure and eating for fuel. Unfortunately you can’t eat solely for pleasure (cupcakes, pizza, ice cream, bacon) but also can’t eat solely for fuel (beets, raw kale) if you care at all about enjoying food. If you’re anything like me, you like to make smart food choices but don’t have a ton of time, money, or patience for foods without carbs and/or that taste like dirt.

This will be a constant evolving process of discovering which foods are “the best”. Here’s what I know so far: I know that I’m terrible at following any certain diet (Paleo, Vegan, Atkins, etc) because I need to have an occasional cupcake or almond croissant. I also know that eliminating fast food, sodas, and most frozen foods with raw juices and a higher vegetable intake does, in fact, make a HUGE difference in the way I look, feel and perform. I’m still debating whether or not to eliminate gluten and meats. I've definitely cut down on both but I’m not sure I can commit to giving them up completely!

I also know that it’s super fun, easy, and inexpensive to MAKE YOUR OWN healthy (and tasty!) foods. I hear the complaint about how “healthy” foods are too expensive… but that’s because most of time you’re buying the pre-made packaged stuff. Hear me out! There are so many things that are very easy to make, that taste yummy, are cheap AND healthy. In the past few months alone I've started making my own Kombucha, almond butter, raw juices, chips and granola. Feel free to use the recipes in this blog J. They’re all tried and true by yours truly (and by my guinea pig roomie).  I don’t need to plug titles of documentaries in order to prove my point about why you should give up certain foods and drinks... your body already knows what’s good for it.

Cheaper and healthier… you just need to get off your butt and into the kitchen and… *gasp* farmers markets! Give it a try and tell me I’m wrong…

Recipes

Kombucha

A bit about it/why I make it:

SCOBY is an acronym for Symbiotic Colony Of Bacteria and Yeast (yummy!). So the Kombucha tea not only contains bacteria and yeast, it also contains organic acids, active enzymes, amino acids and polyphenols. What this means in English is that it gives your stomach the good bacteria it needs for better digestion and helps detox your body (mainly the liver). Kombucha also gives you more energy which a result from the fermentation itself combined with the caffeine from the tea. The SCOBY needs the caffeinated tea and the sugar to thrive. And who wants to keep paying $4/bottle!?

What you need:

-8 black tea bags

-1 cup white sugar

-SCOBY

-Gallon size Mason jar

-Cheesecloth or coffee filters

-Juice for kombucha flavor

-Strainer (optional)

-Glass jars for bottling

How you make it:

-Fill a pot of water (maybe ½ gallon) and bring to a boil. Drop in the tea bags & cup of sugar & then let it cool. I usually let it sit overnight to ensure it has cooled down all the way. Otherwise you will burn & kill your SCOBY!

-Fill up the Mason jar with the brewed tea, add the SCOBY and fill the rest of the jar up with water

- Cover the top of the jar with cheesecloth or coffee filters & let sit for about 3 weeks. I have my jar sitting on our kitchen counter. Don’t put the jar in sunlight!

-After the fermentation process is complete, I make sure to have my next batch of tea ready to go so that I can put the SCOBY back in the jar to sit for another few weeks

-I use old Kombucha glass bottles that I’ve saved after buying them at the store. I like to use a strainer to prevent less “stuff” from getting in my bottles. I fill up the jars about 85% (to the top of the label on the bottle) to leave a little room for juice.

-After filling (& closing) the bottles I leave them out on the counter for 3 days to carbonate before adding juice & sticking them in the fridge. I personally like Cranberry and Pineapple juices the best but add whatever you like. *Don’t shake the bottles*

Kombucha is an acquired taste, to say the least. Happy Brewing!

Almond Butter

A bit about it/why I make it:

Not only is it cheaper and healthier than what you buy in the store (no additives!), it’s ridiculously easy to make.

What you need:

-1 bag of roasted unsalted almonds (you can buy the salted variety, just make sure what almonds you do use are roasted because that’s what gives the butter its flavor)

-1 Mason jar (storage)

-Food processor (I have a Hamilton Beach 10-cup, 500w processor)

How you make it:

-Throw the almonds in the food processor, turn it on, and come back in 10 minutes. Yes, it’s that easy. The natural oils of the almonds will release after about 7-8 min, so no need to add any extra oils in.

-I like to use a Mason jar (you can use whatever you like), & the butter should be kept in the refrigerator.

Sweet Potato and Beet Chips

A bit about it/why I make it:

Healthier and cheaper than most store-bought chips! They are easy to make & bring along for a snack and, for me, the most pleasant way to eat beets. Also, I just love chips. DID YOU KNOW… that stackable chips (such as Pringles, Lays stackables, etc.) aren’t potato chips at all? Check out this article: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/11/07/the-shocking-true-story-of-how-pringles-are-made.aspx

 What you need:

-Oven

-Baking sheet (with rims! You don’t want oil spilling into your oven)

-Sweet potatoes

-Beets

-Peeler

-Olive oil

-Mandolin (you can use a knife, but a mandolin will make your life a whole lot easier)

-Sea salt

-Tupperware (or something comparable) for storage

How you make it:

-Preheat the oven to 400, and cover your baking pan with aluminum foil. (I’ve found out the hard way that parchment paper sets off the fire alarm!)

-Use as many sweet potatoes & beets as you like & cut them into the thinnest slices possible. I toss them in olive oil and put them in the oven for 20-25min depending how crispy you want them. I have found that the beets take about 10min longer to bake. You can also put a combo of Paprika & Cumin, or Garlic & Rosemary on them as well… super yummy!

-After taking them out I sprinkle on sea salt before they cool.

Raw Juices (my favorite recipes so far)

A bit about it/why I make it:

Where do I begin?! There is no better or yummier way to get in your daily intake of fruits and (especially) vegetables than by juicing! It’s also WAY cheaper than buying juices at $10/bottle! I have the Omega 8006 juicer and I’m OBSESSED with it. My guinea pigs (roommate and boyfriend) can attest to this & I think they’re both pretty happy to reap the benefits of all my juicing experiments. Aside from a juicer, you will need the following: mason jars or glass bottles for storage, knife, cutting board and peeler.

Green Machine Detox Juice

What you need:

-3 green apples

-1 lemon

-1” cube of ginger

-5 kale leaves

-1 cucumber

How you make it:

-The juicer doesn’t have a huge opening, so everything will need to be chopped into fairly small pieces. The lemon and ginger will both need to be peeled, and I make sure that little or no kale stems make it into the juice

-Once everything has gone through the juicer, I use a strainer (the juicer comes with one) a second time when pouring the juice in the jar/bottle to eliminate any foam or chunks that weren’t caught the first time.

-Yields approx 20oz

Beetjuice! Beetjuice! Beetjuice!

By now, you know that I don’t like beets. But I understand and respect their value. So… I have this recipe which has been called “delicious” by beet lovers and “tolerable” by me.

What you need:

-2 Beets

-6 Carrots

-1 Pineapple

How you make it:

-The beets and carrots need to be peeled & chopped. I would recommend buying a whole pineapple because it’s cheaper, but you can cheat & buy the already cut up kind.

-Keep in mind that beets stain everything!

-Yields approx 32oz

Watermelon Summertime Juice

What you need:

-1 small watermelon (again you could cheat & buy it already cut up)

-2 limes

-1 cup of green grapes

-Cayenne pepper (optional)

-Coconut water (optional)

How you make it:

-Slice up the watermelon (seedless!) and peel the limes

-You can add a pinch of cayenne, which I find to give this juice the perfect little kick, but you don’t have to

-Yields approx 32oz

(My favorite, not all) Super Foods

Avocado - Their high fat content (healthy fat! A bit oxymoronic, I know.) helps reduce cravings for unhealthy foods by keeping you full and satisfied

Beets- I don’t like them. But you should. Especially if you’re an athlete. Beets can help improve blood flow to your heart and muscles, which is great for workouts. Just don’t wear anything white or freak out when you pee.

Cherries – they contain melatonin! Have them before bed instead of ice cream. I’ve also learned from a friend that they are a natural remedy to conditions such a Gout because it is a natural amino acid (& helps to break down the uric acid which causes gout) and helps reduce inflammation as well.

Chia seeds – add them to everything.

Dark Chocolate – all day errrday. Yes, please, and thank you. Not only is it loaded with antioxidants, it helps fight PMS symptoms and helps repair bad moods and breakups (especially when paired with red wine).

Garlic – Aside from keeping vampires away, it’s a great anti-inflammatory and great for your immune system. NOT so great for your breath. Unless you’re on a bad date… then it’s the perfect way to guarantee no second date.

Kale – I try to incorporate kale in all of my salads and raw juice concoctions. Most dark green leafy veggies are great staples for your diet, but I think kale is the ultimate, followed by Spinach.

Nuts- We’re all a little nutty… and therefore should enjoy the benefits of nuts. Unless you’re allergic. They make a yummy snack or main course addition, are packed with healthy fats and, with a food processor, can be made into flour substitutes and butters. 

Quinoa- I love this as a side dish or for breakfast. You can cook it with chicken broth instead of water if you think it needs a bit more flavor. This grain is celiac friendly and has a ton of protein and fiber.

Sweet Potatoes- yummy carbs AND the name gives you a hint to one of the benefits… a good (sweet) mood!

Watermelon- Who doesn’t like watermelon. Seriously. Its name also gives you a hint to one of the benefits… water! Instead of paying too much for electrolyte-enhanced water at the store, eat more of this fruit. 

Vineman 70.3 Race Report

MOST EPIC RACE/BIRTHDAY/CAMPING/ROAD TRIP WEEKEND EVER!

I couldn’t think of a better way to start off my new age than Vineman race weekend. I had the most awesome road trip buddy (Alex!) who shares my love of techno music, Sonic drive-thru’s, and Snapchatting anything & everything J. The 8 hours on the road flew by! I also loved camping with everyone… although it was more like “glamping” since we were basically in the backyard of downtown Guerneville & within walking distance to stores. My birthday was filled with so much love, cupcakes, swimming, running, exploring a new town, meeting new friends and getting to know my current friends a lot better. I was able to run part of the course and drive the whole entire bike course while jamming out to a pre-race pump up mix including gems such as “Eye of the Tiger” and “We will rock you”. (Thank you Andrey for driving & riding the whole course the day before to give us a full report!) I got to finish off the night at dinner with my parents, a hot shower and a cozy bed.

It. Was. Perfect.

The next day we spent most of our time at the Expo picking up packets, getting our FREE compression socks and, errr, not-so-free race swag. After leaving, it was time for me to zone out into race mode & lay out everything for the next morning… & check it 15 more times before finally going to bed.

Onto the good stuff…

Swim: I’m so happy that the water cooled down enough to be “wetsuit legal”! Sure, I could swim 1.2 miles in a river without one, but all of my open water swims and races have been in my wetsuit so I was fortunate enough not to have to try anything new on race day J. A few days before the race we had a chance to get in the water for a short pre-race swim & see the course, feel out the water and have a good idea of what to expect on race day. Good to know beforehand that you actually have to WALK part of it! Historically, before the swim start is when I usually lose it and think “why am I doing this?” “I don’t want to do this anymore!”… But not this time. I was actually EXCITED and so pumped to start the race! I was enjoying the calm and cool grey sky before the storm; wading in the water with all females 29 & under and feeling my heart race with excitement and anticipation. The swim felt like nothing. There were buoys every couple hundred yards which was so helpful because 1. I cannot swim in a straight line and 2. my goggles (even with the anti-fog spray) were fogged up so dang bad! I finally had a chance to fix them at the turnaround point where we had to stand up because the river was so shallow. Imagine a zombie apocalypse in the water. It was such a trip seeing all of the staggering bodies in full swim gear (wetsuit, swim cap, goggles) trying to power walk in a rocky river, while at the same time seeing people swim their hearts out on the other side. 42 calm surreal minutes later I was out! I was happy to ditch my goggles and thankful I had a good swim to start off with. It wasn’t very kind of them to put the 35-39 year old males right after us, but was happy to finally get an early wave time & even passed a few people in the wave ahead of me!

Bike: I heard from a lot of people how great the bike course is and that it was their favorite part of the race, or why they choose to do this race every year. In my mind I had pictured a hot, desolate course with maybe a few vineyards, but I severely underestimated how beautiful that area is! The bike course is surrounded (& shaded) by redwoods, multiple vineyards and is made up of a whole lot of rollers. The course is relatively flat except for Chalk Hill at mile 45 (that was just rude) and the best downhill EVER at the halfway point! One of my birthday challenges was to get up to at least 28mph (my age), and that hill got my little self up to 34mph! Fastest I’ve ever gone! Oh yes, tears were coming out the sides of my eyes and I had the biggest Kool-Aid grin the entire way down. I even had a nice fog cover for the first half of my race. I can honestly say that even though I heard “on your left!” about 5,012 times, I really truly enjoyed myself. The only downside was the quality of the asphalt. (If you’re familiar with the SB area, think Hope Ranch.) I’ve never seen so many racers on the side of the road with flats. Luckily… luckily luckily luckily I was not one of them. It’s always something I fear during every race, which you can’t predict and is also inevitable. My boyfriend bike made it through all 56 miles like a champ, but couldn’t make it back on the car ride home!

[Side note: when I took my bike out of the car the back tire was completed deflated. I still haven’t fixed it… I can only do so many productive things per day. J]

Ok back to the race… I knew I was close to the end when I saw the cemetery on the corner (see what I did there?). Never in my life have I been so excited to see a cemetery! 3:39 hours later I had racked my bike up, felt like I had adequate hydration & nutrition, made a promise to myself to work on getting faster (& going aero!) and  thanked God for no flats or crashes. ALSO… I’ll have you know that I was only a bit emotional twice during the race (ok, 3 times if you count the finish line), and both times were on the bike.  At the halfway point and at T2 when I heard my timing chip beep as I rode over the mats, I felt an overwhelming surge of love and could hear your cheers from 400+ miles away. I could barely keep it together, but thank you for that.  

Run: I was NOT excited to run a half marathon after that ride. I definitely lost a few future children and wore my quads out pretty bad from the bike. I took my sweet time in T2 (7min) to sit down & put on my shoes, use the bathroom, etc. I gave myself a quick mental pep talk and started my run. “The faster you get going, the faster you’re done!” My quads never loosened up all the way and that run course was brutal! SO HILLY and zero shade. My coach would have loved it, though. I walked up most of the hills, ran the flats and downhills, and stopped at every aid station (each mile). I loved running through the La Crema vineyard which was all dirt (better on my legs), and the fact that they had a huge half dome full of misters (water, not males) that you could run through. My run was absolutely just about surviving the rest of the race and getting to that finish line. At a few aid stations I even got so desperate that I dumped cups of water on my head & even took a swig of (real) Coca-Cola! I don’t drink soda but I will admit… it was very refreshing at mile 10 plus getting a little caffeine in my system to perk me up a bit. At last I saw that dearly loved cemetery again & smiled the rest of the way home. I was really going to make it!! The last half mile was filled with uplifting spectators, my parents and fellow friends and teammates. It was all I needed to finish the race strong in just under 7 hours, even with a 2.5 hour run.

I’m a half Ironman finisher. I DID IT. THE WHOLE THING.

And just like that the race was over. The months of training, the anticipation, the lists upon lists, nutrition & hydration planning, my LIFE for the past 4 months… finally reaching its end in (what felt like) no time at all. I definitely still am on race cloud 9, but it’s very weird and wonderful that it’s over and time to move on to the next thing. I want to go back to that race & relive it a bit more because I feel like there is so much that I missed! I’m well aware that I’m far from the best, but this makes me happy. I’ve learned, so far, that each race is MY race against the clock and not other people. Instead of feeling intimidated, I feel joyous being out on the course with people I admire. I’ve learned I can push my body and take more control of my mind, & will continue to dig deeper and go further. I will earn the respect, do the work, and maybe someday get on that podium. But if not, it doesn’t really matter to me so much anymore because no matter what I’ll still feel awesome & have some really cool hardware hanging in my room.

So to answer your questions… Will I do another one? Yep. Did it discourage me from doing a full Ironman? Nope. Have I lost my mind? You bet.

 

P.S. Shout out to my awesome parents who are celebrating their 31^st anniversary today! Holla!

P.P.S. Super thank yous to Alex, Aldous, Amy, Paul, Marisa, Andrey, the Martinich family, Tamara, Adrienne, Jason, Elda, and the IronStalkers Mike & Kristine for your support and all-around awesomeness. AND my coach AND all of you who were there in spirit!

 

It's JULY!?!?

I can’t believe how fast time is flying. It seems like so long ago when I first signed up for Vineman, & now it’s less than 2 weeks away. I’m also trying to digest the fact that I’m doing my first half IronMan only 10.5 months after doing my very first triathlon (SBTri long course), & taking my 28^th trip around the sun at the same time. Not sure my brain has quite grasped all of this. (I know this to be true because no emotional breakdowns have occurred yet.)

This past week has been a HUGE confidence booster. I’ve been doing the Reef & Run 1 mile open water swims which I can use as fairly accurate time & performance indicators for the swim portion of my race… I just hope the Russian River is cold enough for a wetsuit! I’m still not even close to the best swimmer out there, but holy cow, my time and skill in the water has improved SO MUCH in this past year. Thank you Coach AB, Nite Moves, and R&R!!

On Saturday I did my longest bike ride EVER (65 miles) in super hot weather. Huge thank you to Gabe & Aldous who’ve been awesome riding buddies the past few weeks. You guys have both been so encouraging, patient and most of all FUN to be out training with! There has been a lot of serious mileage happening the last month, & I finally feel confident that I can ride a strong 56 mile hot & hilly race! Still have some nutrition issues to dial in though… any advice?? The hydration part I have under control, & have become a believer in salt pills, but after mile 50 I’m starvvvvvving. I try to take in roughly 200 cal/hr whether it’s real food (granola bars, sandwich, etc) or powder (CarboPro, Roctane). I prefer to have actual food on the bike versus the sugary GU gels or blocks (I’ll have enough of those on the run!). My stomach can handle pretty much anything when I’m cycling so I’m looking for solid dense nutrition recommendations. At this point I think this is my weakest part of race prep… once I get the nutrition dialed in I’ll be ready to rock!! Oh yeah… & some tire changing lessons too. J

I clocked in a solid 15 miles running yesterday (10 miles in the morning, 5 in the evening), & felt totally great! I’m still unsure why my coach had me split the runs, but I felt like a rockstar after my 10 miler. I was on tired legs & it was already pretty hot out, but kept an easy 8:30 pace with a huge endorphin dosage. Love me some of that “runners high”.  I even got a high five from another runner who thanked me for being such a good pacer. (The real reason behind the high five is debatable.)  Anyways, the fact that I could run that distance with no problem (& no pain! Hallelujah!!) has totally boosted my confidence to run the 13.1 run portion of the race. Plus there is an aid station at EVERY mile which means I don’t have to run with any extra food/gear except for maybe a few salt capsules. Race day is still projected to be over 90 degrees (yes, the weather for that city is bookmarked in my phone), so there will be many ice cubes going in my hat & down my shirt.

I haven’t received my training schedule for this week yet, but I know that I’ve completed the peak of my training and am starting my journey down the Taper hill. Training has been building so much for so long that it’s hard to believe my longest & hardest workouts are done & now it’s just maintenance and minor tweaking until race day.

::GULP::

It will be more of a mental battle now more than anything, and I’ll have to draw my confidence from my months of preparation & the trust I have in my coach. Let me just tell you… Mike is THE best coach. (I’m not biased I swear! haha). Not only does he have a massive amount of experience, he also has an amazing talent to take you (he magically does this with everyone) right to that very edge… when you think you can’t hold on for 1 more mile or 1 more workout… but then you DO. Coach has the gift to make anyone better, faster, stronger than you thought you could ever be & has given me (& others) the incredible gift to continually surprise even ourselves. So, THANK YOU MIKE. I really can’t say that enough.

Also I have to say that so much of my motivation and vast improvements in my training has come from everyone in (& friends of) the SB Tri club. You guys are pretty damn impressive. I’m constantly blown away when I hear about what workouts and races everyone is doing… and am very humbled by it as well. Thank you for being so awesome & letting me pick your brains about anything & everything! I already have felt so much love & support throughout my training & know that will carry me through my toughest parts on race day.

Crap. Getting a little emotional. Can’t get all soft about this now… I still have 12 days 20 hours and 30 minutes to go! “And let it be known to all that on the 13^th day… We party. Hard.” I know my friends & family have been impatiently patiently waiting for this day to come for a while! The end is near you guys!! (until my next race… which is actually pretty soon.) J

See you out there!

-E

Yoga Challenge Report!

For the month of May I changed up my workout routine a bit & decided to sign up for Power of Your Om’s yoga challenge... one week late. The goal is to get in 25 yoga classes within 30 days, & if you do you get a free month of yoga and a shirt that says “What’s updog?” or “Master Hip Opener” or something… idk I haven’t seen it yet. So aside from the physical and mental challenges of practicing yoga, & I was also exercising the best time management of my life. After Wildflower I wasn’t sure I wanted to take this on, but after I found out that I can put sparkly stickers on a chart everyday, that pretty much sealed the deal.

I had 23 days to get in 25 classes, which obviously I did, but it wasn’t easy. My officemate would laugh at me filling out, scratching out, & highlighting my calendar all the time (which looked more like a graffiti wall) trying to figure out when I could fit in extra yoga classes on top of my regular training.  Every morning I’d get a “how many are you up to now?” followed by a high-five.

Physically, I most definitely feel stronger in my arms & balance/core strength. I can’t even TELL you how many chaturangas I’ve done in the past month. It also got my “asana” out of bed for 6am classes most days… which surprisingly gave me MORE energy (scary I know!) and knowing I can handle double workouts J. Also I have never sweat more in my entire life. If you don’t mind doing laundry every other day it’s SO good for you.

For me, I think that this challenge was more mentally rewarding than anything. Yoga is totally my anxiety-ridden a-type absolutely-necessary therapy. I need that time to shut off my brain from all of my crazy thoughts, & to appreciate being able to breathe and finding the peaceful mind shut-off place even in the most agonizing positions. Everyone in my life needs me to need it too haha. I’m currently 5 days yoga-sober, & today was a super stressful day at work & one of my co-workers actually suggested that maybe I should do another 30 day challenge. It’s hard to convince people who’ve never done yoga that it actually works all kind of inner magic… but it’s so true!! Practicing yoga daily (or twice) has helped me shake things off a lot easier than I otherwise would, & I saw everything and approached situations from a more positive and appreciative light.

It’s so easy to get sucked into being negative & a complainer that sometimes we don’t even know that’s where our mind is at. We forget we’re supposed to be more loving, accepting and FUN than what we’re doing now. I say “we” because I’m there too. Yoga has not “cured” me of vices or destructive behavior & thinking, but I understand that it’s a continuous PRACTICE that helps you want to make yourself better… and feel better… and eat better… and think better.

After the 23 days I was exhausted & a little yoga’d out, but the challenge helped me work on things I’ve been wanting to change for a very long time & just needed some extra help. Aside from yoga itself I’ve learned to hang on just a little bit longer than of point of “I can’t do it anymore” because it means you’re close to a breakthrough. I’ve learned to appreciate how much breath helps and how great the “flopasana” pose is J. It’s also been the first time in a very long time since my mind has had more positive self-talk than negative. I’m getting my confidence back of being ok with just being me. I’ve really missed this feeling. I appreciate so much how much this practice values forgiveness and acceptance. I’ve been able to forgive myself and others (who I haven’t been able to) and to feel so accepted to be me, to be honest, to be loved, to be my complete nerdy self. In turn, what this practice has given to me I’ve been able to give to others, which has been SO rewarding. But also know that if you take the last almond croissant or cupcake, everything I’ve learned in practice (ie kindness and sharing) will go straight out the window. *I SAID IT WAS A CONTINOUS PRACTICE*

I’m not doing any more 30 day challenges in the near future (Vineman training is in full effect!), but will absolutely keep yoga in my training as much I can. My brain needs it the most, but it’s definitely helping my triathlon training with staying focused and treating/pushing your body the way it should be. So THANK YOU instructors for pushing all of us to our sweaty limits, for all of your wisdom and encouragement and letting us know its ok to fall, laugh at ourselves and to say inappropriate hilarious things or make a lot of questionable noises in class. (wait, what?) But seriously, thank you for the challenge. Very worthwhile and rewarding.
 

“Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.”  – Unknown

Hey I heard that you're a Wild... flower...

This triathlon is one of the largest in the world and is said to be the “second hardest” (Olympic) triathlon in the U.S.  I’m not sure which one qualifies as the first. If it really is the second hardest, I’d say I’m pretty good shape for the path I’m on. I don’t say this because I think I’m all that good, I’m saying that because I was able to complete it with a decent time with zero damage.

If you do Wildflower, it’s not just a race… it’s a whole experience. I didn’t camp but I think in the future I would at least once in order to FULLY experience Wildflower weekend. Oh yeah… and maybe check out the course at least once before racing it??

After making my lists and packing my designated post-race, transition, food & “everything else” bags, and checking them twice… ok 8 times… then pulling back in the driveway for just one more check, I was off on my solo dolo road trip to the hot/cold/rainy/dusty/windy weather in Bradley, CA (Lake San Antonio). I realize now that with multiple bathroom breaks & the amount of times I listened to “Girl on Fire” by Alicia Keys, it probably would’ve ended in a solo trip anyways. Up until a few days before the race I was prepared & packed for the predicted 95◦ dry heat, but then had to re-pare for 65◦, 30mph winds and possible rain. From what I hear this race is one extreme or another, which is completely believable considering the Mountain Bike and Long Course racers had mid-80s weather with wind, & us Olympic racers never even saw the sun. I have to say though; I’ll take the high winds over high temperatures any day. Even on my easy bike ride Saturday & making the post-tri journey up the dirt hill, I don’t know how I could’ve raced in that dry heat! WELL DONE, Long Coursers. (Pun intended? Kind of?)

I felt infinitely better seeing my fellow SB Tri friends and engaging in as much pre and post race talk as possible before heading back to my quiet night of gluten-free pizza and living room yoga to prep for the race. (I don’t have Celiac’s, but I’ve been training & eating mostly gluten-free and vegan & have been feeling really good.) After my neurotic self checked everything a few more times & laid out my clothes & equipment for the next day, I fell asleep a little easier (in my quiet air-conditioned house) after seeing my teammates & getting some last minute advice and support. This was my first race without having a friends & family cheer section; so once AGAIN, you rock my socks SB Tri.

My first thought the next morning was “ohhhh crap” as I looked out the window & saw only grey cloudy sky and high winds. Second thought: “am I really going to do this race today?” followed momentarily (& speciously) by… “YUP. It’s really happening”.  I grabbed my strategically packed bags & headed back to the SB campsite to walk down to the transition area with everyone. I set up my transition area & realized I forgot my sunglasses in my car, which was more annoying than anything because to get from the transition area back to the cars you have to walk up & down a very steep dirt hill (this is the secret “Extra Credit” part of the race!) But looking back I was actually thankful for the distraction and an extra 30min of my time that I didn’t plan for because my start time was at 10:15AM!!! SO LATE. Not a huge fan that the females have to wait for every male wave to go before we get to start racing. I spent a good amount of time walking up & down the transition areas in my pre-race daze, just allowing myself to feel whatever I needed to feel & to take in as much as I could before jumping in the lake. I had a moment about 20min before my wave start where I got really teary & my mind turned on me saying “just go home” , “why are you doing this?”. Thank you Hyacinth and Mike for happening to be on my way to the start line & for your hugs and encouraging words!!

OK, so here we go with the ACTUAL RACE REPORT. I’m just following suit with my race & being long-winded! (woooomp wommmp.)

 SWIM (1500m, 41 min): They let us get in & splash around for a minute before starting… I gotta believe there is a LOT of pee on that shore. I started off full of nerves per usual, but swimming in a lake is soooo much easier than the ocean and the water temperature was actually warmer than the air which was nice. Once I made it past the first few buoys, I was able to get into my ‘Zen zone’ & stay there for most of the swim. I was stoked and LOVING the swim because I was able to stay with my pack & even passed some people! I finally felt like “ohhh yeah!!! Now we’re racing!” I kicked and got kicked by a lot of racers, and even got my goggles knocked off & my contact dislodged on the way back into the swim exit. I’m not sure if the run up the launch ramp counts as the swim time or as part of T1? Either way, I was really happy with my swim and simultaneously happy that it was over!

BIKE (40k, 2:04hrs): DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THIS BIKE COURSE.  I’m still afraid of downhills, but I can climb up the hills like a champ. I was very conservative the first few hills because I knew I’d have to climb everything twice (out & back course) but was still able to pass a lot of people. Although, my victories were very short-lived because all the same people passed me on the downhills. Also a few times going down I had to grab my breaks because the crosswinds almost knocked me over. I felt really strong the first half & was averaging about 18mph & thought “yeah it’s not easy but a lot easier than I thought!” And then… at the turnaround point thought “oh crap” (again) after being hit with a huge wall of wind. The second half of the bike was really tough and I slowed way down (13-14mph) & fell way behind in the ranks. Wind + hills = Erica’s butt kicked. Racking my bike in T2 was the best part of the day.

Before exiting T2 I plopped down at my transition area to eat my Clif bar while putting on my hat (which was pointless because it kept blowing off!) & shoes. My level of caring about my time was zero. That blueberry sugary goodness was the only thing in the world that mattered to me for those few precious minutes of rest. I assure you that I’m not exaggerating.

RUN (10k, 1:03hrs): If you don’t know, I have a bad shin splint in my left leg that has greatly hindered my training since the LA Marathon. I wore a calf compression sleeve during the race & just hoped for the best or at least a pain that was tolerable for 6 miles. I’m shocked & beyond grateful that I ran with NO PAIN!! I wasn’t in the best running shape so I could only keep a 10min mile pace, but was so happy just to be running. I had to walk a few steep uphill parts & stopped at each aid station for water.  The first 5 miles are uphill… but it’s mostly dirt which makes for happier feet & legs. Then, the BEST part of the whole race was the last DOWNHILL mile!! LAST MILE. DOWN HILL. YES. I effortlessly kept an 8min pace on the hill & finished strong and smiling.

I am a Wildflower.

Would I do it again? You know I would. Today I’m a little mentally checked out, not too sore, & filled with so much big love from my tri club, fellow racers and all the Cal Poly volunteers who did such an awesome job! MUCH THANKS. Without as much training as I would have liked to have & not knowing the course, my shin, the weather, etc etc I’m really happy with my 3:57 time. I know what I need to work on, & can now focus on continuing to get better, faster, stronger and ready for Vineman 70.3 in July!