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!

We’re a-getting’ there...

I’ve been laying off running a lot since the marathon. I was doing 'the waddle' for a few days but not really any more sore than I expected to be. From the race, I’ve developed what’s painfully & commonly known as a shin splint. This obnoxious pain doesn't respond to my stretching, rolling and icing so I’m back to PT for a different issue this time.  I'm hoping by tomorrow I should have the green light to run again thankfully… I’ve missed my therapy sessions! And no, I’m not referring to physical therapy.

In the meantime, I’ve been doing some serious work on the bike, yoga mat, and in the pool. My new bike & I are finally bonding and she has treated me so well on my 40-milers and on the steep hills like Gub and Sea Ranch (umm, how have I never been up that before?) this week. I like that I feel comfortable at a 16mph pace and LOVE seeing anything over 20! I’m still scared as all hell to go down steep hills because of my fall last summer, but I’m sure my coach will throw plenty of those in to speed up my recovery process. J And also I sold my old bike so I have no choice but to make this one my best friend.

I’ve also started not to hate swimming. I wouldn’t say I love it, but sometimes I actually don’t mind going to practice. I’m still the slowest one out there, but relatively speaking I’ve made a lot of progress. This past week I did sprint and distance time trials (my fastest evahhhh), which are intimidating but provide great information. My fastest 50m was 58 sec and my mile (1500m) was 38min. Now… remember I said I’m not fast and that the times are relative. Considering that my mile swim in the SB long course triathlon last August was almost an hour, I’m progressing fairly well.

Ahhhh yoga… it just keeps me sane mostly. I definitely find I’m able to be more stable in my balance poses and feel stronger in my arms, and learning how to let go & just breathe!! And adding this in to my routine helps my clothes fit better too. J Also I may/may not have a race coming up in a few weeks (Wildflower)… but not sure I’ll be ready in time. We’ll see if my 10ish workouts/week can get me there. Never know what could happen in a few weeks! As for now, I'll stay on my little happy cloud of progress and keep on chuggin'. (workouts, not beer. ok, beer too.)

“Continuous effort - not strength or intelligence is the key to unlocking our potential.” ~Winston Churchill

26.2 Race Report

I’m so excited to write this race report! I haven’t been able to do this since last September.

Yesterday felt (& still feels) very surreal. It’s nice to be able to surprise even myself sometimes with how much I think I can do or handle. Part of me didn’t believe I’d ever be a marathon runner, and there were definitely a few times during the race where I didn’t think so either. But here I am!! A marathon runner after all!

No I did not qualify for Boston… which is reeeeally unfortunate, because now I HAVE to run at least 1 more. I can’t let it go!!!  I’m in too deep!!! I’m sure most of you saw that one coming. J

Sooooo as you know, I couldn’t run in the SB Marathon (or even 1 mile) last November because of tendinitis in my left knee. After almost 3 months of physical therapy & being under the expert guidance of a coach, my knee is fine and I was able to run my first full marathon without (ab)normal pain! 4:38 isn’t exactly a record-setting finish, but it’s a TIME. I had to walk a few times & knew by mile 16 that Boston was out of the picture, which actually was a blessing because I started to allow myself to enjoy the run. I mean, as much as one can enjoy themselves at mile 16 of 26.2.

Not qualifying, but knowing I was for sure going to finish the race, took some pressure & expectations off my mind & allowed me to be very thankful I was running and accomplishing a huge goal of mine. I was able to appreciate the chilly weather, felt fortunate to be on the same journey as 24,000 other runners, and to have amazing friends & family there for support. I only ran with my iPod from mile 10-20… which is less than half, so give me a little leeway on that one. A little more leeway for listening to Dropkick Murphys?? J

It was not all roses & rainbows though, it was hard as hell and I wanted to drop out a few times, even FELL at mile 19! A lot of spectators were handing out bananas, orange slices, pretzels, etc. which is totally awesome (orange slices are the MOST delicious treat during a race btw!), but with thousands of people eating them the peels were everywhere. I wasn’t paying attention & slipped on an orange peel & went down… directly on my left kneecap. I popped up fast in hopes that not too many people saw & because I wanted to assess the damage. No blood… no reason to stop. My kneecap is a lot of different colors now!

The thousands of spectators, live bands, tranny WeHo cheerleaders, ACTUAL cheerleaders, running the last 10k with Alex & seeing my mom at the finish line definitely kept my spirits up & carried me all the way through. Also I can’t forget to mention the ever-amusing race posters like “May the course be with you”, “If this was easy, it’d be your mom”, or “Chuck Norris never ran a marathon”. There were a few times where I “almost cried”, meaning I had the scrunchy face + had to give myself a little pep talk to keep it together before any tears leaked out, but otherwise was loving trying to love as much of the experience as I could! Emotions are a bit harder to control when your body is toasted.

[ROLLING CREDITS]

-Thank you mom for being at ALL of my races! I’m so proud that you know how to upload all the photos now too.

-Thank you B… my sherpa boo. Even though you probably consider me crazy for signing up for race after race, thank you for always supporting me anyways J

-Thank you Mike for being an awesome coach and inspiration, & for being able to fix me if/when your workouts break me. I want to be on your level someday! And thank you to Ryan Y. (PT) & all of Elite Rehab for getting me back out on the course quickly so I can continue doing what I love

-Thank you Rynell, Jen & Toby for being awesome friends & training partners!

-Thank you Alex for running with me! Talking about competing in an IronMan made the marathon not seem so bad haha. That, & the last 5k just talking about what we wanted most…

              Alex:  “I want a pizza & beer” 

              Me:  “I just want to stop running”

-A huge thank you to anyone who’s had to hear me talk about my marathon training, to my supportive family, friends, tri-clubbers and co-workers. And thank you to my legs… even though I’m going to be hearing a lot about it from you the next few days.

YOU.GUYS. I ran a MARATHON. I actually did it. I can’t even believe that yesterday I ran 26.2 miles and today I can barely walk to my kitchen. (Why is it sooooo far away!?!??!) Also anything I’ve accidentally dropped on/near the ground is going to stay right where it is unless someone gets me a wheelchair or one of those arm grabby things. I will be doing the AARP shuffle for a few days, but I’m SO HAPPY I DID IT!!! It’s definitely a huge experience and accomplishment, and I’m over the moon that I can join this elite group of people that call themselves MARATHON RUNNERS.

PS - In case you were wondering… I had green beer, a grilled cheese sandwich and french fries(!!) as my celebratory meal J. It was the best meal I’ve ever had.

It's T-shirt...er...Taper Time!

Ok… but… not really. I get to “taper” this week but I’m still working out 7 days a week and my race is less than 2 weeks away!!

[Initialize panic mode]

The only evidence of a taper is that I’m supposed to run 12 miles this Saturday with the group instead of 20. I was hoping my coach would say I should go to Cabo & get some sun instead, but I’ll take what I can get.

I finished my last long run (well, until the actual long run) & it definitely felt good since: 1. it was my longest distance ever & I didn't feel too beat up and 2. knowing I “only have 6 more miles” to run in order to complete a marathon. I definitely felt a huge boost of confidence despite trying to keep up with the likes of Andrew Firestone, my CFO & the rest of the speedy bunch (nooooo pressure there).

It seems like the majority of the time my body is sore from something (swim, bike, run, yoga), which doesn't help my motivation to get to the next workout, but it means my muscles are adapting (I hope) and it sure as heck feels great to look back on a workout that I thought was hard & no longer feel intimidated by it. Oh yeah… and most importantly to make Coach happy :)

In the last few days, the mantra “Relentless. Forward. Progress.” keeps popping up in the front of my mind. I know a few fellow triathletes who are big believers in this mantra & have thought/said it in their races, but for me I feel like it relates to me way more during training. “Relentless forward progress” is to my training as “Be like a Kenyan” is to my race :). What I’m really stuck on is the word Relentless:

re·lent·less (adj) : showing or promising no abatement of severity, intensity, strength, or pace

What a motivating & powerful word, right? If you use that word to describe your: self/practice/training/etc., I would say you’re probably feeling pret-ty good about it. That word, to me, signifies strength and dedication, and paints a person as an unstoppable force.   Now, I’m FAR from being considered as unstoppable (ex: person says “hey Erica, it’s raining so running conditions aren't ideal today” & I say “oh ok I’ll just stay inside & eat some cookies then), but thinking about this word mentally helps me get through the training… which in turn gets me through the race. It tells my mind it’s time to focus and get stronger instead of just “getting through” a workout.

I also think this word relates to something long-term. I like to apply it to day to day training, but also to how I think about my future training schedules & races. I think I've become a little more realistic of races that I should be signing up for (ha!), but I have no intention (as if I have a choice) of letting up on my training. It’s become a very important part of my life, my therapy, the one thing that I can count on that never disappoints, and often times my struggle.  

So for the next week & a half… I will taper relentlessly & attempt to channel my inner Kenyan ;). Until the race I expect everything to be more of the same, so unless something extraordinary happens this will be my last entry until my race report. Let’s all cross our fingers that the luck o’ the Irish will be with everyone on Marathon Day!!

P is for Progress

My training schedule each week has increased in intensity, which is AWESOME, but it’s hard to feel like I’m making progress or completing a workout thinking “oh, that was easy”. When workouts continue to get harder I am always in the same mental boat of “how the heck am I going to get through this week?!” But I always do despite all of my complaining and not taking any time to reflect that I am, in fact, making progress.

Of course I realize that I still have a lot of work to do, but this past week I had a few shining moments where I was able to be so joyous during my workouts. The week wasn't off to a great start with a track practice in the pouring rain, a solo bike ride with 20mph winds and a LOT of saying “I don’t want to”, but bounced back in true Newton’s law form.  

I was feeling nervous and intimidated to run with the SB running & racing team Saturday morning (even though I met a few of them already at track practice) because they're such an elite group of runners! I definitely wasn’t the fastest… not even close… but the people in the group are all so friendly, humble and helpful. Much like the SB Tri group. (I need to start including hash tags like #strengthinnumbers or #whyikeeptraining in my posts to emphasize how important and beneficial it is to train with a like-minded group(s)!)

Anyways… back on track… we ran around the Mountain Drive/Gibraltar area & if you need a new running route try this one! The views are SO spectacular that I was often distracted by them & not realizing I was on mile 6… 10… 13. I’m not sure I should share this next part with you because I’m still trying to wrap my brain around it, but I’m not one to hold out on you guys :) . I ran 15 miles total (warm-up, tempo run, warm-down) with NO ELECTRONIC DEVICES. No iPod, no audio book, no nuthin’. The craziest thing is that I actually felt like the run was easier and I could keep my pace (& sometimes go a bit faster).

This goes against everything I've ever believed in regarding running. I was running hills + long mileage on a early Saturday morning, listening to my own breath and ENJOYING it.

Mind. Blown.

I've already been instructed to run with the same group this upcoming weekend so I’ll let you know if that time was an outlier or if I’m becoming *gasp* a runner. Also have to admit that my knee was feeling a bit fatigued/sore the last few miles but I assume that’s because of the hills I hope?

Another shining moment was in yoga class yesterday. I’m finally able to do the crow pose!!! I must have looked like a psycho in class with my “kid on Christmas” smile after we were done holding that pose, but I was so giddy to finally be able to do a new pose that I've been failing at for weeks that I couldn't contain myself. We were then supposed to follow it up with a tripod headstand but my brain heard “not-so-graceful somersault” instead. Maybe next time.

So yes… the feeling of actual progress... It’s awesome. I’m thankful for the moments I realize that the training really does pay off and VERY THANKFUL for the people who hold me accountable, teach me and support me. This week of workouts is looking pretty intense… but at least the weather is going to cooperate and after next Sunday I start tapering! Yipeeeeeee! :))

Less than 1 month!!!!

Don't let the exclamation points fool you... I'm soooo not excited about this race (yet?). In fact I'm the opposite. I got in a 3-hour 18 mile run this past weekend including bathroom, water and a few walking breaks (mainly to mess with my Audible and iTunes accounts). This has been the longest run of my entire life to date, and instead of celebrating the fact that my short stems made it that far, my only thought was "I have to run 8 MORE miles after this to finish the race!?" 

I had enough fuel from a wonderful home-cooked (day after) Valentine's day dinner the night before & packed my favorite GU's & plenty of water for the run, but I think the lack of a good night's sleep played a part in my fatigue after mile 14 of 18. I'm still such a novice that I need everything to be jusssst right to get in a good run. I need the right fuel(s), an embarrassing amount of sleep, sunny but chilly weather, to be really pissed off about something, my lucky socks, etc etc. It's very rare (never happens) that all of these elements are present when I have a big workout scheduled. I can't wait for the day when I can just go out at any point to run an obscene amount of miles and just love/enjoy/appreciate every bit of it. 

Running 6-8 miles is my very sweet spot. This is the amount of running I can do without an iPod or break, have peaked endorphin levels and feel like I got a great workout in. Anything up in the double digits has not been the most enjoyable experience of my life to say the least... aside from the bragging rights. All of the 15+ mile training runs have only been enjoyable AFTER I'm done, have had a hot shower & any kind of food in front of me. I usually treat myself to Blenders. No judging. Although this past weekend I had a Crushcakes cupcake for breakfast. Sorry I'm not sorry. (oooh I can just imagine most of you cringing at the mere thought of eating processed sugar!!) :)

I'm not sure what's on deck the next couple weeks for my long distance runs yet, but I can guarantee you that I will be giving myself a lot of sugary rewards every step of the way. I may not enjoy 3+ hours of running, but I am pretty proud of my legs and can't wait until I can say that I ran & finished a FULL marathon. Not trying to qualify for Boston... just want to FINISH the race. I'm sure my coach is thrilled to read about how shameless I am about aiming at the very lowest point possible to achieve my goal. I'm sure I'll pay for that at track practice :)

Other positive notes: marathon training makes me like swim practice a lot more, I don't feel guilty about eating like a human garbage disposal, I have a deeper appreciation for other runners & for yoga, & truly enjoying the horrified looks on people's faces when they ask "how far did you run today?". Also I can't possible forget about, or forget to thank, all the people who are so supportive of me & my crazy goals ;)

See y'all out there (because let's be honest, that's probably the only time I will see most of you) :)

Quads & Coughs

Another half marathon under my belt J. At this point, I should say it’s just another training run under my belt on my bigger journey to my first FULL marathon in a few weeks. With my warm-up miles included I ran about 15 miles total today (same as last weekend) and am still very skeptical on how I’m going to make it to 26. I can only say that I enjoyed parts of the run, but luckily it seemed to fly by pretty fast. My brain was having a good day, but my mind & leg muscles have a LOT of work to do in the next few weeks!

I love admitting that half marathons are kind of no big deal now. I can hear myself slowly turning into a running snob, but I’m still on the safe side until you hear me say that I LOVE running marathons. Don’t hold your breath, y’all.

I was really hoping to set a PR today, but for not working out all week because I got sick AGAIN and still having a nasty cough, I was just glad to run at all & use this as my training run. It's so much easier when you're running with people! For any co-workers reading this or people who’ve been around me a lot this past week… I think you’ll back me up when I say my cough probably added at least 10 extra minutes to my time haha. AND…. AND… still no knee pain!!! I’m crossing my fingers that I’ll get the green light from my PT tomorrow to only come in once a week.

Hopefully I can get back into my regular training routine this week since I’m feeling better, but since I start my new job tomorrow we’ll see what happens with my schedule now J. If I have to miss swim practice I will absolutely not be upset about it. I AM looking forward to my bike workouts though since I have a new fancy-shmancy bike to ride! If you see a flash of white light go past you on the street… it’s probably someone else. I’ll be the not so flashy cyclist who looks like she just learned how to ride a bike.

Next race planned is the Marathon (LA - March 17) so I won’t have any races to blog about until then… just a lot of complaining about my quads & how my brain won’t ever shut off. Maybe swim practices will actually be preferred over running workouts before too long.

See ya out there!