DESIRE

Back into the swing of things, and it feels great! Morning workouts followed by a huge bowl of Special K Red Berries and off to school! 2.5 weeks of relaxation and restoration at home was amazing and it feels great to come back with energy and enthusiasm to train hard and work hard (school wise too). The toughest thing about taking such amounts of time off (and I did do at least 30 min of aerobic activity 5-6 days of the week) is the overwhelming thought that I am losing all my fitness. In actuality I knew I wasn't going to lose all of it but heading out for a run after 5 straight days on the indoor bike trainer isn't the most uplifting and energizing running experience. After just one week of returning to training hard I feel great, some of my runs have been a little slower but that's expected and I tend to run slower when its only 30 degrees outside. My legs just get too cold.

Next weekend I am heading up to a mountain ski chalet in Davis, WV with a group of friends for a ski weekend. It should be a great weekend and I know my legs will get some good strength workouts with all the snowboarding I'll be doing but I would love to get some running in as well. Of course that also depends on the conditions of the mountain roads in town and the weather to an extent but I hope I can make it happen.

Over the past week I patiently contemplated my one word for this year. This word appeared a few times while reading throughout the week and I think it really sums up a little of everything I want to focus on throughout the year. "For where your treasure lies, there your heart will be also..." - the word I have chosen is DESIRE. Desire to train hard, eat right, live well, be happy, have fun, follow my heart, and achieve my goals. As long as I treasure what is most important my desire can help me achieve that which I set forth to do.

I have also been thinking about and planning my racing calendar for the year. With a few races set - the most important one has yet to be decided upon - a half-ironman! For awhile I was thinking Providence 70.3 but more recently I am leaning more toward the Augusta 70.3 due to the late season date and location. Though this is only 2 weeks after The Nation's Tri I think if I plan it out I can get a good peak for both of them.

I am well into The Triathletes Training Bible and have began playing around with trainingpeaks.com. I have yet to sit and write out an annual training plan but I know basically what it will look like and what things in my workout schema I can change or adapt. I do love the book and all the training/racing tips and advice it has to offer. Do you use any software for creating a training plan or do you do it old school and use a notebook?

rUnCommitted. rUnFocused. rUnHappy.

I've been saying I would post a tentative 2011 Race schedule, so it can be found at the bottom of this post. The first race listed, the New Year's Resolution Run was run this morning in great and unseasonably warm weather for MI on January 1st! It was great to see some usual Lake Orion faces and old teachers out for a good run! I finished a little slower then I would have liked, but did place 2nd for my age group! Nice way to start out the new year!

One thing I have noticed is that I run faster and it seems much easier to run after biking such as during triathlons or during my brick workouts. I am hoping as I set a training schedule and use my great Christmas present, The Triathletes Training Bible I can continue to improve my run times. I am looking forward to really planning out my training and rest periods to help achieve peak performance for the half-ironman as well as some of the other races on my schedule. I am debating about joining the DC Triathlon Club - as it seems they have some good group workouts but fitting them into my busy school schedule may prove to be difficult.

I have got some work to do on my bike as Christmas was great and I've now got some new tires and lights, as well as my first pair of riding gloves. Hopefully they'll make the rides a little more comfortable. I've got some new running gear as well so I should be good to go full throttle with training starting on Monday. I am also in the process of selecting a one word motto for this year/training and racing season that really sums up what I am all about this year. I got this idea from an FCA Newsletter you can check out team FCA-Endurance at fcaendurance.com I am really looking forward to pushing myself in training and racing and improving in all 3 disciplines. This year will bring some big changes come June as I transition from student life to somewhat career life as the internship phase of school starts and classroom phase comes to an end. I may have to adjust my training at that time but hopefully not too drastically. What are some of the struggles or barriers you face with training? Is there anything you do to get through tough days or workouts?

I have also applied to 3 Disciplines, an event company that runs triathlons in MI and surrounding areas, to be a sponsored athlete for the 2011 season. I should find out around January 12th, fingers crossed that I am one of ten selected! It would be such a great opportunity and allow me to race in more races and such without such a hefty price attached. For anyone in the MI area you should check them out at www.3disciplines.com! What are you looking forward to in 2011, any big races, life changes, trying something new?

New Year's Resolution Run, Lake Orion MI (1/1/11): 2nd place F 20-29, 24:52

National Half Marathon, Washington DC or ATL Half-marathon (3/26/11): Tentative

Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-miler, Washington DC (4/3/11): Confirmed

Tri the Parks, John Tanner SP, GA (4/30/11): Tentative

Gateway Triathlon or other 3D Event in May: Tentative

Tri Latta Sprint Triathlon, Huntersville NC (6/11/11): Tentative

DC Triathlon - International Distance (6/19/11): Tentative

Stumpy Creek International Triathlon (7/16/11): Tentative

International Sprint Distance Tri in August

The Nation's Triathlon, Washington DC (9/11/11): Confirmed

Providence or Augusta 70.3: Tentative

America's Thanksgiving Day Parade 10k, Detroit MI

Jingle All the Way 10k, Washington DC

Tri Latta

As promised, I will continue updating on my tri experiences! Tri Latta was my 2nd Triathlon and took place at the Latta Plantation outside of Charlotte, NC. The biggest challenge of this triathlon was preparing physically and mentally for the open-water swim. I arrived in Charlotte on Friday evening and had a great stay at a local Bread and Breakfast. Saturday consisted of a light 20 minute run in the AM to get the legs moving, some delicious homemade down home breakfast and then a trip to Carowinds Amusement Park. Luckily the park was not crowded at all and Ryan and I were able to do everything we wanted in about 5 hours. We caught the USA WC match before picking up our race packets and attending the course briefing. Seeing everyone around and the swim course set up definitely did not ease any anxiety that I had. We enjoyed a quick and simple pasta dinner at the local Olive Garden and hit the bed early for a 5am Wake Up. Oh how I love Triathlon start times!

Staying in a B&B is great but when you wake up at 5am you kind of have to provide your own breakfast, but I actually preferred this. I was able to enjoy my usual of Special-K Red Berries with Skim milk. Off we went to the Latta Plantation to set up our Transition Areas and prepare for the race. This was my first time wearing a Timing Chip around my ankle and setting up my TA on grass. As I went to get body-marked I was very nervous and shaking, the nice lady with the huge permanent marker eased some of my anxiety by talking with me, she was an "elite" racer who had raced the same course the day before. Ryan was in the first wave of racers and I followed 2 waves later.

I never could have imagined how crazy the open-water swim gets! People kicking you, slapping you, swimming over you and under you! People are everywhere all battling to get to the next bouy and out of the water first! I was not used to not be able to see well in the water or swimming with all the competition and having such choppy water. Needless to say I swam a little off course at a couple points but managed to finish the swim course without any major hiccups. I did start off way to fast and had to slow down quite a bit about 200m out, in order to maintain a constant pace for the rest of the swim.

Coming out of the water with all the people cheering you on is quite exciting. The run up to the TA was a bit longer than average and slightly uphill. I ran up to my TA and got ready to bike as quickly as I could. I had to manage to get socks and shoes on my wet feet, but I had picked up a tip to use baby powder which worked like magic! I quick adjustment of the hair and getting the helmet on and I grabbed my bike and ran out to the mount line! The bike ride was awesome, the racers were all pretty spread out so there were no traffic jams to deal with. The roads were not closed to traffic, but I think I only saw 1 car the whole time and they were very well patrolled with police at every intersection. I chose to take a GU packet about 14 miles into the ride to ramp up my energy for the run. I dismounted the bike, ran it back in and transition as quickly as possible to the run.

I think dealing with long hair may be one of the trickiest parts of transitioning. You pretty much have to adjust it for every event. Once I was situated I was able to fall into a decent pace for the run. The run was mostly a trail run through the plantation. The sun was hot by this team and many people were walking. My ankle strap for my timing trip have began to cut into my ankle and it was killing me! There were some tough climbs on the trail but I kept on trucking. I saw Ryan about 1 mile ahead of me when I was about .5 miles in. My legs were tired, I was tired, I pushed through to the water stop and broke the run up to 3 small runs in my mind. 1 mile at a time, very doable! I pushed through and tried to speed up at the end. As I rounded the last turns towards the finish line I began to lick my lips and kick it to the line! I passed a few people at the end and had a great finish!

One of the greatest things about Tri Latta is the finish line festival! Though it is not a huge race, the finish line festival is awesome! There was free fruit, Harvest Bread Co. Bread, massages, and even a Beer Garden! Two free beers for every racer as well! Nothing like some Mich Ultra at 9:15 am! Ryan and I hung out long enough to see our results and the awards ceremony before heading back to our B&B for a great home-style breakfast! If you have ever wanted to try a sprint-triathlon or if you are a triathlete I highly recommend Tri Latta. There are 2 days of racing - Saturday for Elites and Age Groupers and Sunday all for Novice racers!

My final results were as follows: 750 m Swim: 18:00 Min 17 Mile Bike:56:10 5k Run: 26:36

Total Time: 1:46:03 (good enough for 12th overall in Novice Women and 1st in my age group)

Ryan ousted me by a little over a minute in this race. After this race I really started training for triathlons and making Brick workouts a weekly occurance. I don't know what I would do without them now!