Busyness and Training

Well, I finished the dragonfly. Here's a picture:



In between finishing the dragonfly and delivering it, while it was drying, I managed to get my swim in. After I delivered it, I got my bike ride in, even though it was dark. One benefit to living downtown is there is very little traffic at night and there are some large, well-lit parking lots.

I felt better once I was done. I had been nervous - that training schedule is enough to make anyone nervous - but once I saw how easy it was to work it in even on a busy night I felt more comfortable with it. I am supposed to do strength training twice a week, so I decided to add it to Sundays and Tuesdays because I only have a run on those days.

This afternoon Miss Priss and I went to the gym (she said she has been wanting to go to see the kids' area, but I think it had more to do with the TV and Cartoon Network). I did 4 min. warmup, 12 min. run, and 4 min. cool down followed by 25 min. strength training. It wasn't bad.

I am going to have to do some planning. We are going out of town to visit family Friday night & won't be back until Sunday night. I don't know how I am going to get my swim in because Joe will want to leave before lap times at the pool. I don't want to get off the schedule this early in the game, but I'm not sure how to work it out. I will have to figure out something.

The days I don't exercise it is usually because I make it out in my head to be so much more tiring/time consuming/hard than it really is. When I do exercise, I always feel great afterward. So I have got to work on the mental aspect of getting my body healthy. The same thing goes with eating. It is quicker/easier/more convenient to grab some processed crap than it is to make a healthy meal. But when I make or eat a healthy meal, I always enjoy it more.

Hope everyone is having a great week! Almost halfway to the weekend!

Training Starts Today

After doing so well the end of last week, I did hardly anything Friday and Saturday. Sunday I played a little basketball, but didn't bike like I had planned. We had some unexpected company and I had to work on the dragonfly.

I found some sprint triathlon training schedules online and I really like two of them. I think I am going to shoot for the one that is about 3-4 hours a week (the other one is about 2-3). They kind of line up with each other, so if I have a busy day, I can do the shorter version.

Week 1 (starting today) looks like this:

Monday: 12 min. swim / 24 min. bike
Tuesday: 12 min. run
Wednesday: 16 min. swim / 32 min. bike
Thursday: 16 min. run
Friday: 20 min. swim / 44 min. bike
Saturday: off
Sunday: 20 min. run

I know I can run 12 minutes, so this looks like a good starting point for me. I have an unfinished dragonfly due this afternoon, so hopefully I can get it done before 7:00 and get to the pool. I really hope I can do this!

Triathlon Planning

Tuesday I went to the local pool and swam laps (the first time is free). I swam 600 yards in just under 30 minutes. The slowest time from last year's triathlon was 28:53, so I think I can make the cut. The only problem is I am swimming in a pool where I can push off from a wall every 25 yards. The triathlon swim is in a lake. I think the next time I will just stop when I get to the wall and not push off and see how fast I can do it. I did feel good that I could swim that entire time without stopping. I didn't push myself much, though. I wanted to make sure I had enough energy to go the whole distance.

Since this is the first time I have timed myself swimming, I think I can shave enough time off to make the cut. Only problem is, the pool is $100 to join. That's for a year, not so bad, but we just spent that much already on a new bike.

I went bike riding for fun yesterday, with a teenage friend of the family who was also looking for someone to ride bikes with. My husband had asked me the day before if my bike (some sort of Schwinn cruiser, lovely, but with no gears) would work for the triathlon. I told him since I just wanted to finish under the time limit, it should be fine. But after yesterday's ride, I realized it wasn't going to work. Any time there was a hill, I slowed down almost to a stop and really had to work to get it up the incline. Whenever we went downhill, there was no point in my pedaling as it had no effect. My friend let me try her bike with gears, and she talked me through how to use them. The difference was incredible - I could fly up the hills and pick up extra speed on the downhill inclines.

After our ride, we went by my husband's work to see him. He mentioned me needing a new bike again, and this time I agreed. So I now have a new Schwinn Jet Star with 21 speeds. I bought a speedometer to go on it. Today we went out again, but Miss Priss was with us (age 6) so I couldn't really let it out over a distance. I did speed up over some short spaces and got up to 14.9 mph. That concerned me, because the triathlon is 16.2 miles of biking. I was thinking I needed to complete that portion in about an hour, and that would require a speed of 16.2 mph.

When I got home, I looked it up and the slowest bike time was 1:29:08 which averages out to about 11 mph. I don't know if I can get it that fast and keep it that fast. I am still very shaky on the bike, and a little nervous. If I am on a paved road with few turns, and I build up some muscle and endurance, I may be okay. I really need to take it out somewhere where I can get up some speed.

I still have not made the running up to day 3 of week 5, but today was my first day running since I had been sick. I didn't push it, since I had already spent 45 min. on the bike this morning. I walked 5 min, ran 3, walked 2, ran 3, walked 2. Pitiful. But I am hoping to get a schedule worked out so I can run, bike and swim each week without overdoing it any day. I also don't want to give up my twice a week yoga, but I didn't even go this week. It just takes up so much time!

This week:
Tuesday: 40 min. swim
Wednesday: 45 min. biking
Thursday: 45 min. biking, 15 min. treadmill, 15 min. boxing

I may get some yoga in later - after the tummy bug I didn't exercise for a week and I think I have gained 3 or 4 lbs. back. I want to make it up while I can because next week I have to go back to work! This week has been our spring break.

Sometimes I feel like I'm crazy for even trying this (last year there were only 2 women in the Athena category - 150 lbs. or more - and I'm over 200), but I know even if I fail I will be so far ahead of where I am now. And if I fail, they aren't going to cancel all triathlons in the future - there will be more. And I will finish one.

Plotting and Planning

Did not exercise yesterday. I was disappointed, but I felt achy all over and my body hurt. I was complaining to Joe about it and saying that I didn't know what was wrong with me and he insisted it was still the bug we had earlier. Last night was the first time since last Monday he has been hungry, and he said he still aches all over. I hope to be better today and get some exercise in - my next mini goal is in a few days!

So, the Wet Dog Triathlon is out. There is another one that looks like more fun, but it is a couple of hours away. It is called the Mountain Lakes Triathlon and it looks lovely. My only concern is it is a lot longer than the Wet Dog. 600 yard swim, 16.2 mile bike, and a 3 mile run. The run is along Lake Guntersville, and there is a post-event party at the pool, and it is very family friendly. I just don't know if I can make those distances. I need to set up a training schedule and find a pool!

I looked at last year's results. The slowest time reported for the 600 yard swim was 28:53. The slowest time for the bike ride was 1:29:08, and the slowest for the run was 51:45. I already know I can do a 3.2 mile run in 45:04, so I am not too worried about the run as long as I stick to my couch to 5k running. I need to build up my endurance so I can do it after swimming and biking! I have no idea what I can swim or bike. The slowest race time reported was 2:48:56. I figure if I can beat each of the slowest times for each part of the event and make sure my total is under that 2:48, I should be okay. The goal is to finish before the event planners stop timing people!

This Week

Good morning!

I am out of school for the week. I have so much to do!

1. Paint dragonfly for public art project in my city.
2. Learn how to use airbrush since they required us to use a certain paint after I submitted my sprayed design (used spray on rustoleum last year).
3. Piece together and edit video for my fifth grade students' 'Designers' Challenge' spoof project.
4. (Hopefully) get to Guntersville to visit Unclaimed Baggage and more importantly, visit some friends that moved there a few months ago.
5. Pick back up with Couch to 5K - haven't done it in over a week because I still feel kind of bleh from the bug I had last week. My honey still is hardly eating. I am not feeling like exercising, but unfortunately I am feeling like eating!
6. Yoga Mon. & Wed. at the gym
7. Pick back up with cardio
8. Add strength training - leaving in a few to try & find some second hand 8 lb. weights.
9. Find a new sprint triathlon - see below.

This post was going to be about my next project post 5K - a sprint triathlon. Swim 400 yards, bike 15K, run 5K. I was shooting for the local one on July 17. Goal was to finish before the cutoff time, not to win anything. I was very excited. I love swimming and biking (who knew?), but I am not going to get to participate. We have been planning a trip to the beach with my inlaws, and they have made our reservation for that week. I mentioned to my husband that we could come back a day or two early, but he was having none of it. So I am going to hunt around and see if I can find another one. All the other ones I have seen in our area have been much longer, and I would be pushing it to do this short one. I guess there's always next year.

I need to get back on the bandwagon! No exercise except walking for a week is pitiful! Today is the day!

Question: How Do I Lose Six Pounds In a Week?

Answer: Catch your daughter's stomach flu.

So, as soon as I get back on here after dealing with lots of stuff, Miss Priss gets sick and then Joe and I both catch it. Vicious, nasty bug. Anyhow, better now.

Check out NPR's Guitar Hero Workout - pretty cute article!

I am down to 202 - maybe by next Friday I can be at 200 and get the Wii game I've been waiting for - it's a dance game that looks like fun. I am a little worried because our spring break is next week and I don't always eat as well when I'm home. I need to find some easy recipes!

Hope everyone has a BEAUTIFUL weekend!

The 5K

It was a beautiful morning. I got to the park about 7:15. I signed in and got my packet (they were out of XL shirts even though I preregistered. I took it as a sign from above that I will need a Large in the near future). There was a small plastic square with a chip in it that I fastened to my shoe with twist ties. I walked around some and visited with my brother in law until I had to move to the back of the pack.

I was supposed to run 20 minutes for week 5, day 3 of couch to 5K. I only made it about 12 and a half minutes. That is still better than Thursday's 8 minutes, so I'll take it. Plus, it was outside and not on the treadmill.

The previous two times I had timed myself going 5K were 55 minutes each. At the halfway point, I was over 20 minutes. I thought it looked pretty good for me to get in under an hour. As I got closer to the finish line, I could see I was going to beat the 55 minutes, and maybe even get in under 50. I crossed the finish line at about 45:02, give or take a couple of seconds. By that point in time, the 10K runners had been passing those of us still going (they shared the last 1.7 miles with our path).

It was very cool crossing the finish line. There was a big clock with the time and lots of people cheering. I never in a million years thought I would be doing something like this.

I was nowhere near the last person to finish, but I wasn't really close to 'the pack' of runners at all. I felt fine afterward, except for a little bit of "if I had pushed a little more, I could have been under 45:00!" But now I have a goal for next time.

And I figure a first time of 45:02 is just fine for a 200+ lb. 40 year old who could barely run 60 seconds a month and a half ago! If you are thinking about trying the Couch to 5K program, just think - if I can do it, you can, too!

Hi, Everyone!

I know I have been missing for the past week and a half. Had some stress going on at work and Miss Priss has had strep throat. I hope to have a longer post today AFTER I FINISH MY FIRST 5K!!!

I am at Week 5, Day 3 of Couch to 5K. Today is the 20 minute run. I'll be doing it during the 5K. I am over halfway done with C25K!

Wish me luck!