Come on, Roberta, get your head in the game!
I feel depressed right now and it is all about work. I know I have made many a vague reference to the goings on at work over the last year, but things took a turn for the worse a couple of weeks ago and now I can't shake this sense of unease and impending doom. Wow, that sounds harsh when I write it, but that is exactly how I feel. We have a meeting today, so I am hoping there is some clearer direction and some good news of which I am presently unaware. Other options for my future keep rolling through my mind, and as unbidden as those thoughts are, they are probably a signal that my "survivor instinct" is kicking in.
I am incredibly thankful that I made the decision to excel at triathlons a couple of weeks ago. In the past, when I get depressed like this, I would sit on the couch, watch tv and eat ice cream. I can't say I didn't sit on the couch for a little while last night and watch a little tv with Jack (I didn't eat any ice cream); but I didn't sit on the couch all night. I managed to rouse myself up long enough to prep tonight's dinner, with Jack's help at the cutting board. Also, I am exercising every day. This morning I did upper body strength training. I want to add back some evening exercise, as well. Either a 30 minute walk or a swim on strength training days, and maybe some push-ups and ab work on cardio days. I have a lot of work to do to get to the physical condition I want to be in, and I am not going to get there by sitting on the couch!! So, even though I am depressed about work, I am focused on my training goals and that gives me something to feel positive about, every single day.
This darn medication is messing with my weight. I am retaining a lot of water and I hate getting on the scale in the mornings. I have also been hungrier than normal so I am having trouble not eating too much. The hunger is probably the result of the increased exercise and the depression. I can't even imagine how depressed I would be right now if I was not exercising every day. I don't even want to think about that!! I'm just going to keep up the training and not let set-backs at work derail my plans for finishing the 2014 Jackson County Triathlon in less than 3 hours and 15 minutes and eventually winning my age group. The second goal will take years to accomplish, but I will get there.
I need to cut back my calories to under 1800. I ate about 2,100 calories yesterday and that is just too much. I did consume 147 grams of protein, so I guess if I am going to eat too much it's a good thing that I am feeding my muscles, but I think 147 grams of protein is excessive. 100 grams should be fine. In some respects, I feel great about my progress, in other respects, I am disappointed in myself. I need to be fully engaged in my training, which includes food. I am determined to reach 140 pounds by year end, and I am not going to get there without some serious discipline. I find it interesting that accepting the exercising discipline has been much easier for me than accepting the food discipline, but it is going to take both. Not just one or the other. Come on, Roberta!! Get it done!! Get in the zone!! Mentally and Physically!! There is only one person that can get this done and that person is me. Go! Go! Go!!
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Monday, September 9, 2013
9/9/2013: 6 Hilly Miles; 1 Hour and 12 Minutes
I've coasted along on 4 mile runs for the last few weeks, using the excuse that it is dark in the mornings now (it really is) and I don't feel safe on my normal 5 mile route in the dark (I really don't). But I finally decided I needed to do something about it and Jack and I scouted out a 6 mile route, yesterday. I picked this route because it is well lit, there is a sidewalk the entire way, there is a safe place to park on one end of the route, and it is in a very nice neighborhood (it includes passing the Leewood Police Station and Fire Station). The only down side is the hills, and boy, is it hilly!
The first half mile or so is relatively flat and since the course is an out-an-back, the last half mile is also pretty flat. There is also one other flattish stretch about halfway into the run. Other than that, the course is pretty hilly, with some long slow climbs and some shorter, steeper climbs. The hills are tough and they slow me down a lot, but they are a great workout. It took me an hour and 12 minutes to run the entire 6 miles today (I jogged/ran the whole thing, I did not walk at all). My goal will be to run the entire 6 miles in an hour. I don't know how long it will take me to improve my time by that much. I know I can run 10 minute miles, but the hills make a big difference. My plan is to run this course once a week, run my regular 4 mile course once a week (the 4 mile run has some hills, but not as many as the 6 mile run), and run once on the weekends as part of my weekly brick (if I do this at the lake, it is very flat). The length of the weekend run will vary, depending on the size of my brick that weekend.
In addition to the running, I will ride my bike twice a week, once a week it will be just a bike ride and once a week it will be part of a brick.
I am strength training three times a week. Now I need to add back in the swimming.
After doing a little research we have determined that the closest Total Immersion Swim clinic is in Minneapolis, which is about 6 hours from here. I am going to sign up for the October 19th and 20th weekend clinic. Jack said he would go with me (no, he is not going to swim), so we are going to make a weekend out of it. I will swim once a week before the clinic, but will get serious about my swim training after I have completed the clinic.
Last week I did well with my exercise and worked out for a total of about 8 hours. I got a brick in on Saturday, in spite of the heat, and yesterday I went for a bike ride in the morning and then Jack and I went to the gym in the afternoon for strength training and a little racquetball. For my brick on Saturday, I rode around the lake once with Jack (about 11 miles), then did a flat 4.75 miles on my own before starting my run. For the last 4.75 miles I pushed hard and averaged over 17 miles an hour. That took a lot out of me and made the run difficult. I ended up walking a portion of the approximately 2.5 mile run, though I forced myself to run the first mile and a half or so, to get through the bike/run transition. Yesterday's bike ride wasn't far, I was meeting a friend at the park so I rode there and back, but I pushed it on the way there, too. I only averaged about 15.5 mph, but there were enough stop lights and stop signs that the forced slow downs impacted my average speed. I am spending some time, every time I get on my bike, riding fast so that I can improve my ride speed.
Last week was not so great with the food. I did not keep track of my calories over the weekend...just laziness...no other excuses. I do find myself getting very hungry and craving snacks. Jack and I found some healthy snacks at the store yesterday (kale chips, anyone?) and I am hoping they will help, though I still need to keep an eye on calories. The medication I am taking has caused me to swell up a little, and that is impacting the scale, so I am not happy about that and don't even want to write about it (okay, I was 158.4 this morning - though still below the line on my chart).
I have already put my breakfast calories into my phone this morning and I will be more disciplined about counting every calorie. I am looking forward to being done with the drug regimen so the swelling will go down. I must stay away from sweet snacks, completely. They are my weakness at the moment.
I guess that's it for this Monday morning. Until tomorrow...
The first half mile or so is relatively flat and since the course is an out-an-back, the last half mile is also pretty flat. There is also one other flattish stretch about halfway into the run. Other than that, the course is pretty hilly, with some long slow climbs and some shorter, steeper climbs. The hills are tough and they slow me down a lot, but they are a great workout. It took me an hour and 12 minutes to run the entire 6 miles today (I jogged/ran the whole thing, I did not walk at all). My goal will be to run the entire 6 miles in an hour. I don't know how long it will take me to improve my time by that much. I know I can run 10 minute miles, but the hills make a big difference. My plan is to run this course once a week, run my regular 4 mile course once a week (the 4 mile run has some hills, but not as many as the 6 mile run), and run once on the weekends as part of my weekly brick (if I do this at the lake, it is very flat). The length of the weekend run will vary, depending on the size of my brick that weekend.
In addition to the running, I will ride my bike twice a week, once a week it will be just a bike ride and once a week it will be part of a brick.
I am strength training three times a week. Now I need to add back in the swimming.
After doing a little research we have determined that the closest Total Immersion Swim clinic is in Minneapolis, which is about 6 hours from here. I am going to sign up for the October 19th and 20th weekend clinic. Jack said he would go with me (no, he is not going to swim), so we are going to make a weekend out of it. I will swim once a week before the clinic, but will get serious about my swim training after I have completed the clinic.
Last week I did well with my exercise and worked out for a total of about 8 hours. I got a brick in on Saturday, in spite of the heat, and yesterday I went for a bike ride in the morning and then Jack and I went to the gym in the afternoon for strength training and a little racquetball. For my brick on Saturday, I rode around the lake once with Jack (about 11 miles), then did a flat 4.75 miles on my own before starting my run. For the last 4.75 miles I pushed hard and averaged over 17 miles an hour. That took a lot out of me and made the run difficult. I ended up walking a portion of the approximately 2.5 mile run, though I forced myself to run the first mile and a half or so, to get through the bike/run transition. Yesterday's bike ride wasn't far, I was meeting a friend at the park so I rode there and back, but I pushed it on the way there, too. I only averaged about 15.5 mph, but there were enough stop lights and stop signs that the forced slow downs impacted my average speed. I am spending some time, every time I get on my bike, riding fast so that I can improve my ride speed.
Last week was not so great with the food. I did not keep track of my calories over the weekend...just laziness...no other excuses. I do find myself getting very hungry and craving snacks. Jack and I found some healthy snacks at the store yesterday (kale chips, anyone?) and I am hoping they will help, though I still need to keep an eye on calories. The medication I am taking has caused me to swell up a little, and that is impacting the scale, so I am not happy about that and don't even want to write about it (okay, I was 158.4 this morning - though still below the line on my chart).
I have already put my breakfast calories into my phone this morning and I will be more disciplined about counting every calorie. I am looking forward to being done with the drug regimen so the swelling will go down. I must stay away from sweet snacks, completely. They are my weakness at the moment.
I guess that's it for this Monday morning. Until tomorrow...
Friday, September 6, 2013
9/6/2013: Lyme Disease?
Perhaps.
It's a good thing Ruth is observant. After I posted about not feeling well Tuesday evening Ruth texted me and asked if I had swollen joints, a symptom of Lyme Disease. All three of us, Ruth, Jack and I, pulled ticks off of ourselves after hiking in the woods the Saturday before our tri. I told her that I didn't have swollen joints and I had chalked my nausea up to eating some tainted yogurt. I also looked up the reported # of cases of Lyme Disease in Kansas. In 2011, the last year for which results were posted, there were 17 confirmed cases. It seemed like the chances of us getting Lyme disease from our silly trek in the woods was very, very low.
The very next morning (yesterday) I noticed that I had trouble lifting as much weight as I normally lift at the gym. My muscles felt much weaker than normal. I thought that was odd, but wanted to chalk it up to staying up late the night before. I also woke up Thursday morning with tenderness in my upper back and shoulders and my nausea was back. Oh yeah, and I was running a low grade fever. So I looked up the symptoms of Lyme disease and my symptoms fit perfectly with the symptoms that normally appear 2 - 3 weeks after exposure. Crap! I did not have a bulls-eye rash, nor did I have swollen joints, but the flue-like symptoms, achy muscles, and low-grade fever were spot on. So I went to do the doctor yesterday and he agreed that the symptoms were persuasive enough to start me on an antibiotic. I am taking 100mg of doxycycline monohydrate twice a day. They also drew blood to do some lab work, but the tests are not very reliable. I should have the results back next week. *Sigh* If it's not one thing, it's another.
I feel like an idiot for not using bug spray on our hike. We had been on this trail before and it was never that overgrown. Also, Jack and I have hiked many trails in Kansas and Missouri over the last five years and never gotten a tick, so we had gotten lazy about using bug repellent. Not anymore. I am always going to use it from now on.
Statistically, the chances of Lyme Disease causing long term problems if it is treated early are very, very slim. Lyme Disease is serious if it is not treated early, but it really should not be a problem since we caught it early. Thank goodness Ruth is observant. If it was not for her, I would probably have blown off these flu-like symptoms once I started feeling better. Jack, so far, has not had any symptoms at all; but we are going to keep an eye on him.
I feel a little better today, a good night's sleep helped a lot. With any luck I will be feeling completely back to normal after a couple of days on the antibiotic. I went for my run this morning but I didn't really push it. More than anything, I wanted to run because that is what I do in the morning. I didn't feel like I needed to be setting any records while I was still not feeling great. I plan on doing my weekly brick tomorrow morning.
Ruth wants me to do two training rides a week and a brick every week. I am assuming that one of the rides can be part of my brick, and the other ride will be just a ride. I guess that means that I will have to ride on Saturday and Sunday, because it is too dark to ride in the mornings, already. Evening rides are an option for a bit longer, but the traffic around here in the evening is pretty awful. I'd have to drive out to the lake, and by then it would be getting close to dusk. I hate that the days are getting so short, already. I am already dreading winter. It's pretty easy to plan a lot of exercise when the sun is out and it is nice and warm, but it's pretty disheartening to think about the upcoming days when it will be cold, wet, and dark out. Sadness starts to set in when I think about it. I guess the solution to that problem is to not think about it. I made it through last winter, I will make it through this one, too.
I find myself feeling very relieved that life is starting to feel routine again. I need to kick the training up a couple of notches. So far, with the exception of my brick last weekend, I feel like I have just been maintaining the status quo, and I want to do much more than maintain. On the other hand, when I think about the ridiculousness of my schedule and my stress level for the last couple of months, I feel pretty good about not only maintaining, but making the very big decision to excel at triathlons. I'm not going to beat myself up, but I do need to psych myself up for a bump-up in my training routine.
Yesterday's calories: 1,942
Yesterday's protein: 74 grams
This morning's weight: 157.2
This morning's exercise: 4 mile run
Next week I need to focus on: Decreasing calories, increasing protein, and increasing exercise.
It's a good thing Ruth is observant. After I posted about not feeling well Tuesday evening Ruth texted me and asked if I had swollen joints, a symptom of Lyme Disease. All three of us, Ruth, Jack and I, pulled ticks off of ourselves after hiking in the woods the Saturday before our tri. I told her that I didn't have swollen joints and I had chalked my nausea up to eating some tainted yogurt. I also looked up the reported # of cases of Lyme Disease in Kansas. In 2011, the last year for which results were posted, there were 17 confirmed cases. It seemed like the chances of us getting Lyme disease from our silly trek in the woods was very, very low.
The very next morning (yesterday) I noticed that I had trouble lifting as much weight as I normally lift at the gym. My muscles felt much weaker than normal. I thought that was odd, but wanted to chalk it up to staying up late the night before. I also woke up Thursday morning with tenderness in my upper back and shoulders and my nausea was back. Oh yeah, and I was running a low grade fever. So I looked up the symptoms of Lyme disease and my symptoms fit perfectly with the symptoms that normally appear 2 - 3 weeks after exposure. Crap! I did not have a bulls-eye rash, nor did I have swollen joints, but the flue-like symptoms, achy muscles, and low-grade fever were spot on. So I went to do the doctor yesterday and he agreed that the symptoms were persuasive enough to start me on an antibiotic. I am taking 100mg of doxycycline monohydrate twice a day. They also drew blood to do some lab work, but the tests are not very reliable. I should have the results back next week. *Sigh* If it's not one thing, it's another.
I feel like an idiot for not using bug spray on our hike. We had been on this trail before and it was never that overgrown. Also, Jack and I have hiked many trails in Kansas and Missouri over the last five years and never gotten a tick, so we had gotten lazy about using bug repellent. Not anymore. I am always going to use it from now on.
Statistically, the chances of Lyme Disease causing long term problems if it is treated early are very, very slim. Lyme Disease is serious if it is not treated early, but it really should not be a problem since we caught it early. Thank goodness Ruth is observant. If it was not for her, I would probably have blown off these flu-like symptoms once I started feeling better. Jack, so far, has not had any symptoms at all; but we are going to keep an eye on him.
I feel a little better today, a good night's sleep helped a lot. With any luck I will be feeling completely back to normal after a couple of days on the antibiotic. I went for my run this morning but I didn't really push it. More than anything, I wanted to run because that is what I do in the morning. I didn't feel like I needed to be setting any records while I was still not feeling great. I plan on doing my weekly brick tomorrow morning.
Ruth wants me to do two training rides a week and a brick every week. I am assuming that one of the rides can be part of my brick, and the other ride will be just a ride. I guess that means that I will have to ride on Saturday and Sunday, because it is too dark to ride in the mornings, already. Evening rides are an option for a bit longer, but the traffic around here in the evening is pretty awful. I'd have to drive out to the lake, and by then it would be getting close to dusk. I hate that the days are getting so short, already. I am already dreading winter. It's pretty easy to plan a lot of exercise when the sun is out and it is nice and warm, but it's pretty disheartening to think about the upcoming days when it will be cold, wet, and dark out. Sadness starts to set in when I think about it. I guess the solution to that problem is to not think about it. I made it through last winter, I will make it through this one, too.
I find myself feeling very relieved that life is starting to feel routine again. I need to kick the training up a couple of notches. So far, with the exception of my brick last weekend, I feel like I have just been maintaining the status quo, and I want to do much more than maintain. On the other hand, when I think about the ridiculousness of my schedule and my stress level for the last couple of months, I feel pretty good about not only maintaining, but making the very big decision to excel at triathlons. I'm not going to beat myself up, but I do need to psych myself up for a bump-up in my training routine.
Yesterday's calories: 1,942
Yesterday's protein: 74 grams
This morning's weight: 157.2
This morning's exercise: 4 mile run
Next week I need to focus on: Decreasing calories, increasing protein, and increasing exercise.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
9/5/2013: Starting to Feel Like My Life is "Normal"
The last couple of months have been ridiculous in many ways. Traveling to China for three weeks was not the worst of it. Even harder than that was having three members of our management team in China, working deals on the ground there, while I and the rest of the management team were here providing support at all hours of the day and night - more often night than day. Every day there were early morning and late evening Skype meetings. There was one post-midnight run to the office. There were text messages that needed to be responded to at 3:00am and 4:00am. Plus, don't forget our regular nine-to-five jobs. It was exhausting.
Everyone got back to the states late last week, the phone did not ring or buzz or beep over the weekend, there were no Skype meetings, and slowly I started to recover. I had a bit of a set-back Tuesday when I left the office early with nasty stomach pains and a low grade fever, but I felt much, much better yesterday. Finally, a week later, I am beginning to feel like my life is getting back to normal. I look forward to being able to go to work and feel motivated again. So far this week, my performance at work has been a little lackadaisical because I just have not had the mental energy to jump into another project. Each day gets a little better, though, and I am confident that today will be a better day, yet.
I missed two days of exercise this week due to my little illness, but I was back at the gym today, feeling a little weak from not getting enough sleep last night (bowling night), but it felt good to be back at it. I think I will get a swim in tonight and tomorrow I will go for a run.
Yesterday's calories: 2034
Yesterday's protein: 111 grams
This morning's weight: 157.0
Today's exercise: Strength Training
Everyone got back to the states late last week, the phone did not ring or buzz or beep over the weekend, there were no Skype meetings, and slowly I started to recover. I had a bit of a set-back Tuesday when I left the office early with nasty stomach pains and a low grade fever, but I felt much, much better yesterday. Finally, a week later, I am beginning to feel like my life is getting back to normal. I look forward to being able to go to work and feel motivated again. So far this week, my performance at work has been a little lackadaisical because I just have not had the mental energy to jump into another project. Each day gets a little better, though, and I am confident that today will be a better day, yet.
I missed two days of exercise this week due to my little illness, but I was back at the gym today, feeling a little weak from not getting enough sleep last night (bowling night), but it felt good to be back at it. I think I will get a swim in tonight and tomorrow I will go for a run.
Yesterday's calories: 2034
Yesterday's protein: 111 grams
This morning's weight: 157.0
Today's exercise: Strength Training
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
9/4/2013: Recovering
Yesterday I was sick. I felt sluggish and unmotivated at work and left early to come home. I thought I was just tired, but by the time I got home I knew I was ill. My stomach was killing me and I had a low grade fever. I just needed to lay down, so that is what I did. Jack got home around 6:30 after stopping at the grocery store and I didn't even get up to help him unload the car. After about a half hour more of trying to get comfortable on the couch, I went to bed and slept through until 6 this morning. I feel better today, but I took the day off from exercise.
Yesterday's calories: 1704
Yesterday's protein: 92 grams
This morning's weight: 157.2
Today's exercise: rest - recovering from illness
Yesterday's calories: 1704
Yesterday's protein: 92 grams
This morning's weight: 157.2
Today's exercise: rest - recovering from illness
Monday, September 2, 2013
9/2/2013: BRutal Bike/Run BRick
These Bike/Run bricks are hard. There is something that feels so wrong about running after riding a bike for an hour. I feel so slow and awkward, as if I weigh 300 pounds and my legs just don't want to hold me up.
Today I did my first Bike/Run brick of my 2013/2014 training season. :)
15.5 mile bike ride: 1 hour 4 minutes (there were a few red lights in there)
2 minutes transition
4 mile run: 42 minutes 40 seconds (with maybe about a minute of that waiting at lights)
I've decided my short term training goal is to to a 16 mile bike ride in 1 hour and a 4 mile run in 40 minutes. I will try to reach that goal before it gets too cold to ride and run outdoors.
Yesterday's calories: 2,125
Yesterday's protein: 101 grams
This morning's weight: 157.2
This morning's exercise: Bike/Run Brick
My husband just got home from the gym and we have the day ahead of us. I'm going to sign off for now.
Today I did my first Bike/Run brick of my 2013/2014 training season. :)
15.5 mile bike ride: 1 hour 4 minutes (there were a few red lights in there)
2 minutes transition
4 mile run: 42 minutes 40 seconds (with maybe about a minute of that waiting at lights)
I've decided my short term training goal is to to a 16 mile bike ride in 1 hour and a 4 mile run in 40 minutes. I will try to reach that goal before it gets too cold to ride and run outdoors.
Yesterday's calories: 2,125
Yesterday's protein: 101 grams
This morning's weight: 157.2
This morning's exercise: Bike/Run Brick
My husband just got home from the gym and we have the day ahead of us. I'm going to sign off for now.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
9/1/13: Are You Ready Now?
Let's get started!!
My plan was to get up and do a bike/run brick this morning. It's been hot and dry around here, so I was going to go first thing this morning, before it got too hot. As I was laying in my bed this morning giving myself a pep talk to get myself out of bed I heard a noise outside. Was it rain? No, it couldn't be. So I drifted off for a second, woke back up, and picked up the pep talk where I had left off. Then...more noises from outside. Rain? Could it be? Finally, I roused myself enough to look out the window (not hard, considering the bed is right under the window) and sure enough, it was raining. I sighed. I kind of wanted to get that brick in today, but there is no reason I can't do it tomorrow. I'll go to the gym and lift weights today, instead.
Yesterday's calories: 1,858
Yesterday's protein: 93 grams
Yesterday's exercise: None - I got distracted by Steve. He got home from Lawrence earlier than I thought he would and we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening talking.
This morning's weight: 157.6 (I'm sure Julie just got a chuckle out of that one)
Friday was a pretty bad food evening. Steve left for Lawrence around 5:00 in the evening, Jack was in Utah, and I was home alone. Alone. Completely alone. The phone wasn't ringing, there were no text messages from my boss in China (he was on his way home), no emergency Skype meetings. Just quiet. Alone. Free. Oh my God. I was in heaven. I couldn't remember the last moment that I was completely alone with nothing to do. I read all evening and had a big bowl of ice cream. Don't ask me why, but it was kind of heavenly to be all curled up on the couch with my book and my ice cream and my peace and quiet. I paid for it of course, with a little bump in my weight (it was a pretty good size bowl of ice cream). Ah well.
I was hoping to spend some time yesterday working on my training plan and perhaps going to a bike shop or two, but Steve got back from Lawrence earlier than I thought he would and we ended up having a very nice day and evening talking. We went out to dinner and went for a drive out in the country. We had a lovely afternoon. It's nice to get caught up with my son.
I am excited about my decision to excel at triathlons. I'm a little scared, too. This is going to take a lot of hard work and commitment. I cannot half-ass this thing and reach my goals. I am going to need to work and work hard, consistently, day-in and day-out. I've always thought of myself as slow and cumbersome. I have never tried to be anything else. This is going to require a completely different mind-set. We visited my brother-in-law at the hospital and I mentioned to him that I had made a decision to become a strong athlete. He said, "Well, it's a little too late for that," as if it was a fact. Well, pooh on that!! It's not as if I plan to compete with 20 year olds. I plan to compete against other women my age. Ruth says this will be fun. I think that might be an overstatement. I don't think "fun" when I think about doing a brick every weekend for the foreseeable future, but I do think "fit," and "strong," and "happy." Not exactly fun...but I guess it's getting close.
I started to look for open water swimming opportunities yesterday. All of the organized programs that I found in the KC area go through labor day, as in tomorrow. I guess I was a day late and a dollar short on that one. They start up again on May 1st. I'll keep looking, perhaps I'll find someone to swim with outdoors before the lakes get cold. Otherwise I'll be swimming indoors until spring. I must get comfortable with the open water swimming. I am going to go to the next Full Immersion Swim Clinic that comes to Kansas City and I will probably join a masters swim group. I've already signed up for the local tri club, but I'm not sure what that is going to entail. I am waiting for the webmaster to give me full access to the site so I can access the calendar of events, etc... I hope to meet people I can swim and train with. I know they do a bike/run brick every week. That might be fun.
All-in-all I am feeling pretty good about all this. I know this is going to be a huge challenge. In fact, I think it will change my entire life. I'm training for a sport now, not just exercising. That's a whole new ball game. The implications are still settling in.
My plan was to get up and do a bike/run brick this morning. It's been hot and dry around here, so I was going to go first thing this morning, before it got too hot. As I was laying in my bed this morning giving myself a pep talk to get myself out of bed I heard a noise outside. Was it rain? No, it couldn't be. So I drifted off for a second, woke back up, and picked up the pep talk where I had left off. Then...more noises from outside. Rain? Could it be? Finally, I roused myself enough to look out the window (not hard, considering the bed is right under the window) and sure enough, it was raining. I sighed. I kind of wanted to get that brick in today, but there is no reason I can't do it tomorrow. I'll go to the gym and lift weights today, instead.
Yesterday's calories: 1,858
Yesterday's protein: 93 grams
Yesterday's exercise: None - I got distracted by Steve. He got home from Lawrence earlier than I thought he would and we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening talking.
This morning's weight: 157.6 (I'm sure Julie just got a chuckle out of that one)
Friday was a pretty bad food evening. Steve left for Lawrence around 5:00 in the evening, Jack was in Utah, and I was home alone. Alone. Completely alone. The phone wasn't ringing, there were no text messages from my boss in China (he was on his way home), no emergency Skype meetings. Just quiet. Alone. Free. Oh my God. I was in heaven. I couldn't remember the last moment that I was completely alone with nothing to do. I read all evening and had a big bowl of ice cream. Don't ask me why, but it was kind of heavenly to be all curled up on the couch with my book and my ice cream and my peace and quiet. I paid for it of course, with a little bump in my weight (it was a pretty good size bowl of ice cream). Ah well.
I was hoping to spend some time yesterday working on my training plan and perhaps going to a bike shop or two, but Steve got back from Lawrence earlier than I thought he would and we ended up having a very nice day and evening talking. We went out to dinner and went for a drive out in the country. We had a lovely afternoon. It's nice to get caught up with my son.
I am excited about my decision to excel at triathlons. I'm a little scared, too. This is going to take a lot of hard work and commitment. I cannot half-ass this thing and reach my goals. I am going to need to work and work hard, consistently, day-in and day-out. I've always thought of myself as slow and cumbersome. I have never tried to be anything else. This is going to require a completely different mind-set. We visited my brother-in-law at the hospital and I mentioned to him that I had made a decision to become a strong athlete. He said, "Well, it's a little too late for that," as if it was a fact. Well, pooh on that!! It's not as if I plan to compete with 20 year olds. I plan to compete against other women my age. Ruth says this will be fun. I think that might be an overstatement. I don't think "fun" when I think about doing a brick every weekend for the foreseeable future, but I do think "fit," and "strong," and "happy." Not exactly fun...but I guess it's getting close.
I started to look for open water swimming opportunities yesterday. All of the organized programs that I found in the KC area go through labor day, as in tomorrow. I guess I was a day late and a dollar short on that one. They start up again on May 1st. I'll keep looking, perhaps I'll find someone to swim with outdoors before the lakes get cold. Otherwise I'll be swimming indoors until spring. I must get comfortable with the open water swimming. I am going to go to the next Full Immersion Swim Clinic that comes to Kansas City and I will probably join a masters swim group. I've already signed up for the local tri club, but I'm not sure what that is going to entail. I am waiting for the webmaster to give me full access to the site so I can access the calendar of events, etc... I hope to meet people I can swim and train with. I know they do a bike/run brick every week. That might be fun.
All-in-all I am feeling pretty good about all this. I know this is going to be a huge challenge. In fact, I think it will change my entire life. I'm training for a sport now, not just exercising. That's a whole new ball game. The implications are still settling in.
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