Happy Holidays

I'm trying to keep up with training, but I think this time of year is pretty busy.

Last week our clinic ran hills for the first time. We did 3 and it went pretty well. I find a lot of people really don't like hills, but for me there is some peace in it. For me, hills are proof of how far I've come. In June I went to try hills for the first time and finish running up the hill once. It was amazing to see improvement every week when I added 1 and managed to make it to 6 repeats. Now every time I run hills I think that first time. It is definitely a time when you think what other people think when they see us doing hills - you are crazy, who runs up and down a hill??? :0) Like all of my runs, I'm way behind everyone else. For the last half-marathon I almost all of my training by myself. When I'm alone I'm ok with my pace. When I run with other people, I realize how slow I am and always doubt my ability to race (although I've only been last once). I want to run faster but my mind and legs just don't seem to work together.

Here is my whine for the day: I know that people are being supportive and it's nice, but you start to feel like everyones pet when you have to hear, "good job" everytime someone passes you going the other way. When I'm running hills I'm concentrating and don't really feel like answering so I just nod. People mean well and I don't want to be ungrateful, but just a smile and a hi (if we're not running hills together) will do.

Last Friday (December 21) I had the chance to sneak in a run. I thought I would try for a 4km straight through. I did a couple of 5km straight runs in the summer and it went pretty well. Last weeks - not so good. I made it about 3km and just needed a walk break. Started running for a while and then took another walk break. I did manage to run the rest of the way home after that so the run wasn't a total bust but it didn't go as well as I would have liked.

Skipped my long run because Saturday was Dylan's birthday, so we spent the day together as a family. It was a lot of fun and a nice break from planning for Christmas.

Tuesday Dec 27th - clinic night. Talk on biomechanics and a 4km run, according the schedule. We did about 4.8kms (average pace 8:07/km). It wasn't a speedy one but it went by quickly. That was one of the first times an almost 5km run felt so short. Definitely can't complain about the weather - a perfect couple of degrees ABOVE zero.

Wednesday Dec 28th - hills again. This week 4 hill repeats. After each one it was a little harder to recover but it went well. I always wonder how I'm going to make it to 9 (always looking too far ahead). There are no hills on the Hypothermic Half course but I can definitely use the leg strength for biking.

I've had a nagging pain in my calves and achilles for about a week. I think it may be the cause of my slower runs this week. I'm not sure if it's the new shoes (I bought Saucony trail shoes in anticipation of snow being on the ground, but it's still bare), or just tight muscles. I'm going to try some yoga and maybe a massage to try to work it out.

Swimming through

Finally made it back in to the water this week. Managed to get in 2 training swims. The first one, I swam 1000m (32mins). Thought I was doing ok, but checked my time against last year's GWN finishing times and realized I would be the last one out of the water. Looks like I need some coaching help. I went again on Thursday and practiced bilateral breathing (although I've never figured why people need to do this). Everyone says it's a good thing so I'll learn to do it. Total workout was about 700m but I was just working on breathing and did 100m legs only.

Wednesday I ran 5km-slower, I'd say nice and easy but running is never nice and easy for me. Actually group lead a couple of people, which is different - normally I'm group following.

Sunday - today we did 10km, average pace 8:04/km. It was a pretty good run, but cold out today. My water bottle froze, so I didn't have any water after 5km and I was running out of energy by the time we finished.

With Christmas and New Years coming up in the next 2 weeks it's going to be challenging to get the workouts in, but then the season of craziness is over.

Back in the game

Wednesday I ran 4km, nice and slow. I was still a bit worried after Sunday's bonk so I just wanted to take it easy and start running. It was really cold out but I finished it and felt ok. On Thursday I rode the stationary bike for an hour. No high resistance just warm up, 5 resistance for 45 minutes and cool down.

Sunday - I ran 9km today, again nice and easy (average pace 8:20/km). I had a cramp for the first 5km but that may be because I over-indulged in Christmas celebrations last night or because I tried oatmeal before running for the first time this morning. I felt really good though - I could have run further. I really needed that today!

I spoke to a friend that has done GWN a few times this week and he has assured me that I can do this. He told me that he knows I can swim that far and we'll train for the bike ride. As far as the run (the part that really scares me), he says you can just walk it if you have to - lots of people do. I really needed to hear that. I'm still on for trying to finish this race.

Can I really do this?

I couldn't get out to run during the week so Wednesday I did 1hr on the stationary bike and Friday I also an hour but increased the resistance every 5 minutes to the top and down again.

On Sunday I decided to brave the -23 and get my scheduled 9km lsd in. I wore my normal winter running gear and felt pretty good for the first 3km. Then suddenly (and coincidentally when the battery in mp3 died) my legs felt really fatigued. Of course by now I was 3.5 km away from my house and had to get back. I did the best I could to keep going but ended up doing about 1 and 1s. The batteries died in my Garmin as well. When I got home I was freezing - my legs were bright red and my eyelashes were frozen; I also had a headache. I had a bath and a cup of tea like normal, but when I went to get out of the tub I got really dizzy and had no energy. I tried to make it to my bed to lay down but just couldn't do it - I layed down in the middle of the hallway and called Lawrence to help. He helped me up and I got in to bed. He brought me chocolate milk, water, apple, a bun, and a motrin. I drank and ate as much as I could and then started to feel better. 15 minutes later I was up and still took my son to the Christmas party. It was scary to bonk like that. I thought at the time that my legs were tired because of the bike on Friday and I kept telling myself that I have to learn to run when my legs feel like that because that is exactly what they feel like in a triathlon after the bike.

On that run and since then I have really been doubting my ability to do the half ironman this year. I know that fear is a natural part of challenging yourself, but part of me thinks it's too early for a race this big. I've only done 1 half marathon and my time is almost 3 hours. How am I going to manage that after swimming 2km and biking 90? It's too early to make any decisions, but I don't know if my schedule will allow for the training I need or if I really can do this. I'm also going back to University part time in January. If anyone is reading and has an inspiring story-I could use one right about now. Am I just doubting myself or is it really too much too soon?