I decided to write a quick post upload loads of photos while I listen to the rain pattering away on the windows. Nope, no snow; just rain.
I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving; I was able to have it off from work, and the Hudson Valley was blessed Thanksgiving Eve with a snowstorm, which made it feel more like Christmas Eve actually. It was nice to have the day off with family, and my sisters, mother and I took part in the Ferncliff Forest Turkey Trot (the last time I ran it and wrote about it was back in 2010!) I was thankful that the oragnizers did not postpone the race, as other 5ks in the area had been due to the incliment weather. The last 5k I did was the off-road Billy Goat 5k and I agree with prior posts in that I am not a fan of 5ks. I mean it is great that they don’t take that long to do (less than 24minutes), but I’m not used to that all-out-I’m-going-to-barf effort. I supposed with training I could get used to it. But with my sights set on an Ironman, training isn’t based around short distances. That being said, I do have speed workouts everyweek. A part of me was hoping to beat my time from my 5k last year, but, I guess this fall isn’t my year. Anyway, it was fun having the family around for the race and that they were able to take part and do the walk.
Seesters and mom
Thanksgiving weekend the fam did our Christmas decorating, which was awesome, because I cannot remember the last time we all decorated the Christmas Tree–I don’t think we have all gone tree hunting, either. Atleast from what I can remember….Christmas cookie baking and holiday decorating was a blast.
Does the tree have the right Christmas tree smell?
Kevin, our arborist, making sure there are enough branches in the correct spaces
Everyone has their part to play in the tree decorating
Kevin and his bicycle wheel wreath!
Final touches require some assistance
Et voila!
cupcake decorating is no joke
I give cookie decorators mucho credit for their patience.
A couple days ago I was able to coherce Kevin into our yearly “Walk around Rhinebeck and look at the window displays.” I’ve found the trick to having him compliant with my requests to take photos infront of the Rhinebeck Christmas Tree: buy him a soft pretzel with brown mustard along with a Mad Elf beer. 😛 I must applaud Rhinebeck this year, as the window displays are quite good. Even Kevin admitted the displays were better than years past.
Since the blistery cold weather has returned to us (or atleast is knocking on our door), my poor circulation has deemed it nearly impossible to ride outside anymore. Hence, the trainer is once again getting some love and attention.
I’m not sure about you, but I dread the trainer. I have written numerous posts about hating it. Yes, when I first bought mine years ago working nights, I was stoked to have it so I could ride at night in the dark. Now, though, I drag my feet walking upstairs to where I have my trainer parked. I know trainer sessions are an integral part of training for a triathlon, and I just have to buck up and do trainer workouts as planned. I’m simply not happy about them. I am not saying that they are easy workouts; I’m pretty sure I sweat more than an overweight man in a sauna when I am riding; and my heart rate is able to skyrocket in minutes. But, the simple fact I am riding so hard and so far and getting no where drives me nuts (like running on the dreadmill).
When I was finishing up my trainer workout the other day I came up with the emotional stages one might go through while on the trainer…And I have pictures that go along with the stages. (What else do you do when you are bored out of your mind than take incredibly awkward selfies of yourself looking horribly sweaty and disgusting?) Note: I am not one of those people who find it necessary to be caked in makeup whilst exercising. Infact, I am not one to feel it necessary to brush her hair before it, either.
Stage 1: The Warm Up
At this point, you have just started, warming up your legs, becoming adjusted to the bike
“I’m just flipping through the songs on my iPod. Only 55 minutes to go”
Stage 2: Boredom
At this stage, you start looking at your surroundings, wishing you were somewhere else. Envy of people doing any activity other than riding on a trainer starts erupting.
“Hmm, I wonder what is happening outside. Look at the snow; I could be skiing right now.”
Stage 3: The Pain
Whether it the big chainring on an incline or “speed ups,” you feel the pain in your legs, grit your teeth, and pedal pedal pedal.
“Oh man oh man my legs my legs. THEYYYY BURRRRNNNNNN OMGGGGGGGG.”
Stage 4: Your Second Wind
Between sets, your heart rate comes down a bit, and the burning legs ceases.
“Grrrr.F-ck the burn, I’ve got this. This is EASY! Eye of the tiger, baby, eye of the tiger. BRING IT!”
Stage 5: Depression and sadness
With more sets, and increasing leg burn, you become depressed and sad, questioning life and why you have to be on this stupid machine.
“I never did anything to deserve this. All I want to do is be outside.”
Stage 6: Mental breakdown
At this point, the workout is almost done. Your legs feel like they are no longer a part of your body. You feel like giving up all together. Flashes of your life start flooding your brain. Your eyes well with tears from the pain.
“Why me, God, why meeeee?”
Stage 7: The Finish
You’ve finished the cool-down; you have completed the workout. Life feels like it is full of rainbows and sunshine. Relief, happiness, and joy fill your body. It.Is.Done.
“Pshh, that was easy.”
Happy Trainer-Riding!
Ending notes:
Yes, I realized that my earphones were all knotted up, but you can’t untangle headphones while in pain. I feel like Roseanne Roseannadanna pointing out that “little bead of sweat on her nose” when flipping through the photos.
After looking back at the posts I’ve written, I realized I go through “phases” with this blog: periods of time where I don’t write anything at all, and then times where I write numerous posts in one week (like today, when it just so happens that I am finishing two in one day) What can I say? I have things I want to share! And so does my cat Lucky as seen by the picture below.
My cat felt the need to help with post writing I guess.
Training
Someone I work with asked what my training schedule is like. So, I figured I would post a recent training week. I try my best to do everything before 4pm on days I have off, so that I can spend my afternoons/ evenings annoying my man 😛
bike ( 2 bikes)
• LSD. 70 miles average cadence on the flats should be 80-90 rpm. Pick a gear that allows you to do this easily while staying within target HR.
• muscular strength = turbo. Warmup = 15:00. include 4 x :30 @ 100 rpm
Main set = 4 x 5:00 as 2:00 big gear seated at 60 rpm / 1:00 fast spin (easier gear) @ 100 rpm / 2:00 big gear standing at 50-60 rpm. All at HR low zone 3. 2:00 easy recovery spin between each 5:00 interval.
Recovery spin 5:00 then do: 5 x 2:00 @ 90 rpm with 2:00 RI Run (3 runs) • T-run = 15 minutes. Post muscular strength workout.
• LSD = 15 miles.
• Speed. 30 minute run — include 8 x 1:00 pickups at zone 3 (not a full out effort) with 2:00-3:00 zone 2 running between. Swim (2 swims)
• Aerobic. 2700 yards Warmup = 10 x 50 yards as (2 strokes free then 2 strokes 1-arm then 2 strokes free then 2 strokes other arm) :10 RI between every 50 yards.
Main set = 15 x 100 pull on the :15 RI then: 10 x 50 as (kick only on one side (use zoomers) / 25 one-arm stroke) on the :10 RI. Alternate sides.
Cooldown = back stroke or easy kick board for 200 yards.
• Speed 2350 yards Warmup = 3 x 200 focusing on tech while swimming.
Main set = 12 x 100 yards fast on the :20 RI.. Do each 100 yards as: 50 yards moderate pace / 25 yards hard — approx 80% effort / 25 yards easy.
Cooldown = back stroke or easy kick board for 200 yards. Core (at home) (2 core) Side Planks — 3 x 20 seconds per side with :10 RI
Prone Planks — 3 x 45 seconds with :10 RI
Lower abs (rock hollows / flutter kicks / reverse curls) — your choice 3 x 15 reps
Crunches — 3 x 20 reps
Quadruped extensions – 5 times alternating sides. 10 second hold per side ( http://www.acefitness.org/acefit/exercise-library-details/1/14/ )
So, that is what a week looks like! (And yes, squats are my nemesis).
Things Other than Training
Kevin’s job has allowed him to have some short work weeks, meaning we’ve gotten to spend some mid-week time together, which is fantastic, since I miss out on seeing him weekends and days that I work. From hikes to dining out to road rides enjoying the last of the nice weather before winter arrives.
My first ever Budda bowl…sans bowl
Date night!Best veggie burgers around…And amazing parmesan frites
Last short sleeved ride of the season
Good thing he knows where the trails are
Last week I got my very first tri bike, and it sure is a beauty. I’ve been drooling over these bikes for a very long time, and finally decided to bite the bullet and get one. I’ll be spending long hours on this, and have done duathlons/ triathlons for four years without signs of stopping in the near future, so why not get a sport-specific bicycle? Isn’t it gorgeous?
I managed to finish all of my holiday shopping yesterday! This time of year is my favorite (except the weather) and christmas shopping simply makes me happy. I wanted to buy everything at HomeGoods but managed to have (some) self control 🙂 Christmas music is now playing on the radio–I admit my holiday pandora radio station is allowed to be on during my commute home after work in the evenings– and I even saw some christmas lights outside! Yes, it was too early to have Christmas decorations in the stores before Halloween. But now, in my books, it is a-okay to have everything Christmas out! Ohh, the joys of being a holiday-loving dork like myself. I am not ashamed.
Oh how I wanted a sparkly dancing ballerina deer
Well, I should get to the pool! Enjoy the rest of your week!
Comparing oneself to others is natural. With media down our throats now a days, it is almost impossible not to compare oneself to others. From a young age, girls and boys learn what society thinks they should look like– how they should act–what they should wear– in order to “be accepted.” Waiting in line the other day for groceries I could not help but watch the eyes of a young girl the other day (by young she must have been eleven or twelve) flipping through a Woman’s Health magazine—the type of magazine which I now loathe– one which has scantily clothed women on almost every page, with unnatural bodies, pages filled with ways to curb your hunger, lose weight and “feel great.”
I am not unfamiliar with comparing myself to others. In fact, I’ve found myself going through different “stages of comparison.” Yes, when I was young, I compared the way I looked to other girls. I compared myself to those women in health magazines (now those magazines are banned from my house as there is nothing “healthy” about them). As I got older, I found myself comparing my athleticism to others, instead of looks. Ohh, I need to mention that during this “stage,” it was not young women my age whom I compared myself to, but the athleticism of men who were older than me. Yeah I know, I’m weird. What young woman compares her half-marathon time to a guy 10-12 years older than her? That, my friend would be me. Now, I think the reason I was like that was because 1) I didn’t do many races at the time and 2) I didn’t really have many female friends who did the outdoor activities that I enjoyed.
Over time I realized it was quite silly to compare myself to older men (hah) and began to focus on women in my age group. I guess you could say that means I became a bit more competitive when it came to races I did, which isn’t a bad thing, as I never allowed myself to get so competitive that it took the fun out of races. It actually surprised me that I was able to do well in sports after growing up being a “so-so” athlete in school.
Last fall/winter I found myself running faster, and cycling faster/farther than I ever have. I seemed to surprise myself with my 5mile/half marathon/ casual run’s. I was able to hold a 7:30-ish min mile pace for a half marathon. Never had I been able to do that before. I was riding 100+miles a week, and felt great.Recently, I began to notice I have been comparing myself now to how I was last year, and I think it has a greater impact on me than when I ever compared myself to other people. My last couple races weren’t horrible, but they weren’t my best, either. Long rides seem to be exhausting–not at all how I remember them to be last year. I’m not able to keep that 7:30/mile pace for more than 5 miles (well, honestly, I have not tried). When I find myself comparing where I am today, to where I was last year at this time, it almost makes me feel like I have fallen out of shape. How did I get to be so slow? Why am I not the way I was last year? In the middle of runs I would find myself wanting to just “give up and walk” since, obviously, I was out of shape since I couldn’t hold the same pace as last year. In no time I found myself feeling horrible about where I am right now; comparing myself to myself is far more destructive than comparing myself to others.
When I find myself hearing these negative thoughts questioning why I cannot run as fast as I could, or other internal negative self-talk, I need to focus on where I am now. I work more than I did last year, I’ve started a side business, and, I am training for a much larger event than I ever have and ever was training for. My rides/runs/swims are much longer than they were last year. In fact, the workouts I have now are longer and harder than they were at the peak of my training for the Patriot Half last spring.
If comparing yourself to others helps you achieve specific goals, then that is terrific. But if comparing yourself to others–or, comparing yourself to yourself–becomes harmful and destructive, it may be time to step back and do some serious soul searching. How you can still achieve your goals without harming yourself, who is, ultimately, the person that matters most?
Happy Monday! Let’s do this! We all could use a bit of motivation to get rolling on Monday. On Mondays, I like to share a Mantra or short inspirational message. If the message resonates with you, use to motivate yourself in training or life. Do you have your own awesome Mantra? Please share it below in the comments.
Happiness is not an outside, it’s an inside job – Fortune Cookie
I received this message in a fortune cookie last week, and it resonated with me. Happiness is not something that just happens, it is a job. We are happy when we choose to be happy. When we choose to be happy, our actions follow. How you spend your time, who you surround yourself with, and what you focus on, have a significant impact on your happiness. How you make these choices is based on your decision to be happy.
Four years ago if you asked me whether or not I like to train for things, my answer was :”Umm, no, I don’t train. I just do.” Yes, every race I did was done without training.There was next to no preparation before the marathons I completed. My thought was, why dedicate precious hours of your day training for a race that will cause you to be sore for days after, anyway? Just do it, be sore afterwards, and deal with it. Ohh, naive Molly.
I remember in college when I was on the fencing team (it is true, I was a fencer. En garde!) we did drills and had workouts 5 days a week. Drills were to help your form while you fenced, muscular endurance, etc. etc. I never questioned why our coach had us do certain things, and, there were lots of times when I would have preferred to sit around and do nothing instead of have to go to practice. But on weekends when we had tournaments, I realized why we did so much during the week…It helped us be better fencers.
Seven years later, and over the span of this blogs existence, I’ve learnt more about training, and it’s importance in races. (Maybe because my body simply cannot decide to go out and run a marathon one day “for the fun of it.”) Drills in swimming help with technique, in turn, help with speed, and also endurance. Long rides and trainer sessions have their place in the whole training picture, as well as tempo runs, long runs, and speed workouts. Not only are the actual physical workouts important for preparing for a race, but so is nutrition. It only took 28 years for me to figure out one of the main reasons I DNF’d a big race was my lack of nutrition and sleep. In retrospect, I don’t think I even ate anything during my first endurance events (marathons). How was I supposed to know that I needed to fuel during the race, if I never trained for it? Let me tell you, it is a night and day difference in my performance when I decided to properly fuel and when I don’t. (Ha, remember when I wrote that I would never consume a gel ever? I now buy the little packets of nastiness in bulk, as evidenced by the image below!)
Training has added a new food group to my life: the gels/gu food group.
I’ve realized that I enjoy training (I mentioned in my last post how I missed training after the Patriot Half was over). A difference I have noticed thus far, and it is just the beginning of IMLP training, is that my workouts now are longer (duh!). The rides/runs/swims are longer, and they take longer to complete. (Now now, I am not complaining). Obviously, I knew this when I signed up for the race. And as a result, my concept of distances has changed. Anything under 50 miles on the bike is pretty much a “S&S” ride (“short and sweet”). Runs under 10 miles are also S&S. Last spring when I started swimming anything over 2200 yards, I thought I was going to drown. I still occasionally think I will drown; just not as frequently 😉
But, seriously. Training is fun, and after my initial gasp of terror when reading my weekly training plan from my coach, I think, “Yes! Another week!Woohoo! 60-70mile ride? Bring it! Fourteen miler? Hellz yea!*” Maybe I am just weird?
You know you have an Asics addiction when there are still three pairs of shoes that are not in the picture.
*I’ll let you know in the spring when training takes 14+ hrs/week whether I still enjoy it. My thoughts are I will, otherwise, why attempt the race?
Okay, lets give this a second try (sometimes I despise technology). Yes, I am alive, even though I have not written anything in almost four (yes, FOUR!) months. Seriously, time, you go by too quickly. Please slow down.
I was reading a couple of my first posts on this site from four years ago, and found this blog almost to be a bit of a diary of my life since I moved up to the Hudson Valley. To bring you up to speed on these past four months, I give you pictures (as this overcast/windy weather has caused me to feel a bit lazy this afternoon. That, and the tough swim workout I just did).
Back at the beginning of the summer I completed my first sprint triathlon with some fellow colleagues, and had an absolute blast (I didn’t do too shabby, either). It was so fun to do some training ride/runs/swims with other people, and to see them finish their first race! In August I was reintroduced to mountain biking after a nine month hiatus while I was training for the Patriot Half. The first day back was up in Rutland for Kevin’s birthday. I must admit, the first day back in the saddle was rough. I could not get myself to relax, nor be able to see the trails through my tear-filled eyes. Over time, though, I found my mountain bike legs again, and cannot believe I spent so much time apart from this type of biking. It is exhilarating when you are able to challenge yourself and tackle obstacles in the woods. I do have bruises from when I was not so successful at those obstacles, too. I’ve been busy baking (I even had my first wedding order!) and saving lives at work, “one percocet at a time,” as a nursing friend of mine said once. I’ve also been doing a lot of soul searching, taking one day at a time to try and better myself and face internal deamons and any road blocks that might come my way full force, as hard and painful as it might feel. I was given the chance to live, and I am going to do it. Since fall is my favorite time of year, I’ve tried to take advantage of the amazing weather we’ve had (excluding today) with runs/long rides. Kevin even went for a 60 miler with me! (To be fair, I did not realize the ride would be that long.) By now, however, he knows that when I suggest we go for a ride/walk/jog, he needs to actually double my suggested distance. :-p I also signed up for the next challenge in my life: Ironman Lake Placid 2015. I’ve thought long and hard before signing up for it, and, as long as I can remember, (and as long as I have been documenting in this blog!) I’ve been in awe of the event. There has always been something deep down inside that has drawn me to the race. Everyone has their reasons for embarking on their “journey to Ironman,” and, for sure, I have my own. Yes, my family and friends think I am bonkers for wanting to do such a race. But, ever since the Patriot Half, I’ve missed training (maybe I really have gone off the deep end!). I know the training will be tough. I know it will be painful. I know it will take a lot of time. I know I have nothing to prove to anyone. Still, it’s something that I am determined to do. For me, the journey means just as much as the race.
As I mentioned in my last post, I believe I could use some more training in the water if I ever want to do another triathlon again. I think I added more distance by swimming away and then back towards the buoys. I was five minutes slower than my goal time in the water, and yet felt breathless jogging up to transition. Official race pictures show an angry Molly.
I thought I was happy that I finished the swim?!?
I was lucky to be helped by a volunteer who ended up stripping my wetsuit for me and I slowly grabbed my bicycle gear and was off. I considered a trip to the porta john but did not want to waste time as my swim was slow. (In reality, if you swim once a week in a pool, I guess my time isn’t too horrible.)
The Bike: 2- 28mile Loops (3:26)
I must admit, I felt really good on the bike. Despite my LSD training rides being no longer than 52miles, I finished the 56 miles faster than my goal time. I think all the hills around where I live really helped me physically, and the fact the race course was basically flat was awesome. I made sure to try to eat my GU chews as I practiced on my training rides, every hour, and hydrate. Racing on an overcast day helped as I didn’t have the sun beating down on me like Mooseman. I guess nutrition has a big part to play during a race. When I finished the bike portion, I thought, “I’ve got this.” Mooseman I didn’t make the cut off limit for the bike. And with this race, I had plenty of time to finish the run portion. I decided I now needed to use a quick stop at the porta john on the way out.
Running out of transition
The Run: a 13.1mile loop (2:13)
At the beginning of the run, I decided I needed a plan to help me get through the half marathon. Yes, one would think you should have a plan set in place before the day of the race, but I don’t really function like that. Sometimes I work better under pressure. There was no music to keep my mind off of running, nor too many cheering crowds. From prior training jogs (which always ended up as fast walks) I knew if I started to walk, it would be difficult to start running again. Since there was an aid station/ water stop every mile, I planned on jogging to each water station, walk through the station to drink water, and then jog again. I had a gel around mile 3 and 7, and right at the start of mile 8 my race bib ripped away from my belt causing a small amount of anxiety as I do not run with spare pins. This actually seemed to keep me occupied for a while as I jogged: trying to figure out how to attach my bib (sound familiar?). Despite my trying to rig up something, I decided to bag any of my ideas and realized crooked race bib would simply have to do.
Only the run is left to go!
My jog-walk plan seemed to work well until about mile 11 when my legs started getting really tired. I think mentally I felt tired and just wanted to finish the race. I already approached my mid-race goal of 6:30 and negative thinking started to set in. But I kept trucking along, slowly. Finally, we approached Cathedral Camp and the finish line. Any potential negative feelings turned into positive ones, and I saw Kevin and Bev along the end, cheering me on. Passing through the finish line I heard “Here comes Molly Geuss from Rhinebeck, New York.”
I Finished.
I heard my name and home town announced, something I never heard at Mooseman.
I finished my first full triathlon, not to mention, a half IM distance triathlon. In 6:36.
I may not have placed, and I may not have finished in 6:30, but I originally set out to finish in the allocated time, and that I did. I managed not to have a panic attack in my wet suit, and finish without asking for assistance in the water. I was able to follow my nutrition plan on the bike and run.
In September she finished her first oly triathlon and I had finished my first oly duathlon. That day, we both finished our first 70.3 distance triathlon!
I was able to witness my Mountain Biking/Triathlete friend achieve third place in her first long distance triathlon as well.
A huge thank you goes to my man for being there at the finish for me, and enduring 6 hrs of waiting and boredom.
I remember on our drive to MA telling Kevin I just had to get through this race, and I would never have to do a triathlon or 70.3 distance race ever again. He told me he wanted a written, notarized statement from me saying that I would never want to do a 70.3 again. I suppose that is the effect pre-race jitters have on you.
The post-race high, however, might have changed my mind about future 70.3 races 😛
Yes, I am aware I have been slacking on this whole blogging thing; such is life. But, I figured I should post something about my recent triathlon–one which I actually FINISHED (insert a million smiley faces), not only that, but finished faster than I expected. Since there is so much to share regarding this race, and the fact it is almost dinner time and I need to work the next couple of days, I decided to separate the post into a couple different installments. Yes, the post about Mooseman was gut wrenching to write. But this post may just be the polar opposite 🙂
Before the Race
The days leading up to the race were raining and yucky–perfect for stopping any motivation I may have had to sneak in an extra ride or run. Truth be told, my conception of “tapering” meant “do as little training as possible.” I did follow my training plan for the most part. And, I even swam in my wetsuit twice (I’ve mentioned how I despise swimming in one). With all the hills around us, I just couldn’t be motivated to do longer than 50-55miles on any long ride, especially knowing I would be jogging after. Sure, back in the autumn I went on multiple 50+ mile rides a week, but those rides never proceeded runs. Or attempts to run. My thought process was, “hey, I’ve run numerous half marathons this year. I’ll be find running on race day.” My mindset preparing for this race was completely different than the last time I trained for a triathlon. Nutrition? Unlike the last race when I thought you would be able to complete a full half IM eating perhaps one power bar and drinking gatorade, this time around I started my nutrition plan when I began my long rides. In the end, I think it helped. Finishing a couple long bricks made me hopeful that I would finish this race. I was filled with postitive excitement for the race.
And then I had a seizure. One week before race day.
Yes, I’ve had them before; I was diagnosed with Epilepsy when I was 16. But I’ve gone for a couple years being seizure free. This one, however,came out of the blue. I kept thinking, “I didn’t even do a long hard brick work out today….I fueled well…I think I hydrated myself enough…” It has been years since I have had two seizures within six months of each other. If you have epilepsy, you know the feelings associated with having a seizure. Thankfully for me, I know when I’m going to have one. But despite the fact that I know I will “survive” a seizure, the post-ictal phase (or when you are “coming to” from having one) freaks the living day light out of me. It is a weird out of body experience, and there is always a small part of me that is terrified that I will have a seizure that will be prolonged requiring medical intervention.
By chance I had a doctors appointment a day after I had a seizure and I was trying to think of things which might have provoked it. It couldn’t have been physical exhaustion; I had completed far tougher brick workouts in the weeks prior, and the day before the seizure I only did a small easy brick–one I’ve done time and time again- which never caused me to have one. Even thinking back to when I worked night shifts with sleep deprivation and lack of nutrition, I never had one. My doc, on the other hand, thought differently. In fact, he advised me against doing the race. He told me I was at a higher risk for having a seizure when my electrolytes were out of balance and probably had one as a result of not a single work out, but an accumulation of stress on my body. “It is your body, but just keep in mind what can happen when you push yourself to the limits.”
Not exactly what you want to hear the week before a race which you have been training months for, huh?
Having this seizure changed my feelings towards the race. It especially changed the feelings I had towards swimming. Before, I had no problems swimming by myself. Heck, it was something I loved to do–being the sole person swimming at dawn at Onteora (or Stissing) while the water is still with a mirrored reflection of the trees, and the songs of birds brought on a sense of serenity and peace that biking and running never really brought. It was a sense of calm. Over night, my feelings about swimming changed drastically. For the first time, I was afraid to swim by myself. I remember a couple days after having the episode, going to Stissing and looking out thinking, “there is no one here. What if I have an aura…What if I have a seizure and no one sees me and I drown?What if I get to the beach, but can’t swim back to the car? What if I have a seizure during the race?” These feelings of anxiety were different than those I felt having to swim in a wetsuit. I actually feared for my life. (Sounds crazy, I know).
Somehow, I managed to just face this forgotten fear of the water and just swim. Race day was soon approaching, and the thoughts of Mooseman were still fresh in my mind. I couldn’t just give up on all these months of training because of what happened. I’ve never let my epilepsy stop me from doing what I wanted to do in the past, so why let it govern my life now?
The Race
The Patriot Half IM takes place in East Freetown, MA, a little less than three-and-a-half hours away from me. My chief cheerleader and chauffeur took Friday off and we drove down, and, like we have the tendency to do on races that take place out of town, made a mini-trip out of it. (By “trip” I mean stay in a hotel and eat dinners out. Yes, very exciting I know. But when you have not had a weekend off from work in over a month, an over-nighter trip in a hotel in a different state is freaking amazing.) The race itself is small–limited to 1000 participants and that includes the aquabike portion (please don’t ask me what aquabike means. I assume you swim then bike then swim, but really have no idea.) The whole vibe from the event differed tremendously from Mooseman three years ago. For one, it was raining and dreary. For another, there weren’t a zillion vendors offering free samples (I admit it, I love those free samples from race expos!). Long pond, where the swim would take place, is the largest body of fresh water in Massachusetts. Kevin willingly stayed while we listened to pre-race tips and then we headed out to dinner for the big pre-race dinner. As we departed and learning what I should do for my transition, Kevin stated the only transition he would be doing is from his bike to the couch with a beer 🙂 Ohh my love.
I think I have everything I need
It is my tradition to have a veggie burger with french fries the night before any race (I’m not a pasta kind of girl) but the restaurant we went to didn’t have any veggie burgers. So, I decided on a sandwich with french fries. I don’t think I have ever, in my life, said, “I think I will eat this because it has more carbs.” I may never say that again, either.
I’ve read that it is typical before long-distances races for participants to have trouble sleeping; I was no exception to this. I kept thinking of the place I was in three years ago before I attempted my first half IM and triathlon. Man, I’ve grown so much since then, not only as an athlete but as a person as well. So much can change in three years.
My 0430 alarm went off sooner than I would have liked. I’m not sure if I know of any non-athletes (or athletes) who enjoy waking up at that time on their weekend days off. But my man was a trooper and we were able to grab some grub before I did some last-minute foam rolling and were out the door headed to the race course. (Our hotel provided early breakfast for those participating in the Patriot Half.)
I got my body marked with my number 700 and set up my transition area.
I’ve never had a specific spot in transition before.
Triathlons include way more accessories than duathlons and the transition area seemed so much more cluttered than my usual transition areas at races. Mind you, this race was three times longer than my normal duathlon race so, I guess there would be more “things.” I got zipped up in my wetsuit and kept thinking calming thoughts. Instead of fearing the suit and thinking it was constricting my airway and choking me, I decided to think of it more as a flotation device to help me in the swim. Mind control :-p
Pre-swim warm up
There were people getting into the water to warm up a bit and after I had a gel, decided to do that in order to acclimate to the temperature of the water. I swam for a couple strokes to warm up and the fear, tension, and anxiety I felt was nowhere to be found.
See me? I’m the one in the wet suit and pink cap haha
No panic attack means thumbs up!
It just so happens a fellow Hudson Valley-ite/mountain biker/triathlete/duathlete who has been in a number of local races I have done in the past was at this triathlon too. It was great having her there, to get triathlon/swimming tips from someone who has done triathlons and group swims in the past. She also brought it to my attention that my number, 700, could be read as “007.” Little did she know that would have a big effect on me during the run portion of the race.
Bev–an amazing person 🙂 and fellow Hudson Valley athlete
The 1.2mile Swim
Unlike Mooseman, Patriot’s swim start was a “time trial” start. Instead of having a mass exodus of swimmers (which is what I remembered), three swimmers ran into the water to start the swim every ten seconds. Swim waves were categorized by age group. A pro to this style of swim start (not that I can really speak of triathlons, since I haven’t really ever completed a full one before) is that you are not surrounded by thousands of swimmers splashing at you and trying to drown you. A con is that you are unable to acclimate to the water. ( That mini-swim I decided to do ended up being a good idea as I knew what the water temperature would be likes). Before I knew it, it was my turn to start the swim. If I was able to finish the swim portion of Mooseman in frigid water, I could do this. And sure enough, I did. From the start I was able to get into my normal rhythm of breathing. As I swam I thought, “Just keep swimming.”
A Rendezvous with Sneakers 