Austin 70.3 Half Ironman Race Report

So this was THE race I had been planning for all year.  

The 70.3 Austin Half Marathon.

Starting Temp: 63 F/Finishing Temp 90 F 
Total Time: 8:13:21 

Pre Race
Alarm went off at 4am.  The LaQuinta Airport was gracious enough to put out food at 4am.  I had a banana, toast and egg white.  I had nervous stomach so it was a challenge to eat that.

We get to to the race site.  They gave us bags for all of our gear and we were required to keep it all inside these plastic draw string bags.  So there was no laying out the gear like I am used to.  I felt nervous because we had to check in the bike the night before and I was not able to pump my tires in the morning like usual.  That was probably more of a superstition than anything else.

We were shuttled to the swim start and had to wait 2 hours until our wave time.  We laid out our towels under a tree, and shockingly, I actually fell back asleep with the wet suit as my pillow.

Swim:  Wetsuit or no wetsuit?
1:01:53 (1.2 Miles)
I am not a fan of the wet suit.  It is hot and cumbersome.  But it does allow buoyancy...and being a slow swimmer, I need all the help I can get.  So it was a wetsuit swim. We had 2 waves starting behind us, both of them, men 30-34.  We start swimming and I am swimming quite well with the pack, that is until I notice ladies stopping all around me.  I am back to the anxiety hitting me again and this makes it hard to breathe with my swim stroke.  I stop and start several times.  I hear the countdown of the wave behind me and see the men coming towards me in a triangle formation (like birds flying together in the sky).  I swim towards the nearest kayak and hold on until the massive group flies by.  After that, I finally found a groove and just went buoy to buoy until I finally made it to the end.  The water was cool and calm and I found myself enjoying the swim in this lake. 

When I jumped out of the water, I had a surprise waiting for me.  My friend Juliana was waiting for me and cheering at the top of her lungs.  I did not know anyone was planning to be there.  My demon of the triathlon is the swim so to conquer and have this behind me was already an emotional moment, so when I saw her, it took all my strength to NOT bawl my eyes out.  It was a magical, powerful moment, so if I ever get the chance to pay it forward, I am not passing up on it.  If you are a spectator, dont ever underestimate what you do for your athlete and for all the people out there you dont know.  Your presence is so powerful. I am always so grateful for ANY words of encouragement.  Thank you so much for all the well wishes and everyone who was rooting for me in spirit.

T1:
6:57
Well,considering you have to finagle out of a wetsuit, and shove it into a tiny little plastic bag, this was not gonna be a quickie for me.  In the meantime, I am still trying not to bawl like a baby after completing the swim so I am intently trying to focus on each item. 

Bike:
 3:45:21 (56 miles)
So, I loved, loved, loved the bike.  I enjoyed every moment of it and it flies by for me. There are hills but there are not any I wasn't prepared to handle.  I am holding back on my speed to keep my legs fresh for the run. I have my nutrition timed out, my electrolytes paced out.  I went through 3 full tanks in my Camelbak of sports drink and ate a Hammer Gel every hour like clockwork.  I think all is well, or so I thought.

T2: 
8:49
As I dismounted the bike, a volunteer asked me if I was okay.  I told him I was doing well as I hopped off the bike.  I sat down to change my socks (blister prevention).  Downed another pair of Endourolyte pills and chased it down with some more sports drink.  And off I go on the run.

Run:
3:10:21 (13.1 miles)
I am surprised how easily I am able to run....until I hit the half mile mark. 

My quads begin to lock up. 

Now, I have had charley horses in my calves before...but not like this in my quads in the beginning of a run.  I am not sure what to do.  I try walking, high knees, kick butts and stretches.  Nothing seems to help. It is now 90 degrees and it is hot.  When I try to compensate for the quad cramps, my feet cramp up or my calves.  This was so not cool.

At every rest stop I am double fisting with water and Gatorade.  I am craving salt, but all they have is sugar, cookies, coca cola and gels and all I want is pickles...or potato chips...or even chicken broth.  I am in the worst pain.  I take more Endourolyte pills which give me temporary relief and this enables me to run in short spurts but it does not last long.  I am walking most of the distance.

A man is laid out on his back on the road with the same problem.  An EMT dude is helping him stretch.  I see a lady in tears, and another EMT kinda tells her, "it sucks to be you but you can do it!" (in so many words).

I can see now I have limited options here.  Quit, or keep going.

I joked on Facebook about having to crawl, but now I am willing to do anything but quit.  I did not come this far to finish at 66 miles.  I start to hear the music of the finish line and I am determined to run it in.  My legs cramp again so I shoot my legs the finger because there is no way am I walking across the finish line.

I am not sure how I pulled it off, but I finally finish and unfortunately, it is in tears. 

Although it wasn't pretty,  at least I completed every tiny inch of it. Thank goodness I did not quit.

At least I can finally say, I completed a half IRONMAN. 

Post Analysis
Wow, did I learn alot from this 70.3 race.  Next time, I will bring a salt back-up.  After talking to my coach and reading some articles, I learned my cramping was due to sodium loss also know as Hyponatremia.  And here I thought I was doing everything correctly, even with  my Endouralytes pills. 

When you read the label of the bottle...each pill has 40mg.

A heavy sweater (that is me) can lose up to 1-2 grams of sodium per hour which is equivalent to 1000-2000 milligrams.  You will notice that most of the labels are in milligrams.

So if I was taking 2 Endouralyte pills an hour, plus the Gatorade which has 140mg a serving....that STILL does not even come close to recovering the sodium I was losing, and I do not even need to be a math major to figure that one out.  

Interesting lesson learned here.  My sweating was accelerated when I jumped off the bike with the heat.  I also refilled my Camelbak with water at the last stop, assuming that the sports drink that was left at the bottom would be enough electrolytes to carry me through.  That only diluted the sodium levels I had left in my body.

Oh well, next time, I will know how to beat those stinkin cramps.  Oh yes, there will be a next time...Galveston 70.3, do I hear you calling my name?

Sooo....here are my top 10 favorite moments of my Austin 70.3 Half Ironman experience.

10.  The training.  Yes, I actually enjoyed the training and I am not ready to give it up yet.

9.  My body.  The changes to the body are amazing.  Especially since I have never been a swimmer.  Swimming really has really reshaped my upper torso. It is an added bonus that my clothes fit differently now.

8. Wearing the cool visor, tshirt and staring at the medal. They all remind me that I did it!!!  Even if it was painful, I still did it!

7. The sunrise over the lake.  The swim was really beautiful once I started to relax.  Bright blue skies and the Austin shoreline was so breathtaking.

6. The music as you are waiting for the gun to go off.  It is an AWESOME feeling!

5.  The music as you get closer to the finish line.  Need I say more?

4.  Crossing the finish line and hugging Charlie and Jessica. 

3.  Getting your photo taken in front of the 70.3 backdrop.  (Especially when you get to pose like the Hulk)

2.  Seeing all the amazing support from all my coach Pam, friends and family back home on my Facebook page and seeing and hearing Juliana cheer for me as I exited the swim.  Those thoughts, words and moments were just priceless.

1.  Completing the race with two of my wonderful friends, Jessica and Valerie.  To have them to confide in and share tips in all through the training and on race day was invaluable.  I am so grateful for my two rabbits.  There will never be another first with the 70.3 event and I was able to share it with them.

Growing Up

When I was in college, a typical weekend of fun was staying up into the wee hours of the morning and tearing the body down by getting "wasted".  I would not remember half the stupid idiotic things I said or did and I almost always felt like crap the next day.  I spent money on clothes and make-up and tried to impress people who most likely did not remember anything as much as I did.  I ate whatever I wanted and my workouts consisted of occasionally going to the gym and doing the stair master for 20 minutes.

I pretended that partying was my idea of fun.  But if I could really be me and have fun, I would be content reading at home with a good book and favorite music.  Or I would just paint. Or play outdoors.  Hang out at coffee shops and have one of those conversations that you would actually remember afterward and made you feel as if time was suspended.  Or listen to live music while I sketched the surrounding crowd. 

But that was not cool.  Or if it was, I was too intimidated to speak up and tell my friends otherwise.

So I carried on, living this double life, pretending to like what everyone else liked.

Party on, Garth.

But deep down, I was bored with that lifestyle.

Until one day, I looked at a photograph of myself and I did not recognize myself anymore. I had gained weight.  My skin was a mess and I was having all kinds of digestion issues...like heartburn every time I ate something.  I spent all this money on make up and clothes to somehow transform myself to someone I did not even know.

So you start to explore different ideas, but it is not easy to get started.

Breaking a paradigm that has been your life for the past 30 years is not easy to do.

At the time, I was flying and was eating out quite a bit.

My veggies consisted of the tomato and lettuce on my Wendy's quarter pounder.

Switching to a desk job was one of the smartest moves I ever made because it got me off the road and not eating out as much.  It put me on a regular schedule.  It enabled me to join Kingwood Fit and make a new circle of friends.

Slowly, one step at a time, and before you know it...you wake up and you are finally on the path you want to be.  Man, I wish I knew all this earlier in life. But if you told me back then, I probably wouldn't have believed it anyway.

It all has to happen in due time.

So to look back on the past 5 years, I have come a long way.

My Friday evening now consists of a happy hour swimming at a lake with friends at sunset.

Instead of going to bed after a wild night out, I am getting up at 5am on a Saturday to run 11 miles with my running buddies.  And having a coffee shop conversation afterward with my good friend that suspends time.

Getting dressed up for a "Girls Night Out" means getting dolled up to sit around a table at a comfy restaurant, for ONE (or maybe 2) glass(es) of wine, or water with dinner to discuss training plans, race details and funny stories.  (You don't want to get wasted because you still have to train the next day and since everyone understands this there is not a single word of pressure otherwise.)

Sundays are now set aside for bike rides through the country roads.  I am outdoors and I have never been happier.  I am where I am supposed to be.

Money is spent on road trips, race fees or workout clothing.

T-shirts (bonus if they are cute race shirts) and running shorts now make up my favorite wardrobe. 

My skin is back to normal.  My body is in better shape than it was 10 years ago. 

So does this mean I am finally content and have reached ultimate perfection?

Bwah hah ha ha ha ha!!  Never.

We are always evolving growing beings.  It will never end.

There are still so many things I have to learn and goals I want to reach. Still working on my diet, financial goals and I am curious about the minimalist lifestyle.  And I am sure once I figure out those, new goals will take their place.

There is something said about growing older...you definitely grow wiser.  And you start to learn where you REALLY want to spend your time.

How you want to build your body up and not down and surround yourself with people who are on that same page as you.

It can truly make all the difference on the quality of your life.

Bottom line...I just don't want this amazing ride to end and I am looking forward to where I get to go next.   Does it really get better than this?!? 

Minor Setback

So I went to Boeing last week in Everett, Washington (just outside of Seattle).  Had the most amazing business trip ever with a tour of the Boeing factory, ate lots of delicious food every day, enjoyed the cool temperatures and green wilderness with snow capped mountains.  Sigh.

Tried to run up there, but after being offered a ride from a drunk dude coming out of the casino next door to the hotel, I was no longer comfortable with my surroundings.  I tried to run, but I had a hard time relaxing and I was paranoid about every stranger (a.k.a random creepy dudes) around me.  My run was more of a run/walk and then I used the resistance band inside my hotel room. 

A mediocre workout at best.

This was last Wednesday.

I returned to Houston early Friday morning, ready to turn it up again after work when Hurricane Irene derailed my plans. 

Wait, didn't you say you were in Houston?  Yeah, but when working for the airline business, any hurricane impacting a major airport that we run out of, effects every employee.  It was a night of working late, with all hands on deck.

Saturday...blah day.  Overslept my alarm and napped on and off all day.  I blamed it on the time change. 

Sunday, I will start the day as a superstar.

My body had other plans for me.  Migraine knocked at my door accompanied by his best friend Vomiting.  Pestered me all day. Not the day I had in mind.

So you would think, I would be ready to throw my hands up and surrender, right?

Not when you have the most amazing tri coach to help you put things in perspective.  In her eyes, this is minor in the whole scheme of things.  She thinks I will come back bigger and better with all the rest I am getting.  With a whole year of working hard towards a goal...what is one week?

I am going to listen to her, and listen to my body.  After all, isn't this all just a mental game?

Of course it is.

You have not defeated me yet, Mr. Half Ironman.

Oh no, if I am going down, I am going down swinging!

2011 Bridgeland Race Report

A year ago, this was my first sprint triathlon with an open water swim. I finally have a chance to see how much my times have improved over a year.

I was pretty exhausted already after throwing a baby shower for my sister-in-law the day before.  But somewhere I found a second wind to pull this off. I had laid out all my clothes and equipment the night before so I was pretty confident that I had everything.  Transition set-up went quite smoothly that morning.

This 2011 race will always be an extra special one for me since Charlie signed up for his first triathlon.  The course is in the Bridgeland development which is on 290 and Fry road.  So cool to finally get to do a race together.  And our friend Jenn...it is her first too.  We have to leave our house at 4:30am.  We all pile into Jessica's SUV where her awesome husband drove us all down and stayed to root us on.

There is quite an increase in the number of people from last year.  But as expected, the OnUrMark racing productions is extremely well organized and the extra people were well accommodated.

It is a beautiful cloudless morning and I have an hour before my wave starts after transition closes.   Charlie is the first age group wave after the professionals and I feel nervous for him.  As I watch him take off and I see he is okay, my nerves get the best of me and I decide to hit the port-o-potties. Whoops...line is crazy long and I decide I do not have to go that bad.  I sit on the shore and wait.  I chat with 22 year old swimmer next to me who is in shock that I am 35.  I think she  made my head triple in size but least it took my mind off being nervous! 

Swim: 500 M
Well, my goal is to swim freestyle the entire time with little to no stopping. Well, I managed to swim about 90 percent of it freestyle.  I found a groove and decided to take Coach Pam's advice and sing a song.  The first song to come to mind was Vanilla Ice's "Ice, Ice, Baby" because I truly know all the words without music.  I am cruising right along and sighting along the coast and I think I am doing quite well until I pause for a moment to look up and discover I am way outside the buoy. I am quite a bit off course. Yikes!!  I had to take a hard left another 25 yards to position myself on the inside of the buoy.  I am feeling a little frantic inside because I do not want a DQ penalty for being off course. There went my groove...from that point on I was back to bobbing my head up and down every few strokes to see where I was at. Not what I envisioned at all.  I must master the alligator technique to sight in front of me and not just to the side.

Note to self: Must add extra open water practices to my 70.3 race training.

2010: 17:01
2011: 16:27 (not as improved as I was hoping to see, but I will take it)

T1:
Because of my blister issue, I decided to bring 2 different pairs of socks.  I knew this would affect my transition times but thought it would be worth it to have dry feeties (yes, I invented that word).  I am still trying to master the art of gracefully drying off and putting on socks over my soggy feet ALL this while I heavily pant from recovering from the swim.

2010: 3:24
2011: 2:54

Bike: 13.5 MILES
Did I mention I love my Felt bike??  I feel like a rocket on it.  The only ladies that passed me had the Lamborghini type bikes and I was okay with that.  The course was flat and fast and I really enjoyed it.  I even pulled back a little at the end to save my legs for the run.

2010: 51:49 (16.2 mph-14 miles)
2011: 41:00 (19.8 mph)

T2:
This is where I took a hit putting on my dry socks.  Oh but it was so worth it not to run with "squish, squish" sounds in my feet.

2010: 2:35
2011: 2:10 (estimated from my Garmin since timing company lost the official T2 time)

Run: 3.65 MILES
Okay, so here is where I discovered my epic fail.  I did not drink enough while on the bike.  So as I start running...I am obsessed with all things water.  The water stations can not come up fast enough and all I want to do is drink.  The first mile is on unshaded sidewalk and the sun gave me a beating.  I did a combination of run/walking until I hit the shaded trails. Halfway thru the trails, we hit the oasis of iced sponges.  Then I think my Hammer Gel kicked in and my legs sprang to life. But by that time, the damage had been done and I could not recover my overall time on the run with the last mile and a half.   Hard lesson learned.

2010: 46:00 (13:06 pace/3.5 miles)
201l:  41:55 (11:29 pace--Again, since the official race results combined the run with T2 time...I am going by my Garmin)

Overall:
I really enjoy this race every year.  The swag is so choice.  I like when the tech shirts are actually fitted to the body.  Everyone gets nice finisher medals and a water bottle.  The race director really knows how to treat the triathletes. The after party had a live band and a mini expo.  Pizza and My Fit Foods were available after the race.

2010: 2:01:16 (Age group 43 out of 44)
2011: 1:44:27 (Age group 48 out of 74)

Charlie survived but said that this triathlon will probably be his one and only.  Just not his cup of tea...

He told me that he has a new respect for me now on how tough they can be.  Last year he did not understand why I would even think of walking during the run portion.

Now he completely understands the method to my madness.

Well, maybe a small part of my madness.

Sigh.  Okay...maybe just a tiny glimpse of my madness.

But even just knowing that still makes me grin from ear-to-ear!

Totally worth it to me to have him there with me....even if it is only once.

My Midterm Progress Report: 70.3 Training

I am about halfway through my half marathon training.  I am feeling pretty good.  I had a couple of setbacks with my blister infection and migraine issues but I don't think it put me behind as much as I thought it did. 

I feel this need to stand back and reassess.

Swimming:  C+
I think I had a break through last Saturday.  After a 10 mile run, I had to swim 1200 meters without stopping.  And what do you know, I did it!  It went better than I thought.  Except for goggle adjusting, I did not stop to catch my breath.  I am finally swimming without feeling like suffocating.  Now if only I can replicate this in open water.  My goal for the 2nd half of training is to get my butt out to 288 Lake more often!  At least I have a couple of triathlons to get me started in the month of August.

Biking: B
I am feeling really good about the bike.  I feel ahead of the game with my training.  I rode 55 miles at the Katy Flatlands and my legs were strong.  I definitely need to get more hill work in there.  And keep pushing the distance.  Biking has become my strongest leg.  I am having to give up my sleep-in Sunday mornings to get my long rides in...and that is probably the most challenging part of the training. My inner child is throwing a fit.

Running: B-
Kingwood Fit has started up again.  It definitely helps to have my buds at my side.  I don't know how I would be getting through these runs without them.  I felt a huge challenge in my last 10 mile run but I blamed it on the fact I took a week and a half off to let me foot heal.  I need to start pushing the pace to the next level.  Step out of my comfort zone.  I also need to find some hills to tackle. 

Strength Training:  F
I am skipping many of my strength training workouts.  I feel so guilty about this.  I need to dig deep for the motivation.  I signed up for boot camp mid July and that went well.  But I have not done a push-up or a plank since and that was 3 weeks ago.  I have no excuse for my slacking.  None.

Diet: D
I am not happy with my diet habits.  I have only dropped 3 pounds since I started training.  All the added time of working out is making my appetite go through the roof.  I am always hungry!!  I wanted to go through a week of juicing.  Failed.  I wanted to go a week without sweets and sugar.  Failed that too.  I still tend to overeat at meals and feel like this is where my lack of discipline is rearing its ugly head.  I need to go back to planning mode and focus on eating healthier meals. That said...I need to stop eating out so much.  Ugh.

Overall: C
I see my body toning up and it feels pretty good. I am not where I wanted to be by this point, but I am not in a bad place either.  I can see how there is so much room for improvement.  The good news is, I still have time to do it.  I still would like to be 10 pounds lighter for my racing weight, but to do that...I really need to focus on the diet aspect of training.  The workouts are getting longer and tougher and I know it is only going to get harder.  I need to flip the switch and turn it up a level.  If this is only the training for a Half Ironman, I can not even imagine doubling this for a full Ironman. 

I bow to you, all those Ironmen out there.  I am in awe of you. 

There is a mental side of training that I was not expecting.  The part that wants to freak out and say, "What the H, double hockey sticks, are you doing???"  Why are you getting up at 4:20am to run 10 miles on a Saturday and swim 1200 meters afterward; only to get up the following Sunday and do a 3 hour bike ride with hills followed by another 20 minute run?  Yeah.

It is pure torture to look back each morning and see Charlie all cozy in bed with Gizmo curled up next to him. And each day you try not to collapse back into bed. It is almost like your mind is doing mental pushups every day.

Every day, there is the challenge to complete each workout without cheating, without skipping, without modification.  Each workout turns into its own mini victory. Somehow, you just keep going...one workout at a time. 

And each day, I say a little prayer that somehow if I just keep trucking, I will be ready when I get there.  Here goes part 2 of the training plan.  Have MERCY!

Reflections of a Book Worm

I am a bona fide book worm.

As a kid, I would spend hours in the library and take home as many books as my arms could carry.  I read anything by Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Ronald Dahl, and yes, even the Babysitter Club series. I love the smell of books and the stillness of the library.  Big comfy chairs that ate you up as you let yourself get lost in a book.   I fondly remember strolling the shelves looking for another treasure yet to be found. Bookstores were my favorite layover past time. And used book sales?  I am like a kid in a candy store.

I received an email last night informing me Borders is going out of business.

I feel like I did the day Jim Henson died.

Is this the end of bookstores?  Is this beginning of the end of the printed book?  Is Barnes and Noble next?

I know I am the first to embrace technology and I love my Kindle.  It is nice to have hundreds of books at your fingertips without walking like a hunch back.  It nice to have open wall spaces with less clutter.  And I like saving trees.

I had a hard time letting go of film photography too, as I came into the field just as digital photography was skyrocketing. It just took me time to get used to the idea, as I am sure that I too, will adjust to the electronic book era.

Oh, but how I will miss the simple beauty of a book.

There is something magical about opening an older book.  The yellowed pages with the unique fonts. The smell and feel of the pages. The gentle sound of turning pages. The mark of a coffee stain, a tear or a raindrop. It is the cornucopia to the senses and it is something technology will never capture.
 
The bookstore will soon become a memory of the past. The inviting lighting.  The smell of coffee.  The rays of sunshine coming through the window.  The mutual respect of silence.  My haven of happiness.

Sometimes it is not the actual medium I want to hold on to but the feeling it evokes or represents.

Sigh.

Cheers to you, beautiful, cozy Borders bookstores.  You will be missed dearly by this book worm.

Watching Water Boil

When it is time to get new running shoes, don't mess around. 

I usually buy running shoes when my body starts having little aches and pains after a run.  When you are in tune with your body, you will get messages. This time around the message came in blisters.  So I went to my favorite little running store a week ago and they were closed. 

So what is one more week?  Right?

I ran 7 miles Saturday morning and I was punished with 3 inch size blisters on my arches of both feet.  But really, when you are a runner...do you really whine about blisters?  You suck it up.  I ran on them so long that they eventually busted while running.  Again, really, this is not a big deal.  They are kind of like battle wounds.  I poked at the flabby skin and showed them off to anyone who did not have a weak stomach.

After the run, we headed out to Cold Springs for a bike ride and a picnic.  The hills are something I want to come back to, but not the day before a 55 mile bike ride.  I only rode for 30 minutes before my legs started protesting quite loudly. I listened.

Then we went out to the lake to practice open water swimming.  This is where I think I picked up some unwelcome guests in my busted blister. Thank goodness it was not the flesh eating bacteria kind. One thing I learned from this ordeal is that flesh eating bacteria only thrive in salt water.  (Yeah...I imagined the worst.)

The Katy Flatland ride was my first bike ride last year. Last year I rode the 26 mile route and this year I picked the 55 mile route.  It went well.  I rode alone but met some pretty cool people along the way. I have come a LONG way.  Last year, I rode my red 10 year old Walmart bike.  It was exhausting.  I did not have cycling shoes.  I did not know all the bike rules of the road.   I finished and did not know a single soul.  I left with a yearning to do more..and wishing I knew more people who like to ride. 

Quite a different story this year.    This time I had rider friends to eat with at the end.  One of my favorite parts of cycling is the hypnotic feeling you get when you ride with a group and focus on staying up with them.  I would haul butt and then draft behind anyone who would let me.  Less than a mile to the finish, I saw a truck pull out and almost take out a rider.  That was scary.  Luckily, no one was hurt.  It was another pleasant ride.  Something tells me, I will be doing it again next year too.

So it wasn't until Sunday night when the pain began.  I thought I had a supernatural immune system and I would beat it.  Charlie finally dragged me to the clinic yesterday evening and sure enough, an infection had started in my left foot.  3 days after an amazing bike ride and now I cannot walk. 

Talk about appreciating your feet and walking again.  I am struggling with not being able to keep up with my workouts and it is taking a toll on me mentally. Each day has felt like an eternity.  Hopefully I will be up and running by the weekend.  (No pun intended, of course.)  I want my body to heal faster!

It is as painful as watching water boil...sigh.