Tupelo Training is Starting!

Saturday is the deadline for the other triathlon. Between the deaths in both our families, I don't think Marc or I will be ready. So... we've set our sights on Tupelo. They do a 14.2 mile and a full marathon on Labor Day weekend every year. I've paid to be in it 3 times. I've actually run it once. Years 1 and 3 being taken out by hurricane Katrina and tendonitis, respectively.

We picked an 8 week plan, so it started on Monday. Accordingly, I got my new running shoes last week. I really love Asics Nimbus, so that is what I bought. This is my 4th pair of Nimbus'. Of course, my first pair is still my favorite, but they're too shot to run in. I will never understand why when the new versions come out, the price of the old versions doesn't plummet (for example, they're on the Nimbus 11s now, and they are $125, but the 10s are still that at many stores). There is a great store in IL called Body and Sole that sells Asics online. I typically use them to get the best deal.

Today was the first run in the new shoes. They did great. I however did not. It was sprint day. I paid for all my food sins in triplicate. Hopefully this will be a little reminder to keep me on the straight and narrow, and away from the cookies. Or I will just get used to feeling sick...

And Now A Rant

It has been great to be back in the gym. Day 8 of Jillian's workout is pretty brutal. All of her circuits tend to end with some kind of intense aerobic burst of activity. Often this involves sprinting on a treadmill or running at a pretty steep incline. One particular activity which counts as a full circuit is a 5-minute drill of 30 seconds on and 30 seconds off at a pretty high speed. The Sanderson Center is convenient in that it's located on campus, but quite frankly the situation with their treadmills is pretty dire. They have 5 treadmills, 2 of which do not go above 5 mph, and of the remaining 3, 1 has a broken hydraulic so it will not raise. This leaves 2 treadmills. Awesome, there are only 2 of us right? Well, no. Began rant:

If you're just going to walk, then either walk on the stupid track upstairs or use one of the treadmills that goes 5 mph or less. Or how about this - walk outside. You know, nature's treadmill. You don't need the fancy treadmills. Leave those for people who want to run! Is it this hard?

And for what people pay to use the Sanderson I would assume they could afford to buy a couple treadmills! I am told most of their money goes to overhead. Well, I'm sorry, you don't need 4 people to sit and drink coffee to welcome people to the gym. You don't need 3 trainers to socialize behind a desk. You don't need 2 lifeguards to sleep while 1 watches for drowning victims. You don't need 4 people to sit in a membership office and watch videos on youtube. I realize these are student jobs, but maybe hire some engineering majors who can at least fix the equipment when it breaks.

End rant.

The Pros and Cons of Swimming Caps

I was so excited to get the fancy silicon swim cap. After months of having my hair yanked by the latex one, its sleek and silky glide action was most welcome. I have discovered that this creates a problem of its own. The silicon cap doesn't stay on like the latex one. It slips up as the swim goes on. I can't stand to have water in my ears. With the latex cap I just pulled it over the ears and we were good. The silicon one refuses to stay in place. It is letting water in my ears. Water in my ears makes me nauseated. And thus, the problem. Nauseated or bald? This is not an easy choice.

Sore, Very Sore

It's been a week and I don't know how I used to do this for weeks on end. Everything on my body hurts, and we didn't even work out today. Tomorrow is the Kim C. Gee 5K. I just hope I'm not too sore to run. My hip flexors are shot. It's hard to lift my legs. This does not bode well for running hills tomorrow, and campus can be very hilly. It's been good getting back into the routine though. It distracts me from life and makes me feel like I'm working towards something. We have three weeks to decide if we want to sign up for the Wet Dog Triathlon in Decauter, AL. I'm going to have to do better than I did this week if I can expect to make it!

Starting Over, Take 2

Last week took a downward turn, so it's really THIS week that we're starting over. I was just kidding about last week. Marc and I also decided that the Race for Grace wasn't going to happen. Not with a month off staring both of us in the face. There are tris up through October though, so there are plenty to pick from. I am just amazed at how much fitness I have lost in a month. Even though I've been running, I still feel like I just can't get enough air to swim more than a lap. I don't really enjoy feeling like this.

Right now the goal is just to get back to where I am ready to do a triathlon. At the moment I would probably just keel over half way into the swim (so it's good in a way that I would be in water, so it wouldn't hurt...although there is the problem of drowning to consider).

Starting Over

Now that I've had a few weeks off, it's time to get back to it. It's amazing how quickly the fitness drops. I didn't know if I would be able to swim more than 5 laps this morning. I looked at the clock and there were still 20 minutes left. Yikes.

Marc and I are deliberating about doing the Race for Grace Tri on the 28th. The deadline for early registration is Sunday. Mostly it depends on if I can find the time to train and Marc can get his back to hold up. The swim isn't much longer, but the bike is 10 miles longer, and that's a pretty big step up.

Results for Soak Up the Sun were finally published. I got 2nd in my group, and 275/366 overall. My times worked out as follows:

Swim 8:17.4
T1 2:48.6 (stupid fight with my shirt cost a lot of time!)
Bike 34:52.2
T2 1:15.6
Run 18:39.1

Total Time 1:05:53.1