Training with The Princess Bride

Today was my catch up day – I got my ride in on my stationary bike this morning and I ran this afternoon. While the ride was a good workout, it just is nothing like cycling outside. The most enjoyable part of my ride this morning was watching the first 45 minutes of one of my all time favorite movies The Princess Bride. It is a motivating love story to watch while cycling. “Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” He trained all his life and repeated that mantra to be the best swordsman in order to avenge his father’s death. That is determination.

My run this evening was dragging. I know, another movie quote “Inconceivable!” I much prefer running in the morning with the crisp early morning air, my legs are fresh, and it energizes me through the day. This evening I felt sluggish, it was hot, and the air was heavy with humidity. But it still was a run, and that is a good thing. I am energized, yet I know I will be able to sleep well. And soon.

What I like most about the movie is that even though it has a happy ending, there was plenty of struggles, doubts, and challenges along with humor and thrilling moments, very much like training. We go through challenges swimming as if we are amongst eels, climb hills on our bikes that could be cliffs of insanity, and running through what seems like the fire swamps being chased by ROUSes. But there are the victorious moments, when our hard training has paid off, we conquer our fears, and cross the finish line. And that is a happy ending that is the result of determination and not just a wish.

Zzzzzz Or Lack There Of

I have written before on the importance of sleep. My inspiration to write on sleep comes when I suffer from deprivation of it, such as today. Last night I had the opportunity to have dinner with a new friend and I was out later than usual for a week night. Here comes the pathetic part – I was home and in bed by 11:00. Usually by 11:00 at night I have been sleeping for at least an hour and a half. Since this was a swim morning with my training partner, I was up by 4:45 to get to the pool in time to meet her. So instead of my usual seven to eight hours of sleep, I had about five and a half.

When swimming 2,500 meters in the morning, I have found five and a half hours of sleep is not sufficient. Today was proof. I did have a good swim, in fact we compared our times today from May last year and we both are considerably faster. And last year we were swimming most of our swim sets with fins. Now it is all body power. I did swim most of my swim without my ankle brace too. My fatigue set in later in the morning and no amount of caffein was going to change it. As a result, my cycle workout that I should have done this evening outside in the beautiful weather now will take place on a stationary tomorrow morning.

Flexibility is important within my training schedule, or I may never have a social life, however I am committed to my training and I do not like it when I skip a workout. Fortunately this is a recovery week, so I won’t completely miss a workout, I am just juggling things around a bit. As for the recovery part – my lack of sleep is not helping there. I don’t think lost sleep can be made up, but I have no intentions of losing any more.  Enjoying each day is so important to me, despite my sleepiness, I had a good swim, chatted with my dear friend in the hot tub after, appreciated the beautiful sunshine today and now I am going to seize the night – and sleep.

Peaking is Believing

This morning I went to the gym with the intention of running my speed intervals. I wasn’t quite sure if I would be able to run that hard considering my quads were still burning when I woke up. I figured I would warm up and decide if I would run what I had scheduled or swap with Thursday’s easy 4 mile run. When I hit the treadmill starting at a very easy pace, I quickly thought – nope this is an easy run day. My legs hurt.

But I am not one to throw in the towel quickly. So I thought I would give it one try at a 400 speed lap. I learned something this morning. Running faster does not hurt as much as jogging when recovering from a race. So I ran. I had a good workout – 7 sets of quarter mile repeats, or close to 400 meters, with approximately 200 meter walking recoveries in between. I was progressively faster with each set, starting at 6.8 (8:50 minute mile) and increasing each time by 0.1 for the first 5, reaching 7.2 (8:20 minute mile). The last two were also at 7.2. I am breaking a mental as well as physical barrier. Believing I can run fast is starting to move that long distance from my head to my heart. I also shared my training results with my running friend who helped me set this plan up. If I don’t get the belief to my heart, I think he will pound it in. I am working on my own believing, thank you.

Sometimes it really takes at least a peak to believe. The adage “seeing is believing” doesn’t help much with blind faith, but with running it sure gives me greater hope that I will continue to progress. Having a workout like today, two days after a half marathon race, proves that my little hidden doubts are wrong. I. Am. Able. It will take persistence, hard work, and staying healthy – all three I intend to do. Runners have a saying “Even a bad day with a run is better than a good day without a run.” Well today was both – a good day with a good run. And I believe I will have many more.

That Sweet Sweet Smell of Chlorine

There is nothing that sparks an instant thought as the smell of chlorine on my skin. Today at work I rested my chin in my hand and smelled the chlorine and immediately images of swimming and the pool flashed in my mind. I sent a text to my training partner to share the experience with her and she replied “I love when that happens.” After all of the swimming I did this past winter and early spring, taking off the past four days from swimming felt like an eternity. This morning my training partner and I met a half hour later than usual and swam an easy 1,000 meters.

The day after a big race it is good to do light exercise to get the lactic acid out of the muscles and an easy swim was perfect. My legs, especially my quads, are feeling the burn from my race yesterday. While it hurts, it is a good pain that reminds me I gave it my all yesterday. My ankle feels good, in fact I was able to flip turn and lightly push off the wall this morning in my workout. My calves have completely recovered so I think the cramping was due to the heat and lack of electrolyte supplements. My swim was easy enough that I didn’t stress myself yet I was still able to get my heart rate up enough to feel I got a good workout in. The best was having the extra time to soak in the hot tub after. A welcome treat for my sore quads.

I find it amazing how the slightest thing can spur a memory. The smell of chlorine and I am in the pool in my mind. The early morning crisp summer air and images of running outside flash by. Sometimes just the mention of blueberries and I am thinking of Roctane blueberry pomegranate energy gel. Now that is just sad, but a sad reality of an endurance athlete. There are also the special memories – I will never look at my name tag stapled to my bike mount in transition at the Rev3 half iron without laughing. Last year I got down on all fours to take a picture of it, only to find my training partner standing behind me taking a picture of me. We have traditions now too, restaurants we carbo load at the night before races, places we celebrate after. Sharing a ride to a race with a friend to help ignore pre-race nerves, as I did yesterday, makes the event more memorable. Having friends to share the experience of training and racing is so special and should not be taken for granted. It is these special memories, and special friends, we carry with us far longer than the actual training or racing experiences.

Ready to Grow

Today I feel like I ran two different races. A 10 miler tied to a 5K, that was actually 3.3 miles… According to every GPS watch wearer I met, we all logged some version of 13.3 miles. It was hot – 60 degrees at the start at 7:00 AM and the sun was shining bright. Not a cloud in the sky. It would be a perfect weekend day if I wasn’t running a half marathon. Only a runner would love 50 degrees and cloud cover. The course had a few changes from last year that included a monster hill – at the end of mile 10.

The first 10 miles were not bad despite the heat. I kept a good pace ranging from 10:15 minutes per mile to 11:44 at mile 10. My average pace for the first 10 miles was 11:15 – I was on target to set my best time for this race. Last year I ran 2:30 and the year before 2:31. A 2:27 and change would be grand. Then I reached the top of the hill during mile 10. Considering how steep the hill was, 11:44 for that mile was not bad. Of course to get to the bottom of the hill I ran down an equally nice hill and picked up good speed. I emerged from the hill, turned the corner, passed the 10 mile marker, and that is when I felt it…

My right calf started cramping. Usually in the summer I take electrolyte capsules to prevent such a thing. May and 60 degrees, I didn’t even give it a thought to take them. I should have had a thought. My left ankle held up well and I do not think I favored my right leg at all. Proof came when my left calf started cramping too. Equal punishment. The last three miles were walk – run style. I would run as long as the pain was tolerable. I would walk a minute or less until the cramp went away. The last 3.1 to 3.38 miles I averaged 12:31 pace. Ouch.

At the finish I crossed at 2:34, average pace 11:44 pace. Being a numbers person I thought at least I kept it in order  2 – 3 – 4. I would much have preferred descending order of 2 – 1 – 0 for a 2:10 PR, but today was not the day. Several people I know running the marathon did not finish. Heat exhaustion was prevalent. I always feel so bad for people who train for so long to run a marathon and end up riding the DNF wagon back to the start. I commend them though, it takes guts and wisdom to admit it is not going to happen. Far better to have a Do Not Finish than a big hospital bill.

My mantra “Believe” came in handy, especially the last 3.1 ish miles. Today was tough, but it was a turning point, a marker, a milestone if you will. I am back – injuries are subsided and triathlon season is here. Just like climbing that hill and enduring the last 3 miles today, I have been through the valley, climbed out, road out the pain and now I am ready to grow.

The Day Before

With tomorrow being my half marathon race day, today is important to rest, hydrate, and continue to carbo load. As I alway do, the day before a big race I sleep in as late as possible. This morning that meant almost 10:00AM, sleeping 11 hours. I don’t think I have done that since I was in college. It felt great. The only down side was that I planned to run two very easy miles today to loosen my legs and we are having a hot spell. By the time I headed out for my run it was already 76 degrees outside. My run was good, warm, but it felt good. I am ready. Or ready as I will ever be.

Hydration is important today and I also am adding a few sports drinks along with water. Tomorrow is supposed to be warm as well and I want to make sure I have enough electrolytes. The race starts at 7:00AM, so hopefully it will be cool enough. A sunny day is forecasted too, so even 60 degrees will seem warmer with the sun beating down. Last year it was cold and drizzling rain, you never know what to expect with this race.

So I have rested, I am hydrating, and I am about to make pasta to carbo load. The day before always brings jitters. I have to make sure I have my GU gels out, my clothes are picked out, race number is ready to be pinned on, and of course my ankle brace is laid out as well. Pre-race nerves don’t go away for me until after I cross the start line and get into a rhythm running. The one thing I keep telling myself to calm my nerves is “at least it is not a triathlon.” Just imagine how much more that goes into a race with three disciplines.  Regardless of the distance, I still get the same feeling. It doesn’t matter how many races I run, it is still there. To me it is a good thing, I still have passion and respect for the sport. My mantra tomorrow with be my favorite. Believe.

Riding On Edge At the Expo

In keeping with my plan to continue resting today, I slept a good nine hours, did not workout, but feel back to myself, so I went to work.  At lunch I snuck out and went to the race expo. I arrived about an hour after it opened so traffic was minimal and it was not packed. The thinner crowds made it easy for me to see some of my running friends, always a treat. One friend showed me the cute Brooks vest she picked up at the Fleet Feet tent. Oh glee! The only vendor I was going to visit was Fleet Feet – now I knew what I was going to get. First to get my race number, tee shirt and goodie bag. Again, arriving early has its benefits. I walked right up to the table and had all of my gear in a matter of 30 seconds. I spun on my heels and looked for Fleet Feet. Oh glee again! It was very close to where I was standing and as I approached the owner saw me and waived. (I am sure at this point he was thinking “Oh glee!” based on my spending habits…) I quickly saw the vest and received the expo 20% discount.  Then he said eight words that will change my cycling experience forever…

“Check out the Garmin Edge 500 over here.” Just last week I was researching bicycle computers that I could use between my two bikes. I decided to get two Garmin speed cadence monitors to talk to my 910xt. The only issue is that it is on my wrist, not the bike so I have to be careful when looking at it. I opted to not mount the watch to the bike. Fear of losing it, fumbling it during transition, or breaking it loomed over me. The Edge 500 talks to my cadence monitors, my heart rate strap, and can be interchanged on either bike. My 910xt still picks up the data, so my bike leg of a triathlon will have the details too. Yippee. And it also had the race expo discount. And will be shipped to the store within a week for me.

There are many things in life that can keep me on edge. Training, exercising, feeling my heartbeat fast, and working up a good sweat really help take the edge off. Many people just go out and run or cycle and do not monitor the time or distance. I admire them. That would, yes, put me on edge. I relax more with a watch on and I release stress better working out knowing the details. However it helps someone strengthen the most important muscle we have, our heart, then just do it. For me, it is achieved with a Garmin 910xt and now my Edge.