First 10k with half marathon looming

On Columbus Day I signed up to run my first 10k, Boston Tufts 10k for Women. I had gotten very nervous the night before, as I usually do, I had to be talked down more than once! On Sunday, I picked up my race packet in Boston. Monday morning I took the T into the city with Dutch, my pack mule for the race. As soon as I arrived at Boston Common I felt a lot better about my race, nerves pretty much disappeared. I looked around and saw close to 7,000 other women who were about to do the same thing as me and all fear and anxiety left me! I liked the race slogan "start strong finish stronger."

It was a great energy on the common that morning. Music blasting with a Boston radio station broadcasting live. A real race expo and GEORGOUS weather! I lined up for what was the biggest race I have ever run and the longest. Everyone was seeded by race pace. Which helped get things moving but I don't think everyone knew where they should be.

The race rule said no iPod so I went without it. I am glad I did. I got to take in a lot more of the vibe of the day. As we ran under the bridges of Memorial Drive in Cambridge all the women threw their arms up in the air and screamed. Also- with the loop route we got to see the elite (olympic) runners go by. That was really good. Everyone was cheering everyone else on. Pushing eachother to keep going. I have never been in a race where people say excuse me to pass you.

It was a great race. I finished in 1:03. I wanted to be around 1 hour. Not bad for my first 10k. When I finished I felt like I could keep going. I wasn't compeletly drained. I really enjoyed it and can't wait to go back next year!

To update on the half marathon... registration paid... and plane tickets have been bought! I am REALLY doing this! Training has been going well. Long runs started with 5 then 6 then 7.5. What was going to be around 8 turned into 8.75- now up to almost 9 miles. I can't believe I ran almost 9 miles! My short runs are getting a lot faster. I ran 2 miles lastnight at a 8:50 per mile avg pace. Not bad considering my usual pace is 9:30 to 10. This weekend will be 10 miles.

Next Challenge Accepted!

So I have decided what the next fitness challenge is... HALF MARATHON! I decided 5k's are easy now. I mean I would love to get my PR down but the only way to do that is with miles...and to log miles why not train for something! I think a 10k wouldn't be too much of a challenge and I want to stretch myself beyond what would be an easy training goal. Why not push it right to the limit of what I think is possible?!

A friend of mine, Allison, lives in Atlanta and will be running the ZOOMA half marathon. She suggested a few of us come down to run with her. So I am taking her up on the offer. Granted it is coming up fast 8 November to be exact. So I am building a compressed training plan- as usual! haha ;-)

Long Runs on Sunday
Rest/Stretch on Monday
4-5 mi on Tuesday
2-3 mi on Wedns or cross-train
4-5 mi on Thursday
Rest/Stretch on Friday
Cross-train on Saturday

Each week on Sunday is the longest run I have ever done when I add a mile to the week before. I started at 5 and now am up to 7.5 miles. In the training plan was a 5k race and a 10k race. I will be racing my first 10k next weekend in Boston. It is an all women's event. It looks like a lot of fun. I will let you all know how the training and racing goes!

Triathlete!!! Hale Off-Road Triathlon

I would like to start this post by saying, I would have never been able to even attempt a triathlon a year ago. I was over-weight, out of shape and just not even in that frame of mind. But- what a difference a year has made. I have dropped about 30 lbs and am officially a triathlete! Not only a triathlete but looking forward to the start of next season and racing again!

Now- back to race #1! haha :) I arrived early on race day to pick up my packet and set up my transition area. I actually was the first one there- got a great spot. As race time approached I was more and more nervous- but I have the best friends and family in the world. My whole family was there to support me and my friends Dutch and Robin made shirts for everyone! TEAM JULIA It was great to have such a big cheering section. They are the best a girl could ask for. My trainer (who is also my massage therapist) took the day off from clients to be there for me! I had the BEST cheering section at the tri!

I walked over to the race briefing. A run down of the swim course, swim out and around the 2 kayaks, and avoid swimming into rocks at the end! The bike course we were told was wet and slippery- great I was already nervous about that part. Not too much insight into the run. There were 3 waves- elites/teams and men and women. I had signed up to compete as an Athena 150lbs+ I wore my Under Armour sports bra and TYR tri shorts into the water.

Each wave started 3 minutes apart- a standing water start. I moved myself to the front but off to the left side. I hoped that would keep me from getting kicked/swimmed over. I started out the swim a little harder than I planned- and realized as I was trying to spot the kayaks. Even with slowing down a little I was out of the water in 7:55 for the 1/4mi swim. The 6th woman out of the water! Just where I wanted to be.

T1 consisted of putting on my socks, running shoes, jersey, racebelt, helmet, sunglasses, my bondiband headband , and grabbing my bike.I did that all in 2:27. Not a bad transition time. The bike started out as a trail then hit pavement (straight up hill) then hit hard single track trails! I had mountain biked quite a few times, but when you are on difficult terrain with other people around you, it was a lot harder. I was on and off the bike a lot. I even fell in the woods once. But I played it smart- if I thought I could get hurt doing something I got off the bike and walked/ran. I finished the 5.5mi mountain bike in 44:27. Right around where I wanted to be.

I brought the bike in for T2. All I needed to do was take on some fuel- my choice fuel is Cliff Shot Blocks- and took on some water. Transition2 was only 1:08. Fast turnaround without changing shoes. I was covered in mud and had to wipe some of it off.

I was pretty tired going into the run. I had that lead leg feeling. I had practiced quite a few bricks of bike/run but that feeling slowed me down as I hit the trails. I had to pull my legs through the run. I ran slow- a lot slower than I wanted to be. the 2.5mi trail run took 31:10. The fact that my run was slower than I wanted and the fact that I was exhausted didn't stop me from being so excited when I hit the finish line. Through the whole run I kept thinking just finish and you will be a triathlete. My cheering section errupted as I came to cross the finish. I wanted to cry but I was so excicted! I had done it! In 1 hour and 27 minutes I had finished my first triathlon! What a feeling of accomplishment.


As I stood talking to everyone the awards ceremony started. I was just happy to be a triathlete and be with my family/friends. I didn't think I had done well enough to get any award. Dutch told me to put on my shoes and shirt. We walked over and I couldn't believe it- I got 2nd in my division! 2nd?! Honestly- I didn't believe it until I saw the results online. I then checked how I would have performed in my age group.I would have come in 1st in my age group by 3 minutes! I can't believe it. Not only did I finish my first triathlon I did well. I really can't wait for next season. I plan on starting the season with a sprint or 2 or more and working my way up to an olympic distance. It is so fun why not right?!

Now onto the next challenge!

Been a while- Training and Chicago Triathlon

Lots to update, I have been a bad blogger lately. I have been traveling a lot and I will use that as my excuse ha ha ;-) Weeks 5 and 6 went fairly uneventful. I was on the road for week 6 so hotel gym tread mils and bikes. I did however get to meet up with some of my twitter friends to run a track workout while in Missouri. That was a lot of fun. Although I think I enjoyed the post workout beers more! When I returned from Missouri I unpacked my bags did laundry and repacked.

My friend Dutch, in the photo above with me, had won entry into the Chicago Triathlon from the nice folks at Polar (heart rate monitor company). I offered to hop on a plane and use all my banked hotel points to be his personal support group! So Friday morning we jumped a Southwest flight to Chicago. We had reservations at the triathlons host hotel, Hilton Chicago. It was nice. Friday night, Dutch unpacked his bike and put it back together. His nice brand new tri bike got scratched very badly by TSA- but that's a whole different story! The race expo also opened Friday night.

As someone new to the sport it was a great experience. I got to walk around with other athletes and learn about coaching, buy some tri shorts, and new swimming drag shorts. I learned a lot about different fuel and shake options, my new fav... Mix1 www.mix1life.com it has a great flavor and texture- check it out! Anyway- I loved the expo's vibe and just being around other people that have the same interest as you!

Saturday we scoped out the race area and transition area. And I dragged Dutch for a bit of site seeing. I only had a couple things I wanted to see in Chicago, the cloud being the main one! We walked around Millennium Park and got a great feel for the city. Then Saturday night I did a great 4 mile run around the parks again! Nice and flat and cool by the lake. I like that city a lot!

Sunday morning was race day. I went with Dutch at 4am to set up his transition area. Urgh- did I want to stay in bed soooo bad! But good experience to get out there and get a feel for this whole thing. We set is all up and since his wave didn't go till 9am we went back for a nap. I slept for another hour or so and went down to the swim start with Dutch. He was all lined up and ready to go I told him I would either see him at the swim finish or the transition area.

As I was standing watching the other athletes already in the water, I observed 2 things 1.) I have a serious advantage in the swim portion, most triathletes look like they are drowning in the swim and 2.) Dutch was now doing the Olympic distance event. I knew the sprint swim only went along the lake wall and he was facing the direction of the Olympic distance! I freaked out! Being his swim coach for this triathlon I knew he could do it but the swim might end up taking a lot out of him. ~for those that don't know an Olympic distance is 1.5km swim, 40km bike, and 10k run. DOUBLE the trained for sprint distance~ I knew the bike and run were going to be easy for him unless he pushed too hard on the swim.

When I discovered this GIANT mistake made by the race production company, I raced to be at the fence at the swim finish! I knew I needed to get there and be sure he was okay. 45 min later he got out of the water... I screamed you are doing the international distances! He responded with "I am now!" and we both ran to transition. I yelled over the fence as he got onto his bike and was there when he came in from the bike at 1 hour 18 min. I raced to be at the transition fence again to be sure he was going to be okay for the run. I can't believe it but he did the 10 k in 50 min! He ran 8min miles! He didn't even train for this event and he KILLED IT! 3 hours and 9 minutes was the final result.

I have to say as a first time triat hlete it was a great experience to be there supporting a friend.I got to enjoy the event, well kind of, my nerves were pretty shot at the end! I also, got to learn a lot of new stuff about my new found sport. It was a really cool experience.

Week 4 - Practice Tri

I returned from Aruba on 11 Aug. and jumped back into work and my routine quickly. Friday was supposed to be another brick of bike run but my trainer and I had decided that I would do a practice triathlon at some point before my actual race.It made the most sense to do it right after vacation since it fell about in the middle of my training. So Friday's brick turned into a morning run just to get out there on pavement again, and to keep my dog, Ben at bay. Since he is a retired racer he needs to run. We did a couple miles, at a 9:24 min mile pace. My tri training is increasing my running pace.

So Saturday I got up early to get my practice triathlon out of the way. It was going to be a hot day and I wanted to get it done before noon. I went and picked up my bike and met my mom at the lake in my hometown. Figured I knew the area and my mom did too so it would be easy for me to pick routes that she would know for the bike/run. I set up my transition at the truck. My goal wasn't to rush through this whole practice triathlon. It was to just prove to myself I could do all three together. I also wanted to get a feel for the whole thing, transitions what does and doesn't work and what I need to make sure I do and don't do race day. That being said- I was really nervous. I didn't know if this was going to prove to me that I couldn't do the triathlon I signed up for, I hoped not!

I got in the lake and swam for 5 min. That is about how long it would take me to swim the 450yds I have to do for the triathlon, since I had no way to measure that out. I have to say my nerves calmed down as soon as I was done with the swim. Luckily the part that I am best at is the first part of the race! Mom and I walked to the truck and I got into my bike clothes, ate a couple powerbar gelblasts before hoping on the bike. They actually aren't too bad, kinda candy like. I chugged some water at T1 too.

I had mixed a Puresport shake for my bike and had that for the ride. I went out in the loop I told my mom I was heading out for. It ended up being shorter than the one in my triathlon, 4.7 miles as opposed to the 5.5 miles of the triathlon. I also rode on the road as opposed to a trail ride. I didn't know anywhere around the lake that was trails so eh you do what you can!

I came in for T2 at the truck. I had a powerbar gel and some more water- I now know no gels pre run- didn't sit well. Put on all my run gear and headed out. I wanted to do about 2 miles. My triathlon is 2.3 miles trial run so I figured 2 would give me a feel. My legs felt like lead under me. I pushed up the hill out of the driveway to the lake. Another bad choice on location, the lake has a huge hill at the entrance. My calfs hurt and my quads were burning but I kept moving. It was a slow run. 10 min miles. I figure not too bad though after swimming and biking. Well the route I told my mom was short of 2 miles but I had a fear if I went somewhere else something would happen and she wouldn't be able to find me.

Well- I finished it in about 50 minutes: 5 minutes (approx 500 yds) of swimming, 4.7 mile bike, 1.7 mile run. I survived! It proved to me I would be able to survive the actual triathlon. My mom was a great coach she was all proud of after I finished. I took her home and then went to return my bike. When I arrived at Dutch and Robin's house my shoulders started throbbing! I knew I had been swimming too much. Well it caught up with me. I laid on the floor icing my shoulders for a while.

I need to cut some of the swimming out of my training. Swimming is the piece of this triathlon I really don't have to train too much. And my shoulder won't let me do too much. It is an old injury from my swimming career. I started swimming competitively at age 6 and didn't stop until I was 20- when my shoulder pain and college life got in the way. I swam year round for most of my life and was a freestyle and backstroke sprinter, so my shoulders don't do well with overhead use repeately anymore.

I have realized that my tri training plan has a large emphasis on swimming, since most triathletes are not swimmers first. I need to focus more on my biking and running and bricks of those two together. So from now on that will be my main focus with a few swim workouts thrown in to help balance my training and stretch me out.

Vacation and Training- weeks 3/4

Most of week 3 was spent on vacation on the beautiful island of Aruba. It is so easy to train in a climate like that, with a ocean for open water swims feet from your room, and beach for running! I had no problem motivating myself. I mean what else is there to do on an all-inclusive vacation. This is the beach where I ran and swam, at the Divi All-Inclusive Resort http://www.diviaruba.com/

The training schedule was a bit off with the travel:
Monday- Run (at home)
Tuesday- travel day- ended up having to rest
Wednesday- open water swim/ stationary bike 40 min
Thursday- open water swim
Friday- bike with family
Saturday- 20 min beach run
Sunday- REST
Monday- 20 min beach run
Tuesday- 20 min beach run

I had a great vacation I relaxed a ton! I always do in Aruba. It was our 3rd time there. So no tourist trips. Shopped downtown, sat in the sun, trained, and rented a jeep to tour the island on our own. I caught up on sleep, ate whatever I wanted/drank and had a great time.

I came back and on weds hit the pool with my friend, Dutch, http://www.tri2iron.com/ While I was away he won from Polar Heart Rate Monitors, entrance into the Chicago Triathlon. He needed some swimming coaching/teaching. I spent most of the hour and a half working technique with him but did get in some swimming myself. I love being in the water!

Thursday morning I hit a spin class. I didn't realize my gym had a 6am class. It was a great bike workout. The teacher did music of Woodstock to pay tribute to the 40th anniversary. The icing on a great vacation cake was Thursday after working out with my trainer, he weighed me and I lost a pound in the week I was away. Not too many people lose weight on an all-inclusive vacation. It proved to me I really do need to eat more!!

Week 3... Beach Training

Times were published today from the 5k at work during training week 1. Goal was to be 28 something. The official time 29.01. Close to the goal. Not bad! Got to find another 5k to do soon!!

Week 3 training is:

Sunday- 25 min bike

Monday- 1 hour training and 35 min run

Tuesday- 25 min swim and 35 min bike

Wednesday- Rest

Thursday- 50 min bike

Friday- 30 min swim

Saturday- Rest

Started week 3 with a bi-weekly massage. I tell you it is the best thing to add to a training plan. I needed my calf's, shoulders, and hips/gluts worked on. They were tight and giving me pain in my workouts. After an hour of having a sports/therapeutic massage I was feeling much better. I then went to hop on a mountain bike, Robin and I went out to the trail we went on last week. This time in the hope of not getting lost. We didn't get lost and 40 min later emerged after riding 3 miles of up and down hills and over rocks. The 400 cal workout was a great Sunday buster and I am starting to get more comfortable with changing gears.

I then had to get some work done. Apparently my job doesn't care that I am training for a triathlon or going on vacation. I did a little working from home and before I knew it the work week was here.

Luckily my work week is short this week. I am headed out on vacation Tuesday. Worked to get all the projects done pre-vacation. Headed out of work and went for a 35 min run. I ran kind of slow to keep a little in the tank to work with my trainer. So I only got 3.25 miles in the 35 min. It was hot and I was a sore. I headed out for the gym post dinner, and had a great core workout with the trainer. He is a killer! But it was my only workout with him this week.

I am looking forward to a week with my only priorities being relaxing and training. I can't wait to do my swimming, running and biking on or near a beach! Talk about true open water swims.