Off Week.....week 2

 My first week of 2012 was great....I hit all my work outs and everything went really well. As with everything in life it is not always as we want it. My second week wasn't as fantastic. I completely blew off my easy workout on Monday, 30 minute spin on my bike and a 30 minute core workout and I missed the group run on Tuesday. I love the Tuesday night group run but I just didn't have the energy or desire to go.  

I am not sure what was going on with me, was it that the darkness is getting to me more than I want to admit, did I not sleep well enough, or eat well enough…..or did I just want to blow off my workouts and take a bath and hang with my dogs.  I don’t think it really matters what happened, I missed a couple of workouts and enjoyed my little break, taking a bath and hanging with the dogs.  I have learned to not beat myself up when this happens.  I try to figure what might have gone wrong and move on, look at today and glimpse at tomorrow.  

Maddie sleeping after a great run

On Wednesday I went on an easy 4 mile run with Craig and crazy Maddie dog at green lake.  It is so nice to have Craig join me for some of my workouts.  Thursday was yoga, the class was really small, intimate and just what I needed.  On Saturday I ran the Nookachamps 10k in the town of Mt Vernon (1 hour north of Seattle).  The weather was not boring, cold rain/snow and wind.  Nothing makes you feel more alive than running in nearly frozen rain.  I did my 1 mile warm-up with a fellow runner and raced my race.  I did not worry about anyone in front, behind or around me…..I ran my own pace and race.  The best part of the Nookachamps run is going to get lunch and a beer at the Skagit Brewery.   

My toughest and best workout of the week was today, a 1 ½ hour ride on a computrainer with Lesley; we rode the Coeur d’Alene Ironman course…..not the entire course, thank goodness.   I really enjoy pushing myself and the computrainer gives you feedback on how you are doing. It will be fun to see the improvement as I can continue train.  I believe I get to stay on the computrainer for 2 hours next Sunday, lucky meJ.
Currently I have an irritating pain in my left heel (plantar fasciitis), I am certain the plantar fasciitis is caused from not stretching out my calf muscles.  I found a video on the IMC Facebook page from a sports PT of some sort in Canada talking about plantar fasciitis and how to treat it…..it was extremely timely and helpful.  I also bought a new pair of running shoes.  I am hoping that if I rotate my shoes it will help alleviate my current irritating pain and prevent other running injuries and pain.  It will get better and some other little nagging pain might appear as soon as I get rid of the plantar fasciitis, it is all part of training. 

Oliver gazing out the window

The things I am most thankful or grateful for this week are my coach, Lesley; she called me just when I needed her to this week and I would have struggled riding my computrainer for 1 ½ hours in my basement by myself if Lesley didn’t invite me to ride with her.  I have a privileged and very blessed life.
This week my focus will be on nutrition and hitting all my workouts. 

 

Training......

This week was a great week of training; so far I have hit every workout as assigned, even my 2 workouts on my bike trainer. I am not a huge fan of riding my bike and especially indoors. I am very fortunate to have a computrainer which makes riding a bike trainer more fun and challenging. It also helps to have some decent tv shows recorded to watch as I pedal. Tomorrow I am scheduled to run 4 easy miles and swim 1500 yards. I can't imagine not completing them. Swimming 1500 yards is the shortest swim I have done in a while....I typically am scheduled for 2400.

Food and training is always interesting and this year will be very different from my last Ironman because I have changed my diet to vegan. It is a little harder to eat vegan especially since I am staying away from processed foods like fake meat substitutes.  My goal is to eat as much whole plant foods as I can.  I am managing just fine so far on a vegan diet.  I have a Naturopathic Doctor I see regularly and have my blood checked on a regular basis to make sure that I have all the essential optimum levels required to support  my training load.   

I listened to a great piece this week on Radio Lab, Limits of the Body.   It was a fascinating piece about your body having the ability and your mind/ego.  I remember many training bike rides, swims, or runs in 2010 when I was able to finish my workout when I changed my thought process.  I recall one really hard bike ride I did in Lake Chelan on my own with the support of Hilary.  I did not believe I could finish the ride that was 8 miles at a 7% grade with no shade.  There was another training ride I completed with the help of Lesley; it was the IMC 112 mile training ride.  I believed that I could not safely finish the last 20-30 miles, Lesley had me change what I was telling myself and I finished the ride.  It was not a pretty finish and I was EXTREMELY tired but I finished and I learned that I can overcome my physical discomfort.  My training lesson have applied to so many other areas of my life.   

This year will be full of new lessons and maybe even some of the same lessons. 

New Years Day Dinner

New years has been a good day....I started the day with the http://www.promotionevents.com/ResoRun/default.htm resolution run and ended it with my traditional new years day meal of black-eyed-peas, collard greens and corn bread (recipe below). 

I started the run with a little anxiety for some reason.  I have done this run many times but i was a little anxious and cranky, just ask Craig, my husband of 25 years.  i started the run with the typical http://www.coachlesley.com/ photo and then i ran to the start of the run with fellow IMC finisher, Eileen.  I was really good about running my own race and started easy....my first mile was 9:18, it was a different course at magnuson, nice, flat and okay.  the second mile was 9:18 and went by the dog park, i love dog parks :-), i felt okay, i was running a little bit harder but it was doable and pretty easy for me.  the third mile had a little climb :-), i decided to try to keep my pace steady.  the last mile was 9:13 and the dip took my breath away, wow the water was COLD! 

I had a great run today.....I went to the beer garden after the run  but i did not see any  of my friends, i think they spent way too much time on their hair or something ;-) so no beer for me which was good because i had a dinner to make.  i went home without having a post race beer.

I think i have perfected my new years day meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas....they were really good.  Craig and Robin agree that the meal was good.  Next year i might have my open house again....last year i had about 30 people stop by.  If you are in my area next new years day let me know, i will invite you to stop by and have my yummy, healthy new years day meal :-).

here is the black-eyed-pea and collard greens recipe......

Sjohn’s Black-Eyed-Peas

1 ½ pound dried black eyed peas

1 ½ onions chopped

3 carrots chopped

4 celery ribs

1 red pepper

1 green pepper chopped

5 garlic cloves shopped

2 + cans veggie stock (Swanson's)

1 large can of chopped tomatoes

1 ½ teaspoons smoked hickory

1 + teaspoons red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon Tabasco

Salt and pepper to taste

Place 1 ½ pound dried black-eyed peas in pot and cover with water, at least 3 inches over beans.  Bring to boil, cover and let sit for 1-3 hours.  Rinse and drain beans. 

Saute all veggies and add garlic at end and then add stock, tomatoes and the remaining ingredient and cook for 2+ hours until beans are tender.  Season to taste.

Collard Greens
Clean and de-stem  3 bunches of collard greens.
slice 1/2 an onion (1/2 moon)
Slice greens in 1/2 moon thin slices
chop 3 gloves of garlic

boil greens in well salted water for at least 5 minutes
place boiled greens in ice bath

saute onion in 1/4 or less of olive oil
add garlic and saute until fragrant
add greens
saute until greens are tender (15 +minutes)

IMC 2012 Training

I thought i would try blogging about my journey to my second Ironman Canada.  I have always hesitated about blogging because my writing skills are not the best but after reading some blogs that are not that well written and getting to a point in my life that i finally realize that i don't really care what other people think about my writing skills.

so why did i decide to register for IMC again?  I have been asking myself that question all Fall.  i am not sure other than i like training for Ironman.  It takes up so much time that you have no time to think about anything else, i think training is an acceptable way to avoid.  I am certain IMC 2012 will be very different from IMC 2010....I am looking forward to seeing what unfolds over the next 8 months.