The Tempo/Threshold Run Prayer

Tough one on the schedule tomorrow!!!

Training Brain. It keeps me coming back for more!

As is true for many of us, my brain is stuffed full (and then some) with the usual tangle of multitasking working mom thoughts. It's crazy in there. It's full of lists, to-dos, daily/weekly/monthly calendars, passwords, PINs, birthdays, philosophies, tasks, how-tos, tricks, training schedules, race goals, account balances, clothing sizes....

You would not want to live in my brain. There isn't any room for you anyway. There's barely room for me.

I get a delightful reprieve from it all when I train. For me, that is one of the major rewards of the multisport life, and the reason I train on a near daily basis. I love the simple headspace of my training brain!

All the chatter of daily life gets pushed aside when I swim, bike, run, or strength train. I think about technique, how I feel, my effort, my goals, my mindset. I may count strokes or steps or breaths. On the hardest of efforts that is all I can do. That is all I care to do.

But on the easier efforts, with a little less need to attend to mechanics, there is room for a select few new thoughts to find their way in. You probably know about this! This is the space where creativity can happen, problems can be solved, and peace can be found.

A thought space forms and sometimes that thought space gets filled in the most peculiar ways.

Case in point:

The main set of Tuesday's swim was taking all I had to stay on pace (translation: taking all I had to keep up with lane mate Janet) and so I was really focusing on finishing my stroke and using more of my tricep on that final push.

this is not me. 

I must have let up a little, because a thought space opened up, and I heard my brain say:

 "It's fine if your triceps get tired, it's not like you have to go slice cheese all day." 

Cheese slicing? Where in the world did that thought come from? It was hard to keep from laughing.

Then on yesterday's run I found a fresh (and successful) approach to a problem I was having with WordPress (solved one problem, thirty seven more to go!).

I love getting my regular "fix" of Training Brain. It reboots, refreshes, reprioritizes, and sometimes just gets silly. And like any powerful drug it's got me conditioned to come back for more.

So if you are looking for a legal drug that makes your brain feel amazing, might I suggest swim, bike, or run?

Is it Suffering? Or Conquering?

Today I had my first "Functional Threshold Power" test on the bike. After a warmup, I was to do a 20 minute time trial at "maximal race-like effort." This was on the bike trainer, which is usually in the room that doubles as the kids' hang-out room. They had a friend in for the weekend and another friend coming and they said they really didn't want all that noise (from me more than the bike haha). Can't say I blame them.

So I did what my friend Kathy does and relocated to the bathroom.

I still had a pretty sweet setup with a TV, headphones, Garmin, towel, and upturned laundry baskets that made a shelf of the perfect height for the remotes, and phone, and water. I had everything I could possibly want.

I posted the picture up on Facebook and in response to some of the comments I started to write, "I suffer in comfort."

But suddenly I couldn't even write the word "suffer." I mean really...what could possibly happen on that bike, in those bright surroundings, that could even begin to constitute true suffering?

As a triathlete I throw that word around all the time. For a while my mantra was "suffer more!"

But is training and racing bad or unpleasant? No, or I wouldn't keep doing it.

It just seems like on the grand scale of suffering, something I choose to do in a swim/bike/run hardly constitutes suffering. I conquer. Or maybe I submit, overcome, endure, accept, bear, prevail, rise above, and move beyond. But I don't truly suffer.

In that FTP test, my brain shouted to slow down, and my muscles burned, but at any time, I was free to stop. When I think of real suffering, I don't associate it with choice. I relate it to oppression, poverty, famine, disease, and war --

I'm going to strike the word "suffer" as it relates to my hobby. Triathlon is the backdrop for me to test my ability to conquer, or to prevail, endure, etc. Those words are far more positive and empowering and sit much better with me for a sport that I feel only grateful to enjoy!

I don't know why just today, very suddenly, the use of the word suffer suddenly bothered me. Perhaps my post-exercise brain gave me just the split second I needed to reconsider my word choice.

I'm glad I did.

I look forward to conquering myself this season.

2014 Runabout Sports Awards

Last night our local running store, Runabout Sports, had its first year-end awards event. They held seven races in 2014 ranging from the super fast downhill Draper Mile to the Hokie Half Marathon, with all sorts of distances in between. Title sponsors included Carilion Clinic, Dowell Chiropractic and Blacksburg Physical Therapy.

The event recognized the sponsors and the following groups of runners:

• Those who ran at least 6 of the 7 races - they won hoody sweatshirts
• Those who completed the December 100 Mile Challenge - they won long-sleeved technical tees and were in a drawing for $100 gift cards
• Those who won the most points overall, or in their age group, across all the races - they were awarded embroidered running jackets with money going to the top overall winners (the top male and female won $500 shopping sprees in the store!)

I received an email the prior week letting me know I was an award winner, and I was SuPeR surprised.

shocked like this

A running series award was the furthest thing from my mind and I only began racing for the year in June. But it turns out I did run 4 of the 7 races and I believe I finished top of my age group in all but the Draper Mile (edged out by the speedy Alice C!):

• Downtown Sundown 5K
• Draper Mile
• Hokie Half Marathon
• Frosty 5K

This is one of the most meaningful awards I have ever received.

This award marked the end of a year that finished far differently than it began. My running year led off with tears, frustration, and pain, which gave way to determination and hope, and finally the restoration of the joy of running free and healthy! I'm so glad and grateful to have battled my way back as a runner.

We got really cute Brooks running jackets (with thumb holes!) embroidered with the race series logo.

James DeMarco (in top photo) and Runabout Sports are without question the hub of running in our community. It's crazy how much he does with the stores, coaching the nationally ranked high school runners, putting on a distance running academy, hosting community running programs, directing races, etc. And beyond that, he *knows* us, he knows the area runners. When he calls your name at a race as you cross the finish line or receive an award, rest assured, he knows a bit about your journey!

Some of the folks who did at least 6 of the 7 races

The hard-earned 100-mile shirt. 44 runners (including yours truly) earned them,
with totals ranging from exactly 100 to 217! 

Five of us 100-milers were randomly selected to win $100 gift cards to the store.
I got super lucky and won!! 

What was cool about this award event was hanging out with other runner friends, seeing what we all look like in non-running clothes and with non-running hair, and spending more time together than we get from the passing wave on the road or trail. 

This event shows that running is really about showing up and that fast or slow, what matters is that we are all runners! Of the three types of awards, only one had anything to do with speed and race results. The others were about consistency and determination. 

You won't find this kind of running community coming out of a chain sports store. We are so fortunate to have the leadership of James and the staff of Runabout Sports. 

Congratulations to all who "show up" to run - recognized or not. 

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2014 Carilion Race Series Overall and Age Group Winners:

Overall Winners: Kari Putterman F 25 Sophia Link F 13 Chad Holt M 26 Kevin McGuire M 48 George Tolton M 23 Male Age Group Winners: Sidd Nathella M 14 Sam Teller M 16 Frank Locascio M 22 Brandon Bear M 27 Nick Clark M 34 Scott Huxtable M 39 Ignacio Moore M 43 Brian Walter M 47 Marc Edwards M 50 Randy Burrier M 55 Tom Gardner M 62 Bob Shea M 69 John Gregg M 74

Female Age Group Winners: Ailene Edwards F 13 Sarah Karalus F 19 Hayley Billingsley F 21 Allison Rahtes F 27 Mina DeMarco F 30 Ann McGranahan F 35 Kim Kitts F 42 Cortney Martin F 47 Trish Richardson F 53 Leslie Gregg F 57 Susan Terwilliger F 63 Pat Barton F 67 Rosemary Cole F 71

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December 100 Mile Challenge Finishers:

Luisa Baker 100 Loren Beasley 134 Kirsten Beaudry 135.5 Brandon Bishop 100.3 Brad Bizzell 125.1 Robert Brett 153 Gary Buss 100 Janet Buss 106 Bryce Cannon 116 Jennifer Carter 104 Alicia Cohen 100 Carla Cross 141.5 Hannah Curry 129 Mina DeMarco 162 Rachel Edwards 110 Catherin Fae 101 Marlin Fjallstrom-Hosak 126.6 Jen Gagon 105.6 Michaela Kelly Galya 125 Ally Higgens 119 Shawn Hustun 155 Taylor Jennings 150 Kim Kitts 126 Cybele Lane 153.17

Tanya LeRoith 101 Michaela Linkous 101 Frank Locascio 101 Miranda Lucia 120.8 Cortney Martin 101 Corbin Mathews 120 Glenn Matthews 105 Ignacio Moore 202 Dimple Mozhi 173 Theresa Pancotto 137.7 Tara Phelps-Durr 111.5 Shannon Price 217 Joshua Rancourt 100.33 Trish Richardson 108 Brian Seitz 120 Caman Skelton 108 Dan Smith 100 Alison Smith 100 Linda Vick 115 Dawn Weeks 132.73 Nancy Whitlock 108 Mary-Beth Wisniewski 105 Toby Wright 100.2

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Completed at least 6 of 7 races:

Brandon Bear Gregor Wollmann Kevin McGuire Marcia Wright Sophia Link Vince Baranauskas Debbie Wells Nick Clark Scott Huxtable Scott Shetrone Harry Hudson Marlete Servidoni

Robert Smith Theresa Pancotto Kelly Robinson Kim Kitts Linda Vick Randy Burrier Aran Jackson George Tolton Heather Govenor Kari Putterman Ignacio Moore Stephanie Harvey

Mid-January Training Update

Wow we are halfway through January! Days are getting a little longer and yesterday we got a big dose of much-needed sunshine and slightly warmer temps. I got off the trainer and outside on the bike for the first time since just before Christmas. There's nothing like a sunny day and an open country road to put a smile on your face!

I did my annual January replacement of stretched-out swimsuits and chlorine-trashed goggles. I must have looked through 400 swimsuit options before settling on two shimmery ones from the Finals Funkies line. Picking the right size swimsuit for online ordering is tricky. What we need is a database where you can enter your height, weight, and a few general aspects of your build along with what size you are in various brands. I range from 32 to 36 depending on the brand and have to remember what I am in which!

One thing never changes - AquaSphere Kaimen Lady goggles for me all the way...they have never ever let me down!

Other random commentary:

• I am back in the groove in the gym 2-3x a week including working legs again. I really strayed from this they last two years with all my leg issues, but now that the vascular problem is behind me, I feel confident getting after it again. I'm having a lot of fun with various types of squats, deadlifts, leg presses, lunges, etc in addition to upper body work. I will write more about my approach in a future post.
• I am training with POWER on the bike now!!! I'm extremely grateful to my race sponsor, Solar Connexion, for the very unexpected year-end surprise of Garmin Vector pedals. It's been fun, but rather humbling. Let's just say if you had two modest incandescent light bulbs, I could power them long enough for you to read a short story or two!! Plenty of room for improvement there, but now it's measurable. 
• I'm happy to be back on my training schedule, even if I did misread a workout last week. I thought the 10 minutes at tempo was 10 minutes at threshold which I took to mean: run 10 minutes as fast as you possibly can! So while I didn't follow Coach Jim's instructions, I did enjoy tapping into some max speed and seeing that I had at least a little there :-)
• I got a deep tissue massage yesterday with Mario, my long-time go-to massage therapist. My upper back and traps are a mess of knots I suspect from swimming more, a return to deadlifts, and also probably the computer. When the chiropractor tells me I really have to go see Mario, I listen. It was uncomfortable but beneficial and as usual I could have fallen into a deep sleep immediately afterward.
• I am cheering for my new friend Joyce who had the same artery surgery as me about two months ago. She was a 2:50 marathoner (and will be again) who has wrestled with this undiagnosed problem for 10 (yes TEN!) years. We are both cheering for P.J. who had the surgery last week. I am excited for both of them to once again run without pain! One year ago I was still undiagnosed, frustrated, tearful, and fearful that my running and racing days were over. I will never cease to be grateful for my repair.
• Our coached swim group has expanded the hour swim to an optional 1.5 hours. We've been together a year now and it's wonderful to just show up and get it done under the watchful eye of Coach Tom. 
• I'm not a big scale user, but I did get on the one at the gym the other day to confirm I am at my typical January weight - about 4-5 lbs up from race weight - to be expected, but also to be addressed.
• Both kids have already missed school due to some vague viral headache-y thing. So far I have escaped it. Other than that they are doing really well in school, activities, and with friends. 
• In terms of schedule, I am turning electronics off at 9 pm and getting in bed by 10 pm (weekdays) and it's paying off. I know I have to stick to this otherwise it's a slippery slope into chronic fatigue.
• It looks like I'm back to around 10-11 hours of training (swim/bike/run/gym) and it's seeming manageable so far. 

I hope you are getting back into good habits and fitness and looking forward to spring as I am!