Boston Bound 2011

Time is Running Away

2011-06-18T18:27:00.000-07:00

Time seems to be flying on by... as I suppose life seems to do for me. Between working, running and growing, I feel like there isn't too much more to report. Work is great, although I haven't seen the light of day in weeks, as I've just finished a month of night shifts... I actually quite like working nights, I sleep well in the day (compared to some), but it does take it's toll because no matter how well I sleep, there is still far less of it... Regardless, I stand firm in that hospital cafeteria coffee tastes like it's freshly brewed from Italy at 3 am compared to the tar that they serve at 3 pm! Weird.

My running is still treking along... perhaps not quite as "easy" as it once was, but I still get out there every day. I'm pretty lucky that I haven't had any aches and pains associated to "wide loads", a bit of siatic pain earlier on, but nothing really now, not even low back! Bladder control continues to be questionable (you just never know...), but I'm willing sacrifice that in the name of sport. My longest run this week was 18 km, and I think that is as long as they will get (if that...) for a little while now, but I comfortably run 12 - 15 km in an hour or just over... so I'll hope to carry on with those distances as long as I can. On my off days, I find the elliptical machine at the gym a great workout - sometimes after a long shift, it's a bit easier on my body then running.

With all that said, I give myself anxiety attacks when I think about how quickly this pregnancy has progressed! I have nine weeks left, which is INSANE! Aside from flying by, and feeling great (so thankful for that!), I actually feel pretty confident that I am baby ready in all the practicial ways (crib, stroller, car seat). And I see how things seem to wind down with the excitement of pregnancy and start to ramp up with excitement to meet this little one. I'm curious what he looks like... if he'll be smart (like his mom), athlete (like mom), good looking (like mom), multi-tasking (mom), confident (mom), hard-working (mom), talented (mom)... or maybe he'll be "special" just like his dad... who's to know.... Of course, he'll be perfect for us!

Here's a picture of my growing middle - which I've heard is "little" - well it sure doesn't feel little (and according to my uterus measurements, I've always measured exact to my dates). I guess we all carry babies differently. Please note - if you touch my belly, that means I am allowed to touch yours, it's all just so awkward, so let's not touch belly's.

This was last week at 30 weeks:

A Reminder

2011-05-24T17:52:00.001-07:00

I don't feel like this blog can just be done - especially after the momentum of my last adventure, but sadly, I don't have any new running adventures on my near horizon. And, of course, this blog is sacred to all things running and must be preserved from my new (future) life of diapers and strollersize (just kidding on the strollersize - this running mom will not be doing four-wheeled-lunges - because in my third trimester - I can still squat my body weight, and that includes my new body weight). But its hardly been over a month from my medal worthy Boston appearance and I hope that the blogging world hasn't forgotten about it... Much too soon to be put on the back burner for Winnie the Pooh!

As for a brief life update (however, secondary to the important stuff... to come) - I am officially a working girl, no more student title, no more internship, no more co-signatures. As I was told, I now have my own license to lose (that's reassuring). Some days I feel total confidence, like I can make medical decisions and intervention from my far reaching depths of knowledge, and other days I can be found in fetal position somewhere between ICU 1 and 2 in a panic-like-trance contemplating my own hospital admission. I walk across the Jubilee Auditorium stage this Friday, robed in gold (actually blue), exactly 10 years, to the week, that I did the same to recieve my High School Diploma. Funny how I've been a student the whole time.... In the baby department - I started trimester #3 this week at 27 weeks. Somehow I blinked my eyes and I was 2/3rds of the way done! I'm one of the lucky few women who literally (seriously, literally) has nothing to complain about, so yah for me (and apologizes to all of my new found enemies). Considering I have nothing to compare this pregnancy to, I don't know what my belly growth is in relation to the norm, but I've appreciated that there is nothing (well, considering) hindering me from my normal sanity-maintaining-activities. The down side, I have not been able to "blame it on the baby" nor recieve "pregnancy sympathy" in any way. I also get a moderate amount of sympathy looks, in which I can literally predict, are other women saying in their heads "poor girl, she's getting chubby - wasn't she the runner? Happens to the best of us". Oh well, if there is one thing worth giving up my sculped abs for (the abs I at least dreamt about), than this far exceeds it.

But, the only true reason to stumble across this 500 (+/-) word exert from my otherwise average life is to celebrate all things running. I think a disgusting amount of daily minutes and cyber space is wasted on blogs that are mere personal diaries - because, let's all be honest, who really cares what I ate for dinner or what I put in my coffee. The only part of my day that is worthy for public recognition were the 13 kms that I logged on my running shoes (1 hour 4 minutes, only 1 pee break, which is a record in itself). And of course, this is not to celebrate my personal accomplishment, but time well spent, by myself as well as the others who chose to celebrate with me (to name one, my 6 am running partner Zoe). With all that said, Boston was such a short time ago, and I feel it slowly decreasing in importance as my waistband is increasing. This blog posting is to put that to an end. I may not have a new and amazing training plan going on right now, something to out-do Boston, or Ironman Canada... but these legs are still a runnin' and will continue to do so (at the expense of bladder control). Aside from the obvious (LOVE it), I feel that I owe this to the sacred Boston Athletic Association, in the name of good sportmanship, in honor of my Ironman tatoo... and mostly to my 2011 Boston Marathon Finisher baby. So as per usual running report, last week I ran 20 km in 1:52, the distance remains to be my strength (I always feel like I could run further), however I feel that the pace is slowing with each run. Of course, I will gladly run any pace, as long as the trails are calling my name....

In one final blog "shout out", my bro-in-law completed his first triathlon this past weekend, doing great! We dusted off my original road bike for him, and I'm so thrilled to see that bike back out in action, cause it really served me well - but has hardly seen the roads since I got my tri bike. Stay tuned for a Jacquelyn/Leon head to head 1/2 ironman next summer.... (eat my dust...)

The Big Day in Pictures

2011-05-02T15:14:00.000-07:00

So hard to believe that the race was already two weeks ago! Since I last wrote on here - I've run the most elite marathon in the world, finished 10 years of post secondary education, and driven up the hill for the last time to the Foothills Hospital (old job). It would appear that I like to cram everything together - but the truth is, it's almost been too much all at once. Would have been nice to enjoy each moment a bit more, if it would have been within my control. Oh well.... I start my Respiratory Therapist job on Monday, May 9th, although my week off is timely and much needed, I am incredibly excited to start up again next week - not just everyone in the world gets to work their dream job - so I will gladly be apart of the few who have total job satisfaction (remind me of this at 2 am when there is a code blue situation happening).

Enough about all of this other unimportant business though - there are far better things to talk about!!! As expected, Boston was spectacular in every way that I imagined! The city, the food, the race, the jacket - it was total perfection for me. Below is a pictor-o-blog of heaven on earth...

Arriving in Boston, the city welcomed athletes with open arms. I read somewhere that Boston brings in equivalent income from Marathon weekend as does Superbowl weekend (so they better welcome us with open arms...):

Some of the famous landmarks that I read about ahead of time, and took note of along the race route:

First things first, the food. So. Good:

Real Boston Pizza:

At the race expo, which was the best one I've ever been at (x 20 previous marathon race expo's), picking up number 13872. It was organized quite well considering I have never run in a race such as this where there are 10's of thousands of athletes. It was quite busy, but we went early on Saturday, so there was still lots of energy and goodies. Unlike a lot of other races that I participated in, I was very surprised at the level of athletes that were surrounding us! I suppose when you are having a 10 km race and a half marathon and full marathon, you can attract all shapes, sizes, ages, etc. But for this race, it really appeared that it was reserved for the best of the best, just by all of the people that were flocking through the doors of the expo (ahem... this included me of course):

The finish line, two days before the race. Glad I got a close and personal look at it cause it was pretty crazy on race day:

Fearless travel partners! This was at Boston Common, it was the first day we were in Boston, the wind was so chilly, but still sunny and beautiful. The next couple of days were ideal weather, couldn't have asked for warmer or sunnier. The backpack I'm wearing was soon filled with race expo goodies, lugging it around for the rest of the day and an entire walking tour of the city proved to be an ironman in itself! By the end of the day, it was refered to as the effin' backpack. Amoung things like Boston Common, the Financial District and the Race Expo, we also walked to the markets, through the North side and spent quite a bit of time in Harvard Square (probably our favorite for shops and food). It really was spectacular, the city has amazing history and architecture, but it helps that Alison and my interests were very similar (markets, food, shops, etc):

I took my phone with me on the run for the camera, but just didn't want to pull it out much as that competitive runner in me just couldn't succumb. I did get this picture though, at the top of Heartbreak hill, between mile 20 and 21 at Boston College. I think I'm quite a strong hill runner, I didn't feel that the Newton hills were half as bad as "they" say, HOWEVER, the down hills were killer on the knees, as "they" warned:

And of course, the famous Citgo sign, entering Boston, 1 mile left. Kind of decieving as you can see it for about 2 miles before you reach it, but was cool nontheless. I actually saw it as we were flying in to Logan International two days earlier, I didn't realize how large it really was. As you can see, many people were out cheering like maniacs, this was another pretty amazing I've never experience, 26.2 miles of complete fan coverage! I was deafened by screech tunnel (Wellesley Girls College, Mile 13), and to be honest, almost exhausted by the constant cheering (weird, I know). I will say though, running the Boston marathon is the best way to feel like a million bucks, cause it felt to me like there were literally millions of people on that course cheering just for me (nevermind the other 27000 or so runners). Kinda makes you run with your head just a little higher:

And of course, the final moments...

But... I can't seem to do anything without some kind of additional challenge. So I conquered the world's most elite road race with a baby on the way. 5 and a half months pregnant... It took me 28 years to fulfill this dream, and now my first born has completed the Boston Marathon at 22 weeks gestation. Lucky boy! Anyways, this can also be my disclaimer for a final time of 4 hours 35. I've had a perfect pregnancy and I would have given up running Boston with no hesitation if it would have been necessary - HOWEVER - please stay tuned for my sub 3:30 marathon redemption in early 2012:

Overall, this trip was amazing, I am so happy that I was able to participate in and complete the Boston Marathon. Considering that this was my #1 life-long goal, I suppose it would be safe to say that there are many emotions to process after an experience to this extent. In the past, I've even had some cases of post race blues. But it's funny how things change when becoming a parent is on your horizon. My goals and accomplishments suddenly matter far less, because I may have dreamed of running Boston, or completing an Ironman - But more significantly I always knew that I would have kids one day, it sort of seems like lifes ultimate gift... How does a medal (or 21...) mean much when in a few shorts months I'll learn a whole new meaning of love - if not already. So when I crossed the 115th Boston Marathon Finish line on April 18, 2011, I had a wonderful moment of self satisfaction, but when I meet my son on August 25th - I think then is when I really start to live.

With all that said, I HIGHLY doubt that there are any other parents in my generation who can brag about their child completing the Boston marathon. Well... I can. And... I will.

Final Thoughts

2011-04-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

My final exam is complete, which means there is nothing else standing in my way of complete Boston take over for the next week, or month... Like most big milestones, it's often the moment of completion, or the moment of success that is anticipated and celebrated. But from my small handful of sporting successes, I think I've come to appreciate the journey to the finish line more than actually crossing the finish line. The journey certainly has defined who I am, it takes a certain personality to be interested in endurance sports (good and weird traits). I also feel as though my memories of these events are so much fuller than just the moment of completion. I guess this is what makes endurance running far more appealing to me than many other things, of course, that combined with the fact that you just can't brag about a 10 km race like you can the Boston Marathon, and I do love my bragging rights. Looking back at some of my memories: My very first marathon, nearly 10 years ago, feels like just yesterday. I didn't actually finish it. I had a stress fracture in my tibia, combined with awful ITB syndrome. At 26 km, I couldn't bare the pain any longer. My whole family, and Gabrielle, drove to Edmonton and stood in the rain for hours while I attempted, and failed, but cheered me on as though I came in first place. Dealing with those injuries made me learn SO much about proper running technique, shoes, stretching, cross training, rehabing and weight lifting. I haven't suffered a single injury even close to that since. I've been able to run two marathons with great friends. These events didn't include just race day, but 6 months of training together, long runs every Saturday morning, rain or shine, large coffees afterwards, travels to our destination races and memories I will always cherish from being apart of their first marathons. Participating in the running clinics at the Running Room, and then going on to be a group leader, and then clinic instructor also left a huge impact in my memory bank. Whether it was training people to run their first marathons and watching them rehab through and overcome all the injuries I suffered from, or watching a middle aged, lots-to-love (aka overweight) menopausal women cross the finish line of her first 5 km race (in 55 minutes) - moments like that tend to stay with you. I had the huge honor of being the clinic instructor for a "Survivors Clinic". It was a complimentary clinic for breat cancer survivors training for the Run for the Cure (October every year) in Victoria. It was such a great group of women, with some pretty amazing stories, and of course, a worthy cause. My marathons and ironmans sort of paled in comparison to their bragging rights, perhaps it was good for me... And then of course, my two ironmans. Both with unique emotions and more hard work than I thought humanly possible. But those 12 - 14 hours days leave far less of an impact on me than the months of training leading up to it. In fact, for ironman #2, I rarely think about that painful horrific day (completed ironman with shingles!) but often think of how much fun I had training for it. Anyways, give me any oppertunity to brag, and I will embrace it... All of this makes me reflect on my journey to Boston. Whether that is just in the next few days to come when Alison and I explore this new city that we are so excited about, or if that is the early morning bus ride from Boston to Hopkington in anticipation of the race. But even more so, the last 6 months, my running has been my safe haven from my otherwise stressful, face-paced life. And the last year, after qualifying for Boston, has given me a self-confidence and self-satisfaction I never thought was possible - it has defined to me that you literally can do anything you put your mind to. But most of all, the last 10 years of running - this makes me who I am. Working my way to Boston maybe took way longer for me than other runners, or perhaps is something I will accomplish in my 20's that people can only dream of accomplishing in thier 40's and 50's. It's sort of beside the point, because it was my personal milestone to reach, and I got there, through trial and error, one way or another. And although there are many people who do not feel the lure to Boston that I feel, and who do not care about anything running related (obviously these people are the boring-minimally-contributing- members of society - but I try not to judge), I'm sure everyone is driven by goals and dreams, much like myself. I just hope that everyone has the same oppertunity to journey to their dreams that I do, because this is what makes life worth living. These are the memories that are held so dear to my heart. I like to have fun, and that is what running has become for me, it is just so much fun! Perhaps it didn't take Boston to teach me this, and I'm happy to say that I will be running long after Boston (except that after Boston, I'll be running with my head held a bit higher). Like all other Academy Award winning performances, an acceptance speech always follows. Well, my journey to the start line of the Boston Marathon was my personal Academy Award, so I am entitled to my 30 second rant before the music ushers me off stage. As always, I stand firm in my belief that it takes a team for me to accomplish my goals. I will continue to mention my family as my primary support in all things I do, because I am certain I would be a failure without them. Before I have even had a chance to parent children of my own, I have learned from my mom and dad, that there is literally no better job on earth than being your children's cheerleader. They have mastered this skill with Alison and I, and once again with their grandkids - which makes me so excited to see the amazing things to come in my family's future generations (running and non runnning related - but mostly running related). Craig has survived 3 years (on May 2nd) of being married to running mayhem, and although he isn't a runner himself (missing out), I think I have successfully improved his life in one way or another with my contributions. Luckily, he's contributed equally to my life, in so many other ways. And of course, I'm saving the ultimate of experiences to share with my sister, cause it just wouldn't be right without here. Unlike the Academy Awards, there will be no music to end my rant - as this my blog, and I get to rant as long as I want. However, the sun is shining through my window and beckoning me to greater things, like perhaps a run through Fish Creek to contemplate my next journey. So, to my massive blog following (Mom, Alison...), if I can share any wisdom with you that I have learned through my accomplishments and journey's. This is my legacy, perhaps the story God put me on earth to share. Take this message home with you, it will alter your life for better:

Life is so worth living and so much more rewarding when you have definition in your calf muscles.

Big Announcement

2011-04-10T15:48:00.000-07:00

I have big news - big enough to take a break from studying and update my blog-o-sphere! After months and months of anticipation, preparation, hardwork, dedication and research to this particular matter - I have finally decided on my race day attire. The final touches, of course, will have to wait till race day when I have a better idea of the exact weather, however, in the meantime, the basic "look" has been decided on. I'll have to leave the hoards of people awaiting this news in a bit of suspense, as I'd like to keep the details sacred to race day photo's only. Regardless, I feel a huge sigh of relief now that this is off my plate... and of course, no better way than to start the "Boston Week" than feeling this way! I write my big final exam on Tuesday, on Wednesday I'm having a celebratory dinner with my family (post exam, pre Boston marathon), Thursday I work, then Friday we're off. I'm to overwhelmed to speak to the emotions of this week - however, so SO excited! Speaking of my final exam - here is a small list of things I have managed to do this week to avoid studying: 1. Buy a new car (cause I haven't been broke enough for the last 10 years...) 2. Watch men's curling (the most BORING sport known to man - sorry Zoe and family) 3. Maul the cats with attention 4. Do the laundry, fold it, dump it out of the basket and refold it (trying to prolong the process) 5. Run just a bit further than I should for taper week (it's gorgeous outside, it was completely out of my control) 6. Stare at a wall Oh well, it will all be over as of Tuesday at 4pm! Somehow I have managed to survive every other final exam I've had to write, so I'm hoping I can dig deep enough in to the depths of my soul for just one more (well.... until the only one that really matters, licensing exam in July, but we'll cross that bridge at another time). Friends, if you are looking for me, I will have my nose in the books for another 48 hours. My new ride:

A Real Challenge

2011-03-29T16:43:00.000-07:00

19 days. That's less than 20 and overwhelming. If I can just make it to the final exam on April 12th then I think I can let the true excitment set in! If I can take my mind off of Boston long enough to study, then perhaps I'll pass the final exam. That is the real challenge...

Golden Numbers

2011-03-25T16:21:00.000-07:00

The Bib numbers and start times have been assigned to the Boston Marathon athletes, which I have been anxiously awaiting. My golden numbers are: 13872. I'll be starting in the 2nd wave (of 3) and within my wave I'll be in the 5th corral (of 9). I am happy to see that I am far closer to the front of the pack than I anticipated, I always expected myself to be one of those runners who just squeezed in by a few seconds... I guess I had minutes to spare, and being in the youngest age group makes my requirements the fastest. There are 27000 athletes, we are numbered according to our qualifying time (1-100 are reserved for the elite), the first wave includes numbers 100-8999, second wave 9000-17999 (that would be me) and the thrid wave 18000-27000. Each wave has 9 corrals (1000s runners each), and I'm pretty sure they are bringing the troops back from the middle east just to keep all of us "die hards" in line (literally). Heaven forbid corral #3 has 1200 athletes and corral #4 only 800! Apparently you can make arrangements to go in to waves or corrals that are behind your scheduled position, but of course, not in front. Not sure who would do this as we are systematically assigned based on our running ability (and good looks) -which would be fitting that I am in the top half (just the type of person that I always try to be...). I have to catch my shuttle bus between 630 am and 7am to get shipped out to Hopkington High School where I will be herded up with the rest of the cattle (athletes) until my 10:20 start time (but I am allowed to enter my corral at 9:35). I'm thinking my ironman experience will prove to be helpful, cause this is gonna be a long day! Especially considering I don't remember the last time I STARTED my long run at 10:20, I'm usually done well before that. Oh well, flexibility is worth it for the right cause. I wonder if it takes an additional American government of elected officials to plan the details and logistics of this race?

Our welcome packages and race number pick up cards are being sent out next week, which makes me wonder if I should set up camp in front of my mail box until it's arrival? Starting to feel all the excitment like it's really gonna happen! Also new this year, all of my fans and gathering can follow my race with the AT&T Athlete Alert. You can register on the Boston Marathon website with your email address and recieve my updates at 10 km, halfway, 30 km and finish line - you'll have to use my bib number (13872) to register.

Alison and I have yet to make our race day game plan. Although we usually have races mapped out and organized as per our "extreme planning personality disorder", this race may be a bit different. I think the mass crowds and amount of athletes might limit our ability to do to much, so once we get to Boston, we'll probably find a good landmark (involving coffee and Boston creme's) and meet there after the race. I think I'll decide on my post race victory meal closer to the time as well - the options are just to endless and overwhelming for me to address at this time.

Anyways, this was lots of information overload for me this week, and I have thoroughly enjoyed researching all the new details including future tatoo designs with the numbers 13872 (kidding). The weather in Calgary continues to be dismal, including a freezing rain run yesterday morning (more like a skate) and long, cold, snowy 30 km (5:10 min/km - just to keep warm) run today (however, the horror frost really was spectacular). Makes me think that I really need a vacation... soon, so soon! In fact, I'll be on a plane this time in 3 weeks...

Big Day

2011-03-18T13:51:00.001-07:00

It's sad that I haven't written anything in over a month as I always have running excitement in my life. But today, it is worth it for me to take the time and update my blog on the latest... if not for my readers (mom...) but more so for the utter respect that this particular day should be granted. It's March 18th, which means the Boston countdown is officially at 1 month. It's so close, I can pretty much taste the Boston cream victory donut in my mouth. After 28 years and 2 months of dreaming of this day, I have only 30 days left to anticipate the moment that increases my bragging rights 100 fold. It's nearly as good as the real day. I chose to celebrate this milestone day with a long run (fitting), 28 km of beautiful sunny blue sky through Fish Creek Park. Unfortunately the remainder of my month long countdown will probably be busy studing and working as I finish up my last 6 weeks of intern shifts (too soon to start a countdown for that) and I write a big final exam for my Respiratory Therapy program on April 12. This only leaves me with just enough time for the bare necessities of life, like running and sleeping. But it will all be over SO soon.

Just to make this milestone day even greater, I was called today and offered my ideal job, starting a week after I finish my practicum. Of course, I accepted, and was thrilled (and will be thrilled to celebrate it tonight, friday night, by doing a 12 hour night shift). Starting May 9th, I will a Respiratory Therapist at the Rockyview General Hospital in Calgary, I couldn't have asked for a better location (in my opinion). I'm also thrilled to be getting a job, as RT jobs are challenging to come across, it's a small and specialized health discipline that tends to retain it's staff for many years. However, I am honored to be apart of it, as RT's are very well respected in the hospital, the scope of practice is very expanded, and unlike RN's I do not have to clean the bums of large overweight men and women (or underweight for that matter). I'd like to thank Calgary's ever-growing boom and health care crisis for my job, but I'd also like to mention that I worked my ass off this year trying to prove myself to this hospital that they wanted me... so I suppose all the hard work and long days/weeks/months paid off. Of the 10 students they had this year, only 4 were hired at the Rockyview, so I'll take that as a compliment. I had always anticipated that the day I was offered an RT job, I would march in to my current employers office (at the other hospital) and slam my security ID on to her desk and quit. However, I'm torn between that and crawling in to her office and grovelling at her feet and thanking her for being the best employer one could dream of for the last 5 years, for accommodating my school schedule, for spending the better part of one of my shifts last month going over interview questions so I could get an RT job, and for teaching me how much I love working in the hospital... then letting her decide when my last shift should be. So no official countdown for that job either (I do love my countdowns...).

Other than all of todays excitement - this past month, my blog has missed out of me writing about the most horrific February weather of all time (still holding on to hope that spring MUST come), lots of long runs, lots of peeing in the frozen bushes (They shut down the bathrooms in Fish Creek for the winter, it always pisses me off), a big final research paper and presentation for RT school (boring...), my neice turning 5 and making me feel like life is slipping away from us (wasn't she just born yesterday?) and me doing a 6 week rotation through the Special Care Nursery and Neonatal ICU (last shift tonight) - I've seen more babies born in the last 6 weeks than any man, women or child should ever see, that's a lot of body parts that non-baby RT's (like me) don't usually have to see. If I've learned anything from this experience (aside from neonatal ventilation, etc etc etc) - Men, when your partner is having a baby, saying things like "it's worth it", "push harder" and "it will all be over soon" actually makes me want to take my bloody glove and gown off and smother you in to a coma. Also, common sense (to me anyways) would suggest that most women will not look back fondly at the pictures you snapped of her doing spread eagle with baby crowning. Just my 2 cents.

I still have no confirmed race day attire (starting to stress about that), but I need new running shoes, so I'll have to make a very serious trip to the Running Room for a clothing game plan. And on another very important Boston note - they have changed the registration process for the 2012 race, making it more challenging for runners to enter. For the first 3 days of registration, only people who are 20 minutes or more ahead of their qualifying time can register, then the next 3 days are entrants 10 minutes or more ahead of their qualifying time. It isn't until 1 week after registration opens that all qualifying athletes can apply, this is to allow the elite feild first dibs on the elite race after this years record breaking 8 hour sell-out. Then as of 2013 Boston qualifying times will all be changed to being 5 minutes faster for each division, again to reserve this race for the best of the best. At the risk of sounding liking I'm bragging (however, I am bragging), I would like to point out to all of my readers that I did, in fact, qualify for the Boston marathon at the NEW qualifying times (5 minutes faster than my division qualifying time now), making me a legitimate "best of the best" runner. So in years to come, as Boston continues to reserve its field for the elite, I will hold my head high to say that I ran it in 2011. This does make my heart go out to all of the age groupers, like myself, who dream of running Boston, and work their tight little asses (and more so, hamstrings) off trying to get there, now that it's just that much harder... Must have just been meant to be for me this year.

Today is the one year anniversary of my condo burning down. Somehow, March 18, 2011 has turned out to be much brighter than March 18, 2010. However, if I take a moment to reflect on the past year - I clearly have nothing to complain about. Things always seem to work out for the best in my life. This also means that Craig and I are fast approaching the one year anniversary of living in our house - which despite the responsibilities of home ownership, was hands down, the best thing we ever purchased together! I still love it just as much as the first time we set foot in it.

In honor of my favorite organ...

Deep Freeze

2011-01-31T17:15:00.000-08:00

76 days left to count down... seems like the time is flying by. It's kind of bitter sweet. As excited as I am for my big day to arrive, it seems a little bit sad that I only have 76 more days to live in the greatest anticipation that one could experience. Must enjoy every moment! While I'm on the topic of count downs... I only have 43 more practicum shifts, which in theory is only 41 cause I'm pretty sure I won't be able to make it to the April 17th and 18th shifts that I'm scheduled for, and I should have enough hours to just be "sick" (as if EVERYONE that I work with isn't well aware that I'm not sick). As for my job, I can't really say how many shifts are left as I haven't decided on a definitive quit date. I should be hearing about Respiratory Therapy jobs later this month (please send good references), in which case I will decide if perhaps I can survive one income-less month, then I will quit for the beginning of April. If my responsible, money hungry, self dominates, I'll work until the end of April. Decisions, decisions...

Last week Calgary experienced a small taste of spring. I tried so hard not to let myself enjoy it too much, as I was certain that old man winter would make an appearance again. As it turns out, he did, particularly when I woke up to -32 degrees and about 17 feet of snow this morning (and all weekend). However, for the glorious sunshiney +12 degrees week we had I couldn't contain my running legs and did two long runs, back to back, on my days off. Last Tuesday I ran 34 km in 2:55, 5:15 min/km (did not intend on that distance but just could not contain myself), then 24 km on Wednesday (approx 2 hours, 5 min/km). It was heaven. Then the deep freeze rolled around and I just couldn't consciously run in the extremely icy conditions without feeling incredibly irresponsible (please note: broken elbow from said conditions in 2007), so I succumbed to a treadmill run (shutter), only the 3rd one this winter, which is pretty good. Luckily the snow plows (aka husbands) are out in full force, and the sidewalks are clear again. Thank God! Now just to deal with the temperatures...

With my race date fast approaching, I have started to consider that my deadline for "race-day-apparel" is fast approaching. This decision is obviously right up there with husband-selection and first-time-home purchasing. This leads me to various panic attacks. Without a well thought out, tested, game plan in this situation, it really could make or break the entire future of my memory bank. Consider this: I complete Boston marathon (#1 on Jacquelyn's bucket list, life long bragging rights) wearing out-of-date, ill-fitting, clashing attire. I might as well just stay home and work those two ER shifts that I'll be "sick" for. I ran in to this problem during my Ironman seasons. I was NOT into the typical triathlon-unitard. Not that I'm against unitards, in fact, the idea of it intrigues me. The issue for me is that I suffer from shy-bladder disease and I need full on bathroom breaks (that involve actually sitting on the germ infested port-au-privy seat, after thoroughly lacing with TP) for complete bladder draining. I can't imagine having to undress and redress the unitard for every pee break. I am incapable of peeing on the bike (and yes, it does happen). I had to really shop around to find comfortable, bathroom friendly, triathlon attire. I'm also picky in the t-shirt/tank top department, as I tend to be on the warmer side (as in, prefer tank tops), but tend to get armpit "chub rub" after my bodyglide has worn off (usually around hour 2). My abnormal pain tolerance doesn't usually notice it until I have blood dripping down my side and saturating my torso. Never good for the finish-line picture. I am fairly certain that I will wear my favorite running shorts, the standard Nike running shorts, as they are my favorite and I have them in every color, so lots to choose from (by every color, I mean every shade of pink, and one pair of purple). I've never suffered from inner thigh "chub rub", which is a relief, as I definately prefer shorts to tights (weather permitting) when I run.

Not that I'm not a huge fan of Lululemon, and they have great stuff - but sometimes I do find that their stuff (although great quality) is far more fashionable than functional - low waist, daisy duke running shorts are not really functional, nor are plunging neck lines. Just saying.... But the availability of various pink hues attracts my attention at an alarming rate.

I'm not suggesting that I need to actually go out and buy a new outfit for this race (but who are we kidding... I probably will), however I do need to consider all my options and start seriously considering my game plan. Of course weather will contribute just slightly, but like I mentioned, I am a running "hot body", which is helpful for my thermoregulation and helpful for "spring weather variability". As for the post race outfit - The Boston marathon jacket debut - obviously (did I really even need to write this), laurel wreath (depending on my 1st place success, but if I'm being positive) and medal.

Alison recently finished reading the 26 Miles to Boston book that I bought a few months ago, and now she is thoroughly versed in Boston lingo which has proved helpful to make us look outstandingly cultured at various social events recently. Doesn't everyone know all about the Citgo sign? No? Well... we do.

...One mile left....

Double Digits

2011-01-08T13:12:00.000-08:00

It's a new year, and that usually means New Year's resolutions, new gym memberships, healthy eating gallore - all that end usually around January 15th. Which is precisely why I'm not really a new year's resolution type person. Luckily, I quite enjoy the whole healthy living concept, not that I'm perfect, but enough that nothing changes for me in January. Ultimately, it kills me to not complete a goal, and it equally kills me if the goal is not truly challenging. So I guess that means new year's resolutions are just impossible for me. But I do have much to look forward to this year, so that certainly starts my year off great, with a moment of reflection.

This year I turn 28 (actually, this month - please send presents). This means that I can no longer be in my "mid-twenties", there is no more trying to classify myself in the "young adults" section... I will be an official "late-twenties" adult. Actually, I'm looking forward to it. Unlike many who dread their 30th, 40th, or 50th birthday - I can't wait to bring it on (not that I want to rush it). There are two reasons for this: 1. The older you are, the more judgemental you are allowed to be of the younger generation (I just can't wait!), but more significantly 2. An endurance runner peaks in their 30's. That's right - the best is yet to come for me. There might even be a sub 3 hour marathon in my future, we'll just have to wait and see what my age and wisdom will do to my hamstrings. I'm going to run a 100 km ultra marathon before I turn 30 - which means time is ticking.... (but of course - this year I must revel in my Boston glory, so it will have to be a 29 year old goal - I'm thinking the Elk Lake 100 km ultra in May 2012, then AR can carry me home and feed me one of her fabulous meals after!).

Also this year, I will finally, FINALLY, complete my post secondary studies. This has been a long time coming - and it is time! If I have to make another tuition payment, I will die, literally, I. Will. Die. Luckily, I finished off 2010 with my FINAL tuition payment, it felt SO good. I now await the $40,000 piece of paper that will be hanging on my wall in a few short months - the piece of paper telling me that I am competent of critical thinking (or whatever else they say you learn in school). This will also mean that as of April 30th, I will only have to work 40 hours a week (if that), to be a valuable, employed citizen of Calgary, what shall I do with all my extra time? I have decided to throw myself a graduation party, I'm not entirely sure what this will entail, but if anything, it will give me a moment of reflection on what the last 10 years of university have taught me. To name a few things: 1. I know what it's like to be broke. 2. I somehow became a coffee drinker (but still not sure if that was because of my Microbiology major, or because of the night shifts). 3. I know the entire periodic table by heart. 4. I am capable of interpreting a chest xray. 5. I may not have always been the best student in the class, but I never once failed a test, asked for an extension on an assignment or handed something in late. I met some great school friends, particularly because my theory of finding the least popular person to be your lab partner is genius. Some of the smartest people I've ever met. Only 55 more 12 hour shifts of my practicum and 34 more 8 hour shifts of my job (too soon to start the countdown?).

Lastly, this year is my Boston year. After running my first marathon in 2002, this has been 9 years in the making! In only 99 days (down to double digits!!) I will be shuttled out to Hopkington, where I will join the world's best marathon runner's for an all-to-brief show of beautiful legs. Except this year, I will be one of those marathon runners. I'll get to strut my stuff through Hopkington, Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline, then finally.... cross the glorious finish line in Boston where I will recieve my laurel wreath - assuming I come in first place, but I'll settle for a finishers medal and jacket if I don't quite make it to first place. It's almost too much excitement for one day. I hope I can handle it.

I guess this only brings me up to the end of April, which means that 2011 will have to produce much more excitement for me, or else heaven-forbid I get bored! I'm sure there is a ton more greatness in store for my year. In fact, I am already thinking about the wonderful things I am going to plant in my vegetable garden and what flowers I will use in my pots this year. Also, the Annual Neary Family vacation will be in July this year, my usual summer highlight. Plus Christmas 2011 will be spent with a massive hoard of Neary women, when my cousins and Aunt come to the mountains for a family Christmas. That many Neary women in one place together is almost too much brillance for the very few men to deal with. I like the way this year is turning out already - 51 more weeks to enjoy!

As for my usual running report: I ran 88 km last week cause it was gorgeous outside and I only worked 3 of the 7 days, of course, I thoroughly enjoyed every spare moment I had. Now that I'm back to usual schedule and January busy-ness, I'll just accomplish what I can, when I can (which, or course, always seems to be enough to keep me sane). Today I ran 25km in 2:08, which is 5.15 min/km. I was actually shocked about this cause I was feeling particularly exhausted and I ran the entire 25km through gale force winds (literally), blowing snow, and -18 degrees with the wind chill. Sometimes I felt like I wasn't moving, but it turns out, afterall, I was actually moving. I've contemplated my Boston race plan quite a bit over the last few months, and I've come to the decision, for various reasons, that this race will be for the experience. I'm taking my camera with me, and enjoying all 26.2 miles, no matter how long it takes me. I will redeem myself with a sub 3:30 marathon on the next one.....

If we have to survive a prairie winter, then we might as well enjoy it!

Also note: You are looking at a picture of professional models: You can check out awhimsyknitter.wordpress.com for the goods

Season's Greetings

2010-12-22T15:02:00.000-08:00

This is my favorite time of year - for many reasons, the food, the fun, the family, the festivities... the long runs. Christmas has so many different meanings to individuals. To me, Christmas means selling my soul to the hospital gods to get a day or two off (meaning, switching Dec 25 for Dec 31 - every year!), it means an exceptional amount of food that tastes wonderful and it means a bit of extra time and energy to be spent with family and friends (.... and longer runs). As much as getting presents is a nice thing, I thoroughly enjoy shopping and giving presents, in fact, my equally competitive sister and I have a long standing competition to give "present of the year". I've never lost (obviously), I doubt this year will be any different.

I like to keep this blog lighthearted and primarily running related (A. Because I am shallow, B. Because there are few other things than running worth talking about, C. Who really cares about the boring details of my life - other than my Boston training - I don't even care about the details). But I am going to subject my readers (all two of you - Mom, Alison...) to a very temporary and short emotional moment:

Christmas time can be very diffucult for some people, whether its due to tragedy, lonliness, stress, poor health, etc. It just seems like negative things stare us in the face so much more obnoxiously during the month of December. I've really noticed it working in the hospital, for obvious reasons. And of course, I feel a great deal of sympathy for people who are walking thru these struggles, if I could offer up any advice or support I would (however, I am highly under qualified in this area - I can however provide you with smoking cessation education). Personally, I am not faced with these tragedies, nor am I bothered with lonliness or various other negativities that surround us. In fact, I am abundantly reminded of how truly wonderful my life is. Looking back on this year - I got to spend another year (count - 2.5 years) waking up every morning (that I didn't work nights) to the man of my dreams (including his morning breath). I successfully talked to Alison (and subsequently Leon, because Alison refuses to answer) on the phone 365 days (regardless if I saw her or not) since last Christmas, and I would have it no other way. My parents showed me for the 27th year in a row what it means to be a humble, generous and kind person. I watched my oldest neice turn in to a little girl (that. doesn't. stop. talking. ever. But is next in line for brilliant-child-of-the-year-award - awaiting discovery by Ellen) and my youngest neice find joy in anything edible (after my own heart). My closest friends continue to be an extension of my family. My job continues to be my dream job. My in-laws have extended my immediate family, which is only a good thing (and oddly enough - I must be the only one in the world who doesn't have a crazy mother in law). My aunts and uncles and cousins have defined to me that distance truly does make the heart grow fonder.

In my family, we celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. And although I love a rum and eggnog, while listening to "up on the roof top" in my elf pajamas awaiting ol' St. Nick with a fresh batch of pilsbury-ready-made-chocolate-chip-cookies (cause that's as good as it gets for me) - That speaks far less to me about Christmas than something like this:

"For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the healvenly host praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"

Well, I could go on, but the emotion has exhausted me for one more year. On to equally as important details - 116 days till the best day of the year. I ran 28 km today in 2 hours 25 minutes, about 5:15 min/km. It was bloody cold - but I didn't actually notice till I got home and my frozen fingers couldn't unlock my front door (on the 1st 3 attempts). I work tomorrow night, then I have 2 (thats an entire 48 hours!) off until I return to work Boxing day for a day shift (and holiday pay - yes, it will be worth it!).

Season's greetings to the blog world. I hope that your Christmas is filled with as much joy as my Christmas is.

Learned Something New This Week

2010-12-10T22:31:00.000-08:00

I've been working quite a few shifts in the ER lately. I love it (mostly) and I hate it. I like the excitement and adrenalin, the Forest Gump box of chocolates theory works well to explain my days, I hate giving puffers. On the wards, puffers are a nursing job (or for competent patients, an independant job), of course, I'm happy to share all the workload with the nurses, I have a special place in my heart for nurses (they work SO hard!)... but seriously - puffers??? There are one million (at least 30) RN's working in the ER and 2 RT's.

I was called to a bed in Bblock of ER (aka "bad" block - for the sick patients - but better than Fblock for the "f***'d patients - I didn't make that up, but it explains it well - padded rooms, need I say more?). They needed me to run a venous gas (probably means nothing to the majority of those reading this). When I got there, the patient looked completely emaciated, basically on death's doorstep, and quite young (30's maybe). The results of the gas were this: pH6.8, PaCO2 9mmHg, PaO2 90 mmHg, HCO3- unmearsurable. Again, what this probably means to you is nothing. What this means to me is a not compatible with life metabolic acidosis. Turns out this poor soul had DKA (diabetic Ketoacidosis), which in nonmedical terms sucks. A few hours later "patient raging acidosis" was turning around thanks to rapid fluid rescusitation, however nurses were unable to get venous blood so I was called for an arterial poke. These pokes hurt. A lot. The follow up arterial gas was still dangerously acidotic, however "patient skin and bones" had reached capacity to sustain life, so things were looking up. While chatting over me jamming an 18 gauge syringe in to the radial artery and awaiting my 1 ML of blood that was perfusing way slower than I wanted thanks to basically no blood pressure, we had a nice chat. I was wondering how a young healthy individual gets a massive DKA attack (not that I asked), but apparently the patient was wondering the same thing. HOWEVER - what I did learn from "patient-I-have-been-in-your-room-entirely-way-too-long" is that it is completely normal (in fact, common) for people training for a 10 km race to lose 30 lbs in one month and pee about 15 liters a day. Are you serious? Umm... what kind of running do you do?

On a totally seperate note: Today's run was 32 km, 2hr 48min, 5:25 min/km, -17 degreesC, fresh snow and ice followed by a 15:00-23:30 shift. Gearing up for a much needed cutback of hours over Christmas (cut back from 60 hours to about 30 for 3 weeks) and planning to get some quality time in with my new running shoes.

In honor of my favorite nurse: If you ever need a puffer - I will give it to you with the best MDI and Spacer technique that I know! In return, if I ever have urine retention, you are the only one who can place a catheter in my urethra.

Could I ask for More?

2010-11-26T12:50:00.000-08:00

Can you see me in there? Well not yet... but I'll be in there sandwiched between my fellow spandex-wearing-highly-developed-quad-powergel-eating people in 142 days from now.

Today I ran 30 km (18.75 mi) in 2:33:54 (5:15min/km, 8.2 min/mi). My cheeks are sunburnt. My kitties were sitting by the door waiting to greet me upon completion. My feet weighed 38 lbs each due to slush absorption into the gel cushioning layer of my Asics (Does that mean they are doing their job?). Clearly, this was the best day of my week... My life is perfect.

5 Minutes of Fame

2010-11-22T19:26:00.001-08:00

As always, I dream of updating this blog daily, but it just doesn't happen... Could be due to various factors, largely revolving around my lack of spare time. C'est la vie.

For various reasons, this year has brought many new experiences to my life, one of them being that I have aquired a very small, low key, nano-sized amount of celebrity status in my very (VERY) normal non-celebrity life. I am going to enjoy every minute of it because I can garauntee that it is going to come to a very abrupt hault in the very near future. My start of star-dom began back in March when I was contacted by a reportor from The Calgary Herald, asking if she could do a story on me about teenage obesity, weightloss, inspiring stories, etc, etc, etc. It turns out my mom had accomplished her motherly duty and advertised my story when replying to an editorial about teenage obesity, they thought it was worth a story (who knew?) and I got a whole half page with a giant picture. You can read this story here: http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/Marathoner+shares+lesson+healthy+living/2625818/story.html

Who knew that people actually read the newspaper? I showed up at both school and work that day and someone had posted the article on the wall for everyone to read. It's humbling to be the center of attention (not that I really minded it for a brief moment). Coincidentally, this article ran in the paper less than 2 weeks before we dealt with our condo fire, which was actually quite a story for Calgary. Craig and I ended up being all over the news (the media loved us cause we had a dramatic firefighter/kitten rescue and we had a pretty good sob story...10 days away from moving). The newspaper article brought about a shocking amount of attention, I got the most random emails and requests - how did people find me anyways? Someone asked me to run a race to support the troops in the middle east (what they heck? - the article was talking about teenage obesity, not my political opinions). I was asked to film an episode on "X-weighted" (aka Canada's low budget version of Biggest Loser), I never saw it air, but the thought of seeing myself on TV doesn't really excite me. Anyways, my fame simmered down until I was contacted by someone from Impact magazine wanting to do a story on me for their inspirational athlete's section. Again, I am humbled (and feeling ever so slightly awkward) cause my life doesn't feel very inspirational, it just feels like me, living my normal life, highly entertained by very simple things. My Impact story was in the Sept/Oct issue (I can't find an online link to prove it, so you'll just have to believe me). On top of all this fame (sadly, no fortune), I write a weekly nutrition article for this fabulous-high-traffic blog (it's my blog, I can advertise all I want): http://www.figandfennel.wordpress.com/ (I go by the alias Ironsister on here - as in, it's my sisters blog). THEN - I was recently contacted by someone on Calgary's CityTV to be on Breakfast TV. They scheduled me a few weeks back but I was bumped for a better story (I guess this is common for Z-list stars), as of now, I am reschedule for December 2 to talk about my opinion on staying fit through the winter months (from a normal person's perspective). If I get bumped again, I won't be offended. What on earth am I going to wear?

I say all this for one reason: I was brought back to real life this past week at a Mach 3 speed. I was quickly reminded that I am, in no way, shape or form, a celebrity runner. In fact, I am so far from it, almost like the equivalent of saying that Naomi Campbell and I are twins. Let me state the many reasons why: The world does not accomodate my running schedule. Not even a little bit. This could be seen in the fact that I work 12 hour shifts, that means I run at either 430 in the morning before a 12 hour shift, 730 in the evening after a 12 hour shift, 430 in the afternoon before a 12 hour shift, or 730 in the morning after a 12 hour shift. In Calgary, all of these options mean that it is cold and there is snow and it is dark (for 11.89 months anyways). If I was a celebrity runner, I would roll out of bed after a good long sleep in (till 630) and choose to do a run at my leisure. Next, the weather hates me. I can take the cold, in fact, I embrace it -bring it on! I can dress for it, and I have no problem looking like a complete idiot with frosted eyelashes and multiple layers, but the ice... I cannot fight it, it always seems to win. As a celebrity runner, I would live in a different climate and I would have a cleared 100 kms of private pathway to use whenever I chose. Further, senior citizens hate me. In fact they loathe me. I don't know why, but whenever I am out running and seniors see me, for some reason, they move in to the middle of the sidewalk, making it impossible for me to pass without getting a shoe full of snow (or mud puddle), and they glare the entire time. I try my very hardest to follow all of the courtesy running rules that exist, and when I see a senior citizen coming, I put on my nicest, sincerest smile ever (the same smile I give patients as I'm going in for a good deep tracheal suction), they still hate me. Also, I have come to realize that I actually yeild to pets. That's right. I have to leave the sidewalk so that another pedestrians dog can keep their paws dry and clean. I'm pretty sure that celebrity runners do not deal with this (well, I bet senior citizens hate them too, but they aren't subjected to running through seniorville on their way to the entrance of Fish Creek Park).

My list could go on and on - but the truth is, no matter how many times I have a small brush with fame, I'm just a normal girl doing a normal (somewhat) hobby. Luckily, for me, I don't do it for anyone or anything else, and every mud puddle I run through, every glaring look I get from the 75plus population, every thermal layer and odd timed run is more than worth it for me. Plus, maybe my idea of a celebrity runner isn't totally accurate...

In other important news, the Boston trip is totally and completely booked, which brings me a sigh of relief and more excitment. Thanks to my travel agent cousin, we got some great flights, and decided to extend our trip by an extra day... There was just WAY too much to fit in to such a short time, so now we are going from the Friday until the Tuesday (race day is Monday). I found us a good hotel (by good, I actually mean affordable) that is about 4 miles from the finish line, it's not ideal (See! - all the celebrity runners will be staying right downtown in the Financial District of Boston where all the action is) - but that would have required lottery winnings to afford. Although the website makes this hotel look more than adequate, I have a bad reputation for Hotel bookings as it was my responsibility to book a Hotel for a Seattle Marathon trip a few years back - it ended up being a Howard Johnson that was literally attached to an S&M store in a exceptionally low-income area. We refer to it as the "HoJo in the Hood"... I thought I would redeem myself at the most recent Vancouver Marathon when I booked us in to the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, with which we were upgraded to the Gold Club (can you say - "Way out of our league!"), but that actually made it worse because I feel like I could get used to the extreme posh-ness. Cambridge Super8 - please don't let me down.

As for training - well, I'm always in training (often for no reason). I think in January I'll think of a game plan to keep things exciting, until then, I'll stick with my usual 80 ish kilometers a week.

Tis the season for Cute-ness!

More Thoughts on Boston

2010-11-05T13:33:00.000-07:00

It's a glorious 20 degree day in November, there are Christmas drinks at Starbucks and we gain an extra hour of sleep this weekend... There is really no reason not to feel great today, but I'm having one of those exhausted, burnt out, cannot go on for another second - moments. This happens to me periodically, I am thrilled with all of the things in my life that keep me busy and going for every waking moment - but I still have my moments. I think ultimately the shift work gets to me from time to time. I can't imagine doing an office job, or a mon-fri bankers hours type job, but the change over from nights to days, days to nights, late evenings to early mornings, 12 hour shifts to 8 hour shifts... takes its toll on my body. I may loose 10 years off my life (as studies have shown) thanks to this, but it's a worthy sacrifice, so I do my best not to complain very often. Today, I'm drawing very deep from the abyss within me to find some positivity... However, I believe the solution may be for me to take this time to meditate and reflect on the finer things in life... Primarily, Boston.

I've already documented my border-line obsessive lure to Boston, my passion to rule the roads with a Boston title, my dream for the last number of years. But there are more reasons that I am drawn to Boston. This is a top 5 list of reason's why Boston speaks my love-language:

5: I live for a challenge: Boston is a tough course, the weather is unpredictable, the 4 Newton hills are killer, Heart-Break Hill is named appropriately. I need something to keep me going, and a challenge like this is just what I need! I find that I have a certain type of personality, I like to refer to it as Type-J personality. This personality may require professional help at times, due to this sick and twisted need to accomplish random, painful yet self satisfying things. I recently purchased a book by Michael Connelly called "26 Miles to Boston" (by recently, I mean today), and as I cracked the cover with a flutter of excitement (perhaps that same flutter that I still feel after the successful procurement of blood when I do an arterial poke), my eyes welled up with fresh tears when I read the foreword by John "the elder" Kelley. Mr. Kelley is a spectator of Boston, two-time champion, 61-time participant and Grand Marshall of the race. He says this "The Boston Marathon in its present form is the greatest marathon in the world....No other marathon in the world can match the race for its color, longevity, glamour, prestige and history. This is the race that the best runners in the world want to win even above the Olympic Marathon". Dear John Kelley - I love you. You just spoke the most romantic and purposeful words that my heart has ever heard. Boston Marathon Challenge - Bring it on! Heart Break Hill - Eat your heart out!

4: The trip: Not only does April 18th, 2011 appeal to me, April 16, 17, and 19th also bring so much excitement. Much like my Ironman experiences, it's not just the day that means something, its the whole trip. I am so excited that Alison and I are doing this together, it is fitting, and perfect in so many ways. Of course, I would LOVE it if all of my favorite people could come, that I could share this history making day with everyone in my family, but reality is, travel can be pricey, it's not the most ideal time of year, and it is what it is. Craig continues to be my biggest supporter, in fact, he deserves his own Ironman medal (x2) for managing to survive living with me and all that I have to offer (aka "my moods"). His support will always be one of my hugest motivations - But Craig and I will be saving our joint trip to Boston for a more NFL season appropriate date, where we can wear matching his/hers Tom Brady jersey's and cheer like maniacs at a New England Patriots game all while getting drunk on stadium Heroin Beer. The Boston Marathon trip must be reserved for my biggest supporter since the first day I laced up a pair of Asics. Alison, who has recently taken to understanding the finer things in life, like running, understands what draws me to Boston, she talks in runners lingo, and her day of Boston spectating is as serious an accomplishment as running the course. Aside from that, we shop the same (and there WILL be shopping), we eat the same (and there WILL be eating), we both like 6am (well... I like it, she tolerates it), we have similar interests (must get a picture of us at Harvard), we finish each others sentences (which makes conversations go so smoothly) - all around, she'll be my perfect travel buddy.

3: The Food: This sort of goes without saying much more (but...I will). Boston Cream Donuts. Never had one, I've been waiting for the real things for a real long time. It's gonna happen, and it's gonna happen soon. The truth is, I'm not really a donut person, for a few reasons (health, calories, fat content, blah, blah, blah), but I'm especially not a "cream/custard/jelly - filled" donut person. I just don't like em. This will change. I WILL be eating a Boston Cream Donut, and I WILL be enjoying it. I will also be finding a way to transport a fresh one back for Craig. Aside from the Donuts, there are so many other food related events that will be shaping our holiday in Boston - Alison and I LOVE markets, coffee shops, sushi, sandwich/salad/deli bars, health food stores, desserts, etc, etc, etc. A new place, new food, new places to go - I just hope that we have enough time to cover all of our bases. It's fine if we don't - we'll make the most of every available moment that we can. I must also find a way to smuggle some real, fresh, New England Clam chowder across the border (and on a plane) to bring it home for Craig (I'm a good wife like that!).

2: The Bragging Rights: I'm going to have to put my humility on the shelf for this season -it's gonna be tough, but I'm up for the challenge. Boston is common knowledge, there are pretty few people out there who aren't familiar with the road race. So, when I say I'm registered, it's hard not to sit back and enjoy the moment. Not just everyone is familiar with an Ironman, so it doesn't always mean much when I say I've done it. In fact, there was a time once when I was training for an Ironman, and some said this exactly "Oh yeah, my sister did one of those once, it took her 2 hours!" Ummm.... that's a sprint triathlon, they don't really compare - but is it really worth sounding like a total snob and correcting the unfamiliar? I don't think so. On this note, I am actually quite thankful that there is no "Boston Tatoo" that comes with this event. If there was, I would HAVE to get it, and as it stands, I already have two tatoo's (one being the Ironman tatoo, that I HAD to get, and the other being the result of 18 year old peer pressure that I HAD to get to fit in...). This is two tatoo's more than I ever intended on getting, it's not really my style and there are only so many places that I can tastefully get inked (that are also easy to hide), I've maxed out (x2) - I really don't want to HAVE to subject myself to more permanent body art. And... now the World Wide Web is aware about the secret snob that exisits in me... darn, I've been trying to keep that a secret.

1: The Jacket: I have coveted this article of clothing for a very very long time. There are very few set things on our Boston agenda, in fact, there are only two. One - 10:30 am, April 18th, be at the start line, two - absolute first stop upon arriving in Boston - John Hancock Race Expo, Boston Athletic Association attire booth, purchase the brightest, most obnoxious Boston Marathon Jacket (by brightest I mean, most neon shade of pink available). I will be wearing said jacket in a permanent fashion from that day onward. I've seen people with these jackets before, I've been tempted to dis-robe and lay my clothes on the ground for these individuals in a sort of "Jesus entering Jerusalem on Palm Sunday" type way. It is finally my turn. Finally! Don't worry, I won't expect the red carpet (palm tree) entrance - but I won't reject it either. I'll have to bring my dad a Boston Jacket back as well - he's kind of a jacket horror, so it's only fitting.

Yup, I'm feeling a million times better already!

Confirmation!

2010-11-02T20:38:00.000-07:00

Life is busy for me, as usual, I just finished an 8 day stretch of work, one day off, then another 6... this is normal, so I'm well conditioned to it, and I don't have too many complaints. I have enjoyed every moment of the last two weeks, because I can honestly say that there has been very few moments where I haven't had Boston on my mind. I'm sure the novelty will wear off, and if it doesn't, I may stand to lose the remaining of my few friends (those who have decided to stick with me thru this ultra-busy year), as I'm sure they will be sick of hearing about everything-Boston.... But I think I'll reveal in the moment for just a short while longer!

Until a few days after the fact, I didn't realize how incredibly close to not registering in the Boston Marathon I had come! This year was a record breaking registration year... the entry's sold out in exactly 8 hours and 2 minutes. Apparently the norm is more like a few weeks, even two months before maximum capacity is reached... in fact, I know that the Las Vegas marathon is historically a favorite for Boston-wannabe's, it runs on the first weekend of December every year and is the last qualifying race for the upcoming April Boston Marathon. I guess if that is someone's plan this year, they won't have any hope at all. On registration day, I was actually working at 7am, the same time that online registration opened. Being the Boston virgin that I am, I didn't really know what to expect for the registration process. I didn't really think it would be a huge panic to register at 7am on the dot... but yet I didn't want to risk it. For my first Ironman, I lined up at 3 am, with a massive crowd of other hopefuls, and waited paitently until 9am when registration opened. That year, the 2007 race, was the 25th anniversary, so it was projected to sell out in record time. The stress of that Penticton trip aged me a good 3 additional decades! It's quite an emotional commitment (let alone financial!!!) to plan for these events, and I particularly loath things that I don't have complete and utter control of, so until confirmed confirmation is in my hands, I don't sleep, I have hot flashes and I feel particularly irritable. I sailed through the Ironman registration and was confirmed by about 9:15 (sadly the damage was done, as seen by the additional lines on my brow). As for Boston, I couldn't handle the stress of missing registration, so I got team-Boston leader Alison to fulfill her sisterly duties and register me. Alison is incredibly organized, worked as an executive assistant to a government cabinet minister, holds a Master's degree, etc etc etc. If there is one person in the world who won't let me down.... it is her! But she failed, and she failed miserably (luckily to redeem herself in glorious triumph). As an incredibly amazing turn in my fate, I was only working an 8 hour shift this day and I slipped out of work about 10 minutes earlier than usual, about 2:55. I have a usual routine when leaving the hospital (everyday), I turn my phone on for the first time after 8 or 12 hours, and before checking various important things (like facebook), I always call Alison. Usually to check in, debrief the day, sometimes I offload a million things (aka "bitching"), and mostly to hear if there has been any breaking news (on TMZ) in the real world that I missed while being consumed in my hospital world. When she didn't mentioned anything about Boston registration, I was a little bit confused, because I was certain that it is ALL that she thought about ALL day (just like me)... eventually we got there.... and for the first time in her life - Alison forgot to do something (potentially at my expense... panic... stress induced aging commences....). We hung up, she immediately registered me, called me back, we laughed about it, and then carried on with the more important details of the day. It wasn't until later that I learned that Alison was LITERALLY 4 minutes away from the cut off time. I just gained another wrinkle by writing that! The stress still sends me in to a third degree heart block - and my registration has actually been confirmed! Oh my gosh - I just re-read the sentence and I feel the skin under my chin sagging! The stress! Can you imagine!?!? I would still trust Alison to do anything for me - she redeemed herself (and more!) when I recieved this in the mail exactly two weeks later:

Arrived via first class mail, direct from Boston: the word's I have been dreaming to read my entire life. Let the celebrations begin, because it is official. There is no turning back.

My demographics - It states that my citizenship is American here, which has been since been corrected - otherwise those are the details that will forever be with me Qualifying Time: 3:35:17

Even the cats couldn't contain their excitment (as per usual daily routine when I pick up the mail and they immediately sit on it).

Boston Bound!

2010-10-18T19:07:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time! So let me update my blog-o-sphere on the last year of my life in one paragraph or less:

Last fall/winter was fairly uneventful and unexciting, which eventually led way to the high activity and excitment of my spring/summer. In March Craig and I bought our first house, after searching for the perfect place for us to move our family of four (2 humans, 2 cats), we found our dream home (our dream home for now anyways....) and were thrilled with the sale of our condo (3 days on the market!). 10 days before "move out of condo/move in to house" day, our condo building went up in flames and that was the end of that chapter. This led to A) the worlds easiest move known to man (2 cars, 2 cats and that's it) B) a massive insurance claim and C) a very fond (and gracious) reintroduction to my account with "The Bank of Dad" (for the millionth time in my short 27 years). LOTS of shopping and then some more shopping found us settled in our new place just in time for me to celebrate my 2nd wedding anniversary and my 20th marathon on May 2nd in Vancouver. After 20 solid attempts, I qualified for the Boston Marathon with a 3:35 marathon, and I got to celebrate with Alison as she ran her first half marathon! June brought me to the start of my final year of a decade worth of post secondary education, which is being spent working full time (12 hour days/nights) as a Respiratory Therapist Intern at the Rockyview General Hospital (by intern, that means, I pay tuition, work full time, and not get paid for it.... which is really just so great). I'm continuing with my job at the Foothills Hospital in the mean time, working 2 days a week for a total of 60 hours a week in Calgary hospitals. Luckily... I love it. In August we went on our annual "Neary family vacation" to the Okanogan, which proved to be, as always, the best week of the year.

Today, on October 18th, Calgary is waiting with great anticipation for the announcement of our new mayor and city council. However, this day has SO much more meaning to me than I think I can even fathom. While many were out with their "Barb is the Best" and "Nenshi or die" campaigns fighting to the last second, I was awaiting 7am when the 115th Boston Marathon registration opened. While so many people are concerned with the future of our city and things like ring roads and airport tunnels, I think the truly important message from today is: What am I going to wear, in 6 months from today, when I line up at the start line for the Boston Marathon?

I've missed writing this past year, as I thoroughly enjoyed this blog (knowing fully that the only person who actually reads this is my mom - which I'm ok with). And what better reason to start my online diary again, than perhaps accomplishing the greatest goal and journey of my life to date! I have dreamt about the Boston Marathon for years. I have run 20 marathons, over 7 years with one ultimate goal in mind. My two ironman finishes, pale in comparison to qualifing and running Boston. This is the absolute and number 1 thing on my bucket list. It almost brings a tear to my eye thinking about.

Aside from being the most prestigous road race on the planet, and aside from being known for it's incredibly challenging course - It is with great humility that the running community of the world looks at Boston marathoners in a whole new light. Some may say that a "real" runner is one who has lost their toe nails to longs runs (check), or one who runs in minus 30 degree Calgary winters (check). Perhaps a "real" runner is known as someone who has accomplished a 10 km race (check), or half marathon (check) or marathon (check) or 50 km run (check) or even an Ironman (check, check). Others think of runners as ones who have placed in the age groups and won races (check), people who eat nasty gooey things (check), people who wear spandex 30+ hours a week (check), people who join run club and have the token running room reflective jacket (check). But as an aspiring runner and one who has dreamed of being a "real" runner - let me tell you the truth. The only people out there who are the real deal, who can wear the title of runner, and wear it proud, the only ones that deserve right of way on the pathways, the only ones who Sunday morning run club should yeild to, the Obama's of the running world - These people are solely Boston finishers. No matter how much I want it, and how many miles my feet have carried me over in the past decade, and how much I've dreamt about it, I am not a real runner - not yet anyways. But let my countdown begin, because that day is coming for me, it's so close, I can almost feel the victory melting in my mouth, almost like the taste of a Boston Cream Donut (which I intend to be eating at the time of my victory). My life is pretty close to perfect, but on April 18th, 2011, I think my life will reach it's own personal definition of perfection.

Don't get me wrong - I am WELL aware that I am just a recreational athlete. I will never go to the olympics, or anywhere near it. I will never be known as a famous runner, I will never make money doing it. My name will never be a household name. I will never represent Canada, or any other country, as an athlete. I know I am just an average person, with an average goal. I know that there are 20,000 people who run the Boston Marathon every year, I know that there are about a bazillion people who could run circles around me. But for me, in this life, this represents so much more to me than any of those other things I mentioned. This represents an unrealistic goal, that with a lot of hard work, a lot of time and a lot of wonderful memories, somehow became a realistic goal. Put me in a room with other athletes and I am very quickly humbled - but for just one sentence and one nano second, the selfish, prideful, self satisfied person in me wants to gloat. I rock!

It only seems fitting that my sister joins me, like she has for every other marathon I've run, and we celebrate together as I show the world (my world) that this chubby teenager is actually a REAL runner. This will be my diary of training and my thoughts on running while I prepare my body for the ultimate in running... The Boston Marathon!

Proof I'm still alive: Pre Vancouver marathon (and qualifying for Boston) with Alison (1st half marathon), Dani (first 8 km), Jen (first half marathon) and Whitney (first marathon)

Healthy

2009-10-28T15:21:00.000-07:00

Every year at Thanksgiving, we have a family tradition to go around the dinner table and say one thing that we are thanful for. This usually turns into something comical and is mostly done to please the highly emotion women of our family (mom). This past year, I got to start, which meant I had the oppertunity to steal all of the good choices first... I always feel sorry for the poor sucker at the end of the table who has to think of something original after going through 12 other people's ideas of why we are thankful. I was going to choose family or friends, and then screw everyone else up because secretly that is what everyone else was hoping to say... but I said I was thankful for good health instead. Don't get me wrong, I'm still pretty sure I made at least 6 out of the 12 people have to rethink their ideas, because obviously we are all thankful for our health, and obviously this seems like a very easy, somewhat thought-less answer to the Thankful question.

I've thought about this quite a bit since Thanksgiving though. Perhaps we don't give quite enough credit to how truly blessed we are. It's very easy for me to think about health in terms of kilometers ran, negative splits, and supersets. If this is the case, than I am very thankful. Although I work hard for it, I guess that means I am very healthy, cause I think my body could run forever, I am confident that I can lift my own body weight, or more, my heart works efficiently, my lungs don't tire very easily and frankly... I have buns of steal! Luckily, I love doing what I do, and that's exactly why I do it, however, it's only a very small contributor to my overall health. Although I enjoy the benefits of having a heavy-duty-pumping machine (aka healthy heart), if I were to drastically reduce the amount of exercise I do in a week, I would still be blessed with good health... great health.

I work in the hospital, and I'm studying in the health care field, so I have definately been exposed to sickness and disease, on a daily basis. I've seen otherwise healthy people freakishly die, I've seen people who are far too young die, or become dibilitated in some way or another. I've seen people suffer with permanent handicaps, I've simply seen just a lot of suffering. Of course, no one ever deserves to be sick or diseased... Well... Almost no one.... (there - I said it, it's mean, but we were all thinking it!). There are times when people bring illness on themselves (hello to all you smokers out there), but far more often than not people just get sick. I suppose UB is a great example of this, I don't think he could have done anything more for his health, his lifestyle should have had him crossing an Ironman finish line in his 80's.

I don't really know why things happen the way that they do... and that in itself requires an entirely different blog (and different author!). However, I do know that in the mean time, I plan to cherish every day that I have good health as I would consider it one of the greatest gifts of all time. I'm not going to turn into some chemical/germ/microbe free crazy activist who only wears organic cotton and never showers cause even that is harmful... but I am going to continue to do my best, my very best, for as long as I am alive to care for my body. And every single day that I wake up and I can breath on my own, and my heart pumps blood on its own, and my legs move and my brain remembers, I'll be thankful for. Because one day, IF something were to ever happen to me, then I can have peace of mind knowing that I took care of my gift to the best of my ability... anything else is just plain old bad luck (or whatever else one chooses to believe...).

Primarily, as a reminder to myself, but perhaps a good reminder for everyone, this is a list of PRACTICAL things that I think are crucial for every day living to ensure optimal health.

10. Our body is largely composed of water, we need it, and we need a lot of it. 8 glasses a day minimum, however we require an additional 2 glasses of water for any alcoholic, caffinated or high sugar content beverage we have. Also to be noted, I'm pretty sure a venti starbucks size is 20 ounces, so thats equivalent to 2.5 glasses therefore 5 additional glasses of water. Don't know about you... but this will make me spend 3 out of my 24 hours in the day peeing. Not worth it.

9. Stress is a killer. It will eat away at you from the inside-out. Eliminate it. Eliminate NOW. The best way I can suggest eliminating it is to quit your job, move into the mountains and live off of the land. If that's a bit to extreme, may I also suggest simply rethinking life priorities (If Dr. Phil can give professional advice, then so can I!)

8. Get a cute, fluffy, smooshed-in-face cat and name him Bedford.

7. Ensure that there are children in your life. They are the best way to keep you young, make you laugh, and teach you about the real miracles in life (disclaimer, they may also be the cause of previously mentioned stress... in this case, I revert back to point #8).

6. Plan your wardrobe so that every single day of the week you have a minimum of one pink item included in your outfit. It's been rough for me, but Respiratory Therapy students are required to wear red scrubs (SO excited to graduate!), so I have large amount of pink underpants to choose from on a daily basis. On my days away from being a student, and just working at my normal job, I ensure that I wear pink scrubs from head to toe.

5. Excersice daily in some capacity. If you're like me, than you have a well thought out exercise plan that involves each muscle group, heart rate zones and you think in Watts. If you're like every other normal personal in the world, 20-30 minutes of an increased heart rate is all you need. So simply, take the stairs, take your kids/pets (really, is there a difference?) for walks, go to the gym, join a club, get a hobby...etc etc etc.

4. Eat clean. It's easy to get very hard core in the food department, and I'd say I'm borderline, however, conveniently for me, I enjoy cooking, I learned quite a bit about nutrition when I studied nutrition (go figure), and my sister is an even better cook, and equally as conscious in the same area (and I help myself to her fridge on a regular basis). On that note, it's easy for food to turn into something that controls your life (hello point #9!), and it's very easy for food to turn into a reward or a punishment. This isn't really a healthy way of looking at food, and probably defeats the purpose of healthy living. I like to look at food as fuel for my body, so I want to fuel myself accordingly. I find this helps me make really good choices the vast majority of the time, but I don't feel like choices are weighing over my head like there is a "right" and "wrong". Anyways, this is a lesson that took me many years to learn, and I'm sure many more years to come to perfect... but it's been a rewarding journey.

3. Surrond yourself with good people/friends. This requires little explaination, aside from me saying that I am SO rich with friendship (I'm stealing Alison's quote on this one). If friends were worth money, I'm pretty sure people would nick name me "money bags" and I'd give Bill Gates a run for his money (so punny! hahaha). I might not have a lot of friends, but the ones I do have are keepers! People who are loners, or who live alone for too long turn into weirdo's... this simply cannot be good for one's health. On that note, people who hang out with mean people... turn in to mean people (also hazardous to ones health).

2. Get enough sleep. We need 8 hours a night and I'm pretty sure the world is FULL of sleep deprived people. If you've ever been cut off in traffic in that morning commute, or had a grumpy cashier at Safeway... I can almost garuntee that they didn't get eight hours of sleep last night! Unfortunately, I need some work in this department (a lot of work). Although I think I function well off of little sleep, I'm sure Craig would beg to differ. That said, I am a shift-worker, and studies have already shown that I will lose 10 years off of my life thanks to this. Oh well... I'm taking one for the team...

1. Laugh every day, in fact, laugh every hour. People who are too serious age faster and look ugly (my opinion anyways). Combining all of the above points does not make it very diffucult to find reason to be joyous. From my experience, this is the easiest thing of all to do to stay healthy. Studies have shown that 1 hour of extreme laughter instantly vanishes wrinkles. It's true - I'm pretty sure I read that in the Bible somewhere too (not quite sure which version - maybe something a bit more contemporary like The Message).

I'm so very very very grateful for my health. It's one of the worlds greatest gifts, and the only way that I know how to thank God for this gift is to take care of it.

Man Push Ups

2009-10-19T16:40:00.001-07:00

It's been a while... far too long really, but life got oddly busy, and I somehow lost my desire to write. Suddenly last week, I missed it a lot. I suppose now that Ironman is finished, this blog's purpose is largely selfish. I can write whatever I want, no one even really has to read to it. It will be my online-personal-self-expressive journal (hahaha just kidding - I am definately not that deep!).

As a brief update, regarding my shingles recovery, post partum depression and post ironman recovery: It took a good month for all of the nerve pain to clear up, my doctor perscribed some pain killers specifically for nerve-type pain, but I opted to stick it out like a real Ironman - just kidding - I chose not to take them because I see all the patients at the hospital get super constipated when they take this specific drug and I wasn't ready to do that to my smoothly-running-well maintained-cleaned out daily bowels, nor do I want to gag back psyllium husks! Luckily, it's been 3 weeks since I've felt any pain what so ever, so I'm just going to assume that I am done with that (thank God!). I had a bit of a hard time cutting back on the training, you just get so used to it, that it seems weird not to plan my life around long bikes and runs and fitting in a second work out for the day! I'm sure I wasn't the only one who was out for an "easy and short" 25 km run less than 3 weeks after the race, then straight to the pool after to finish the workout off with 12 x 50 m sprints (however, I may have been the only one doing that while holding my insides together in pain).

I work very well with goals, like for example, completing an Ironman, or qualifying for the Boston Marathon. But then when I complete the goal, I need another one asap to avoid the dreaded postpartum (as mentioned previously). For the first time in a very long time I don't really have a specific goal, and I am happy to say that I think I'm actually doing OK. No irratic, compulsive, psychotic, irritable behaviors (not yet anyways). I am going to run the Vancouver Marathon (Alison is going to do the half!!! Woot Woot!), I'm hoping to have a PB in Vancouver, so I guess it's a pseudo-goal. But I won't seriously start training for that (outside of my usual weekly long runs and speed work) until February, so in the mean time I've picked up a new challenge, and I've started doing a lot of weight lifting, but challenging myself far beyond what I've ever done before.

I've always stayed away from heavy lifting because I'm a runner and runner's don't do that... we run, and to build muscles we run hills, and to get faster we do fartleks and to run longer we do long runs and to look better we get coordinated Running Room Reflective jackets and we run in a herd on Sunday mornings taking up 3 lanes of a 4 lane street. It's what we do, and we do it well! Until recently, my opinion of heavy lifters were that they probably had itty bitty lungs under all that bulk because they never do cardio, that they live off of a trio of rice, soy and whey protein powders as well as various muscle building amino acid supplements, and quite frankly, they spend three quarters of their actual work out too busy checking themselves out in the mirror. I could be stereotyping here... but as a runner, I'm sure I've been a victim of that runner stereotype on more than one occassion, and let's all be honest... it's true. Athletes are all weird in their own little weird way. However.... I have managed to maintain running about 80 - 100 km/week while doing 3 intense heavy weight lifting work outs - and I have yet to ingest a single ounce of weirdo supplements, I don't check myself out in the mirror, and my aerobic capacity has actually improved! I've bench pressed, chin-ed up and push-ed up more weights, more reps and with far more intensity than ever before in my life (and shall I clarify... by bench press, I mean I've moved to 10 lbs plates from my previous "bar only" personal best). A weight lifting workout, if done with a certain technique and designed from an expert in the field, can actually be one hell of a workout! By that I mean, sweating, tears, pain, sweating, aerobic, anaerobic, not walking for three days after and more sweating! It's great, I couldn't be happier!

This brings me to my next point... it makes such a difference to have a expert advice in the field, and I am not refering to the beef-head or dumb blond (there I go, stereotyping again... and there is nothing wrong with being blond) that took a 4 hour online course to become "Personal Trainer". I've always been a big believer in being well informed, hence my many many years of involvement in the Running Room Clinics, as well as having a triathlon coach, it made all the difference for me. How convenient for me that my closest friend from school happens to be a personal trainer with a Bachelor of Kinesiology and quite big into weight lifting herself (which is actually an under statement because I'm pretty sure she could bench 4 x's her body weight if she really tried). Whitney has taught me SO much, my idea of working out has really been transformed. I have learned to fit SO much more in to an even shorter period of time, I've learned about working certain muscle groups and how to optimize it, I've learned about super sets and other great things like that, I've learned that I am far stronger than I ever gave myself credit for (Hello people... I can actually do chin ups!!!), but of far most importance - I have learned that doing a "Whitney Leg Workout" and attempting a long run anytime within the next three days is pure and utter torture (the kind I like)!

Also very interesting to be noted - along with my previous stereotype of girls who do man-pushups, I just assumed this would mean I would "bulk up" and watch the weight on the scale increasing. I always give a chuckle to the "muscle weighs more than fat excuse" even though it's true, I think it's used far to lightly (as in "I haven't lost any weight cause I gained muscle" - possibly, but not usually the case). I'm not a big weigh-myself obsesser, in fact, I generally try and stay away from it. I get myself weighed every year at the doctors office, so I use that as my guide line and try to stick with it. I'll jump on the scale once in a blue moon at the gym, but for no real reason (and for some reason I always get suckered in when people have scales sitting out in the bathrooms at their homes). I was a victim to the scale for FAR too many years, so now, for the most part, if I feel good, then it's all good. We had to get weighed when we registered ourselves the day before the race at Ironman, I was 128 lbs. I had my once-in-a-blue-moon lure to the scale today at the gym and I was 123 lbs - so I guess my stereotype was wrong (not that this had anything to do with weight loss or weight gain, just and interesting observation). Perhaps it shouldn't be a surprise to me because Whitney makes me look like a whimp when we work out together, and she is very petite - so I guess bigger isn't really stronger.

It's a fun new project, I love working out with Whitney, we go easily in our 70 minute lunch break at school and then I spend the afternoon in classes sitting by myself in a corner because I am STILL sweating. I still get to run as much as I want(my first love), but I think I'm standing just a wee bit taller (all those core muscles are holding me together stronger!). Don't worry, I have no plans to get super tanned, lube myself in baby oil, clothed in a inny-weeny-yellow-polka-dot-bikini and compete in any bodybuilding/muscle-man type competition (that is SO not me!). It's just all for fun...with a 6-pack as the result (however, I have yet to see the 6 pack).

Ironman Blues

2009-09-09T19:55:00.000-07:00

What I would like to know is...

How does someone go from training their a** off, every single day, multiple hours daily, living, breathing, sleeping, eating - all things Ironman... to couch-bound and in pain for a week, nothing to train for, no big goal, and quite frankly, no real reason to live???

What I can tell you...

The result is one big case of post-partum depression (so-to-speak)!

I'm having a hard time with this one. I think I just enjoyed myself far to much during the training, perhaps I just didn't want it to end. In 2007 I had a small case of post-Ironman (aka post-partum) depression, but just a few weeks earlier Craig and I got engaged, so it was after Ironman that I got to start wedding planning - which, of course, is every girls dream, and every girls chance to turn into a controlling-bossy-picky-princessy-freak-of-nature Bridezilla. I think I bought my wedding dress the week after Ironman. This was a very good cure for any type of "blues" that I was experiencing, and perhaps the start of a long year of "blues" for my dad (thanks to a very large outstanding bill from The Bank of Dad).

I understand this year was a bit different, I really was quite sick for a few days after. I think I could describe the pain I had as almost as bad as my whole "Malaria out in the middle of no-man's Land somewhere in Sub-Sahara Africa" experience. But the most horrible thing of all is going from 25 + hours/week of training to pain on inhalation at rest! Who would have thought that Shingles could cause so much internal pain??? I thought only Grandma's and chemo patients got shingles (apparently... so do vegetarian, healthy, 26 year old, marathon running, girls).

The guilt started to settle in on Thursday, which was also probably one of the worst days for pain. All I could hear was the voice in my head telling me how badly I needed to get my butt in gear and get back to my training. What exactly I'm training for, is unknown, but the voices in my head were telling me my finely defined bulging quads and hamstrings (perhaps that's a bit of an exaggeration...) were shrinking down into mere single strands of DNA. If I didn't get back at it, I would be THAT GIRL who by-passes the leg press machine only to stroll on the treadmill with my totally coordinated lululemon uniform and matching pink ipod while my poney tail is flapping in the breeze of my 25 min/mile stroll (side note - I do LOVE lululemon anything, and I do have a pink ipod). Dear God - please just kill me now!!! Every moment I was on the couch (gasping for air) I could see my Ironman tatoo fading more and more into a blob of black ink on my ankle and eventually spelling out the words "Lazy Ass".

I swear I'm not extreme at all - totally reasonable and realistic!

As a result, I probably pushed it a bit more than I should of (as in - running whilst holding my insides together in extreme pain). I found swimming was actually a bit of a relief to the pain (so there was a lot of swimming), particularly when I just took breaths on my left side. I also used the eliptical machine, which I normally would classify in the "sissy" category at the gym, but it was something my mom and I could do together, while we analyzed and solved all of the world's problems. Plus, I got to spend a lot of time enjoying our beautiful extended summer, I spent a lot of time outside walking. It wasn't anything like my Ironman training, but it at least quieted those screaming "lazy ass demons" for the time being.

Now that I'm feeling much better, and fully (and OVERLY) rested, I've finally been able to get back into my normal activity level, and I and thoroughly looking forward to going back to work (after my banishment from the hospital being a walking virus to immune compromised persons).

This has got me thinking though. Those Ironman administration people are geniuses! They have garunteed themselves an eternal paycheque! The reason that people go back year after year (after year...) is because it would be better to just suck it up, pay the money, and start the training again, then go through the awful, dreaded, post-partum depression! It's such a lonely, horrible, suicidal (again, not extreme at all!) time. Dark days! I feel like I am a heroin addict trying to break a habit. Ironman-ing is a cult... they suck you in, and unless you can break the addiction, you will never, EVER, be able to stop (just look at Sister Madonna!). So now that I've missed my oppertunity to sign up for IMC 2010, I find myself secretly getting up in the middle of the night researching ultra-marathons and other sick and twisted goals that I can start training for. It's like my fix - I have to sneak out of bed without waking up Craig, then clear the Web History so that I can't be traced. I was reading about the Kananaskis 100 km ultra marathon and I found a single tear rolling down my cheek as it pulled on my heart strings.

So what do I do next?

I was thinking of putting an ad in the newspaper that reads:

"Young female seeking new hobby. Must be extreme, time consuming, inflict pain, burn a minimum 5000 calories/day, inhibit a social life, but yet be oh-so very very satisfying to ultra-extreme-OCD type personality. Can take up to and including 30 hours per week of Requestor's spare time and must result in some kind of material merchandise (aka finisher's tshirt and medal). Bragging-Rights-Tatoo a plus, but not a requirement. Must be able to bring an entire cheering squad clad in pink (from head to toe) who make an obnoxious amount of noise. Please send applications ASAP!"

If that doesn't work... I suppose I can just stick it out and enjoy having an exceptionally understanding husband who puts up with my many many, MANY withdrawl symptoms (including but not limited to: crying, whining, pouting, raging, silent-treatment, random house-reorganizing, glaring, and bathroom hogging for exceptionally long baths).

It's been a week and a half, I'm sure the worst of it is over and I'm well on my way back to normal-ness. Before we know it, this will be just a distant memory, and I'll be far more interested in America's Next Top Model than into my Heart Rate Zones. Perhaps I'll join my local IA (Ironman's Anonymous) support group for recovering addicts - the accountability would be good for me! But, as long as Craig is offering foot massage's and letting me talk about having kids in the far nearer future than he is interested in... perhaps, I'll just milk it a wee bit longer...

This is the dress that saved me from my first case of post-partum depression - I guess I can't just go buy another one, but I'm thinking of hauling it out of retirement and wearing it around the house tomorrow. Maybe that's all I need. I can't wait to see Craig's reaction when he gets home from work and if for some reason, tomorrow is the day that he decides to invite ALL the boys over for beer after work - so be it! I'm very delicate these days!

Race Report

2009-09-04T12:42:00.000-07:00

Here I am... Officially an Ironman for the 2nd time! And what a journey it has been...

I hardly know where to start, it was a really long and emotional day in so many ways.

I had a great sleep the night before the race, it was exactly what I needed! We had an early dinner, then one last evening beach visit, and we were all ready to pack in for the night. I was lights out by 9 pm, which made it very easy to be up and ready to pound back the carbs by 5 am. We left the hotel by 5:30, I felt really good, relatively stress free and fairly excited, so it was a much different race morning than 2007! We met Rachelle, a fellow athlete and Calgarian the day before at our hotel and it turned out to be a friendship that was great for all of us! We went down to the race together, stood in line for body marking and then double checked our bikes and had a last minute stress-pee. I met up with my family before I said my final goodbye, we met at the fences that seperated the athletes and spectators, so it was sort of like I was in jail, going off all by myself...

I met up with Carolyn and Sara so that we could start the race in the water together. I was never in a million years expecting to actually stick with Carolyn, but I was happy to at least start together. We started on the far left side of the start line, which was a much wiser choice in terms of not getting beaten up by the big boys that were front and center. On the negative side, I'm sure we added distance on to our swim, but that's fine with me. After the horn went off (much to my dissappointment, it wasn't a cannon blast like in previous years), we were on our way. I can't believe it when I say it... but I was on Carolyn's toes right away and I stayed on them the whole way! This is a mass swim start, it was nearly 2800 athletes all starting together, so how I managed this, I will never know! It was so great, Carolyn got to do all the work and I got a nice draft the whole swim. There were even a couple of times I had put my head up and slow down a bit, in fact, I'm pretty sure Carolyn was annoyed because I kept hitting her toes (she'd never admit it, but I bet it was annoying). I had to fight off a few people who were trying to get in my way, but I had no problem giving a good elbow jab or kick, and in the end it was worth it, because my swim time was 7 minutes faster than 2007!

Out of the water, there were tons of wet suit "strippers" waiting for us to rip those suits off as fast as possible, then off to grab my bike bag. I wore my tri suit under my wetsuit, so I only had to get my helmet, shoes, and glasses, and I was on my way to my bike. I had a 6 minute transition, which was fast enough for me, then I was on my way. I saw my whole crew of cheer leaders just a kilometer or two up mainstreet after I exited from the transition zone. It sure makes a difference to see people cheering for you, not that the streets weren't lined with thousands of spectators, but it was just nice to see some familar faces. Kind of felt like the Tour de France.

Unfortunately just minutes into the bike I felt a sharp, shooting pain in my back and side... and this was the beginning of what would be a LONG day of cramps, stitches and a heck of a lot of pain. I tried to stretch it out and let my stomach relax thinking it was just from too much lake water in my guts, but after about 30 km, I realized that I was just going to have to think about something else cause the pain wasn't going anywhere.

I tried to take my mind away from it and not let it ruin the experience, which was challenging, but I think I was somewhat successful in that. I enjoyed the bike ride as best as I could. I had a short stop before the Richter's Pass climb, the great volunteers held my bike while I did the famous port-a-potty squat. I tried to stretch out my back a bit thinking it might help with the cramps (it didn't) and took a minute to take in the moment. Back on my bike, I started the gruelling climb up Richters. I actually found the most relief from my stitches and side pain when I was doing the climbs, so oddly enough, I found myself finally being able to use some of those hard-earned quad muscles, I passed quite a few people on my way up the hills (normally not the wisest race strategy, but I at that point I already knew that my race strategy wasn't quite what I was planning anyways). Of course, whatever goes up, must go down.... so I got to hang on for dear life and ride my way down the other side of the mountain pass! I saw my odometer go over 65 km/hr - at which point I hit the brakes and started saying my prayers (quite scary when you actually think about it!). The Rollers weren't nearly as bad as I was excpecting but my back pain was starting to get unbearable. I held on until I got to my special needs bag at 120 km, after the Rollers and the horrible out and back (that I honestly thought was never going to end!!!). I was planning to stop for a little break and enjoy my cookies, have a stretch and pee break, but I was starting to get nervous that I might not get going again considering the pain I was in. So I got right back in to the saddle and was on my way. I passed The Bear Fruitstand and dreamed of my milkshake from the day before, thinking that if I didn't have a really REALLY good reason to finish (for Uncle Bruce), I would have very likely scrapped everything at that point and just enjoyed another milkshake while hitchiking back to town. The Yellow Lake climb was very challenging, at this point, it was SO hot out (over 30 degrees) and it felt like the sun was directly over my head and there was no escape from the heat. When I got to the summit of Yellow Lake, I stopped for a minute to dump a bottle of water on my head and compose myself for another death ride down the other side of a mountain... at this point I got a huge wave of dizziness and I definatley saw some spots! I thought for sure my race was over becasue I was sure I was going to pass out and I was sure that they would never let me go on if I did. Luckily, thanks to another great volunteer, I used his lawn chair and recovered for about ten minutes while the dizziness settled. After that point, it was pretty much all down hill, into a giant cloud of smoke and heat (thanks to the forest fires!) and back in to Penticton.

I saw the whole crew again out cheering in front of our hotel. I didn't stop on the bike because I knew I would see them again shortly on the run, but I definately slowed down enough to see them with every sort of noise maker that the dollar store sells. Under Alison's direction, they had songs and dances prepared for me and every other athlete out there. If there were awards out there for cheering - they would definately win!

T2 was equally as fast as T1, I was out and ready to go in only a few minutes, which was good. My legs didn't feel to bad at all, much to my surprise, but within the first few steps I knew what I was going to be facing as the stitches in my side and back were as bad as ever. At this point, my whole stomach felt like it was in a knot, and I knew that any hope of getting calories of any kind into my guts was not going to happen. I ran/walked as planned, but the runs were pretty brutal. Zoe met up with me after the out and back on Lakeshore Drive, and ran with me up Main Street until I reached the Super 8 Motel, and all of the cheering squad. It was nice to have a few minutes with Zoe, she was very encouraging and she let me vent about my stupid stomach issues. I stopped for a minute when I saw everyone, secretly hoping that someone else would want to take over from that point and finish the last 36 km... unfortunately there were no takers. What a shame.

I carried on with my 10 and 1 run/walk plan, but I also chose to walk up the steep hills and walk through the aid stations. I managed this for the entire first half, which was great, better than I was expecting considering at that point the pain was awful. I saw Carolyn just near the turn around point at Okanogan Falls, she was just on her way back the other direction. We stopped and had a good chat for a minute or two, and Bob, Carolyn's husband, who was waiting at that point, kindly let me use his cell phone to call Craig and let him know that I was half way done the run portion, and not passed out on the side of the road. My stomach hurt way to much for me to eat anything (in fact it had been over four hours at this point since I'd had anything but water - which is awful!), so I was pretty disappointed that my kit kat bar went to waste!

After the turn around, I saw Rachelle was only a few minutes behind me, so that was great news, she was doing great! My run, at that point, turned into a shuffle-side-holding-hunchback-of-notre-dame type movement. I kept a decent pace, but it certainly was a sight to watch! I bet it was funny! The last half of the marathon was rough for me because I felt like my insides were going to explode, but then again, being on the way home was very encouraging and at that point, I could count down the mile markers until the finish line!

I saw Zoe again with about 5 km left, she gave me a great pep talk and helped pull me in the rest of the way. At the turn onto Lakeshore Dr for the last 2 km stretch I saw everyone doing their cheering, as well as thousands of spectators. At that point, I was pretty sure that each and every person who lined Lakeshore Dr was out that just to cheer me on that last mile! I felt like a super star and I definately tried to put on my smiling "I'm not in pain and I could do this all again tomorrow" face (it was tough, but I dug deep)! I had to run the last 500m with a bit more speed than I had left in me because I wanted to at least make it in under 15 hours, definately a disappointment for the time, but I can't say I was too upset, just happy to complete it. I crossed the line in 14:59:25, and I was greeted by a volunteer who would stay with me until I was safely out of the athlete's area and dropped off with my family (the volunteers really make the event!!!). I guess there are too many emotions going on to really feel the pain or hunger or anything else, but I felt surprisingly good, I didn't pass out (also a goal for this year!), and I was ready to go find my family fairly quickly after I got my finisher Tshirt and hat (shame, it wasn't pink!).

Rachelle crossed the finish line about 15 minutes after me, so I waited for her and we had a bit of a breather in the grass before we could collect our things and head home. I ate a bag of salt and vinegar chips, which at the time seemed like the most appetizing thing I could ever eat! With not much energy left, we made it home, ordered a pizza, and collapsed into bed. I think everyone was equally as tired and hungry and exhausted...and ready for the day to be done!

I thought I would wake up stiff and sore, but I was sure that my stomach cramps would be gone at that point. I was wrong... I had that same stitch in my back and side, on the right half of my body, and my stomach still felt like it was in a knot! After returning home and still being under attack from this pain I finally went and saw a doctor. It turns out I have shingles on my right side and all that pain that I suffered through is nerve pain that comes with having shingles! What luck!?!? I guess that makes me a super-Ironman because not only did I do the race, but I did it with shingles and in a lot of pain!

As of now... I've definately felt better, but I think I'm on the mend! My side and back still hurts a bit (a lot), kind of like a knife stabbing my lung every time I take a breath (it actually really sucks), but not enough to kill me! Every day I feel better, so I'm sure this will all be behind me sooner than later, as well, I only have a very small rash on my back, I suppose it really could have been much worse.

Comparing my two Ironman races, 2007 and now, I definately had two very different experiences! I can't say one was better than the other, just different. The first one, I found the training stressful, but the race day was so exciting and such an amazing experience because it was my first one. The second Ironman, I found the training to be so much fun and something I enjoyed every minute of, however the actually race day was pretty painful and a bit of a disappointment considering my time could have been so much better. Regardless, I know that Uncle Bruce was there with me in some way or another, and I know that finishing the race was the most important thing for both of us, and I was successful at that. So there you go... I have completed the task at hand, and I think it would be safe to say that Uncle Bruce and I finally got to do an Ironman together, after a very long journery to get there! It was worth every ounce of pain!

I am definately NOT doing another one (next year anyways... just kidding... but not really)! But I can garuntee that I'll be there next year with a volunteer tshirt on (REALLY hoping the volunteers get pink tshirts!) and ready to keep the tradition going!

The Whole Ironman Family (minus Zoe and Arin)

I'm not quite sure I'm ready to retire this blog yet... we'll just have to see...

Ironman Eve

2009-08-29T14:05:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the big day! I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with emotions, definately nervous, but also a lot of good emotions. At this point, there is nothing more that I can do... so I'm trying my very hardest to just enjoy every moment and take it all in. It's not just every day that I get to compete in something like this, or have my very own entourage of special people making me feel even more special.
There's not too much more for me to say other than my bags are packed, my bike is checked-in and my body is fully saturated with an enormous amount of water! The weather is supposed to be 32 degrees and sunny, could be better (as in cooler), could be worse (rain, snow or hotter), but regardless, I can't change it.

We've had such a fun week! My mom, Alison and the girls drove up with me on Wednesday, we picked up AR in Kelowna. Following Ironman tradition, we stopped at Mission Hill Winery to roll down the hill and lay in the grass. We thought this picture was neat because it shows 3 generations of sisters in our family:

My mom and AR drove the bike course with me on Thursday. I wanted to do this because we didn't have a chance to come and do our training weekend that was planned in July (nasty forest fires). I'm not sure if this was a good or bad thing (driving the course)... was great to refamilarize myself with it (I biked it twice before), granted, now that I think about it, knowing how big those hills are isn't necessarily better. I do however believe that I'll get through the bike on race well with the memory of the best ever fresh fruit milkshake that my mom and I got at The Bear Fruitstand just before the Yellow Lake climb (around 150 km into the route). I might even be tempted to stop on race day (someone remind me to throw $5 into my special needs bag!): Fresh fruit milkshakes were not originally apart of my pre-race diet plan, but it was worth every calorie!

I got in two really nice swims. It reminded me how much I like swimming in open water, but also reminded me how enourmously big the Okanogan is! I suppose it won't feel quite so big when I'm fighting through 2600 other competitors tomorrow morning (stress!). Putting on the wetsuit is actually more work than the entire Ironman. If you can squeeze your arse into one of those things and not die in the process... then you can complete an Ironman!

My biking friends, Sara and Keith. Sara and I have been through a lot this summer. A. LOT. I'm so happy we hooked up through our coach, and even though I'll be out on the course, I'll be cheering for her all day while she completes her first ever Ironman. Chances are... we probably won't see each other till next spring because we've both mutually decided that our bikes are retiring Monday morning for a good LONG break!

Alison, Aria and I went tubing down the canal, which was SUCH a highlight! This is how summer should be spent! We are so "water" deprived in Calgary, so it was so great to not only have water to go to, but options of which lake or river wanted!

On Friday morning it was the ever famous Ironman Canada Underwear Run. I've never participated before, but this year, not only did I participate... I had company!!! Aria and I ran the entire 1 km together... in nothing but panty's, well... Aria got to wear a tshirt cause it was first thing in the morning and a wee bit chilly, I was not granted the Tshift luxury. Because she was definately the youngest competitor, we were right near the back of the pack, even though we weren't far behind! Unfortunately, I think this made us a good "photo target" and I think my nearly naked body and panty's are going home with a lot of visitors to Penticton via their digital camera's. Lucky them (or not).

Pre-Panty-Race Pose:

A real up-and-coming-future-Ironman (who also happens to be nearly naked):

Wish me luck for tomorrow... the next time I write... I'll be and IRONMAN (#2)!

The final week

2009-08-23T16:02:00.000-07:00

This is it!!! This time next week, I'll be running somewhere along Skaha lake (hopefully at this point on the way back!), and I'll have already completed my 3.8 km swim, and 180 km bike. Looking at the forecast, chances are that I'll be sweating my buns off in 30 + degree heat as well. I really can't believe it's so close, I can't even believe that I'm one week in to my two week taper!
There are moments when it hits me, and so does the anxiety, this is really a huge deal for me, a personal goal that I will be so proud to accomplish. I know I've done it before, and for people who do Ironman's year after year, maybe the accomplishment diminishes over time. But for me, the 2nd one is just as big a deal as the 1st one! I suppose I've already completed a huge portion of the whole experience, the training - but I still can't believe that on Thursday I'll enter the registration tent and get my very own athlete's wristband. Craig and I have been talking about it a lot this week (not sure if he likes it or hates it, but at least he humors me), and we've come to the conclusion that I would be crazy if I wasn't nervous/anxious. I wonder if even the pro's - like Jasper, for example, still get nervous. I bet they do, because no matter how good you are and no matter how many world championship titles you've won, it's still an Ironman, and that is still the ultimate challenge in endurance athletics. So, I guess it's completely normal that I'm a little stressed out, and resolving to that decision almost makes me less stressed out, if that makes sense.

I like to be extremely organized, so I have devised a plan for the day. I am well aware that ANYTHING can happen on race day, and chances are that my "plan" will be nothing like the way that the day actually occurs, but I can at least pretend to be in charge:

Pre-Race:
I am going to eat my dinner the night before on the earlier side. This will allow my body to fully and easily digest everything, and also make it possible for me to have a snack before bed. I'm going to be lights out by 9:30, with the hopes to be sleeping by 10, generally I don't have too much of a problem falling asleep. Craig will be forced to sleep on the floor to ensure that I have no annoyances or disturbances during my sleep (just kidding - but he will get a very boney elbow jab in the ribs if he so much as peeps during the night).

Race Morning:
I think I'll be up by 4:30 ish to start getting in all of the millions of calories that I will be attempting to force into my guts. I probably won't actually have to get going until 5 ish though, so I think Craig can just bring me breakfast in bed. I'll be drinking and eating as much as I can in the morning (well planned out high carb - low fiber meals). If history repeats itself, this couple of hours will be the most high-emotion for me. I remember being extremely anxious, stressed and nervous the morning of the race in 2007, but also remember feeling really excited, proud and relieved that I actually made it to the start line (a pretty huge accomplishment in itself!). If this is the case, I'll have to be extremely cautious with my digestion because nerves and my bowels have a very intimate relationship. I think I would rather sacrafice a few calories in the morning to save myself from the quad workout of multiple squats overtop of a port-a-privy! Also, if history repeats itself, my dad will do what he does best, and he will be more stressed out that I am.

Swim:
Even though Coach Carolyn is a faster swimmer than I am, my plan is to start with her, wherever she plans on going. I am definately a believer of "seeding yourself accordingly" - in fact, my biggest pet peeve are slow runners who think that they should start as close as possible at the front of the pack during a road race. Don't they know that they are going to annoy all of the stronger runners that they elbowed their way through before the race started, as well, they are just going to be passed by these annoyed-stronger-runners, which, in my opinion, sucks. Getting passed sucks! However, in this case, I'm really hoping to get in Carolyn's draft for the race (although I don't think my luck would ever be good enough - but here's hoping anyways!). Most of all, I didn't get a chance to start IMC 2007 with Carolyn because she wasn't racing that year (too busy training for the World Championship in October), it would be neat to start with her as she's been involved in my entire triathlon life. I think Carolyn usually starts off to the side, which is much better than starting right in the middle of the pack, in my opinion, probably the same as being on the front lines of WWI.

T1:
I'm definately taking the time to pee, or else it will come back to haunt me early on in the bike! Even if the line up is 4 hours, it's worth it! Otherwise, both my transitions in IMC 07 were approximately 7 minutes, which is slower than it could be, but faster than a lot of people, so I'm happy to stick with that.

Bike:
In many peoples opinion, the race shouldn't even start until 60 kms into the bike, when you reach Richter's Pass, so it is always recommended not to take it too fast or too hard for the first third of the bike. It's pretty flat, so it would be easy to hammer through it, but that would be dumb because I would totally pay for it the second I turn the corner after the Husky station and see the never ending hill that I have to climb, which I like to refer to as Satan's playground (aka Richter's). I'm going to set my 10 minute alarm on my watch to remind myself to take a drink from my aero bottle every ten minutes. If I don't have the alarm, it will be when I'm passed out from dehydration that I remember to drink anything. I'm also going to eat a Clif Block or couple of Sports Beans (jelly beans for sports - best invention ever!!) every ten minutes. I'll be drinking Eload Endurance - doesn't taste that good, but it will be worth it cause it has the best digestable and usable sugars, as well as a ton of electrolytes. I'm going to drink water at the aid stations (if I need it) which will help me survive the sugar overload taste. I'm also going to cut up a bagel and a couple of Clif bars to snack on along the way. In my special needs bag, which I get at 120 km, I think I am going to put two oatmeal cookies in it (I love cookies!!!), and couple of different options of bars (clif bar, granola bar). Who knows what I'll feel like, but chances are, I'll have eaten the cookies in about 2.5 milliseconds. I'm not going to put any chocolate in my bag because I'll be tempted to eat it, and that's probably not a good option at that point. I'm hoping that I don't have to stop at all before the 120 km point, but chances are I'll have to have a bathroom break before then, and I am incapable of peeing on my bike (although highly recommended to me by a number of people). I just can't, don't know if it's physical or mental or both, but I can't.
After Yellow Lake, the last 25 km (or something like that) are all down hill - best part of the ride!

T2:
If I could make some suggestions to the IMC administration, it would be to add a full service spa and shower to T2. I would use it, and I wouldn't care how long it took! Just kidding - the biggest goal is to not get sucked in to T2 because I know I'll just want to sit down and rest. The longer I'm there, the harder it is to get started again. I am planning on changing, even though my tri suit would be fine to run in, I know that at that point it will feel so nice to freshen up! Plus, I prefer to run with sleeves (tri suit is sleeveless) because when I sweat a lot (and if it's 30 +degrees, there will be A LOT of sweating), I can get chafeing in my armpits (which I like to refer to as chub rub).

Run:
I'm pretty nervous about this part because even though I would say I'm strongest as a runner, it's going to be A LONG time before I even get to the run! Plus, heat affects me the most on the run, and the first part of the run will probably be the hottest part of the day (late afternoon), however, considering that it is late in August, it will get darker earlier, and probably cooler than a July evening. Too hot, then probably a bit too chilly. Like all marathons that I run, I'm going to run 10 and 1's (as in, run 10 minutes, walk 1 minute). This is the Running Room method (which I was a participant in for my first marathon and then an instructor of for many years), I really believe in it. In the numerous marathon's I've run, I've zoomed past people that don't stop for their walk breaks, and I've still run 3:30 marathons (which is a pretty decent pace). I get my run special needs bag half way, 21.1 km, where I will definately be indulging in my chocolate bar. At that point in the race, I don't think it's going to give me any negative effects and it might just be the boost that I need! Otherwise, I'll be carrying my fuel belt with more Eload and sports beans. For the second half, in 2007 (after about 11 hours of hardly eating or drinking anything due to cramps) I started drinking Pepsi at all the aid stations (I think aid stations are every mile or maybe every second mile). If I have to drink Pepsi again, then it's a good option. I'm hoping to just stick with the 10 and 1's the whole way, but if I need to (hopefully not), I'll maybe go down to 7 and 1's or 5 and 1's. We'll see, but my biggest goal is to not stop running at all (except for my chocolate bar break and regular scheduled walk breaks). Of course, no matter how I feel, you can be sure that I will be running down Lakeshore Drive with my head held high and a look on my face saying "I could keep going, I'm not even tired!". Then I'll cross the finish line and promptly collapse into the nearest volunteers arms.

It might not be the perfect plan (ie: chocolate bar in my special needs bag), but it's my plan, and I'm stickin' to it!

On a more humerous note, some people at work were asking me how everything was going for my race and when it was. Someone else piped up from across the Nurse's station to say she has a friend who just completed an ironman. She was very proud to announce "Yup, she did it in 2 hours!!!". Either her friend is a genetic freak, or perhaps she got an Ironman and a Sprint distance triathlon mixed up. I didn't want to sound totally snobby (umm, slightly different type of a race), so I didn't correct her. But I REALLY wanted to.

My mom, sister, nieces and I meet AR in Penticton on Wednesday, everyone else joins us Thursday and Friday. I'll be sure to update again before the race!

This was at the end of our holidays last week... I could have stayed another week though!

Training on Holidays

2009-08-17T17:37:00.001-07:00

This week has been SO wonderful, and it’s not even done yet! Holidays are good for the soul, so refreshing and exactly what I needed! Not that my life is uber stressful or anything… but enough that summer holidays are a must!
In a nut shell…. On Wednesday Craig and I flew to Vancouver and drove to Seattle. We had such a great time, we shopped till we dropped (well, I shopped, Craig sat at Starbucks), we had a beautiful dinner on the harbor, and we stayed in the most beautiful hotel that I have ever stayed at, the Fairmont Olympic Seattle. The next day we had fish and chips on the harbor (I watched Craig eat it…), breakfast on the wharf, and a bit more shopping. I did however manage to get in a workout in the hotel gym, it was incredibly humid because the gym (which was much nicer than a typical hotel gym) was in the exact same room as the pool. I was soaking wet after a 90 minute run on the treadmill (BORING!!!), and it definitely wasn’t from the kids who were splashing me from the pool (well, maybe a combo of that and my excessive amount of sweating).

We then took the ferry from Vancouver to Victoria where we spent two days at Auntie Rosie’s house. We LOVE it at AR’s, we had a great time! I was particularly excited for two things, my run and my swim. On Friday morning, bright and early, AR and I went to Thetis Lake for a training swim that I did with Coach Carolyn. It was so great to see her, and nice to have company and some fairly important coaching tips for the last long swim before the race. We did 4500m, so it was pretty long. Much to my very pleasant surprise, I came out of the water to see that the national team was out doing their Friday morning training swim. I also ran into Jasper Blake. It was no big deal, nothing at all, just a World-Class Triathlete and IMC first place winner and I on the same training schedule. The truth is, I wanted to run around screeching and screaming like teeny-bop girls when they meet the Backstreet Boys, but I managed to contain myself and just act like I totally fit in with the national team. Like I said, we’re on the same schedule, so obviously it’s no big deal, in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if they invited me to just join the team… I mean, just because we happened to be swimming in the same body of water at the same time pretty much puts me on the same level. I did document it with a picture, which I plan on having a developed hard copy available for Jasper (we’re on a first name basis now) to autograph when he comes flying across the IMC finish line in first place.

After my swim, AR and I went into town to have a quick coffee (herbal tea) and visit with our good friend Adam O'Meara. That’s right people, I was out for coffee with another PROFESSIONAL triathlete. Quite frankly, it was almost too much for one day. Adam had some great tips for me, particularly in the nutrition/digestive situation that I am extremely grateful for. We also made a plan to race together in the Sooke half Ironman in September as a relay team (currently accepting applications for a swimmer), this is the race that will be presenting the Bruce Bowman Memorial Scholarship to a junior triathlete (through LifeSport). I’m not entirely sure how I feel about racing together on a team with a pro, incredibly honored, and incredibly nervous… kind of a once in a lifetime thing for an athlete like me (I mean, not that I’m not practically a pro – Hello, I was swimming with the national team!).

On Saturday I ran my all time favorite running route in Saanich from AR’s house. I had to cut it a wee bit short because it’s a bit longer than I was scheduled for, and I actually ran into Coach Carolyn (no pun intended…) while she was out for her last long ride for her Ironman training. She knows l like to push my long runs a little bit further than I probably should, especially at this point in my training, so conveniently she biked by just when I was nearing my turn around point (and contemplating just going for a little bit longer…). I turned around when I was supposed to….
We’ve been holidaying in Nanaimo ever since then at a beautiful beach house that my parents rented for all of us. It has been glorious in every way, perfect for the kidlets, and great for training. I got another open water swim in, the lake is perfect here. Unfortunately there are a lot of motor boats in the lake, so as a safety precaution, my mom and sister accompanied me in the paddle boat (Pro’s always seem to have an entourage, so it’s was fitting for me). It all turned bad when the paddle boat rudder went dead (not sure how that happened!?!) and I had to tow the paddle boat, my mom, and my sister home with a very strong head wind. Not good for my taper, not good at all! I think we got stuck in the Bermuda Triangle, cause the paddle boat just wouldn’t go anywhere. I laughed pretty hard after I spent the next 90 minutes sitting on the toilet peeing out all the lake water that I swallowed!

Tomorrow we head to Vancouver for the day to celebrate my dad’s birthday. We have an afternoon at the beach planned, and a big dinner at Tia and Tio’s (which means… A LOT of GREAT food…and family of course). Craig and I are heading home after that. To be honest, I could handle another few days, which is very rare for me, usually after a week vacation I am ready to head home to my own bed and my baby (the cat). This really has been the perfect vacation in every way!

Starting Wednesday, when I’m back to reality, I only have 6 days before I leave for Penticton!!! It’s the final stretch, I’m officially in my taper (which means Craig has to cater to my every single need as I must be off of my feet as much as possible!). This summer has flown by, the last three months of training feel like they just hardly started and now it’s almost just another chapter in my history book! Kind of bitter sweet…

I am currently accepting suggestions on how to calm my nerves which are starting to flare up. Now that I’ve trained with the pro’s, I have a reputation to keep up… that’s enough to make me nervous!

Game Plan

2009-08-10T19:05:00.000-07:00

I guess it's been a little while since I blogged... I was having writer's block, and it rained all last week, so I couldn't get my long ride in (I refuse to go on the trainer for more than 90 minutes!), which is generally where I make my weekly blogging plan.

So here I am, less than 3 weeks till the race (Holy Shizit!!!), and a day before I go on family holidays (Yippee!!!)... It's time to make a serious game plan.

I finished my last really long ride of the year today, 180 km (but it was actually only 177 km - I cheated, just slightly), last week I did a very long run, and a very long swim. I've trained pretty darn faithfully, I haven't skipped any workouts (except for a couple of bad weather days where I just altered the workout), and I over trained the distances in the swim and bike. I have an entire cupboard full of various gels, bar, drinks, and tablets, I carry spare tubes and CO2 cartridges in all of my purses, my tri suit and race day outfit are ironed and ready to go (just kidding - the heat would be awful for the coolmax!) and I now bath in my wetsuit so that I can have daily time trials for the wet suit strip. I guess there is nothing to worry about... except... I'm starting to get a wee bit stressed about all the other zillions of possible things that could go wrong that are out of my control.
There's nothing I can do if my bike freakish-ly snaps in half going down Richter's, or if my wetsuit splits down the middle when I take my first stroke, or if my stomach just won't digest anything, or if it's 500 degrees that day, or if a slow moving herd of aardvark's block the race course for hours at a time making us miss the 17 hour cut off time... You just never know, ANYTHING could happen!

Oh well, I'm trying not to think about it, but there are just so many possibilities!

As for the things I can control:

I'm going to try my very hardest to get a minimum of 8 hours of a sleep every night until the race (very diffucult for me with my work schedule cause I often work late at night but I love getting up early in the morning)
I'm cutting out alcohol until the race (very easy cause I hardly ever drink anyways)
I'm going to try and cut out caffeine almost completely, but I'll make an exception for the odd evening shift that I can't survive without it (it's funny - cause I don't even like coffee, I only drink it when I work in the evenings - probably cause I've been up since 5:30am and I don't even start work until 3pm)
I'm going to try to take my rest days as REAL rest days. Usually on my rest days now, I still go out for a nice long power walk (I LOVE being outside), or because I have extra time (no 3 hours of working out), I usually try to do all my housework, etc.
I'm going to try my hardest to stay positive and think positive thoughts - no dwelling on various freak-accidents or uncontrollable weather situations
I generally have a very healthy diet, but I'm going to put in just that much more effort to cut out preservatives, sugar or junk, just to make sure my body is as clean as possible.
I'm going to limit my spending money when I shop like a maniac in Seattle this week, this will be a true challenge of self control - hello, outlets! (how did this one make it on my Ironman game plan list?)

Craig and I leave on Wednesday morning for a week of much needed vacationing! We are flying into Vancouver and then driving to Seattle where we are staying for 2 days. Then we move onto Victoria, where we are so excited to spend time with Auntie Rosie and the rest of my family for a couple of days. I am also thrilled to run my all-time favorite running route in Saanich, and get a swim in at Thetis with Coach Carolyn (I LOVE Victoria!). Then we spend a few days up-island in a holiday house on the lake. Basically, this is a PERFECT vacation, the perfect combination of shopping, eating, relaxing, training, and good quality time with my fave people (in no particular order).

Before I finish... In honor of the AWFUL summer weather that we've had (less than 2 weeks of actual nice sunny days!)... I'm going to start off my new-found positive thinking, positive ideas, positive everything regime by pointing out what we DIDN'T have in the last two months:

And if for any reason these pictures make you miss winter... DON'T WORRY! You'll see this weather in approximately 3 weeks (September 1st).

An Ironman's Prayer

2009-08-01T20:41:00.000-07:00

Dear God,

I don't think I ask for a lot, so I'd like to cash in on some points and make a few requests.

First, on Sunday August 30th 2009, can you please insure that the mercury in Penticton, BC, does not see any higher than 25 degrees (20 degrees would be ideal). Also, please dry up any rain clouds and make the wind stand still - at least between the hours of 7am and midnight. Please make Okanagan Lake look like glass because it is so calm. And let's be honest, we've had enough with all the forest fire business... it's time to stop.

Please keep the race course safe and clear of any hazards, potholes, debris or crazy spectators. If someone chooses to be an idiot and get in the way of bikers going 50 km/hr, please strike them down with lightning (only a little zap - no permanent damage).

Please help me to control my temper while plowing my way through the mass of 2000 fellow athletes during the swim start. If I happen to elbow someone in the face, kick off goggles or swim directly on top of someone, please do not hold me accountable for my actions. Desperate times.... desperate measures. It would be REALLY great if I could just catch a draft in the first 200 m and then just get pulled the remaining 3600m (hint hint).

If I happen to swallow a mass amount of lake water from previously mentioned "swim attack", please allow my kidneys to go through rapid filtration/elimination, so that I can pee it all out during my pee break in T1, prior to commencing the bike.

Speaking of the digestive system: please turn my guts and inards into "digesting machines" so that I can hold in enough calories and nutrition to make it through the day. Cramps, stiches, spasms, loose BM's, or tummy ache's of any kind will NOT be welcomed in any way. Please keep them far, far, far away! If you can let me stomach power gels for just this ONE day, I promise, I will make Food Bank donations for the rest of my life. Further, if I can stomach at least 5 liters of gatorade, I will volunteer at my local Food Bank!

Please protect all of the volunteers and bless them for all of their hard work. May they enjoy their stale, cold pizza and oversized tshirts (kindly provided by the great folks at IMC), as they deserve the reward.

Especially bless my friends and family who have been such an AMAZING support to me during my training! In fact, because I KNOW that I could never have accomplished any of this without all of my amazing "crew members" please bless them with a TRUE Ironman experience. It would be ideal if we could all experience every aspect of the race together, so I am requesting that we all wake up, the day after the race, with the same excruciating pain, tight hamstrings, raging hunger, and every bone/muscle/joint/tissue equally stiff. If I can't touch my toes, I think we should all experience that together - they deserve it!

Please completely erase from my memory what it feels like the run a marathon after biking for 180 km. I don't need any recollection, whatsoever, of that. I'd rather just NOT know...

Maybe I'm asking just a little too much with this one... but could you please, please, PLEASE pull some strings and make the "Ironman Canada Finisher" cap, t-shirt and medal all come in a PINK option. It would match my wardrobe much better!

If you can take these requests into consideration (you're God, so I know you can do anything!), I can garuntee that for the remainder of my days: I'll never text while I'm driving, I'll floss my teeth every night before bed, I'll make sure my children eat veggies every day (future iron-babies), I'll never ride a bike without a helmet, I'll go to church once a month, I'll help sick people breathe better and I will never, NEVER, wear polka-dots and plaid together.

But MOST of all, just let me cross the finish line for Uncle Bruce, with a smile on my face (*and a new PR*).

Editor's Note: I am aware that bargaining with God is not standard Christian practice, however, in this particular situation, God and I have "an understanding"

Inked

2009-07-23T17:41:00.000-07:00

It's tradition for participants to celebrate their Ironman finish by making it permanent and getting the Ironman tatoo. It's a pretty big deal, and it's pretty much expected, plus, I'm pretty sure finishers are secretly more than happy to permanently brag about their accomplishment. I never tried to fight it, I knew that if I finished, I would HAVE to get the tatoo. I'm not really a tatoo/piercing/being-an-individual type person. Give me a Gap cardigan and a pair of chinos and let me blend in to any crowd, I don't even have my ears pierced! I don't do accessories, I don't wear jewlery (minus my wedding rings), I wear a potatoe sack most of the time (aka hospital scrubs) and I'm not into bright patterns and colors, I just like good old classics in black, white or pink. So would it be shocking to say that I am the owner of not 1 but 2 tatoos!!! It's my secret little rebellion from my otherwise very normal appearance.
My first tatoo you would never see unless I showed you....
My second tatoo - the Ironman!

The day after the race in 2007, I pre-booked and pre-paid an appointment in White-Trashville, and as a family, we all went to enjoy the experence. As you can see, it was one of my dad's proudest moments!

I would be lying if I didn't say that the three minutes it took to get the mirco-tatoo made permanent were, in fact, more painful than the entire 14.5 hours of painful endurance that I accomplished the day before! Extremefully painful!

I had a hard time fully committing to the tatoo... The real Ironman Canada tatoo is the IMC symbol, which has the ironman surrounded by a red maple leaf. I just couldn't do it. What if I ever chose to wear pink (which I do most days!), it would clash with my tatoo! Also, image if for some God-forsaken reason I got chubby one day... I would not want a visible Ironman tatoo somewhere screaming of what I used to be (however, I hope that never happens!). Lastly, I did the race in over 14 hours, to non-ironmaners, that's amazing, but to my fellow ironmans... that's not really something to brag about. It would sort of be like someone bragging about their 5 and a half hour marathon. Not that it's not an amazing accomplishment.... but...

So, I just got the little Ironman symbol, and I got it tatooed below my ankle bone. In this case, it can be covered by shoes/socks if necessary, it won't clash with any particular colors, but I can also show it off and wear it with pride when I want to. The final result:

I guess now that I have it, I don't need to go through that again this year... I've had some suggestions on adding to it, perhaps having my time tatooed below it, or perhaps the years that I did it. I think I'll just leave it as it is. I've spent enough time in the tatoo artists chair for one lifetime...

As for other news, I just finished an extremely intense training week (well, I have two more days to go, but all the big workouts are done). Which means, after 3 of the most intense weeks I've ever accomplished, Sunday officially commences my recovery week!!!

My mom, Auntie Rosie and I were all planning a training week in Penticton this past week. Unfortunately, we got forest fired-out. It sucked, I was pretty disappointed, but I guess there is no stopping mother nature (or stupid campers who smoke...whatever it was), the highway from Kelowna was closed and it just wasn't worth attempting the alternate route (long drive!). I was disappointed to enjoy the beautiful Okanagan, partake in some great wine, see AR, and have a nice drive with my mom. But most of all, I feel a bit of anxiety to not have a chance to bike the race course. It's been two years, I'd really like to refamilarize myself such things as Richters Pass, Yellow Lake, and the 7 Rollers from hell... we'll be in Penticton 4 days before the race, so the best thing I can do is drive the course (once, maybe twice), I hope that's good enough.

On a very positive note, I did my dreaded 200 km long ride (only one for the whole training season!) yesterday, followed by a 34 km long run today and preceded by a 4000 m swim on Tuesday (so pretty much an ironman in three days). The ride went great! I averaged almost 28 km/hr, which is great for me, and I did the bike in a faster time than it took me to ride the bike portion of the race in 2007. I was pretty proud! It was stinkin' hot (great for training!), and I biked a lot of hills, so I felt satisfied that it was the best training I could possibly do. I felt fine the whole time but I did have to lie down in the dirt beside my car when I finished for about 10 minutes before I could head out on my 30 minute Brick run (I was a wee bit light headed). I think I paid for it all in my run today! It was pretty painful, and perhaps a good reality check for what I might feel like on race day (plus, it was another hot day and I think I had a mild case of heat stroke). I think the only negative thing about doing an Ironman for a second time is actually knowing what if feels like to start a marathon after biking for 180 km. I liked it better the first time when I thought my strong running background would make the run seem easy (clearly, I know better this year!).

I guess that's all for this week. I'll thoroughly enjoy the rest and relaxation next week (which isn't really that much of a break, but at least I can pretend). Only 6 more weeks till the race!

Week Update

2009-07-17T20:12:00.001-07:00

This has been a LONG week! Long and hard! But it's nearing it's end, and Sunday is my rest day, so I think I'll survive it!

I have tried my absolute hardest to be as positive as possible at all times through this whole Ironman experience for 2009. For a couple of reasons: first, I think my 2007 Ironman experience wasn't necessarily one of my better memories, not that it was negative in any way, just that I was SO stressed out about SO many things. It was hard for me to take in the moments and enjoy it, as well I don't think I ever gave myself credit for a rare (and frankly, amazing) accomplishment that I done. I was too busy worrying about if I could actually even do it. Then, when I proved that I could actually do it, perhaps the moment was over. Secondly, I never planned on doing this Ironman, my motivation for this Ironman is so completely different than 2007. Uncle Bruce would have only wanted this to be a fun event for me and everyone else involved, and so I've made that a top priority. Lastly, I think Ironman (any endurance event really) is half physical race, and half mental race. I failed miserabley at the mental race in 2007, and I am NOT going to let that happen this year. All this positive thinking has proved to be beneficial, and I can absolutely see it in my physical race!

Overall, I think I've done really well. I know I've said it before, but I feel great, training is going so well, and I am having so much fun doing it! However.... This week has proven to be a big challenge for me and I'm feeling like my "positive thinking tank" is somewhat drained.

This was a pretty heavy duty week of training, and my 2nd heavy week in a row, so just that much harder than last week! I completed all my scheduled workouts, and I didn't have any specific events or situations that were diffucult. I just seemed to have a hard time finding my motivation, and then I felt guilty for not enjoying myself. Maybe I'm just tired (probably) or hungry (obviously...cause I always am), or maybe it's because I worked 7 days in a row last week (definately did NOT like that!).

So I'm going to dig deep, VERY deep, and pull out all the positives I can to get me out of this rut:

I biked a full 180 km, and I did it faster than I did the bike portion of IMC 07. The route I did was very hilly, so it was comparable, and I felt amazing (particularly in the digestive area). I stopped for only 1 bathroom break, at which point I bought a KitKat bar (140 km into the ride), and I realized that was the first time that I can remember (in many years) actually buying and eating an entire chocolate bar. It tasted so good I wanted another one (however I practiced a wee bit of discipline and opted for a nasty tasting Raspberry Gu). I also think that I know exactly what I will be adding into my "special needs bag" for the race as a little treat!

I swam a full 3800m in a 25 m pool and I did it faster than the swim portion of IMC 07. This is great because I always swim much faster in open water then in the pool doing lengths, so obviously my swim is right on track! My mom joined me on that swim and her "snack sack" was well stocked with my favorites, so I was happy (as the state of my stomach dictates my mood - these days anyways).

I got to celebrate my mom's birthday last Wednesday, it was a beautiful day, and we had so much fun having lunch in the mountains followed by a great family dinner. I hope she felt special, because she deserved it!

I bought myself an "Ironman outfit". I don't want to spoil the surprise (for my fan club, of course), but let's just say... there's a lot of pink. Hot pink.

I cracked out a brand new pair of running shoes from my stash (I like to buy in bulk and keep them hidden away in my closet). I opted for the pink pair. Hot pink.

So, here is my attempt to stay positive even though I am exhausted and the thought of squeezing my buns into one more pair of padded spandex shorts makes me want to cry.

Just get me through till Sunday (rest day!), then I'll be back on track and ready to go at it again...

I know this isn't really related... But blogs are no fun without pictures, so I had to add something...

These are the up-and-coming Ironman's of the future:

Ironman's Past

2009-07-12T18:21:00.000-07:00

This year is going to be my 4th year in a row participating (in some capacity) in Ironman Canada. I spectated at Ironman a few times prior to 2006, but my real journey started almost exactly 3 years ago.

2006
I did my first Half Ironman in 2006, the New Balance Half in Victoria, I did way better than I expected (bronze medal!), and it was then that I officially decided that I was going to sign up to do the full Ironman. That meant I was required to be in Penticton for the 2006 race as I had to sign up the next day. Leon, Alison, Aria and I moved back to Calgary (from Victoria), one week before IMC 06, I hate long drives, so it was painful and boring, but I survived it thanks to my extensive library of Celine Dion albums. So it was only 6 days later that I had to get back into the car and do that long, awful drive again! Luckily, this time my dad agreed to join me as long as we followed his "road trip rules". Involving: no talking, no pee breaks, no up-beat-ganster-music ("kids these days!") and no touching anything in his perfectly clean car. It was great (maybe not... but it was nice to have company). We only drove up the day of the race because we couldn't find accomodations for the day before, but we got to Penticton in plenty of time to see Jasper Blake come flying across the finish line.
I was exceptionally stressed out (which became a reacurring theme for the next year) about registering for the race as 2007 was the 25 year anniversary for IMC and was expected to sell out of entries. I lined up at 3 am to insure I got an entry, it was fine because that's normally when my dad gets up anyways. The line started moving at 9am, I was registered by about 9:05 am... and that's when it all began... We got back in the car and drove home that morning.

2007
This was a very big year for obvious reasons. I trained all 364 days since I signed up, and I thought about Ironman every one of those days as well. We turned IMC week into our annual family summer vacation. We rented a house in Kelowna (beautiful house and location, but staying in Penticton would have been a MUCH better idea!), my immediate family, UB and AR, Zoe and Arin (training partner) and Tracey and Oly (neighbors) all came. It was so much fun, we had such a great time, however I wouldn't consider it much of a vacation for me because I was distracted with any number of things that made me stressed out (weather, what to wear, what to eat, if I would finish, how my crossing the finish line picture would look - very important details!). After a long, long, LONG day for all of us, I did finish, I became an Ironman and all I could think about was what I was going to eat! I cried for 3 days straight after I finished Ironman because I wasn't sure what else to do with myself, perhaps it was withdrawl or perhaps I was crying out the excessive amout of salt tablets that my body rejected approximately 20 km into the run portion. UB made the early morning journey into Penticton the day after the race to sign up, and thus started his journey.

2008
This was UB's Ironman year, however, we carried on the tradition and made it our annual family vacation week. Again, we stayed in Kelowna, and it was so much fun having Aria just a little bit older, she really got into the race this year! After being so eternally grateful for and SO impressed by all of the volunteers, I decided that I wanted to volunteer for this race. I chose to be a bike catcher in T2 because I thought this would give me the best chance to have a few minutes with UB when he was in transition, which was our primary reason for being there. I loved volunteering! I wore all of my IMC 07 "finisher" attire with pride and I loved being in the transition area to really see what a fine tuned operation that goes on for all the racers. I did not, however, enjoy getting bikes hurled at me with extreme force (mainly from the pros), nor did I like the fact that I am well aware that racers relieve themselves while biking during the race. Gross. I think I would chose a non-contact volunteer position next time. I would LOVE to volunteer in the medical tent as that is right up my alley, but it didn't work out for 2008 because we wanted to be there to cheer for UB when he finished (...maybe 2010).
UB finished the race, looking great, even despite the nasty rain that accompanied him for most of the marathon. The next day we had a celebration, the whole family, as well as UB's sisters, Buff and Joan, who we had SO much fun cheering with on race day. UB signed up for IMC 2009 as he originally planned to do an Ironman when he turned 60 (he just happened to do so well in the training that he did one a year earlier than planned).

2009
I guess this year is still history in the making... We all had planned to be in Penticton to cheer for UB, so I guess an unwelcomed twist in our plans took me off the cheering squad and put me in the spandex unitard... But after accepting the circumstances, I think the last two months have been the most memorable Ironman months I've had in the entire 4 year journey. I'm so excited for this race! I'm excited to race for a greater reason, I'm excited to drink gatorade till I want to puke, I'm excited for scorching heat and Richter's Pass, I'm excited to FINALLY have accommodations in Penticton, I'm excited to add to my Ironman-brand wardrobe, I'm excited for another fun family vacation, I'm excited to eat whatever the h*ll I want for an entire week after, I'm excited that I feel GREAT. But most of all, I think I'm the most excited about adding to my memory bank, because I know that I was always look back on my Ironman journey, and these 4 years will always carry such a significance to me.
And of course, in all honesty, I'm extremely excited, because this year, I am BRINGING IT to Penticton, and I'm going to race a Personal Best after only training for 3 and a half months (positive thinking!). I'm going to break 14 hours this year!

So here are some pictures from Ironman and some of the best parts of Penticton and Ironman week:

Here we are admiring the bikes at The Bike Barn (however, my bike is still the nicest):
In Ironman Village at the Cervelo Tent:

Up very early on race day (2007), Aria has her Iron-Baby hat on (which Poet will get to wear this year!). Alison is wearing her Iron-Sister shirt which turned into Iron- ister by the end of the day.

Getting my Body Marking. I was #2042, I couldn't get it scrubbed off for 3 days after!!! (is that normal???)

Row after row after row of Port-a-Potties... My parents (so classy):

Sunny Days

2009-07-05T15:34:00.000-07:00

I love summer, and this summer has been a particularly great one! Craig and I are just finishing up a long weekend together, which is an extremely rare occassion for us. I work every 2nd weekend, and I usually end up working one of my weekends off, so I really only have one weekend off a month. Also, I always seem to work long weekends because if I actually have the sat/sun off, then I have to work both the friday and monday nights (just how my rotation goes). Don't get me wrong, I actually quite like shift work, the thought of working mon-fri, 9-5, makes me want to poke my eyes out. But, unless it's planned, Craig and I just don't get too many weekends off together, like most normal people.

With some careful planning, we just enjoyed 3 entire days off together! I made Craig spend a lot of time with me (A LOT!), but he survived it because I let him sleep in while I got up at the crack of dawn to do my various training things. We went to Sylvan Lake for a day, we dusted off our cowboy boots and hats and went stampeding, and we had a great time at our Church's stampede breakfast. Almost too much fun for one weekend, I'm exhausted!!! A highlight, having a famous family member has it's perks, Craig and I got to enjoy best possible complimentary seats for the Calgary Stampede Grandstand show Saturday night, which I thought was extremely well done! Leon, Craig and I indulged in some of our favorite treats too (but we made a pact that what happens at Stampede... stays at stampede), then we felt sick for the rest of the night after someone had a crazy idea to go on the "Drop of Doom". Calgarians generally try to avoid stampede, so I kind of felt like a tourist in my own city.

The real reason for this blog is that I have a new challenge for myself. I'm going to make it public, which will force me to at least attempt to stick with it. I HATE not completing something (had to pull out of a marathon once because of a fractured tibia, just about killed me!), doesn't necessarily matter how well I do, but if I make a goal for myself, I need to at least put in my best effort. This goal is going to be very challenging for me, so I'll need the accountability. I am going to commit to avoid the sun, wear sunscreen whenever I am outside, become a shade-lover, and make a much bigger effort to protect myself from the harmful effects of the sun.
Obviously, one could see how this could be very challenging for me, for a number of reasons. I spend a significant part of my day outside, in the sun, for hours at a time, and generally it's ideal to be wearing tank tops and shorts (as in, biking and running). I also have skin that just doesn't burn, ever! It's very weird because I have extremely light eyes, and blond hair (natural, obviously), which would generally be paired with fair skin that burns easily. I guess I have my moms genes, we can be outside for hours on end, we never need sunscreen, at most, we might have pink cheeks for an evening, but it's a nice glowing tan by the morning. It doesn't really help that my half-jamaican husband is sort of in the same boat (never burns... ever). But most of all, I just love a tan, it makes me feel alive, my skin glows, I feel like I look like I have so much more life in me.

Recently my dad found a small spot on his forehead that was diagnosed as Basal Cell Carcinoma. Basal Cell Carcinoma is the most common form of skin cancer, 3 out of 10 caucasians will experience this in their lifetime. Sun light will cause DNA damage in the basal cell of skin, resulting in mutations (aka tumors, carcinogens, cancer). Luckily, Basal Cell Carcinoma is extremely easy to treat (cut out the problem area), survival rate is 99%, and it almost never spreads to organs, nonetheless, it's still skin cancer. My dad and sister are red-heads (well...my dad was a red head, until he started paying for Alison and my university tuition...now grey), extremely fair-skinned, they could even get burnt if they sit too close to me from the UV radiating from my body (yes, that sensitive!). This is what a day at the beach looks like for Alison and I (hahahahaha!!!):

My dad's and my sister's effort for healthy skin is very admirable. They are concious about sun damage because they have to be, but I suppose that makes you more passionate about something. Maybe my skin is skin that can withstand sun damage, and maybe I will never be the person who has to get spots and moles chopped out of my body... But, I think I'd rather not risk it, I rather not know either way. Like everything (drinking alcohol, coffee, eating chocolate, sitting too close to a TV), there is a ton of research about sun-damage and how truly harmful it is. I really believe in science/medical research, it would be foolish of me to disregard this. I really care about my health in certain areas and I'd really like to make more of an effort in this capacity.

In my dad's case, I am fully confident that his issue will be completely resolved when he has his problem area removed. His extremely vigilant effort in this area will also keep him for a reoccurance, he should become a sun-hat model as a career after retirement (as he is never seen without one on these days). Also, on a positive note, statistically speaking, only 1 of my immediate family members will have an experience with cancer. I'm going to go ahead and consider this experience as my "1-in-5", meaning, let's just hope statistics are right and my family is done with cancer. It's nice of my dad, taking one for the team.

So this is my new goal. I'm heading to the store to buy my first bottle of sunscreen, it's almost exciting! You can keep me accountable if you want, or at least give me a glare if you find me secretly catching some rays unprotected.

Product Review

2009-07-01T07:25:00.000-07:00

This blog is dedicated to my feet. I have some very well used feet, they definately experience a beating on a daily basis. Because of this, I feel very strongly about treating my poor feet with great care when it comes to my footwear.

To start with, my feet are quite possibly the most horrific, wretched, ugly things that have ever been attached to a pair of ankles. It's not so much that I have gnarled feet, or that they are too fat or too skinny, my toes aren't oddly shaped (sausage-y or middle toes longer than big toe), and I do not have warts. The problem is that my feet are just plain old beaten up, they should be in a battered women's sheltered and I should be charged with assault. I could go into great detail (however, I may lose readers if I do that), but I will paint a picture for you...
I've lost a lot of toe nails (all of them at one point in my running life), what happens is that for various reasons, I'll get blood blisteres under my toenail, which is extremely painful, so to relieve the pressure of the blister, the toe nail comes off. Sometimes the blister makes the toenail fall off, other times, I must perform a minor procedure which I like to refer to as a toenailectomy (it hurts but not as much as if I didn't do it). Luckily, in recent years, I have adjusted the size of my running shoes to give my toes just a bit more space, which has cut back on this significantly, unfortunately, the damage is done, toe nails just never grow back as nicely the second (or 100th) time.

Also, I have some pretty heavy duty callouses. I work hard for my callouses (lots of long hard runs), and its great to have them because they save my feet from a lot of pain. However, these callouses eventually get to a point where they are starting to take over my whole foot. At this point the callouses need to be shaved down a bit. I haven't quite mastered the art of this procedure yet, as I usually end up with a giant hole in my foot where I completely remove the callous. At times, I have also gotten a giant blister under the callous, much like the toe nail issue, which causes a similar problem of excruciating pain from the pressure of the blister... needless to say, the callouses must come off. Unfortunately the fresh virgin skin underneath the callous usually blisteres quite easily, and I have to begin the long hard task of turning that skin back into a callous. It's a vicious cycle of pain, minor surgery (performed by me, in my bathroom) and then more pain. But once I get those callouses... it's great, my feet can endure anything!
I could go on (and on and on and on), I could tell you about my bunion, or my recent stint with Athlete's foot, but I'm going to go ahead and stop there (to save the little bit of pride that I have left...).

Needless to say, I try my very hardest to treat my feet whenever I have the oppertunity. I feel extremely guilty for what I put them through, not that I'm going to change anything, but at least I feel guilty about it (see... I really should be charged with assult). The best way that I know how to treat my feet is by using the best of the best footwear! I try my very hardest never to wear cheap/unsupportive shoes, and I feel very strongly about not subjecting my poor feet (or knees for that matter) into high heels!

When it comes to my running shoes, I am extremely particular. In fact, I simply won't run unless they are in my specific running shoes. I use the Gel Nimbus model by Asics. I've been using these shoes (seen below) for over 5 years now. Asics has updated the model every year, but made no major changes, which I am eternally greatful for, when you have a good thing, change is not always welcomed. I follow the "500 mile" rule pretty faithfully, meaning that I replace my shoes after they have ran 500 mile, which actually works out to be every 4 months for me, so I average at least 3 pairs of Gel Numbus a year. The Nimbus is considered a "cushioning" shoe, which is good for me because I tend to be a bit heavy on my feet, and also appropriate because I wear orthodics, so a supportive shoe (which the Nimbus is not) would actually overcorrect my feet. I do know a thing or two about all these things because I worked at the Running Room while attending Univeristy. As staff, we got a lot of promotional shoes (for extremely good prices, or even free), which we were encouraged to use to add to our knowledge for when we sold the shoes. I refused to run in them, but I certainly enjoyed having an entire closet full of shoes that I could pick to wear to work. I still use all my free running shoes, I match all the various colors to match the various colors of scrubs that I wear to work now, it's great, I'm very coordinated. Anyways, seen below is my loved running shoe, I would highly recommend Asics (the model may vary depending on your foot type) if you are a foot-abuser like I am. Your feet may actually forgive you! The Nimbus usually goes for $180 - $200 /pair depending where you get them (usually cheapest at the Running Room, but they usually have a buy-one-get-one-half-off at Sport Chek)

The next treat I like to give my feet is seen below, the Sanuk sandal/shoe. It's a shoe and a sandal having an identity crisis. I'm actually quite new to the Sanuk world, but I would highly recommend these great inventions! In the summer it is so nice to be able to wear flipflops, what foot wouldn't enjoy the fresh air and freedom to see the world? However, due to various open wounds (weekly minor surgery's), blisters and plain old ugly-ness, it's not completely ideal for the general public to see my feet. The Sanuks allow my to hide my shame (ugly feet), but still enjoy the benefit of sandals, and they are extremely comfortable, and come in a very wide variety of colors and patterns. The only down fall is that they are slightly pricey, $60/pair, which seems a bit much for a pair of sandals. Also to be noted, they don't stink, and they clean up very well, I also just found out that you can buy them online at the Sanuk website, for only $45 USD/pair, which might be just slightly cheaper. I would highly recommend!

So this is my product review for shoes. If you are a high-heel wearer, I think you should consider trading your pumps in for some good ol' trusty asics (your joints will thank you!), but clearly, who am I to judge when it comes to foot abuse! Wear your heels with pride, our feet can become friends at the foot-abuse support group.

My Bike

2009-06-25T19:02:00.001-07:00

I have a pretty smokin' hot bike! In honor of my very positive 165 km ride this past week, I would like to write about my bike. It's a Cervelo P2C, some of it's features include: Shimano Dura-Ace components, constant-width seat tube cutout, aero head tube, constant cross section seat tube, integrated accessory attachment seatpost, integrated seat tube collar, ICS internal cablestops, UCI legal, frameset. I do not have a single clue what all these things mean or do (please do not report me for plagerism from the Cervelo website!), but I do know that this is a bike that I am EXTREMELY blessed to have!

I saved my pennies to buy my first road bike back in 2004 when I thought I was interested in doing triathlons. I bought a Trek 1000 road bike (entry level road bike), which was my most prized possession (first love), I slept with it in my bedroom and I treated it like it was my first born (clearly... Bedford has replaced it). Now, it feels like it weighs 5 bizillion pounds and quite frankly, its ugly (I'm only human... I've moved on to bigger and better things). I did however use my road bike (which I pet named, Lance, after my second love) for my first half ironman in 2006. I placed 3rd in my age category at that race, something very special to me that only Lance I will ever share. Shortly after that race, I decided that I would sign up for Ironman Canada for 2007, Lance and I would complete it together. A few weeks after I made this decision, and also a few days before I was moving home to Calgary from Victoria, Uncle Bruce and Auntie Rosie took me out for lunch. It was a nice visit that we had, but nothing out of the ordinary, we saw each other fairly often, so I wasn't really expecting anything special that day. At that lunch, Uncle Bruce said that he was really proud of me for pursuing my ironman goal, and really wanted to support me. By supporting me, I was under the impression that he would be joining Team Alison and would be donning his pink (from head to toe) cheer uniform (as issued from Alison) at Ironman Canada in 2007 to cheer for me. I was thrilled that he would be apart of it with me. However... I was wrong. Very wrong. What Uncle Bruce meant by supporting me, was that he wanted to help me upgrade my bike. Obviously I was shocked, and thrilled and then shocked again (however, he did also join Team Alison for race day to cheer as well). We went directly to Fort Street Cycle after our lunch to check out the bikes. I was thinking that maybe we would upgrade some of the components on my bike, or perhaps get an entry level triathlon bike. I was wrong again. Long story short, I left the bike shop as the proud owner of an extremely high end triathlon bike (upgraded components), race wheels (zipp 404's), a wind-trainer, and a travelling case for my bike. I can't even imagine what the final bill was, but certainly more money than I've ever had in my bank account! That was one of those days that will go down in my personal history book!

I definately loved my new bike from day one (clearly, as I haven't so much as pumped up Lance's tires since getting the new bike). Carrying on with my naming tradition, this bike goes by Excalibur (Uncle Bruce got a matching P2C and named it Braveheart). Unfortunately, as training ramped up for IMC 2007, I faced quite a few diffuculties when it came to the bike. I never really felt like I got strong or comfortable in that sport, my back was extremely irritated by being in the aero position for any period of time, and I had so many digestive upsets (something very new to my iron-stomach) which I guessed was because of the extremely aeordynamic position of the frame. It sucked, I was discouraged and I was happy to retire the bike upon completion of IMC 07. However.... this year, things have seriously changed!!! Aside from the natural disturbances (wind, rain, hail, etc), my biking has been so fantastic this year! I feel great, I feel so strong, I have man-quads, I haven't had one cramp or upset stomach, my back or neck hasn't been irritated at all, and I actually look forward to my bike rides! It's weird, I don't know what changed, but it's great, I have no complaints! I think this will be very beneficial for the race, as obviously the bike portion greatly affects the run portion. And let's be honest... I'll be ticked off if I don't beat my time from IMC 07.

So, let me introduce you now to my THIRD love (or at least until something better comes along), Excalibur (too bad I don't have the race wheel's on, the bike looks so much flashier, but the race wheels and the Calgary wind do not agree with each other):

If I may (and... I may... because it's my blog), I will give a shameless plug to all the great people at Fort Street Cycle for all of the amazing service that they provided to me (well... Uncle Bruce really). I will also, once again, give the credit to my dad for taking care of this bike (it requires A LOT of upkeep!), as I am incapable of such things (like getting oil on my hands or dirt under my finger nails... gross). Lastly, Craig deserves some thanks for putting up with having a bike in the living room (much much much too precious to go outside!).

Memories

2009-06-21T20:35:00.000-07:00

I remember when:

I used to be able to touch my toes... prior to extremely tight hamstrings
I used to have clothes that fit my waist and quads proporitionately
I didn't need 9 + hours of sleep a night
I had a social life (well... maybe I never had that)
I didn't have permanent bags under my eyes
I didn't carry around an hourly alarm clock... my stomach
I had a wardrobe outside of Cool-Max, Dry-Weave, Wick-Away and Luon

I also remember when:

We used to bike on West Saanich Road
We picked up our brand new matching bikes from Fort Street Cycle
We cheered each other on as we both completed our first Ironman's
We BBQ-ed Pizza's on hot summer nights
We played Monopoly in the grass
We let AR cook us gourmet dinner's while we soaked our feet in Epson salt
We met at Thetis Lake at dawn and had the entire lake reserved just for us

I am well aware that wetsuits are the most unflattering attire in the history of mankind. I cannot believe I am putting these pictures on the World Wide Web! To top it off, I have a neon orange swim cap on. Yes, I can see that I look like a little boy with oddly oversized legs. I wore that swim cap at the pool the other day, clearly, I have no shame. However, these are some great memories, worth sharing with the whole world.

ALS Fundraising

2009-06-16T18:46:00.000-07:00

Before I get to the good stuff, first I must give a brief update on my 150 km ride today. The good news is that I did it, in fact, I even had company! My new friend, Sara, and I took off this morning early for our weekly long ride. Sara and I got hooked up through our coach, Carolyn, she recently moved back to Calgary, from Victoria, and is also training for Ironman. If I hadn't had Sara as my riding partner today... disaster may have struck! We decided to do two 75 km rides, having a very short break at our cars in between. I actually quite liked this, and the 75 km route was very challenging with hills so it was actually quite good training as IMCanada certainly does not lack hills (or perhaps Mountain's is a better description). Approximately half way out on the 2nd loop of the ride, so approximately 95 kms into the ride we rode directly into a massive thunder/lightning/hail/HEAVY rain storm. It was a storm I would be afraid to drive through, let alone bike through! I won't go on and on (because I could!), but the final result was the most excruciating frozen fingers and toes that I have ever experienced. In fact, I could not even function, I rode in the same gear the rest of the way because physically my hands could not change the gears. Sara actually had to unlock my car and start it for me! I sat in a hot bath (which probably wasn't even that hot, but it hurt on my frozen body) for half an hour while my feet and hands tingled their way back to life. It was kind of scary actually, but I lived through it to tell about it, so I guess it couldn't have been that bad. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing, but my phone took it's last breath and didn't live through the water damage (It was so some seriously heavy rain!!!), so I rewarded myself (for not curling up in the ditch and dying) by buying a new iphone. I guess it was worth it for that (I've been wanting one of those for a long time!). Also on a good note, the 150 km didn't feel bad at all! My muscles couldn't feel any fatigue because they were well into the hypothermia stage before there was any excessive lactic acid build up!

The real reason for this posting is that I have somehow wanted to incorporate some fundraising into my Ironman training. There is a charity near and dear to Uncle Bruce's heart, as well as the rest of my family, and I know that there are many of Uncle Bruce's friends who may be interested in being involved or contributing in whatever capacity they can. At Uncle Bruce's memorial service, in lieu of flowers or donations, it was requested that people could make donations for the Dave Pendray memorial fund through the BC and Yukon ALS society.

ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a progressive, fatal, neurodegenerate disease caused by the degeneration of motor neurons. It may be more familar to you as Lou Gehrig's disease after the New York Yankees baseball star who died in 1941 of this disease. Patients of ALS eventually lose the ability to initiate and control all voluntary movement (that would suck!).

Dave Pendray died of ALS in February of 2007. The Pendray family has been extremely influential on the farming community of Vancouver Island for many many years. The Pendray Dairy farm (off of West Saanich Road) was run by Dave Pendray, and his wife Linda as well as their children. His death was a huge loss to the dairy farming community as well as his many friends. Uncle Bruce was a very dear friend to Dave, his death was very devastating to Uncle Bruce, much like the way that we feel. If Uncle Bruce was still alive and could fundraise and bring awareness to a charity, there is no doubt that it would be in Dave Pendray's name.

Although I did not have the chance to meet Dave Pendray (I have however met his wonderful wife and daughters), ALS has affected my entire family beyond just the loss of Dave. My grandpa, Dr. Barry Backus, died in July 1997 of ALS. My grandpa was the most brilliant, intelligent, caring, generous man that ever lived. If you knew him, I have no doubt that you would agree.

The ALS Society of Canada was created with the purpose to fund research towards a cure for ALS and provide quality care and support for those affected by ALS. If your life has been affected by ALS, perhaps through the death of a loved one, like Dave Pendray, or Barry Backus, and you would like to help fight this battle, you can make donations to:

Dave Pendray Memorial Fund

c/o ALS Society of BC and Yukon

#208 - 1600 West 6th Ave

Vancouver, BC

V6J 1R3

In Memory of Bruce Bowman

Consider your donation a sponsorship to get me out of bed every morning and carry on with all this training. If a financial donation is not something that you are interested in doing, then let me challenge you to participate in your local "Walk for ALS" which is a fundraising charity event that runs in many many cities, throughout the year, in Canada. You can find your nearest event and pledgeforms at this website: http://www.als.ca/events/location.aspx?e=21. Alison and I will be participating in our local Calgary Walk for ALS this year (except she doesn't know that yet).

After sulking for 2 days (sore abs!), I shall leave you with the funniest thing I have seen all week (much, MUCH laughing!):

This is my beautiful, exotic, pure bread, Himalayan, precious baby boy (yes, we treat him like he's human, and we treat him like he's our kid). Bedford:

This is precisely why Craig will never allow me to have kids. The result of leaving Alison and I alone in the bathroom with the cat and an electric razor:

There's a hot summer coming, I thought it would keep him cool... But we're getting Air Conditioning installed in our place tomorrow... So.... HAHAHAHA poor ugly Bedford (I hope it grows back soon!)

Recovery Week

2009-06-14T19:00:00.001-07:00

I've just completed my first Recovery Week of the training season. It was so great! I still did my 6 days of working out and about 10 or 11 workouts over those 6 days, but it was all just a little bit shorter and little bit more laid back this week. All in preparation for another few weeks of ramping up again before my next recovery week. Don't get me wrong, I do love the feeling of utter exhaustion, working out till I want to throw up and literally eating, breathing, sleeping, working all things ironman related, however a wee break is always greatly welcomed. It didn't exactly help that I worked 6 out of the last 7 days, but for the most part I'm feeling rested and ready to go again. A couple of highlights from my recovery week:

My mom and I have been swimming together ever since I started Ironman training, it's great to have a training partner in that area. It's not like we chat and have a visit, like if we were out for a run together, but it's a good motivation to have someone join you, and it's nice company on the drive to the pool or during the ever tedious hair drying process. My mom swims with me usually 2 out of my 3 swims in a week (plus she packs better snacks than I do!). I did discover something this week. My mom is officially a faster swimmer than I am. I don't like it. I don't like it at all! I can admit it, I have an ultra competitive edge, and I totally feel like my ego is being stomped on every time I gag in a mouthful of chlorine from my mom's wake. The funny thing is... she would NEVER admit that she is faster. I'm sure like most mom's, my mom likes to think that Alison and I are perfect princesses in every possible way and that everything we do is better than everyone else in the entire world (when is someone going to let her in on the truth...?). She honestly thinks that I could take Michael Phelps in a race, and I probably would have a chance at beating him (then again, I don't smoke pot... so I do have that on him). That's what makes it so funny.... my mom introduces me to all her friends at the Y as her hard core swimming daughter, "I'm SO embarassed to even be swimming with her!!!" yet she's actually faster. Then I see her purposely choose a lane away from me because deep down, I know she knows the truth. Oh well... it's good to have a challenge, my ego can take it, and who doesn't love a mom who's your biggest fan. Maybe this week I should be the one to brag about my ultra-fast swimming mom to all her friends at the Y, even at 50 years old!

Alison and Leon officially commenced their P90X workout, you may or may not have heard about it, a workout series, for 90 days, meant to seriously build some muscle. They started it Tuesday, exactly 6 weeks post baby (and therefore post surgery) and it's a very exciting new challenge. Alison has been keeping me well updated on the daily workouts (they sound pretty intense) and after doing a certain ab workout, insisted that I must try it! So I popped over yesterday (as I do most days thanks to their extremely well stocked fridge... "ummm... I was just in the neighborhood...") and I gave it a try. I do an ab/core workout every day, usually 10 - 15 minutes, at home or at the gym, I like to think it's pretty challenging, and I definately appreciate the importance of keeping those core muscles well conditioned. I had already done my daily ab workout before heading over to try out Ab Ripper X (the name of it is so fitting when you see the guy who does the video... total white-man-beef-head-in-spandex), this was my first mistake. My second mistake was forcing myself to complete the entire 17 minute workout without breaks and trying my hardest to do all the "advanced" positions (there's that competitive edge again, I'm starting to see a problem here). The final result, which I discovered this morning when I rolled out of bed, was some seriously extreme muscle fatigue (aka side-splitting pain!). If you know me or my family well, you will know that there is a lot of humor involved in our lives. We like to laugh, a lot. This may be because we are extremely happy natured people with a positive outlook on life, or perhaps it is because we use humor to cover up our mass amounts of disfunction (maybe a combo of both), regardless we share lots of good chuckles, snorts and sometimes peeing-of-pants, on an hourly basis (well... not the peeing-of-pants, thats more like a once a year thing). Today, this has changed for me. It hurts so much to laugh, its not even funny (no pun intended!). I've spent the majority of my day trying to think of negative and sad things to ward off any laughter in hopes that I won't have reason to laugh, all to save myself from pain enough to cripple me! I can't even look at Craig (he's easy to laugh at), and I'm nervous about tomorrow (2nd day is always the worst!). Please refrain from any jokes, funny stories or humor in any sort of way for the next 24 hours while I allow my poor precious abdominus musculus's (or whatever they are called) to heal. The lesson learned from this experience: no more Ab Ripper X (even that name makes me want to laugh!) the day before rest day (what a waste!!!) or at least before any funny movies. I think I'll go rent Schindler's List tonight.

I guess that's all for recovery week. This coming week has another 150 km long ride, a 3200 m swim, hills, a long run (my favorite!!!) and pretty much everything else inbetween.

Before & After

2009-06-09T18:16:00.000-07:00

DISCLAIMER: The pictures you are about to see are disturbing. Please view them only at your own risk. I will not be held responsible if you break any bones whilst laughing your a** off.

I used to be fat. Really fat. Not like "I'm so chubby, I need to lose 5 pounds", it was more like "I'm obese and I'm on the road to a quadruple bypass and CHF for my 30th birthday".

When I was 16 years old, I was over 200 pounds (I weighed in at 223 lbs at my peak). I wasn't an overweight kid, perhaps a little bit on the round side, but mostly average, I think things went downhill for my when I was about 12. They didn't actually go downhill, it was more like falling off a cliff into an ocean of whipped cream which I promptly ate my way to the chocolate covered beach and continued on from there. Like every other young teenager, I had my awkward stage, I wore braces, I was a bit pimple-y, I had a seriously bad haircut (with blue streaks!), but for some reason that awkward stage just hit me a bit harder than the average kid and I had a hard time kicking it. I drowned my sorrows in pizza pops and kool-aid... by the truck load. Perhaps I was rebelling from my ultra-fit, ultra-health conscious family, this was my way of being an "individual". Some teenagers choose black spikey hair, some choose to smoke pot behind the local high school, but not me... I chose a 6000 calorie/day diet and zero physical activity.

I remember very specifically a day, I was 16 years old, and I walked up the very modest 1 flight of stairs to my bedroom. I was out of breath and sweating by about the 5th stair. That's the day things changed. I was pretty ashamed of myself for letting it get that bad. I didn't really formulate a plan or dream of being a 6-pack bearing Bay Watch babe (with boobs that don't ever bounce when I run in slow motion down the beach), I just knew that I officially wanted to get out of my rut and do something, anything really.

My mom was great about. After spending the last 5 years telling me that I was just "big boned" (right... big bones that were insulated by my latest meal of Pogo corn dogs smothered in butter), she suggested we try a diet together. We ordered a program called "The Protein Power Plan" (thank you late night infomercials!), which I believe is very similar to Atkins. Now, after becoming extremely informed in the nutrition field, I would certainly not recommend any diet of this kind (or any other one that is sold on TV by a man in too-short shorts with a mullet), but at the time it seemed like a good way to start. My mom and I followed the plan exactly for 6 weeks, which I would suspect required quite a bit more work than I gave my mom credit for (as in meal preparation), and it was certainly not something that my marathon running mom needed to do. I'm not entirely sure how much weight I lost doing that, but it was enough for me to hold my head just a tiny bit higher and give me the self esteem to adopt a significantly healthier lifestyle. I mostly walked off the weight, I gave up my bus pass and I walked 3.8 km to school and then again home every single day (including -20 degrees days in the winter!). It wasn't until I was in my last year of high school that I actually got a gym membership, where I started to make more of specific effort to shave off the remainder of my weight. I ran 5 days a week on the treadmill for 30 minutes, and I did 30 minutes of weights. By my high school graduation I was 135lbs! I ran my first half marathon the summer after I graduated, and then I really learned that I was destined to be a runner when I spent the next year in Mozambique Africa. I ran every single morning while I was there, even on the hottest days that I have ever experienced. I ran my first full marathon a few months after I returned home from Africa.

In the beginning my relationship with running was much like the first year of marriage. There were moments of a love that I can't even describe, pure bliss, joy (and every other world sappy lovey word that you can think of). But there were also moments of extreme pain; tight hamstrings, loosing toe nails, blisters, burning lungs, irritable bowels (and every other painful thing that you can think of). Now, I couldn't possibly think of anything that I would rather do. I've run 17 full marathons and 2 ultra marathons, I haven't had all 10 of my toenails at the same time since 2001, I get to see the best part of the entire day when I'm out on my early morning runs, and I've been able to build some great relationships with my fellow runners.

Yesterday, I weighed myself at 127 lbs, my heart rate was 47 beats/minute and my blood pressure was 100/60. I think it would be safe to say that I saved myself from my 30th birthday date with my cardiac surgeon.

I'm not writing this story to brag in any way. In fact, I think it's pretty disappointing that I ever allowed myself to get as bad as I was. I just thought this journey would be worthy to share for a couple of reasons:

A) Perhaps someone needs to hear this story to be encouraged, yourself, or someone you know. If I can make lifestyle changes, then anyone can make lifestyle changes. I'm cheering for you!

B) I truly appreciate and with everything within me, I believe in healthy living. Our health is such a gift and I feel so strongly that it is one of our greatest responsibilities to handle that gift with great care. I should know, because I seriously abused that gift for many years prior to learning this lesson. On that note, I'm not saying that everyone needs to do ironmans and run marathons, just adopt a practical healthy diet and be active in any way that keeps you happy.

C)This is my blog, so I'm allowed to advocate for the things I believe in.

D) Kids who make fun of chubby girls in high school are mean. Really mean.

E) Maybe this story means nothing to you, but maybe you just need a really good chuckle... please proceed to look at the pictures below (however, note the disclaimer above!). Don't be decieved, I wasn't actually fat, I was just "big boned" - according to my mom (hahahahahahahaha).

Before:
And another one.... (check out that hair!!!)

After (with my mom and sister):

Top 10 Reasons You Know You're Training For Ironman

2009-06-08T10:53:00.000-07:00

10. You eat 6 full meals a day and your clothes still don't fit.

9. People no longer greet you with "hi, how are you?", you are greeted with "Did you bike yet today?"

8. You take power naps in your car at red lights and stop signs and sleep through your meal breaks at work.

7. You have to wear high collared shirts to cover the permanent hickey on your neck... from your wetsuit (Yet no one ever believes that excuse).

6. You need a rolling suitcase to get your lunch to work and you require an entire shelf in the staff fridge.

5. You plan your daily tasks in terms of heart rate zones, ie: grocery shopping - 80% of target heart rate, aiming for a negative split between aisles 1 through 5 and again in aisles 6 through 10 ... and then you log this in your training journal

4. You are an expert at pee-ing in the bushes (or side of the road if there are no bushes available)

3. You contemplate going to bed in your running gear (fuel belt included) to have an extra 3 minute sleep-in the next morning

2. Rest day is the equivilant of a religious holiday in your home.

1. Your family/co-workers/friends all agree that you have a mental illness but yet... you can't imagine speding your time doing anything else in the entire world

150 KM!

2009-06-02T19:52:00.000-07:00

Today was my 150 km bike ride. Even though I have done this distance before, and longer (I did a 200 km training ride in 2007), it certainly felt like quite a milestone for me. The wind, of course, was hitting me from all directions, there were moments when it was worse than others, and it certainly accompanied me for all 5 and a half hours, but I managed to find my "happy place" and control my rage (just kidding - see previous posting). I tried to start my ride as early as possible, but by the time I got everything together and got out going, it wasn't until about 7:30, which isn't quite as early as I hoped. I didn't get home until about 1:45, so it sort of felt like my entire day, which makes me wonder how people do this if A) they have kids, B) they have a full time job (I only work 8 or 9 shifts out of 10 for every two weeks... it's great!) or C) they have a social life. I have none of these things. 3 things from today's bike ride are worth noting:

The first thing, and by far the biggest highlight for me, was my cheer squad that surprised me at the perfect time by showing up at my turn around point. Alison had the kidlets up early for cheer practice, and so they decided to take it out to the road and put their cheering to some real practice. I think the wind god's were giving me a reward for fighting so hard that they allowed it to work out perfectly, I was just stopping to have a gel and a little snack (please note: I just dipped into my EXPIRED stash of Cliff bars from Ironman 2007 training. They are expired for a reason). My mom, Alison and the girls showed up at that exact moment! Aria rushed out of the car with two big white pom poms and cheered for me (even though I was actually stopped). She was chanting "Run Run Run" (she may have had her sports mixed up) which she learned after 14 hours of cheering for Uncle Bruce last year at Ironman 08. My mom surprised me with a small baggie of chocolate covered raisins, which most definately beat the not-so-fresh Cliff bar! She's very thoughtful that way! My personal cheer squad and support vehicle gave me exactly what I needed to get home, I definately felt a huge energy burst after seeing them it was great!

The next event that is worthy to be made public is sort of a funny one. I had a quick stop to change my water bottles around, stretch my back, dip into that chocolate covered raisins baggie that I was surprised with, etc. I was balancing on my left leg while I had my right foot still clipped into my pedal (it was supposed to be a very quick stop). In the near distance I saw a semi-truck coming up behind me, I suppose after hours of hearing trucks coming and naturally bracing myself for the gust of wind that accompanies them, I guess I went to go and do the same thing. I failed to remember that I was balancing only my left foot, which I proceeded to lose balance on. The result... an extremely graceful topple over in extremely slow motion... in perfect timing for the truck driver to witness the entire acrobatic act. It didn't hurt at all, except for the giant oil stain on my calf (I scrubbed till my skin was raw and it's still there!) and the giant bruise on my ego. I relayed the story to Craig over dinner.... he laughed so hard I thought he would bust a rib. Makes me wonder what the truck driver was telling his family over dinner.

Lastly, I discovered the perfect little treat, yet still reasonably beneficial nutritionally speaking. I LOVE food! I love eating healthy, I love experimenting with new foods, I love treats, I love anything and everything that is related to food such things. I've studied nutrition quite a bit over the years (in fact, I'm actually a Registered Nutritionist, however, it's more for personal benefit than a career). With that said, I'm sure you can imagine the extreme upset and heart break when my cliff bar was impossible to bite in to. I also packed myself another little something... Chocolate milk. It was SO GOOD. Ideally, I know that chocolate milk is actually quite a good recovery drink, the milk provides protein, and the chocolate is high in antioxidants, as well as a bit of sugar to replenish my lacking glycogen storage. I had it in the middle of the ride, it worked great then too, and to top it off, I didn't suffer from any cramps or stomach upset (which in 2007 was an ongoing issue for me on the bike). I'll be sure to have my fridge stocked for the rest of the summer. Craig will be happy about that because it was actually his chocolate milk that I stole from the fridge to take on my ride... you would have thought that I drank the last chocolate milk in the entire world though, Craig was pretty heart broken that it was gone (on that note, I do all the cooking/grocery shopping in our home, so in my theory, I have first dibs on anything in the fridge).

I guess that's it for the ride, overall, it was a success, and great training. I get to do it all over again next week! The rest of the week has 3 swims, 3 runs and another 2 rides scheduled... I'm guessing by Sunday I'll be ready for my rest day (and my first weekend off of work in a month!!! Yipee!)

Highlights From the Past Week

2009-05-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

This past week was my official week training with Coach Carolyn, so I had an actual schedule to follow. Although I definately have been ramping up quite a bit in the 2 weeks prior to the past one, I was kind of just doing whatever I wanted, whenever I felt like it. The final result from week one is fairly good, I did all the workouts, I felt great doing all of them, however, I am feeling exhausted today... and the thought of doing it all again next week makes me feel even more exhausted!

Because it's been 2 years since I did Ironman, I have quickly forgotten a few key things about training. This week... I was reminded very quickly of a few of these things. First off, I am convinced that there is an apetite stimulant in the chlorine of YMCA pools throughout the world. I think it's their ploy to make a profit at their snack shops. After I swim, whether it's 2000 meters or 4000 meters, I am ravenous! I would eat, anything and everthing in sight! I forgot that I used to always pack myself a snack, and I wouldn't even store it in my locker, I would in fact roll it up in my towel so that I could literally eat it the moment I got out of the pool. After 2 swims this week where I felt as though I was going to die of starvation and the walk from the change room to the snack shop (SEE - they got me!) felt as though it was the entire Ironman in itself, I learned on the third swim! I won't forget again for the rest of the season! I swam quite a bit through the winter in the pool at the University, it has become clear to me that they are obviously not in such desperate need to increase profits through the concession stand, they have not added the special drug to the chlorine (or maybe it's all just in my head...).

A second memory whipped me in the face (literally). The wind. Is it Chicago that is named the windy city? I think Calgary can easily take that nickname over! I biked 132 km (was supposed to be 135 km, but my turn around was in the middle of a hill, so I opted to turn around a wee bit early). I was EXTREMELY proud of myself for doing the distance because I have definately not been biking through the winter, so I was impressed that I still had it in me... but more so, my entire 132 km I was accompanied by a mini tornado of wind. I really wanted to dump my bike and hitch-hike home. Because I was riding by myself, and because I had plenty of time to just think, I spent a lot of time concentrating on the wind. After 5 hours of accurate observation, I would like to point out that the wind blows in 3 directions at once here in Calgary. I had a cross wind (from both sides) and a head wind, for the entire ride! This route starts out heading west towards the moutains, turns off to the south, then I turn around and come back north, and back on the highway I go east. I never once had the wind at my back. Can someone please explain to me how this is possible. This little encounter I had with the wind resulted in a bit of an angry rage. I was fuming, red-faced-smoke-coming-out-of-my-ears mad. The wind and I are not yet on speaking terms again. I ride 150 km this coming Tuesday, if it's windy, I will bike straight past my car and directly to my local pyschiatrists office to enroll myself in Anger Management 101.

Lastly, I was reminded of an unavoidable thing... tan lines. I would just like to point out, Craig and I recently returned from a tropical vacation which was strategically planned for the end of April so that I would return with a perfect, tan-line-free tan for the start of the season. It would give me enough "base" to pull out my shorts, like everyone else, on the first summer-like day and then I wouldn't need to blind my neighborhood with my otherwise pasty-white legs (a result from a LONG winter!). Although the tan is still there, the perfectly even tone is not. Oh well, it was bound to happen at some point. I'm the proud owner of bike shorts/run shorts/tank top/jersey/arm warmer lines. I'll wear them with pride.

Off the topic of Ironman training, but extremely worthy to be noted, today my husband, Craig, passed the entrance exam for the Calgary City Police. I am extremely proud of him and I'm so excited to see where this journey takes us! Craig is currently a plumber, which is a great career also, and Craig is happy to be doing it, but he has always talked about being a Police Officer, so I'm thrilled that he went after that dream. Whatever Craig does, I know he'll continue being a great employee, and an even better husband, I'm just happy to be apart of the journey with him. And let's be honest, what girl doesn't love a man in a uniform (but I'll take the plumbers bum-crack too). Uncle Bruce would be very proud, as you may or may not know, this family has an exceptional amount of law-abiding citizens, because practicially everyone is a police officer (including Uncle Bruce - retired).

That's all for now... more to come soon!

Some of the Crew!

2009-05-28T15:54:00.000-07:00

Like I mentioned previously, it takes a lot of support for me to do this whole Ironman business, so I'd like to introduce some of, but certainly not limited to, my support.

First is Auntie Rosie. Equally as special to me as Uncle Bruce, Rosie is the best aunt in the whole world (2nd to me of course). She is extremely supportive of everything I've ever done, which I'm sure everyone can agree with, makes such a huge difference! I'm hoping that Auntie Rosie and I can cross the finish line together on race day, because this endeavor is meant just as much in her honor as it is for Uncle Bruce's.

Next, my coach, Carolyn, who I am thrilled to be training with again! Carolyn was my coach for 2006 and 2007, and she has taught me so many things! I know that Carolyn limits the amount of triathlete's that she coaches in a year, so I am eternally grateful that she agreed to take me on so late in the season! Even though we don't live in the same city, I've found her program works very well for me, and we communicate almost daily by email. I look forward to seeing her in July and August!

I have my very own Bike Mechanic! My dad makes up a fairly crucial part of my training because he takes care of my bike for me and all of the little things that need to be done. He also texts me faithfully while I'm doing my long rides, just to make sure I'm still alive. 2 years ago, we sent my dad to a bike mechanics course, I may have had some hidden motives in that gift, but I am so grateful for how much he helps me out. For some reason, I just can't seem to pump my bike tires up much above 100 psi, and I prefer to ride at 110 psi. So my dad pumps my tires, checks things out, oils the chain, and all the other stuff that I don't even know about that needs to be done. Equally as important, he provides the funds for my mom to have a fully loaded fridge, which I often partake in. On that note, I am never giving my house key back! My dad is quite a gifted cyclist himself, unfortunately, we don't often ride together because he just can't seem to keep up with me (...or perhaps it's the other way around).

Although my work/school schedule doesn't really allow me the luxury of joining a triathlon group or club of any kind, I do have a great running partner. Zoe and I run together once a week at 6am and it is certainly a highlight! Our run is about 13 kms, and we have an ongoing goal to do it in less than an hour. We've been extremely close, but there are a few lights that seem to work against us on the days when we are feeling extra good. Zoe and I met in Africa more than 8 years ago, and were instantly connected because of our running! We've travelled through many foreign countries together, with our running shoes in tow, and 2 years ago, an amazing change of life plans brought Zoe and her husband, Arin, to Calgary (originally from Toronto area). Even though it may not be forever that we are neighbors, I will treasure every day that we have living so close. Zoe and I ran the Seattle marathon together in 2007.

Last, but certainly not least is, the captain for the cheer squad! My sister, takes her job extremely seriously, and she makes it very clear that she is the captain. Alison has been to almost all of my races (at least, all of the important ones), and through the years, there has definately been quite a few. My first niece, Aria, attended her first marathon when she was only 6 weeks old! Poet, niece #2, will become an IronBaby this year when she is only 4 months old. The girls have been exposed very early, so I'm really holding out for a future marathoner (although genetics would probably suggest more of a musical inclination). Alison plans her cheering routes, routines and attire very seriously and is fairly die-hard about it. Not only does she, and her squad, make me feel like the most important person out on the race course, she also spends endless hours, rain or shine, cheering for each and every person in between. If you are attending or racing in Ironman this year... you can be sure that you will see her, with pompoms. Also to be noted, much like my mom, Alison's fridge is always well stocked (even with a new baby!), this makes me very happy. I would gladly add that spare key to my key ring as well.

So here are a few people that make my life so much more enjoyable. There are certainly a number of other people, but I won't bore you will every other contact that I have out there. My family really is so great, all of them. This will be the fourth summer in a row where their summer vacations have been diverted to more race appropriate locations. Craig is a great husband, he even rubs my feet (only on rare occasions), and he makes everything I do possible. They call me crazy, but secretly I know they love it just as much as I do.

Ironman #2

2009-05-27T20:37:00.000-07:00

I have officially commenced training for my 2nd Ironman...about 9 months late! I have 3 months until I swim 3.8 km, bike 180 km and run 42.2 km. I completed Ironman Canada in 2007, it took me 14 hours and 29 minutes, I trained faithfully for 12 months prior to race day. I always hoped to complete another Ironman one day, however, I certainly didn't plan on doing it during this decade.

On April 29, 2009, my Uncle, Bruce Bowman, died very suddenly of a Brain Aneurysm. Uncle Bruce and I shared the passion of triathlons, and we had a very special bond because of it. It takes a very different and "special" person to commit to the training, and an equally "special" person to understand why we do the the things we do. Uncle Bruce completed his first Ironman at Ironman Canada 2008, he was registered to compete again in 2009 as a 60 year old! The only time to register for Ironman Canada is in Penticton, the day after the race, for the next year. Pretty much you pay your dues, sign your life away, and have 364 days to be stressed out about it (in my case anyways). Ironman administration has a very strict "no transfer" policy, so within that year, if you become injured, or choose not compete, you cannot transfer your entry over to someone else.

I want to do something to honor my Uncle's life. Anyone who knew him can agree with me that he was an amazing man. His accomplishments are far to many to list, he was extremely generous, in so many ways, every moment of his life was filled with greatness. Bruce Bowman leaves an amazing legacy. The best way that I know how to honor Uncle Bruce's 59 years and how much he meant to me is to complete his Ironman for him. Ironman Canada has granted me a one-time exception to take over his entry and race in his place.

For those of you who were touched by Bruce's life, or perhaps never even had the chance to meet him, you can follow my training for the next 3 months, and we can honor him, and celebrate his life together. As much work as Ironman training is, it is also A LOT of fun! Even though I physically complete the race by myself, there is no way I would ever be able to do it without the support of my "crew", so in a sense, we all do it together.

I'll keep you posted....