Merry Christmas!

I made out great this Christmas! Tri-riffic! (I'm such a dork.)

Not only get I get my awesome bike (which, btw, has made my butt sore from the seat and my shoulders sore from the new angle), but I also got a wet suit, nice goggles and a swim cap! The wet suit is a little big, so I think we're going to go back to get a smaller size, but I'm nearly ready to go!

I got a ton more than that, too! Highlights include a lamp, Scrubs season 1, a pretty wall picture, a few picture frames, sheets and food!

Pictures of me in the sexy wet suit to come!

Santa came early!

And he brought me a road bike!!!

Isn't it just so pretty???

We took it for a short ride, mostly flat, one big hill, to practice. It's completely different and will take time to get used to it, since I've never had one with handle bars like that. Braking is especially difficult for me! Still, it's a smooth ride and I feel like I can go faster with less effort, which is obviously ideal! It's light weight too! I love it!

Heaviness

My AMAZING boyfriend fixed my computer! Now it works again! Woo!

I tried to post yesterday at his house, but then he reminded me I wasn't paying enough attention to him, and I gladly decided to wait until I got home today. So here you go...

I haven't worked out since my run last week! I know, I know...here are my excuses. I've seen various tri-training programs and they all give you a week break every 8 weeks or so, and I've been doing this since June! Of course, I wasn't completely perfect about everything in the rough month of October, but I've been back, solid, since then. Anyway, I started out with just a few days break, which was a good time to catch up on Christmas stuff that I was seriously behind on! A few days turned into a few more. It was getting hard to motivate and the Christmas stuff took longer, so I just didn't. I planned on being active this weekend, too, but Nick hurt himself and was a gimp all day Saturday. Kayle and I planned on running today, but it was really cold and neither of us had a lot of motivation.

Starting about Thursday, I began feeling heavy. I don't know how else to describe it. Heavy. Not fat, but just...heavy. I decided it had been too long (although it was still a nice break), so I would need to start soon. It's only getting worse! I know I need to work out. I feel it. (I love that, btw.) I will feel better once I can get back out there. The problem is, though, I have so much to do in the next two days before I go to Tulsa for Christmas! I found out I didn't have to work on the 24th, which is great, except that now I'm going to Tulsa a day sooner, so I have less time to get things done. I made a quick Wal-Mart stop earlier on my way into town, which helped me de-stress a little. But really, I'm not sure how I'm going to have a tough time fitting working out in this week! I have a lot of wrapping to do, I'm baking brownies for my co-workers and I'm going to be working a ton in those two days because we now have one less reporter and a ton of days to cover with content!

Over the holiday season, I'm going to take it easy with the workouts. I'm going to try to go three or four times a week, anytime, and just take turns doing each of the activities. I think trying to follow a schedule with the holidays and travel and my sister's new baby (which will be here within the next couple of weeks!) will be difficult. I'm starting back up with an intensive training program Jan. 5. Should be fun!

Oh, and since I've just talked about my lack of time, I won't be posting pictures of the run for another while...sorry!

To sum up, I've been lazy and as result I feel heavy. I don't have a ton of time to un-heavy myself, but I'll have to make it work. Finally, I'm going to workout mildly until Jan. 5, when I, in my mother's words, "will hit it hard!" Picture to come.

3.1 miles later

For all of you keeping up, I ran my first official 5k this weekend. Here's how my weekend went down.

First, let me start with training last week. As you know, I ran 2.5 miles Monday and then promptly threw up. Tuesday, I decided on a different approach. My dad told my mom she'd be able to do it if she could run on the treadmill at 6 mph for 15 minutes. Of course, she'd run one before, in 27 minutes no less. Well, I decided to try that. It's faster than I normally run (I'm really slow!), but if that could indicate how I'd do, I thought, why not? Well, I barely made it 10 minutes! Very frustrating! Then, I woke up Thursday morning intending to do a short run, but it was 18 degrees outside, so I went back to bed, determined to run that afternoon at lunch. I did manage to do that and went two miles (1/2 mile run, 1/2 walk, etc.) to make it light since the run was Saturday morning and I didn't want to wear myself out. Again with the hills. It's right by my house, so it's convenient.

Then Thursday evening Kayle came into town! I had to work Friday, but we figured it would be fun for her to get a head start on the weekend! We loaded up on carbs, but also on some sangria. Yum! It was fun, great night. I worked all day the next day, except for lunch where we had pretty good Chinese food. Details, I know. After work we headed to Tulsa! My parents live there and she was coming to see where I grew up, etc, plus, the race was in Tulsa. Nothing major to report from that night. She got really nervous, as did I. Could I do it? I'd barely managed 2.5 miles...

By the way, my dad said it's good to have three goals. One you should be able to accomplish, one you want to, and one that is rather unattainable. My three goals were:
Goal 1: FINISH running the whole thing
Goal 2: Do it in less than 40 minutes
Goal 3: Finish in less than 35 minutes

Get up early (for me) Saturday morning! I was up shortly after 7 a.m. so I could get ready and eat some oatmeal before the race, which started at 9:30. It was warm that day, around 40 degrees at race time, except for that Oklahoma wind Kayle and I always talk about! 18 mph, blowing in the direction of half the run. Woo! And, I also discovered how hilly the path was! I was thinking it wouldn't be too bad, but that part of town has it's hills. We get our packets and then go hide in the car for a while. Nick shows up. It was good to see him since it'd been almost a week! Terrified, already nauseated, we go line up! Here we go!

Gunshot! Since this was such a low key race, people didn't necessarily line up right. A lot of people walked from the beginning and it took almost a whole K to get to where you could run at your own speed (a little less for me since I'm slow!). Mom, Dad and Kayle stayed a few minutes ahead of me the whole time. (Nick sat this one out.) Well, I ran. Close to the halfway mark, we go up this killer hill! Honestly, you were so close to walking when you were running because it was steep! By the time I got up it, I was feeling sick again, so I grabbed some water to rinse the taste out of my mouth...and partly just to have the thrill of throwing the cup down! I didn't stop at all. Of course, when you go up hill, you eventually get to go back down! Once we turned around, we were heading into the wind, but fortunately it wasn't blowing too hard at this point and fortunately the hills weren't as bad from this way. I was at 26 minutes at 3k and figured I wouldn't be able to get to the finish in 14 minutes (reaching goal 2). I kept running. Making it to 4k seemed to take forever! I was even counting down the streets because I knew which street the finish line sat on. Anyway, I made it there! One more to go! I have no idea how I propelled my way through that last k. I was feeling really sick and wind picked up a few times. Additionally, I kind of felt drunk at this point. Like things were moving a little off and I just felt...not completely coherent (but not un-coherent). Maybe you understand. When I finally saw the checkered flags, I just starred at them...waiting to get there but unable to run any faster. Most importantly, I was telling my body to hold off vomiting (and falling over) until I crossed that line. I keep looking for my group, hoping to hear inspirational words, but I couldn't. (They were there yelling though, btw.) Anyway...I DID IT! I made it! I ran the whole thing! Of course, I'd barely taken a step after when I started to gag. The lady pushed me forward and said "I'm sorry honey," while pushing me determined to keep me in the right order. I made it a few more steps before hurling the half an orange I ate before the race. Finally, my mom rips off my tag on the number and gives it to the lady...like I cared about that right then? Water and a little sitting helped me recover. I'd done it.

My official race time was 35.25 too! I'd reached one and two (and got pretty close to three, but I don't care about that)! Kayle came in around close to 32, I think, and my parents crossed at 31 minutes. So the time I'm working with is 11 minutes 20 seconds per mile. It's slow, but I'll work on it. Mom and Dad took us all out of some IHOP after, but I didn't want to eat anything "heavy," so I got a salad. Kayle and I were zapped the rest of the day and didn't want to get up to tour the town or anything. That night, we got to go to this free dinner at Santa Fe Cattle Ranch because they were opening a new one in town. We all loved it! If you have one near by, go! Everything I sampled was tasty! I deserved a steak dinner!

The night was fun, spent drinking and watching Will Ferrell movies. Kayle, Mom, Dad and I went on a 2 or 3 mile hike the next day, which loosened up my back, but made my legs hurt more. Then Kayle and I headed back to Stillwater, so she could go back to Norman. I had a really fun weekend!

I decided to take today off and may swim tomorrow and start back up. Kayle's getting really into now, which is great. She's already got another 5k lined up for us and has a pretty solid plan going for her training. I got back Sunday to a broken (fried perhaps) computer. It won't turn on. I'm pretty sure my power supply is shot. I'm actually posting this from the public library! I miss my computer already! I can't post pictures for that very reason, although I have a few to share. I will hopefully have a working computer next week. Nick is building a new computer and told me I could have his old power supply, so hopefully we can make that happen to save me some money.

Well, this is a terribly long post, so I shall leave you with that. I ran a 5k! Now I just have to add some swimming and biking beforehand...and try to keep my breakfast down! Wish me luck!

Not my most favorite run ever...

I went running today. I skipped yesterday AGAIN to hang out with Nick. This long distance thing is tough because I find it hard to tear myself away to train. He's not a big runner, I find.

Anyway, the run today. I wanted to push myself to 2.5 miles, of hills, so I could "rest" (while still training some) before my run this weekend. The past couple of weeks, I've been able to push myself a half mile extra, so I figure it I can run a solid 2.5 miles of hills...I should be able to run 3.1 on race day. Well, today wasn't good. When I wasn't dealing with the hills, I was dealing with Oklahoma wind...never to be messed with. It was just tough run. Some are better than others, as you probably know. Before I hit the 2 mile mark, I started feeling a little nauseated. Nothing too terrible, so I pushed through it. At this point, I wasn't even able to lip sync along to my music, which isn't good. I turn the corner to head up the hill. Now, the wind is at my side, but hard to compensate for nonetheless. This hill is a bitch, btw. I wanted to make it another half mile, so I kept running. "Just keep running, just keep running..." I say, "Once I get up this hill, I can walk," but then fool myself and push it a little farther to actually make it to the 2.5ish mark. I'm getting really nauseated at this point. I've never gotten sick from working out before, so I pushed. If I had stopped just 1/16 of a mile earlier, this probably would have turned out differently. Then, I got that "awesome" metallic taste associated with almost vomit. But I made it to the 2.5 mile! And then I threw up...anyway, I'll spare the rest of the details, except that then, I had to walk a half mile home...without water, a paper towel or a tooth brush!

I'm not really sure why it happened. I wasn't coughing. I hadn't eaten too much or too little. I had a heavy Mexican dinner the night before, but it was 18 hours previous. I'd had cereal for breakfast that morning. It was around 1:30 p.m., but I usually go that long without eating before a workout because that's just how my schedule is. I had some water that morning, but not too much. Coffee at 9:45 that morning. The weather was great, besides the wind.

Basically, I'm now really concerned about trying to run 3.1 miles if I throw up at 2.5! It's less than a week away! Eek!

Swimming

I totally thought I'd packed my goggles today. I apparently didn't. All I have to say is "boo!"

But I decided to use that in my training. I thought it would be a good chance for me to practice swimming in a straight line without that handy line telling me where to go. It's hard! I didn't really like it though since it bothered my eyes, so I focused a lot on my back stroke and kicks....more than usual. I did 100 meters of free style (front stroke), 100 meters of kicking, 100 meters of backstroke. I did that 3 times. Then I did 50 meters of free style and 50 of backstroke to make an even 1,000 meters. I didn't rush or go at race speed. I took my time and took some breaks after each set of 300. It took 35 minutes, which isn't too bad considering my speed.

After Sunday, I'm going to concentrate on my running for the following week because my race is next Saturday!

Da brick

I didn't get to post last night to tell you about my workout...it was great, btw.

I did my version of a brick. I read online about switching between biking and running to train your legs to adjust quickly. Most of the stuff I read suggested about 5-6 miles of biking, 1 mile running, repeating three times. Well, according to my machines at the gym, that would take me FOREVER! Instead, I decided to reduce those numbers. I biked 3 miles (about 15-20 minutes on the machine) ran (fast for me) for a half mile (5-6 minutes) three times in a row. It took a little more than an hour to do the rotation thrice. I have to tell you, it was tough! But...FABULOUS! I'm serious. A lot of the people who read this probably understand how a hard, long workout can just make you feel amazing! When I was done, I did a few abs, but I had to get home. It was the best I'd felt all day...which I guess isn't saying a whole lot since I slept poorly and woke up with a migraine. Just great. I was energized for hours.

Today I took a day off. I was going to do another zumba class, but honestly, I just wanted some time to get stuff done around the apartment. I think Nick and I are going to try to take a walk Saturday, so I can count that as a day off "activity," although probably not a workout. I hope it's nice weather...

First (real) 5k

I entered my first real 5k today. I've done others but walked most of the way. This one I'm hoping to run the entire way. My goal time is 40 minutes ( a little slow, I know), but I've been running them in 45 minutes right now, so knocking five minutes off by running the whole way will be good for a goal, I think. Mostly, I just want to finish having run the whole thing...no matter how long it takes me!

My mom and dad and Kayle all said they wanted to do the run with me, too, and now that I've signed up, I suppose they will too. That will be fun, although I know I'll come in last...sad day! I don't quite understand why I struggle more with running than most people. It seems other people can train for a 5k with few problems, yet I seem to be struggling as all hell.

The run is a Jingle Bell run for Arthritis. My goal is to earn $100 for the cause. I know it's the Christmas season and the economy sucks, but if anyone can donate just $10 to the cause, it would a great contribution. My Web site is here. There you can donate or sign up if you'll be in the Tulsa area on the 13th!

Thanksgiving plans

The past few days I have NOT wanted to go to the gym. My days were long at work and the thought of waiting another hour and half (or more) before actually getting home and eating dinner was NOT making Jessica happy. But of course, I'm stubborn, so I went.

Running today sucked. It's all about the treadmill now that it's dark after work. I tried to run 1/4 mile quickly, another 1/4 slowly and then walk about 1/8 or so. My goal was to do that 4 times so I could do a mile at each speed. I didn't happen. After three, I had to only do 1/8 at slow, walk some, and then another 1/8 at slow. I couldn't muster up the energy...plus, I still had to swim! I went 2.5 miles or so, for about 40 minutes at incline 1 (which is just supposed to balance out wind resistance). Swimming was fine, but I didn't push my legs too far because I ran. My lungs are getting back up to where they were before I stopped-ish for the month. That's good news.

I can't decide whether I want to try to work out tomorrow (my day off) before I head to Tulsa after work or just try to fit it in before turkey on Thanksgiving. I want to be available to help my mom with the cooking, so I'd have to do it before noon. Let's be honest, working out post turkey won't happen. I'll probably do that because I'm tired. I have to work Friday too, so I have to come back here after dinner...then Friday night I'm heading to Norman to visit my boyfriend. Yay for driving!

I feel like I have no time at home to do anything. I haven't finished unpacking and I have so many other things I want to get done, but I'm never home. I work, train, talk to my boyfriend, go to bed early (for me). On the weekends, I'm leaving town (or sometimes have guests). I guess I shouldn't complain. It keeps me from getting bored or lonely. I've always been a fan of "me" time, but now it seems like most of my "me" time is working out. I guess it should be right now. Again, I don't want to complain. I choose to do it all and to be honest, I love it all. You're just lucky I found time to tell you all this!

An update for you folks

Nothing about this week was as it was supposed to be, but I'm not complaining.

It started off with me not being able to swim my first real training day back. I ran instead, preparing to swim Sunday. Friday I didn't bike because I planned on visiting my parents that weekend and I looked forward to biking with them. The wind and the cold sent my parents to the gym, but I toughed it out and went for a ride. If it's daylight outside, I'd rather bike there...at least for now. Sunday I did swim, but Kayle came to visit, so she joined me.

Monday I was supposed to swim. I got up, showered, went to work and expected to swim on my long lunch break since I had to work late. Well, I'd just blown dry my hair mere hours earlier and I wasn't interested in doing it all again! So, I went home and ran 3 miles instead. Well, I ran a little more than 2 miles, but I went 3. It took me 45 minutes...a little sad? Anyway, then Tuesday I was going to double up semi like normal and swim and bike. My boyfriend was coming to visit, but not until really late, so even though I got off work late, I'd have time to do both. Well, as I got to the gym, he called to tell me his last class (which is 3 hours long!) was canceled and he could be there in 45 minutes! Hell ya! Even though he's an awesomely supportive boyfriend and told me to double up anyway and he'd just be there when I got there, I ignored that and swam and went to see him! It was so great to have him in town! I miss him so much when we are staying in different cities! Anyway, Wednesday was a day off, which I spent with Nick. We did bowl though.

I'm mostly doing a paragraph break here because that one is getting long and I know it's daunting. Anyway, today I doubled up swimming and biking. I will also bike tomorrow after work before heading back to Norman to visit my beau, my buds and my football team! My "cross training" on the off day this week will in fact be a football game. It's a huge game, I've got tickets, and it's gonna be awesome. We will probably walk about a mile up there and back...plus be standing a lot. It will have to do. Maybe Nick and I can play some DDR earlier that day...Moving on, Kayle and I are planning on running Sunday before I leave town, so I am excited about that too.

Soon, I think I'm going to change my schedule around. I think it will be best to have Mondays and Fridays off because of my work schedule and the fact that I'll be traveling a ton on the weekends now. I'll give it a couple more weeks to get the hang of the work thing and for football season to be over with. (Sad day!) Anyway folks, I'm still on the track, even though stuff gets pushed around...Later!

Sad, sad story

I was supposed to swim today, remember? I was totally stoked about it. Well...all week I'd been ignoring this sign on the door that said the pool was closed today because of a swim meet. Cool. So I went home (I only had pool stuff with me), disappointed to eat dinner, change and go back to run later.

In the meantime, I develop this awful headache and I'm so tired. Finally, I convince myself to go because I'd been looking forward to using the hot tub there all day. I figured I go, run my ass off, do some weights, then relax for a half hour in the hot tub reading a book. Really, I needed that hot tub time. I've been sore all day. My legs are a little sore from Zumba yesterday and my shoulders are tight and sore due to sitting at a desk on a computer all day for two days coupled with Zumba yesterday as well. I wanted to help my muscles relax. Well, I get to the treadmill (sad day when the sun goes down so early!) and run 20 out of 30 minutes. I thought it was alright time. I haven't worked out for real in nearly a month, so it's not bad. Anyway, I'm totally sweating and my legs feel like jello when I try to get off the treadmill (again, they were already tired), I do some weights and I head down to the locker room. I take an awkward shower (I forgot flip flops...gross!) then head to the hot tub. I turn it on and...the jets just spray all over the place. They hit the top of the tub and splash all over the locker room...cool. Thanks. I couldn't make it do anything else, so I left, sad, tired and sore. I lose.

My hot shower didn't do the trick.

Back to that running. It's definitely my worst "subject." Since it's been so long since I've run, I don't take it too hard. But then again, we're half way through with our training and I can't run a solid 3.1 miles, let alone quickly after biking and swimming! So here's the deal, folks. A month from now (Dec. 13, 2008), I will run 3.1 miles, solid. I'm actually going to look and see if there are any scheduled runs to participate in. I'm doing it. I need to. I figured I need to be able to run like 5 miles solid to be able to do 3.1 with any kind of speed post the first two tri events. That's my goal by tri time. 3.1 in a month.

Also, I'm training to be an endurance athlete, right? So I can't just be working out 30 minutes anymore. Starting next week (after I get my body retrained to work out), I'm bumping it up to 45 at least for swimming and running and an hour biking. Conditioning...that's what this is all about!

Zumba Zumba!

So, instead of starting my training today, I took a zumba class! It was so hard! I knew I'd be tired, but after about 15 minutes, I was exhausted...and it's an hour long class! It was fun though. I love to dance, so I thought I'd love it. It wasn't as dancey as I expected or wanted, but I still had a good time and got a GREAT workout.

Training for real starts tomorrow...swimming! I'm stoked, actually.

I decided yesterday to keep my training exactly how it was with Kayle for now. It just makes sense for me right now. Things may change with the new year slightly, but we'll see. Additionally, since I spend a lot of money at the Y now, I'm going to try to take a class or do something else physical on one of my off days. Kind of like cross training, but more just having fun. I mean, this zumba workout was definitely a work out, but I'm distinguishing it differently from the tri training. There's a zumba class both days I have off, and I'll try to work in other classes too on those days...or play tennis or something. I do enjoy that too. Just something fun and active. Bonus if it gets my heart rate way up!

Two in one day!

I signed up for a gym membership. It has a small workout area and a pool (among a few other amenities), which is what I need to train for this tri. It's already late in the day, so I think I'll just start working out tomorrow after work. The gym is really close to where I work, so that is great. I may wait until Thursday, but I'd like to get started tomorrow, so we'll plan on that being the case.

I need to come up with a new schedule, too. Kayle and I just talked about it and we'll be able to easily adapt to working out together the days we get to hang out, so planning on doing things on the same day isn't as important. Since my schedule is crazy and different every week, I think I'll plan on something similar to what we did (two days on, one day off, two days on, one day double up, one day off). Because of football season, I still want to keep Saturday as an off day at least for a few more weeks. We'll see. I'll figure it all out. Kayle seems to be getting excited about training again, so I'm really happy about that. We'll make it all work!

Here!

I'm here. I've arrived. It's all unloaded...still working on unpacking. That will be a long road.

My parents, Kayle and Nick helped with it all. Having two boys really helped move things along quickly and I didn't have to do a lot of heavy lifting. I know Nick's body hurt (he hurt himself a lot) for a while, so I really really appreciate both of their efforts. And Mom's and Kayle's because they helped clean and load (unload) a lot of random stuff too. Kayle left that night and Nick's friend came over for a while. Yesterday, Nick and I got to hang out a lot, which is great because he left really early this morning. So sad.

I start work tomorrow, but I'm still trying to establish what time. Today, I'm going to unpack, maybe have lunch with my brother-in-law, and run some errands, including heading by the Y to try to get a membership...so I can start working out again! I might head out for a run or a bike later, but I'm not sure. It's still all rainy out (has been for a few days), so I'm not sure if I will today. I'm ready to start soon though!

T-minus 24 hours

I'm leaving tomorrow morning for the new town. Wish me luck!

I should have internet back up and running Monday afternoon no problem (hopefully!) and I should start training around mid-week or certainly by the weekend.

With all the packing and seeing people, I haven't had much time to concentrate on the tri training. I know it should be a priority, but you know, it happens. I'll be unloading Sunday and hanging out with my beau all day Monday before he leaves me. I start work Wednesday, but since I don't know my schedule, I don't know exactly when I'll start training. I'm going to have to find a gym (maybe the Y) and a pool since it's almost winter and working out outside during the work week will prove difficult. Without my boyfriend, best friend or any of my other friends and family around, I will be pouring a lot of time and energy into training. I hope it will keep me going through the next year or so. When I get a few paychecks, hopefully Kayle and I can pick a tri and pay for it. I really want one in April or May because I want to do an Olympic distance tri by next October!

That's it for now. I hope everything goes smoothly tomorrow and over the next few weeks! I'm scared, but a little excited about the new adventure. I'm trying hard not to think about everything (and everyone) I'm leaving behind and how different my life will be next week than it was last week...

Or not...

I guess "training again" wasn't completely accurate. I spent two days last week looking for apartments out of town, so I didn't have time to train. Stuff's been getting in the way again, so I haven't done much in the past week either. At least not until today...

I was visiting my parents and we went for a 5 mile hike and a 10 mile bike ride! My quads are mad now, but it was a great day. The hiking was a lot of fun since I love it. Biking after was challenging for me, even though it was a mild ride, and my gears started squeaking at me. I enjoyed it all anyway. Here are some pictures from the hike!


Me and my dad on a rock in front of the Arkansas River!

One of the paths we hiked. Some parts were rockier and steeper, but it was fairly tame, really.My mom and I hiking along...

That's it folks!

Training again!

I finally started training again today! Kayle and I ran a short distance, but ran and worked out nonetheless! I was great to get back out there.

I plan on doing more tomorrow and Wednesday since I'm busy Tuesday. I'm excited to get back on track and fit in as many session with my partner before I move!

I'm feeling more confident with my decision to take the job and I'm happier because at least one weight has been lifted, which makes me much more motivated to finish this out. I never lost my will to compete in and complete a triathlon, but the getting there part suffered momentarily. I think I'm back, or at least on my way there, so things are looking up.

Poll: Would it be weird to start a second blog about moving/living in a new town? Here's my reasoning: Blogs are good if you blog about something specific. I've got one about one thing I'm tackling, but since I've got another potentially major thing to deal with that's completely opposite of this, it would be weird to combine it but I feel like I should blog about it anyway. I don't want overkill, so let me know if that's crazy or too egotistical. As I type this, it kind of sounds like it. Please comment!

Jobless no more

I accepted a job today...unfortunately, it's an hour and a half away from where I live. So, I'm moving...

This means I won't be able to train with Kayle very often, which sucks big time. I loved our time swimming, biking or running together. I loved being able to see her nearly every day and how she pushed me to do the plank for a minute. I will really miss having such a great workout/training partner! I made her promise we're still going to run the tri together, though.

I'm also going to be in a different town than my wonderful, totally supportive boyfriend! We did the long distance thing for a year when we first started dating and it looks like we will again...boo! He's been so great dealing with me this week...I just want to give him props!

I meant to start my training back up (I haven't done anything in a week!) Thursday, but I was so stressed and depressed about trying to make this decision that I just didn't. This week has been too emotional!

I will start back soon...definitely after arriving in my new town in a few weeks. I'll need something to occupy my lonely time! I still really want to do this...I just haven't had motivation for much the past few weeks.

And I promise, I'll catch back up with all your blogs! I miss you folks!

It's been a week...

This week has been interesting. I've been up and down all week dealing with this job business. I've been in the car so much in the past 29 hours or so it's ridiculous. I'm looking forward to not driving or interviewing tomorrow. I've got some viable options, but I still need to decide what I want to do about it. That's what I'm dealing with now on that end.

Because of all that, my workouts have been inconsistent. Like, I didn't get home yesterday or today until fairly late and I was utterly exhausted both days, so I haven't worked out. The job search seems to be interfering. In fact, I may have to move, which is going to throw all this out of whack, so I just don't know. I understand how vague and unknowing I am today.

Notable things from this week:
-I doubled up on running and swimming a few days ago and it went really well. I ran nearly two miles! Like, the whole time. I've also discovered I'm close to enjoying running in the cold (Ok, it was in the 50s probably). It's always been so hot, but that day it was cool and windy. Felt great! After that, I swam and did a good job...about 500 yards without stopping. I actually realized I could do that all day. I turned over every 100 yards or so to breathe for a while, but I can do that. It just isn't fast at all. I need to work on speed with the endurance.

-I really want a path to run and bike on! Norman has nothing!

-I need to push myself better and actually follow the work out schedule...damn job hunt.

-We need to pick a tri so I can be working toward a markable thing...even if I can't afford the entry fee yet!

Ok, that's mostly just things I need to do, but we'll pretend it's notable. Perhaps the 2 miles was the only notable thing...

Just meh

This week hasn't been completely stellar, at least not yet.

The job hunt is going all right. Not great, not horrible.

We didn't work out Monday because both Kayle and I had had a pretty crappy day, so yesterday we just biked. It was short and not too intense. No abs.

Today is supposed to be an off day, but since we didn't do anything Monday, I've gotta double up today. Kayle has a big test and plans after, so I may have to do it all alone. We'll just have to see.

It's harder for me to motivate to do this right now. It was my "new challenge" when I was really happy in every other aspect of my life. Now, I have a whole new challenge (or old one, I guess) to deal with. I (only briefly) thought about holding off training until I found a job, but I thought that was silly. I need to be full steam ahead on this triathlon, it's just hard to motivate right now. I can't afford a tri fee, so we can't make anything official, which kind of sucks. But I should keep this going as a balancing aspect of my life. Working out really helps me relieve stress and having a specific goal and working toward that should (theoretically) help me too, right?

Update

So, where have I been? Mostly out of town. Partially hiding.

I have bad news to report. I lost my job because of 10% cutbacks with the company. They got rid of 26 people in my department alone, 16 of whom took early retirement. That's a large number of people gone and I'm not quite sure how they expect to function with so many missing. Anyway, the news came at the end of my 6 day week, right before I was heading out of town for my mom's birthday. I've never been one to define myself by my job, but I had an overwhelming sense of emptiness. I still do if I think about it, I suppose. I didn't really hear anything said in the meeting after, "This will be your last day here." The only way I can explain how I feel is to say it's like getting dumped after four months with someone. But someone who you really liked, thought you clicked well with and could really see a future with. You aren't devastated, but pretty heartbroken nonetheless. Except now you have no income.

I'm starting research and resume fixing and everything today. I'm hesitant to start because I've been avoiding it all for a while now. Wish me luck!

But on a lighter note, when I was out of town hanging out with my parents, I did most of my training for this week.

-Wednesday: We went on a 10-12 mile bike ride with small hills the whole way. I thought it was a great ride, but it definitely challenged me. Toward the beginning, there is a nasty hill, one which I'm not sure I've EVER made it up before, but I fought through it and slowly made it to the top. Yay! Except that I couldn't breathe. My throat hurt from trying to take in so much air and my lungs couldn't keep up. Well, still at least 9 miles to go...So we keep riding. The small hills just kept getting me. They weren't too much for my legs, but it never gave my lungs a chance to calm down. They were sore the whole time. Around the turn around mark there was another tough hill. Less steep, but long. I start up it and immediately think "I can't do this..." then, without missing a beat, I told my legs to stop whining and said I would make it up the hill, no matter what. Well, I did! I pushed through the leg pain, lungs and throat pain and the thousands of gnats hitting me in the face. I didn't get off. It was a small victory.

-Friday: We ran. I was feeling a little sick. Apparently, egg salad and chips aren't great pre-running food! Who would have thought? (Please note the sarcasm.) Anyway, I ran for a couple minutes after I felt like I was going to throw up. I pushed, but then we hit a row of restaurants and the smell was horrible! I felt so sick. My legs and lungs had caught up with me and were ready to run again, but my stomach was in knots. Finally, I convinced myself to move and ran a bit more. This happened most of the 3 miles. My stomach did calm down some. I was running probably a half mile (I guess less than that...?) at the end and I decided to "kick it in" as Kayle calls it. I started running with bigger strides and then I just kept running faster. I'm not really sure how I did it. My mom caught on when I passed her and "finally got her heart rate up" the 51-year-old woman tells me. She tried to catch up, which may have made me run faster. I was surprised at my sprint, but could barely breathe after. Woo!

-Saturday: I went on a short, maybe 4 mile or so ride, just because I needed to get another bike in this week. My legs were tired, but it wasn't too bad of a ride. Nothing exciting to report with it. I'm still short a swim and Kayle and I are running today sometime. That's it!

Wow, this is a long post that seemingly ends abruptly. Bummer.

Why do people do triathlons?

I know a few of the peopole who read this are training for one or thinking about it. Why? How'd you get the idea and what motivates you to keep going?

I was thinking about it all the other day. Why do it? It's a hassle, it's time consuming and it's often times not fun. Why do I do it?

Here's what I've come up with.

I've told you the Shad Ireland story. Well, there's more to it than that. I've always wanted to run a marathon. I've never been very athletic, so I thought it would be cool to say I'd completed something reserved for top athletes. But as I grew older, it became very clear to me how much I disliked running and I never wanted to spend that much time doing something I didn't like. My dad ran one a few years back and I thought he was awesome for it, but it still wasn't the thing for me. Another inspirational story: In the Spring my parents started training for a 5k. They ran one during the summer and my mom came in three minutes under her goal for 30:00, basically, quickened her speed by a minute a mile! Not only that, but she came in first in her age group! She was exhausted fater finishing and it wasn't until she got some powerade and fruit in her that she got excited. Anyway, we are so proud of her and she felt so great after! I thought, "I want that."

I've always been a dancer, and I loved performing the most. Having the people you care about come out and see you show off what you've been working so hard for is just the greatest ever! I wanted it again and I wanted it to be something hard and uncommon that no one I knew had done, something athletic. The afternoon after my mom's race I started looking into triathlon's and realized I could do a Sprint distance. It would take training and would be hard, but it was doable. As often happens with me, however, I gave up a few days later.

Shad brought it back.

But it's more than all that even. I think I wanted, needed, a goal. Something to work hard for in my spare time. Something with a clear ending, achievement. I graduated from college, which I'd been working toward really my whole live, but four years officially. I got a job and, while there's a definite goal and chance to move up, it's nothing specifically 'do A and you'll get B.' I've always had some goal I was working toward, and in August I didn't anymore. I found it and I'm so stoked about it. I get to do something that top athlete's do, but doesn't require 3-4 hours or so of running! You should always have a goal, something to work toward in free time, something you've never done, something with a specific ending or accomplishment, something new to conquer. What are you working toward right now?

Double day

We doubled up. It felt great.

We biked around neighborhoods, not really going anywhere specific. We followed a "bike path," which really just meant signs said it was a path, but instead, it was just a street with houses on both sides. It was a nice ride, especially because we explored new territory. It was low intensity, but not easy. We got a little lost at the end, so we ended up riding for nearly an hour until we made it to the pool...

We swam. It was good swim. I swam longer than ever before without stopping, which is way fun. 300 yards at one time, 950 total. Kayle did great swimming, too. She said today she thinks she's improving, which is really good!

After swimming, we rode the mile or so back to Kayle's apartment and did abs. I was tired, but I felt great.

I'm getting really into this triathlon thing the past few days because my workouts have been so good. Running yesterday wasn't too bad...I'm getting there! I've just felt good about this...

We're starting to pick our tri. We're thinking about this one in Galveston in April...but I'll be sure to keep you posted when we finalize it. Registration's coming up we think...

Inspiration

It's interesting how much people you've never met can do for you.

I've developed a relationship with a few of the bloggers I read about. They are awesome. They are inspirational, determined and help me stay motivated. Most of them are working out or training for a triathlon like me, but some have other interests of mine and are strong in a different way. I just love reading their blogs...and of course the blogs of two (kind of three) of my favorite people in the world - my sister and my best friend! Thank you all for everything!

I'd like to share another story, however, of someone I know practically nothing about, but he makes me smile every week.

I work weird shifts, so I only work Thursday and Friday during the actual work week. Both those mornings, I get off the highway and look for a certain man. He's walking with dumbbells both those mornings around 9 a.m. along the street. It's gotten to the point where I look for him, judge how late I am around him and get disappointed if I don't see him. A few weeks ago, I didn't see him either day and I got really worried something had happened to him. Perhaps he was sick or running late that week or something...he's since been back, and I always smile when I see him. I don't see him during the weekend, though. I come an hour later and exit on a different exit but he may still exercise those days, I'm not sure. I think he is awesome getting out there every day and doing that. Maybe he doesn't have money for a gym or equipment, but he's determined to work out and is consistent about it. I think that's why I always smile. I actually look forward to seeing him. I just think it's interesting how much a person you've never talked to, know nothing about, can be so influential.

Yesterday

I didn't feel well...all day. I had a headache and waves of nausea lasting into the late evening. I decided not to run because it continued to flare up. We are supposed to run today, too. Somehow, I'll have to figure out a way to make up for yesterday. I feel better today, though, somewhat.

Skinny mini me!

Yesterday, Nick told me I looked "skinny-mini," which is what we say in my family when someone's lost weight and looks thinner. That made me really happy! I weighed myself this morning and saw that I've lost five pounds since I started! I'm still five away from my pre-Spain weight (I went to Spain summer of 2007 and ate so much, especially bread and ice cream, and I came back 10 pounds heavier and haven't been able to shake it.), and 10 away from what I really want to weigh, but it's awesome.

I haven't changed my eating pattern really. I'm always trying to eat better than I do but never hard enough it seems. I haven't increased the amount I eat either though, so that's good. (Except I ate a big dinner...it was so good...but I feel bloated right now...)

I know I'll put on muscle, so I'm prepared to never weigh my "ideal" weight as long as I look like I do! It seems I'm making strides and that's really great. I feel better about this all. It may not be much of a change, but Nick noticed and he's not the most observant guy in the world! Thanks for the ego boost, hon!

Done and done.

Guess what I did yesterday?

I ran a mile. Yup. A mile.

Ten minutes, one mile. Done and done. That was the only time we ran yesterday in our 3 mile trek or so, but it's good...a mile!

We're supposed to swim today, which is good for me. Kayle hates it, unfortunately. Then doubling up tomorrow, which is always just a ton of fun (note the sarcasm).

So much for that

We did so well about being good...and then my work week started.

So much for that.

Thursday's are going to suck now. Kayle has class all evening and I have work all day. We're going to have to get up at 6 a.m. to swim before I go to work. Suck. Anyway, we decided to bike separately Thursday. She decided to see if she could run 3.1 miles (check out her blog about it) instead. I missed daylight because I broke my phone and had to go get one right after work (and the sun doesn't stay up much later than that these days), so I waited until 9 and she came over and we went to the gym and biked for about a half hour.

Neither of us wanted to wake up Friday or this morning to swim, so we just haven't. We will run tomorrow night and swim extra Monday, but we just aren't doing great about it right now.

AND, to make matters worse, my job is fabulous and decided to send me to the fair to eat a bunch of fried stuff on a stick for a story...so I did. I had about half of three different things and I felt so sick! I'm not surprised I felt sick, but still...I didn't eat all of it. I had deep fried mashed potatoes on a stick, cheese on a stick and deep fried Snickers on a stick. Amazing. It's the fair and I HAD to do it for work, it just won't make running tomorrow very easy.

That's all for now. Wish me luck running tomorrow!

My partner...

...started a blog! Enjoy: http://kaylesvida.blogspot.com/

Running

Running Sunday was...well, running. Actually, running. More running than walking, which is a first, maybe ever.

I talked to Kayle about how to train and she just decided to push me. We ran first until I said stop, which was around 5 minutes. After that, she'd make me run after only a few minutes of walking (after I became less lightheaded) and then she'd make me run farther than I wanted to. It was unpleasant, but really good at the same time! I felt like I could do it, while I know it's still a long way away, I will be able to run this thing. She's talking about signing us up for a 5K in October. We ran again today...after swimming. It was tough, but I ran it. I can run for about 5 minutes before I have to stop, but as long as I don't walk very long, I'm happy with it. Today when I ran, my lungs didn't burn as badly, so I'm making progress...and enjoying it, while only slightly more.

We've done a good job of "hitting it hard" but we haven't done abs in the past few days. We need to start back with that. Our bike ride yesterday went well and I enjoyed our swim today. It's slow moving, but we will get there.

So, the big triathlon news these days is that J. Lo just completed her first triathlon...in Malibu. Tough life, huh J. Lo? Anyway, she finished a half mile swim, an 18 mile bike and a 4 mile swim in 2 hours, 23 minutes and 38 seconds. Kayle and I have decided we need to finish in less than 2 hours and 23 minutes. We are competitive at all. I think we can do it, though. In the same race, Matthew McConaughey finished in an hour and a half. We also decided if we were running a race with him, we might be able to finish in an hour and a half just to keep up with his shirtless body. Too bad he's a Texas fan...

That's the news folks...

Bout time, huh?

Wow, a lot has happened. I went to Tulsa earlier this past week, and my dad asked me how the training was going. I told him "not very good, actually." Here's the deal. I haven't really been pushing myself with the riding much. It seems like we always have to do those in the morning for some reason and then its a short ride through neighborhoods...nothing too exhausting. (We need better bike paths in my town! Tulsa is nicer in that respect.) The place I'm pushing the most is running, but I don't feel like I'm getting any better. It's just hard and not fun and I'm not very good at it.

While in Tulsa, I went running with my parents. We went 3 miles, but of course, I didn't run the whole time. It took 45 minutes, plus our warm up and cool down. I was pretty proud of that time though. Both my parents kicked my ass, which is a little embarrassing considering they are 30 years older than me. The next day we went bike riding. We decided to take it easy because no one felt well that day. A friend of mine came along. He hasn't biked in years. We went about 10 miles and it took us about an hour. It was a nice ride. I really enjoyed myself. It was leisurely and nice (for me, not so much for my friend). I told them I want a bigger challenge when I come in October. Don't worry, they have it for me.

Also, for my birthday, my parents bought me a bike seat and helmet, so I can be more comfortable and safe, and I got running shoes with money my gramma gave me (and they gave me a blister!). I'm all set...just about.

I talked to my parents about training, too. I got mixed opinions on how to best improve my run, so I might try a combination or trade off or something. I'll talk to Kayle. Mom said I needed to tell myself I was a runner, instead of saying I hate it and suck all the time. But I'm not a runner. I am a triathlete. A triathlete is way more badass and let's face it, easier for me to imagine myself. So there, I'm a triathlete.

Kayle and I haven't been able to work out together in more than a week. I was out of town, then Thursday just didn't match up, I had to leave again Friday for a funeral so we didn't have time then. Tonight we're going to run. I'm actually kind of excited about it.

We really need to "hit it hard" in the next couple of weeks because I feel like we've gotten off track already. I think we should pick a triathlon too, so we have something more concrete to work toward.

I feel like this post was scattered, but I had a lot of time to make up. I'll try to give more specific training details in the next few weeks as well!

I promise...

...I didn't give up.

...you will get a real post soon.

I've just been really busy and haven't gotten a moment to myself in weeks!...but I'm still training!

A little discouraged

I'm not a runner. I never have been. But I've always tried to stay phyiscally fit, which is why this is so hard.

We went running yesterday. We ran 2 minutes, walked 3, then ran 2, etc. It was bumped up 30 seconds from last week. I could barely do it! We did the rotation 6 times (I think), and toward the end I could barely do it. I felt like I was going to fall over. That is extremely sad! At one point, I'm pretty sure I sped up when I started walking.

So if, having sat at work all day, I struggled so much with that, how will I ever be able to run 3 miles AFTER swimming and biking so far???

I know we are only in the second week of training, I'm just having a hard time seeing it. I don't want to have to walk the last leg of the triathlon!

We bike today. We'll see how it goes.

Double trouble

Our first attempt at doubling up failed (sorta).

Our second, however, was successful.

Let me tell you the story.

The other day was our first day to double up. We had decided to go to the lake (separate from working out) so we took our bikes and running shoes to the lake before taking a nice dip in the water. It's a 9-mile bike path around the lake, or so we thought.

We ate some Subway before heading off on the track, figuring we'd ride 9 miles and then run a little. About a half-mile into it, we see Louie's, a popular bar in Norman, at Lake Hefner, so I joke about how we could be like my parents, who frequently take long bike rides and then stop and have a beer on their way home. The longer we ride, the more appealing a ice cold beer sounds and the more tired I get. I'm looking forward to being off the bike, seeing that we have another 2 miles or so to finish...when we see it.

A loop. Not a continuation to where we started but a tiny loop that brings us back where we came from.

We had no choice but to turn back and do it all over again. I was unhappy. There's no way we only had gone 4.5 miles and I'm pretty sure we didn't go 9 miles, so I'm not sure how long that path actually is. We're guessing we rode around 14 miles.

About 2 or 3 miles until we make it back, we try to get off the bikes and run a little, but we were just ready to get back as soon as possible. It was hot out by now. I was to the point, for those who know me, where I needed an entire bottle of water poured over my head...except that I drank all the water we had. I don't particularly handle heat well.

The trip took us about an hour and 45 minutes. We never ran. That ice cold beer turned into a frozen margarita and an entire glass of water. It was glorious.

And then we couldn't find a place to swim, sadly enough, so after a minor off-roading experience, we went back to my pool in Norman and swam. It, too, was glorious.

So, we tried swimming and running yesterday, and it was fairly successful. We did it at least. And less than 12 hours later, we got up and biked as well. My legs are tired today, but they'll live. I'm enjoying the training. Working out again has been nice and I feel really good.

Until next time...

Sore...

I'm sore.

We ran yesterday. Kayle, Miss Former Track Star, was way ahead of me the whole time. We ran 1:30, then walked for 3:30 ish. We did this 5 times, and then walked the third of a mile or so back to my apartment. My hips and groin are no happy with me today.

And now we get to go swimming.

Then bike AND run tomorrow! --But we are going to do it at the lake, which should be fun, just exhausting!

What did I get myself into again?

First days

We started training finally!

Thursday, I went over to Kayle's to go swimming. I knew the pool schedule well, or at least I thought so. After getting to the pool and realizing Kayle didn't have her googles, we drove back home to get them. Arriving the second time we find out the pool is closed. Weird. Guess I looked at the wrong week. So we drive back to her house and attempt to do laps in her apartment's pool. Not a great start, but we got some done. Then we did some push ups and sit ups to work other parts of our body.

My pecks and abs were sore the next day.

Moving on, last night we went for a 55 minute bike ride through town. It was a fair leisure ride. Again, we are just trying to warm up on each activity. My butt is sore from my crappy bike seat and my pecks are worse, due to more push ups. Abs are doing OK.

Today, we get to break. Sunday...running. It's good to be working out again.

(My internet is down, so it may be a while longer before I can get another post in!)

Almost ready...

OK, we are ALMOST ready to start training!

We got together today, now that Kayle's done with rush stuff, and worked out a schedule.

M: Activity 1 (Swimming)
T: Activity 2 and 3 (Biking and Running)
W: Off
R: Swimming
F: Biking
Sat: Off
Sun: Running

Next week, Monday will be activity 2, followed by Tuesday's Activity 1 & 3 and so on. R,F, and Sun will remain the same.

For the first month or so, we are going to do each activity for 30-40 minutes, just getting into shape and to the point where we can do all the activities well. After that, we will figure out distances and other points of training.

Since Wednesday's an off day, we start training Thursday! I can't wait!

One step closer

Kayle and I finally got a chance to talk about a schedule and stuff. We haven't set anything on paper yet, but she bought running shoes today, so I guess that's one step closer.

We're thinking doubling up Tuesdays, break Wednesdays and Saturdays and one activity the other days: Two of each per week. It still needs to be finalized, though. Full schedule to come.

We start training sometime next week. Get excited!

The idea

I love my job.

You get to meet some of the most interesting people out there.

People like Shad Ireland.

Shad's had to be on dialysis since he was 10. Finally, after a long struggle, he accepted his fate and made the best of it. At 31, he ran an Ironman triathlon, only a year after the 90-pound man began training. He is one of the most inspiring people I've ever met.

So, I was on my way home from the interview Thursday, still in awe with this man, and it came to me: I was going to run a triathlon.

Not an Ironman (I'm not a masochist), but a Sprint triathlon. But I wasn't going to do it alone, I'm dragging my friend Kayle down with me.

We talked about and I'm starting to get excited about training. We haven't picked a triathlon, but we are thinking one closer to next spring, to avoid swimming in the competition in winter. We've been busy, so we haven't gotten a lot of time to talk about much like the schedule or anything, but we're doing a little bit of research. Suggestions are always welcome.

This should be really good for both of us in all aspects of our lives. I'm excited to start the adventure.