You know you're a beginner triathlete when...

I love reading the "You know you're a triathlete when..." but honestly, they don't all refer to me because I don't have all the fancy gear and I've only done one triathlon. I'm a beginner. So in honor of that, I decided to make my own one, including everything I've felt.

You Know You're A Beginner Triathlete When...
10) You run out of sports bras and socks before anything else in your wardrobe.
9) You don't want new heels, you want new running shoes.
8) An hour-long game of softball or tennis isn't considered your workout for the day.
7) The accessories you're interested in purchasing include cycling gloves, a heart rate monitor and a sports bra.
6) You drive and actually notice hills on the road, always thinking how tough/fun each one would be to do on your bike.
5) Your mom tells you, six weeks out, that you're getting a new tri outfit for your birthday and you brag to anyone who will listen.
4) You don't covet your best friend's new car, you covet her new bike.
3) An evening of endless pool laps, an hour of reality TV and a short run actually sounds like an enjoyable one.
2) People ask you about your training or triathlons, you talk until they get bored and change the subject.
1) You can't imagine not doing triathlons, and you've only ever done one!

So there you have it. My list. How many relate to you?

Just an update:
Today, I decided to do some laps in the pool. I did:
- 150m warm up
- 300m tempo (took me 6 minutes, which is great time!)
- 700m base
- 300m tempo (7 minutes)
- 150m cool down
It was one of those days that you get in the pool and just know it will be a tough day.
Then, after some dinner and TV, I bought a watch (because I need something to time myself these days) and went on a short run. I wanted to go two miles, but I felt so sick after one that I stopped. I wanted to do a tempo, but my first mile was a disappointing 12:30 mile. And, I almost threw up. I'd eaten about an hour before, so I think that was it. And I really haven't felt well since...

Maybe I shouldn't have taken three days off in a row?

I ran Boomer!

I don't really have time to post because I want to leave to see my amazing boyfriend and one of my best friends in the whole world...who are both waiting for me in Norman as I type!

But, I wanted to share my most recent awesomeness with you. Last night, I ran Boomer. I ran the whole Boomer Lake. The whole 3-mile Boomer Lake course!

For those of you keeping track of my 5k attempts...I've only ever run a continuous three miles once. In December. I couldn't make it through the shoot before vomiting. It was lovely. I did it yesterday in about 35 minutes (same time as in December) with absolutely NO vomiting, or nausea of any kind, and my kick...it was one of my best kicks EVER! I felt great. It was absolutely amazing.

My friends left me in the dust as soon as we started (and I was plagued with an awful stitch the first mile or so), but I kept running! Justin also ran it for the first time, so victory there, too!

I ran Boomer!

Blah

I've been feeling a little down the past few days, which has made it hard to get out and train. Plus, it's like 200 degrees here in Oklahoma.

It's mostly work stuff, something I don't particularly want to get into here on the blog. I know it will go away soon and that I need to stay positive and motivated through it all.

I'm trying.

Becoming a runner

Want to hear something amazing?

Yes?

OK.

I had a GREAT run yesterday! It was fabulous. Me. I hardly believe it. I started off not wanting to run. It was late, and I was tired from hanging out with Kayle all day. Oh, and my head was pounding. Anyway, as I start, I'm dealing with my knees hurting, thinking, man, I really need to get new shoes, but that went away. I felt good when I hit one mile. Then 2k. Sometime after 2k, I thought, 'you know, I might be able to run this whole 5k,' while thinking in the back of my mind that it would probably get harder and I may not. I decided I could definitely go to 4k...and almost convinced myself it was silly to stop at 4k. I kept running, and of course, it got progressively harder. I was starting to feel tired and sick shortly after 3k and decided to make it to 4k. I did! I actually ran more than 4k before stopping! I haven't done that in a long time, and I certainly haven't done it that strong. I decided to walk a bit and then finish fast (not kicking it speed, but at a good tempo). I was able to do that, and finished feeling REALLY GOOD! I like running a bit speeder, but I can't sustain it. I actually got a runners high. Good stuff.

I think one of the reasons it was such a good run was the temperature. It was after 8 p.m. when I left and it was cool out. It was that perfect temperature where you can go out in shorts and a tee and feel perfectly comfortable. Plus, I got wind off the lake, so that was nice to cool me down as the run progressed. I'm actually hopeful I can someday actually be a 5k runner! Woot!

I also had a mini-victory in swim this week. I swam more than I'm used to. I swam two 400m, and then did four 50m sprints. On the first 400m, I just swam normal speed, but for the second (after a minute and a half break) I tried to beat my first time. I knocked a minute off! That's a ton! I've realized it takes me about 2 and a half minutes to swim 100m at a comfortable pace...then I decided to torture myself and look at Michael Phelps' numbers. 51 seconds. Yeah. Awesome.

But it's been a good week...training-wise.

I also played our first softball game of the league. We got our asses handed to us. I hit twice but didn't make it on a base. Oh well. I feel like a jock now, by the way.

This post is a little scattered. Please forgive me.

For the record

I'm so screwed September 20.

Thursday adventure

I got to practice open water swimming this week! I haven't really (besides the river trip) done that since...um...well, the tri in April! One thing that's great about the news business is that you know a lot about what's going on around town. Well, Thursday, I was informed that a nearby lake would have a free day all day. I turned to a co-worker and said, 'Hey, let's go!' It was one of those, if she's interested, it could be a lot of fun, but I'm just throwing it out there and she can grab or not. I didn't really think she was interested until she was about to leave and mentioned it. She said she'd be cool with me training and bit and her just splashing around. We went for it.

I grabbed my wetsuit, knowing I'd look like a dork out in it alone. We drove out there. I'd never been to that lake, and there were a lot of twists and turns on the drive and fields...it took a while to find actual WATER. Finally, we did. I put the suit on, and we jumped in. I decided to swim out to a far off marker and back. I can't imagine it was more than 300m, but I really don't know. It was a good swim. My suit was totally boyant and even swimming against the wind wasn't bad. I got out there, looked back and thought, 'Geez, that's far. Really far away.' I started back a couple strokes and stopped, getting a little freaked out because I was getting tired and it was far. I sat there treading water easily and realized I would be fine. It was so easy to tread water in the wetsuit, so I knew I could do it all day if I needed. That was all I needed. With the mini-freakout over, I swam back well. I didn't get freaked out about the vastness of the water (which I did in the tri and before), nor did I worry about not being able to see anything (Oklahoma lakes are gross) AND I swam in a fairly straight line. Pretty good stuff.

I'm going to make sure I get out on the open water a few more times before my September tri (and my August tri should help me practice racing), so I'll be better prepared. But overall, it felt good to swim in my wet suit in open water. Lovely.

Then, we tried to leave. After sitting around and talking, it was getting dark and time to head out. I was driving and figured we could make it back since we got there in the first place. We were a few miles north of the highway and a few miles west of town. Somehow, we turned or missed a turn and started heading straight west. Of course, I felt like I was heading south, or at least southwest. We ended up on a dirt road...I made a left turn, thinking I'd hit the highway, but instead we went on a bridge over the highway. Wait a minute, there IS no bridge on 51. I couldn't figure it out. We kept going...eventually we'd hit something we recognized, right? It was getting pretty dark, too. We then go under a bridge. I know I need to be turning left, but for miles, there is no left turn. Finally, we get on this paved street. Oh! There's a sign! We are in Orlando. A tiny town 20 miles WEST of Stillwater...how? Well, we drive through town and try to find 51. Finally, we stumble on it and continue the trek home, finally knowing where we are and how to get back. We're still not sure how this happened, but the 20 minute or so ride home took an hour. Good thing we like an adventure...right?

And it begins...

I'm again the worst runner among the pack. That was short lived.

I went running with some coworkers. One of them, Justin, started working out about three weeks ago and could barely run a half mile. He kicked my ass today. The girl ran cross country in high school and just started running again a few months ago. We've been pretty on par every time we've run together. She was stronger today.

To be fair and make excuses, I hadn't run in about a week and half, but still. We ran probably about 2 or so miles before stopping and walking once and then finished out with probably a half mile? I feel like I ran most of three miles. Anyway, Justin pushed us this time, instead of the other way. The run was actually really tough. I felt fine for a while, but then I started struggling, but I couldn't ask to stop! I was the triathlete of the group! So I pushed on. I was glad when Justin proposed a stop, probably because we were huffing and puffing so much. He wanted to go again before my body was ready. My legs were JELL-O, and my arms were actually numb, too. I'm not sure I've ever had by body feel numb before. It was new. I hurt.

Despite all that, it was good run. I feel great. I struggled, but I pushed myself and I came out on the positive side of it all. Now, I just need to triple my run and add some swimming and biking...