well i almost shit my pants yesterday...

yes, you read that right. i took maggie on our first "after work" run last night. perfect trail weather, about 76 and the sun was just about setting. we got to Dunbar with exactly enough time to get in one loop of the long trail. i had used the bathroom before we left the house, but was still feeling (and looking) really bloated, like i had a small baby living in there and i said to myself, this not crossfitting is really starting to show...not to mention the steroids are really effing with my bathroom schedule. so i just figured go with it, what better motivation do you need to go run than to look pregnant when you're SO NOT?!?!?! so anyway, we get there, we get out on the trails and the sun was setting at a pretty steady pace. maggie was actually cooperating for the first time in like 3 runs and i was excited bc we were making good time. i think we only ended up passing like one, maybe two, other joggers so i knew the trails were more empty than not. we finally get to the end of the big loop and the pain in my stomach that i started to notice about the half way mark decidedly increased in a major way and i thought, holy shit! i have to shit!!!! and then the praying ensued, "please God don't let me shit my britches" over and over and over again. we ran past some people packing up their fishing gear and the park ranger making his last round to clear the trails and all i could do was look for a hidden place to...well you know, shit. ugh, so humiliating! i knew it was getting bad, to the point of no return just as we hit the top of the steps to get back to the truck and i just dove into the bushes near by, did a ubber quick scan all around, hid behind a huge laid down tree trunk and dropped my pants...had i waited a nanosecond longer i would have been driving home with it in my britches, it was that close. and maggie just stood there looking at me like, "and this is what happens when you make us run fast mom, we both have to shit." bahahahahahaha. i quickly wiped myself with the plastic bag i brought to clean up after her, cleaned up my little indiscretion and high tailed it back outta the bushes to the dumpster and then on to the truck so no one would see us :( it was awful. and the worst part about it was that my stomach didn't stop hurting until we got almost home, like i gave birth to a poo baby and the contractions were still creating aftershocks...disgusting huh? i'm telling you this bc the hubby and i once had a conversation about shitting your pants and that i had never...well,  it almost happened and. it. was. not. fun. in the least. bahahahahahaha, hope you're having a good one and this made you laugh...its still making me laugh ;)

forced down time...

being injured is no fun. plain and simple. but i also know that its the bodies way of saying "too much" and God's way of saying "slow down and focus on me" so that is what i am doing. my shoulder, the left one, the one that keeps getting strained and i don't know why, is acting up again and it is sidelining me. i finally broke down and went to see Dr Lee yesterday and have another appointment with him on Friday...last time this happened, it was the only thing that worked...that and lots of rest. so Magpie and i have been running every morning instead of me going to the box, which i must admit is killing me. i hate reading all the posts on the workouts. i so long to be there, busting my ass, sweating and in pain for the time of the WOD...but i am getting much better at recognizing the way God speaks to me and i know he is telling me to refocus my attention, not on Crossfit, not on the Open or people not doing the movements up to par and letting that bother me, which it totally should not for the record, not on the fact that i was able to do Rx'd that day or that i wasn't...he needs my focus to stay on him and the conundrum that my marriage is. it's constant work, on both our parts, constant greasing of the wheels, checking in on one another and ourselves, keeping our thoughts and words in line with what we truly want out of our lives together and how being so far apart affects that. marriage is some hard shit. i know we both think that and that its painful at times on each of us, in the same ways and in different ways...but God knows what he's doing, he brought us together and he will be the only one to break us apart, now and forever. He has proven that and i trust Him more than anything. "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

week off and trails

so with the onset of another shoulder injury looming on the horizon, i am taking the week off - well from Wednesday to Sunday - no WODing what so ever. runs are fair game however and Magpie is LOVING the extra QT with momma :) here's a pic right before our first trail run of the season:

we made it up ALL 3 of the major climbs this time, and it was our first time out of the gate to boot! now have you, we were running in the dead of summer on this trail before, and that first climb got us EVERY single time (well once we conquered it, but then the later two climbs were out of the question so we didn't do that again!), so that was a pretty rad feeling. i think it was bc the whole time i was thinking it was the second climb that was the doozey, so i sort of tricked us into doing that first one ;) hahaha, ohwell, hopefully that trend will carry on throughout the summer months and we can start doing two 2 mile laps of the trail...! here's the little one after, happy as can be (although those crazy green eyes are a lil' scary!):

that's all, XOXO

WOD 8/18/2009

well its official, my shoulder is hurt, so today's workout sucked boo-tay:

warm up - 2 laps plus stretching

"Elizabeth"

21-15-9

Squat Clean

Ring Dips

13:12

the workout hurt, in more ways than one. first off, i tried to do the same weight as T, which was a BAD idea - she's just stronger than i am and that's that. so 65 lbs was way too much esp since i have a bum shoulder at the moment. so after my first set of 21, i dropped down to just the 45 lb bar and that seemed to hold up much better, so that is what i finished the workout with. i got frustrated with myself that i couldn't do the first weight, but then i got to thinking and my thinking led me to a good place - i'm just not there yet. i may never be and that's okay too. i have to remember i'm not training for anything right now so doing what i can is good enough for me, and the amount of weight you can push is all relative anyways so i'm good with it. what i am still annoyed with is that i attempted the weight that was too much and now my shoulder is throbbing, and i'm a little bit worse for the wear - its all learning though so i can't be too upset. now i know not to go overboard :)

and i'm pretty sure that my problem right now is i'm not eating enough...maybe? i don't know, i went to bed at 8 last night, i did have a good dinner (a big salad with protein and lots o cheese!) but i woke up tired and i'm freaking dead right now - like so tired if i put my head down i'd pass out. granted i didn't sleep all that well but it seems a little extreme to be this damn tired. i also feel like my body is taking a little longer to recover between yesterday and today. i'm going to definately stick with muy thai tonight but take Wednesday night off and see how i am feeling for Thursday's muy thai class so i dont over do it. i did forget my Inflammex shake last night so that could have something to do with it too. who knows, i feel like i'm almost too in touch with my body right now (which i know isn't possible) but it makes it hard to try and dumbly ignore all the signs like back before i started listening to what it was telling me :) since i'm taking tomorrow night off, i'm going to try and con good ol' Jeffrey into a run on Saturday AM to make up for it. i guess we'll see what he's willing to do, won't we ;)

the LSD last night was good. we did about 3 miles and thankfully (thank you God for this) my knees didn't start hurting. i was concentrated on listening to the way i was feeling throughout the run. we kept it at or below 153 bpm the whole time, chatting it up the whole way so we were sure to stay in the cardiovascular building zone. it actually felt really great besides the fact i forgot socks and had to borrow a pair of cotton ones that were not so forgiving on my poor little feet, but all in all, the run went well and i am very pleased with the sp.eds. yay for running!

WOD 8/14/2009

i hated today's workout:

warm up - 4 laps + stretching

Shoulder Press 3-3-3
Push Press 3-3-3
Push Jerk 3-3-3
(3 sets of 3 reps of each exercise, max out weight)


and yes, as i always seem to inevitably do, i hurt my right shoulder and now i am in a lot of pain. if you need me, i'll be icing it and popping ibuprofen like candy in hopes i don't have to sit out at all this coming week :( i went for a run this evening to see how the knees would hold up since they seem to be doing so well during cross fit. we attempted 3 miles, easy out and back and had to stop and walk about a half mile short of the mark, well didn't have to, but my knees were on the verge of screaming and i just had to listen to them. the yelping was becoming quite insistent and because i know what the next step is down this unworthy path, i decided to cut it short and walk it in. the most frustrating thing i have endured to date, tonight and many, many times during marathon and IM training is when your brain and cardiovascular system are more than happy to go on and on and on, but your knees and ITBands are yelling at you to stop. this mind over matter equation does not work out in the end - trust me, i know. you end up effing yourself over, forcing a prolonged "recovery" period of 6 months (or more) and this girl is no longer participating in that little time juncture. so we'll see. i'm going to check out running shoes tomorrow after muy thai and see if that might do the trick because really, 3 miles is completely do-able and i am going to do it.

ART, running and the future

well i had my first appointment with my new physical therapist and can i just say that i am beginning to see a shred of light in the distance? A.R.T. is pretty much going to be my saving grace when it comes to running. i think i knew this in the back of my mind all along - A.R.T. type massage with the guys at Coastal got me through many a long Saturday run session BUT at $75 a pop, i just couldn't afford to keep going and since i had already caused the damage of too much too soon back from knee surgery, i was sort of in no man's land and just praying the imbalances would work themselves out. wrong, but the good Lord Almighty must have been listening because this particular place accepts my insurance - HALLELUJAH, PRAISE THE LORD! after one A.R.T. session, i was running more comfortably then ever - albeit it was probably only a total of 8 min all together interspersed with more painful releasing, but hell - i'll take it. my guy says i'll be back to running in no time flat with two times a week intensive therapy, which literally translates to about a month, maybe two and then i will be on track to race Vineman - not just complete it. so here's hoping that little miracle decides to make an appearance. i sure could use it about now.

the pain in my jaw has begun to subside although now my body is going through withdrawals from the pain pills and giving me massive headaches to contend with throughout the day and night - but this should give way soon as the drug toxins slowly begin to make their way out of my body.

i have gotten up at 445 AM two days in a row now to spin for an hour and do my "bridge progressions" which really make the weaknesses in my glutes and quads extremely apparent but fixing that is the name of the game. MPC was right on with all of his diagnoses and the rehab "homework" he gave me right up the same alley, he just didn't do the A.R.T. on me which apparently seems to be the missing key - the link from injury to health in my little body. i'm grateful that he was able to point me in the right direction and now i can capitalize on his methods and exercises with the A.R.T. and really be on my way to a full recovery...maybe even stronger than i was before but i won't get ahead of myself here just yet. this AM's spin was a particularly sweaty yet motivating one as i sat by the expansive window in my living room with my ipod blasting while i watched the dark become light and the water glimmer in the early morning crest of the sun...truly amazing.

other than that, on a more personal front - i've finally figured out what i am going to do with the rest of my life and its no where near accounting. i hate being stressed all the time and my job is that number one contributor (i mean who graduates with an English/Creative Writing degree and then gets stuck in an accounting management position?!). so come December, after IM is all said and done, i will be starting a program at K State to get my Master's in Educational Counseling for Collegiate Athletes...if God ever made a job just for me and placed it here on earth, i just found it and can't wait to get started. now i just need to figure out how to get the grants and such while working full time...if anyone can do it, i can - i'm a firm believer in the fact that if you want anything bad enough, it will come, you just have to channel it in the right manner.

now maybe i can get back to my fun story telling ways, i sure do miss the tomfoolery of yesterdays past...

i am blessed

my good Saturday turned into a great Sunday and this, my blogosphere friends, is why -

i received an email a couple of days prior from Jennifer saying she and her family would be in town and that she would really like to meet me in person and of course i said yes, that would be great! i was so excited to finally get to meet her, and a little nervous if truth be told. i mean all of our communication so far had been conducted through email. our relationship started through a blog post comment and has progressed quite nicely through that means. now i was going to finally get to meet her face to face and i just prayed that she would like me, prayed that she would think she had made a good decision to sponsor me and the team, prayed that i would hold up to the standards of a good person in her eyes. i have no idea why i was concerned - concern for anything ended up being null and void the moment i walked up and we hugged...

the day started off with a nice trail run through Marion Bear Park with Guru and Greg at 830. i love this run. it is a true trail with loose rocks, falling leaves, tree lined paths and fresh air. the knees held up pretty well for the 4.5 miles but i knew that tacking on an extra 2 might be pushing it, so i opted to stop and stretch at the cars and then so did everyone else - seems as though we're all nursing one injury or another. it was a nice brisk pace, and i was happy. it felt great to run again, especially on uneven ground of the literal sense instead of the figurative sense i have been maneuvering through lately. a great start to the morning.

i followed that up with a quick change of clothes and a drive over to Mission Beach to have lunch with Coach Brian. we caught up on life in general and talked about my goals and drive for the season. we touched on the magnitude of what i want to be able to accomplish next year and sort out a game plan to get my knees healthy and back to full mobility. we talked about his crazy busy schedule and his rough day that just so happened to also be his birthday. i'd just like to insert a bit of something here - he is a good man and you don't find that sort of thing everyday. he cares a lot about his friends and his family. he cares about his clients, he cares about himself and he cares about all of this with great balance and clarity. i admire him and what he stands for, who he helps and the athlete that he is. i'm so glad to have him as a coach but even more so to be able to count him as a friend. he sometimes stands as my sounding board and often times puts me in my place when i start to get ahead of myself. i talk about what a great person and coach he is and i mean it - i couldn't have done Longhorn in the time i did without his guidance and i wouldn't be able to do this next year's schedule without more of the same. i am grateful to have met him when i did and i feel blessed to have his support in all of the endeavors i have loaded onto my plate. we ate - he much, much more than i - and had a grand time of it - or i did at least. a great afternoon.

i left the restaurant and immediately called Jennifer, as promised, to stop by for a bit and meet her and her family. i got there at 2:15 ish. i didn't get home for the day until midnight. right away i felt like family. it was amazing to be so welcomed into a home with a group of people who had never even spoken to me on the phone much less laid eyes on me. we talked for hours about everything - training, Barney Butter, my brother, her children - our lives in general. at some point everyone decided to go for a run and because i had already done mine for the day and didn't have any gear in my car, i decided to go see Chris and hopefully sneak in a nap of some kind. this only happened after i was asked to please come back for dinner and spend some more time with the Barney family! so i did - of course. and it was the best time. we had wine, ate a fantastic meal of healthy proportions and visited and talked some more. it was just so natural, effortless - all around enjoyable company. Her daughters are just beautiful and seeing the dynamics of each of their little personalities meshed with the other's - it was just a really amazing and loving environment to be in. i had the most fun and never once wished i was anywhere else. i was even sad to leave. i haven't quite felt unconditionally welcomed like that before in a place where no one really knows me, but i did Sunday. its sort of hard to wrap my mind around. Jennifer found my blog, we became buddies over email, she generously offered to sponsor Team Barney Butter in order to promote health and athleticism through triathlon and now i find she and her family are even more caring and giving in person than i could have imagined. a PERFECT end to the day.

so yes, i am a very blessed girl. and even though i received some news that really sort of shook me to the core this weekend, i have people in my life that i can't thank enough - mom, dad, Bri, Iris, CB, Jennifer, Erik, Roo to name a few - that have taken the time with me, inspired me and given to me so unselfishly with absolutely no agenda or payment in return except my thanks and appreciation - and of course, good natured BS along the way which is only something katie b can provide in an ongoing basis ;) the hard times aren't over, nothing will ever be just as i think it needs to be, but i am realizing more than ever that i am honored to be where i am at this very moment, basking in the glory of good friends, insightful mentors and the thing i choose to call "God's" love.

and no, i am not a religious freak. i don't even go to church on a regular basis - although i am Catholic by upbringing and choose to still lump myself in with that group, my view and relationship of what i choose to call God is very personal and unique to me - so don't be offended or over joyed at my choice of words, just be and the rest will follow just as it should :)

what are your weekend plans?

mine you ask? oh boy -

Saturday will start with a short 6 mile ride to the LLS office, arriving by 7AM to start a 3-3.5 hour ride with John, Jason, Greg and Randy (i think, i don't know the last two, so i don't know if they will actually show or not). we will attempt to navigate our way to the coast where i will continue up until my little heart's content while the others drop off to get back to the office to set up and get ready for the official 2009 TNT Lavaman season kickoff and expo. the perks of being a coach - i get to be late and just have to talk about what i love - running. now we all know i'd love it a hell of a lot more if it didn't hurt me so badly, but that's neither here nor there at the moment - so i'll have to watch my tongue on that one. i wouldn't want to scare the team from the "experienced" run program even before we start the season! then i will ride back to the house, bee line it over to the end of the birthday ride that i am regretfully missing and try to at least make it to the breakfast part of the celebration. that will be followed by me heading to a wonderful friend's house, snagging one of her lovely road bikes* and playing with her gorgeous son.

*this is important because i am now going to be mobile for IMAZ and will not have to rely on a car at all that weekend. i will be able to see much more of the race and maybe be able to add extra special cheers where they are needed most. i can't wait to see BAM destroy this race. Chris and Don are going to kick ass. Mary is going to be amazing and i'll be there to witness it all! yippeeee!

back to Saturday...after picking up my new borrowed toy, i will have to get home, shower, change and head down town for Dana's bday celebration where Joey will be my date (she doesn't know that i call her this in my head so she probably won't even know i'm talking about her, but this is my blog, so i can call her what i want) and we will party till the break of dawn - okay, that's a lie because...

the next day is Sunday and that consists of a 7AM run with the IMAZ crew (possibly), then an 830AM 6mile run coaching clinic with the guru. that should all be VERY interesting seeing as how i have NOT run since Longhorn. i have to remember to take it easy. must. not. die. that will be followed up by a meeting with CB where he will reveal how he plans to kill me next season (i gave him some pretty elusive goals that i will be accomplishing next year and now it is his goal (i'm assuming) to get me there). all i know is its gonna hurt. bad. rounding out the afternoon will be a visit to a friend who is going to try to work out my IT "issues" (hopefully) and get me back into working order so i have a much better chance of accomplishing said goals. and maybe just maybe i'll have time for dinner and a movie after that. maybe. and can i take just a minute to complain even more because, well - i just want to...i have not slept in over a month. all the stuff with creeper and thinking he was going to murder me, moving and now sleeping on a couch. eesh. the worst part is i've always had problems with my insane dream life so i never really "sleep" - but i think this is the worst its been since last November when i wasn't sleeping at all. every morning i wake up on Bri's couch and feel like i have a massive hang over. my body hurts, i'm dehydrated and i feel like my head has been chomped on by a land shark. i need my bed back. the bed that i hate and love at the same time - in all of its cushy snugly goodness, that is massive and is the bane of my moving experience.

i say all of this and talk about all of these big goals of mine after attempting to do an hour spin video last night with Bri and Chris - complaining the ENTIRE time about how exhausted i was, whining about how much it hurt, making excuses for my poor show of strength and then tapping out 10 min before it was actually over. this is not a good example of what is to come, but i do figure i am technically in "off season" - at least until IMAZ is over and CB has time to send me my first program. then i'm in for it. sweat, blood, tears and LOTS of cursing. its gonna be a year of massive proportions and i'm scared shitless. here's to shit, getting in it sucks. rolling around in it stinks, but getting out of it is fantastic. finally washing it off will be even better and i'll be all the stronger and smarter for it! so yes, here's to shit - in all of its stinky glory :)

eww...i'm gross :-P

Longhorn 70.3: THE RUN

oh the run. the final frontier. all that was standing between me and my title was 13.1 miles of pavement, cedar lined dirt paths, the scorching Texas sun, the disco duets at the energy lab and countless, water drenched, sanity saving sponges...times two.

the run was a two loop course that proved to be everything they said it would be - hard. the out and back to the energy lab was deceiving if only by name. i choose to look at things from a glass half full perspective, so hearing energy lab naturally made me think of gaining energy - not loosing it, which quickly became the super standing theme of the day. the whole way out was uphill, a sort of down hill reprieve on the way back in, only to be met again by more hills, more climbs, more aches and pains, more grabbing blindly for ice cold sponges and soaked white towels, more dreading Quadzilla and more cheerful volunteers to commiserate the experience. as i ran past the Team Barney Butter tailgating area the first time, i was met by loving screams of "great job Kate!" "go get 'em girl" "looking good" and the other veritable coos and caws. i soaked it up and yelled something like "who in the hell signed me up for this madness?!" i was still feeling pretty good at this point. this point of 5 miles and counting. i actually started to think "hey, maybe my knees won't hurt this time around. maybe this is the race that sets the precedent for all future races where i will kick ass and my knees will love me all the way!" ha. hahhahaha. hahhahhahhahahhahahhahahhahhahahha......hahahhahahhahahahhaha. yeah right.

mile 6 came and as if they were on cue from the director's chair, the sharp pains set in and i new the next loop would be hell. hell as in hot. hell as in pain. hell as in "i can't wait for this effing run to be over so i can have my medal and my cider and call it a day." and then i hit it. Quadzilla. in all of its steadily rising glory. its steep ascent. its dirty path of grime and grit. people stopped to walk all around me. to my left was a couple of 40 somethings chatting. to my right was a 25 year old sucking wind. inside me was a little girl wanting so badly to walk that she stuck out her pouty lip and thought "i am going to walk. i am going to walk and i don't care who knows it. i don't care who sees it. i am going to walk" as she continued to run up the monster ahead. run as in shimmy, shake, rattle and roll her way upwards in an attempt to keep the momentum going in such a way that it might take her through the next round. no walking happened on this loop. maybe the next. maybe.

by the 4th aide station of the second loop, my wits were nowhere about me. i was hot. i had to pee. i wanted to walk. i longed for anything to distract me in an attempt to escape the pain. i finally let myself walk through the aide station, not because i was trying to be nice to myself but because i decided to let the high fructose corn syrup devil infiltrate my mind and in the end infiltrate my mouth. Gatorade. oh sweet, evil, corn syrup bearing nectar of the underworld. it was all i could keep down and when i finally gave in to its devilish control, my spirits finally began to rise and i found the one thing that would propel me to the next aide station with the next round of highlighter yellow ick. it was glorious in every sense of the word. i could feel its nonnutritive value trickle down my throat and poison my innards, but i didn't care. i was drinking it and loving it. that little devil drink got me to the next aide station where another little devil drink called my name and i allowed myself another aide station walk through just so i could get it all in my mouth. i neared my tailgating area for the second time, but no joking words - or thoughts for that matter - left my mouth. i needed to preserve all my energy for the final stretch ahead. my second date with the death monster Quadzilla. i could feel him breathing in my direction and i knew he was around the bin. so i picked it up and met him with a vengeance. i plodded and probed, hobbled and hipped up that damn thing like it was my job. i left those whining men and women in my dust and laughed at my misery all the way. for once, i relished in the pain - there was no denying the life in my lungs, the movement in my legs, the delirium in my mind. i was about to become a half ironman. i hadn't walked. i hadn't quit. i hadn't given up on myself. around the next bin i would be all that i wanted and more. i would prove that i was strong enough, fast enough, good enough to be what i wasn't sure i could be.

i rounded the corner, shot for the finish and laughed out loud at the feat i had just accomplished. i was a half ironman and i was going to revel in the glory all day long...

official time: 2:23:33

official pace: 10:57 min/mi (horrible time, but hell - i'll take it)

official temp: mid 90's

official elevation: 371 ft

official feeling: proud, accomplished, iron-worthy!

Brian, Brian, Brian

i have three Brian's in my life...Coach Brian, best friend Brian and creepy roommate Brian. here is my tribute to them - in all the glory of the first two and the utter ickiness of the latter :)


Sunday promised to be a day of pain. CB had emailed earlier in the week to ask if i would like him to come down from LA to coach me through my final long run of the season before my very first half ironman race. i laughed and said "like that's even a question!" of course i want him to come down and administer a serious ass whoopin - we all know i am an avid glutton for punishment and take pride in subjecting myself to physical discomfort. so we determined a meeting time and place where the torture would commence and conclude - all in a two hour time period. i invited a slew of people to partake in the misery that was sure to come but only best friend Brian, who we will refer to from here on out as BG, and Ryan took the bait and agreed to the morning's 13 miler. the plan was to meet at the cove at 11 AM and CB would ride behind us on his trusty steed, cracking the whip and calling out interval times and pace goals. OMG did it hurt. i was still feeling the effects of the previous day's malaise, coupled with the knowledge that this day was about to get a whole lot more interesting with the interval training CB had on the agenda. we started out with an easy enough warm up pace of 10 min miles, CB right beside me - keeping me steady so i didn't jack rabbit or short myself the speed needed to awaken my running legs. then it slowly started to descend from there and not in a good way - one mile at 930 min pace, recovery, one mile at 9 min pace, recovery, one mile at 830 pace - which by the way hurt like a mother effer AFTER it was done. i really didn't think it was all that difficult until CB hollered "RECOVERY" and i immediately and gratefully brought it back down to 10 min mile pace and that's when i noticed the complete exhaustion take over - "are we done yet?!" hell no i was told. this is a pyramid - a pyramid of death if you will. it was time to take it back up - one mile at 9 min pace, recovery, one mile at 930 min pace, recovery, last couple of miles at 8 min pace to end with a 640 min pace to the finish line. OUCH! holly hell - OUCH! but OUCH! in a kick ass, i just did 13 miles of intervals in the heat of the day. i dropped BG in the dust ;) (he was nice enough to run my last round of intervals with me and i still dropped him without a second thought. i'm a training bitch - i know it and its not likely to change. he knows this and is still my best friend. amazing) and i could have still kept going if i really had to. all of this led to a huge inner confidence spike that made me feel like the race ahead was totally do-able. totally in my realm of accomplishments. totally ready to kick ass and take names. totally. it was so fantastic to have CB there - pushing me, pacing me, encouraging me and telling me how good i was. if that's not a great coach, i don't know what is. let's not forget here kids that when i first started training with this random dude i had met off my blog in a very unforeseen fashion, i was clocking 10 mph average on the bike. today?! today i am at a lightning fast speed of 20.6 mph average on the bike and that's a time trial verdict in the wind tunnel of Hades out on the Strand of Coronado where the wind is sometimes so strong that it has been known to pick up unsuspecting pedestrians and fling them into the fiery pits of burning hot lava below where the land sharks feast...so my point? Brian Melekian is a bad ass son of a gun who just so happens to be the best coach around and DOES NOT charge and arm and a leg for his services - and in this sport we call tri, that's a big deal seeing as how you most definitely need all four appendages at any given moment during a race for optimum performance ;)



BG, or best friend Brian, has been hands down my rock since the demise of my two year relationship and the trauma that ultimately ensued due to it all. and by trauma i mean the crying and the screaming and the questioning and the remembering and the hating and the hurting and most of all - the pure and utter heartbreak it has caused. i'm sorry and sort of ashamed to admit that it's effects are still lingering and quite frankly i don't know when they will go away. but BG, oh how BG has been there through it all - from hugging me while i cry uncontrollably, to listening to me bitch and complain about seeing the ex and his new girlfriend (i guess she's not new anymore - nor was she ever really new since this little thing had been in development for the better part of a year unbeknownst to the two of them - i was privy and i gave warning, but alas - here i am and there they are), to letting me stay the night on the couch whenever i want without question, to letting me do laundry every weekend so i don't have to go to the dirty laundry mat by myself. he has seen me at my damn near worst - the really shitty, selfish, self centered, bratty, judgemental bitchy side of me. he knows some of my darkest secrets and the sometimes obscene thoughts that run through my mind at the most inopportune moments. he lets me be sad about my brother, frustrated about things going on at work and down right grumpy when i haven't had enough sleep and am stressed to the hilt. and you know what?! he still loves me and tells me i'm a good person. he has been my rock - my go to when the swells gets really tough and even my go to when the waters are a lot less choppy. i honestly can't say how much his friendship means to me and the fact that through it all, even at my worst, he can honestly tell me he loves me and mean it.


now onto creepy roommate Brian or creeper as i fondly refer to him in social settings. he's dirty, he's smelly, he's unsophisticated in the worst ways. he walks around in his boxer briefs with his fat belly protruding over the waistband and jiggling as if it were dancing to the disgusting song of his horrid voice. he has done many creepy things, the worst of which occurred when my mom was in town for my marathon in June. i don't want to get into it now - those of you who know me on a daily basis have heard the story, more than once i'm sure - suffice it to say the incident in question would instantly give you the heeby jeebies. all of this and he has the nerve to write me a drunk manic depressive note, giving me orders and rules to follow while "i'm living under his roof" and in that same sham of a letter he went on to say i am the best roommate he's ever had. ha. haha. hahahhaha hahahhahaha. right. that went over real well. let's just say i put him in his place and it was not in a "politically correct" manner of terms. i received an apology and all was back to normal - the dirty stinky habits of a lifeless drunk who smokes and parties on DWI charges and then spends the day playing video games to occupy his boredom with life in general. winner. i have put up with all of this shit going on 5 or so months now only to find out he is letting his deadbeat parents move into the apartment with him and i, in return must move out. are you mother effing kidding me?! when does this shit end. i am 27 damn years old. i have a degree for Christ's sake albeit its a writing degree, but a degree nonetheless from a nationally ranked University of esteem! SO HEAR THIS - I WILL BE INDEPENDENTLY RICH COME THIS TIME NEXT YEAR. I WILL BE LIVING ON MY OWN QUITE SUCCESSFULLY HAVE YOU, LIVING AND TRAINING THE WAY I DEEM WORTHY AND I WILL LOVE EVERY SINGLE, SOLITARY MOMENT OF IT, and creeper and his antics will be a distant past...oh and while we're at - so will pj and every single memory i have of him.


I WILL RISE ABOVE, I WILL ACCOMPLISH MY GOALS AND I WILL LIVE MY DREAM - all in due time. get ready kids this train is a comin' and its slowing down for no one...except for me that is ;)

can you say cluster fux?!

woke up Saturday AM at 5, immediately heading to the kitchen to prepare my pre-workout breakfast of a sweet potato mixed with Barney Butter. on this particular morning i decided to add in a little raw honey as it adds in a natural anti-inflammatory factor - nothing new on race day so best to try it now right? i didn't like it as much with the honey, it was too sweet but i got it down in the midst of getting things together for the long day ahead. Dana and Ryan opted to do their own ride, leaving from the train station at 740 and heading up to Capistrano to ride back down the coast, adding in an off shoot to get in all the miles CB had prescribed. i wanted to get started riding no later than 730 and the whole train plus off shoot stuff seemed to be too complicated that early in the AM so i decided to do the ride on my own up and down the 101. here's where it gets interesting and the cluster fux ensued...

i wasn't on anyone's schedule but my own meaning i could start at any time i wanted. the sooner the better i decided because i really wanted to make it over to Don's 100mile fundraiser on the Strand afterwards (which so didn't happen - you're about to find out why). so the plan was to ride up the coast 30 miles, turn around and come back (all at race pace), jump off the bike, do a fast 4mile transition run at race pace, refuel and head to Coronado. i ended up not waiting till 730 and got on my way at 7 which only gave me an hour and a half of breakfast digestion time. did i forget that i know myself and my stomach much better than that?! i know that i can't eat less than 3 hours before a hard workout and yet i somehow thought an hour and a half would do?! really?! so off i was and at mile 6 i had to pull off on the side of the road to barf. there i am at 715ish on the side of the 101, trying to strategically hide behind a tree of some sort in order to shield the oncoming traffic and other riders from my two minute barfing spree. fortunately the tree was rather large and i was able to conceal my stomach's transgressions from the traffic but it just so happened that this particular tree had a sign laying just behind it made from metal, covered in leaves. so, although i am grateful to have had the tree for cover, i am horrified to come to the realization as i am bending over to hurl, that the spew will soon come directly back at me in splashes of orange colored debris as it ricochets off the God forsaken sign. this thought comes so quickly and fervently to mind that i momentarily try to rethink my plan but its too late - the barf is already leaving my throat and seconds away from hitting the sign. yep. beautiful. i now had to finish my ride (mind you i'm only at mile 6 of 60) with sweet potato juice splatters up and down my leg and on my shoes. wonderful.


when i finally hit Oceanside, i was amused (that's a total lie - more like frustrated to no end) to find out that the 101 actually runs out at the gates of Pendelton. i had no idea. i also had no idea that there's no way around Pendelton without getting on the 5 (yeah right, on my bike?! please) and what do you know, i didn't bring my ID because well, i never bring my ID. i know, i know - i don't need a lecture here, i'm now fully aware of how stupid that is. so i rode the bay of Oceanside, got my very frustrated self situated and started on the road back to Fletcher Cove. by the way, i was only at 20 miles - i'd have to make up the difference somehow.

by mile 28 i was finally able to choke down some nutrition and actually have it stay soundly in my belly. i had tried a couple times at mile 15 and again at mile 22 to no avail. and let it be said that i hit every single damned stop light from here to Oceanside and back. i maybe got to roll through a total of three green lights. horrible. by the time i hit 35 miles and was back near the car, i was irritated and ready to get off the damn bike. i was irked for being so ill prepared (non-knowledge of the route and lack of ID) and aggravated for going against what i knew my body could and could not do (digestion time or lack there of). at that point i could have turned right back around and gone the easy way back up the coast the exact way i had just come to finish up the mileage, but i wanted to punish myself for the morning's retardedness. Torry Pines? now that's punishment. so off i went with the destroy mentality this particular hill commands after stopping at my car to refill my water bottles. i tackled the climb in near record time and headed down into La Jolla to cover some more ground. when i finally got back to the car's vicinity, i was miffed to see that i was only at 42 some odd miles! oy!!! so up the coast again to where i thought i was going to break even back at the car only to find out i still had 2 more miles to cover until i hit 60!!!! are you freakin kidding me?!?! why in the world am i so damned spatially challenged?! why can i not do math!? the guys at B&L proably thought i was stalking them the way i kept riding back and forth in front of the store. so down the coast i went once again and finally - yes finally - i hit the magic number and was able to get off that damned contraption sitting beneath my very sore and tired crotchal region - only to be reminded that i am signed up for a mother effing Ironman at the end of next year, which is another 50 miles tacked on to that. i still had 4 miles to go of a transition run and i was so not happy. i called and left CB a death threat for talking me into IMCozumel (which he so nicely reminded me that he actually did no such thing, i had fallen into that one face first all on my own account).

i ran and felt like death. hot sticky roadkill death and then i saw a familiar face running towards me - going 100+ miles an hour. what do you know - Beth! she realized it was me and ever so nicely and quickly came back around to see how i was. she had just done a coast ride too except instead of a measly four mile transition run, she was running to Torry Pines and back! are you kidding me?! all of that and she was trucking along at a minimum 730 min per mile pace, i swear. it was amazing to witness. really - she's an animal and is going to tear apart the competition next year. i can't wait to see it. after that very humbling reality check of where i am on the whole triathlete spectrum, i punished myself even more by finishing the run going up a semi large hill to round off the workout.

i was fried literally - i had forgotten to apply sunscreen and physically - i didn't have much left in me. i checked my bike computer for shits and grins to see how pathetically i averaged out with all of the stops, loops and nutrition fiascoes - i was counting on a big fat ugly 14 to stare up at me - but i miraculously pulled off a 17. when all was said and done - bad, but not horrible. not my best but thinking back to my first time trial, by far not my worst. in the end i did not make it to the Strand to do more riding with Don. in the end i found myself sitting at a restaurant with the best gosh darn grilled mahi mahi mango salad i had ever put in my mouth. thank God food makes everything better in my book. hopefully i got out all the kinks and bad jujee that morning and am heading into the race scott-free.

here's hoping :)

double double toil and trouble

yep you got, this weekend was the very much anticipated double/double brick. CB has devised these little torture rounds to specifically target race day pace but also keep you and your legs guessing as to what's next. i love it! the previous double/double was a huge success. i gave everyone a run for their money with the time i decided to "add" in without telling them, but we all came out smiling in the end. this past weekend was 10X the intensity and almost double the fun - well at least for me it was. i'm actually not quite sure how Dana liked it...she was smiling afterward, so i took it as a positive.

because the TNT team had final prep that AM, Dana and i were the only takers for the brutality ahead. i only padded the time on the bike to make it 80/80 instead of 75/75 as listed on the schedule. the run was an easy 30/30 and i stuck to it. the goal was to go as close to race pace as possible save for the mandatory stops for lights, cars and small children. we met at 7:30. Dana had a flat before we even started, so we got that taken care of, finally saddled up and began what was to be a rip roaring good time. i took a (one scoop) bottle of HEED out on the bike + one plain water bottle for the first loop. we caught a green and i was immediately excited for the ride. i dropped the hammer straight away. it took me a while to get really warmed up - i'd say about 15-20 minutes into the ride - but when i did, boy howdy. i was already booking at such a good speed that when the fire in my legs really started a burnin' my speed just got better. it was incredible. i was passing and calling "left" like a woman possessed. i reached the turn around point (40min) and headed back. i took the next 5 or so minutes pretty easy as i slowly squeezed the new orange-vanilla GU Roctane down my throat - which for the record is not nearly as good as the vanilla bean, but definitely edible. at some point i saw Dana and screamed "time to turn it" because she didn't have a computer or a watch to keep track of her time. i kept hauling knowing that CB would want a full "race report" when i was done. i finished in exactly the same amount of time it took me to get out there. first leg of bike loop one = 40:43min, second leg of bike loop one = 40:43min (total time 80:26min). wow - on a roll and not stopping - i loaded up my bike, shoved on my other worldly Zoots, grabbed my cold water bottle, and headed out to complete the first leg of the run. nothing spectacular on that front except that i managed to again pace myself perfectly out and back - first leg of run loop one = 15:16min, second leg of run loop one = 15:14min (total time = 30:30min).

time for the second loop and i was feeling great. one more GU (vanilla bean, mmmm) and i was off to do it all over again. this time, unlike the last double/double, i was not at all dreading any part of what was to come. i was excited to see what i could or couldn't do. this round was all about keeping pace and/or exceeding said pace of the first round with the exact same distance covered. i reloaded with a fresh (one scoop) bottle of HEED and the remaining water left from the water bottle of the previous loop and began the thrill of limitless wonder. i pushed this loop even harder than the previous and ended up with the first leg of bike loop two = 36min. i took another GU Roctane and laid it down again. i felt great but knew that i would need to find the very fine line between pushing and saving something for the run. i was experimenting here - i wanted to find that breaking point, to see just how fast i could go without totally bonking on the run. so i just kept pushing it to see what would or would not happen. second leg of bike loop two = 38min (total time 74min). so stoked! so so so so so stoked! and off i was on the run again. here i just wanted to keep pace with what i had done on the first run loop. and guess what?! i did, but better!!!! first leg of run loop two = 15:06min, second leg of run loop two = 13:35min (total time = 28:41min).

HELL YES! YIPPEEE! and HOWDEEEE DOOODEEEE!

after Dana finished, we meandered around Solano Beach, ate, shot the shit and had just an all around good time hanging out. she seemed in much better spirits after this work out than she has in a long time so that made me feel good. and now that we have finally figured out what is wrong with Nemo, she'll be faster than ever and ready for redemption. now we just have to figure out how to keep her damn tires inflated ;)

total calories cosumed = 500kcals for 215 min of activity...is that good enough coach?!

OH YEAH - I FORGOT THE BEST PART!!! AVERAGE MILE/HR = 18.6 w/ STOPS, TOTAL MILEAGE = 48 :)

sunday sunday sunday

i have mixed feeling about Sunday. i don't think i want to get into much of it, maybe on my other space...maybe. i woke up to Bri texting me some sort of nonsense about onions burning his nose hairs clean out of his nostrils at 430AM. my alarm was to go off in 10 min so i decided to get up and get my usual morning routine of organic steel cut 100% gluten free slow cooked oatmeal with spices and 1/2 of a sausage link diced up and mixed in ready for consumption. yum. i'd like to interject that for the record, in case there was any doubt - i love to eat. breakfast makes me happy. barney butter with apples makes me smile. lunch time excites me. my pre-work out snack energizes me and dinner, well dinner is just full of possibilities. my meals are strategically planned and timed throughout the day and i thoroughly enjoy thinking up, preparing and devouring each and every collation i put together. its the little things in life that bring me joy. so anyway, i woke Dana up at 530 so we could get on the road, get her breakfast and coffee and make it to the starting line before the gun went off so we could wish everyone good luck. after calling Jim for directions to the closest Starbucks - ransacking the place of their coffee and breakfast wraps - we made it with plenty of time to spare.

to put it bluntly - the crowd sucked. big time. Dana and i were pretty much the only people cheering the entire time. we kept a constant clap going and cheered for every single solitary person that passed us. many of them looked directly into my eyes and smiled. i'd get goosebumps each time, knowing i had just made a part of their race a little bit better. after our last friend exited the water, we hightailed it over to the finish line to watch them come in. the big dogs had already finished, so we resumed out cheering and clapping along the finishers shoot for the age groupers. i don't know how it was possible, but the crowd was even worse there! i've never been to a tri with such incredibly unsupportive spectators. it was something.

we gathered the troops, did the after race chit-chat and decided to make our way to Jim's for the bbq. it was really nice to see the baby, hang out with the Goudreau's and the rest of our tri/TNT friends. we were to leave around 1145 to head to the cove. the day's workouts were to consist of the Cove 2 miler and a 40 min zone 1 LSD run. as if cued from some director's chair, the ex walked in with his girlfriend (who i happen to think the world of and its a shame i cannot for the life of me act like a normal person when the two of them are in a 5 mile radius) and what do you know? 1145 on the dot. so maybe i will get into it. this was the 3rd or 4th time i had seen him that day. i'm not gonna sugar coat the fact that it sucked. i seem to be running into them quite frequently now, which isn't too surprising seeing as how our root group of friends are pretty much the same and we are both in the tri community...its bound to happen. but this was too much in one day especially for a girl going on about 15 hours of sleep in a 72 hour period AND the fact that i was exhausted from the previous day's jaunt up the mountain. when i see him/them i feel like my lungs just might actually collapse in the chest cavity that is supposed to be protecting them from sharp objects. the oxygen coming in gets a little bit thicker, the breeze surrounding my path gets a little bit colder and my focus on the road ahead grows a little bit hazy. i get nervous. i don't know what to do. i don't know what to say. i don't know how to act. i don't know what to think. i don't know where to look and i don't know how to feel. so with all of that uncertainty in one day - i was ready to put on camouflage, drop to the floor, army crawl my way through the living room in hopes that i wouldn't be noticed, dart out the door to escape the fiery glances of disappointment and disapproval and drive away into the sunset, never to be heard from again. too bad i didn't have camouflage, there wasn't room to army crawl out the door, and my invisible shield was just that - invisible. plus it was just before noon and the sun was nowhere near ready to set. so i tried to leave as graciously and quietly as i possibly could so i could get to the safety of my car, roll down the windows and let all the stink in my heart and my head leave with the wind passing through. i wanted Dana to stay. she is after all still very good friends with them all. i am the outcast and i didn't want to bring her into that. i didn't want to make a big deal of that either, so i told her it was fine with me if she wanted to stay. it wouldn't hurt my feelings in the least. she was already in the car and so she decided to just go. i knew she'd rather stay to hang out then go to the Cove - she hates ocean swims - but she stuck it out. bad call.

the ocean ended up being as topsy turvy as i felt. the swells were copious and constant. as we made our way through the beginning of the water, a coldness swept through my body and a chill ran down my spine. as we made it to the half way point of the quarter mile buoy, i stopped to get my bearings amongst the washing machine waves. i took in my surroundings. Dana was about 200 yards back. i was completely alone. there were no other swimmers within seeing distance. the water carried a green foam atop its unfaltering rollers. the sky was grim and grey. it was eerie, like i was lost at sea not far from shore. my heart was sullen and low. my mind was wondering into places unknown and unwanted. my legs were tired, my arms were heavy and my soul wanted out - to fly somewhere, anywhere but there - in this trapped and suffocating body. i waited as Dana neared and then we continued the swim. two other guys finally appeared out of the abyss and made the call to head back to shore, not to the half mile buoy and most definitely not to the shores and back. we followed suit. come to find out, not even the Gatorman crew swam past the quarter that afternoon.

the run was hard, but not in traditional terms. i was supposed to be in zone 1 - that's less than 153 beats per minute. i couldn't even get my heart below 160 to start. i was basically at a walk and it was still shooting up into the atmosphere. Dana ran past me with a sort of irritated look that i was going too slow and shouted something like "can you even run in zone 1?" well yes, on a normal day, i can. on a normal day when i am not faced with my past at every turn of the corner. on a normal day when my heart doesn't feel like it might explode from the sheer force of a distant stare. yes, on a normal day it is quite easy for me to run in zone 1 and make damn good time. today was not a normal day. we finished the run and all i wanted to do was eat and sleep.

we headed back to my place to get Dana's car so she could leave to do her thing with the group that i wasn't quite welcome with anymore. i got to thinking about all the crap i was feeling inside and the weight of it all. i wanted to sleep and not wake up until it was over. or wake up and be in a different time, a different place. somewhere that didn't hurt. somewhere that didn't disappoint. some place where the competition i felt within my self wasn't always being challenged by those who think they should be able to take me but can't. some place where doing what's right, or trying to anyway, doesn't give you the cold shoulder and a colder stare. some place...else.

everything is the same in a place where everything is different. its a strange place to be. not really there, not really here, not really anywhere you recognize yet you know you must be on the right path. God never steers you in the wrong direction. you may take the path of a million twists and turns, but its always the path you are meant to be on. just wish it wasn't filled with so many dadgum potholes. here's hoping to freshly laid asphalt ahead. on second thought, i'm going to find that damn truck and pave it myself...

sunday WAS NOT funday

it went a little something like this:


5:30 AM - Dana calls to tell me she's on the way to the race

5:35 AM - up to make breakfast, it's gonna be a LONG day

6 AM - stop at Starbucks (thank GOD)

6:35 AM - trek over to finish line to watch 5k-ers come in and wait for my half-ers

8:21 AM - first runner of my clan crosses the finish line

9:50ish AM - last runner of my clan crosses the finish line

10 AM - wonder over to the Triple Crown line to find my clan

10:20 AM - still looking

10:22 AM - plant myself on the grass and whip out BB, banana & GF toast - snack time :)

10:35 AM - finally find Bri

10:40 AM - finally find Dana

11 AM - head to the car ONLY TO FIND WE ARE IN THE EXACT OPPOSITE DIRECTION OF SAID CAR :(

11:20 AM - Bri comes to our rescue

11:40 AM - FINALLY make it to the car

11:59 AM - stuck in Pt. Loma traffic hell

noon - Dana FINALLY gets to eat something

12:40 PM - head to the Cove

1 PM - find sweet parking, only hindrance is the down hill we must descend (poor Dana)

1:30 PM - Ryan and i still waiting on Sandra

1:50 PM - question = 2 with wetsuit or 1 without...?

1:50 PM - answer = 1, hands down

2 PM - in the water swimming with the fishies :)

2:35 PM - out of the water and making our way back to the towels

2:40 PM - Sandra/Ryan = laying down, katie b = changing for the 90 min run from hell

2:55 PM - katie b leaves for run


interjection by this time i am STARVING!!!! i had eaten 3 shot blocks before entering the water because i was already really hungry but we all know how well swimming works for me on a stomach with anything solid in it and if you don't, ask Dana - she got to see the very disgusting effects of said pukapalooza on our last swim/run brick at the Cove. so with one shot block left to fuel an entire 90 min run, i was not a happy girl.


4:25 PM - back with extremely tired legs, sore knees and a screaming belly.

4:29 PM - can you say cranky?!

4:30 PM - getting crankier by the second, MUST GET & EAT FOOD

4:40 PM - Dana has a breakdown in the car because i brought up a touchy subject

4:45 PM - Dana and i not talking because we are now both cranky

4:50 PM - pull into Whole Foods, the mother land of all that is good and right in the world

5:15 PM - FINALLY eating, and a lot of it on my part.

5:29 PM - can you say fat kid?!

5:30 PM - Dana is in a much better mood and forgives me for talking about touchy subject

6 PM - gallivanting around Target but not getting much

6:45 PM - drop Dana off at her car

7 PM - home, home at last

7:34 PM - bed

7:40ish PM - sleeping, so looking forward to the next day of nothingness!!!!

training week from hell over and done with. i have never been more excited about a Monday in my life!

who's up for a tri?

is it considered a triathlon if there are only two participants?
As with most of my workouts - or torture sessions as they have so lovingly been referred to as of late by those partaking - CB sends me the time/mileage and i devise the routes and effort level. this weekend consisted of the following:

45min swim/at least 1mi + 90min bike/at least 25mi + 40min run/at least 5mi = great workout on already tired legs from the time trials of hell the week following up to this day.

i only had one brave soul answer my call to arms and with that Ryan M and i met at the shores Saturday morning at 730 to begin our day of training. we swam the mile on the clearest day yet, seeing to the bottom almost the entire way out to the half mile buoy. it was beautiful. it was peaceful. it was breathtaking. it was me thinking, "i better get this swim over with quick so my sandals are still there when i get out and my car hasn't been stolen with my not-so-hidden key!" we exited the water in 32 minutes to the very fantastic fact that all of my belongings were just as i left them. thank God drunks and thieves normally aren't early morning risers. next up the ride...

is it considered a triathlon if there is no official course or aid stations?
i decided the day prior that the bike portion of our day would consist of a 15 mile out and back. i thought it might be nice to head up Shores Dr (the horrible knee blowing downhill of the La Jolla Half Marathon), out to the infamous Torrey Pines hill and then along the coast until we hit the 15 mile marker as dictated by my bike computer. right off the bat, our first climb set the standard for the day's ride. in a word - gnarly. Ryan and i kept exchanging curses to the effect that who ever came up with this route must die, that she must be an evil bitch and that Ryan needed to set up better SPAM filters so those pesky emails couldn't get through. too bad all of said comments were directed at yours truly and even as i said them, i smiled a devilish smile of victory because i knew - in essence - we were about to get our asses handed to us on a platter. those comments continued throughout the entire ride and as we neared the turnaround point, Ryan noticed i was out of my nutrition mixture and would need to restock with water at the very least. that's when we had the very grand idea to crash the TNT transition workout just a mile ahead and steal their water and hopefully snacks :) steal we did and off we were to tackle the dreaded Torrey Pines hill (my first attempt at the task in over a year and a half) and get back to transition to start the run. i'll be nice here and just say that i had a good ride - as in i dropped Ryan :) i held a steady 21/22mph on the way back and even caught up to a pack of male riders and quite quickly dropped them. at the next light, they caught back up (okay - so i didn't really drop drop them, more like pass dropped them) where one of the riders made the comment "sorry. i just caught up, i was trying to find a bungee cord to wrap around your back tire" YES! SCORE! YIPPEEE! i'm not gonna lie, it felt good. really good. i gloated - just a little - with a quick smirk and soft laugh. i never saw the other riders again after that light. they must have turned but Bungee decided to stick with me and Ryan up Torrey and that's when Ryan got dropped. i only say this because he's fast and it makes me feel good to say that i beat him. in his defense, he was only going on 4 hours of sleep AND a night of drinking. so it was me and Bungee, duking it out to the top. i won :) and back to transition it was...

is it considered a triathlon if you get attacked by a yappy dog on the run?
i waited for Ryan to get back before we both headed out on the last leg of the workout. it was a gorgeous day at the beach with tons of people out playing football, soaking up the sun and walking their dogs. Ryan stopped about 10 minutes or so into the run to stretch, but i kept trucking along so i could just get it done - by this time i was beyond starving. i'd had one scoop of Accelerade/Ultima in my water bottle on the way out, one Accelgel at the half way point on the bike and water for the run. i had infact been asking Ryan where we were going for lunch since minute 10 of the ride. now it was minute 10 of the run and i needed food! at my run turn around - which i estimated to be about 2-2.5 miles - i was accosted by one of those yappy, shaggy dogs that can't weigh more than 5 pounds wet. the dadgum thing came out of nowhere and just started barking and lunging and God knows what else. i was lucky enough to divert disaster and continued on. Ryan wasn't so lucky. i kept wondering why i wasn't catching up to him on my way back to the cars. i mean, i was miraculously NOT lost and retracing me exact path out - he had to be here somewhere...right? that's when i saw him limping towards me with a hole in his tri shorts and in his leg. one of those yappy, shaggy dogs that can't weigh more than 5 pounds wet had accosted him as well, but got much more than my attacker did - a piece of his quad! he had already washed it out by the time i returned and was just ready to leave to get food.

is it considered a triathlon if you don't have a 4th event?
so that's what we did. we ate. we ate a lot. we ate a whole lot and afterward i smacked Bri (who was so nice to come and join us at our celebratory meal after his TNT session) for letting me eat ALL of my ginormo burger with bacon, cheese and avocado + all of my caesar salad. in my defense, CB had just told me on the phone to, "eat. eat protein. eat as much protein as you possibly can to rebuild those muscles." so that's what i did, and was completely chockablock of cow walking back to my car. so full infact that i all needed was a shower and a nap to complete my day.

is it considered a triathlon if you do more/less than was prescribed?
so our final day of training tallied up to the following:

32min swim/1mi + 112min bike/30mi + 40min run/4.5mi = kick you in the teeth workout that leaves you begging for your mommy and an ice bath :)

it was a great day of training. we worked hard. we got a lot done. we kicked ass and we took names. so who's up for the double loop Iron Mountain ride and run this Saturday? i promise it will be just as much fun if not more ;)

TT's SCHMET's

if you've been following this blog for any real amount of time, you know how i feel about time trials. plain and simple - i hate them. they push your limits. they make you scream. they make you puke. they make you wonder what the hell you are trying to make your body do. all in all - they make you HURT. and not in a "oh wow, that was such a great workout, it hurt so bad it felt good" no, no. its more like "oh wow, that was such a brutal expenditure of dynamic forward movement that hurt so bad i now have to lay down and try to recoup some sort of energy just to make it back to my car without passing out."

TT1 - the run
actually this one wasn't so bad. i met Bri at the track in Clairemont so i could get in my 3 miles before his TNT team started their track workout. Bri and Coach monitored each lap and as i ran by, Coach shouted encouraging words like "form looks great" "staying on the mark" "good pacing kate" while Bri and Iris screamed "GO KATIE GO!!" i ended up jack rabbiting the first loop in 1:40 but settled back down to 2 minutes laps until i hit the last mile.

first run TT:
mile 1: 8:36
mile 2: 8:38
mile 3: 8:36

second run TT:
mile 1: 7:49
mile 2: 8:04
mile 3: 7:53

not extraordinary but not too shabby either. the best part about it was my knee never acted up, which was very encouraging. i am looking forward to the upcoming track workouts so i can get some speed back under me and in these little legs of mine. although, i can't really say they're little anymore - they seem to be growing as of late. my "skinny" jeans don't fit in the quad section anymore. i can't say that i am stoked about losing my one and only expensive jeans to the likes of triathlon but i've lost a lot more to this sport so i guess i'm on the up and up for now...

TT2: the swim
oh the unhighly unanticipated, loathsome hilarity of a "sprint" in the water. i mean who the hell came up with this unusual form of torturous punishment? what have i done to deserve this?! one - i had planned on doing this at 5AM Wednesday but due to the unfortunate kidnapping of my poor goggles (or more truthfully and sadly, the fact that i left them at the cove) i had to avert the TT to that evening. bad - no, horrible idea. two - the lanes at the CP are overtaken on Monday and apparently Wednesday evenings by the Master's swim class, leaving two measly open lanes at the end of the pool for the pond scum who try to come and crash their perfect form and seamless wakes. alas, the animation of my TT went like this: rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push, WHACK! hit the guy in front of me &push, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push, WHACK! get slapped in the leg by the guy behind me &push. that went on for pretty much the entire time giving way to pretty poor results but in the end i came out on top.

first swim TT:
Lap1: 1:52
Lap2: 1:57
Lap3: 2:59
Lap4: 2:20
Lap5: 2:21
Lap6: 2:58
Lap7: 2:16
Lap8: 2:18
Lap9: 2:50
Lap10: 2:15

second swim TT:
Lap1: 1:50
Lap2: 1:53
Lap3: 2:00
Lap4: 2:01
Lap5: 2:10
Lap6: 2:12
Lap7: 2:06
Lap8: 2:10
Lap9: 2:05
Lap10: 2:08

although i do like swimming much more than i used to, i still hate sprint swimming - mainly because i am the opposite of fast and that is discouraging. i did however just purchase some God awful paddle contraptions on the advice of Luke to build up my arm strength which in turn, is supposed to make me faster. we'll have to see about that...

TT3: the bike
well here's a good story. my last one was a sham of a time trial, a debacle of sorts - as i happened to attempt this crazy task in the midst of the first weekend, on the second day of the Over the Line tourney on Fiesta Island. ummmm, not so much what you would call ideal TTing conditions. but i went with it, and put up some pretty pathetic numbers. it didn't hurt me and afterwards i even went and rode/swept the TNT Saturday AM workout to Del Dios. that was NOT the case yesterday. i decided to change my TT location to the Coronado Strand, mainly because i despise the barren landscaping, the continuous dirt hills and the rows of smelly port o' potties that line the loops of that horrendous hallowed training ground. i did a short .2 mile warm up on the bike and shot off when i felt the need for speed, or something like that. GOOD GOD - the wind was awful. Winnie the Pooh would have loved to be in this blustering tunnel of pain. at least his red balloon could have carried him away to saner ground. i, on the other hand, had to push myself through until the very end. i kept looking at my speed and seeing 18 something or other which was less than comforting because just 4 days prior i rode this exact route and got up to 26.4 mph on one stretch. oh Lord this sucked. luckily, on the way out i was unknowingly fighting the head/cross winds (opposite of the previous jaunt) and was able to reap some of the tail/cross winds on the way back...

first bike TT:
12 miles - 41:35
i believe that's like an avg. of 10 mph :(

second bike TT:
12.05 miles - 36:24
that is an avg. of 19.5 mph :) WOOHOO

as soon as i hit the 12 mile mark, i stopped, got off my bike and proceeded to puke as cars drove by - some honked while others hollered. APPARENTLY i need to find a better pre-workout meal than tuna fish salad and Kettle Potato Chips - i mean its hard to get all my calories in each day so i thought this was a decent way to get in the added protein, fat and carbs to fuel my workouts. i do eat this every afternoon you know, approximately 2.5 to 3 hours before go time and CLEARLY it has ceased to work for me. i know this every time because every time i feel like i may be sick, but the push isn't hard enough to actually make that sickness occur...until yesterday. a change must be made and i have no idea what to do about it except trial and error, and that kids may lead to more upset stomachs and (please God save me) barfing on the side of the road. ugh - at least i am recognizing this now instead of closer to race day.

so its done. my week of hell is over...until next month when CB forces me to jump through these dreaded hoops yet again. oy! now - on to a weekend of EPIC proportions...

happy training kids :)

do i know you?

Friday ended up being quite a stressful day at work and in the midst of all the chaos, i found myself aching to just get in the water to swim. this sudden and dramatic turn of events has me a bit baffled. i mean, who goes from absolutely hating to swim - and by way of one single solitary swim lesson - changes to absolutely loving it, can't wait to do it, feels better just knowing its going to happen?! it really is such a crazy phenomenon - this swimming thing and me. its gone from "swimming? ugh, i guess if i have to..." to "swimming? hell yes, name the time and place!" i never in a million years would have ever even contemplated entering the Pacific without a wetsuit on, much less swimming an entire mile without the comfort and shark protective shield it offers in my head, but what the hell do you know? i did it on Friday. i walked my happy, excited, joyful ass down to the water, dove in and just started swimming. and the swim - oh Lord was it amazing. the water was a cool 72ish. clear. blue. perfect. i was in heaven for the 3rd time that week...


HOLY COW, who am i? i don't even know myself anymore. and that's not all. i have gone and thrown my whole self into some kind of massive conundrum in terms of what i will do and the limits i will push. case in point:

the schedule for today's workout: double brick - bike: 45/45, run: 20/20. what did i go and do? double brick - bike: 60/60, run: 30/30. yep and i didn't even tell my workout partners that i had changed it. i just told them what we were doing and then we did it. no questions asked (i am so gonna get it for admitting this one, sorry guys - but didn't it feel great?!). we did the Coronado Strand out and back. we agreed to take it at an average 15-16 miles per hour as this was supposed to be a "good workout", not a "kick you in the teeth and make you puke workout." that agreement was thrown overboard the moment i clipped in. without even pushing, in the first half mile, i was going 15 and the words "slow it down, take it easy" seemed to immediately jump ship. there is no such thing when i am on the bike. CB has made it quite clear that i am to push myself each and every time i am out there riding the wind. i have less than two months to turn myself into a half ironman and easing up on it certainly will not do. so, i heard him in my head, dropped into my big chain and pounded out a pretty decent first leg of the order. we ended up averaging about 22 going out. too bad the winds from hell's labyrinth decided to try and throw us off course on the way back. i was literally being pushed around the bike path at the most inordinate and inopportune times - like as soon as a family would ride up on us, i'd just so happen to be thrown into a gust that threatened the safety of all around me. it was a little annoying, but i kept pushing through. working out the lactic acid i could feel building in my muscles so i could transition and get the run done. first out and back - semi easy pace with a good run of 3 miles under the belt.


next up: round two and this is where i surprised myself yet again. it was 2:30 by this time. it was hot. it was windy. it was past lunch time. i was tired from being up at 4 and then helping out with the TNT time trial all morning. my knee was starting to feel a little agitated. i wanted to stop and i said so. "i do NOT want to go back out there. not in the least." everyone chimed in, like a choir of nightingales, "let's just hang out then" "me either" "let's just call it a day..." my response, "i said i didn't want to, nowhere does that mean i am not going to." and we were off again. this round was supposed to be a bit more intense. the wind had picked up significantly so the plan was to pound it on the way out and do what you could to get back - with just enough to make the run. at one point i looked down at my speed and by God's name in the Heavens the thing said 26.4 mph! i was ecstatic. we averaged about 23-24 going out and then the winds of defeat slapped us in the face the moment we switched directions and off we were again to just try and hold a decent enough pace to round out an overall average of at least 17mph. by the end, my legs were burning, my ass was sore, my knee was irritated as all get out and i was just ready to call it a day. but again, the voice in my head, "there will be days you are tired. there will be days you want to quit. there will be days and you have to be strong enough to know this journey won't do itself. so on those days, wake up and don't quit!" so i put on my flats and took off so we could get the last run in and over with. my knee was not cooperating on the run, it kept hollerin' profanities up at me so i dropped it down 2 notches from the previous run and just did a steady jog, making promises that if it just held throughout this last leg, i'd reward it with lots of ice and even more stretching (i spent a good hour and a half stretching every inch of my legs this morning before all of this nonsense started). it finally agreed and we made it through the run. in the end, we covered just under 30 miles, averaging 17.5 mph for the entire ride (hell's winds and all) on our trusty steeds and ran a total of 60 minutes, approximately 6 miles, to finish it all off.



there were so many times i just wanted to quit. to let up on the push. to ease into a higher gear. to stop and walk. but i didn't. i kept pushing the entire way. i have this new found determination, strive and dedication not only to my coach but to myself. i want to do this and i want to do this right. i want to take my self perceived limits, roll them into a ball, stuff them into a leather casing and grand slam them out of the park. i have it in me, this weekend has proven that, and now i get to take that new found freedom of no holds bar and do with it what i please. and i please swimming and loving it. i please new friendships and adventures. i please Ironman Cozumel November 29, 2009. and i please that you come along and enjoy the ride in whatever way you possibly can :)

what a weekend! Part Deuce

Sunday morning started out a little gloomy, but as we sat at Swami's enjoying the scenery, the sun broke through the clouds and made its shiny rays down to the shores of So Cal - making the ocean swim on the near horizon that much more enticing...


i have been helping Dana with her nutrition for a little while but it all seemed to be very overwhelming for her, so we decided to go grocery shopping together so i could help her pick out the right ingredients to fuel her everyday life. Dana hates grocery shopping when it involves thinking about food, looking at food or actually buying food. she sort of has "freak out" moments mid aisle which i was so lucky to witness during our adventurous trip to Whole Foods on the way up to Vineman :) so we went into the Seaside Market with a plan and pretty much stuck to it. no major freak outs and now Dana was stocked for the week, maybe even two with the arsenal she needs to feed herself in a positive manner - no more lean pockets and protein bars. all whole, natural, raw ingredients will be entering her body to fuel her through her normal days and her training days. she was even ready to conquer the ocean with me on this very fine day...

i have literally been dreading this swim all week long. when i read ahead to my schedule for this particular day, i had a feeling of complete dread sweep over my body, my hands started to sweat and my mind started to race. 60 minute swim - shoot for two miles (duhn, dunh, duhn) IN THE OCEAN...AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!! is CB not aware of my complete fright of swimming in the ocean? i mean it scares me shitless, literally. i have stomach issues leading up to the swim, just knowing i'll be in the water with all of the many sea creatures AND SHARKS lurking off the coast of La Jolla. BUT, i had a plan for today and it was a good one:

1) fact: predators prey on the weaklings - LEARN HOW TO SWIM SO YOU APPEAR TO KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND TRICK THE MAN EATERS INTO THINKING YOU ARE STRONG!
2) fact: prime feeding time for fish (i.e. sharks) is early AM, and late PM - SWIM MID AFTERNOON TO MINIMIZE SHARK HUNGER!
3) in my head: its less likely to have sharks eat you if you are in a group setting - SWIM WITH AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE!
4) in my head: wetsuits protect swimmers from these "lurkers" - WEAR A WETSUIT NO MATTER WHAT, EVEN IF THE WATER IS 90 DEGREES!
5) in my head: stopping to rest = less surface area for the shark to come up from underneath and chomp - JUST KEEP SWIMMING!

after my swim lesson with Luke the day prior, i was feeling good about my abilities and felt confident that #1 had been taken care of. i had a lot to think about technique wise, so at least i wouldn't be thinking about the sea life swimming beneath me. i know Coach Brian said to shoot for two miles, but i was dead set on doing two miles. no excuses, no renigging, no turning around before my feet touched the opposite shores. i even made a public announcement of my intentions so i couldn't back out. the day was here and i was ready to do it - after 4 bathroom brakes and and the shaking subsided...

we arrived to the shores at about 12:30 PM taking care of #2 on the list and then i saw what made me smile and wiggle with glee - there were hundreds of people EVERYWHERE. not only were these droves of families and friends on the land, they were swimming in the sea! that means #3 was covered and i didn't even have to do anything to accomplish it. the gorgeous sun had provided my salvation! Dana wasn't sure she wanted to swim with her life jacket (AKA wetsuit) so we went down to check the water temps while we waited for Sandra. it definitely could have been a day for a wetsuit-less swim, but take two girls from Texas and throw them into the Pacific Ocean, and you will more times than not get the wussy side of things. we both decided ditching the suits would be a less than ideal choice which just so happened to wrap up #4. we headed back up to situate our things and start the hilarity that getting on a wetsuit always seems to be, ending with the three of us finally making our way into the water to head out on - what i was thinking - would be a very long excursion...

BUT IT WASN'T!!!!!! i have never moved through the water so smoothly in my life. just like on the bike when i hear Brian in my head i heard Luke "rotate the hips - g l i d e ...&push, rotate the hips - g l i d e...&push." i never kicked once throughout the entire two mile jaunt and was swimming faster than i ever have before. i mean, i was kicking (or really stroking) ass and taking names. ha ha, that sounds dirty - but really, i felt so fluid, strong, efficient. i was finally letting the water do the work for me instead of fighting it. i was actually smiling as i swam. fantastic. and to make the experience even better, the water was a clear crystal blue the entire way there and back. i have never in my life seen the Pacific Ocean in all of its glory as i did that day. amazing. the entire affair was simply moving. i can't describe the joy i felt. i was finally swimming. i was finally in the water. i was finally not freaking out at every single moment. i was calm, serene, happy to be in the open water with the sharks who were not eating me. #5 was a bit of a quandry as Dana was not having a good day and had to stop on numerous occasions to fix her leaky gogggles (note: Dana needs new goggles ASAP) but i didn't want her treading out there all alone so i treaded with her. in the end, i was able to keep my cool the whole way out and even the majority of the way back. there were a couple near miss panic attacks, but in the end we made it through in one piece. me - happier/prouder than ever as was CB when i called to update him on my progress :)

i feel that the wetsuit really helped things "click" today as it allowed me to over exaggerate my movements which produced the desired outcome of speed and efficiency. i know i still need to work A LOT on my technique out of the wetsuit and in the pool, so have no fear - no slacking will come out of this enlightenment except the feeling of knowing what it should feel like. we got out of the water and headed out to finish our day of training with a leisurely 50 minute jog. what an incredible encounter - when training meets awe...

i spent a lot of time talking to God that day, thanking him for the sheer joy of what the experience had produced in me, for the ability to live in such an incredible place and the blessings to have done so much with my life up to this point - but even more so for the opportunity to have life, no matter what the cards i've been dealt thus far have provided, in the space to come.