I'M ON TV!!!

The Versus network is one of the few which shows Ironman events. I was really excited when I saw they were going to show IM Wisconsin. It was supposed to be yesterday, however it was bumped for college football. Boo!! Luckily, the Internet told me it would be on again today. So, at 3 o'clock, I was glued to the tv.

I was able to watch Chris McDonald and Hillary Biscay win the race, was reminded of what a beautiful day I had, see some hills again, look at more corn, and how lucky I was to have finished. 2 people they were tracking dropped out or were pulled off on the second loop of the run. I just can't believe I did what I did!!

So, I spent the hour looking for me and DC tri club people. I found 1 person for a split second on the bike, another on the run (as they were following Chris). Then, it happened. I remember starting my run and seeing the lead woman, Karin Gerber. She had the total side lean going on the run, and did not look good. Right behind her was Hillary, looking much better. I just remember thinking how cool it was that I just saw the lead women. Little did I know, at that point of filming the race, I would show up on the video for about 1.5 seconds!! I was so excited to see me! You can't really tell it's me, unless I point out the exact moment - then you can tell by the knee braces, white visor and brown pony tail. But, more proof that I was there!

It was just so awesome to see! I am going to contact Versus and see if I can get a copy of the video. Woo-Hoo I MADE THE VIDEO!!!

Maybe I am just a wimp

Today I tried something different for a workout. I went to a free CrossFit class given by Potomac CrossFit. I am all about trying new things for workouts and have heard both good and bad things about Crossfit, so with a free class - why not?!?!

Well, let me start off by saying - I HATE doing things I suck at, and I SUCKED at this! Totally 100% not good. CrossFit is high intensity, short amount of time, push your self for 20-ish minutes, and it's different workouts each day. Now this is a complete 180 change from what I have been doing - which is maintain and be able to keep going - endurance sports. I can do a 5K, 10K, all distances of triathlons, 4.4 mile swims - but I can't do a flipping push-up, pull-up, box jump, or dead lifts with more than just the bar.

I don't move quickly and have a hard time pushing myself for short bursts, which is needed for this type of workout. I know it was my first time and I shouldn't write it off just yet, however it was just a bit frustrating for me and very much made me feel wimpy.

Luckily, I had a tasty brunch after so that helped.

Stupid Pants!

Of course it's not me and the amount of food I have been eating or lack of exercise I have been doing. It's the pants fault for fitting a bit too snug this morning. Stupid pants!!!

But, it was motivation enough to get off my butt and to the gym over lunch. It is a bit quiet around the office today. In fact, so quiet that at multiple times this morning I heard the guy in the cube next to me snoring. Yes, SNORING!!! Now I wanted to take a picture and post, however I do realize that I am currently blogging. I do feel that my 5 minutes of blogging is WAY less offensive than the guy SNORING, however I know both should not be done in the office.

Anyway, back to my workout - it was actually a decent treadmill run. 3.1 miles straight, 36 minutes and 30 seconds - which for me is really good. I was motivated enough to do my sit-ups and go back to the assisted pull up machine (and there was no jerk-ie guy there asking about me being weak and doing an Ironman - not that I am still annoyed at that guy and want to punch him in the throat or anything)

Hope everyone had a happy black Friday and spent lots of money!!!
Have a great weekend

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. I am extremely lucky to be surrounded by both and am very VERY thankful.

Today my brother and I headed to Charlottesville to spend the day with our cousin, her husband and new baby boy. Isn't he cute!?!?! It was a really great Thanksgiving and hope everyone had the same.

Happy black Friday tomorrow! Go help the economy - but don't put it all on your credit card.

I Did Go Yesterday

Yes, yesterday I went to the gym. A very uneventful 30 minutes on the treadmill.

But after, I felt really of wimpy. I do not, nor ever had, much upper body strength. I can swim, yes, but that is more back. Chin-ups, pull-ups, never gonna happen. So it's something I am half-hearted working on. At the gym, we have an assisted pull up machine. My friend Steph showed me how to use it - which wasn't hard, but I don't like just trying out machines. Anyway, I use a very VERY low setting (i.e. pleanty of assistance) and still have a really hard time.

When I finished my embarrassing 2 sets, this guy I have talked to before says
"Didn't you just do an Ironman?"
Me - "Yes"
Him - "And that's all you can do for pull ups???" - smirk, laugh...
Me - blank stare
Him (embarrassed) "Oh, I'm just kidding"
Me - evil glare
Him - "Um, yeah, I could never even run 5 miles, or swim, or bike 10 miles so..."
Me - "Right", sort of laughed it off and walked away.

Really, some people...

And on that note, I didn't know the gym closed at 4 so my plan to go after work before the hockey game didn't pan out to well. Soon, soon it will become important again.

Does Wii Bowling Count??

Because if it does, I worked out a ton this weekend.

Friday night was a low key evening with dinner and Wii.

Saturday was a low key morning with A LOT of Wii, specifically bowling. Oh, what was my highest score you are asking... Now I don't like to brag, but 267.
YES, that's right 2-6-7. That would be 7 strikes in a row, and I was TOTALLY robbed on the 8th one with a wobbly pin that would not fall. I am right handed and my elbow actually started to hurt a bit - which is the elbow I injured flying over my handle bars (on Carlos) a few years ago - but I powered through and turned Pro. Which means I bowl with a sparkly pretty ball now :-)

Saturday night was a lot of bicep curls with margaritas. Brooke's fault!

Sunday Merissa was in town!! We had intentions of ice skating, but after brunch, watching was good enough and a movie seemed like a better idea.

Sunday night was watching the finish of IM Arizona. A bunch of DC tri club people competed and kicked butt. Coach was out there too and I am pretty sure I saw him finish as I watched the live race coverage.

So, between Wii bowling, bicep curls, thoughts of ice skating, and watching IM Arizona - a pretty active weekend without being active. I have talent.

Oh, and no belly dancing tonight so I am trying to tell myself how wonderfully fabulous the gym would be this evening - before the Packers game...

Lazy

That would be me the past 2 days. It's 30 something degrees, my bed is really warm so I don't want to get out of it, and I like doing other things.

Last night was a DC Tri Club happy hour and it was good to catch up with people. It does throw me off a bit when people say they 'talk about me' to others. Yes, I did the Ironman and L-O-V-E talking about it, especially at the seminar for the Club. I also love the fact that I can tell people if you really want it, are dedicated, you can also be an Ironman. I mean really, if I can, anyone can. But, I still get a bit embarrassed when I find out people talk about me.

When I got home last night, I got sucked into You Tube and watched a bunch of Ironman videos. I start to think about what I did, how far 140.6 miles really is, and I still can't wrap my head around it. I think I earned my laziness for a tad bit longer...

Rambling.

Oh, but for some reason, I searched 140.6 and the first thing to come up on Google was the Urban Dictionary definition.

140.6
Popping up like weeds recently on little white bumperstickers belonging to egotistical masochists, this number represents the number of miles triathletes traverse in their feat of insanity. (For the mathematically challenged, that's swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles, and running 26.2).

Funny. And no, Marcus does not have one. OR a 70.3, 26.2, 13.1 or 4.4 (the Bay Swim)

It Runs, I Can't Help It!!

People often give other people dirty looks. I have thrown a few 'looks' my self. However, don't judge me because I wipe my nose on my shirt sleeve. It happened the other day in my weights class and it happened yesterday when I was on the treadmill. It's not like I was blowing snot rockets in the studio or on the carpet! I mean really, it's November, two thirds of this town is sick, recovering from being sick or about to get sick. I wiped it on my sleeve - not yours. And it was way softer than the gross paper towels the building has now. Prissy girls at the gym. Boo. To. That!

But, my 'run' was really good. My friend Scott was on a treadmill and I was able to hop on right next to him. We like to chat because it makes the time go so much faster. He was towards the end of his workout, and going LITERALLY twice as fast as me. Amazing runner that guy. His goal is to do the mile under 5 minutes next year. Mine was to run the 30 minutes straight - which I did thank you very much.

So those have been my workouts. Lift, wipe nose, run, wipe nose, lift wine glass to mouth, wipe nose. I am getting better, but it's a slow process.

Oh-Hum

Another week has started and not too much has happened.

Yesterday I had lunch with Roxanne - who was the first person I watched complete an IM. She has started her own company and her time is limited, so it was good to catch up. To my 5 readers - if anyone needs an event planner - she is the best. (And no, she did not ask me to post this).

I picked lunch over a workout (but I did have a salad) because I knew I had belly dancing. Jess was out, I am still a bit sick, but I went anyway. I think I hurt my shoulder a bit more than I thought with the fall. We have to do shoulder rolls - there was a lot of crunching. I don't think your shoulder is supposed to crunch. But, it is was a good 60 minutes.

Today I took a weights class. I was a little overzealous with my choices in free weights and will be feeling it tomorrow. All in the good way - except for the crunchy shoulder...

Weekend Update

Well, I was plagued with a cold - just like much of DC. It's that time of year where allergies go nuts, the temperature goes from 65 to 45 in 12 hours (then back up 12 hours later), and wind/rain can happen at any moment. But, I still managed to get some stuff done.

Saturday morning I made it to volunteer with KEEN again. My first athlete was a 16 year old boy, Charlie. He wasn't much of a swimmer, but we had did some kicking with a kick board, floating on some noodles, and he knew more about 1960's music than anyone I have ever met. By the end I had him almost to the deep end and close to putting his whole head under water. Not bad for my first time with him.
My second athlete was a bit more - shall we say, challenging. It took 3 of us... Quinn is 6, non-verbal, and very VERY squirmy. He liked to dunk his head in the water, but then looked surprised every time we pulled him up. With all my swim teaching history, it took about 15 minutes to figure out how to hold him best in the water - and this was after one solid elbow to my face - which caused a fat lip. But, it was all worth it when he stop squirming, started to kick (properly), moved his arms in a breaststroke way, all with a HUGE smile. The fat lip was wroth it.

After this was done, I headed to the PA border to visit some friends and their 2 kids. Both were sick, but we had plenty of time to play, i.e. pick them up. It was a really great time but dang - between Quinn and the 2 kids, my arms are SORE. That was a workout all on it's own.

Today, with my growing gut of food and drink (and little to no working out), I dragged my self out for a run. It was cold (45 degrees), windy, and still feeling a bit like poo - I went out. Only for 45 minutes, but it felt good to get out.
And with the cold and a runny nose - you know what that means, good snot rocket practice!!
I do much better running than on the bike.

Bruise Update

It's been a week since "The Fall". Still bruised. Still a bit painful in places, but getting better. Here is a different bruise. I still have plenty to pick from for more pictures later in the week :-)

Fine...

I admit it, fine, I have a cold. I thought it was just allergies going a little bad - however it is now worse than just a bit of a runny nose. And not to be gross, but it the stuff that comes out is no longer clear. Today was spent napping, mixing oj/cranberry/grapefruit juice, and watching tv. Playing Wii requires too much energy.

Hopefully I will feel better tomorrow as I am supposed to volunteer and go visit some friends for the weekend.

And hopefully next week I can get back on track for workouts...

Cheating

Too funny (and sad) to not post.

Thanks Everyman Tri for the story and pic!

And yes, this guy did try to use fins. And yes, he was apparently DQ'ed.

Some people...

It Still Hurts

Once again, excuses or real reasons. It's a debate I often have to feel better about not working out.

See, my entire right side still hurts. Here is one of my many Many MANY bruises. My right knee hurts when I walk if I have been sitting too long, I can't carry my bag on my right shoulder, and my right ankle is so swollen, my super cute boots really hurt when I tried to put them on this morning. It's still not anything serious - i.e. no point in going to a doctor, but how am I supposed to go to the gym??? So, I should be eating better, but no, of course not. I am wallowing in self pity by eating cheesy and friend (and very tasty) things.

Anyway, that's about it for now. Sorry for the complaining. It's no snot rocket story, however I might do a few more random posts on the progress of my bruises.

Happy Veterans Day!

I hope everyone took a few moments to thank those who have done so much for us.

Another Weekend, Another Hike, a first...

This was another pretty good weekend. My volunteering event was cancelled on Saturday morning which lead to a lazy morning and brunch. This was followed by errands and a night of Wii. And Wii cow racing - totally cardio!!

Sunday was great because I finally got to use my new toy (yes, another one - no judgement). I am one of those few people who actually uses her espresso machine. Something I used to do almost every weekend and multiple times a week - except I just didn't have much time this past year. It is wonderful!!

Anyway, my wonderful latte kick started off my day to another hike - back to the Billy Goat Trail. My plan was to go on my own, but my friend Adam wanted to give it a try so we headed out early afternoon. Now just as I finish saying how difficult this trail actually is, we see this. I mean really, the gold purse is one thing, but the shoes!?!?! Wow.

So we start, do a few side trips off the trail to get to the water and some extra rock scrambling. We are getting close to the end and I don't know what happened but I missed a 'jump', slipped, fell on my right side, had momentum that sort of flipped my legs over my head, rolled down a few rocks, and finally stopped before going much further down the side of the 'cliffs'. I stabled myself, got up (with the help of Adam and some other guy who was right behind me) and kept going - just a bit slower. A bit on the scary side, but all is okay and I knew I was very lucky it wasn't worse. And I don't think I will be hiking on my own any time soon - even though it is so pretty!!

Today I am extremely sore down my entire right side. My ankle, knee, hip, elbow, wrist and shoulder are all scrapped up/scabby/swollen and soon to be very black and blue. Not sure how this will affect my belly dancing tonight - that might not be a good idea :-(

Oh, and how do yo get blood out of a white dry fit???

The Veggie Burger Won

I should have gone to the gym. Yes, I know. But I just couldn't, didn't have it in me today. So, the choice was gym or lunch. I chose lunch. And it was so good!!! It's been awhile since I had a veggie burger from Flamers and was well worth the wait. Cheese fries also might have been involved.

That's all I have for today. It's a beautiful day in DC - very not typical for November. But I am not complaining. The rain should hit tomorrow.

Have a great weekend!!

I Am Not the Only Smelly Girl!!

Today was my weights class. I get to the gym, change and am putting on my shoes. I notice a woman starting to go through her gym bag - smelling her shirts.
HA HA HA!!
I had to do that Tuesday as I forgot a new/clean shirt. I thought I was okay until I lifted my arm. Oops. Anyway, it was just nice to see other people have the same issue. Most of the time I think I am the only smelly girl.

That Was Harder Than it Should Have Been!

Dang.
Seriously!!
I'm a flippin' IRONMAN! Less than 2 months ago Blain and I rode 112 miles. In 7 hours 37 minutes and 28 seconds (14.69 mph thank you very much!).

So what was so hard you are asking???

The stationary bike. Yes, I am very ashamed to talk about this, but it's true. My new workout schedule has been 30+ minutes of cardio on Monday/Wednesday, weights classes on Tuesday/Thursday, Pilates on Friday, something fun (HIKING) on the weekends.

Monday I ran
Yesterday I took weights class
Today - that 30 minutes on the bike that KILLED ME! I was on the 'random' setting and it hit levels that just HURT! I started laughing to my self how just a few short weeks ago I was hauling my butt up those dang hills in Verona and now I can't even sit and do this. Blah!!! EMBARRASSING!!!

So, I guess that means I should start biking again to keep any fitness level I have left. This realization did not leave me in a good mood. I wanted to comfort my self with a cookie - but given my (lack of) fitness, I had an apple.

GO VOTE!!

I really don't like talking politics on my blog. My blog is about triathlons, post Ironman, snot rockets, and my (boring) life in general.

However, this is the one time you have a say in what happens in this country - USE IT!

GO VOTE!!!

Iron...

Some might say I am looking a bit sloppy today. Whatever, I have on cute gray herringbone pants, a light pink button down, and maroon flats or black heals.

The problem is the button down - I don't like ironing, even though I have a really nice iron from my grandmother. It's not wrinkly, but the collar won't sit 'right'. Whatever, it was clean, I put it on and came to work.

Because of this, Jess just reminded me of a few signs I saw on the bike course that were along these lines...

"Go IronWOMAN. Real men don't Iron".

Get it, iron-MAN, Ironman. HA! I crack my self up.

I Am Not Allowed to Buy Goldfish Anymore

I have given myself a lot of leeway since IM Moo on the diet. I mean, really, it hasn't even been two months! And with the trip to Ireland, I figured I totally earned to not worry about diet for awhile.

Well, now that my belly is coming back (in part due to stupid, wonderful, tasty beer) I am trying to be better about eating. Yesterday after hiking (healthy) I spent the day making healthy breakfast sandwiches with turkey bacon and low fat cheese as well as a pan of baked spaghetti with whole wheat pasta, lean ground beef and fresh veggies. Sounds great, right? Well, this morning at the store I went to pick up a few apples and bananas (again, HEALTHY) I grabbed a bag of Goldfish. Silly me, I know better. This morning I handful (okay 2 big handfuls) to tie me over until I went to the gym (once again, HEALTHY). I had my baked spaghetti and grabbed a handful (fine, 2+ handfuls) and just went to look at what was left... it's sad and too embarrassing to say what was left.

We will just leave it with when I am in my belly dancing class tonight, my dancing belly will be full of dancing goldfish.

Oh, and congrats to all how finished IM Florida and got in for 2009! I have to say, I actually went on to Active dot com and was very tempted... but not yet. Too soon. I can't believe I am saying this, but maybe 2010. And this is Brooke's fault.

I Do Like Hiking

This was a pretty good weekend. Yesterday was Kristin's birthday (HAPPY BIRTHDAY KRISTIN) and Lauren and I took her to a very tasty brunch followed by shopping - i.e. cardio. I followed this up with a fondue party and learning to play bridge. Yes, I am 79 years old.

Today, M.E. and I went hiking on the Billy Goat Trail. It was a beautiful day and we were not the only ones out there. The hike was much tougher than expected, but in a good way. Also, way too many kids for this level of difficulty. I am all about getting kids outside, but really, not when you have to clime up the side of rocks that with one slip you could be in the Potomac - not a place for little children.

But people did bring amusing moments. Quotes from the day

• Little 4 year old boy to 4 year old girl - "You farted" but it was said more like "futteted" and continued to yell it for as long as they were in ear shot
  
• 8 year old girl to her mom "Mom, this is where you should fall in the mud"
• Annoying 23 year old girl (who hopefully wasn't on a date because if she was, pretty sure it was the last) who didn't stop talking "I am 23, when I turn 26, I am going to stay there for like a decade."

But even with the annoying woman behind us for the last part, we managed to enjoy the day and have a beautiful hike. I am very much enjoying finding different ways to exercise that are not swimming, biking and running!