Balancing Act

Food, it is an essential part of our life. Without it, we could not live. Some people live to eat and others eat to live. I’m not sure I was ever a person who lived to eat; however, over the years the phrase eating to live took on new meaning to me.

Almost ten years ago, I decided to revisit this idea of being an athlete. I had not participated in anything that remotely resembled exercise since High School. In April of 2000 I started running. Actually, let’s call it jogging. Somewhere it turned into running but it definitely was not that when I started! In August of the same year, I entered my first road race since high school. That was it; I was completely hooked and have been racing consistently since that day. Soon fueling my body became an important part of my training. I started becoming very conscious of everything that I put into my body. I read many books, including Eat Smart, Play Hard by Liz Applegate, which I would recommend to anyone. I started to learn which foods were the best for me as a female and as an athlete. During my beginning years of running I also developed a chronic iron deficiency, although common among runners, sometimes difficult to resolve. Another round of research of all the foods rich in iron and a search to find an iron supplement that did not make me sick. Luckily, after a year of trying at least a half dozen different iron supplements I found one that worked. Another year of taking the supplement and I was finally able to maintain my iron levels. Anyone who has experienced low iron knows that it can wreak havoc on your energy levels.

In 2005 I decided to throw my hat into the triathlon ring and give the sport a shot. This brought me to a whole new level of balancing my caloric intake against caloric burn. For example, when you start your day with a 4 hour brick workout that results in a 3000 calorie deficit, it’s hard to intake enough food to replenish the body; however, if you don’t, your future workouts suffer. Throw in a strong desire to be the ideal race weight and you have added another component to already difficult balancing act.

I have lost my balance several times. They say that for every pound you take off, you can save 1-3 seconds per mile. Wow, when I learned that I won’t even tell you the calculations going on in my head! But, there is a point of diminishing return and you know when you get there. Your body cannot take the stress that you are putting it through. I have learned the hard way about not eating enough and being married to your scale.

I recently became very focused on my nutrition and weight again after losing my balance, which is what prompted this post. I am very in tune with my body, as most athletes are. I know when I’m on and I know when I’m off. I have all the tools and the knowledge to stay balanced; I just have to make that conscious decision every day to stay that way.

You will hear many triathletes say that proper nutrition is the fourth discipline, because without it we could never swim, bike, and run.

Peak Performance Maine Marathon Relay Race Report

Maine Marathon weekend!!!! This is my favorite road racing weekend ever! Cool fall temps, everyone comes out to join in for the full marathon, the half marathon, or the relay. And if you aren't running you are volunteering. All the athletes show up on this day ... it's such a great day! Looking back, I've participated in the following:

2001 - Half Marathon (my first)
2002 - Half Marathon (ran with my dad)
2003 - Marathon (my first marathon)
2004 - Marathon (my second marathon and first Boston qualifying time)
2005 - Marathon Relay (set the course record for the female relay, which still stands today)
2006 - Injured ... ugh!
2007 - Half Marathon (turned myself inside out for an 11th place finish and PR of 1:31)
2008 - A volunteer

And that leads me to 2009. I debated for awhile on this. I originally was going to run the half, but after a long season I didn't feel the need to tackle the distance so decided to put together a relay instead. Besides, relays are so much fun. I sent out an email to my Nor'Easter teammates and instantly had a team put together. Erin - leg one - 6 miles, Nicole - leg 2 - 8.8 miles, Kiely - leg 3 6.2 miles, and Me - leg 4 - 5.2 miles. We're a go ... the Nor'Easter Girls!

Weather forecast predicted rain. It poured the night before, including wind, thunder, and lightning; however, I woke up on race morning to a calm, overcast, dry day. Perfect! I made it to the start early and slowly rounded up my teammates. We reviewed logistics of getting everyone to and from the relay exchange points. Erin was out lead leg so Kiely, Nicole, and I watched her start then headed out. We all piled in my car and headed to exchange point one. We dropped Nicole off and wished her luck. Kiely and I headed to Yarmouth to drop her at exchange point two. I then headed back to Falmouth to park and get ready at exchange point three. Off with my warm-up clothes, on with a throw away shirt, a quick change into my running flats and I was off. I arrived at my exchange point with an hour to go.

Okay, time to warm-up. After a good warm-up and stretch, I started to look around at the competition. Now, we all said we were doing this for fun, but c'mon ... we're triathetes!!!! I sized everyone one up and decided I only saw one other lady who might be my competition so I approached and asked ... sure enough, I was right. More warm-up, waiting, waiting... the other women's team took off and I started clocking the time between hand offs. 10 minutes later Kiely came over the hill and tagged me ... I'm off. First mile was fast but it's hard when you take off all psyched up and it's all downhill. I settled in and was feeling really good. I tried to keep relaxed and in rhythm. I could here my best friend echoing in my head about over striding and keeping my arms relaxed. I kept checking my form. The miles were clicking off fast. I heard a lot of cheers for the Nor'Easter team. As I turned onto Baxter Blvd I had just under 2 miles to go. I knew my teammates were waiting for me near the finish and couldn't wait to see them. As I approached about a half mile to go they joined me and we all ran in together. That was such a boost to me! Crossing the finish all four of us side by side was great. There is a great dynamic to a team effort!

I took a minute out of the other team and we finished in second place. I was very happy with my run and felt that I had nothing left. That is the way you're suppose to feel... tired, hurting, out of breathe, and happy knowing you left it all on the course.

Another great day on Maine Marathon weekend!!

Colby Triathlon Race Report

Saturday was my last tri of the season. The Colby Tri has to be one of my favorite races! It is low key, lots of fun, and always the last race of the season.

I had my toes done Friday night. A little pre-race ritual when I'm really excited about a race. I laid out all my gear Friday night as well. Packing was tough as it was suppose to be fairly chilly Saturday morning. Well, fairly chilly it was!! It wasn't even 40 when I arrived at the race. It did warm up a little by the start but it was by no means even close to being warm.

I checked in, got body marked, set up transition, went for a warm-up run, and then into my wetsuit. Did a quick warm up swim and then waited for the start. As I stood on the dock, I was thinking of the advice my best friend gave me ... "Lay it all out there, don't leave a thing behind ... end the season on a high note."

Alright, show time. When they said go I went. I swam harder than I have ever swam before in a race and I survived! Something to take into next season for sure. Into T1 and out on the bike. I had not been on my bike for almost 6 weeks so it took me a bit to feel good, but once I warmed up things went fairly well. I didn't break any records, but I went as hard as I could at the time. I did drop my chain around mile 11, but I was able to put in back on in seconds. Into T2 and out on the run. My feet were pretty cold from the bike but overall I felt good. I met Catherine coming in for the overall win as I was heading out. She looked great. A few minutes after that I met Nicole coming in for her second place finish. We did a quick high five as we passed. I was feeling really good on the run and after the turnaround really pushed the pace. As I was coming in for the finish Catherine and Nicole had both come up to the road to cheer me on ... always nice to be racing with your teammates. Finished 6th female and 1st in my age group.

As I was getting in my car, Catherine rolls down her car window, leans out and says, "Season's over. Now what do we do?"

Good question.

What if ...

Shel Silverstein said, "Last night, while I lay thinking here, some what ifs crawled inside my ear and pranced and partied all night long and sang their same old what if song."

We all run the what ifs through our mind ...

What if we had done more
What if we had done less
What if we had said no
What if we had said yes
What if we were better
What if we were less

Does it ever make any difference? My thoughts, no. All the what ifs do is take up a lot of time and energy. Life is what it is ... roll with it, accept it, live with it. We are all just who we are and we all just do what we do. Does everything happen for a reason, well that's a topic for another day ...

My Aunt Linda ...

My Aunt Linda passed away Thursday, August 27th 2009. I spent a lot of time with her as a child, but did not get an opportunity to spend much time with her as an adult; however, we had a connection that ran deep, really deep. She had battle with cancer that lasted 35 years. I have never met a woman that had so much courage and will to live than her. I would like to think that played a part in who I am today, and I will forever be grateful.

She always said that we had a connection that she couldn't explain, even though we were not able to spend time together. I was named after her, looked like her, and now as an adult I display the qualities she had. I only hope that I can make her proud by living the way she did. She was an amazing person and the world is definitely a lessor place without her. I will miss her dearly.

As much as I grieve over her death, I feel some relief knowing that she no longer has to suffer. She deserves the best and I know, without a doubt, she is in a better place. I love you Linda Sue ...

Here we go...

After long thought and discussion... contemplating many
options, I finally decided.

I signed up for Ironman CDA... 6/27/2010.

It is official!

Like I said... here we go...

Race report catch up ...

Wow ... so I moved into my new apartment May 1st and just got around to hooking up my computer so am way behind in blogging.

I have missed multiple race reports in that time. I don't have the patience to blog about each one, so here are the highlights:

May 1 - Polar Bear Triathlon
First tri of the season. Raced a few weeks post Boston, still fatigued and very tired from moving the entire day before.

May 16 - Bedford 12k
This was the 3rd race in the quest for the jacket. Raced extremely tired from finals at school, some personal stress, and an impromptu trip out of town.

June 6 - Mooseman Triathlon
I arrived at this race after 4 days in NJ for an insurance training class. Drove straight from the airport to the race site ... little tired but nothing major. Slept great in my tent. I love sleeping in my tent. Weird. Race morning was good. All was pretty normal. I was trying not to freak out about the swim as I have been having issues with that lately. Start ... swim didn't go to well. I kept feeling like I couldn't breathe and having to stop. My swim split was slow. Then, coming out of T1 I mounted my bike and then somehow got tangled with another girl. Our handlebars hit, my bike went down, I went over the handlebars and hit the ground, hard. I got up and took off, shaking. I kept telling myself to shake it off and relax. I kept riding and then realized that something was wrong with my bike. Dismount. It was just my brake rubbing. I fixed it and took back off. The first time I reached up to shift, pain shot through my hand and I thought, wow ... that's not good. I looked down at my right hand and it was already swollen and bruised. I kept riding and fought back a few tears. I soon relaxed but was having problems shifting and getting my water bottle in and out. Half way through the ride the road was really rough and the vibrations were sending shock waves through my hand. I tried riding with one hand for awhile then frustrated and in pain, I started to cry. Okay, this is not me. I started to yell at myself in my head ... dude, suck it up and get over it. There's probably nothing wrong. No excuses. Luckily the road smoothed out and I was able to drop back in my aerobars for awhile and got myself together for the end of the bike. I was really happy to get off that bike. T2 proved a challenge as I had a hard time getting my shoes on with one hand. Once I headed out on the run, I felt good. Adrenalin took over, the pain went away, and I had a really good run split. However, the moment I crossed the finish line I knew something was wrong and the pain came rushing back. I went straight to the med tent for ice. They told me something was probably broken ... which was confirmed 2 days later. Ugh.

June 7 - Rhody 5k
The 4th race in the quest for the jacket. This was the day after the Mooseman. I woke up tired, with a swollen hand, and still in pain. I drove almost 3 hours, ran a 5K in a pretty respectable time given the circumstances, then drove almost 3 hours home. Wow, earning the jacket... that's all I have to say about that.

June 21 - Portland Seadogs Fathers Day 5k
Nothing to say here ... ran it as a workout.

July 12 - Rhode Island 70.3 Triathlon
My Half Ironman and what was to be my BIG race of the season. Unfortunately, having a splint on my hand for a week and a cast for 3, put a damper on my training for this race. I went down, did the distance, and finished. Maybe the only good thing that came out of this race is that I had a good swim with no freak outs and my fastest bike split in a half yet, which is ironic seeing that the bike is what I trained on the least.

Many more races to come this season ... 3 more triathlons and 3 more races in the quest for the jacket. Stay tuned ...