My 1st Triathalon

Ok, first off let me say, I have a whole new respect for athletes who participate in these types of activities. It put the Ironman series in a whole new light!!!

Ok, so Saturday was my first triathalon. It was actually more like a mini one (not quite a true half). It was an intense and totally rewarding experience. I showed me that I have a LONG way to go, but that it's do-able. :) I'll just go through the day...

Friday, I went to bed around 8:30-9ish. I had a difficult time sleeping, partly because it was earlier than I was used to and partly because I was so nervous. I got up around 4:45am and finished packing my gear. I took some electrolyte waters with me and ate a peach for breakfast. Michael drove me out there and was my personal cheerleader. :) On the way, I drank a RTD EAS protein drink (I should have done better on my breakfast). I got there and was totally mind-f*cked at first. Since I picked up my packet Friday, I already knew my numbers. So, I got marked, had my bike checked and then put everything up in the transition area. I think normally it's a first-come, first-serve basis on getting the best bike rack spot, but they had ours marked for us. I guess it made it a little easier and less confusing. I ended up in a sports bra, my race suit from HS, and shorts for the swim. I figured I could just throw my tank top on for the bike and then swap into longer shorts for the run. I made the mistake of pinning my number onto my shirt (race belt = new best friend). Once I got everything set up, I went and got my timing chip ankle bracelet. We had a meeting where they didn't give any more info than they already had, and then it was time to head to the pool.

For the swim, they had us (all 400 & something of us!) line up according to our swim times. Everyone was supposed to time themselves for a 50 meter swim and then use a chart they supplied a few weeks ago to figure where your time is. I gave myself extra time, so I stood in the 11 minute line. About 10 minutes into waiting, I realized from the conversations around me that I needed to move up in the line to my actual 9 minute time. So, I slipped on up. The line was really more like a group until you got close to the start, so no one noticed. :) When I got up to the front, I stepped on the mat to start my timing chip and made the mistake of jumping in instead of sliding in. See, the pool was like 8 feet deep, so I had to wait until I surfaced again before I could push off and start (there was no diving allowed). That didn't help my time, but no biggie. The swim was definitely harder than I anticipated. It also didn't help that a girl in front of my obviously misjudged her time and started taking up the entire lane at one point. There was a nice little cluster-f*ck at one point. I ended up doing right over 9min 50 sec on my swim. This is where I earned a battle wound. The volunteers were pulling people out of the pool when they got to the latter. Well, they didn't give me time to get my footing and my shin slammed against the edge of the pool. OUCH. >:( (BTW, I should have realized that when the first girl in the pool was wearing an LSU swim cap AND finished 2 laps ahead of the person behind her that this was no joke! lol).

So, I jog out to my bike (everything was slippery and wet) and start throwing on my shoes. As I go to put on my tank top, my number rips. Great. I'm still soaking wet, mind you. So I get my top on and re-pin my numbers. I realized after I was on my bike that my chin strap on my helmet was way too tight. Something I had plenty of time to check before the race and never thought to. So, once I finally get situated, I'm off and coasting. I maintained about 15-16 mph on the 12 mile trip. The roads were horrible though - lots of bumps, cracks and a few potholes. I started to get discouraged because even though I passed like 5 people, I had about 15 pass me. I finally realized that they were all road bikes that were passing me. I need to get one of those. I had no idea that the difference between those and a mountain bike was that big. So, I make it back to the transition area, and I pretty much feel like I'm about to die and that there is NO WAY IN HELL I could possibly run 2 miles after the swim and bike. I wanted to cry, but told myself I was just going to suck it up, and even if I had to walk I was going to finish. I got my bike back to the rack and as soon as I put it up, I knock the girl next to me's bike off the rack. Of course, I had to stop and put it back. Then I swapped out my shorts because I was definitely not running in booty shorts (wardrobe will be better planned next time). That all took way too much time. I finally got out on the running course. It sucked. OMG, it sucked. I ran/jogged as much as I could, but with the heat and my heart rate going berserk, I had to slow down a few times. However, when I saw that finish line, I definitely picked it up. Crossing that finish line was one of the best feelings in the world (you know, OMG IT'S FINALLY OVER!!!!! lol). I got my Finisher medal and a fresh bottle of water. It was time to sit down! :)

My final time was 1:29:41, and my overall place was 94 (out of 399 actual finishers). I was 24th in my class. I'm not ashamed of my times, but I know now that I have so much more in me. I think I did well for my first time though. I can't wait to do another one, but I'm still very intimidated. I realize that I need a lot of training before then!

Getting close!

The triathalon is this Saturday! I'm already uber nervous! I guess my biggest fear is doing poorly. I have no doubt I'll finish, but I don't want to finish last! lol! I have 3 days of training left, and then I pick up my registration packet Friday afternoon. I was reading an email they sent with reminders and tips, and they said that if we get rained out, there's no make-up day scheduled. Soooo, basically if Mother Nature literally rains on the race, I'm just screwed out of $70! Um, not cool. We have a 40% chance with scattered thunder storms for Saturday. I will be so pissed if it gets canceled!

Today has been pretty eventful. Melody took me shopping at Whole Foods so that I could restock my kitchen. I learned a lot and got a MUCH better feel for the store and what's available to me. I definitely feel like a smarter shopper now! :)

I'm about to head out to Tri training! Hopefully the rain brought that heat index down a tad! :)

Triathalon Training Day 1 - COMPLETE

Yesterday was Day 1 of Triathalon Training. I wanted to die. I only thought I hated running. Oh no, it's worse than I ever imagined. Running can go to hell. I obviously did not understand triathalon training. Yesterday we did biking and then running, Wednesday we will run then swim, and Saturday we will bike then swim. Mondays suck. Good thing it's only three weeks!

I didn't get to the gym in time to do my NROLFW work-out, and it's probably better that I didn't. The training took everything out of me. I was thinking I would try to get up at 5:30am and go work-out this morning, but that didn't work. LOL! I have to go to New Orleans for a meeting tonight. I hope I get back in time to hit the gym, but it's very unlikely. So, I guess I will do my best to finish Stage 1 within this week and next, so that I can really focus on the triathalon in the third week of training.

Thursday, Jason is meeting me at LSU to give me his old car bike rack and to show me the trail I will be riding on the day of the race. I used my Academy b-day card to get bike shorts and a helmet last night. I need to find my old racing swimsuit from high school. I looked at some last night....and definitely forgot how expensive they are!! $75 for a one-piece racing suit! wtf. Is it lined with gold?!

I am getting excited, though. I know that it will feel great to cross that finish line. :)

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EDIT:

So, I just went to register for the race, and it is freaking FULL! WTF?! 400 people have already signed up, and that's the max. >:( I emailed them to ask if someone drops out will they reopen the registration because I really want to do the race. Hopefully they will. I'm majorly bummed... :(

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EDIT 2:

YAY!! The lady emailed me back and said they opened up 20 more spots! I am now registered!! WHEW! lol!

Smile.

Last night Michael and I had a playdate for Koopa with Michelle and Jeremy's new dog, Major Moogie. He's a great dane, and less than a year old. They were a little weary of each other at first, but Moogie used to be around small dogs all the time before Jeremy and Michelle adopted him - so it didn't take long. It was kind of like watching Koopa play with Beau all over again. Moogie would put his head down and let Koopa jump on top of him and they'd wrestle around. It was really cute and sweet. I got some pics of it that I will post soon.

Michelle said she would cook dinner, so I figured that I would keep my calories low during the day since I wasn't sure of what she was going to fix. She called and left a message saying something about maybe tacos, or even Hungry-Girl tacos. Still, I remained tame through the day. I did, however, have an intense work-out! I did my NROLFW routine, and then jumped on the eliptical for some HIIT. Then, as I'm walking out the door, Ashley stops me and convinces me to go to her Spin class. I was like, "You can't yell at me! I just worked legs AND did HIIT, so this is like suicide!" lol She still yelled at me. :P

So, anyway... We get to Jeremy and Michelle's, and she is whipping up this insanely good recipe! It was the Philly Cheesesteak Lettuce Cups from the new Hungry-Girl cookbook. Yum! But to make it more filling, she put the recipe in low carb tortillas. OMG. It made my day! Since I had kept my calories so low and had a crazy work-out, I went ahead and had some wine. :) I probably would've had the wine anyway, but it didn't feel as guilty! lol!

It just makes me so happy when my girlfriends are asking for my advice and using the same EASY methods I did to get back in shape. I loaned my original Hungry-Girl cookbook to Leah, and I hope she's using those recipes too. The one Michelle used was out of the 200 Under 200 recipe book. I need to get that one. I was flipping through, and there are a ton of easy recipes I could do for lunch or a light dinner.

The whole night just made me smile. :)

Almost finished with Stage 1

I only have 7 more work-outs (less than 2 weeks) before I have finished Stage 1 of NROLFW. The biggest change I've seen so far from this stage is in my legs. I definitely have more definition and strength there now. It's not a big change, but I realized pretty early on that this particular stage is more of a "set-up for success" for the rest of the program. The exercises are pretty basic and I have found it easy to go up in weight at almost every session. Yesterday was a toughy though - I definitely pushed myself.

Starting next week, I will be incorporating Triathalon training/boot camp with this program. The training will only last 3 weeks, and will end with an actual Triathalon on August 1st. I've been very excited, and then I started reading more info on the site yesterday... I'm still excited, but more nervous about screwing up now! lol It's very easy to get disqualified if you're not completely aware of yourself the entire time. I zone out a lot when I'm on my bike, so I am really hoping that this training will help my concentration! :) This event is going to determine if I start getting into competitive training. I have a lot of things I want to do as far as my health and fitness is concerned, and I feel like I would enjoy it even more if I had competitions and goals to hit along the way.

Michael has made it very clear that he's ready to start trying to have a baby. That makes me very excited, of course. However...I am going to sound selfish here...I just don't think I'm ready to sacrifice my body for that yet. Michael thinks that as long as I continue to be healthy through the pregnancy and not lose my zeal, that I will lose the baby weight in no time. I, on the other hand, also see the other sacrifices my body would have to make - STRETCH MARKS! I have enough as it is, and I have seen other people's and how deep and dark they are. I'm just not ready! I know that once I do get pregnant and have that baby, that everything will have been worth it. However, I am sitting on the other side right now, so it's not worth it! :P

The thing is, I have more that I want to do before a baby comes along. I think next summer would be a good time for us to think about it again. I want to go to Disney World (since Michael hasn't gone yet), and visit Europe before a baby comes. I wouldn't mind being in the early stages of pregnancy in Europe, but I don't want to be full-blown, big, fat pregnant. Of course, if I get pregnant at anytime, I will welcome it. I just don't want to plan it right now, and I will continue to take precautions in the meantime. Michael and I had agreed way back at a certain amount we would need to bring home together before we started a family. We're about 15k/year away from that goal. Our goal was a little steep anyway, so I guess that's why Michael feels we're more than ready. lol I just think that if we have another year from now before that 9 month countdown starts, that when the little bumkin gets here we'll be at our goal and everything would be awesome. :) Of course, nothing ever works out perfectly like you imagine (or so they say)...

I've come too far...

...to let some petty bullshit pull me down.

Why is it a crime to be successful? Why do some people feel the need to bring you down all the time? I feel like I give and give of myself, only to be belittled by people I call "friends". I do realize that I have been very fortunate in my career field. I was given a chance when the company had no real basis to go on with me. However, it has been the greatest experience of my life, and I thank God everyday for the opportunity to continue to grow in my professional life. Granted, I don't know the specifics as to why I was given this chance, but don't you think that if I had not been living up to or surpassing my boss's expectations of me that I would be gone already? I have been in this position for over two years now. That's plenty long enough to have been let go if they weren't seeing what they expected out of me.

I had to go through all of the bitterness from other employees when I was promoted, and I dealt with it in the best way possible - by just doing my job. I was asked to interview for the position, so obviously there was something that they saw in me and my work ethic up to that point. However, if you came into this company after me, then you have absolutely no basis to be bitter with me or hold anything against me. My job is important and I take pride in it.

I had a nice, long talk with Michael last night about some feelings I have been going through. He opened my eyes to a lot things that I either didn't see or just didn't want to see. I am at a completely different stage in life than some of my friends. That's not wrong, it's just different. Because of this, there is a wall between us. How we deal with that wall is what makes the difference. I can put my professional life aside and have a good time with people, regardless of where they stand professionally or otherwise. However, I am starting to see that others cannot. I am friends with people that I feel are way beyond me, and it does not bother me. Some people are more ambitious, or they were just in the right place at the right time. Why would I be upset that they are successful? Almost all of my friends are in a better financial situation than me because of what their family left them, their parents or their significant other and their family. I don't hate them for that. So, why do those same people treat me so cruelly when I have made my own way? Is it jealousy? To me, that seems so juvenile that I don't even want to consider it.

I'm just tired and upset... I want people in my life who appreciate the things I have done for them, and who will not bring me down because of their own shortcomings.

It has begun.

So, last week I finished reading through New Rules of Lifting for Women. I had originally planned to start last week, but I really wanted to get through the book and understand the diet plan first. I'm glad I did, because I started a VERY successful week 1 this week! The diet plan is very easy for me to follow since it incorporates a lot of food items I already have and use. It also calls for me to eat every few hours, so I'm less likely to go throughout the day forgetting to eat and then screw up on a burger or something greasy.

What's funny is that I have lost about 2 lbs. so far, but I have upped my calories a lot for me. I was taking in around 1200-1400, and this week I've gone up to 1800-2000. I guess a huge part of that is the macroratio. I'm eating a lot more protein than I usually do, which is great! I like how Casandra uses protein powder in ways I would never have thought of. My favorite breakfast for work days is a mini whole wheat bagel, reduced fat cream cheese, and a protein iced coffee (coffee, skim milk and protein powder). It's quick, easy and filling! I'm still palying around with the lunch and dinner recipes. The snacks are great too. I love the red pepper and hummus, and the apple with natural peanut butter. I know I may be way too excited, but it has always been difficult for me to follow the diet part of the programs I've done in the past. They would always call for weird ingredients or just too much time in the kitchen for breakfast or lunch. I'm a roll-out-of-bed-and-grab-it-on-my-way-out-the-door kind of girl in the morning, and I hardly ever waste the gas to go home on my lunch break unless it is absolutely necessary for some reason.

I'm thinking about talking to Ambrey (a girl I used to work with and who is now the Director of my gym) about what I need to do to be Spin and Body Pump certified - especially Spin. Body Pump requires you to learn new routines every few months, and I kind of feel like I would barely have one down before they're asking me to learn another one. There is a lot more freedom with Spin, and I love all of the different instructors and their variations. It's just a thought. I don't think I have the personality to be a personal trainer - I just don't feel like I can be hard on someone when I'm so far from perfect in my diet and exercise! lol However, I think I could do this since it doesn't require me to harp on anyone about what they do outside of that 45-60 minutes.

My plan is to take pictures of my progress with NROLFW at least twice a month. I'm going to take my week 1 pics this weekend! :) I can't wait to see the next set to compare. I believe that doing this will help keep me motivated over the next 6 months. I've come so far, and while I've wanted to scream it from the mountain tops that I am healthier than ever, I still feel like I have so far to go. If someone asks me about what I'm doing, or mentions something about me losing weight, then I'll talk about it at that time. Or the people in my life who are health conscious, yeah, I definitely talk about it with them regularly. I just don't want to be "that girl" at work, the gym or otherwise who boasts about all the work-outs she's doing or how many calories she had or burned that day and still be looking like a chunky monkey, ya know? Everyone's opinion is different about health and beauty, but until I can stand naked in front of a mirror and see muscle tone all over without flexing, you won't catch me bragging! lol My hope and prayer is that NROLFW gets me to that point FINALLY! :D