Random Five Friday 4-27-12

1. The weather here has been typical Minnesota spring.  Last Saturday morning it was 40 and rainy, we had two days this week that were 80 and windy, tomorrow it might snow.  I am sick of putting the bike on the trainer and taking it back off.  Plus, after being able to ride outside, it's hard to get the motivation to be confined to the dungeon again!  Maybe someday I'll have two bikes...nah, I doubt it.

2.  I had an analysis and consult with a registered dietitian.  She told me to eat more carbs and less fat.  (I knew I ate too much cheese, but didn't realize my carb intake was so low!)  Also, my increased carbs should not add fiber because I am already approaching recommended daily limit.  More white rice and potatoes for me :)

3.  Masters swim has been extended one more month due to popular demand!  Yay!  It came down to the wire, but we were able to find enough people to fill a class for another month.  No small feat in this rural area.

4.  I have a coach!  More about this exciting news later!

5.  Week one of no running is almost over!  It wasn't hard to stay inside and not run today watching the wind whip the trees  in the front yard and listening to it howl.  One more week and then we'll see what Coach and the PT (sis) have to say.

Have a great weekend!  Good luck to everyone racing!

First outdoor ride of 2012

12 miles. Just under 45 minutes. I had forgotten how much "real" hills hurt the first time each year. Beautiful day, though, and fun to be out!

I have to walk 0.7 miles to the tar road.  I hide my  shoes by the stop sign while I ride. 

Changing my shoes on the side of the road.  

See, my aerobars are good for something, even if I am too much of a wienie to  actually get down and ride in them.  All loaded up and ready for the walk back up the gravel road to home.  

Training Log April 16-22

This week started out great! I was back, mentally and physically. Well, I guess I'll just let you see how things went.

Mon: planned rest day
Tues: My first two-a-day in a LONG time. It felt awesome! Workout #1 was half of "Ride Faster With Chrissie #2" (30 minutes), followed by a 2 mile run off the bike. I should run off the bike more often. I felt slow, but I ran fast! Workout #2 was 30 minutes of swim drills (mostly pulls) followed by a 15 minute run followed by master swim. 2 hours and 35 minutes total in workouts for the day and I still felt great.
Weds: After Tuesday's double, my hip flexor still felt good (even sans KT Tape) so I decided to attempt my scheduled hill workout. I did choose an easier hill than I otherwise would have, but it was still challenging after having some time off. I decided to apply KT Tape prior to the hill workout just as an extra precaution. 6 hill repeats, 3 miles total, 30:23
Thurs: unplanned rest day. Liam decided not to nap. There went my trainer ride.
Fri: 35 min easy run. It. Felt. Like. Death. The whole run. At 11:08 pace. Seriously?!? I just ran hills two days before at 10:08 pace! My hip flexor didn't really bother me during the run, but my leg started to ache later in the afternoon.
Sat: Hip flexor felt good when I woke up. It was 40 degrees and rainy for the Couch-to-5k group that I lead so I left Liam at home with Dave. I was happy to see that 13 of the 18 ladies I our group braved the rain to come work out with us! Workout for the day was a 5 minute walk for a warmup, followed by 20 minutes of alternating 90 seconds of running with 2 minutes of walking. Easy for me, but somehow I found myself limping just half an hour later! How could this easy workout be my undoing? I took the rest of the day off.
Sun: Still limping. Badly enough that people notice. The hip flexor injury is causing compensation in the surrounding muscle groups and some of them are SORE! Sunday ends up being a rest day also.

I talked to my sister, a physical therapist, and her opinion is that I need to take at least one week, maybe two off of running. I will listen to her, after all, this is how she makes a living. I don't like it. Running is easier to do with Liam. Biking and swimming require that I find someone to watch him. I also find stress relief in running. I enjoy biking and swimming, but don't find myself in these activities like I do when I run.
And that is exactly why I need to take the time to take care of this injury now. I can take two weeks now, or I can take two months (or longer) later. I'll take two weeks now.

I am in the process of hiring a coach. It was something I wanted to do next year anyway when I want to train for a full iron distance triathlon. Dave and I talked about it earlier this year and decided that when I had my dizziness issues under control I could hire a coach. I am able to run through my dizziness, and although we are still searching for a cause and remedy, my doctors have cleared me for all exercise. Now that I am having the hip flexor issue, I need the help of a coach more than ever. I know how to write a training plan for running. When it comes to swimming and biking, aside from the basic principles of training, I'm completely lost!

My biggest goal for 2012 was to get stronger and faster without  getting injured, setting myself up to train for a full iron-distance triathlon in 2013.  So much for not getting injured.  But I am staying positive, I am dealing with this injury early, and I am seeking help.  It will all work out just fine.

Happy Monday!

Random Five Friday: Food Edition

My GI issues have led me to think a lot about food lately. Especially about the foods I would most not want to give up.

1. Cheese. Any kind, really, but my favorite is Manchego.

2. Wine. If they could make a good non-alcoholic version I'd totally go for it. I've had some that were decent, but none that could quite be called good. My current favorite wine (of the regular alcoholic variety) is Evodia.  Garnacha is soooo good!

3. Hummus. I can't quite get into the veggies with hummus craze, but chips or pita and hummus? Yes, please! Guacamole is a close second.

4. Asparagus. The only veggie I truly love. And don't you dare try to dress it up with any seasoning or sauces! A little butter/olive oil and just a sprinkling of salt and pepper and it is absolute perfection! Adding anything else to it just messes it up.

5. Sylvia Bars. A delectable treat only made at Christmas in our family (both because they are putsy and because they are little calorie bombs). Why are they called "Sylvia Bars"? Apparently Grandma got the recipe from a lady named Sylvia. Currently, I am not able to eat these, they contain graham crackers (gluten, ack!). Luckily, I have all year to find an acceptable gluten-free ingredient substitution!


What are the 5 foods you wouldn't want to do without?

I think I'm back...

I've really been absent for the most part on the internet lately.  I don't really know why.  

Apparently I just needed a break.  I did get injured, but I have been doing some training here and there.  And of course, there are the posts I could write on dealing with injury, motivating yourself to cross-train, blah-blah-blah...  But I was really in a funk for a while there.  I have no better way to explain it.  I wasn't really depressed or sad, just...well...I guess un-motivated is the best word for it.  But now it's gone, so we're moving on!

I've written out my workouts for the week, cooked up a refrigerator full of healthy food, and so far have stuck to the plan.  

I'll leave you with the refrigerator wisdom for the week, a saying that has been making it's way around Pinterest, Twitter, etc...:

Random Five Friday (the 13th!)

1.  I don't like bananas, but if you put a little Nutella on a banana, it magically becomes one of my favorite snacks!

2.  I eat a banana as part of every pre-race breakfast, even though I don't like them.  Apparently race-day, like Nutella, magically makes bananas taste better.

3.  Speaking of magic things... have you tried KT tape for an injury?  KT tape is also magic.  I'm using it for my hip flexor pull.  I really didn't think it was helping much, until I took it off...

4.  Also magic:  My ENT is trying me on a new medication for my dizziness.  When I asked him how it worked he said, "they really don't know".  So I guess my medication is magic,too.  Oh, and one of the possible side effects is weight loss....shucks ;)

5.  Nothing to do with magic:  Liam said his first full sentence this week.  Are you ready for the amazing wisdom that came out of my child's mouth?

"Bye-bye, messy poop."  

On second thought, if you're only not-quite-2-yrs-old, both poop and toilets are probably magic.

Happy Friday the 13th!

Random Five...

1.  It feels like an eternity since I last posted on this blog.  In reality, it was only 11 days.  I skipped a training log in there, but I got injured so suffice it to say there was very little training done.

2.  We have asparagus!  Three little shoots the other day.  I've been keeping an eye on it.  It it gets warm again today it might be ready to pick tomorrow.  If it stays chilly, it will be a few more days.

3.  Snuggling with your toddler, watching his favorite Christmas show after getting matching mother-son "tattoos", is a wonderful way to spend a Friday evening!

4. I added some side planks to my #plankaday yesterday.  Today I feel like someone punched me in the kidneys.  Ouch.

5.  Too much to do on this beautiful sunny day to spend any more time on the computer...

Have a GREAT day!