On swimming
It occurred to me the other day that swimming in the Hilton pool, despite its shortness, might actually be a beneficial place to train for a triathlon in a lake for the following reasons:
1. It's always a little murky.
2. The constant interruption of laps due to its short length may accurately recreate the short distances I'll go before being interrupted by another racing swimmer.
3. Avoiding small, splashing children is perhaps more difficult than avoiding other racers.
That said...my kingdom for a regular lap pool. Seriously.
On biking
Oh what a marvelous 10 days it has been! 30 Days of Biking is in full swing and I have managed to get on my bicycle every day. Some days with longer mileage (today, for instance, I only pedaled half-heartedly around the block in the midst of a ginormous wind storm), but all told, enough to make for some tired legs and a slow, satisfied contentment creeping all over my bike-loving soul. 20 days left and hopefully the forecast will hold (it's been tremendously beautiful, this April, so far).
On running
It's getting better. My new shoes are still fantastic. Twice now I've run halfway up Victory Memorial Parkway and back for a total of 3 miles each time, and been happy with the result. I've been tired and I have some unique new blisters, but my legs are feeling stronger and it's getting easier to convince myself to keep going. Tomorrow I'll attempt Calhoun again.
On racing
I think...I think I'm so excited. I can't wait for the atmosphere, the crowd, the burn, the competition, THE RACE. And most of all I can't wait to be done, and so proud of myself and of Kate for what we have accomplished. And I can't wait to find out- will I get addicted? Will I want to do this over and over again? I think I might.
Yes, I think I just might.
Showing posts with label triathlon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label triathlon. Show all posts
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
don't be buffaloed...go to Buffalo! (not NY)
We have picked our date (tenatively)! Yes! It's True! Kate and I will become triathletes on June 5th, 2011, as we compete in the 6th annual Tri Buffalo.
That's Buffalo, Minnesota, yo.
Sprint course is a 1/4 mile (440 yards) swim, 13 mile bike, and 3 mile run. The friendly countdown clock tells us we have 88 days to prepare!
Hopefully, we'll have a warm enough spring that the water in Buffalo Lake won't be too chilly and we can both go without wetsuits, and the weather will cooperate so we won't have rain! Let's take a look at the average temperatures for Buffalo the first weekend of June:
Hmm, yes, good, yes.
I can live with that.
That's Buffalo, Minnesota, yo.
Sprint course is a 1/4 mile (440 yards) swim, 13 mile bike, and 3 mile run. The friendly countdown clock tells us we have 88 days to prepare!
Hopefully, we'll have a warm enough spring that the water in Buffalo Lake won't be too chilly and we can both go without wetsuits, and the weather will cooperate so we won't have rain! Let's take a look at the average temperatures for Buffalo the first weekend of June:
Hmm, yes, good, yes.
I can live with that.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
lauren's tiny tri
Yesterday I did all three.
OW!
At the time.
But today I feel alright. Not sore, not exhausted, just good. I got through everything and I felt super about it.
And tomorrow?
Tomorrow this old friend comes out for the bike to work (2.5 miles each way):
It will be a little sloppy but I will be prepared. Hurray!
OW!
At the time.
But today I feel alright. Not sore, not exhausted, just good. I got through everything and I felt super about it.
And tomorrow?
Tomorrow this old friend comes out for the bike to work (2.5 miles each way):
It will be a little sloppy but I will be prepared. Hurray!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
The Tiniest Tri
I intended to focus on swimming for my Friday gym time. However, lap one gave me the beginnings of a foot cramp. Lap two assured me that said foot cramp was not going away. By lap four I was completely unable to focus on anything else, even after an attempt to massage my foot between laps two and three. So I ended up hobbling out after only 1/16 of a mile in the pool. One quarter of a Sprint Triathlon's distance of swimming. A bit bummed with my poor performance, I made my way to the locker room ponder what I should do next.
What on earth could I possibly do after swimming that could also help me train for a triathlon?! If only there were one, maybe two more activities I could do that would help me prepare for--hey wait a second! I've got it!
So I changed as quickly as I could into terrestrial gear and hopped on a stationary bike. I was determined to accomplish the tiniest triathlon--one quarter of a Sprint--right there in the YMCA over my lunch break.
The biking was great. While I couldn't agree more with Lauren on the matter of stationary bikes sucking almost 100% of the fun out of biking, I still feel strongest and most comfortable on this leg of my journey. I ended up between 17-18 mph for the 3.8 miles I biked and then hustled my increasingly tired self over to the treadmill for a run.
I ran so slow. I ran just about as slow as you could while still calling it running. My normal pace was stymied by the fact that I had just exerted my legs on a bike and (very short) time in the water. I picked up my pace after a few tenths of a mile, commanding my legs to keep moving, despite their obvious preference for the opposite.
Taking on all three events--even in quarter size--was enlightening. The challenge isn't just in each event, nor the events in succession, but also the transitions to and from each activity. I got a little closer to the brink of "pukey" than I wanted to, and that was only tackling 25% of what I'm going to be doing come June. And this was in placid water and predictable terrain--comforts I know are going to disappear on game day.
I feel comfortable enough ramping up my individual event skills. But what should my strategy be for moving from one event to the next?
Monday, February 7, 2011
lauren: the plan
So, hi folks.
Here's the deal. It's been a goal in the back of my brain for a few years now that I've wanted to do a triathlon. Nothing in particular has held me back, besides a general dislike of running and time frames that somehow excluded me from doing any local events.
But this is the year. This year, I have the terribly important motivator of a friend committed to the same goal, and it's our hope that with a collaborator, we'll each have the focus and drive to keep going even when things seem difficult or grim.
This year, I leave in July for six months aboard a cruise ship as an orchestra musician, and I'd like to be, frankly, kinda smokin' hot for the men of Europe. And also for myself, ahem, of course.
This year, winter's got me down, big time. Cabin fever has reached an all time high and I often go down to the basement to just sit by my bike and talk to it in a slow, soothing voice.
Kate and I are still in the process of picking exactly which tri we'd like to do. Our time frame is anywhere in June, basically, minus a weekend or two, and our distance is Sprint (1/4 mi swim, 14 mi bike, 3.3 mi run) We have a few picked out but if any fellow Minnesotans want to throw in their two cents, we'd listen. Promise.
I've set up my training schedule using this website: Beginner Triathlete. Basically, it's given me a 17-week schedule with increasing distances on the three events, and allowed me choose the number of workouts per week and where I want to place them. I work three jobs, and at one of my jobs I have access to a hotel gym with a pool, treadmills, and stationary bike, as well as weights and various machines. I've tailored, at least for starters, my schedule around my hours there.
I'm a strong swimmer, an obsessive but very slow cyclist, and an ungainly and cranky runner. I need to regain my swimming prowess, speed up my bicycle times, and basically just learn to get through a run without thinking my world is falling apart around me. Here goes nothing.
Here's the deal. It's been a goal in the back of my brain for a few years now that I've wanted to do a triathlon. Nothing in particular has held me back, besides a general dislike of running and time frames that somehow excluded me from doing any local events.
But this is the year. This year, I have the terribly important motivator of a friend committed to the same goal, and it's our hope that with a collaborator, we'll each have the focus and drive to keep going even when things seem difficult or grim.
This year, I leave in July for six months aboard a cruise ship as an orchestra musician, and I'd like to be, frankly, kinda smokin' hot for the men of Europe. And also for myself, ahem, of course.
This year, winter's got me down, big time. Cabin fever has reached an all time high and I often go down to the basement to just sit by my bike and talk to it in a slow, soothing voice.
Kate and I are still in the process of picking exactly which tri we'd like to do. Our time frame is anywhere in June, basically, minus a weekend or two, and our distance is Sprint (1/4 mi swim, 14 mi bike, 3.3 mi run) We have a few picked out but if any fellow Minnesotans want to throw in their two cents, we'd listen. Promise.
I've set up my training schedule using this website: Beginner Triathlete. Basically, it's given me a 17-week schedule with increasing distances on the three events, and allowed me choose the number of workouts per week and where I want to place them. I work three jobs, and at one of my jobs I have access to a hotel gym with a pool, treadmills, and stationary bike, as well as weights and various machines. I've tailored, at least for starters, my schedule around my hours there.
I'm a strong swimmer, an obsessive but very slow cyclist, and an ungainly and cranky runner. I need to regain my swimming prowess, speed up my bicycle times, and basically just learn to get through a run without thinking my world is falling apart around me. Here goes nothing.
lauren: the specs
Age: 29
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Favorite Food: nachos
Strengths:
four-year varsity swimmer in high school, specializing in long distance events
an obsession with all things bike
free access to a swanky hotel gym/pool'
113% lung capacity for age, height, and sex (thanks to ten years of professional trombone playing)
a romantic partner(?*) with professional massage training
all the tenacity of a two-year-old with a vendetta against bath time
Handicaps:
has never run farther than a mile and a half at any stretch
C2 vertebrae finicky and in the re-alignment stages (thanks to physical therapy)
terrified of severing an Achilles tendon
20-25 lbs overweight for height and frame
complete and total financial instability
all the tenacity of a two-year-old with a vendetta against bath time
Personal accomplishments:
at age 12, won the swim-a-thon hosted by her club team by swimming over 13 miles over the course of two-hour sessions and five days
advanced degrees in music performance and musicology
climbed to the top of Sandia Peak in Albuquerque, NM and mountain surfed^ nearly the whole way down
once found $20 on the floor of the crew mess on the cruise ship she was employed on and spent the whole thing on crab legs and biscuits in Juneau, AK
What She Hopes to Achieve By Participating in this Tri
Total smokin' hotness
Professional Bad-Ass Badge
Completion
*the terminology here has yet to be determined
^a phrase coined by my friend Chris, mountain surfing is the act of allowing your forward momentum to carry you down a steep mountain trail rather than picking and climbing carefully.
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