whoa let's catch up

The tri is over, as you all know.

My good friend from my Boston days, one Ms. Aileen Shen came and stayed with me a few days before the tri, during which we biked and swam for about 3 days straight. I don't think either one of us had worked out that much in awhile- we biked all over the city and swam quite a bit to get used to the lake. It was fun, and I really enjoyed "training" with her!

On Saturday, the day before the tri, we went to the expo downtown and were immersed in a triathlon frenzy. It was pretty amazing to see two rooms full of vendors of tri gear, (so much in one place!) and nutrition and bikes and people and spandex and wetsuits - and the freebies! We basically ate our lunch there. We also sat in on the course talk, which was really good to go through, as they told us all of the hazards and hidden rules of the course- like always wear your helmet when your bike is off the rack, watch out for potholes at foster exit, etc. Also, don't worry about the swim, every year people just hang on to the rope and pull themselves along (a huge relief for me).

Shen and I operate a lot alike. We kind of get caught up in the moment and forget practical things, like curbs, and walls, and eating a real meal, unlocking your bike before you ride away, and picking up your tri packet with all your numbers and chips and instructions before you leave the expo. That said, we spent more than the usual amount of time running around the huge expo getting things we forgot.

I also saw my coach and asked him if it was ok to cut my wetsuit bc it dug into my neck about 20 min into swimming, and hurt. He introduced me to the maker of the wetsuit, a very nice lady from Hawaii who explained it hurt then because my muscles (trapezius) were swelling up and probably digging into my wetsuit. She said I could get it altered, but for the race to just either not wear it or deal with it. So i dealt with it and it was fine.

Race mentionables:

After I got out of the water (everyone i was with in the back of the pack was extremely polite and nice and said excuse me when passing) I was running to transition, and my chip fell off. Luckily, I just happened to be passing my coach (side note- when I say coach, I don't mean just one coach, I have multiple coaches) and he threw me one of his chip ankle holders and it was fine. I might buy one for the next race bc they are nice.

On the running course I heard a lady exclaim "And I thought Chicago was flat! What's with all these hills?"

On the bike course there were HUGE potholes that didn't look very deep until you were right over them. That was fun. We biked on Lake Shore Drive, and it was lovely to check out the city.

I probably wouldn't have run as fast as I did on the run portion except there were these two girls in matching skirts in front of me and I wanted to beat them something fierce.

Shen beat me by 10 minutes, but she got lost in the transition trying to find her bike. One of her transition times was like 7 minutes. I asked her what she was doing in there, and she said "I was trying to find my BIKE!" hehe.

Hearing people shout "GO TEAM" was nice, but I wrote my name on my running jersey bc one of my teammates said that was nice bc then people would cheer for you, but it just creeped me out to hear my name from strangers. Probably won't do that again.

My dad, brother, sister in law, and a couple friends all made it down to see me, and it was great seeing their faces at the finish line.

More stories and pictures to follow! This blog is far from being over...

t-minus 12 hours

thought i'd take a quick moment to say the race is here soooon!!!! we just had our inspirational dinner and i was fighting back tears... i need to get up at 4:30 tomorrow and be at transition to set up by 5. race starts at 7. should be fun!

right now i'm feeling really calm but distracted- i read words wrong, write them wrong, speak them wrong. i got 10 hours of sleep last night, and that's the night that counts for the race, so i think it'll be ok. the early rising time, i mean.

i also met the creator of the wetsuit today.

more on all this later.

say a prayer it goes fast and i stay hydrated and everyone finishes strong with no accidents :)

i love guinea pig ears.

and faces

I'm on the TEAM!

my bike today

My race distances: .75km swim, 22km bike, 5km run (.47 mile swim, 13.64 mile bike, 3.1 mile run)



With my handy dandy bike computer I can tell you several details.

I biked for one hour exactly (my workout was 45 min, and biking there and back made it 1 hour.)

It was 32.3 degrees Celsius outside.

I burned 441.4 calories. Which I plan on replacing with the delicious Ghirardelli brownies I made last night.

I went 20.152 km. At least I think it was km. I'm not sure what setting it's on. But the speed is km/hr, so I think it was km. race distance is 22k. Phew. (hrm, I thought it was shorter...) Well anyway, I guess I can do it. As usual, I felt best about 20 min in to the bike ride.

Anyway I'm off to the pool to cool down and chill out. The lake looked really choppy today but I'll probably mosey down with my wetsuit and check it out later today.

well this isn't going to be pretty. but it's gonna get done did gone did go done.

I did the aqua run today: 30 min swim in the lake, in my wetsuit, and then a 30 min run. It was pretty exhausting- I think part of the reason was because I only had a banana and a bit of bagel before the workout. I was pretty hungry and tired the last 10 min of the run. Also, the swim was difficult- I had a really hard time keeping myself in a straight line. The wetsuit felt constricting around my neck, and restricted my arm movement. I definitely prefer to swim without a wetsuit! But it did keep me fairly buoyant. I had a few good strokes where it felt like I was in the pool, so I think it's just a matter of being comfortable and getting used to it. I plan on swimming in the lake every day day until the tri so I get used to it. I didn't notice the cold at all. In fact, I was pretty warm. The water temp was around 75.

So that's that.

I dreamt last night about the tri. I was pretty nervous for this morning. I forgot what training is, in a lot of ways, and have to conquer all those fears again to let myself enjoy the physical challenge. You know, fears of seeing a dead body in the bottom of the lake, of having a heart attack, of drowning, or missing my start or forgetting some equipment. I know, I know. I have a pretty active imagination and tend on the anxious side. It's who I am. And every time I do something new I need to remember how to just relax and have fun with it. Which is why I am constantly doing new things!! It's a challenge for me. And I always, always eventually get to that laid-back-devil-may-care-let's-just-have-fun-let's-do-it-again place.

Yesterday I spent the day prepping myself for everything I would need for the tri and going to the two triathlon stores nearby and buying a ton of bike gear. I went to Element Multisport and they were terrific, helping me get everything on my list: a special wicking hat for my run (my hair is super long and a ponytail doesn't hold it in, plus it gets tangled really easily especially when wet, so I knew I'd need a hat to keep it away from my face), a new water bottle rack for my bike which they installed while I waited, a bento box with a CO2 cartridge and a new tire tube and two levers to take my bad tube off in case I get a flat, and patches for my tube, and they threw in a free water bottle!!

I'll take pictures of it all and post them eventually.

They also gave me a really great crash course in changing a flat. I feel much more confident going into my race knowing this. It's also just good to know with all the biking that I do for transportation. I feel empowered :)

Eventually I'd like to build a bike from spare parts on my own just so I can do my own repairs. It's really because I just use bikes so much in the city, and I enjoy learning these things. Case in point: scooter. I was fixing it almost every weekend, taking it apart and putting it back together. Especially that darn clutch. SO, yeah. fun times. I enjoy this. I get it from my pa.

This week I got out of work early to go to the midweek swim, but still missed the workout because I got there about 45 min late, because I couldn't find a cab at Clybourn station... urg. I don't want to talk about it. I need a car.

Other than that, everything felt good today- gear is all set and I am good to go. This is what I plan on wearing, eating, and doing the day of the tri, in case anyone is interested in the details:

We need to set up transition my 5:45am. I plan on getting there around 5:15 or so. Mine and Shen's wave (we're in the same wave!! whoohoo!) starts at 6:58 am. I will eat a bagel with peanut butter, eggs (scrambled) and a banana before the race. Yeah, I'm a pretty big breakfast person. I wake up STARVING. I'll probably bring about 3 water bottles, one with Gatorade, 2 of which I'll take on my bike, one I'll leave at transition. I'll also bring some granola bars or brownies in case I just can't stand it after my bike, but I should be fine.

Clothes: I'll wear my favorite sports bra and tri shorts under my wetsuit and then throw on a biking jersey for the bike and a running jersey for the run. The tri shorts are with me the whole time. And then the hat for the run, helmet for bike. the only worry is the bra... the wetness is annoying in the fact that I feel exposed... it's not really uncomfortable though, so amongst the 7,000 tri-ers on Sunday, I'll just endure it and try to blend in. if I do another tri I'll buy a tri-specific bra that will dry faster.

Thats about it! There's so much planning and preparing that goes with triathlons!! It's quite nuts and NO, I had no idea what I was getting myself in to. But I really love it all and want to do these for the rest of my life. And ballet, of course. Speaking of which I can't wait to get back into a ballet class once my life calms down.

Shen comes on Wednesday and then all the fun starts!! Let's go.

piece of cake

i have such an urge to make something beautiful... its like this creative bubble rising to the surface inside me, but first it has to get past all this other stuff like work and cleaning and research and the TRIATHLON in 11 dayssss!!!!!

eeee!

we had our Race Day Tri Clinic last night and our coach talked us through all that we needed to know for the tri. I repetitively got super nervous and then laughed and relaxed, got nervous, laughed and relaxed, and then he described the moment when we would cross that line and be finished and all celebrate at the TNT tent and I got tears in my eyes... since February I have been training for a tri with TNT, have raised over 3,500 dollars for Leukemia and Lymphoma research, have had countless, COUNTLESS setbacks, have never been in greater shape, have never felt so good about my athletic ability, have never tried so hard at something and achieved it (swimming) so fast, have never felt more like an athlete, have never been more inspired by my teammates, our honored heroes, and anyone that has had to go through cancer, have used the energy from training to stay up late and work on art, to pour myself so wholeheartedly into something, with everything I have- good, bad, and everything in between- crossing that finish line means so much to me, sums up my whole year of hurt and victory, and is a victory for cancer, it will undoubtedly be a very emotional moment.

I. can. not. wait.

11 days.

bring it.

baby, its hot outside

I did a lot of running this week, as my bike was being upgraded and swimming wasn't just possible with my work schedule. It has also been in the 90s all week, and even though I ran at night in the dark, it was still super hot. I ran at least 3 miles each time I ran, and it actually felt really good. I discovered I like to run when it is ridiculously hot outside. I stop at every bubbler along the lake, just because i am paranoid about getting dehydrated, but other than that it's running like usual. It's somehow nice to be completely covered in sweat.

I got my bike back yesterday, and rode it to the camera store downtown and then home. It. is. amazing. i can pedal with such less effort, it really is just incredible. probably 12 miles round trip and i didnt get winded once. fabulous.

I'm home in Wind Lake now, and looking forward to three short run/bikes today. It will be nice to train without a ton of people around and the expanse of the green countryside at my feet. Feel slightly guilty for not training with the team this morning, though.

I almost swam in the lake yesterday, as my coworker has made convincing arguments for swimming in it. But just as I had made up my mind to go for a swim I heard over the radio that 3 beaches in Chicago were closed down for high e. coli levels. Even though my beach wasn't, hey, its all the same water, so I wasn't taking any chances. I have just been raised to fear Lake Michigan. it's going to take some time to get over that. Wed is a group open swim at the beach that I am going to try hard to make, so that will be my first foray into the lake for a nice long half mile swim. Tuesday is a race day clinic, looking forward to that too. At this point though, I am excited to do the tri, but really just want my first one over with and out of the way.

whoohoo! bring it.

burst of energy

this weekend, after feeling rather blah on Sunday morning, I decided to just eat until I was full. So after church I came home and made some breakfast for Joelle and I, and ate 5 blueberry pancakes and 6 slices of bacon and 2 scrambled eggs. Then I felt amazing in the afternoon and went for a 3 mile run at night before dinner. I ran it at almost a sprint, and was soaked in sweat even before I made it to the lake.

But there's something just really nice running in such heat and humidity with your mp3 player blasting in your ears, and all you have the space to think about is moving your legs and arms and breathing in perfect rhythm, over and over and over again and feeling your muscles all work in perfect coordination. And sometimes not so perfect as you are apt to slip on the sand from time to time...

It's really so lovely I wish I had the guts to run right now at 10:37 pm, but it is too dangerous and I am tired and I already biked 6 miles today and was covered in sweat, so I think I'll wait until tomorrow.

My new running clothes make it feel as though I am wearing nothing when I run- I cannot feel them at all, and they breathe so well my sweat doesn't cling to me. It makes summer running so much more enjoyable!

And I can tell my muscles are back- no fat jiggling anymore when I run, and I'm starting to feel leaner as I run and bike and swim. It's a really good feeling.

In other news, my bike was dropped off to get a new seat and handlebars yesterday, and I'll be without it for the next 2 weeks, which means I'll get it back right before my tri. I think I'll be ok. So when Phil, the bike guy took my old seat off he handed it to me bc I said I wanted to keep it (even though it was literally duct taped together...) but when I turned it over there was a HUGE spider with hairy legs sitting in a giant mess of web staring at me. I screamed and Phil kindly took it outside and we just left the seat out there on the sidewalk for the spider to crawl away and find a new home. We both examined it a little bit and admired it's hairy legs since it was just so huge. It looked poisonous.

Also I went kayaking on Saturday with Joe and Joelle. I consider it part of my workout. I think my arms are buffer already. Yep, Definitely. Are. Buffer.

not a word, I know.

Long, rambling post, much like my Monday.

Is it getting darker earlier? Not a fan.

say WHAT

ooo its a Friday night and I am blogging. super. cool. not that i didnt have places to go, mind you, i just didnt go to them. sometimes you need to just know when to say no. and stay home and blog about

your fabulous shopping spree at Sports Authority where at you bought beautiful workout clothes, since you have finally admitted to yourself that you may be a bit of an athlete. or at least training 6 days a week in sweltering weather demands higher quality wicking clothes. oh yeah. and you got that coupon in the mail.

sweet action.

I bought: 2 new running shorts, a new running tank top thing, a new swim cap since the guineas ate the other one, a new bike helmet (made for a woman, and MAN does it make a difference, of course i have a rather small head. someone in grade school teased me about it once. still sensitive about my small head. but this bike helmet fits great), and a bike computer (20 different functions).

Then i went on a bike ride tonight with my roommate. My new clothes and helmet must have looked hot because a tourist took our picture. She said, "Oh that's a nice picture." and told us to smile and took a photo. Then did it again because the first one didn't work. interesting...

There is nothing better than biking at night in Chicago along the lake. The views are worth the 2 hour commute to work and living in such a huge dirty city. worth. it.

of course there were boatloads of people for lollapolooza. its gonna be a fun weekend dodging out of towners. le sigh.

and then to end the night a nice long phone talk with Shen about our ridiculous situations and triathlon prepping and plans for when she comes (so soon!) and swimming in the lake and swimming in Walden Pond and moving back to Boston and boys and dresses and Omaha and dating and relationships and the ocean and jobs and biking and traveling to other triathlons (in LA?) and

Tomorrow: 70 min bike ride and 30 min run. all at once. I'm going to practice nutrition: maybe peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? maybe power bars? maybe more than one water bottle? adventures.

then dropping off my bike to get a new seat and sized for new handles. can't wait!

but for now, it's off to bed. goodnight my friends!

why Hello, August

do you ever feel as though someone were shoving you through time and it's all you can do to keep steady feet? um yeah, I feel that way right now, so many crazy amazing things have happened in the month of July, and now it is August, and I need some time to catch my breath and digest and reflect and react and so

I ran tonight.

35 minutes *practically* nonstop. at night. with a light rain. in the heat, and sat by the cool lake and swallowed lake flies while running and felt my spicy Italian sub with extra gidarno (sp?) that I ate 20 min before my run burn my insides so I didn't for a bit know what coolness was

hello, August.

Nice to see you. Please stay longer than July. My summer went too fast, and I got gypped with le mono, so stay awhile. make yourself comfortable. spend the last summer nights with me at the lake and let's reflect and digest and react so

I can face the fall and the winter with summer heat in my skin and the sun in my hair. the first fall in awhile where I don't have to take classes, and can enjoy a paycheck and reflect on the hot summer runs and bike rides along the lake.

I took a cab back from the train today and it may be worth it to take a cab back every day because those 20 min i get home earlier mean the world to me after a long day at work and a 2 hour commute.

I made a bet with Shen that for the rest of the month until the Tri (in 27 days eeee!) we needed to never miss a practice, and the first one that does has to buy the other one a plane ticket to Boston/Chicago. Shen and I aren't the best at discipline, so we'll see what happens.... she registered for the tri and I am SO EXCITED to run it with her. ah, bliss.

also, may give up career to do stand up comedy. maid of honor speech went well this weekend. not sure if it went THAT well though, but for introverted me it was a victory.

one last thing: this is the song that I ran to tonight and I would like to share it with you:



ok that is all.

um, yeah

so all last week every spare moment was spent getting some artwork together for the AMI salon that needed to be in by Friday. So... haven't trained. and then over the weekend was Kim's bachelorette party, and reconnecting with high school peeps and Getting Things Done (like laundry, cleaning, chores) so all said and done, no training.

This week I hope to remedy that.

But we'll see. Wedding on Saturday. Rehearsal dinner Friday, and guests staying Tues-Sun. Meanwhile, I think I might eat my dinner on the train and workout when I get to my apt at night. It's really the only solution I can see, besides exercising in Lake Bluff, but then what would I do with my stuff....

Also, I've been seeing lots of baby bunnies around lately. I named the two on my bike commute to work Flippity and Flop.

but oh

i NEED a good long run! i crave it so!

ah, bler.

like how am i, like, going to do this?

I literally cannot find time to train. Besides the 6 miles of biking mon, wed, thurs. which could count for 12 miles bc my rear tire is flat...

I am exhausted by the time I get home each night. And weekends are spent recovering from the week, and honestly, I'm a little afraid the mono is coming back because I get really weak spells where I get dizzy.

I'm eating like 2,000+ calories a day and am still hungry! and somehow through all this my ab muscles are becoming ridiculously defined. Which brings my closer to my Christmas wish of abs like Shakira.

I can't believe I just admitted that I want Shakira abs by Christmas in a public space.





........










please don't judge me.



Well, I will give myself this week to adjust... maybe it's just getting used to the new job's time schedule. If I can eat dinner on the train ride home maybe I can run or bike by the time I get home and then collapse in bed and get up and do it all over again.... this is the only thing I can think of. And I'd really like to get to swim with the team wed nights, so I need to figure out how to get back into the city by 7. oy! oy! oy!

I am going to try to get a long bike ride in Saturday with a FRIEND before KIM ACTON'S bachelorette party which will be so fabulous.

indeed.

frustration

pretty furious right now. Took me 3 hours to get home from work today (normally takes 2) because of L malfunction... .. . .. ... ..... and on top of the 16.50 on public transpo I spent 14 dollars on taxis that I had to take because the public transpo failed me.... I will spare you the details, I vented to my poor roommate as soon as i got in the door, but I am still furious. FURIOUS!

Part of my commute also is a 3 mile bike ride from the commuter rail to my workplace. So, I bike 6 miles a day on a lovely country path and today I even ventured to the bluff in Lake Bluff and Is. It. Gorgeous. When I get a camera I will take pictures for you. It's even more beautiful than the bluff at my undergrad. I might go swim down there after or before work one of these days. so gorgeous, it must be explored.

the biking is all the workout I can squeeze in- I am gone from 6am-8:20pm every M, W, TH, and from 7am-6pm each Friday, so working in workouts are going to take some effort.

Tomorrow I pick up my bike!! May long bike rides commence. Just in time for the heat wave. or heat pump, as my local meteorologist calls it. bring it, just bring it.

my poor feet

So, on Saturday the weather was so nice I decided to go for a walk along the lake. Which, doesn't really mean sand, more like cement. And, I took off my shoes as soon as I got to the lake. On a 90 degree day. At noon.

I ended up with blisters all over the bottom of my feet from the hot cement. They are healing and I hardly feel the pain anymore. But, ouch. and d'oh.

I like feet, I think they can be really graceful. I think ballet has opened my eyes to how feet can elongate the legs and the correct pointing and positioning and turn out of the foot can be a really graceful movement. Once in a drawing class we had to draw a model's feet, and she said that it was more vulnerable for her to have us draw her feet than for her to pose naked and draw her body. She was older, and her toes were pointed like she had worn lots of pointed shoes in her life. Feet have a lot of personalities and tell a lot of stories about people.

Anyway, kinda took a break from working out the past couple days, but ready to start training this week. Full speed ahead!

sore!

A little bit sore today, but it's a good feeling. I'm surprised I didn't feel queasy running yesterday, as I had just split half a pizza with my roomie and eaten a ton of grapes right before I ran...

right after I got back from running yesterday I felt really weak, like I couldn't stand. So I plopped on the couch and worked on my research. after about an hour passed, I started to feel really energized and good, as though suddenly my runner's high had kicked in. I actually like not exercising for awhile, because when you come back to it your legs are fresh, and you feel the effects of running so much more strongly. I sound like a drug addict.

it's true, though. I work behind a computer; there are few reasons for me to ever leave it. So having an excuse to exercise and go to the lake and GET OUTSIDE is welcome. I'm actually also looking for a pick up soccer team to join- I used to love it so much in grade school, and played whenever I could with friends in Boston, but haven't really done it here in Chicago. A beach volleyball team would be fun to join too, but I think it's too late in the season for that. Anything that would get me outside more...

Also in the works: thinking of a fall east coast road trip to VT, ME, NY, and MA. to see the foilage, of course. and maybe a camping trip? I miss the east coast camping trips too! All these things I just never really picked up again when I moved to Chicago... but now with grad school ending...

ah plans. plans plans and more plans.

first run since FOREVER

and it was deeeeelightful! :)

only about a 30 minute run, with some walking breaks, but by the time I started my cool down walk home, my legs were like jelly.

But the sky was a beautiful deep blue, a color almost purple and I wished, not for the first time, that I was in the country and had horizon to horizon to enjoy the color of the sky... but then I do have the lake, and it was a world of blue out on the edge of walkway that juts into the lake. And the yellow-white city lights complement the blue of the sky with warmth.

And I got caught in the rain. and it made me ridiculously, undeniably, giddy.

soooooooooo

Dropped my bike off today to get fixed at Copenhagen Cyclery. I forgot how eclectic Wicker Park is... so many stores! I need to get over there more often, it's really not that far away. My bike should be done on Friday, so whoot! I can start bike- commuting again, thank GOD! Oh, and I'm getting a new seat, so no more duct tape... and squishy wet seat when it rains.

I've been doing sit ups and push ups regularly, and also squats, since the hamstrings do not get exercised enough when biking, swimming, or running. I was told that poor strengthening of them can lead to knee pain, and is a major cause of missed races, since it takes awhile to act up. So, one minute of static squats a day. 50 seconds in, and it burns like fire.

Anyway, I'm going to go run and hope that I get caught in rain. Summer rain running... nothing better!

Goals for this week...

Because if I put them on here, maybe there is a better chance they will get done.

Tri-wise:
1. drop off bike to get fixed, buy new seat.
2. sit-ups and push-ups every day, at least 250 total.
3. Stretch for 5 min every day.
4. Run twice this week- as long as I can.
5. Swim once this week.
6. Get dr's note sent to Kate.
7. Make list of what is still needed to buy for tri.

Research-wise:
1. Get proposal handed in by Tuesday.
2. Get sketches handed in by Friday.

Also, guess what? I got a job! I am muy excited. It's basically my dream job, except for the fact that it isn't located in London, where I have an ache to live. I think I start this week. oy.

Happy Fourth, I love America. Fireworks start here in 20 min, still debating whether to go. Mleh.....