Conquering the Little Steps: ABR

Before continuing, I'd like to preface this by saying, please don't poke fun at the triathlete. I am fragile too you know.

The whole theme of my progression as a triathlete is while even though I've raced for four seasons doesn't mean I know everything and can win my divisions. I love to race, be with other triathletes, and see how far I can really push my mind and body. I love the sprint distance races, and attempt to recruit people everywhere I go* (yes, that includes you Alan and I'm pretty sure I've succeeded).

When I began racing, everything was new, but it was fun! Over the years I've gotten hooked on the gadgets, watches, shoes and clothing.** but there are a few things that I haven't been able to get past, and they've been a big setback for me. Well, this past month has actually be a huge month for me and conquering those fears.

Back to my "progressions." As you know, most triathletes race with a road bike which consists of a less than desirable seated position, a hard saddle seat and thin road tires. Additionally, athletes switch out their running shoes and caged pedals for a clipless pedal and cycling shoes. I use SPD clips and pedals.  This makes for an interesting ride as a first-timer, and the general rule of thumb is that you'll fall three times (yes, it's true). Okay, so far we've got road tires, I'm locked into my pedals, and I'm supposed to fall three times while being clipped into the bike. Awesome. Now I have to bike 14 miles without crashing and I must manage to stay hydrated. This transformed me into a cyclist and CamelBak enthusiast.*** Long story short, I was able to conquer the bike segments of each race, but I was tied to my crutch, my beloved CamelBak.

Fast forward to 3 weeks ago (roughly). I had a group workout with Together We Tri and I decided that it's time to grow up and use a water bottle, like normal athletes! I left the CamelBak at home, put the new CamelBak water bottle in my bike cage, and was going to attempt hydration while riding. So I'm doing my thing, riding along, and at mile 3 or so, I stopped pedaling, reached down for the water bottle, drank some, and put it back. WHAT?!?!?! Did I really just conquer this? Is this really what's been keeping me back all these years? You betcha.

I can't even begin to tell you how amazing I felt.**** This is something that's been holding me back for so many seasons and I just proved to myself that I am capable and I moved on. I literally felt a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders.  The CamelBak took up time, space, and I looked like an idiot after all these years. I used it in my early seasons to be more comfortable, and I'm a huge component of comfort and safety, but it was time to push myself and reach for the freaking water bottle.

And then, this past Tuesday, I was with the group again and we did an easy taper ride along the North Shore area of Chicago. This was an easy, flat and safe course, aka: great conditions to try the Advanced Bottle Reach (ABR - includes bottle reach while continuing to pedal^). I didn't think I'd be able to progress to ABR so quickly, but heck, it was worth a shot. Somewhere on the return, I'm pedaling, and BOOM! ABR was executed! :: insert happy dance here :: Well well, what do you know? And then again, ABR! ABR!^^

At the end of the day, not including my race times, I know that I accomplished so much, even though this is normal operating procedures for many triathletes. Everyone makes their advancements at different paces, and I'm quite happy with mine. This may have been a lot of writing for not a lot of substance, but it's something that I've dealt with for four seasons. I'm looking forward to using these accomplishments this Sunday during the Chicago Triathlon. I'M STOKED!!

Thank you for reading, and remember, no matter the pace of your progress, you're moving forward and that's reason enough to be proud.

I'm no Ironman, but I Still Tri

*If you need any encouragement, I'm your gal. I'll make you wish you were racing this weekend.

** Shh, listen real close. All that crap written in the past about "racing because it's fun" is all a bunch of bologna. The real reason why I race is because of the swag bags, "free" shirts and the opportunity to spend more money at the pre-race expos. Finishers medals are pretty sweet too.

***New flash: riding with a small backpack on ones back does not make one aerodynamic.

****You can stop giggling now.... okay, please stop giggling. I can hear you.

^ Kinda catchy, isn't it?

^^ I musta been butter, because I was on a roll.

Short, Sweet, and Savory

It may not have been a long race, but every race is a challenge and I take it seriously. I still have a clock to chase, I still have three disciplines to complete, I still have to stay safe, and I always fun.


Well, I won't bore you with the details, but "calm" has been my theme this year. This wasn't the case until this season, but I'm enjoying it. Nerves usually get in the way, and bring out my chatty-ness. Every year I am more comfortable with racing, and it took a while for "calm" to become a constant theme. Nevertheless, I still get very excited to race and love being in a racing environment.

Refresher: 300 yd swim, 10 mi bike, 3.1 mi run

I am proud to announce that I shaved about 6 minutes off my time from last year (still about 3 minutes away from my PR), and I am so thrilled to report that. My swim was 2 seconds slower, Transition 1 was about the same, the bike was about 5 minutes faster, Transition 2 was roughly 30 seconds faster, and my run was mostly unchanged. Overall, I netted about 6 minutes faster! Huge! It's not easy to make up a lot of time in shorter races (simply because there isn't as much distance to make up that time) but as you know, I'm the turtle and I'll take any decrease in time.


I felt great during the swim, pushed myself on the bike and ignored the pain, and was inching towards "terrible" during the run. My right foot orthotic wasn't in properly and it caused major pain in my right heel and eventually creeped up my "inner shin" (as you can tell, I'm well versed in biology). That was a pain that was hard to avoid and hard to push through, but I did my best to keep "running" with the help of Michael Jackson. I felt like garbage when I finished, but I've felt a lot worse, so I'll take it!



I looked at some of the finishing times, and the winner was at about 44 minutes. WOW. My training friends were all around 1 hour, and I'm so proud of them. They really work hard and deserve great finishing times.

As for me, I still loved this sprint triathlon, I always will, and it's always a challenge.


And as I always say, "I'm no Ironman but I still tri."

Thanks for reading.

Is My Less Actually More?

There's the phrase in endurance training of "less is more." The harder you push yourself it's likely that your body will be prone to injuries and fatigue, and in the end it will set you back due to recovery, required rest, etc.

So here's my thinking. Maybe this is my season of "less is more" and because I've built a decent "endurance base" starting from January, that maybe I don't need to overdue myself this year to shed time off my races. Wishful thinking, right?

Reason I bring this up is from my previous post. I had significantly less training than the 2009 race, but somehow I managed to take a whole bunch of time off that race. Last season I was killing myself to get the workouts in, and this year I'm not getting them in like I would hope.

That being said, I am very confident about my body, what I can push myself to do, and my overall outlook about racing and this helps keep me focused on the weekly workouts and my goals.

So again, maybe this is my season of "less is more." I never claim to be a fast or stellar triathlete, but I still have fun.

Upcoming race: Sunday's Glenview Sprint Triathlon and I look forward to this race every year. Here's the deets:

• 300 yd swim
• 10 mi bike
• 5k (3 mi) run

Race report to follow!

I'm No Ironman but I Still Tri

First Tri of 2010

Well, I have fun things to report this time. Not a lot, but they're sort of fun.

I participated in the Trek Women's Triathlon on Sunday up in Pleasant Prairie, WI, a race I'm actually familiar with. There are roughly three races at the same site every season, and this is one of two women only triathlons. The Danskin tri is very early this year, and combined with the Glenview Triathlon being one week later than normal, this was my first opportunity to race. My priorities are always Glenview and Chicago, therefore other races are planned according to those.

I invited my good friend Jen to race in her FIRST outdoor triathlon, and my friend Leigh Ann was already going to participate, so we turned it into a fun weekend. We're all in the same age group, obviously the same gender, and it became a group effort (well, by group effort I mean we had fun, as a group, but Leigh Ann is pretty much a rock star and smoked us both). I shared my knowledge and gear with Jen, and we all had fun driving to and from the race site (twice!) this past weekend.

Details:

• .5 mi swim
• 12 mi bike
• 3.1 mi run

Fortunately, or unfortunately, I don't have much to report. It honestly felt like "just another race" because I was mentally very calm. I was almost too calm this past weekend because I wasn't anxious enough. (Can you believe that?) I'm a bit behind on my 12-week training due to my incredibly busy schedule, so some of the workouts have been left behind. That being said, there are a few details about the race:

I actually shaved almost 4 minutes off my time from last year. I think with my improved running speed from earlier this year, I was able to have that strong base for this summer. CRAZY. I've only had 2-3 open water swims (including a new wetsuit), and I still managed to take 30 seconds off my swim time. I've only been on the bike twice, and was able to take a few minutes off there. That's also true for my run. My pace last year was 11:40, and this race it was 11:15. Any explanations? (Again, I don't claim to be fast, hence my mascot above: turtle)

I'm very happy to report those statistics, and even more excited for the upcoming races on August 1 and August 29. I think that's going to be it for me this year unfortunately, due to my fall schedule, but it's still a good amount.

Thanks for reading, and please share your stories.

Side comment to any Together We Tri athletes: congrats to Stef for finishing in the top 5% of the Trek race, and to Mary Bradbury for winning the Lake Zurich triathlon.