Coming back is hard

For the past six weeks, I have been staying off my feet from running. I was having some issues at the back of my heel right around the achilles tendon/bursa area below:

I figured if I went to the doctor, they would just tell me to stay off my feet for several weeks so I went ahead and prescribed my own medicine and saved me a trip. Besides, I've already been to the doctor too many times lately (strep for me, strep for my son, allergic reaction to cats for my son where his eye was almost swollen shut, etc.). I figured while I was sitting around for 6 weeks, I might as well load up on holiday treats and beverages to the point that I probably gained about a million pounds over the holidays. NOT a good recipe for triathlon success!

With temperatures in the mid 50's, I decided to head out on a run today. I figured my heels had enough time to...um...heal...and, with this beautiful weather, I would be a fool not to at least attempt a run. Well, there are several things wrong with that thought process: 1) I've had a horrible cough/congestion/possible strep (again...) for the past 5 days 2) Did I say I gained a million pounds? 3) I decided now was as best time as any to try out my new orthoTics (note: I have obviously been misspelling orthoDics incorrectly my entire life and just found out today. This brings up totally different issues as I am part of the grammar police!!!). 4) I decided this would be the first time I would attempt a Strava run directly from my cell phone app and I wasn't exactly sure how it all worked. 4) I was totally overdressed for a 50+ degree run.

But, given all that, I did a run/walk of a little over a mile and I felt pretty good physically. Tomorrow I will attempt another short run with the orthoTics and maybe by next week I'll be able to wear them with each run.

Time to get back at it. I can't complete Rev3 Cedar Point 140.6 without some training!!!

There's a new year coming...

2013 wasn't a good year as far as me keeping up with my blog. So, my goal for 2014 is to write AT LEAST one time/week every week. Do you think I can do it? Additionally, I need more followers for my blog. I don't like sitting here writing away and only 10 people see what I say. Will you be my follower? Maybe I can start giving away stuff to my followers and that will draw people to me. What do you think? Let's try it out...

Follow me by Dec 31, 2013 and you will be entered to win a packet of PowerBar products which I will give away at the beginning of 2014 to one lucky person! Will it be you?

What are your goals for the following year? Not resolutions...GOALS. I have already set some for myself:

HEALTH GOALS:
1.Start eating more healthy foods by keeping a food diary, starting with 30 days, on Myfitnesspal.com
2. Start back on my team training plan. Download it, do it, and stay accountable to it by tracking my workouts on Strava.com with my Rev3 teammates. I'm doing Rev3 Cedar Point 140.6 this year and will need to stay committed to my training plan in order to successfully complete the September race.
3. Fit into my "skinnier" pair of jeans by Jan 31, 2014 by cutting back on bad carbs, drinking less "empty calories," and eating more protein and veggies.
4. Begin a weight training program 2x/week by joining Fitness Evolution with my roommate for the month of January. Might as well join the new years resolutionists since I haven't been to the gym in so long! Will revisit this goal at the end of January.
5. Drink 8 glasses of water daily. I'm hoping the purchase of a cute drinking bottle will help me attain this goal. I stink at getting in my daily water.

Besides health goals, I want to write some goals related to my personal life, my spiritual life, my business, etc. What are some of the goals you have set or want to set for yourself? Let's get started...only 9 more days until the new year!

Today...in numbers

As I was on my ride today there were a lot of numbers in my head so I decided to write them all down just to clear my head, if nothing else! 

0: Times we got lost (for those that know me, this is a huge accomplishment as of late)

1: Time Tracy almost got crushed by a car

1: Time Tracy almost got attacked by a monster bug

1: Time we saw someone holding a bike helmet on their handlebars but NOT wearing it (her blonde locks did look beautiful in a Farrah Fawcett kind of way)

2: Stories about bodily functions

3: Live animals that crossed in front of me (8-point buck, snake, and, of course, a squirrel)

3.5: Crazy hard-core triathlete chicks on a hilly SUFFERFEST ride (see below for 0.5)

4: Roads with "town" or "ville" in their name

5+: Times Tracy asked people to please wear helmets on the trail.

10.4: Percent grade of biggest hill

18: Miles Renee got to ride with us (the 0.5 of a chick above)

25: Minutes late starting our ride

30: Dollars I had to pay my son for babysitting

32: Ounces of purchased drinks along the way (Gatorade & Coke)

42: Tracy's highest MPH speed for the day (you probably don't want to know the lowest! Maybe 2! LOL)

73: Miles rode

700: Roadkill (okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration...or not) 

4653: Feet of elevation

But, the best part of my day was doing this.....

Sufferfest September is in the books!

IT'S HERE! IT'S HERE!!!

Do you get excited when you receive a REAL letter in the mail? I sure do. But, this is better than that.

Do you get excited when someone in the line in front of you at Starbucks buys your coffee for you? Oh yeah, that's great...but this is better than that.

What if someone says they'll handle the check at a restaurant and you can eat anything you want. Lobster and Steak for dinner, right? Pretty awesome, right? Oh yeah, but this is even better than that.

So, what in the world could I possibly be talking about?

As you know, I've been a member of Team Rev3 for the past year and NOW IS THE TIME for YOU to see if you have what it takes to be part of the REVOLUTION!!! Applications for Team Rev3 are now available through current team members and will be available soon on Rev3's website. Are you ready to ROCK THE R????

Email me if you are interested in receiving an application!

2014 Race Calendar

It seems far too early to already be deciding which races I'm going to attend in 2014. But, 2014 is going to be another big year for me so I've got to get it all laid out now! Of course, things are apt to change (as they always do) before the next season arrives but this is what I've got so far:

May 18: Rev3 Knoxville - Probably Olympic distance (I have to prove myself here!)
June 15: Rev3 Williamsburg - Probably 70.3 distance (I'm not the only one that has things to prove here!)
July 7: General Smallwood Sprint (please don't let it be 112 degree "feels like" temperature again!)
August 17: Luray Sprint (hoping for no cramps!)
Sept: Rev3 Cedar Point 140.6 (Going for time this year!)

What does YOUR calendar look like for next year? Share some of your favorite races with me!

Race Report: Rev3 Williamsburg

Race: Rev3 Williamsburg 
Date: June 23, 2013
Location: Jamestown, VA  
Race Type: Olympic Distance: 0.9 mi swim, 24 mile bike, 6.2 mile run 
Division: Age Group 45-49
Time: 3:28
------------ --
Pre race:

It was so exciting for me to arrive in Williamsburg and share the weekend with not only my Rev3 teammates but also my local Team Z friends. This is a weekend that will go down in my memory bank for a long time to come.

After arriving at the expo, my first stop post-packet pickup, was the Biotta Naturals tent where I helped the queen of beet juice, Jen Small, share the wonderful nutritional benefits of beet juice with the expo attendees.

Photo by: Miro Lehky

Of course, it didn't take me long to drop by the Rev3 green screen for some great memories. Here are some of my favorites:

Yeah, I'm pretty much a drama queen. Like you didn't know that already...

Saturday evening was our Team Z dinner. The room was totally packed and we had the amazing SimplyStu as the MC of our great event. As you may remember from my dreaded DNF report from Knoxville, Stu was my lifesaver that gave me the shoes and socks right off his feet to keep mine warm...and he didn't even know me at the time!

Photo by Miro Lehky

Also in attendance that night were professional triathletes Lauren Goss and Andrew Starykowicz along with the one and only "boss man" Charlie Patten (owner of Rev3). 

The night ended with a stay at the Williamsburg B&B (aka Jan Stover's parents house) looking at this little pond, relaxing for the rest of the evening...

...and watching Jess try out the cool bike we found in the basement...

Oh yeah...and royally screwing up my race tats!

So, you're probably all waiting for me to get to the actual race part, right? Well, the pre-race is just a tad more exciting...as always! :)

Here are the deets:

Swim (0.9 miles): 46:29 17th in Age group
I hadn't prepared for the swim. Heck, I barely have even prepared for this race. The last few months have been crazy busy and my training has really been behind schedule. I knew going into this race that I would be doing it for two reasons: 1) to prove myself after my last DNF and 2) to have fun!

During the swim I felt pretty comfortable and relaxed. SO DIFFERENT from Knoxville. The water temps were fabulous (still wetsuit legal...but barely...) so I swam without my wetsuit. I was in the last wave (of course, that's where the old women always get put!) which is always a bummer for me. But, I felt strong. There was a current getting to the first buoy but I saw my turning spot faster than I thought I would. I had swam this same course at Patriots half a few years ago and remembered getting way off course so I made sure not to do that this time. The James River can be very rough at times so I took that into consideration going into the race. During Patriots I remember getting into a rhythm with the waves but that never happened during this race. I did okay going from buoy 1 to buoy 2 with the exception of getting kicked in the face, hit on the leg so many times by the same guy that I got a cramp in my leg, and swam on top of more times than I can count. But, hey, that's triathlon for you!

The only time I felt I could have done better was going from the 2nd buoy to the shore. The current was really strong by that point and I felt I got off course with every stroke. So, I forced myself to push to the right.

After the race, I heard numerous people say how horrific the swim was for them and how many people were pulled from the race (or took themselves out) during the swim. I can't say it was all that bad for me. My time wasn't spectacular but my swim felt comfortable. My last swim of this same distance was only about 30 seconds faster and, given I haven't been in the pool much lately, I'll take it!

T1: 3:51
It was a long trip to transition but as I compared my transition to Patriots, I've shaved off about  1 1/2 minutes from T1. Pretty sweet.

Bike (24 miles) : 1:19:40 11th place in Age group; 18.07 pace
Race day was the first time I had used the multisport feature on the Garmin I had just borrowed from my friend (since I lost mine at Knoxville). When I got on the bike I realized I was still in the swim function mode and that is exactly how the watch stayed for the rest of the race. So, I raced the entire race "naked." Normally if I found myself pacing too slow I would speed up to improve my overall time on both the bike and the run. But, today I would have to do it all by feel!

The bike course was perfect for me - pretty much as flat as they come. Since the half rev and the Olympic rev started at basically the same time, some of the pro field was lapping me and for brief moments in time I was riding with them! It was great to be able to do that if only for 3 seconds or so!

Overall my bike leg was pretty uneventful (thankfully) and I just attempted to push as much as I could yet stay in Zone 2. Result: 18.07 pace. Not too shabby for "riding naked."

T2: 1:05
Pretty uneventful. I did put on socks which I normally don't do!

Run (6.2 miles): 1:17:13 19th place in Age group
Toward the end of the bike I could feel the same leg cramping that cramped during the swim so I was really concerned about that going into the run. I had been pretty consistent in my run training up until about the last month before the race when I made a decision that greatly affected my run workouts. But, I knew it was too late to worry about that now. I knew I just needed to somehow get these last 6.2 miles in the bank and cross the finish line.

As with any run coming off the bike, my legs felt like jello. I hadn't done enough BRICKS this year for sure but I didn't think my legs would feel this bad. I tried to get my mojo on the run and it just never came! Once I saw the HILL on the course I knew I was in trouble. I was expecting the Patriots SUPER FLAT run but this would not be it! This run course was a little more challenging than that. I did a lot of walking on this course - probably way more than I should. But, I was really feeling that calf muscle...and felt it for days afterwards.

I wasn't proud of my run or my run time by any means. But, I'm proud that I've recovered from my DNF!

Summary & Lessons Learned

• If you want your body to feel good at the end of a race you should train for your race!
• Beet juice rocks even if people give you funny faces about it.
• Always be thankful for Jan and her parents for the Williamsburg B&B hook up!
• Having a race with my two favorite teams makes me a happy, happy girl.
• Always hang out with teammates post-race (see pic on the right)...but never mention Howie Mandel during that gathering!
• Read directions and learn how to apply race tats before screwing it all up!
• Never let Patti Jackson point a gun in my face.
• Never ever hit SimplyStu in the face or he will embarrass you publicly. Right Melissa?
• Always have lots of kisses for my teammies

And most importantly...ALWAYS be on the lookout for Miro with his camera...

Next Stop: Luray Double! 

Mini Me and her first tri of the season

I love writing my own race reports but I've never had the opportunity to write a race report for someone else. Of course, I doubt my 7 yr old daughter, Celeste, will see the benefits of writing a race report until she gets a little older so I might as well write them for her!

It was a cold morning as she started off her race - the Reston Youth Triathlon "Be AMYazing!"  She doesn't look too cold in the picture here but, believe me, she was being forced to smile! This picture of her in her Rev3 shimmer suit was taken right after she took off her shoes, long pants, shirt, and jacket! It's a good thing the pool was heated!

This was Celeste's second time racing this triathlon and she really loves it. The proceeds of this race go to the Childhood Brain Tumor Foundation and was started a local youth who lost her childhood friend, Amy Boyle, to a brain tumor. Celeste is all about giving to charities so this race is right up her ally.

There are many unique things about this race that make it a fun and interesting race for youth. It's always exciting to hear the wonderful George Pekarsky (age 11) open the race by playing the National Anthem on his violin. George is following in the footsteps of his father, Pavel, who has played the National Anthem for the opening of the Reston Triathlon for years. I love the picture below (right) where George is standing in the background as his father plays (picture taken from Pavel's Facebook page). The great thing is that after these amazing violinists play the National Anthem, they head out on the course to race! Unfortunately, George wasn't able to race this year due to being a little under the weather. We hope he's feeling better soon!

Celeste has been training a lot for this race. She has been going to the pool at least two times a week and has been training with Tri Team Xcel. Being part of a triathlon team has helped her grow in ways I never expected. I mean, as a mom I can teach her until I'm blue in the face but until she sees me as a coach (I'm her coach on TTX) she doesn't really pay much attention!

She improved greatly on her swim this year and was the first one out of the water in her wave! Last year she had to receive help from the lifeguard (although I felt the lifeguard jumped in a little prematurely). She finished the 50 yd swim in 1:36, over a minute improvement from last year. The last month or so before the race we weren't consistent in our swimming routine so I do feel she could improve a little more on the swim but I'll take the blame for that one!

T1: As a mom, I am NEVER disappointed in my children at a race. As long as they perform to the best of their ability, I don't care if they come in first or last. This race was no different. I don't want to say much here because my words may end up just getting me in trouble. But, suffice it to say we'll need to practice SPEEDY transitions in future workouts! Of course, in past races we haven't had to deal with putting on too many clothes because it's been warm outside. Attempting to put on shorts over a wet bathing suit does take some time and practice!

Celeste had a very speedy bike this year - over a 3:00 improvement! She has been working hard on her bike all winter long! I think she's probably going to need a bigger bike in the VERY near future, though. She seems to have outgrown this one! She had three speed bumps and a "big hill" (her words) to go over and she did it without stopping!

As always, Celeste was a strong runner. She has learned a lot of things about her form (which was already pretty good) during Tri Team Xcel workouts. So, at the finish line she looked pretty AMYazing...and very happy! This is my second time working as the race photographer for the AMYazing race and I'm always excited to work the finish line to see smiles like this! 

Comparing Celeste's results from last year she had a huge overall performance. I'm one proud mommy!

Age	Swim	Transition 1	Bike	Transition 2	Run	Final
6	2:37	2:16	9:13	0:42	3:52	18:38
7	1:36	2:33	6:05	0:31	3:34	14:18