Tag: Endurance

Primal Freedom

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I looked over my left shoulder to make sure no one was coming up behind me. The path was clear. Then, I let ‘er rip–my snot rocket, that is. I’ve never been especially “ladylike”. Just ask my mother. Her groans of disgust have been audible since I was a little girl. “Oh, Maria!” She would exclaim, while rolling her eyes, at whatever un-ladylike activity I was currently engaging in. Even so, I’ve had some limits in my life. Yet, one by one, those limits are weakening–thanks to running and triathlon. For example, pre-endurance sport, I would blow my nose into …

Promises to keep

There’s nothing like biting off more than you can chew, and then chewing anyway. ~Mark Burnett   My cycling was a disappointment last season. While my first Ironman was best day of my life so far, I made a promise to myself that this year, my performance will be better. And by “better” I mean faster. A lot faster. In the afterglow of IMLP 2010, I initially set what I thought was an aggressive goal: a 12 hour and 30 minute Ironman for 2011, which would be 1 hour and 3 minutes faster than my debut effort. John’s response? “You’ll …

Going From “How far?” to “How fast?”: Part 2 – Running

  Setting a goal to run a new distance may cause uncertainty: Can I really run [insert your dream distance here]? Then, as training progresses, we start to realize, “Oh yes, I CAN run that far. But, hmmmm, I wonder how fast I can do it?” It’s a natural and possibly inevitable progression: moving from how far to how fast. In my previous post, I talked about two key workouts for improving speed: tempo efforts and repeats (intervals), and discussed how these basic workouts apply to cycling. This post is the second part of that discussion, and applies speed strategies …

A return to the roads

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While I will run in almost any weather, I will not cycle in cold temperatures. It’s just too, well, cold! That means I have been cycling on my trainer 4 days a week since the beginning of November. Today, however, the thermometer read 45 degrees at 8:30 a.m. That is warm enough. I was excited and apprehensive to return to the road. Excited because I’ve been working my arse off on the trainer for over 3 months – hill simulation, interval rides, tempo rides, long rides, high cadence rides, rides I don’t even know what to call them rides. I …

The best day of the week, even if it hurts

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Sunday is my long run day. It’s the crown jewel of the training regimen. The piece de resistance, the bees knees, the cat’s meow, the best part of waking up, the main event. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I really enjoy the long run – even when it hurts. While I mess around with this triathlon gig, running is my thing. It brings me joy, peace, and just the right amount of pain. I feel most alive when I go on these long, almost-always solo jaunts, during which time I experience the gamut of human emotion …

Hard work isn’t easy & easy isn’t worth it

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I was riding my bike on the trainer on Tuesday. To lessen the boredom, John hooked up a TV in the garage so we can watch while we ride. As I flipped through the channels, I noticed that various fitness products were being reviewed on Rachel Ray. Eh, I guess I will watch this for a minute. The show’s producers had several former Biggest Loser contestants test various “get thin quick” fitness products – you know the ones you see on informercials late at night? The BL contestants, Amanda, Sunshine and Matt, were to use the products for several weeks, …

Training begins anew: setting goals for the new year

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When I was a young girl, one of my favorite things about the beginning of a school year was a clean notebook, with its crisp white pages just waiting to be filled with notes of my learning experiences. Today, I still enjoy the promise of empty pages, waiting to be filled. Now, however, those clean pages are those of my training log for the 2011 season. It’s time to start filling them with experiences as this week marked the beginning of the 2011 training season. It’s not like I have being doing nothing. It’s just that I’ve been working out, …

What will I learn today?

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About a year ago, I met with my University’s public relations guru, Barbara. (She is a media coverage rainmaker!) She had heard that I was training for my first Ironman, and that I would be raising money for a scholarship during the process. She wanted to help me promote the scholarship. We had lunch, during which she asked a series of questions about my athletic and academic history, about the training, about my motivation for raising money for the Iron Scholarship. At one point she asked, “Has this training helped you be a better teacher?” At the time, I said …

This is what we do: The Vermont 50

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  “Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond what we thought we could do. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it’s all about.” ~ Pattie Sue Plumer, U.S. Olympian Race morning… We stayed in a hotel that smelled of cigarettes and flatulence. The cigarettes were from the people who had the room before us. The flatulence, well, I guess we have to own up to that. John and I joked as we fell off to sleep, “At the starting line, people are …

The first time finish line

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I’m addicted to the first time. You know: The first marathon. The first triathlon. The first 50k. The first ironman. And, this weekend, my first 50-miler: The Vermont 50. Crossing the finish line of any race is exhilarating. The feeling of accomplishment, of achieving a goal that you’ve set and steadfastly worked toward. Only you made it happen for yourself. Of course, finishing feels wonderful no matter how many times you’ve done that race before. But, hold up a minute. When you cross the finish line of your first attempt at a new event, the feeling is absolutely and overwhelmingly …