Happy 4th of July

i met up with my team mate Ingrid today at the pool and got a few pointers on some of the drills that were included in our workout. She's a strong swimmer and has done the Pacific Grove Tri twice and will doing the Nation's Tri in DC. the swim went well today, just what i needed to offset the lingering stiffness from yesterday's ride.... an uneventful ride i'm happy to mention.

Happy 4th everyone, i'm gonna get the grill fired up soon. i've been marinating pork ribs since yesterday and can't wait to dig in.

sometimes......

it takes a weeks worth of lousy workouts to get to a really awesome one.

last week was my trial by fire so to speak.

my swim while greatly improved from the first time i TRI-ed is clearly my weakest link. i've been struggling with the workouts and feeling frustrated. the truth is i just need to back off and not get over anxious about getting faster and just focus on form, breathing, and endurance.

i learned a whole lot about fixing flats last week. i got not one but three flats. the first one occurred while hauling ass over a manhole....note to self remove sunglasses when riding in a shady area.

my first attempt to fix the flat took about 45 mins. i got about a mile down the road when i heard another pop. i didn't inflate the tube with air before placing it back into the tire and my guess is it got twisted or pinched. so, i walked about a mile or so to the bike shop (luckily i wasn't out in the middle of nowhere) i purchased another tube and attempted to fix it again. the bike peeps were ready to help but i insisted that i do it myself....by this time my kid is calling me wondering where i am and i'm explaining that she'll have to walk home from bart because i'm in the middle of a situation here...she's understanding initially but can't i been done in 30 mins to pick her up...i assure her that's a reasonable request however she's gonna need to walk the home)...

anyhoo, i'm spread out in the parking lot trying to fix the tire...ironically i have no trouble removing or putting on the the back tire...it's the removing, returning and filling the tube that's not going well. i manhandled the tube and the tire so badly that the tube popped and the tire ripped AND I HAD TO PURCHASE ANOTHER TIRE ALONG WITH A SECOND TUBE.

and don't even get me started on CO2 cartridges.

i was so irritated by this point that it over shadowed any embarrassment i was feeling earlier, i let the bike guy insert the third tube into the new tire and i placed it on the bike. so i am 50% competent with flats.

suffice it to say the bike and i haven't been too cozy this week and i need to ride today. i watched a you-tube video last night and from all the experience i got last week i think i'm ready to get back in the saddle.

i've been working out at the track with team on wednesday night. despite the mental conversation i have all day about whether i'll go or not , i go and it's always fun and hard. lastweek my period really drained my energy and the run on sunday was not enjoyable at all. my mileage has been low as we've been concentrating on drills and hill repeats. i haven't had the euphoric feeling that kicks in after a good long run in awhile. yesterday i put in 5 miles and most of it was hilly and while it wasn't super intense i did get a little taste of happy. about an hour later i kicked ass in the pool and had an awesome workout, felt relaxed and strong and got out of the pool in a good mood for a change.

i was thinking last night how training for triathlon is like raising kids. i'm the parent of an only child by choice, for our family one child is enough. with all the time and attention i'm giving triathlon, it's become my other family so to speak and i'm having to learn to divide my time and attention learning each "kids" quirks and personality. the more i swim, ride and run i am beginning to appreciate the ability to accept each one for what they are, the swim though she vexes me has introduced me to a completely different way of working out. we're getting to know each other better and i'm actually starting to like her.

the bike is a good reminder that riding is not mindless. it's not enough to ride well. i've been lax about the technical aspects of riding and need to work on the basics more. being 100% self sufficient is my goal.

the run has changed. i miss the long slow distance runs, but working with a coach and focusing on drills and STRECTHING PROPERLY (probably for the first ever) has made a tremendous difference. i'm still slow, but trusting the training and it seems to be paying off.

TNT - wk 3

Mon - rest

Tues - masters swim class pushed hard 1.5 hrs 1700 yds

Weds - team track/ hill repeats - did not puke.

Thurs - master swim class - i was tired took it easy swam 1.0 hr. 800 yds

Fri - rest

Sat - opted to sleep in and skip team workout, attended stroke clinic at MLK pool instead, i really benefited from this today, was introduced to butterfly for the first time...ugh!....breast but mostly freestyle...the subtler aspects of this stroke are making more sense...love my team mates but i appreciated the smaller class and more attention.

me at wed track....before the evil hill portion of the workout...

Sun - could run w/team or do a ride/run brick on my own.

T and M arrive back late tonight from NYC. I still need to get T something for Father's day and I'd like to swing by the grocery store for a few of his favorite things. That man just spent 4 days with our 13 y.o. daughter and all her fabulousity....I think a bottle Glenn Levitt is in order.

swimming at sunset

tonight i swam with the masters group at my local pool....finally.

my pool has been closed for renovations and i had to go to one 2 towns over. the coach was very nice and while the tone was low key it was a very challenging workout. 8 easy 50s, 100, 50, 200, 50, 300, 50, easy 100. i felt my heart rate climbing and was a bit nauseous at the end.

i don't suppose the grilled chicken sandwich i ate an hour before had anything to do with it. normally i wouldn't of ate so much before working out but T and M were leaving tonight for New York and we wanted to have dinner together before they had to leave.

i started sneezing again and the headache kicked in shortly after but i pushed along. i'm sure the fact that i paid an extra buck for a structured workout help keep me on task. not sure what the headaches are about most likely a combination of dehydration and poor breathing.

on the way to the pool you could seen the fog hovering. as i worked my way up and down my lane the sun began to drop below the marine layer and rays of light pierced the waters surface. it's funny how light can transform a modest community pool into a sanctuary.

TNT PHOTOS

i would never do this it it weren't for charity!

Our first training ride out near Moraga Intervals at DVC Track....very nice and cushy i might add.

kinda crazy

after yesterdays swim/run work out all i had gumption to do when i got home was shower, eat and take up residence on the couch ....the remainder of the day. i watched 3 movies and ate half a pan of brownies. they were thin!

as i mentioned , i showered but i was too tired to deal with my hair. if i don't blow dry or flat iron my hair it turns into an afro. this needless to say has caused many a revision in my swim schedule. i don't swim before work because of the time required to allow it to air dry for an hour first then blow dry with a comb attachment and then flat iron. women of color (i'm puerto rican) who opt for the straight look but want to swim understand the dilemma here.

yesterday i was too tired to deal with my hair and by 7pm i was looking pretty poofy. and i mean really poofy. in order to fit the bike helmet on i had to finally deal with it this morning. the irony here being, here i am drying and flattening and straightening my hair only to acquire the dreaded helmet hair.

kinda crazy, no?

bad swim

every so often a workout can suck monumentally.

i was actually looking forward to my swim practice lastnight. my usual pool was too crowded, the one closest to home was closed for maintenance so i had to go across town for a third option.

from start to finish everything was off and the fact that my allergies chose to kick in did not help at all. i sneezed pretty much the entire work out. i'm guessing the pool was extra chlorinated and i'm just sensitive to it. swimming is tiring enough without the added exertion of rapid fire sneezing every other lap.

seriously

needless to say i couldn't really keep track of my intervals. shit i can barely count laps when i'm not distracted.

i work half day and then have a team track work out tonight in pleasant hill. after last nights horrible swim i'm really wishing i hadn't agreed to carpool to tonight's training because i could go in early and swim at my most favorite pool in concord before track, oh well, hopefuly tonight's workout will go better.