My Man.. :)

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Me: “Sweetie, you look good today! Did you lose a pound or two?”
K: “No. Thanks for saying that, but no!”
Me: “Are you sure? Your tush looks smaller and your face looks thinner!”
K: “The scale says no! Body fat % is the same and all.”
Me: “Well.. maybe we should try cutting out gluten and see what happens?”
K: “That’s crazy talk!”
Me: “Ok, how about for two weeks and add it in?”
K: “I like gluten.”
Me: “Even if it keeps you heavy?”
K: “I like beer. I like bread. I like GLUTEN! YUM!”  *eats cracker*

Ahhh you had to be there. That exchange is still making me giggle.

May 2012 Splash and Dash

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The third Tuesday of every month in the Summer (April – Sept), Pure Austin and Jack and Adams put on a Splash and Dash. What is that, you ask?

Well, you splash… for 750 meters around The Quarry in North Austin.
Then, you dash.. for 2 miles on the trail around The Quarry.

You get a timing chip, and free food (usually hot dogs and chips) and most of the time, BEER at the end! Its great fun, and a great way to benchmark your performance month over month.  I hadn’t done one since 2009, so honestly? I forgot what a GREAT workout it is!

We had a guest appearance at this Splash and Dash.. Lance Armstrong! You know, that local turkey who just shows up and wins local races. Ha ha. Just kidding (really)!

Check out the Results. he’s #Juan. Juan Pelota.

We figured this out while I was standing around in the water (making fun of my fat, no less), when my friend Red starts saying, “really? is that him?” and he turns around and says, “Yeah, that’s him…” and everyone has a chuckle. Especially me with a handful of flab. :p  But nonetheless, it wasn’t too disruptive. He wasn’t the only pro on the scene, and it looks like the other locals gave him a run for his money. He won by about 20 seconds (a decent spread at the pro lev) at 20:09.  The man averaged out to a 1:17/100m swim, and a 5:15/mi run pace. Wow. He was cooling down as many of us were starting our first lap, and one of my former Coaches ran along side of him for a bit. According to her, he said it was harder than he thought it would be!

Well, that makes me feel better.

No really, it does. As I mentioned, there was more than one local pro at that race. One thing I forgot – this is a mid-week race that the fast people do. As in, I was seriously in the last 3/4 of people out of the water and squeaked into the top half finishers with my run. I’m not a turtle, but I feel like I am at Splash and Dash. It ain’t for sissies.

My total swim time was 20:52. If you do the math – this means Lance was done with his race (and 3rd place was crossing the mat) when I was just getting done with my swim.  The time DOES include your transition time (where I accidentally put THE WRONG SHOE ON THE WRONG FOOT…), so while the pace is broken down to about 2:49/100m, It was probably more like 2:40. That’s a tad bit faster than my swim at The Rookie. That’s not a terrible thing, either, as it’s more than twice as long. At least I’m consistent!  I was really beating myself up over the swim. I’m still 15 seconds slower than last year.

The run, however, gave me an unexpected boost. I ended up at an even 9:00/mile pace (surprise!!!).  This is the first run I’ve had (on a TRAIL no less!) since my injury that I felt strong enough to “book it.”  I passed a lot of team mates, sprinted that last lap at an 8:45 pace, and felt pretty… tired. My time overall: 38:54. Alas, I was happy with it overall. I can’t wait to see how I do next month!

And yes, I skipped the chips and hot dogs. :P

Its time to get faster in open water swim.  I’ll quote The Relay Runner – “That OWS. Its a Motherfucker.”

OH. and I almost forgot.

At the end of the race, a Trizoner I didn’t know came up to me, and started CRYING. I was like, “OMG, what what??” and she introduced herself, then told me that her Goggles had broken right before the race, and so had attached herself to my swim. She couldn’t see a GD thing except for… my ankle brace. She followed me and my ankle brace for the entire 750 meters, being super thankful that I was at a good pace, was consistent, AND knew how to sight. She was crying this huge, cute tears and thanking me for swimming with her (without me knowing it). I gave her like two hugs and was super happy that I unknowingly helped. That made me feel better about the swim, for sure.

Weigh In Wednesday (May 16th)

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Along with my resolve to start losing some fat, I’ve decided to do a weekly check in as well. Well, as long as I can remember to, so keep me honest, m’kay? :)   I ask you to call me out if I forget next week. I figure its a good way to keep myself accountable. Yes, internet, I’ll publish my weight and caloric intakes for your amusement (and to keep me on track).

Anyhow – this week’s weigh in has me at 127.8 - a full pound less than last week! wooohooo!

Lets keep this clear – I don’t at all expect that trend to keep up. In fact, I think its a “first week anomaly” since I’m basically just trying to bounce back to where I was six or seven weeks ago. Speaking of one week, isn’t it TOTALLY ridiculous that it can take months to lose 5 pounds but like, three weeks to gain it all back? That’s some total physiological bullshit right there.

So, how am I trying to bounce back?  By basically getting a lot stricter (read: obsessive) about my inputs and outputs. Its the only way I actually see results. I’m logging my calories on a daily basis on My Fitness Pal, and keeping a weekly tracker spreadsheet to see how I’m doing on average. Here’s what this week’s summary looks like:

Yes, I have some SERIOUS off days, along with some not-so-bad ones. And that’s OK. They’re typically over the weekend, when I have the time to have a few drinks (while I’m doing things like gardening) or have more time to sit and enjoy a nice leisurely meal with friends. This usually means there is alcohol involved – I mean, really, if someone has a BBQ, I’m TOTALLY going to chow down and enjoy myself.

The trick is to burn it off. This is where cycling is a really, really good thing. The calorie burn and time spent on a bike is really helpful – on Sunday, for example, my hubby and I went for a 3 hour bike ride. It was challenging, it was fun, and I definitely got to eat what I wanted afterwards.

As a side note: that’s the same calorie burn I’d get running a half marathon – but cycling is way less brutal on your body, and you actually can do a 30+ mile ride every weekend without too much pain. I couldn’t do 13.1 every weekend.

On average, though – the week went well. My gross daily intake averaged out at about 1700 calories, and I burned enough to keep my net average at under 1200. For my height and weight – that’s exactly where I need to be to see progress.

I call that motivation! Lets hope I can keep it up!

The Buddha Belly

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Its time I owned up to something. I’ve been living in denial for years about it. YEARS!

My body type is of the round-belly kind.

I KNOW.. I know.. not a shocker for those of you who have known me for years on end, but you know what? I just hate to admit it. I know exactly where I get it from, too – my Dad’s family! They’ve ALL got ginormous midsections. I guess I’ll take it over the shape of my mom’s side.

Really, though – I decided to take a look through some old pictures, and found that even when I weighed roughly 110 pounds (2003) or 118 pounds (2008) – which is my current goal weight – I *STILL* had a freaking belly. Its just where I gain, I guess!

Exhibit 1 - when I didn't really drink or exercise

So what’s different between now and then? And why do I think I can get rid of it?  Well.. honestly, back then, I wasn’t really into fitness. My legs were skinny, not muscular. So I can pretty much safely say, I’ve maintained my % of body fat, and most of the weight gain I’m seeing now is pure muscle (yeaahhh baby…?).

Exhibit 2, 2009 - weighing around 116, just getting into tris. Still bellylicious.

Well, most of it, anyways. I did balloon up to about 135 in late 2010-early 2011 (when I was in NC and quite unhappy with being there.. and on Paxil, the happy weight gain drug), and was able to get back down to around 122 earlier this year. But you know what? I *STILL* had a freaking belly.  I did attribute it to alcohol at first, but honestly, I don’t think that’s it. I didn’t drink really at all until about 2007.  Its not for lack of core muscles – I can probably out-plank you (thanks to swimming and yoga). ;) So really.. its simply genetics. Bah.

Late 2011. Half marathon belly.

I’d post a pic of “Now” in 2012, but shots from The Rookie haven’t come out yet.

Anyhow. All this to say – I need to be “ok” with the belly bubble being there. I’ve changed my diet to about 80% non processed foods and eat mostly organic and low carb. Thinking back, I even maintained a 1200 calorie diet for about five months and still didn’t see a difference.  The one thing I haven’t really tried, though, is weight training.

So, along with my plan to start training for that half iron, I’m going to add in a little bit of weight lifting on M,W and F. I’m hoping this does two things – tone my arms and bring that belly down, AND give me more power through my endurance workouts. Sure, I’ve been working on speed.. but I *know* how to increase speed. I’ve been doing well there and just need to take it to the next level.

I started yesterday on a plan from a weight training book I’ve owned for years and never touched (an older version of this one). They start you out pretty light, and the weight training I did really only lasted around 20 minutes.  I started out the arm exercises with 8 lb weights, and since I’m not particularly sore today I need some heavier weights!  Or rather – I need to go visit the free weights at my gym. :)

Sure, I’m accepting it.. but I’m not admitting defeat just yet!

Tom’s Love Part Deux

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I got another pair of Tom’s ballet flats for my birthday! Since I can’t wear heels for the time being, I was pretty happy about this – I have several pairs of flats, BUT, the colors I have are pretty limiting. I don’t have many “basic” colors, but more “fun” things like leopard print. So, I decided to go with a gray color to tie in with my professional wardrobe. Gray is fantastic – its “in” right now, and can go with my black pants or jeans pretty easily.

So here’s where my attention to detail failed me: I looked on their site for a Grey color, and I went for the Katia Chambray Flats.  They look pretty grey in the picture, but what I didn’t notice is that they’re actually kind of denim colored!  However – it is a grey denim rather than a blue one, so it still works really well.

Cell phone pic, in flourescent lighting. AKA, work lighting.

Uh, so yeah – I honestly can’t tell the difference unless I look pretty closely.  As this is my second pair, I can finally answer some of the questions I’ve gotten about Tom’s ballet flats:

 
- Are they consistent with their sizing across the board, even though we know we need to size down?
Yes. I typically wear a 6.5, and ordered a 5.5 in both of my pairs of Ballet flats – they both fit well.
-Do Tom’s Ballet Flats strech out?
Yes, but just as much as any other shoe would. It will definitely mold to your foot if its a teensy bit tight. I noticed that my new pair is a bit more snug than my old pair, and I expect that’ll change with regular wear.
- Does the padding stay squishy?
Not really. I was surprised at how bouncy these new ones were in comparison with my old ones. I still feel a little bit of the padding on the old ones, but the new ones kind of have me walking on a small springboard! :)   But really. that’s pretty normal.
 
All in all, I’m really happy with their flats and definitely think they’re worth it. I’ve bought flats at DSW for maybe $35-$40 and they’re always a disappointment with either fit or support. These are solid with the foot support, and I’d actually say they’re a bit cuter, too.
 

Resolve & My Next Read

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It hit me today that K and I have been on-and-off trying to have a kid for a year now. A year! Aside from the obvious emotional downsides that come with a realization like that one came another emotion: resolve.

Resolve for what?  To get serious about two things:

- getting faster on my bike
and
- losing around 8 pounds

Not quite what you expected? Haha. Probably not. There’s not much I can do but wait, but while I’m waiting.. I need things “to do.”  Life goes on, ya know?  I’m done with “waiting to see if I’m knocked up” to register for that next race, and I’m done with backing off because something “feels” different that month. I’ve decided that its stupid to live on hold like that. I’ve kind of had that thought floating around in my head for a while, but it never really solidified until now.

Honestly, I’ve been eating mostly healthfully, with maybe a three-times-a-week treat – mainly of Torchy’s or Trudy’s and beer. But that, coupled with the ankle sprain aren’t doing my waistline (and therefore, my speed on both runs and bike rides) any favors.  One thing I can definitely control is my diet. So, I got myself a new book to read:

“The Paleo Diet for Athletes” – mostly spurned on by so many friends in my Facebook feed taking on Paleo/Crossfit challenges this week! However.. I’m not doing crossfit. Enter this book. Joe Friel – who wrote the Cyclists Training Bible and the Triathletes Training Bible (both books that are staples in this house) – collaborated with another author on this, and I’m really interested in what he has to say about it.  One of my bigger worries about taking on something like that is the energy level dip that goes with it. Lets face it though, now is the perfect time – my training volume is still rather low compared to what it’ll be later.  The one thing I can tell you I think I’ll have problems with – is alcohol. I LIKE having a glass of wine (or three), and its a pretty big part of my social life. I’ll have to read any chapters on alcohol closely.

What else have I done in the last 8 hours? Registered for Splash n Dash next Tuesday, TriRock Austin (formerly known as The Austin Tri), and decided to go ahead and start that half iron training for Kerrville.  With that.. since its raining.. I’m off for a 60 minute session on the trainer!

Oh – and I’m going to go ahead and report my weight here, maybe on a weekly basis. Today, I’m at 128.4. When we moved back from NC, I was at 122.  So, here’s a special thanks to Texas for having the best food ever! I’d also like to thank the Academy for my Ankle.. and an Honorable Mention shout out to beer. Time to get rid of the belly…

Notes on the Upload (5/8)

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I’ve been kind of waning on my love for all things lulu lately – partly because I’m busy as hell, and partly because I’m going back into more triathlon oriented training these days.  Now, this doesn’t mean that my love for all things quality has gone down..:) The tri shorts I raced in on Sunday are about three years old, and the grip bugs me. Its time for a new pair!

I do own two pairs of lulu branded tri shorts that were out back in ’09, and they’re just “ok.” I use them for my brick workouts when I don’t want to bring out my other pieces, and any swim – mostly because the padding is kind of lack luster.

Anyhow – this morning’s lululemon upload has a run top that looks like it could actually be decent for tris: the Zippy Run Tank.

Pros:
- Designed kind of like a tri tank – snug looking shoulder support
- Its noted that the built in bra is supportive – we shall see when I try it on!
- It has pockets! Pockets are necessary for gels, keys, whatevs.

Potential Cons:
- Tri tanks need to be snug all around. This includes the belly. If its too much of a flare, it won’t work.
- WILL the bra be supportive enough? Its not that big of a deal – I usually wear a bra with my tri tops anyways, but I’d love one where I could take that out of the equation.
- How tight are those pockets? Will my stuff just fall out?
- Needs brighter colors. We tri peeps like to be SEEN on our bikes.

Either way, I won’t be able to tell til I see it in the store.

Other notes:

- I think the Run in the Sun dress is cute, but I’d probably look like the Kool Aid Man in that. Not practical for tri season.
- I also think the Run in the Sun Skirt is cute – but after looking at it for a while, I kind of am reminded of my junior high cheerleading skirt. Anyone want to try doing a herkee in that?? :)

The Rookie Race Report (5/6/12)

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I almost didn’t do this race… twice. Really. I’m really glad I did it!

First strike – This race has a trail run, and my sprained ankle is still healing. I think I’m six weeks from injury, and this one typically takes eight to heal.

Second strike – There was a LOT of lightning the night before!  We had a freak thunderstorm in Austin that evening, and we awoke at around 12:30am to Abby dog panicking. Naturally, that means sleep was very much lost on both K and I that night.  We were worried that the roads would be too slick (it hasn’t rained in oh, seven weeks..), and we’d be fighting bike wrecks like mad.

Add to that.. I have a HORRIBLE track record with The Rookie. I’ve only done it once, but the first time (my first tri ever) I wrecked my bike within the first mile, and finished.. but with blood running down my legs and lots of road rash. Oh, and did I mention that this year’s race number was 666?

Devilishly Grinning at Packet Pickup

We got up and went out to the race site anyways. It turns out, there was some more thunder and lightning throughout the morning. With that, the race start was delayed for 30 minutes after last t-storm activity was heard.  Transition stayed open, and the guys at High Five Events did a GREAT job with graciously delaying and providing athletes with water and gatorade (and music!) while we waited.  It was muddy and a little chilly, but everyone was really in great spirits. Hey, it was the first race of the season!

So, I’ll prep you with my results. I finished in 1:14:58. My paces were – 300m swim – 8:09 (2:43/100m), 11mi bike – 41:38 (16.1 mph), 2mi run – 20:13 (10:08/min mile).  I’m not displeased for several reasons: the ankle is weak, it was a wet bike course (and I’ve been averaging a 15mph pace recently), and I was REALLY careful and slow on the run on purpose. I did NOT want to push it. The last time I pushed it before I was ready, I got two sprains in 12 hours. My goal going into the race was under 1:20.

The Swim

After what felt like an hour of waiting (it probably was), my age group was up.  I got into Decker with the rest of my wave, and off we went! And you know what? For the first time.. I kept up with the crowd. I was neck and neck with one girl almost the entire time, didn’t lose sight, and got to draft a little bit here and there. I did find it slightly more claustrophobic being around so many people, but I know it does help you out a bit.

Keeping up with the crowd was odd to me, for a few reasons. My swim was slow for “me,” so its not that I improved. The racing scene in NC is much more hardcore, so while I sucked ass at swimming over there, I keep up OK over here.  I do have to note, though, that my pace for this race - at 2:43 – is WAY slower than last year’s pace. Last year, I was averaging around 2:30′s. 15 seconds per 100m is HUGE in a swim! That equals out to almost a full minute at this race lost in speed over the last year.  A MINUTE!

The Bike

As I mentioned.. it was a wet day. And really, truly.. I forgot how hard this course is. Even if its called The Rookie (or Danskin, or Trek), and is marketed to Rookie people.. its not a Rookie bike course. It had some HILLS! I knew about “The Wall” (the hill that everyone struggles with, even the seasoned cyclists), and the hill up 130.. but I forgot about the other six. No joke. As I was going up the hill on 130, I was seriously wondering why I do this. I had to keep reminding myself that “this is the year of the bike!” and “No pain no gain!” and “This is a RACE, cabra! STEP ON IT!!!”

I did get passed a couple of times by the next age group, but all of the ones who did pass me were on tri bikes and obviously in REALLY great, fast, shape. I saw a few trizoners pass by and gave them a little cheer.  I did a lot of passing myself – I lost count, but I definitely flew by a few of my age groupers and a couple of men on slower bikes. As much as I bitch about hills.. I’m really not that bad at them. I was better at the end of last year, so I know I can do it – I just need to get my butt back on the bike!

It felt like I was going my typical 15.4 mph – and I would have been happy with it if I had. When results were posted, I got to see I made it to 16.1! Not bad for a hilly course! :)

The Run

I got out of transition a little slow – I had to put on my socks, trail shoes (with REAL laces.. not EZ laces), and make sure my ankle brace was secure. I got out there, and surprisingly felt OK running. Well, minus the fact that I haven’t been running much and was kind of out of breath, anyway. My ankle seemed to be holding up well. I tentatively pushed myself a little bit, but the trail was muddy and full of mulch. I did not want to misstep on all of that much, so I was dancing around here and there on the trail.

I got passed by a girl or two, and a few fast looking men. I caught up to one of the girls who passed me and asked her if she thought those skinny dudes were Rookies – YES! she said. Or they better be!  We ran together for a while, and after mile 1, I felt a secure enough to push the pace a little bit harder. Off I went until we hit the last stretch that turns into gravel, and off I went a bit faster this time!  I sped up a bit when I could see the finish line, and ended up with a 10:08 pace. I expected to end up at around that pace, I knew I was being careful because I don’t want to reinjure myself.. but its still disappointing to see a pace that slow these days. I’m over it. I’M OVER IT!!

K & I, courtesy of Tammy from Tempo Multisport

All in all… 666 wasn’t a bad number for me after all. The track record with The Rookie was broken. It didn’t take long for me to start looking forward to the next race, next month!

The After Party

..was AWESOME.  Seriously, I forgot how great Texas Tris are. They’re FUN! We got free food from My Fit Foods, all kinds of fruits, chips, peanut crackers.. and BEER. I had 2 different kinds of beer from the New Belgium brewery – Somersalt and Lips of Fire (or something like that). I looooove somersalt. Lips? Meh. Weird aftertaste, but I’m not going to complain.

I got to catch up with a lot of my triathlete friends, and hear a lot about the gossip and things that went down while I was away. It was a great race, and a fun time!  I’m going to spend a lot more time on the bike, and do some more bricks to get ready. I’ve got the bug again.. watch out! My age group is really competitive, so I think this will be the best place I see all year (18th).  Hopefully, this ankle thing will finish its healing quickly so I can go full force again!

Workplace Entertainment

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Ok, so getting in to an office vs. working from home.. I don’t feel so bad about having my slack off times while I worked at home. I now remember how much time was spent chit chatting and shooting the shit. I also get to look out of my cube to the (old) guy whose cube is across mine, and see this on his browser 80% of the time:

”"

Seriously.  Its actually interesting to me; typically, you hear that people of that age don’t really get into Facebook. I swear, he’s on it more than I am!

Unless, of course, he’s just a lot older than he looks. Also possible.

I am noticing that its really, really nice to be in the office for visibility. I had no idea of how to even begin the conversations about next steps in my career. Being back – I find those conversations are coming TO me. Its nice.