Danskin 08 Race Report

Well.....we came, we saw, we kicked some ass! The Keeney girls all finished the race. Am I bitter that my little sister who smokes and hardly trained at all got the same time as me?.....................a little. The weather was perfect. I had my personal trainer with me for one last day. And my mom was on baby duty which was very helpful. There are no excuses for anything. I went there with the goal of just wanting to finish.....check. I wanted to do it without being dead last.......check. I wanted to finish in under 2 hours..........check. so why do I feel like I could have done better? I may have to do this again next year just to beat myself.

Things that I could have done differently.

1. no stopping to pee in the porta potty. I was just starting my run and debating weather or not to pee myself or slip into the porta and pee. That would save a minute or so.

2. I might put regular pedals on the bike so I don't have to change shoes. My transitions were ridiculously long cuz I had to change shoes twice and of course I didn't have them untied, lock laces, etc. That's another 2-4 minutes of transition times right there.

3. I would not run in spandex alone! That's just too much jiggling for me. I never felt like I got into a groove with my running cuz I was tugging at my shorts trying to cover more skin.

4. I needed to do more Brick workouts prior to the race. I felt like I was running on tree stumps. practice ,practice, practice.

Now I'm not sure what my goals are. I've been focusing on this one event for so long.......now what? I need a goal or I don't make working out a priority. I am captain excuse maker.

1. I think I will focus on running for now and cross train a little with swim, bike, plilates. Maybe try to get a PR for the berbee derby this november (5K).

2.I would like to shoot for finishing the Crazy Legs Classic(8k) in April '09.

3.Possibly do a 10K at some point next summer.

4. But for sure do the Danskin with my sisters again. Only this time make it a girls weekend. It was nice to have my family and mom there, but that couldn't have been much fun for them. Lots of standing around being our Sherpa's.

PS. My personal trainer officially quit so I'll have to figure out how to do all of this alone. :(

My personal trainer put in his three week notice :(

It finally happened. Jeff got so fed up with my pissing and moaning about working out that he said after the Danskin tri on July 13th he can no longer be my P.T.. he would rather be my husband and he can't be both without a marriage counselor. Thank you, Jeff, for helping me despite my bad attitude.

The last couple of weeks I've been trying to spend more time on the bike before the tri. I took a long ride with Jeff with brutal hills. And another short one (about 20 miles). Also 30-45min here and there on the trainer. I'm also feeling a little better about my running. doing some longer slow runs and some interval work. I was able to run 4.5 miles one night. Aerobically I felt fine. My knees and ankles were getting sore though. I'm feeling pretty confident with swimming. I've been to the pool a couple times, also. It's much easier to swim lap in a 50 yard pool. Not as many turns. Now if I can just do all three in a row at a reasonable speed I think I'll have it licked!

But the BIG news is Jeff has sold his bike and is now getting an Orbea ORA. I don't know much about it but he has that excited 12 year old grin on his face is it must be good. I'll post pics when he brings it home. At my request, this time he sold his bike FIRST then purchased another bike. So while he has been bikeless he's been getting more runs in. I think he's trying to get his mileage back up. He needs to do a little more swimming I guess. last time we did lap swim he looked like he was struggling. I'm sure he will bounce back soon. He hasn't been able to work out as much as he wants to because of my training. Hopefully he can get more time in after my tri is done.

Hey lady...Are you still going to run the 2 mile?

This is what I heard from a 10 year old kid in the transition area of the 2mile run/15mile bike/2mile run duathlon that I finished last saturday. Followed by, "Mom, should I put the rest of the water away yet?". Then his 12 year old brother followed behind me on his dirt bike the whole last 2 miles.......about 3 feet behind me. It was not a very beginner friendly race. Even my husband Jeff got his ass handed to him. My friend from work, Pam, and I came in dead last. I did finish in just under 2 hours which was my goal, but coming in so far behind kind of takes the wind out of your sails. Especially since all of the volunteers were standing around like it was a huge inconvenience to wait until we finished. Almost all the the athletes were gone and the transition area had been cleared out before we were done......RUDE! Oh well. that's the last time I will ever do the Albany Duathlon! I knew when I a bunch of Ironman tattoo's on people that I was in trouble.

I also did a duathlon with Jenny and Mike the weekend before ,which went a little better. At least I beat a few people. That one was in beloit starting at the hospital. That was nice to know if I had a heart attack help was nearby......comforting.

I also just got done with the Susan Komen 5k run with my friends, Audrey and Angie. Angie was having a surprise birthday party that evening and I was so nervous I was going to spill the beans. Especially since I almost did the day before.....oops. Don't ever tell me secrets.....I cannot keep them! Before the race Angie was commenting on how slow she was and feel free to pass her.......then she took off like a bat outta HELL. Whenever I start out to fast it kinda ruins the rest of the race for me. I spend the rest of it trying to get my mojo back. It never happened. That's ok. It got me out of my comfort zone.

Jeff, my personal trainer has just informed me that it is time to start suffering before the danskin tri. I'm following this workout schedule from a magazine for beginner triathletes. I'm struggling to get all the workouts in due to the small children but doin the best I can. I could never accomplish this without Jeff's help. I don't know how single mother's would get anything done, let alone train for anything. I'm very lucky. I'll try to post more often as I have been told by several people that I should.

Tagged by Jenny

5 interesting things about myself, hmmmmmmmm....................

1. I am not that interesting. Right now I am about the most boring person you will ever meet. My life revolves around my family. I have a very supportive husband who is always encouraging me to find something I really like to do ,but I am so boring I wouldn't even know what that would be. I go out with friends about 2-3 times a year and spend the whole time feeling like I'm neglecting my kids and don't really enjoy it.

2. I just recently read a book (a grown up one) from beginning to end for the first time in about 8 years! Since the first baby I didn't even try to read a book for the first 3 years cuz I just didn't' have the time. Then I went to school for three years and every spare moment I had was spent studying for board exams, etc. I always feel guilty reading because my house is always such a tornado. I feel like if I have any free time I should spend it cleaning or something. ......I know it's pathetic.

3. If we had a bigger house and more money, I would definitely have more kids. They are so fun. They make me smile everyday and think about how lucky I am to have my life. Even the 15 yearcold in all of her teenage splendor is lots of fun most of the time :)

4. I wish I had never told anyone I was doing the triathlon. I'm so sick of talking about it. Everytime I talk about it I feel another nail in my coffin. I'm still not very confident that I can even do it. And other people keep saying they are going to do it with me. I don't want to be responsible for organizing a whole group of people to go down to the tri. I'm not good at that. I think it will be difficult enough to deal with my own nerves let alone a bunch of other first time triathletes who keep asking me questions like I'm some kind of expert because my husband has done this before.

5. I really wish my little sister lived in Wisconsin again. I miss her. I talk to her alot (via email of course cuz she doesn't like the phone per her list) but it's not the same. It's hard to listen to her go through hard times and not be able to hug her or take her out for drinks :)

6. was there supposed to be 5 or 6? Well, I haven't really worked out much the entire month of DECEMBER. I feel like a big doughy piece of poo! I smell a new years resolution!

Would someone please remove the lead from my Butt!

Thanksgiving morning I did the Berbee Derby in Fitchburg with my friend, Audrey, Jenny, and Mike. Mom and Dad came along for the ride. Roads were a little icy on the way up, but were fine once we got to the main roads. The route was pretty well salted, so no ice on the 5K.

I had way too many layers on. I felt like Randy on A Christmas Story with the snowsuit that won't let his arms go down. I have been running quite a bit on the treadmill downstairs. For some reason, the cold air and hilly course was kickin my butt! I was also way too hot! I came in at 39:04 (12:35 min mile) I had to stop a few times to walk. Audrey stayed with me even though I could tell I was holding her back. You would think I could keep up with the mother of a 3 month old but I couldn't. I was going my usual turtle pace. Someday I'll hit my goal of 30 minutes.

After the race, I took an uninterrupted long hot bath. Thank you, Jeff. Then off to Jenny's house for feast and fun. The food was awesome as usual. Afterwards Lucas and I DOMINATED on some games. Jeff offered to take Izzie home for a nap and come back later. We all know he offered to do that so he could take a nap himself. Nice try. There's a picture of Izzie and my personal trainer. And a picture of Jen, Mike, Mom and Jake doing some last minute meal prep before lunch. And Lucas and I Own! Go Blue!

Today did my weekely walmart run. I will be so glad when Izzie is off of formula so I can quit going there so often. I find myself laughing at all of the rednecks until I realize I must be one of them. With encouragement from my trainer I did The Firm this morning. I am planning on running on the hamster wheel later on if I can get some housecleaning done. My maid is so fired! Right, Jen? They have announced the date of the Danskin triathlon next year, July 12/13. There's no backing out now..........
We are still debating on where to go for spring break this coming march. We were going to do the obligatory Disneyland visit, but after talking to Jake and Taylor they weren't as excited about it as I thought they would be. So that brings us to visiting my sister, Tracy, in Colorado. She's in Costa Rica right now. When she gets back she'll have to let us know if that's OK. I think Jeff would be looking forward to some high altitude training. I think we could all find something to do there and be happy.

strength training

If I knew how to turn that picture I would. sorry. Trick or treating was fun this year with the kids. Jake was the grim reaper with "Real Fake blood" and Izzie was a butterfly. Very cute. I was so proud of Jake. I didn't have to remind him once to say thank you at every house. Izzie was just sitting in her stroller and some people gave Jacob 2 things and told him to give one to his sister. I said just to say thanks and put it in his bag even though she's too little to eat candy. Jake was concerned that he was not being honest.......Just when you think they're not listening......

According to my Personal Trainer, I need to do more strength training. So today I did my "The Firm" DVD (weights and aerobics at the same time). Doesn't hurt that much now, but tomorrow I will be sore. Planning on doing the swim session with the SWAT team Tuesday. Probably a day off tomorrow.....yeehaw!