February 27, 2006
I started my cycling season with a bang on Sunday: a 57 mile ride in four hours' time. Lots of climbing, including the mountain on 25 in Vandiver. My endurance training this winter has paid off, because I didn't feel tired during the ride. However, I lost the sensation in my feet due to the cold and the fact that my shoes are too small and cut off circulation. After the ride, I soaked for half an hour in a very hot bath to thaw out my frozen bones.
My new pedals (Look Keo) totally ROCK. There is more power transfer involved with a larger pedal surface area.
It's been a while since I have ridden through the back roads of Alabama, and it's beautiful there. The recent rains have created raging streams nearing whitewater status. The frogs were cacophonous, and the roosters were calling "Come hither" to their harems. Oh, and there was a dead bunny in the middle of the road. And people in cars hurled epithets at us and screamed by us at (literally) 100 mph. Animals: Docile. People: Possessed by Satan.
Nevertheless, the ride was excellent because the people I rode with are great folks to ride with, and I'm not just saying that because they read my blog. :)
If one burns an average of 35 calories per mile on a bicycle, then I burned 2000 calories yesterday. For the 24 hours following the ride, I ate like I just discovered food. Oink.
Posted by megabeth at 06:05 PM | Comments (0)
February 25, 2006To join the BBC racing team, all I had to do was buy a racing kit. Mmm-hmm, their requirements are stringent. ;) This means I will probably do some road races this summer; maybe even a crit if I feel brave.
Yesterday I had new Look pedals installed on my bike. HUGE difference from the speedplays; I feel like I immediately gained 10% in power due to the larger surface area. I'm trying them out on the roads tomorrow.
Spring is getting near!!
Posted by megabeth at 04:05 PM | Comments (4)
February 23, 2006I have completely lost my mind. I thought I would make a flowchart for a sprint triathlon to help people get an idea of the best way to go through the race. But due to my uncontrollable irreverance for just about everything, I instead created a flowchart for people who would like to race rudely.
May I present (in pdf format), MegaBeth's Guide to Rude Triathloning.
Keep in mind that this is VERY different from Nude Triathloning, which I do not recommend, and besides, most of the participants are already practically nude, anyway.
I do a lot of flowcharting at work, so this flat out tickled my funny bone. I could flowchart my entire life, if someone would give me the time.
Just for reference, if you're not a flowchart guru like I am (and you can thank God for keeping you away from them):
A diamond is a decision point. A box is an action. A box inside of a box is an unconscious or automated action.
Posted by megabeth at 12:32 PM | Comments (3)
February 22, 2006I think I am going to run this 10 miler on Saturday at Oak Mountain called Adam's Heart Run. Why not? I am starting to like the mid-range distances especially after my good experience at the Mercedes half-marathon. I say that now, but Oak Mountain is a hilly course.
Waiting to sign up at the last minute to see how the weather's going to be. Since it has been COLD and RAINING for the last month. Either it's cold and raining, or just raining. Either way sucks.
There's also a winter training series at Camp Sumatanga starting this Sunday for the next three weeks; but considering that I haven't been riding on the roads much this winter and that I am intimidated by riding with a bunch of testosterone-crazed men (there is no women's category), I think I'll hold out on road races for now. However, Vulcan Tri is holding some time trials coming up soon.
Gee. Lotta stuff going on so soon, I must take one bite at a time, chew and digest it properly. I'm meeting with my favorite bike shop guy this week to take a look at bike fit and if I want to buy new pedals and shoes. My current shoes are causing my feet to be numb. I have Speedplays right now, and because they have a lot of float (20 degrees), less power is transferred from the leg to the pedal. So I'm looking at less float, more power - possibly a Look pedal. The Speedplays were great while my knee was giving me trouble, but I'm pretty much healed up now.
Posted by megabeth at 01:45 PM | Comments (2)
Have you ever had two or three weeks of unrelenting, spiritually moving joy?? I haven't, not until now.
I can't stop thanking God for everything.
Yes, please. And thank You.
Oh, this makes up for any and all of the crap I ever put up with (mostly caused by myself), ever.
Posted by megabeth at 11:17 AM | Comments (1)
February 20, 2006I tend to be an 'all or nothing' kind of person. For example, I won't want to do a race unless I know I can do it well enough to place respectably. Or I won't want to train hard on a bike all winter knowing that on random weekends, the weather will not be favorable enough for me to ride. I have a difficult time digesting the notion of a 'training race'.
My lack of confidence in swimming has suppressed my desire to participate in a longer distance triathlon such as an Olympic distance (1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run). But I am starting to get my head together to prepare for such a race in July. I don't question my endurance or ability to ride or run that distance. What I fear is taking an hour to finish the swim or freaking out and hyperventilating in the open water. Thus, it's time for me to address my issues with swimming and make an attempt to enjoy the sport.
In the swim clinic this weekend, I learned that my goal for the swim should be to conserve energy for the other parts of the race — not necessarily to save time. My technique wasn't horrible to begin with, but making improvements in my stroke is going to take some time and practice since old habits are hard to break.
Posted by megabeth at 08:54 AM | Comments (0)
February 18, 2006I participated in a swim clinic today and it was very informative and helpful. Tomorrow I get back in the pool for more instruction. I knew I wasn't swimming with the right technique and thus felt like it was worthless for me to practice until I learned the right technique.
Plus the bike shop guy I train indoors with is going to look at my cycling shoe footbeds and see if any adjustments can be made to increase my efficiency on the bike. Because I'm all about getting faster without doing any work.
My body fat percentage was measured today at 17.7%, which is low for a female, but probably normal for a female athlete/runner. The absolute minimum for women to allow for proper bodily functioning is 10 to 12% (this is called essential fat). I don't know if I would ever want to drop below 17%; besides, it seems that when my body reaches a certain weight on the low end of my range, I become irrationally hungry and eat everything in sight.
Here is a useful guideline for body fat percentages.
There is one benefit in tri-sports for those with higher body fat: you're more bouyant in the water. And women, since their body fat is typically higher than men, have greater ease with gliding atop the water due to higher buoyancy.
Posted by megabeth at 05:47 PM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2006Ah, crap. My plan is to step up training for cycling for a duathlon the first week of April. But this weekend isn't a great start; the weather doesn't look dry/warm enough for me to venture out on the roads. After all, I am holder of the Big Cold Weather Weenie Award.
I'm getting some swim instruction from the local triathlete swim coach this weekend, so I should consider it a huge accomplishment that I actually dragged myself (kicking and screaming) into the pool. If you look at the topic menu on the right hand side, take note that there are NO swimming related posts yet. That's because I hate swimming. Why? Because I find it to be boring.
There are ways to fix that. Like running, I could make it a social sport by meeting the a.m. swim group. That would require getting up very early, an activity that most certainly earns me the Early Morning Wake-up Weenie Award. Also, I could focus more on interval training instead of simply getting in the pool and swimming X number of laps. Hopefully the swim coach will give me some pointers on that this weekend.
Posted by megabeth at 11:00 AM | Comments (1)
February 13, 2006I finished 20th out of 176 in my age group. Does that kick a$$ for my first half marathon or what??!?!?!
Official time was 1:54:57. Next year I want to beat that time.
Sheesh. Addicted already.
UPDATE: The newspaper says I finished (in the women's category) at place #135 out of 1084. I love numbers.
Posted by megabeth at 01:18 PM | Comments (2)
February 12, 2006I don't have the official results yet, but I finished in the neighborhood of 1:55. My goal was 2 hours flat, so I did much better than that, and I ran as my coach instructed: negative splits. That pace is around 8:45 a mile. I ran most of the race with a buddy from my running group, and that kept my mind off of pain and the cold weather.
If I had more time to train for these things, I would need to work on muscular strength in my legs. I have the endurance and the cardio to go faster, but my leg muscles can't crank any harder. Nevertheless, the training I did helped a LOT. I didn't see Jesus until mile 12.
My sweet ole Dad met me at mile 10.5 and tried to run the rest of the race with me, but by that time, I was cranking out some speed and he couldn't keep up. Still, the moral support was appreciated.
Official finish time forthcoming when they post them on the interweb.
Posted by megabeth at 02:56 PM | Comments (4)
February 10, 2006
Once upon a time, during the era of horse and carriage, I was a college student. (OK, so it wasn't that long ago, but it definitely feels like it.) I had chosen to take a significant leap of faith at the young age of twenty. My boyfriend and I hopped on a plane to Moscow with the intent of backpacking across Europe on an unrealistically low budget. My life savings, a wad of travelers' cheques, was securely tucked into my waist wallet, which would not leave my body except for those times in which we could afford to bathe.
The two-month journey was trying; we grew tired of each other, tired of being dirty, tired of not being able to communicate, tired of being hungry, and tired of being tired.
But at the end of the trip, after I had gone home and done snow angels in the carpet for few hours (I had sorely missed the ability to touch the floor without contamination), I had no regrets about going, despite the inconveniences.
It is that attitude I wish to bring forth to the half marathon on Sunday. At the end of the race, I know I will be thrilled to have completed an unforgettable journey.
Posted by megabeth at 09:27 AM | Comments (1)
February 08, 2006Irony.
That's what happens when I avoid training in sub-freezing temperatures. Group run at 8 am in 28 degrees? I skip. I wait until the afternoon. I run alone.
The predicted low for this Sunday morning is anywhere from 23 to 29 degrees.
Oh, JOY.
Posted by megabeth at 08:47 PM | Comments (0)
February 07, 2006I got lucky. I won the lottery. Some people don't ever figure it out, but at thirty-one, I think I finally have it. Yo la tengo.
Thirty-one years of wrestling with the pieces, putting square pegs in round holes, forcing jigsawed curves into jigsawed waves, banging my palms on the table hoping to hear the "Snap!" sound of a perfect fit. Once I had it — my perfection — I could finally relax.
Only perfection wasn't attainable. I had to realize that this is as good as it's ever gonna get, right here at this moment in time. My cousin once sent me a card that says, "Keep your face to the sunshine and you will never see the shadows". Perhaps I looked down just to torment myself. The shadows came and went; some stayed longer than others. Some stayed long enough to leave a permanent impression on the pavement. Those are my wounds from battles past.
One morning at year thirty-one, I wake up and get out of bed, and all is right with my world. Can't explain it entirely, it's just that the pieces started to fit. What I'm doing became less of pointless striving and more of doing for the sake of enjoyment. I could raise my face to the sunshine for hours; my neck would not tire of it. I could find joy in the menial task of putting the pieces together. I could discover that this journey is less struggle and more effortless glide.
The flip of a switch, and I'm there. Thirty one down. A lifetime to catch up on what I've missed.
Posted by megabeth at 11:42 AM | Comments (4)
February 06, 2006Posted by megabeth at 08:36 PM | Comments (0)
February 05, 2006Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race, but only one wins the prize? Run so as to win.
Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one.
Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.
No, I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I myself should be disqualified.
Posted by megabeth at 02:38 PM | Comments (2)
February 04, 2006"GO GO GO!!!" My two-year-old niece likes to declare.
I'm about to head out for an 11 mile run with the 10k to half group. Should be fun despite the cold weather. I'm feeling good, but not sure how I'll hold up on 900 mg of clindamycin per day.
Update: Screw the cold bath this time. I AM FREEZING. It was a good run, but I felt kind of woozy due to the antibiotics. The last 4 or 5 miles were painful.
Posted by megabeth at 08:33 AM | Comments (0)
February 01, 2006I'm feeling pretty inspired right now. After two weeks of throbbing head pain, I feel a thousand times better and am ready to start kicking some a$$! The half marathon is in 11 days. After that it's time for me to get back on the bike for some targeting training, because I have committed to the Whistlestop Duathlon on April 9. After the half marathon, I will meet with the wonderful coach of the couch to 10K program for some direction on speedwork. The splits in the duathlon are 2.8 miles each, so it's time to get tuned for some short distance sprinting.
A break this winter has restored my motivation. However, I am concerned that I may experience some burnout this summer if I keep up a hard training pace. I need to map out a schedule for some break time.
Posted by megabeth at 10:13 AM | Comments (0)