I.AM.AN.IRONMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well - it's official I am now, and forever more an Ironman!  August 17th, 2014 at 6:57am the horn went for my wave officially starting my Ironman race day journey.  It's funny, the amount of work that goes into getting ready for an Ironman, you sign up a year in advance, train hard, swim, bike and run crazy distances on a regular basis and then all of a sudden, BANG you are off!
Rewind a bit, we got to Tremblant on the Thursday before the race.  The town was already buzzing with excitement.  Everyone walking around in Ironman gear (clearly drinking the kook-aid) sporting M-dot tattoo's and looking insanely fit.  The IM crew in Tremblant do such an amazing job - Everywhere you look is Ironman.  And the finish line, already set up and ready to hopefully welcome us in on Sunday at some point.  Try to stay calm in that atmosphere, it's not easy.  Luckily I had the absolute BEST support crew ever and that helped a lot.
We checked in on the Thursday, minimal line very relaxed and quick thanks to the AMAZING volunteers. We got our Backpacks, wristbands and of course all the bag's required for race day.  This being my first Ironman it was all a little daunting but honestly - it was pretty simple.  Put what you need at each transition point (Swim-bike, bike to run) in the right coloured bag, then anything you might want halfway into those disciplines into another (special needs) bag.  We had to drop the bags off by 4pm on Saturday as well as our bikes.  Again, Trent and I went earlier to do this and had almost no lines to contend with.  Oh and the volunteers at every single step of the process - AMAZING.  When I went to bring my bike to it's pre-assigned spot a lovely volunteer actually took my bike for me and brought me (and my bike) to where it needed to be.  She was super nice!  Even took a picture of me, with my bike, in transition (yes - I am a nerd in case you are wondering).
Leading up to race day, really just tried to stay calm - alcohol helped a bit -  and keep my mind from obsessing, got a massage, some ART, bought ridiculously overpriced gear and then before I knew it, it's Sunday morning and I'm standing on the beach 'ready' to go.
The gun went off and I bolted into the water.  I got into some clear water pretty quick and ended up at the front of my wave with some of the quicker swimmers.  The clear water didn't last. With waves starting only 3 min apart before the second bouy we had caught up to the 50+ AG men who started ahead of us.  And from that point on I was battered, swum into sideways (I swim straight, so every time this happens I think 'you know you'd swim a lot faster if you learn to swim straight') and just beat up in general.  I really think they need to get a better system.  Maybe get the waves to start further apart or something.  Anyhow, I kept plugging along, I'm not prone to panic, and I do give as good as I get - just a tip, not a good idea to grab onto me in the swim.  About 5 bouys before the turn I realized that it had gotten super choppy.  But for me that wasn't much of an issue, slowed me down a bit I'm sure but everyone had the same conditions to contend with so it wasn't that big a deal.  I'm pretty sure by the time all was said and done in the swim I had caught at least one person from every wave. In some ways yes that is fun, but in others it sucks.  So come out of the water after what felt like a pretty long swim (it wasn't) in 1:03.  I was pretty happy as that was very close to my 1 hour goal for the swim.  The crowd at the swim finish was LOUD.  They were awesome, the wetsuit strippers were great and efficient and even better my sister and cousin and a few friends were manning the water station at the swim exit so they were super excited to see me and cheered really loud.
So off to the change tent I went, saw a few people along the way, but man, that run up to transition is just packed with people cheering.  Talk about feeling like a rock star.  Saw my Dad, as well as Barrie Shepley. Got into the change tent, and fairly quickly was off to get my bike and start on my 180k trek.  It was chilly when I got on the bike, I had arm warmers in my pocket but never did put them on. There were definitely points where I wish I had, but at the same time I didn't feel cold enough to actually stop and fiddle with them.  I managed to stay on track with my nutrition plan and got into a groove fairly quick.  That first loop (of 2) was a little depressing, seeing the signs for the second loop milage and knowing I still had a long way to go before I got there.  But the roads are incredibly well maintained and smooth and I had a great ride.  The section up Duplissee (Lac Superior) wasn't too bad but I tried to spin up it as much as I could knowing it would be nasty the second time around.  As I got there I saw Lisa Bentley and her husband Dave.  It was amazing, having Lisa Bentley, Ironman royalty cheering ME on during my first Ironman.  It is a moment I will never forget thats for sure (got a few cheers from her and Dave Cracknell as well throughout the day) kinda surreal.  So the first loop actually did go by relatively fast, I was actually at the 90k marker in 3:24, which was pretty awesome given my split at the 70.3 in June at Tremblant was 3:28. What made it even more impressive (at least to me) was that I had stopped twice to use the bathroom in the first loop.  I knew I was on track for a good ride so at that point I just kept plugging away.  Heading back out on 117 we had a pretty nasty headwind on the way to the turn around, which is also primarily uphill.  So that sucked but once I made that turn it was a tailwind and mostly downhill (except for the one fairly nasty climb) coming back. I felt great and really got through the rest of the ride without incident.  The climb up Duplissee the second time around was just as nasty as I expected, but it is only about 6-7k worth of nasty (and its not consistent nasty, just nasty in spots then a bit of a rest, then nasty again) and once again before I knew it I was flying downhill toward the end of the bike. Coming back into town was pretty awesome as there were tons of people cheering and finally getting off my bike felt REALLY good (although that was short-lived once I remembered I still had a MARATHON to do) I handed my bike to the bike catchers (that was also awesome) and had a bit of a brain fart thinking I had to go to where my bike was racked.  Luckily the volunteers quickly guided me back on track "Follow the red carpet" duh... I guess after a 4k swim, and 180k bike the brain isn't working as well as it should.  The great thing was just as I turned the corner to head into the change tent my cheering section was out in full force with awesome signs and boy were they ever LOUD!  Definitely gave me the boost I needed heading out to run a marathon.  I changed shoes quickly and off to the run course I went.
Just as I made my way out of town the rain started to come down.  Honestly it was warm enough that I didn't mind.  In fact I was grateful to be off the bike before the rain came, since I knew there were lots of others still finishing up their bike rides when the rain hit.
So this is where things started to suck just a little bit.  I started to jog lightly to get my legs under me but very early into the run my glut started to seize up on me.  It literally stopped me in my tracks, and forced me to walk.  Luckily my long legs mean I walk fairly quickly so while I kept trying to run, each time my glut reminded me it was angry and back to walking I went. But there were quite a few people out on the course that I ended up walking with and chatting with so that made the time go by quickly.  I just kept up my power walk and ticked away the kilometres.  Actually at one point a girl I had seen and talked to a few times earlier on the bike came by and actually couldn't keep up with me walking as my walking pace was quite quick.  She ended up jogging past me but later on in the run I ended up going by her again and did in fact finish ahead of her :) As I got back into town at the halfway point I saw my fan club again and they gave me a much needed boost.  Coming through the shute in town (you pass right by the finish on your way out to lap 2) was awesome.  So many people yelling and cheering, it's just amazing.  The second loop actually went by pretty quick.  There is a fairly long out and back section on a trail and that part got a little lonely, especially as the sun set and it got dark out. But the out and back sections allow you to see and cheer on your fellow competitors and I really enjoyed that part. Even saw a few C3 friends out there which really helped boost my spirits.  The aid stations were always stocked and the volunteers were great. I met a lot of people and chatted while I walked (still kept up my brisk power walk pace of course).  It was awesome.  Before I knew it I was heading back into town and up into the finishing shute for real this time.  I saw my dad just before I got into town, which was great.  At that point the finishing shute became somewhat magical I was actually able to run and honestly felt zero pain coming down towards the finish line (of course it all came screaming back once I stopped after the finish line).  I got VERY lucky in that there wasn't anyone directly in front or behind me so I had the final stretch to the finish line all to myself. It was amazing, so many people cheering and high fiving - it was UNREAL.  I loved every second of that last 500m or so. Then before I knew it the finish line was in front of me and Mike Rielly was calling me an Ironman - talk about a dream come true!!!!
As a first time Ironman I could not have asked for a better experience. I carried a picture of my mom with me all day so while she couldn't physically be there to greet me at the finish line, I 100% believe she was with me through every single step of my Ironman journey. I was able to get off the bike before any rain started, and honestly despite having to walk most of the run because of an injury I ended up having an amazing day.  I finished my Ironman Journey in 14:40 and I couldn't be happier.  I am very thankful to my coach Sean Bechtal, to Barrie Shepley for all his help and for being there cheering with the lovely Caron Shepley.  I'm also incredibly thankful to my dad, my sister, my cousin and my friends who all came up to be my sherpa's and biggest cheerleaders.  And of course my training buddies especially Kim Nelson and Trent Dilkie - I could not have done it without you guys.

Time is flying...

HOLY CRAP… in 2.5 weeks I'll be in Mont Tremblant for Ironman.  How did the time go by so quickly!
After a pretty tough weekend training wise (mentally), I knew I had to get back at it and quick to build back my confidence leading into the biggest race of my life (like literally, the longest race I've ever done).  Yesterday I got out and went for a 60k ride with a good training buddy, stopped at the bake shop in Erin and got some good hill training in along the way.  I got home feeling pretty good, and set about changing my bike tires.  I had a brand new pair sitting waiting for about this time - so got that done, and boy do they ever look nice.
Then today I got up and met Trent (one of the best training buddy's EVER) - to ride long.  We started in Caledon East, head out along old base line up towards Erin.  There is a stretch that is about 2.5k from Mclaughlin to Creditview (past the badlands) that is ALL uphill.  Actually very similar terrain as the Lac Superior section at Mont Tremblant.  I got up that quite well today - and felt really strong to boot.  We continued on getting only slightly lost up near Orangeville - and then head into Hockley.  As we were riding up Hwy 10 (thankfully a fairly short ride as it's a busy road) the rain starting coming down big time!  We were lucky and able to stop at a gas station for shelter, and thankfully in about 15min the rain eased up and we were on our way to the Hockley general store.  At this point there had been a lot of hills so from hwy 10 basically to the general store was a nice long swooping downhill.  It was lovely.  You work so freaking hard to get up those hills so a nice downhill section is just such a wonderful.
Trent and I stopped at the Hockley general store and had the best Bacon Grilled Cheese EVER! Seriously it was incredible.  Just what we needed about 80km into the ride. At this point Caron Shepley called.  She knew we were out riding and I guess there was a nasty storm where she was, so she thought we might need a rescue.  Luckily we really didn't get caught in too much of a storm - actually the sun was shining at this point.  We enjoyed our 'lunch' and hit the road again.  There is a fairly steep climb out of hockley, and today I hit it hard and road strong up it.  Really today's ride was a pretty good one for me.  It was just the confidence boost I needed this close to the big day.
I ran out of my infinit nutrition stuff, so while I wait for my order, went to sport chek and got some bounce bars, they are actually really good and totally did the job for me today.  The other thing I've noticed is lately I'm really enjoying coffee again… Plus today we were a little chilled by the time we got to hockley so it helped warm me up!
This weekend is likely the last big volume weekend and then it'll be taper time… HOLY CRAP!!!!

Someday's are better then others...

So it's been a while since my last post.  Lots going on really.  I was off to Europe for a week, which was an absolutely unreal experience, but it did cut in to Ironman training since I really didn't have a chance to train much over there.  I did walk a LOT - and I got a short 30 min run done.  But that was about it.  Now I'm back home and back at it.
Yesterday (Saturday) I had planned on a nice long bike ride.  So I set off from home to ride up to Inglewood (about 25k) to meet up with my C3 teammates.  Unfortunately with a lot away for races and training camps, there weren't a lot of people out.  Worse, nobody who was my speed was there either.  Everyone took off and there I was at the back of the pack with just one other person behind me.  She struggled up the first few hills so I hung back to wait for her so that we could ride together.  Well that was my first mistake.  Turns out, once she got warmed up and feeling good waiting for me wasn't in the game plan at all and she left me in her dust pretty quick.  Not going to lie I was seriously annoyed at that move.  I didn't have to wait for her early in the ride but I did, because in my mind its much more fun to ride with people than alone.  I guess she didn't feel the same way.  I really struggled mentally with the ride, but on the plus side I did manage to get up the ski hill without getting off my bike and walking (it's a tough climb).  I got myself back to the spirit tree, where I stopped in for a coffee and a cheese bun.  I was hungry and tired and frustrated and the stop was just what I needed to keep going for the rest of the 20+ km ride home.  All said and done it was a little shorter then planned at 105km but it was a 4.5 hour mostly solo ride and I got it done.  I didn't feel great, but I figure at this point every little bit counts.  Took the rest of the day to rest and eat and recover. I'm not going to lie I was feeling pretty down about the ride.  It's hard mentally when you can't keep up and have to ride alone as a result.  I mean seriously I thought going to a team ride would give me people to ride with, but wow was I ever wrong.  I got home, and ended up talking to Shanta as I was really down after the bad training day.  Thankfully she was awesome, and really reassured me that I've done a lot of work already and that I will be fine come race day.  It really helps when everyone is reassuring you that everything will be fine.
This morning (Sunday) I head out the door early for a 24k run.  I started from home and met Andrea at the running room (11k) and we did 13k together.  I ran most of the 11k to get to the Running room but struggled a lot in the second part of my run.  We ended up walking quite a bit, but I'm trying to remind myself it's all time on my feet and that it does matter.  It was hot, and slow, but overall I'm glad I got the distance done.  I think it's important to remember that not every training session can be awesome, and I've had my share of those this year.  I'm getting complimented consistently about how much my biking has improved, and even though I don't see that quite yet, I'm sure people aren't lying about it :)
Another couple weeks of training and then taper and race time.  I just can't believe the race is 3 weeks away.  That is just incredible to me how much time has flown by.
Race day will be here before I know what's hit me… yikes… better get back at it tomorrow.

Long riding...

Well - I have been slacking in the posts but I've been pretty consistent with training.  Yesterday I rode from my house to Cafe Domestique in Dundas, ON.  The route was weird as it was longer getting to Cafe Domestique than coming home.  There were some crazy hills to climb and even some crazy decants that had me on my brakes the whole time. Once we got to our "halfway" point - we had a grilled cheese with bacon *super yum* and then back out on the road.  I knew there was a big climb coming up (Snake Rd) since it was one that we had come down on our way out.  In my head it was a long and fairly steep climb, so I was a little worried about it.  Funny enough when we got to it, it ended up not being nearly as steep as I thought and I had absolutely no problems getting up.  Thankfully.  After that there was a lot less climbing, so that was a big relief. We did encounter a nasty bit of torn up road and since we didn't know the area well we ended up walking our bikes through it which sucked but was better then messing up our bikes.  All said and done it was a 168km bike ride.  Wow was it long - by the end I was getting a little grumpy and just wanted to be done.  But I will say my legs felt strong the whole time.  I got up a lot of nasty climbs and was just generally happy to get that kind of distance under my belt.  After the run I went for a 10 min run and while my legs felt funny I was running at a pretty good clip.  Tremblant is so daunting.  To think I have to ride another 12k and then run a marathon.  YOWZA!!!! And it's crazy how fast IMMT is coming!
I was pretty bad today though.  I was supposed to do a long run, but my running buddies bailed because the weather sucked (ok it was pouring rain and thunders storming) so I have basically done nothing all day.  But my allergies have been driving me nuts and my legs are DONE.
I think the plan is to get up and go for a run tomorrow.  Gotta get something done that is for sure!  But I'm happy so far with my training, could be better but could be worse I think.
I'm sure when the day comes I'll be ready and thats what matters.

Wednesday ride, poutine, lovely garages and freak storms

Ok - so yesterday Trent and I hit the road for a planned 120-130k ride.  Started off well - we were heading up the Gore road towards Hockley Valley and it actually seemed substantially easier than I remember it being a few months ago (YAY) 30k flew by really quick and we stopped at the general store for a drink and a gluten free cookie.  Then back on the bikes and we head north past Hwy 89 and into a small town that I cannot actually remember the name of.  It was small - we were in and out of there quickly. We stopped to figure out where we wanted to go next and Trent asked if I was interested in a big hill - I quickly shot that idea down knowing full well that we had Mount UnPleasant in the plans for later in the ride. Off we went again starting to head back towards home (at this point we were at about 45k I think.  Around 60k we stopped for poutine at a chip stand.  It was awesome - NY Fries not even close!  Have to laugh at the insanity of riding 60k and stoping for poutine :)
So as we are sitting there eating, the clouds were looking super ominous.  A storm was definitely on the way but we were hoping that it wouldn't be too bad.  Sadly - that was not the case.  As we started to ride back south the sky literally opened up and we were pelted hard with hail, and rain and some of the craziest wind I've ever experienced.  It was actually terrifying.  The wind was literally blowing me across the road and making it really hard to stay in control of my bike.  At one point a truck came and all I could do was pray that the wind didn't blow me into it's path (it didn't).  Looking around there was literally NO place to take shelter - we were literally in the middle of nowhere… some houses and some farms but no shelter.
Thankfully a lovely man saw us riding and offered us shelter in his garage.  We sat there, called Caron for a rescue pick up and hung out with the lovely family who's garage we were seeking refuge in.  It was actually cool - they must have thought we were nuts with our fancy bikes having already gone 60k and still with another 50 or 60 to go… turns out they are chicken farmers.  One of their biggest clients is Swiss Chalet.  Pretty cool actually.  It was quite the adventure.
I'm glad we got 60k in before the storm - but a little annoyed that we couldn't get the long ride done.  Just means I'll have to make sure I ride long on Saturday.  Shouldn't be a problem…
Guess you just never know what you'll experience on the day.

Recovery time...

So this week is going to be focused on recovering from the 70.3 race on Sunday.  Yesterday I did a 2k swim and a 60 min spin on the trainer.  Today I just did a 1k open water swim at the quarry.  Still feeling really tired.  My legs are a little sore but they feel completely devoid of energy as supposed to super sore like after a running race.  I am going to try an easy 40 min run tomorrow.
It's kind of funny because I really want to hit training hard right now and really start getting things going. I hate how slow my bike is and I'd really like to get some improvements for the bike.  I know that to do this I'm really going to have to get out and ride a lot in the next couple months. It really bugs me how slow my bike and run portions of the triathlon are.  I was happy with a sizeable PR this past weekend.  But I really want to get my times down.  Luckily now that the school year has ended I should be able to get out and ride a lot more and that hopefully will help my bike split moving forward.
Another thing I've really noticed is that I'm absolutely exhausted - like just want to sleep all day!  I didn't do much today (except get caught up on Game of Thrones) and yet somehow I'm still just completely knackered.  It's so bizarre.

Race Report

Well as Trent and I are driving back from Tremblant I thought I'd write a report on the way home. I think I have to start by saying flat out I absolutely LOVE this race! As usual I was pretty stressed out and nervous before the race. It's pretty common for me with these longer distances, so much is unknown and it's a long way to go.

This year I knew my training had been better than last year especially for the run so I was hoping for a PB on the day but realized that the conditions would determine how my day went.The swim as usual was great, I got into clear water right away and cruised to a 30:28 swim time. I really tried to focus on keeping my stroke long and efficient and just keep going. I didn't swim with a
watch so I had absolutely no clue how fast I was. To be honest I felt so comfortable I actually expected a slower swim. So I was pleasantly surprised to see my time after I finished the race was actually 4 seconds faster then last year.

The bike is by far my weakest component of a triathlon as I'm still relatively new to it compared to swimming and running. I had forgotten how hilly this course is. In Ang land it's fairly flat except for a nasty climb on 117 and lac superior. The reality is much more harsh. My legs felt rough for the first third or so of the race. Just heavy and tired. Luckily they got "warmed up" after that and the rest of the race was much better. I got into a little game of cat and mouse with 2 other ladies - when we were going downhill or on flats they would go by me, and the minute we started climbing I would go past them again. This went on pretty much the whole bike so it was a great motivator to not let them get too far ahead... I felt like the long climb on 117 wasn't as bad as last year and the section on lac superior at the end was brutal but the turnaround did seem to come faster than last year. Really its about 4 or 5 nasty climbs that really punish you but they are still doable in the right gear. It's funny because you are climbing and going away from the finish and it feels like there is no way the ride will be 90k but once your turn around and head back before you know it you are at the bike finish and it's pretty much bang on 90km.

  

In case you are wondering, I passed the ladies I was sort of riding with on the lac superior section and never saw them again so I felt pretty good about that. Although in the back of my mind I was really thinking holy crap how am I going to do this bike course twice in August! In the end my bike was about a minute faster than last year. Even still a 3:28 bike isn't terrible for me, I'd like it to be faster but it is what it is. Lots of room for improvement for sure.

My transitions overall weren't as fast as I would like.  On the run up to T1 from the water I had to stop to use the washroom, and in T2 I almost forgot my Garmin but realized just as I was getting to the end of my row of bikes towards the run out so I went back to get it. Then off to the run. I really wanted my run to be better than last year and I've had significantly better training this year than last so knew it was a distinct possibility. I walked up some of the bigger hills but really focused on running between the aid stations and walking through them. I stuck to that plan and actually felt pretty good surprisingly. Towards the end of the run I started to struggle a bit but coming in to the village to finish with all the crowds gave me a boost and I was able to finish strong en route to a 2:20 run which was 12 minutes faster than last year and my fastest run in a half ironman distance race ever.  

My overall time, even with 2 bathroom stops (T1 and on the run) and some minor issues in transition was 6:29 which is 11 minutes faster than last year and that difference was ALL in the run. I can't believe in a little less than 2 months I will be doing this course twice, on the same day - but it's so beautiful and well organized that I kind of can't wait to be back (after a whole lot of training of course) The town really gets behind the event and they go over and above to make sure everyone had a great day. Oh and did I mention poutine and beer at the finish line (along with lots of other tasty treats) I mean that alone is reason enough in my books to do this race. Combine that with an incredible atmosphere, stunning venue and incredible support and of course being there with awesome C3 teammates, and it's an experience that is hard to beat! 

WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?!?!

Ok - so it's 10:10pm the night before Ironman 70.3 Mont Tremblant and I as per usual am FREAKING OUT.  I don't know why - but all I can think is what in God's name was I thinking?  70.3 miles ahead of me tomorrow and the easy part (the swim) is over so fast it's insane.  I know - once I get out there it will be fun - but it's crazy how freaked out I get the night before a big race.  I mean seriously - I rode 135k 2 weeks ago which included some serious hills, and I rode 130k a few weeks before that as well.  Yet I still feel like I haven't done enough.  And then in the back of my mind - how am I going to get through a full Ironman in 7 weeks…7 WEEKS!!!!!
This morning we were up pretty early to get a short bike and run in before checking in and picking up our race kits.  My legs felt pretty rough on the bike, the run felt ok but not stellar. But I didn't eat anything before heading out so I'm thinking that might have been part of the problem. I'm just hoping they feel better in the morning or it will be a loooooooong day. The check in process was smooth - had to wait in a long line to get in to get our race kits, but once inside the volunteers were lovely and the process went quickly.
As per usual - got swept up in the Ironman expo/gear tent - but behaved myself fairly well in there. It's amazing how much cool stuff they have and I always want it all!!! Although I guess that's the idea at the end of the day.  A lot of stuff will be here in August when I'm back for the full Ironman race, so I didn't go too crazy getting anything and everything that has the IM logo on it.  Not an easy thing to do that is for sure.  I tried to stay off my feet as much as possible - did pretty well with that for the most part.
Now after a fantastic dinner I'm trying to calm myself down and relax, mothers little helper tea and some rescue remedy aren't helping.  Maybe I need more… and my stomach is just in nervous knots.  I am trying to remind myself that I've done a lot of training and things will be fine but it's really hard. Hopefully tomorrow morning once I hit the water (@ 8:04am) I will relax and settle into a groove and just keep plugging away until the race is done.  I'm always shocked at how quickly the race goes by - one mile at a time, and before you know it - there it is, the illusive finish line.  And MAN is that ever a rush when it FINALLY comes into view :) Will be nice to see friends and teammates on the race course and I have to keep reminding myself that I actually do enjoy it - but for some reason the night before the race that seems like an impossible task.
Signing off now - fingers crossed I get some sleep today :)

Here we go...

Well - I've been pretty lax about posting on here - but I'm sitting here waiting for a friend to pick me up.  We are heading to Mont Tremblant today as the Half Ironman is Sunday.  Still a little shocked at how fast this came up.  But I think I'm ready.  The ride to conquer cancer was a big confidence boost and then Wednesday I went out for what was supposed to be a 50k easy ride.  Well - that ended up being a 65k hammerfest.  But I rode pretty well and felt pretty good the whole time.  The only mistake I made was not having enough nutrition.  I should have thrown some infinit into a couple bottles - all I had was water, which funny enough I refilled when we stopped at the bakery in Erin - and left the bottle behind.  So that sucked.  But I still rode pretty well - just have to take it as lesson learned ALWAYS have nutrition as a back up for when things don't go as planned.  

As usual - I'm all packed for Tremblant - but probably overdid it.  I always take too much stuff.  I probably shouldn't worry though - I mean it's only Quebec and while things are stupidly overpriced at Tremblant resort there are places not too far away where I could get pretty much anything I need. And with the expo and tri related stuff wouldn't be a problem to pick up either!  

I'm excited about the race, looking forward to seeing how things go.  I think my biggest goal is to run more then I did last year.  I really struggled during the run last year so if I can get it done faster I'll be really happy.  I really love this race, I mean the organization is unreal.  And it's only the third year for it.  The crazy thing is it's gone from a new race to one of the best run - most popular races in the Ironman brand circuit.  Part of me is still shocked that in 7 weeks I'll be doing my first full Ironman at one of the best races out there!  Pretty cool that not only is it Canadian - but only a 7 or 8 hour drive away.  

Looking forward to getting up to Tremblant and getting settled in, checked in and ready to race! EEK!!!!

Busy, busy, busy

Well - it's been a little crazy lately.  The ride to conquer cancer was great weekend, but no rest for the wicked.  Ironman is still looming, and getting closer and closer in the distance - and that is scary.  Whats even crazier is that the Mt Tremblant 70.3 is NEXT weekend!  Holy cow!!!! This week was interesting training wise.  I worked (teaching) every tay this week so it was a tough to get all my training in.  Luckily I'm resting a bit for next weekend. But Sean really wanted me to get out for a 90 min run on Tuesday which I did.  Can't say I'm running fast but 90 min was really comfortable.  I ended up going for an easy 45km bike ride yesterday (Saturday) with Doug.  It was nice to get out - hit some pretty decent sized hills on the way to the Spirit Tree and actually felt pretty good going up them. Today I met up with some training buddies and ran another 90 min.  It was a pretty slow run but I have to remember that it's all time on my feet.  The reality is that even slow running is faster then walking so I'm hoping next weekend to run more of the run then I walk.
I'm actually not worried about the bike for once, as I know my bike training has been pretty solid.  Having already done 2 130+km bike rides fairly recently the 90k bike next weekend is really not at all intimidating.  Especially since last weekend we hit Sydenham Rd somewhere around 110k into the ride. I'm pretty sure that hill is far worse then what I'll face in Tremblant so I'm feeling pretty good about it.  I've been using my Infinit nutrition and so far so good.  No tummy issues and given that I used it all last weekend, especially on the long day and felt strong the whole time.  I think I've found a winner.
The school year is coming to a close so training will really be ramping up as I will have more time without 2 jobs to fit in.  I just can't believe how fast the time is going!  Yikes!

Ride to conquer cancer weekend…

So this past weekend was a huge one for a few reasons. It was my third time doing the Ride to Conquer Cancer.  And as in years past it was an amazing weekend.
Day 1 started in Toronto at Ontario Place and Ended in Hamilton at Mohawk College (camp).  The ride starts off innocently enough but with the Ironman forever on my mind I had planned to do the longer ride (125k) to help boost my ride milage.  Louis (our team captain) and Jason and I made the turn fairly early on and were on our way to 125k.  It took us through some side roads, through mississauga and milton where we started to get into the fun of rolling hills.  We stopped at all the rest stops but not for long as we were on a pretty decent pace and wanted to keep things rolling.  Unfortunately because I stupidly left my bike computer at home I really don't have details on timing and milage (oops).  We kept pushing along, encountering some pretty nasty hills including one which looked like a wall that went straight up.  Luckily it wasn't overly long but ouch that one hurt.  Once we got to the hamilton area at around 100k Louis, Jason and I decided to go for the extra 10km "Hill Challenge" which was a new addition to the party this year. It started with a quick uphill (not too bad) then just seemed to go down, down… uh oh… down some more.  Until we made a right hand turn at the bottom of Sydenham Rd.  And up, up, up we went - WOW!  It was about 3k long (I'm guessing) and pretty nasty steep.  I was literally in my easiest gear and still slogging along.  Apparently Clara Hughes used to do 15 hill repeats on that road in a much heavier gear - clearly the girl is superhuman. I was really happy after a long day of riding to make it to the top of that climb without having to walk.  It's a pretty big deal for me thats for sure.  We were rewarded for all that hard work, by getting to go down a nice fun and fast downhill section afterwards, and then - on to Hamilton Mountain.  We did the Hamilton Mountain climb last year and while it is long, it's really not very steep so as long as you are careful with your gearing it's pretty manageable. Lots of climbing late in the day has me feeling pretty good about Ironman :)
I also tried out my Infinit nutrition for the first time, and honestly I felt great. Still ate a gluten free sandwich at lunch, but other then that it was all liquid and I had plenty of energy the whole day.  So happy with that!!!! I felt awesome, and I was literally cheering people on as I passed them the whole day.  Such a fun experience and great training as well.
Camp as usual is a lot of fun, it's great to cheer on teammates as they finish, and then enjoy the food and drinks at the camp site.  Lots of great bonding and just fun in general. Then… on to day 2 of the ride.  They changed the route this year and it was 113k instead of 100k.  The good news is it's far less hilly then day one so really not as bad.  There are still some hills, but a lot of them come after a nice downhill which allows you to get some good speed going on which will carry you up most of the hill before actually having to pedal again.  We ride as a team on day 2 - but I ended up getting separated from them.  Just after the lunch stop, we were all getting ready to head out, so I got on my bike and started pedalling with everyone just behind me (I assumed) doing the same thing.  So I started riding, and realized that my teammates weren't with me.  Eventually I stopped at the side of the road and waited, eventually calling my teammates.  Turned out one of them had a bit of an accident and thats why they were so far behind me.  Thankfully Patrick ended up riding up to meet me and we ended up riding the rest of the route (up until the last rest stop) together.  We rode at a decent clip and ended up stopping at a random restaurant for a beer! We ended up literally having about an hour to kill before our teammates caught us.  It was random and kind of awesome.  When we headed out of the bar - we literally just watched our team ride past.  It was kind of funny - but we caught up quickly and before long were at the last stop waiting to ride the last 19k with our entire team.  We rode slow and together and stopped about 1km from the finish to get into a nice formation and ride across together.  It was just an amazing weekend. I got a lot of great riding in and as a whole we raised over $20 million for the Princess Margaret Hospital Cancer foundation.  Just a great cause, a great event and an incredible team!!!!

Oops...

Ok well a bit of a lapse in posts.  What can I say it happens.  Last week wasn't a great week for training, I got a few runs in, a swim… but didn't get on my bike at all.  It happens I guess - weather, and a super busy schedule will do that.  I managed to get in a nice 90 min trail run with Kim on Sunday - so that was a positive.  Oh and my new nutrition stuff came. I'm going with a company called Infinit they do custom blends for people depending on needs and body type etc.  I took it with me on my 90 min run on Sunday, and actually quite enjoyed it.  Granted it wasn't a super long workout, but still felt like I had energy the whole time and never felt like I really needed to eat or take on calories as I was taking a drink every 15-20min or so.  Of court that will be strategy on the bike as well, so I'm actually really looking forward to testing it out on my next ride!  I'm also going to use it for the ride to conquer cancer which is coming up this weekend.  The good news is that means 200+ km of riding which is awesome for training :) The 130k ride i did a few weeks ago has boosted my confidence heading into the RTCC as well as Mt Tremblant 70.3 which is only a few weeks away!  EEEK - it's crazy how fast time is going. I'm excited about riding again with my friends and supporting a fantastic cause this weekend though so that is the big focus for this week.
As for today I got up and went to the pool as it was raining when I woke up so I opted out of hitting the quarry for my first open water swim of the year.  I did the workout my coach had put into my plan which was 2,500m.  Felt ok, little slow.  It's really tough, at least for me, to swim by myself.  Without my swim buddies to motivate me I find it hard to get amped up for the workout.  Just a short run planned for later today.  Not sure yet when I'll go out and get it done, but kinda glad it's nothing big and daunting today. Because I didn't get called in for a supply teaching job today, I figured I would have to take advantage and go to the pool to swim, and now I think a nap before hitting the road for a run.
Always nice when you can have a nap :)

An overall awesome day...

So this week has been interesting.  I had to put the training on hold this past weekend because I was volunteering at Crossfit Regionals.  That said I was on my feet for most of the weekend so it's not like I was just sitting around.  So Monday my sister, Lesley and I head out on a long bike ride.  We started off at home (Ash and I) and met up with Lesley at Trinity Commons.  From there we went up to Caledon East and I went off with some C3 friends for some more riding and Ash and Lesley went off on their own.  I knew I wanted to be out for at least 3 hours so I added on more time with my C3 training buddies.  We ended up riding down to Castlederg Sideroad to Hwy 27 and then turned around and head back. From there we went up Mt. Pleasant (BRUTAL) - I actually had nothing left in my legs and just could not get to the top of that hill so I actually got off and walked about a 1/3 of the hill.  I did however get to enjoy going back down that hill (50k/hr down the hill) at which point I left and went home.  From there it was about a  30km ride home so all in all my grand total on Sunday, drumroll please… 102km!!!! First big ride of the year for me and although I struggled a bit around 60km I'm really pleased to have pushed through the suck and got it done.
For this ride I was using some home made treats, as well as water and a mix that Ash picked up at regionals.  I've decided though, after talking to the rep from Infinit Nutrition to try their products.  Basically they look at your size, and how much you sweat and how long you are training/racing and customize a drink for you.  The drink has literally everything you need in it so fingers crossed this will be a good option for me!  I'm talking to them tomorrow and should get the product fairly soon after that.
So Tuesday I guess the weekend and Monday's ride caught up to me and I literally did NOTHING!  I was just to drained so I listened to my body and took the day to rest.
But the rest was short lived.  Met up with some training buddies this morning and had an awesome ride from Caledon East to Erin (about 60k round trip).  Heading out to Erin is tough - especially going along Old Base Line from McLaughlin to about Creditview.  HOLY HILLS!!!! Totally painful but really satisfying when you get to the top.  Stopped in Erin at the Bakery for coffee and treats and then head home.  Coming home was a blast - so fast!!!!! All those hills you climb to get to Erin are much more fun when you are heading back down them!  What a blast - I love that around the badlands (on Old Base) you can literally pick up enough speed to actually be going fast enough on the bike to be above the posted speed limit.  The limit is 40km/hr but today I was able to get up to 50km/hr coming down that sucker!!! So fun to have that sign flash (SLOW DOWN) haha - I'm not the best at going downhills, as I generally get a little nervous but some hills that I know what to expect on - I just leave my breaks alone and let it fly.  It's just such a cool feeling to buzz down the hills!
So after the ride I finally got around to sending out an email to start the fundraising for Ironman.  HOLY CRAP - totally impressed by the generosity of my friends!  Seriously within about 20 minutes I got over $400 worth of donations!  So great! Just gives you such a good feeling to see donations coming in - and really motivates me to keep the training up!  Mt Tremblant 70.3 is about a month away and Ironman is only 3 months away.  It's crazy how fast the time is going by - it really will be here before I know it and that is a little insane!  First things first is the Ride to Conquer Cancer - 3 weeks away and I just got checked in today so I should get my kit soon. The jerseys are awesome this year so I'm really pumped to get out and ride!!!

training,and of course falling on my a$$

So it's been an interesting week so far.  Monday I took the day off to recover from the weekend.  Tuesday was a big training day - started off at 6:15am with a swim, it was a tough one.  100 FAST (1:16)followed by 10x100 on 1:45 where I was able to hold 1:20's, then another 100 fast (1:14), followed by 6x 50 on 45 seconds.  Then - thanks to Kim, another 100 fast which I believe was about 1:18.  I was DONE at that point.  My arms had just about enough and my legs were already beat up from a couple consecutive weekends of racing.  I was pretty happy with my speed and surprised that the 1:20's felt tough but comfortable if that makes any sense!
Then I joined my C3 teammates for a tough speed work session in Caledon East on the rail trail.  So we started off with a 2.5k warmup, nice comfy easy pace.  Then on to drills - here was where it got interesting.  The person in front of me stopped suddenly and I literally tripped over his foot and ended up flat on my butt.  It was kinda funny and kind of embarrassing at the same time.  Got up and kept going - the 'main set' was 14 x 400 fast on 3:30.  Holy crap was that ever tough!  My legs were just about done by the time we finished, ok no in reality they were done by the time we hit the 4th repeat.  But I pushed as hard as I could and finished the workout.  Man is it ever tough when you are the slowest one out there and have people literally blowing by you.  Ah well - it is what it is, gotta keep working hard if I want to get faster.
On the walk back to the car after the run the skies opened up and poured rain.  Thankfully we were done but still ended up completely soaked.  I guess such is the life of a triathlete - training outside is great when the weather cooperates but sometimes it can totally suck.
Then yesterday I met Kim and we went for a fairly short 1:14 bike ride.  The weather held out until about the last 15 minutes when we got caught in a downpour.  Winds picked up, temps dropped… which ended up sucking quite a bit.  But still very happy to get out for a ride even if it wasn't a long one.
Today I'm actually heading out to the C3 brick workout - it'll be a first for me so fingers crossed it doesn't pour rain on us again… Legs are feeling a little heavy but I'm sure that is something I will have to get used to as the training ramps up.  August is only 3 months away - Ironman will be here before I know it and the thought of that is terrifying! EEK - but also super exciting!

Big weekend!!!

So - it's been a busy few days!! Thursday of last week was a bit of a write off - I went to the pool but got a call to work at a school that started at 8:07 so I had to bail on most of the workout (only got about an hour in) and then didn't have a chance to do much else on Thursday or Friday just because of work commitments.  Saturday morning I went out for a ride with my C3 teammates - ended up doing 65k in about 2.5 hours.  Talk about a tough one, it was suuuuuper windy.  The route we took started in Inglewood and went up through Glen Williams, into Limehouse, then to Erin (for a coffee stop) and then back to Inglewood.  The route was fine, some decent, challenging hills but what was the most difficult challenge was the wind. It was absolutely insane how windy it was.  There were points where it felt like the wind was going to blow me right off my bike!!  But I stuck with it and got a decent ride in.  Had a good group of people to ride with so that was nice, always helps to have good company!
Then Sunday I raced the Sporting Life 10k race.  It was a race I've never done before.  The timing of it has always been either the week before or the week after a half marathon/marathon so it's never worked out.  But I decided to do it this year since Ashley is going to be volunteering at Camp Ooch this summer and the race supports the camp.  With the week of training I put in, combined with the half marathon last week my expectations for the race weren't super high.  I started with my sister at the back of the blue corral and figured I'd likely end up running with them.  My 10k PR was set a few years ago (at the only other 10k race I've done) at 52:14.  I didn't really expect to be anywhere close to that, even with the downhill course since I really wasn't rested or tapered even a little bit.  I ended up feeling pretty good at the start so I left my sister and her friends and decided to see what I could do.  With 27,000 people running the race it was really congested at the start and so it was a little slower then I would have liked because I had to weave in and out of people for most of the race especially at the beginning.  I had to stop at the water stations because with the shear volume of people in my wave, combined with some seriously poor race etiquette there was really no other way to actually grab the water.  That was fine - I wasn't seriously shooting for a big PR anyway.  I ended up crossing the 5k timing matt around 27 min (26:54 technically) and realized that I had a real shot at cracking 54 minutes so I kept pushing.  The last couple km hurt a bit and it was a bit of a mental victory to finish the race without stopping but as it turned out I ran the second half of the race in the exact same split as I ran the first half.  Ended up with an overall time of 53:46!  It's about a minute and a half over my PB but all things considered I was pretty thrilled with the result.
I ended up having the opportunity to swim Sunday night as there weren't a lot of people who came to the workout.  It was good to get the swim in since I had to bail out on last Thursdays swim.  My legs didn't want to fire properly when I tried to swim a little faster - but they definitely didn't hurt and really aren't hurting today either.  Looks like my conditioning is starting to improve which is seriously exciting.  This weekend will be tough since I'm volunteering at crossfit regionals this weekend.  But I'm going to try to get a long run in earlier in the week and a long ride in on Monday of next week.  We were really lucky that this past weekend we had amazing weather (FINALLY) outside of the crazy nasty winds.  It's supposed to rain a lot this coming week and be cool next weekend but I'll get as much as I can in and see how it all goes! Feeling pretty positive today about how training is coming along and where I'm going from here!

ouch, ouch and more ouch...

So you would think 2 day's post half marathon I'd be resting and recovering and taking it easy.  Sigh… I miss those day's.  Nope training for Ironman apparently means building on top of tough workouts/races.  So today I got up - went to the pool and hammered out a bunch of fast stuff.  It was
warm up
3x100 Fast
200 ez
2x150 50 fast, faster fastest by 50
100 ex
300 fast
warm down
Speed endurance is a painful workout to do… especially when your legs are still wrecked from a half marathon on the weekend.  Every time I pushed off the wall it hurt!!! But got the workout done and was actually moving fairly well given that my legs were toasted. So of course I rewarded myself with some awesome bacon and eggs - best post workout meal EVER!
Luckily I was also able to get a massage in today - it was pretty desperately needed so I'm glad that I got that done.  Legs felt a little better afterwards - but was a little worried as to how they would hold up at the speed workout.  Barrie basically said - forget easy - it's Ironman training you have to suck it up and work hard tonight lol… soooo off I went.  Tonights workout was I.think.I'm.going.to.puke.brutal.
Warm-up was fine nice easy run - but then 3k for time (16:04) followed by 4x1km avg 5:30 with a minute between repeats (thats about all I could manage) I was having a rough time tonight and seriously wanted to give up - but I pushed through - and managed to keep my pace pretty consistent.  It was a gorgeous day for a run - although could have done without the wind - that kind of sucked. It was so incredibly nice to run in capri's and a t-shirt.  I'm glad the weather seems to FINALLY be turning around.  It was 15 degrees today - thank goodness.  Hopefully the weather will stay nice - so far this year has really sucked as far as weather goes - seriously worst winter/spring ever!  But I'm so looking forward to enjoying the weather and getting out to run and ride as much as I can.  Today was a big night - it hurt, and it wasn't pretty but I got about 10k done and about 7k of that was hard… Now I think it's time to crash… sleep sounds so good!

Ouch…

So the title of this entry pretty much says it all!  My legs are seriously feeling the pounding from yesterdays race.  All that downhill sure results in crazy soreness today.  Sean had me scheduled to ride easy for an hour today.  So after I finished work tonight I came home and got on the trainer. My legs felt ok while I was riding, sore and super tired but that faded fairly quickly. I stayed on the trainer for an hour, basically just soft pedalled for an hour.  Got off hoping maybe, just maybe my legs would feel better after the flush, but nope - no such luck today.  But it's time in the saddle and that is important at this stage in the game.
I was/am feeling a little concerned that yesterdays run wasn't what I'd have liked after all that training but it is still fairly early in the training and I keep reminding myself that by the time IMMT gets here I will be ready.  I've had several people tell me not to worry - Ironman is different and it will all be fine.  So I'm just really trying to focus on that and the training just one day at a time.  Clicking off each workout as I do them and really trying to hit them as best as I can.  I'm supposed to swim and run tomorrow which I will definitely do - but not sure the run will be all that great - unless my legs loosen up a bit.  It may turn out to just be a run just to run kind of thing but the plan is to at least attempt whatever it is that I'm supposed to do.
Alright - I'm still exhausted from the weekend and work today - so this is gonna be a short one.

Toronto Half Marathon

When I signed up for this race I had hoped to be able to run a fast race.  But with my focus this year being Ironman in August that changed to more of a - lets see what I can do on tired legs kinda day. After yesterdays 3 hour ride, and a pretty solid week leading up to it I really wasn't sure what my legs were going to let me do today.
Got to the race and the weather was pretty solid.  Nice and sunny - but with a nasty wind (more on that laster).  Started the race with Kathy, felt pretty good at the start so enjoyed the downhill and got off to a pretty quick start.  Hit Hogs Hollow 3km into the race, it's a pretty nasty hill - but I took my time and managed to run up the whole hill.  I'm pretty sure that is a first for me as I tend to walk up some of the nastier hills I encounter in races. I forgot how hilly the first half of the race is.  Yes there is a lot of downhill - but there is also quite a bit of uphill as well.  At 10k I was at about 56 minutes which was on pace for a sub 2 hour half… but the downhills in the first half combined with all the training this past week - well lets just say at about 13k the wheels came off.  I ended up walking quite a bit - in the last 8k but I forced myself to run as well.  My legs were just toasted.  The of course we turn to go West along Front/Lakeshore towards the finish line and that is where a NASTY headwind decided to rear its very ugly head.  I struggled, I really did and I felt like how am I ever going to do Ironman if Im this tired after a 3 hour ride. I know that I have to trust the training, and that today was just another training day in the grand scheme of things.  But despite that I would have liked a bit of a faster result today.
That said - if I can run a 2:10 half marathon after a 90k bike at the Tremblant 70.3 at the end of June I will be in a very good place. That alone would shave about 20 minutes off my time from last year.
I think what's hard to remember at this point is that there is still about 3.5 months before Ironman.  There is lots of time to get lots of training in and I am completely committed to doing it.  I have a great support team around me and a great group of training buddies as well.  The ride to conquer cancer at the beginning of June will be a great boost for my bike training with over 200km of riding over 2 days.
I also really have to start figured out my nutrition plan for the longer training sessions to make sure I'm maximizing my training. That said - I stopped at Chipotle on my way home and MAN did that ever hit the spot :) I think thats my favourite part of running/riding long - making up for the calorie deficit after its all over!!!!
I'm so exhausted - this weekend was a pretty long one - so I'm going to get to bed early so I can be ready for whatever coach has to throw at me this week!

Getting out for a ride :)

I made a decision last night that no matter what the weather decided to throw at us this morning I was going to get out and ride. Luckily at least when I first woke up - the sky was overcast, but it wasn't actually raining.  So I got up - got dressed, loaded my bike into the car and off I went to meet my C3 buddies for a ride. We started off at the Inglewood arena, went along Old Base Line and then up Horseshoe Hill Road.  I learned something today - when the name of the street has "Hill" in it - you should be very afraid of what is ahead of you.  WOW - the hills were relentless. I think it was in the range of about 15km of rollers, with some of them being pretty steep.  I actually had to get off my bike on one of them... man I felt stupid.  But there was one shortly after that hill that was even steeper and I was able to make it up. Unfortunately riding with the C3 group reminds me how far I have to come.  I have a LOT of training to do before Ironman.  They are all such amazing riders - I think a big goal is to be able to keep up with them someday or at least some of them would be nice. The route today was about 45km because with the uncertainty about the weather it gave us the option to cut the route short if the weather got bad, or if the weather was ok we could keep going and ride longer.  I opted to cut it short and stop at 45km (just shy of 2 hours).  I realized as we were riding I should totally have been eating and drinking more but with all the climbing I just didn't.  I am pretty sure this is why I felt completely drained after 45km.  I went out for coffee with the C3 gang, which was awesome.  So nice to chat and just enjoy hanging out after a ride.  Then - I went home, put my bike on the trainer - and rode for another hour.  It wasn't a long ride on the trainer, but the plan today was to ride for 3 hours, and I only did 2 on the road so I went home and got the other hour done.  It's time in the saddle and it's so important to get the bike training in.  It was also a bit of a breakthrough for me to actually get home load my bike on the trainer and keep riding after having done 2 hours instead of just having a shower and following that up with a nap.  I feel like I really need to stick to my coaches plan. Sean knows what he's doing and I really want to do well this season so that I am going to be sticking to that plan as best I possibly can.
After my ride I ended up meeting a friend at Tims and by the time I got there I was SO FREAKING HUNGRY.  I ended up getting chili and tea - but on my way home stopped at Sobeys, picked up some fish and went home to make myself dinner.  Fish, basmati rice and veggies - actually it turned out really well. 
So what's on tap for tomorrow, just the Toronto Half Marathon.  At this point I'm just planning to go out and see how I feel - I'm not sure what my legs will let me do.  This has been probably the biggest training week to date and so finishing it off with a half marathon is going to be tough.  But since I'll be running on tired legs at Ironman, ok maybe that is the understatement of the year... I figure it's probably a good idea to get out there and race on tired legs and see what happens.

Just Breathe

Well the past couple day's it's really hit me how REAL Ironman is going to be this year. Not that I didn't think it was real before but now - 108 days out - it feels like it's LOOMING.  Everyone keeps telling me I will be fine and that it will be awesome.  But for some reason I just feel scared… I'm at the point though where I think I need to really focus on my training and getting in the workouts so that when race day comes I will know that I did everything I could to be prepared!
Today was an early morning swim.  Had a decent one too not great but not terrible.  I know my swim is in the bag really - that I'll be under (hopefully) an hour and have banked a bunch of time towards the cutoffs so that there really is no danger of missing a time cutoff and having my race cut short.  Today's schedule also had an easy 90 min bike ride on it.  I just got off the bike and I'm feeling somewhat satisfied that I've done what I should have today.
I know my coach knows what he's doing and that as long as I follow the plan everything will be fine.  I just think that once I get a couple solid training weeks in my confidence will start to improve and i'll feel better about it all.  I'm at my fundraising goal for the Ride to Conquer Cancer so that will be a great weekend of riding that will help me to feel ready and confident leading into the Mt. Tremblant half at the end of June.
I'm also glad to have a lot of training partners and teammates that are willing to ride/run with me and help me to get ready for the big day.
108 days - seems like nothing really - how did the 250+ days since I registered go by so fast????  Just gotta keep plugging away and know that I will be ready!
And like a good friend/training buddy told me today - breathe… just breathe!

Another sleepless night

So despite being really tired last night - my mind was just buzzing and I wasn't about to get to sleep until about 2 or 3am again.  So frustrating - I ended up deciding this morning, after getting up and dressed etc to go back to bed and take the extra sleep vs heading to the pool.  I knew I had a run speed work session tonight and had a feeling there would be little to no chance of getting to that if I swam, then worked all day.
Thankfully - I did manage to get myself out to meet the C3 gang and run.  It was 2min hard 1 min easy out from Innis Lake to Old Church (on the path) and then back again.  The lack of sleep caught up to me I will admit and I really felt it.  But for at least 5 or 6 of the repeats I was managing to average under 5min/km.  I am really happy that I got out and ran about 8k today.  It's days like this that will go into the mental vault leading up to Ironman.
In all honesty I'm starting to worry that I'm not training enough and I'm scared.  I also keep watching video's of Mt. Tremblant Ironman - and just watching other people cross the line gets me super emotional.  I'm seriously hoping that the weather starts to cooperate so I can start getting some quality rides in outside.  Saturday is tapped for 100km so fingers crossed I'll be able to get out and do it - weather permitting of course.  Saturday's ride will be followed by a half marathon in Toronto.  So hopefully good weather holds up and I have a good solid training weekend.  I'm starting to feel like I really need it for my confidence. Hopefully I can keep things going this week and moving forward so that I can feel confident and ready to race both the half and the (gulp) full Ironman coming up… Crazy exciting - and nervous and scared all at the same time.

Ironman and youtube...

Sometimes you wake up early for no good reason and just can't get to sleep again.  Today was one of those days for me.  I took the day off work today in an attempt to be able to go out and get a long bike ride in.  Unfortunately mother nature has decided to be a *$%& again and with the weather being about 4-5 degrees, with rain in the forecast unfortunately I won't be riding outside. I'm disappointed but will most definitely head to the gym for back to back spin classes.  It's not the 75-80k I had planned but it is something…
I've spent the last few hours (since I woke up) watching Ironman clips on youtube.  I have to say - it really makes me emotional.  And to think in a few short months that will be ME… I just can't even believe I'll be racing at Ironman Mt. Tremblant.  I mean I know it's coming, I know its going to happen and I know that everyone keeps telling me I will do awesome.  But the thought of it is just so overwhelming.  To hear Mike Reilly tell me that I am an Ironman - wow… just the thought of it brings tears to my eyes and goosebumps to my skin.  I am so thankful for all the people I have supporting me on this unbelievable journey… I'm not even there yet but it's pretty cool to be on my way.
Sometimes I watch these Ironman videos and - try to picture myself out there on race day, smiling and laughing and having a great day.  That is my goal really to have fun and to enjoy every moment.

Alright - well I better get moving if I'm going to make it to the gym for double (2hrs) spin :)

Update…Just one of those nights.

Well in case anyone is actually wondering… I did drag my exhausted butt out of bed this morning at 5:30 and got myself to the pool for my swim workout.  Today was definitely a hard workout but it was the kind of workout that really gives you confidence that the training is paying off!  Todays main set was;
4 x 100 FAST (1:14, 1:14. 1:14, 1:15) with lots of rest
10 x 100 Best avg/Short rest 1:30 pace, avg between 1:23 and 1:25

The good news is that I was able to keep all my 100's under 1:25 even with very little rest (5 sec) - this bodes extremely well as it's by far the fastest I've been able to swim for an extended period of time with relative comfort.  It was by no means easy but it makes me feel confident that a sub 30min half swim, and under an hour for my ironman swim is more then realistic.  During the fast 100's the bike/run workouts this week had my legs feeling pretty much done.  Not sure I kicked much at all since my legs felt pretty tired today.  But no complaints it was a solid workout and I'm really pleased with the results especially given the circumstances.
I kept it to one workout today though because after a long day teaching and massaging I just did not have the energy to get out and run on top of it.  Will most definitely be running tomorrow and looking forward to getting out on my bike again this weekend.  The duration of my long rides will be quickly ramping up… Ironman training is getting real now :)

Just one of those nights...

So since it's almost 1am and I'm wide awake I thought I'd throw in a blog entry.  Today I've managed to continue the solid week of training that I've been stringing together so far.  After a full day of work, I got on my bike for a super challenging and yet surprisingly not mind-numbing web cycle workout.  It never ceases to amaze me how I can be on my trainer, in the basement but it feels like I'm in an actual spin class even tho coach Sean is simply on my computer.  Such a wonderful concept and I find it extremely motivating. Pushed hard on the bike so my legs feel a little gummy but I think thats just a sign of good solid work :)
Tomorrow - well actually today's swim is going to be short and fast and likely quite painful - so I hope the legs can manage. But every workout I check off is a step closer to Ironman (116 days - YOWZA).  Not going to lie, I'm completely stressed out about it - but I am trying to remind myself that by the time the big day comes I will be ready.  I have awesome teammates who are super supportive, and my sister and cousin have already committed to volunteering on race day so they can be there to cheer me on.
I did manage to pick up a new bike helmet today. I was working at a school not far from Gears bike shop so I stopped in and tried a few on.  Turns out I really couldn't tell the difference between the Giro Savant (which I ended up getting) vs the substantially more expensive models.  The savant was quite light weight and wasn't too expensive.  The pricier models do have more ventilation but from what I can tell anyways didn't feel any (or at least noticeably to me) lighter or more comfy so I saved a few bucks and went with the savant.  It's a really cool looking matte black with white and red so will look awesome with my bike.
Alright going to try and turn my brain off so that I can get a bit of sleep before swimming in - oh a little over 5 hours…sigh…

117 Day's Until Ironman

Well the countdown is officially on and Ironman Mt. Tremblant is fast approaching. It's amazing that it seemed so far away but now it's down to 117 days and I know they are going to FLY by.  I've decided to blog after my workouts or after they are done for the day if there is more then one on the docket.
Today was a fairly long swim, got in 3.7k today.  Workout wasn't particularly hard, just long continuous swimming.
2 x 100 swim
      50 drill
      100 pull
      50 kick

6 x (5 x 100 1:50, 1:45, 1:40, 1:40, 1:35) alt each set swim odds/pull evens
100 non free wd
I was pretty consistently averaging at or just under 1:30/km which is pretty much where I would like to be at Ironman so thats pretty good.  Oh who are we kidding I'd really like to average a little faster then that at Ironman, but not much so this bodes well that I was able to do it this early in training.

Followed that up with a nap (taking advantage of a day with no supply calls) and then a 9k run which came in just at 52:15 which is a 5:50 avg.  Not bad at all, nasty headwind slowed me down and I was really just out for an easy run which is exactly what it ended up being.  Didn't push to hard at all - but got the run in which is always a good feeling. Weather was cool at about 11 degrees and overcast but pretty much perfect to run in!  Not going to lie during the run I was really thinking OMG how am I ever going to do an Ironman… it's just so seriously daunting.  Lots of cycling to do in the next 117 days.
Got out for my first outdoor ride on Sunday, it was nice to finally hit the road.  We rode about 55k to Erin which was quite a nice ride and had more then it's fair share of hills.  I know that I need to do a LOT of riding in the coming weeks but thankfully I've got a new saddle which made Sunday a whole lot more comfortable!

Luckily now I can kick my feet up and relax - tomorrow is a web cycle day but there are only 2 left and then hopefully the weather cooperates and we can be riding outside!  It's getting real now!!!!

Good week - so far...

Well - so far this week has been a pretty solid training week.  2 hour ride Sunday, 1 hour ride Monday, solid 8k tempo on Tuesday, 18k long run Wednesday and a swim this morning (Thursday) aiming for a 5-8k run tomorrow.  This weekend is a bit of a right off for me as far as training goes.  I'm working in Niagara Falls and it's some seriously long hours that don't really leave much energy left for training.  Which is why I got my long run done last night.
Turned out it was FINALLY great weather - little windy but not too bad (today was WAY worse).  So I arranged to meet up with Kim, and since her time was limited I got to Caledon East early and ran 6km before meeting up with her to run the last 12.  Turned out the 18k got done in 1:49… and it was a very comfy pace for me.  Pretty happy about that especially with the workouts that preceded it this week.
Today's swim was a long and steady one, but for some reason (maybe the long run last night) I just had very little energy.  Still got about 3k in this morning - and after a long day I'm pretty happy to be in for the night and ready for a quick run in the morning before a very long weekend of work.
Today I also dropped my bike off at the Bike store for a tune up - and apparently it needs new brake cables - excited to get it back and start riding outside - hopefully soon.  If the weather continues to cooperate I have plans to ride with my RTCC team next Saturday.  So hopefully this spring weather stays around!  I'm really sick of the trainer.

Back on track

Ok, so admittedly I've had trouble staying on top of this.  But I'm making it a new goal to post on here at least twice a week.  Today was a really strange day - woke up to go to the pool (and coach) this morning… and it was snowing, like really coming down snow.  So came home, had a nap (day off work today) and started on the errands/plans I had.  My intention was to wait out the weather in hopes it would get better.  And WOW - did it ever get better.  Temps got up to 11 degrees, and when I stepped out for my 8k run (after a minor disagreement with my Garmin - which I ultimately won) it was perfect shorts-tshirt running weather.  It was quite windy - so there were sections of my route that were not so much fun.  But - really - I'll take it over the cold, and the snow.  Finally able to run without a bazillion layers.
I ran 8k and when I started out today I was supposed to run an easy 45min and I honestly thought I was.  But it turns out I was averaging about 5:31/km which had me finishing my 45min run after having completed about 8km.  I was a little surprised, haven't been able to run that kind of speed in a very long time and especially not over that distance.  I didn't even feel gassed at the end - all positive signs that the fitness is improving and my run times are finally starting to come down.  Now I'm seriously thinking of signing up for the Toronto Half Marathon on May 5th as I think a PB could be a distinct possibility!
This weekend coming up will be seriously hard on the training plan - I'm heading to Niagara Falls Thursday night to work as an AT at the National Cheerleading competition.  It's basically 3 x 15-16 hour days and it's physically and emotionally draining.  The plan is to do a long run tomorrow, and then hopefully get a spin in on Thursday, but either way I'm brining my bike in for a much needed tune-up sometime Thursday.  Luckily - being away for the weekend means that I don't really need it so I don't need them to rush to get it done.  Fingers crossed I'll be riding on the road very VERY soon (the trainer is just so freaking boring and it has been a VERY long winter of trainer/treadmill workouts)
I'm hoping to get out for at the very least a short run on the weekend but won't be too hard on myself if I can't.  Sometimes work has to take priority.
I am happy that so far training seems to be humming along quite well.  Work a very long day yesterday but still managed to get on the bike for an hour after my 11 hour workday was finally done!  Small progress - getting little workouts done one day at a time!
Hoping for some nice weather for tomorrows long run - 18k or so would be great to have the sun and the warmth again :) It really is days like today that remind me how much I enjoy running - fingers crossed the winter is finally coming to a real end and I can get on with the business of training hard for Mt. Tremblant 70.3 and of course the big one - Mt. Tremblant Ironman on August 17!!!!  So exciting!

Ok - so while I've been pretty horrible about posting lately - no time like the present to get on track.  I haven't been running as much as I'd like up until a couple weeks ago.  This crazy horrible winter we've had just zaps my motivation.  It's unbelievable really - but I ran the Chilly half marathon March 2nd and since then I've gotten back on track as far as running is concerned.  Chilly was FREEZING - it was -20 degrees and wow were my feet and hands cold.  Took a solid 8k or so before they warmed up - so that wasn't fun at all.  But other then that I had a fairly good race.  My time was 2:08 and while that is about 11 min of a PB, given the minimal running I've been doing I was quite happy.  I only walked through the water stations - with the temps being so cold I didn't want to risk getting water all over my gloves or jacket - it was cold enough without being soaked.  The last few km hurt - a lot - but I kept trudging along and reminded myself that Ironman is going to hurt to so I might as well suck it up and get used to running though!  And I did - bit of a mental victory for me, and honestly since then I haven't missed a run workout!  Last week I ran 3 times (2 treadmill and 1 outside), and this week the goal is 4.  Yesterday was an unbelievable spring day, 9 degrees - no need for a thousand layers or a toque, gloves etc.
And today - MASSIVE SNOW STORM!!!
This winter blows - but I'm going to make sure I stay on top of training.  The countdown will happen regardless of how much I train, and race day will be here before I know it!  Before the BIG one - I have an 8km running race in April, another Half Marathon in May (looking for a good PB there) and then the Mt. Tremblant Half Ironman in June!
So far my swim is pretty amazing - was able to sustain under goal race pace for 2.4km yesterday - which is amazing this far out!
Bike - well the bike is coming along as well as can be expected - I've done 3 of 4 mega days (3 hour spin) with C3 and those have gone very well.  And this past weekend followed up that 3 hour ride with a 90 min run the next day (Sunday).
Definitely can't complain - I'm pretty excited about the way training is progressing.  And the more workouts I complete the more pumped I am to get out there and do more.  I have to say - yesterday was so nice it was almost painful to 'only' run for 45min :) I think I might have actually had a smile on my face the whole time I was running! It was just so nice!
Fingers crossed this is the last of winter so that I can get out and enjoy running and get out on my bike and ride :)  The trainer is tedious, and I've had enough of the treadmill (though will still use it for speed work) - bring on the outdoor workouts!