Here is July 2010 compared to July 2011. (The last week of July 2011 is in pencil to represent what I kind of workout I *should* do that day.)
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Summer lovin'
Typically I love summer by slacking off a little bit in July. Well, not so much this year. For quite a few years I've logged my workouts in a hand-written calendar so I can look back on months gone by, count miles, know when my shoes need to be replaced, and for motivational purposes as well. If I see a couple of blank squares on the calendar, it makes me sad.
Here is July 2010 compared to July 2011. (The last week of July 2011 is in pencil to represent what I kind of workout I *should* do that day.)
Here is July 2010 compared to July 2011. (The last week of July 2011 is in pencil to represent what I kind of workout I *should* do that day.)
Monday, July 18, 2011
The Kelp Crawl
The swim is definitely the interview of the triathlon for me. If I can just get through the swim, the rest of the race will be absolutely exhilarating and wonderful. The problem I'm finding is that no matter how hard I try (the swim lessons, the practice sessions), swimming presents an very interesting mind-boggling challenging. I need to get over this in the next two months, so I will continue to tighten my goggles, and kick those legs. (Now if I could just feel comfortable with the stroke!)
My fitness level is very good, but I'm not very efficient in the water, which is making me crazy. I feel that I want to put my best foot (or arm) forward, but everyone else's best foot and arm are more efficient than mine. Then I get flustered, which makes the stroke and breathing more difficult, thus rendering me inefficient. Unfortunately the swim is first, and my beloved running is last, so I'm going to use the run as my carrot to just get through, but I won't be able to bike or run if I can't get out of the water.
I joined a training team at work, The Mighty Broncos, who meets a few times a week for swimming, running, and cycling. This weekend, I joined TMB for an open water swim clinic in Monterrey at the exact location we'll be doing the Pacific Grove Triathlon. Miss Midwest over here (that's me), has never swum in the ocean. Oh sure! I've put my face under and taken a few strokes, but nothing like what I experienced over the weekend...
The Equipment: I had to rent a wetsuit, which was a new experience, and also kind of a fun one. The wetsuit was marvelous in the ocean! Not only did I get some insulation from cold water, but it also created buoyancy, so I won't drown! Pretty awesome. I want to swim in a wetsuit all the time, but I'm sure they would kick me out of the gym pool. HA! As a contact lens wearer, I worried about goggles falling off, or not protecting my eyes, but so far so good.
The View: I thought I would be more scared to look down in the water and see murky shadows beneath, but I wasn't. The view was actually quite pretty below.
The Fauna: There are no sharks in this water, and I have no fear that sharks will come an attack over a thousand people splashing around in the water. I'm also not scared that a fish will come by, or a seal with bark at me. I'm a friend of the animals.
The Flora: Lover's Point in Monterrey is not just a swim, but the "kelp crawl"! Do I think kelp is disgusting - no. Do I care that it is slimy - no. Do I care that it tastes gross - not really. What did bother me about the kelp is that is basically takes my inefficient swimming, and makes it even more inefficient. In fact, for about 50% of the "swim" I was kicking and army crawling through kelp. Boo for the kelp.
The Salt: Ugh, I hate the taste of salty water. I'm not worried that the water is in any way dirty, but just the taste alone made me want to vomit.
I need to be successful in an interview/swim process so I can do what I'm good at - the biking, and swimming! I want to kick butt, but I need to get out of the water first. Unfortunately there are others who can interview and swim better than I can. In the case of the triathlon, I may catch up with some of them. In the case of an interview, I'll never get the chance to prove myself and do what I'm really good at.
I guess it was good to experience the open water swim before the tri, instead of just assuming pool practice would get me though. This will be quite a mental challenge. Not as challenging as the job search, but maybe if I get through, it will make me feel all-around stronger in other aspects of my life. Right now, I'd rather swim than be rejected by another job interview.
My fitness level is very good, but I'm not very efficient in the water, which is making me crazy. I feel that I want to put my best foot (or arm) forward, but everyone else's best foot and arm are more efficient than mine. Then I get flustered, which makes the stroke and breathing more difficult, thus rendering me inefficient. Unfortunately the swim is first, and my beloved running is last, so I'm going to use the run as my carrot to just get through, but I won't be able to bike or run if I can't get out of the water.
I joined a training team at work, The Mighty Broncos, who meets a few times a week for swimming, running, and cycling. This weekend, I joined TMB for an open water swim clinic in Monterrey at the exact location we'll be doing the Pacific Grove Triathlon. Miss Midwest over here (that's me), has never swum in the ocean. Oh sure! I've put my face under and taken a few strokes, but nothing like what I experienced over the weekend...
The Equipment: I had to rent a wetsuit, which was a new experience, and also kind of a fun one. The wetsuit was marvelous in the ocean! Not only did I get some insulation from cold water, but it also created buoyancy, so I won't drown! Pretty awesome. I want to swim in a wetsuit all the time, but I'm sure they would kick me out of the gym pool. HA! As a contact lens wearer, I worried about goggles falling off, or not protecting my eyes, but so far so good.
The View: I thought I would be more scared to look down in the water and see murky shadows beneath, but I wasn't. The view was actually quite pretty below.
The Fauna: There are no sharks in this water, and I have no fear that sharks will come an attack over a thousand people splashing around in the water. I'm also not scared that a fish will come by, or a seal with bark at me. I'm a friend of the animals.
The Flora: Lover's Point in Monterrey is not just a swim, but the "kelp crawl"! Do I think kelp is disgusting - no. Do I care that it is slimy - no. Do I care that it tastes gross - not really. What did bother me about the kelp is that is basically takes my inefficient swimming, and makes it even more inefficient. In fact, for about 50% of the "swim" I was kicking and army crawling through kelp. Boo for the kelp.
The Salt: Ugh, I hate the taste of salty water. I'm not worried that the water is in any way dirty, but just the taste alone made me want to vomit.
I need to be successful in an interview/swim process so I can do what I'm good at - the biking, and swimming! I want to kick butt, but I need to get out of the water first. Unfortunately there are others who can interview and swim better than I can. In the case of the triathlon, I may catch up with some of them. In the case of an interview, I'll never get the chance to prove myself and do what I'm really good at.
I guess it was good to experience the open water swim before the tri, instead of just assuming pool practice would get me though. This will be quite a mental challenge. Not as challenging as the job search, but maybe if I get through, it will make me feel all-around stronger in other aspects of my life. Right now, I'd rather swim than be rejected by another job interview.
Saturday, July 09, 2011
Ma belly
I've been working on that body fat percentage since February, so I thought I would share a few pictures. 2% loss is pretty good, but I'd like to get down 2% more.
Pic #1: February 1, 2011
Pic #1: February 1, 2011Pic #2: July 1, 2011
Thursday, July 07, 2011
Icannothascheezburger
(If you haven't seen the site Icanhascheezburger.com, it's worth a looksie. Especially the LOL Cats section. You'll like it, even if you don't think you like kitties, you will! Or you will continue to think they are evil, but also funny.)
It's been over a month, so let me update you. I've been swimming, biking, running, and TRXing. I signed up for swim lessons at my gym, joined a group that swims and runs at work, and lubed up the Fuji.
It's triathlon time! The date is September 10, 2011. The event is the Pacific Grove Sprint Triathlon. The sprint includes a .25 mile swim, a 12 mile bike ride, and a 2 mile run. I wish there was a triathlon distance that was .05 mile swim, a 20 mile bike ride, and a 6 mile run, but there is not, and they don't allow you to make up your own competitive sport. Although I think my sport would be awesome, and the sprint is not enough running for my taste, the olympic distance triathlon is too much swimming for my little beginner fins right now.
This might be just the distraction I need this summer. Maybe I should blog about it too. Here are my website name ideas:
Icannothascheezeburger.com
tridistraction.com
needanewgoal.com
trynottodrown.org
focusonworkoutnotwork.com
cannotcometoworktodaymustswim.com
What do you think?
It's been over a month, so let me update you. I've been swimming, biking, running, and TRXing. I signed up for swim lessons at my gym, joined a group that swims and runs at work, and lubed up the Fuji.
It's triathlon time! The date is September 10, 2011. The event is the Pacific Grove Sprint Triathlon. The sprint includes a .25 mile swim, a 12 mile bike ride, and a 2 mile run. I wish there was a triathlon distance that was .05 mile swim, a 20 mile bike ride, and a 6 mile run, but there is not, and they don't allow you to make up your own competitive sport. Although I think my sport would be awesome, and the sprint is not enough running for my taste, the olympic distance triathlon is too much swimming for my little beginner fins right now.
This might be just the distraction I need this summer. Maybe I should blog about it too. Here are my website name ideas:
Icannothascheezeburger.com
tridistraction.com
needanewgoal.com
trynottodrown.org
focusonworkoutnotwork.com
cannotcometoworktodaymustswim.com
What do you think?
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