Pallas Athena

Training for Power

2010-09-10T12:19:00.000-07:00

It's been a long year. This year was HARD! Lots of injuries kept me from training to my full potential. Nearly 6 months without speed work; and what a jinx that is on performance!

Some of you know I had a major back surgery in the spring of 07. My L4-S1 are now for ever fused with titanium rods. Sadly, they are not carbon fiber, as any triathlete would prefer. This has resulted in the loss of mobility/flexibility in the lower back, making my hamstrings prone to tightness and all the fun that goes with that weak link.

I've tried to address this on my own. I purchased a set of Powercranks in 08 and used them faithfully. If you don't know what that is, you should. They force you to pedal each leg independent and pull the crank up/around with your hamstrings. They are beastly! They improved my run times tremendously and made my pedal stroke very smooth on the bike.

In 09, I went to Mercy Sports Rehab. Brent Wesolek did an assessment of my riding and said he had never seen someone pedal so smooth straight out on the Computrainer. I could also keep the watts up pretty decently. The best part was, after suffering nerve damage in my right leg and losing muscle mass-these powercranks worked to even out the difference. There was that and the improved run speed that sold me on them! A smooth pedal stroke is pretty and efficient, but cannot say it made me a much faster rider!

I also religiously practiced exercises/stretches from Karin P.T. at Mercy. She was a God send. She met me more than one occasion at our local health club to go through exercises and always worked for solutions that would really help me move better. This was an area that went beyond triathlon and into my personal life!

So now, the trouble is power/loss of body mass. Last year, my thighs measured 24 inches and I felt strong. This year, 22 inches and FLAT!! I've been eating 125-150 grams of protein per day this year, hoping that with adequate carbs would perk me up. I've lost some body fat, but along with it some valuable muscle. For those of you wondering, currently I'm weighing in at 64 kg. Yep, that is well above the 1.4 gram/kg recommended. I have found I just run better on it. Bonking sucks.

Sateash Berge met with me last Tuesday to discuss a plan to get me back on track. She made it to NPC Jr. Nationals this year and also went to Las Vegas this summer to USA's. For those who don't get that; it is more difficult to get there than Kona for a triathlete! She is awesome. A very positive person and huge in an attractive/feminine way. And very bright to boot!

The goal in working with her here is to improve my weight to power ratio and decrease my risk of injuries. She developed a diet for me that is carb-cycle in nature. After reviewing my diet, she also felt it was important to increase my protein intake significantly. The new goal is 210 grams of protein a day. WOW! The only decrease is on high output days; where it drops back to 150 grams and a higher emphasis on carbs. She promises more sustained energy with this type of diet, because it isn't the yo yo insulin game we often play with carbs.

We will be meeting this next week to work on strength. I look forward to it. She has given me more than a couple of ideas to play with, if only because a bodybuilder's perspective is quite different from our triathlon view. I was a bit hesitant to meet with her initially, because you often get more of the same old same old from trainers. She was not that at all. I will keep you all up to date on my progress!

Ironman Louisville 2010

2010-09-02T05:56:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday was the morning of my fourth Ironman race. The day started out at 4:30 with Mike's cell phone going off somewhere in the room. He didn't even seem to notice, and I couldn't find the damn thing in the dark. My ITouch was set to go off next to me, but it ended up providing the light needed to search for the ringing phone. Unfortunately, by the complaints next door, this started the neighbor's day early too. You don't want to camp next to the Brady's.

After an entire race season of not tolerating speed work but doing a ton of endurance; the pressure was off. There were no real moments of nerves at all. Just going through the moves and wishing things could just get started. There were plenty of moments wondering what was wrong with me that I felt so chill about it all. Sometimes you just find that happy zone where you know exactly where you are at physically and go with it. It sure is a good place to be!

I try to keep my race routine just like training. Everything I needed was packed neatly in one bag to avoid those morning of the event freak outs. So it was oatmeal with raisins and protein powder. Same clothes I've been putting on all summer to race in as well, except for the hefty dose of sunscreen. Then slapped a huge tegaderm over the quarter-size broken blister on my heel. UGH! How that happened is another story and certainly not how I would recommend getting prepared to run a marathon!

The girls opted to sleep in. Mike walked me down to the transition to get the bike ready for take off. Then off to the swim. We were down there at 6:15 and the line was enormous. This provided lots of chat time with fellow athletes. I met a girl from Indiana doing her first IM race just out of college. Supper nice person with a awesome positive attitude. She finished the day third in her division. On the other side of me was a guy doing his 14th IM. He does it because he still can at 61.

Louisville is a time trial start, where there are two lines with people running down them and jumping in with just a few seconds between each other. I loved it. No time to just be nervous.

The swim course is an upside-down J shape around an island. The first third is against current and the rest is with the current. I managed to treadmill it for a bit on the way out; until wising up and moving closer to the island. I kept it easy; not wanting to burn out later. I finished in 1:38. Slower than my previous swims, but mission accomplished. Unlike the previous swims, I got out of the water relaxed and refreshed.

Transition went well. I ate a PBJ and cheese sandwich, drank a 24 oz gatorade and a bottle of water. Didn't need to change clothes. I walked through the transition, trying to make sure my heart rate stayed down. I know everyone likes to say sip water or sports drink and give yourself 20 minutes or so to settle in and take nutrition. I come out of the water hungry; I eat!

My bike plan was to again take it easy and not do any real work. The first two hours on the bike were great. The heat wasn't bad at this point and the section out of town is fast. I was suprised at how many people were riding all over the road and not keeping to the right. It made things interesting on some of the steeper descents. Those who ride with me know I love to max out the speed on the descents. NOT happening here. Too many kill-joys paddling out to the far left, laying heavy on the brakes. I saw the devil after one of the larger climbs on the dogleg section. He greeted me with a "good to see you again". He was standing out in the sun in a full red spandex suit and cape with a pitch fork!

Louisville has a beautiful bike course. There are constantly rolling hills, horse farms and occasional long-distance views. There are some fast descents with sweeping turns and generally the roads are good. There are only a few places of civilization where you can buy what you need while riding.

After about 11 am, the heat really started to crank. There was more wind than anticipated, making drinks warm in a hurry. That is about when the headache came on and tortured me for the rest of the bike ride. The stations began running out of water around 2pm. They took throw away bottles and refilled from a garden hose. I had left transition with 2 bottles of gatorade and they were long gone at this point. I drank a partial bottle of Perform with the usual stomach upset. It was water and enduralytes for the rest of the ride; with the thought of ice and cola on the run seriously motivating me! The bike segment took 7 hrs. Time killer was having to pee 4 times (no alternative, it was 96 degrees!) So what. Ambulances were steadily picking up people and there were many sitting in the ditch that looked like they might need one. Lots of people walking unimpressive hills. All I got was a headache from overheating!

Transition from the bike went very well, which was a surprise for how lousy I was feeling riding in. The transition is on the banks of the Ohio River, so it was much cooler down there. Two bottles of ice-cold water was pure magic. I forgot to take off my sun glasses before my transition bag was gone. Ugh!

Marathon plan was to simply drink water, cola and some chicken broth as needed. It has worked very well for me in the past and I didn't want to screw it up and not be able to take liquids. Heat has been my nemesis for years! The plan was also to make sure I was running the marathon and not walking; everyone hears me say walking is expensive. IT IS!! I would rather plod off 11 minute miles than walk any 14 minute miles. I walked almost the entire marathon in Arizona because my stomach was bad! That takes forever and I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

The course runs past many beautiful multi-story brick homes. It also goes past Churchill Downs. They cross you over a bridge into Indiana and turn back around for approximately 1.5 miles of running. Then it heads out of Louisville taking you to the turn around point at about mile 7.5. You repeat the loop minus the bridge section to complete the marathon distance. Mentally, it was 4 sections for me. The last loop became more like mile sections, but I never really suffered. The community is very supportive. There wasn't a single place where people weren't out cheering on the participants. I finished feeling like I could continue on, which was nice for a change! 13:32:46 A PR by 17:28. I will take it.

What I liked about Louisville IM: Swim start was fun and we tended not to bunch up so much. Water was a warm 85 degrees. Bike course was rolling hills that never really cause real work. Love it! Run course had so many people cheering and lots of shade from buildings. That was a relief after the bike! I am genuinely surprised this race doesn't fill up quickly. It really is a great event in a beautiful setting.

Trip to Louisville 2010

2010-09-02T04:36:00.000-07:00

Thursday was a late start for the Brady's. Surprise, surprise. I wanted to see Cheyenne's cross country meet; vetoing a request to get going right after finishing the three hour workout scheduled. Angie (sister) met us at the high school track and visited until the start. She was bumming because she wanted to go to Louisville, but we have a cousin that was married the same weekend.

We arrived in Louisville about 2 AM Eastern. It was a short night, but in a very nice hotel. If you ever need to book a room somewhere and it doesn't have to be a specific hotel; use hotwire.com. Sounds like plugging a name, but they do rock. $79 bucks a night for the Gault Hotel. It was the Ironman Event headquarters (convenient)and the place is beautiful.

Friday was packet pick-up. Hilary Biscay was shaking hands and signing autographs for a ZIPP Wheel rental place. That had my youngest daughter and husband all excited. Ironman volunteers weigh you and do your body fat/hydration at the check now. Then they move you through to sign wavers and get you your racing number/chip and a nice bag.

From there, you have to leave through the Ironman store. There was a line formed from one end of the store to the other, with the check out being at the far end. You cannot just walk through, because it is jammed up with people. WTC is taking this sales thing a bit far, IMO. I bought nothing just to show my enthusiasm.

Saturday was Cheyenne's birthday, and the only opportunity for the practice swim. Both kids slept in until 10. Grandma and Grandpa Brady came down for the weekend. They planned to take them to the State Fair, while Mike and I checked the transition bags and bike. I was following Mark Allen's Five Weeks to a Perfect Taper only adjusting the distances according to what I had been doing. This meant 7 min of swimming, 30 min of biking and 10 minutes of running; but the Gatorade Practice line was CRAZY! Not worth standing around waiting all day to swim, so it became a bike, run and then swim. It felt like it was over before I started!

Saturday evening we all planned to celebrate the girl's birthdays by eating at the restaurant of their choice. (Savannah turned 16 on August 26). They both agreed on Vincenzo's Italian Restaurant (http://www.vincenzositalianrestaurant.com). We were told no shorts, so both girls robbed my suitcase blind. The food was fantastic and the atmosphere is very relaxing. I didn't get back and climb into bed until 10.

Spirit of Racine Turned Ironman Racine 70.3

2010-07-17T16:55:00.000-07:00

Today was the check in for IM Racine 70.3. This is the stomping grounds for my old favorite race; you guessed it, Spirit of Racine. Last year, they sold out to IM. My first reaction was one of uncertainty. This event has always been great, with the swim in Lake Michigan (not hidden in a bay somewhere, but out in the open). The run is along the lake on the road that overlooks the whole thing. It is just beautiful. You cannot help but notice, even when it is 99 degrees and 98 % humidity. Didn't seem they needed the help of the corporate giant event organizer. So from the moment of our arrival, my husband and I were scouting the whole thing out.

The check in was easy enough. Festival Park Expo Center. Just like before, only that was less chaotic than it has been in years past. The whole building where the expo used to be is now simply check in. Really overkill, in my opinion. You could run laps inside that building; with check in going on.

Outside was the expo under tents in the heat. Mostly, it was just the Ironman Merchandise Store. It used to be numerous vendors from all over the area competing for your business. There were always great deals to score along the way. Sad to not see that. Was always sweet to hear people bartering for stuff, instead of just paying way too much for logo driven products.

Despite all of this seemingly downer-this race is gonna suck crap above, I am pumped about this race. Above all of this, there was one very refreshing change. The people I saw coming in to compete and what they bring. First-timers, people with lower end road bikes outfitted with with aerobars, people just trying to be healthier. I had heard in the news that since the economy is dragging along, people are trying to be healthier and pursuing more active lifestyles. This is great stuff! There is a part of me that wants my ass to be royally kicked by the big guy on the 70's Schwinn he dug out the back of his garage. Nobody should stay home because they think there equipment isn't good enough. This sport is so beneficial to our health, anyone who can do it should.

When we were getting into the truck to head for home; Mike and I talked about our first time there in 2005. We didn't know if we belonged there and felt like we could be headed for a disaster. I don't question if I fit in there anymore. But I also don't question if anyone else belongs. We are all seeking to be more than what we were, and looking to become more than what we are today. We are all part of the same welcoming triathlon family, and the IM logo doesn't change that.

Ironman Perform

2010-06-06T16:20:00.001-07:00

Ironman Perform

Last week, Ironman sent athletes signed up for certain events a case of new Powerbar product called Ironman Perform. They are intending to serve it at several events and wanted athletes to have the opportunity to train with it ahead of time. I really appreciated their foresight with this. After years of struggling with stomach issues, new product is a source of fear that I would rather not deal with.

Because my stomach has been so finicky, my attitude has been less than great about this. Passive-aggressive misspelling of the product to just complete irritation is pretty much where I was at. But really, I do appreciate having the product ahead of time.

So, what about the product? Well, it brags to be their proprietary C2MAX. C2MAX is a combo of maltodextrin, fructose and dextrose. Biochemistry was never my thing, but a multi-path energy source is obviously a valuable thing. Remember good old Krebs?

Your body is dependent on nutrients such as carbohydrate, fat, and protein contribute to the fuel supply needed by the body to perform exercise. These nutrients get converted to energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate or ATP. It is from the energy released by the breakdown of ATP that allows muscle cells to contract. However, each nutrient has unique properties that determine how it gets converted to ATP. Hey, wake up. I’m just getting started.

ATP is pretty difficult to store and is used up very quickly. It must be made on the fly, while you are exercising. Carbohydrates are most easily utilized for endurance events, although fats and proteins are also burned. ATP is being made through the aerobic pathways. As exercise intensity increases, carbohydrate metabolism takes over. It is more efficient than fat metabolism, but has limited energy stores. This stored carbohydrate (glycogen) can fuel about 2 hours of moderate to high level exercise. After that, glycogen depletion occurs (stored carbohydrates are used up) and if that fuel isn't replaced athletes may hit the wall or "bonk."

Generally, the idea is to conserve the glycogen. The idea in Perform is three types of carbohydrates entering the system on different pathways and assisting the body with ready access to fuel. Even if one pathway is slower than another, the net carbs crossing over should be greater. In sports drinks, osmolality is a concern. Drinks must be able to be absorbed AND provide hydration. Obviously. Get the wrong combo, and you have a gut full of fluid. Not fun.

In a not so recent study carried out at the University of Iowa, researchers from the department of Exercise Science got together with gastroenterology specialists to look at all these different factors. The major finding was that the drinks containing two transportable substances boosted water flux into the bloodstream more than drinks with just one substance, even when the fluids with combinations of substances were of higher osmolality. The scientists therefore concluded that osmolality is not the most important characteristic governing water absorption in the small intestine when multiply transported substances are present. Now we are talking!

Or, maybe not so much. Maltodextrin solutions might have been expected to perform well because of their low osmolality. However, they did not stimulate as much solute or water transport as equivalent drinks (by weight of carbohydrate) containing two or more transportable substances. In English, your electrolytes and water will not move as efficiently across the intestine as it would with other sugars. This is a concern. Gatorade Endurance came in 24 oz bottles with 150 calories per bottle. The IM Perform comes in 20 oz bottle and contains 175 calories. More sugar and less net H2O absorption all the way around. Keep this in mind in the heat.

In use, it didn’t cause me any harm. I disagree with the label that says “great taste”. Used it on my long bike ride this last week. After several hours of use, I noticed a not so nice after-taste. Same with my long run today. Towards the end of the run, I avoided drinking because it was causing stomach upset. Both times, I noticed a lot of belching. I have a twenty pound bag of maltodextrin in my freezer. Only my husband can use it, because this is what happens when I take maltodextrin in my drinks.

The label also notes there is no high fructose corn syrup. Not sure that matters. The difference between glucose/fructose and corn syrup is??? Ugh. Glucose-fructose syrup. Whatever. Gotta love advertising.

In conclusion; I think Perform will do fine for the bike. I will be sucking high fructose corn syrup (Coke) and drinking broth on the run.

Xterra Velocity 0.02

2010-06-02T14:48:00.000-07:00

87 days until IM Louisville....tick, tick, tick! Foot has been bum for several months now. It is some sort of metatarsalalgia caused by one of the bones being too long. After two months of nearly not running, I relented and got the cortisone shot. No gory details, just the fact that it friggin HURT!

So, back to IM Louisville. Always hot and wetsuits have never been legal there because it is always above the 78 degree marker. My husband said it was crazy to swim in just tri gear, and he is right. There is too much advantage to be gained with a speed suit.

The Velocity 0.02 is not a neoprene wetsuit, but a slick, non-permeable, extremely durable suit comprised of the fastest material and coating available on the market. The NANO-SCS coating, with a drag coefficient of 0.02 (the lowest available), is used continuously throughout the speedsuit. The Velocity 0.02 has a seamless front, contains no Lycra and is meant to fit snugly - especially at the chest, waist and hips - over tri gear. It is supposed to take about five minutes to put on and requires assistance zipping up. However, it (theoretically) will take less than five seconds to peel off with the easy exit flip-up zipper. I'd been looking at it and a suit made by Speedo. This one tended to be a bit more affordable. Plus, my full suit (that I love) is also Xterra.

Xterra is always running some sort of promotion. They had a deal on the speedsuits last May, so we bought the Velocity 0.02. Went off their size chart, which was to say I needed a large. After trying it on, I feel as though I've completed an Ironman just getting into the thing. For real. I've always been big in the shoulders. It nearly leaves my breasts hanging out in the front. It will be interesting to see if it loosens up in the water. Will have to wait for an open water swim for that. They tend to fall apart in chlorine.

SORT 09

2009-07-23T19:11:00.000-07:00

Spirit of Racine was this past Sunday. It was very exciting for me, because my time improved dramatically. Although it came as a real suprise to me, in reflection, the rides and runs have been long and fast. The swims are the swims, but they are getting done.

This year was cool again, which worked well. Cold air/water is a performance enhancer to most folks, even if they don't like it. The swim was moved in like last year. The current moved to shore and towards the finish, which is ideal as it gets. Someone knocked me down at the start and I was actually ran over by someone. That rattled my cage a bit. Adjusted the goggles and coughed out inhaled water before getting a move on. There was a lot of aqua jogging since most areas you could touch the bottom. The problem being that most of them were moving slower than the swimmers. Hello, keep swimming! After turning the last yellow triangle buey, I started to walk into shore and get the goggles/cap off. Mike was filming on the beach and didn't see me wave. When I was right up to him, I stuck my face right in front of the camera and yelled hello. Finished in 31 minutes. Decent time and it is good enough. I'm not any good with math, but can tell you it isn't worth working on the swim for me for IM. BECAUSE, if I gain 6 minutes and crank a pro time.....I will then have a 4:55 time. Big hairy deal.

Transition went well, and I found myself chatting with two girls there. Two minutes and I was ready to get a move on. Stupid wet suit. If I was getting a new one, it would have zippers at the feet. Oh well. Told my two new aquaintences to "rock the bike" and I headed out. Bike went very well and I averaged 21.9. Didn't see anyone I knew on the route. Obviously I passed Alison somewhere, because she was out of the water with a pro time. The riding sucked as in there were tons of people riding peleton style. I was getting heated about it because I couldn't pass unless I crossed the yellow line because they were essentially blocking traffic. Grr, where were the officials!!! So while there were some stelar bike times, there were some cheaters out there too.

I caught Mike off guard on the way back into transition. He said he had just thought there was no way I would be done yet but there I was. That was cool!

The run was fine. I found myself thinking this is the bk shuffle. Just keep the legs moving! I also kept thinking keep the legs moving and time will take care of itself. That happened for sure. Needed a potty break, which is why I was not under 5 hours on this halfer. Phoey, can't get over the idea of just pissing myself. Oh well.

Couple of thoughts on this one. Next time I do a tri, I'm bringing my own marker. Waiting in line to be marked is stupid. Second, always make sure you bring your own breakfast because McDonald's may be closed.

Trail Explorers X 2

2009-04-18T08:43:00.000-07:00

Half-Fast, his wife, Mike and Dave last year rode the Sugar River, Badger and Jane Adams trails in one day with a shuttle between trail ends. I missed out, due to a very bad night out on call. I recall dialyzing a lithium overdose for 10 hours. It was someone who had done this before, and my attitude sucked to say the least. We had all been talking about it, and I really wanted to go. That was not to be.

This year, we have been talking about doing the whole thing "minus the sissy shuttle". Mike thought a clover-leaf pattern route would be cool. I really liked the idea. So much that I decided Wednesday night I would spend Thursday doing it.

Start time was supposed to be 7 am. I ate a huge breakfast with plenty of protein and fat. It was 7:50 when I finally got loaded and moving. There is nothing worse than a good bonk when you don't have anyone to call. So packing was important. There were a couple of mountain dews, pb&cheese sandwiches, gatorade and a bag of almonds to eat. Figured anything else could be bought in towns located at the trail ends. The other side of the bag had spare tires, tubes, air, wrenches all just in case of emergency. Cell phone and wallet brought also.

The weather was chilly at the start, so all the cold gear was on. Three miles down the trail, I realized the trail pass was at home on the counter. Mike always says that he only gets stopped about every thousand miles by the DNR. To be so lucky. I knew by not going back I was committing myself to sweet talking a ranger. DRAT. And 5 miles down the road I was already starving. Good grief.

First stop was at the bridge just north of Albany. The sun was still pretty low in the sky. Took in some scenery and pigged out. Some turkey hunters showed up out of nowhere and scared the bejesus out of me.

An hour out and the heavy clothes needed to go. Ya! That's what I wanted. Stopped at the crossing of the Badger and Sugar River Trails, took some more pics and got comfortable.

Bagder to Jane Adams is the longest section. It is 18 miles from the crossing
of Sugar River Trail and Badger to get to Jane Adams, 45 miles from my home to the end of the Jane Adams Trail. The Badger Trail is actually built up quite a ways to maintain the rail grade of not > 4%. Between the steep valleys and the sun coming up it really was quite beautiful. I crossed over to the Jane Adams trail at 10:30 and this is were I saw the first cyclist of the day.

At nearly noon I had made it to the end of the Jane Adams Trail. Lunch time. Pb&cheese does not travel well on the trail. Gross! Really it had become something of an amish bread dough concoction that I wished could have gone in the trash. Instead it was more or less squeezed from the sandwich bag into my mouth. Blech. Washed it down with some nutritious mountain dew and headed back up to the Sugar River Trail.

Turning to New Glarus is much easier mentally. It is about 6 miles to the end of the north trail head from the crossing. It was about a half hour before I reached the northern end. Subway was a quick stop for a sandwich and water reload just in case it was needed. The other half of the foot long went into the go bag for the same reason. Quick jaunt back to the four-way where the trails cross. HA! Met the DNR ranger about half way back. After a brief conversation and a stern "never do that again" (until the next time I forget it, hehe)I continued on. Reaching the crossing, I turned to the left to begin my final section of trail heading up the northern portion of the Badger Trail.

Badger trail is a bit rougher riding than the Sugar River Trail. There are more areas that are prone to wash outs and they fill them in with soft gravel. Which means ride with your eyes alert. Stewart tunnel is relatively close to the crossing. And did you know I hadn't even thought of packing a light since the day before. It was sitting on the charger next to the trail pass. Rock on!

I had to use the camera flash to get through the tunnel. So lame! But the darkness is so impenetrable that it barely makes a dent! It is about 35 degrees in there and plenty of flooding/ice sickles on the ground to make it dangerous. Every time I approach the tunnel, I have to stop and listen. The birds sound like people chatting in there and it is creepy. The whole tunnel is built at a curve, so you cannot see the light at the end until you turn. Really, this section was not the highlight of my day.

The remainder of the trail went fast. There were some little boys running up the trail ahead of me in Bellville that I tried to get a pic of but was a bit slow pulling out the camera. They were laughing and chasing one another, like kids do on these early warm spring days.

There were plenty of cyclists out now. They were everywhere! The Badger Trail ends at Purcell Rd for the time being. When funds are sufficient, they will finish it. Cyclists were steadily going past the trail head up Purcell when I stopped to take a pic of the end of the trail.

The trip home was uneventful save for another trip through the tunnel. When I arrived home, I got the usual. "Mom, how far did you go today?" I thought maybe an eyebrow raise at the 136 miles might be a possibility. Nope.

"What bike were you on?" Chey replied.

"My road bike"

"That doesn't count, you know. To say you road the whole trail, when it wasn't a mountain bike. That is cheating!"

Good to know. I thought the saddle sores made it real. Oh well. Maybe I will do it right next time, on the mountain bike if the rest of the troops decide to tackle this ride. I am debating if I should tell them it doesn't count if it isn't a mountain bike!

Are You a Real Cyclist?

2009-04-09T18:45:00.000-07:00

That was the predominant thought bouncing off the inside of my skull out putting in another 70 for this fall’s IM. As I hammered through town doing 26 mph + and caught a glimpse of myself in the store windows, I thought “geese, you look like a cyclist”. Next thought? What the heck is that? What is a “real cyclist”. Well, search that one and find a ton of ideas that quantify your cycling worth.

Running is much easier to figure out. There are plenty of dorks out there that are ready to tell you if you cannot run 8 minute miles that you aren’t really running. Straight, to the point quantifiable bull right there in your face. Hell, even some misinformed folks at Pearl Izumi bought into this idea for their “run like an animal” campaign. Where are these wiseguys when I’m trying to figure out if I can cycle?

Many of the tests I found online involve cycling in Europe (who cares), biking to work frozen (no distance set, which nullifies this as an important qualifier), ridden a recumbent (blech, I have and don’t see why that counts), had a bike stolen (hello, some of us have stories of Wal Mart going ballistic when we bring them in the store). Bogus. For real. Seems I am left on my own.

What do I think a cyclist is? I don’t really have any great ideas, but I thought a few things might be important.

First, you need to have a love for actually riding your bike. Does your bike get play time, or does it sit in the garage day after day longing to hit the road? There are many people who spend a fortune on their bikes and never get out there to ride them. It doesn’t have to be nice weather. Any conditions will do. There isn’t some goal hanging over your head. Out there putting in the miles only because I have an IM to complete-hell no. I’m out there because I love to do it! But I can be guilty of fair weather riding.

Work on your own bike. Appalling how many people cannot fix a flat. I have a neighbor who hasn’t ridden in a couple of years because her bike has a flat! “I will bring it to the shop later”. Or leave your chain drag on the guard, instead of adjusting it in. Yeah, I need work in this area. Namely, having a headset I can’t tighten down myself.

I would love to hear other people’s thoughts on this. I grew up hammering around on a Shopko Huffy and loved it. It just doesn’t feel right to say to be a cyclist that you have to have the latest gear or expensive ride or some expansive tour across Europe.

My Ironman Experiences

2009-03-03T16:31:00.000-08:00

Plenty of time to think today. 16 miles on the treadmill, another long run. The difference between the romance of the IM and the reality. I was there running long enough to see many people come and go. I'm sure many other IM participants have countless stories of how lonely training can be.

The worst is biking to work when I leave at 4:30 in the morning. Your just out there in the dark. Just you and your long, slow grind to your goal. There is always the obvious question of "IF" for the first round. I worked hard for that, 18 months of training, with that hounding question just out there in the back of all of my thoughts. But I wanted it. I got it, on a miserable cold raining day. And after finishing the first IM, it was a hell of a rush. Nothing like it. Nothing.

Look, if you had one shot or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted in one moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip? -Eminem

If you are a first-timer and find yourself reading through this, I will say that you will get out of the experience what you invest in it.

Then "Why?". Can I do it again? Lots of changes from the first, the most glaring my back fusion surgery. This one would be without Mike at my side, both of us encouraging the other on. Could I do it alone? This finish brought the answer "because I still can". Still can work hard and overcome my fears. The first physician I ever worked with, Dr. Greggor was a very kind man. He would call on the pm shift just to ask how things were going, because he knew I didn't appreciate being the team leader 2 months out of school. He would always say "Are you at the helm", which always seemed to lighten things up while reminding me that even though others didn't appreciate a younger boss, that I was the one in charge. He died of cancer during my second year of nursing. I learned to fill those shoes; but more importantly have remembered his words over and over again. Am I still at the helm; taking charge of my life and doing what needs to be done to get the results I want?

There is a great song by the group Incubus that most people have heard, but may not have thought much about. This is what was in my head as I dove into the cold water at the break of dawn in Arizona at the IM start. The first part of the song is really great. It is called "Drive":

Sometimes I feel the fear of uncertainty stinging clear
And I cant help but ask myself how much I'll let the fear take the wheel and steer
It's driven me before, it seems to have a vague
Haunting mass appeal
Lately I'm beginning to find that I should be the one behind the wheel
Whatever tomorrow brings, I'll be there
With open arms and open eyes yeah
Whatever tomorrow brings, I'll be there, I'll be there

Round 3...I'm pushing more this time. I could cruise a marathon right now and I have never been this ready this early. And I don't know what for. I do know that I've been a soloist and I'm sick of it! I appreciate all of the people who spend time on me while out training. Even if it is just those who stop to chat with me while running on the treadmill.

Once, at a caregiver renewal course,we did a regression exercise where you work back to see why you are the way you are. I was there with my preceptor and we both agreed that the exercise was bogus but we would do it as instructed, remaining open and honest with each other. My issue to work on was trust. We went through these series of questions that seemed really silly at first. It didn't stay that way. I wont go into gory details, but both of us were crying by the time we completed both of our exercises. And our relationship will never be the same because of it. But it seems that sometimes we need to keep relearning old lessons. Old dog new tricks. I needed to trust myself and have some faith in the work that I put in.

Now, I just keep wondering what this is all for. So what if there are people out there that can travel 140.1 miles in one day. What is the point in that? Training is all-consuming. The lessons learned in IM 1&2 are bound to be different from this experience. The thoughts just keep coming back to "What is the point?". I'm not burned out. I'm here, putting in the miles. But I keep thinking about those charity challenge folks that are changing their communities while taking on the IM.

The Twilight Zone…..

2009-01-25T13:05:00.000-08:00

Nubbs has applied to go to a summer camp for kids who have proven they have writing talent. It’s like completely crazy. Her teachers have been raving about her ability since about the fourth grade; and seem to always feel the talent must have come from somewhere. Mike and I look at each other and shake our heads. We really don’t even know anyone in our families that can write.

Up until last year, it was simply always put out there at conference. “Your daughter is really a very good writer.” “She has an amazing ability to put her thoughts into words.” She has been writing at college level for a few years now. Maxing out those standardized tests seems to come easy for her. She is a freshman in high school.

The problem has been that in our small district, there is no help for the gifted/talented in writing. Now, say your gift is in math-you’re set. This is what has had her looking for some help. She joined Mibba.com awhile back, and has been posting her attempt at a novel there. Basically, other young writers critique each other there and try to help each other along. She has wanted some professional instruction, though.

Today, she applied for a three-week summer camp that should provide her with what she is looking for. The main body of the camp is reading and discussing classical literature. The electives she would be taking would be writing and music. Students stay on a college campus and are treated like college students. This would have meant mischief for someone like me, but she has never been a trouble maker.

I guess the striking point for me is that before you have kids, you think you’re going to have some great impact on who they are or what they become. Sure, I read to her every day before she could read. But she was who she was when she was born. She has always inquisitive about everything around her. Genetically, she won the lottery in terms of the potential combinations we were offering! We have offered our version of right and wrong, but she is what she is. That personality has always been there. We are just guides and not very good ones sometimes.

Don’t know if it is the right word to use or not, but I have to say that I feel envious of her in the sense that some of us go through our whole lives never finding something we excel at. I guess I just am amazed sometimes that this is my kid, almost like she should belong to someone else.

What Inspires You Tour

2008-11-29T18:36:00.000-08:00

Shad Ireland has posted his upcoming tour across America and is looking for people to support and ride with him. His web site will be up and running December 11th. The tour starts in May.

Shad was the first dialysis patient to ever compete in and complete an Ironman. I heard him speak last year at our NKF conference. I was very inspired by him and his story. He has written books, and details his history of dysfunctional family dynamics and inability to accept his renal failure as a child. Twice he failed transplantation, mostly because his body will not tolerate the anti rejection regimen required to keep the transplanted organs. His story is powerful and really hits home to the renal failure population. The message is simple. Take charge of your own health to the best of your ability, and any activity that you can do is better than doing nothing. He wants people to feel the best they can, no matter what sort of health problems they have going on.

After completing the IM, Shad started the Shad Ireland Foundation. The point of this foundation is to provide funding to kidney patients for exercise equiptment. He is hoping to raise more money by doing this bike ride. I hope he does, and I hope he stops along the way to share his experiences with other dialysis patients. They need his message. I am waiting for him to give out his route. If it is at all possible, I will ride with him for as far as possible. This is one cause that I have seen really make a difference.

YOU ROCK, SHAD!!!

Be not the slave of your own past. Plunge into the sublime seas, dive deep and swim far, so you shall come back with self-respect, with new power, with an advanced experience that shall explain and overlook the old.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ironman Recovery

2008-11-26T13:37:00.000-08:00

I don't do well with down time. Have been reading up on this whole recovery subject and seen a wide spectrum of recommendations. One sourse says 2-6 months of recovery (absurd, unless you broke your leg). One says 2-8 weeks. I'm thinking more along the lines of 4 weeks. Mike was talking about a reverse taper, and that sounds exactly like what would work out for me. I feel run down right now, can tell I need to build back up.

Building up plan: make sure to take vitamins and make healthy food choices. I was ravaged by the Ironman. I will eat and nap when I can for the next week. My metabolism is cranked right at the moment, I'm a walking furnace. I cleaned in a sports bra and shorts and turned the furnace down to 60 yesterday. Proof that my body is not back to normal. By next week, I will have to cut back on total calories because exercise will still be reduced.

Swimming will start back in on Friday. Easy, no records here. The point is to get my blood moving. Maybe get out the aquajogger again, keeping intensity very light.

Biking will start tomorrow for about 20 minutes out to the dam and back home. It is pretty flat, and I will use a very low gear (27), hoping for a 5 miler on Saturday/ and 45 minutes Sunday.

Sometime next week, running will fit back in. 20 minutes to start and very easy. I've been walking easy since Sunday. It will be on the treadmill since the surface is uncertain on the trail and the muscles are not up for that yet.

Strength training will resume in a week. Light and low reps to start. Get back in the ab/back routine. NO leg exercises.

Stretching/yoga starts tonight. This will be gentle and slow. More getting the blood moving and just for healing purposes.

A 5K should fit in nicely this next month just to give something else to focus on. Paula Newby-Frasier gave a talk on "A.I.D.S." (after ironman depression syndrome). Hear that. Too much time and energy invested and now the fun is over. But the focus is different right now. Training doesn't stop it just changes. Careful diet, careful return to activity. Plus, there is Wisconsin Ironman to look forward to.

Days 2 & 3

2008-11-22T11:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the Gatorade Practice Swim #1. The wind was pretty wild at Tempe Lake and lots of chop. Surprisingly, the wind managed to kick up some current as well. Water was chilly as well, but not a long-johns swim like the SORT this past summer. I was out there for about 20 minutes, freaking out as usual in those conditions. The water was rougher under the bridges, which was a surprise to me. Swimming back to the shore, the water was in your face or over your head. Pick which way to turn your head, it sucks either way. Wind-induced current pulls you back towards the start. Gatorade has bleacher style steps out of the water but you cannot see the first steps. It is a grab the rail and pull yourself out situation. Mike taped my swim-technique was poor; arm entry position looked a bit flat.

Last night was the Banquet. Some guy who has had 2 heart attacks and is only 38 years old got an award for community challenge. Some guy lost 88 pounds training for Ironman. They gave him a year supply of cookies (gee, thanks for that). He swam in the 1988 Olympics. I'm curious to see his swim time. He was 304 when he started training.

Today was Gatorade Practice Swim #2. It was not nearly as rough as yesterday. I quickly went out and swam about 100 yards, just past the start bridge over Mill street. Today is minus the current and chop. SWEET! Got the goggle straps adjusted and trimmed up. Relaxed and swam with form. Hoping for a repeat tomorrow. This could be a very nice swim. Hoping for a wind free day!

Turned the bike in with the brakes working again....I have more on the bike than I would like, but nothing I want to take off of it. Sweet place on the rack-row forty-one on the path end! Bike should not get too banged up there, and will be right there to grab for the trip out. Tonight the special needs bags get packed and then it is just time to get the show on the road!

Day One in Tempe

2008-11-20T18:00:00.000-08:00

We arrived without any real glitches at the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport at 2:30 this afternoon. We shuttled in on the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel courtesy van. By 4:00, we were too late to pick up my ironman packet, but not to late to get my bike from tri-bike transport. It was pretty shook up. The sidewall of one of my tires was rubbed to the threads. It has acquired a new sqeak in the crank as well, that comes out only when you stand on it.

The back tire was soft again. Ongoing problem of the stem of the tube tapping on the inside of the extender and letting the air out. It didn't want to hold air either, because the stem wasn't sealing it off quickley enough. I rode around on it until the brakes were fine, but the tire/intertube situation needed solving.

Inside Out sports offers their usual supplies/support. The first mechanic I dealt with immediately blamed the brake and started turning here and there, completely loosening the adjustment on the brake, adjusting the cable. Nope, that isn't it. So he pulls out the tire and puts it in sideways so it now is rubbing on the chainstay. UGH. A sqeak that is only present on the crank that doesn't occur with spinning the wheel...WHAT in God's name does that have to do with the brake or how the tire is set on the bike. So, he says to the next mechanic that he could use some help adjusting the brake. Now this new guy wants to know what I came in for. I said I was after a new tire, because of the damage to the old. "Well here is your problem, your riding it with the tire rubbing on the chainstay." He also said something about the rear brake not "feeling quite right" and recommended that the cables all be rerouted. Wow. Lets back up to the part that they were fine when I got to the shop. The real story is that I don't like my bike being hammered around by any yaahoo.

It wasn't all bad. He showed me a trick for making the stem NOT tap out in the extender. Basically, it involves slightly damaging the threads to the tube and wrapping the whole thing with plummbers tape. Once the extender is in place, you have to pop through the plummers tape with a paper clip or pin. But the stem is held neatly in place.

The kids were up this morning at 3:30 and we left at 4:30. We were all tired and hungry. I probably was not as nice as I could have been. I have a new tire, and managed to find my precious 80mm stem tires. NO more extenders! There is only 1000 miles on the tire I replaced, so it can be used for other stuff. The bike is set to go, save for needing to put the back brake back where it was. Tomorrow morning before the practice swim, I will make sure it is working the way it is supposed to.

We ordered pizza and headed out to the pool. The pool is on the roof and it is huge, with hot tubs on either end of it. There are palm trees all around hanging over and chairs with little tents over them. Out in the pool/hot tub there is a great view of the stars. We are all just hanging out now, watching Grey's Anatomy and have stopped trying to kill each other.

New Nephew

2008-11-17T19:27:00.000-08:00

Today Braden Isaac arrived via c-section. My niece Amber (the mom) was quite relieved, because her first baby was over 10 lbs and late. The OB Gyn was letting her get past her due date again, and all she could think of was the two weeks spent in the nicu last time. I am so greatful for them that this time all is well.

My mom called to let us know. Braden's middle name (Isaac) was the name of our son, whom we lost at 10 months of age due to heart problems. I was 18 finishing my senior year of highschool; Mike was 21 dropping college and welding for a living. You can imagine when two kids who have the world ahead of them end up with a baby with serious health issues. There wasn't a lot of help from either of our parents. The irony in that was it drove us closer together and made us grow up fast.

Isaac had an easy disposition and smiled easily when he felt up to it, and lit up the room. His eyes were blue like Mike's, but he had light yellow hair that stood up like sunshine. I somehow managed to graduate, meanwhile Isaac got sicker. Bit by bit he slipped away from us. Finally, we had to let him go. I was holding him when he died, and we buried him next to my dad in a family plot in Polar, WI. I felt like the world was a huge weight so heavy upon me that day, I was sure I would sink clear into the ground. Mike was there beside me, and he was the only one who had a clue how it felt. It is a sorrow so deep, only another parent or a sibling who has had to say good bye too soon can understand. This was 1989.

It is strange how we manage to put this all away and go about our lives, many days as if he never happened. Amber knew of him because over the years, there were no more cousins on this side of the family until she was 7 years old. I was shocked to hear she used his name, like I couldn't breathe for a second. After all these years, someone else still thinks about him, too. I guess she wants to make a point to remember him, which is something I can appreciate.

Thoughts on a Race Plan

2008-11-03T16:56:00.000-08:00

Wow, 17 days till we fly out to Tempe. The last several days have been about formulating a plan to complete the distance. Mentally, I have been breaking it down into the details of the event. The overriding scare is that I could be left without that vital item that I just cannot do without.

Yesterday, I watched IM Arizona a couple of times, trying to pick out all those things you need for the big show. The swim is a trip, jump in and tread water till the start. Don't look at me to jump in early. Really, I would rather swim from the outside to the buoys than be next to one treading water for 30 minutes. Just stay alive and kick back when kicked. Bike gear on under the wetsuit. Water temp around 70 degrees, avg. Bathwater compared to Racine!!! Pop some endurolytes and jump in. Get out in 2:20. Strip the suit and hit the tents. God, I hope the goggles don't leak. That is SO irritating. Go eazy, long day ahead and this is just the warm up.

Transitions are outside with tents. No big deal there. Get those socks and bike shoes, run to the bike and THEN put the shoes on. I can ski, but not well in bike cleats. Spray down with sunscreen. Helmet on the bike, glasses in the bento box (with a shit load of Endurolytes). Bike will have my own Gatorade with extra maltodextrine and bcaa's added. Each bottle will have 300 calories, and there will be 3 of them. One cage for the bottle of Hammer gel (about 2300 calories). The expenditure will be around 5,000 calories, so this means eating as well. Two servings of Hammer gel per hour, so gross I hate to think of it. But I will swallow and like it; and ironically enough it is banana flavored. The Gatorade cover fits the top of the Hammer bottle, so it shouldn't be difficult to deal with. If I can handle eating a banana an hour, I will do it. There is no way I will get 5,000 calories in on the bike. I will just do my best. 700 calories per hour is goal. Endurolytes every half hour.

Transition will be a possible change of top (bring one and figure it out then). Sunscreen again. Get the run shoes and get going before thinking how nice it would be to lay down.

Run will be same strategy as long runs now. 23 oz Gatorade per hour, Powerbars every two. Endurolytes continue on the half hour, until the broth comes out. I also plan to eat about 6 dozen cookies like last time. Goal here is to maintain forward motion, until at last I hear "Jennifer, you are an Ironman!". Then I collapse and Mike can wheel me to the hotel in a wheelchair, or I can just sleep in the finish shoot. I don't really care.

Nursing and the Economic Crisis

2008-10-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

People have had lots of thoughts flying around as of late relating to the current downturn of the U.S. economy, and now the world economy as well. Although I keep hearing from folks that it is a good thing that I am in nursing, we know economic downturns as well as others. Harry Truman once said “It’s a recession when your neighbor loses his job; it’s a depression when you lose yours.” Some of us lose our jobs quickly, for some it happens gradually over time. We are all beginning to feel the pinch, and I am not convinced that nursing is a recession proof profession.

This is a capitalist society (I'm not knocking it), so no career is recession proof! Nurses have been laid off in mass numbers in the past. I graduated in 1993, and had been promised a job at our local hospital a year before graduation. Six months before graduation, they cut forty registered nurse positions. The new proposal? I would work 40%, and be the first to accept low census days. For anyone unfamiliar with this, it means you are scheduled to work, but if there are not enough patients you just simply don’t work and don’t get paid. And what is the bargain for the employer? Pay new grads significantly less than those with experience and get rid of the need to pay benefits by hiring part-time.

I am not suggesting that we would be jobless in significant numbers. There are still a lot of positions available. In the past, when the economy is tight we just never get around to filling those openings. They often pay less. We work short with people who are not as experienced. In the early nineties, cleaning ladies were told that if we needed help, they were to assist as told.

Wages are not competitive. Already, our contract has expired and we cannot get things moving with it. The wage portion has already been agreed on; it won’t scratch the surface of increased commuting and heating costs. Our stick point is that they would like us to pay for our health insurance. Not all at once, but for them to have the ability to increase it annually to what ever they felt they needed.

If you have never had to pay for decent health insurance, I strongly encourage you to climb out from under your rock and look at the price. The average cost of health insurance to the employer is more than 10,000 per year. Our family lives where we do because I couldn’t get health insurance as a self-employed RN. We paid for a crappy policy that covered my husband and the girls for serious stuff. I was uninsured for five years. Health insurance was denied to me by everyone we applied to. We had COBRA for nine months for six hundred per month. That was the price ten years ago.

Nursing is not easy work. You get the blue-collar physical work with the white-collar work with your head. We burn people out. We are frequently not very nice to each other. We take heat for other people’s stress; both the sick and other professionals. It would be nice some days to just mindlessly solder parts of a cell phone together. If something is wrong, it can be fixed. Nobody has to die over it. There are 600,000 nurses not currently working in their profession in this country. When the economy is tight, they reenter the nursing work force, and make the job market tighter for the rest of us. In addition, a number of foreign nurses will continue to be hired and American nursing schools will continue to crank out more New Graduate Nurses then the hospitals can handle. A combination of both a recession and the current trend will devastate nursing wages and opportunities for employment. I think the optimism shared by most people regarding nursing is based on fantasy. Everyone thinks he/she is needed. There is a shortage, right? Besides employers have no choices. Won't they pay lots of money for us to sign on to work? These ideas are CRAZY! They have to heat the hospital and pay increased costs for supplies just like the rest of us. And when we don’t have insurance and they still provide care, guess what? The hospital loses money…money that will eventually come out of your pocket and mine. Our baby boomers are retiring. They go to Medicare for insurance, and then the rest of us have to support that bill. We are back to the same question that comes up time and time again, is healthcare a right or commodity. When money is tight, we call it commodity. When we are in an economic boom, it is a right. Hospitals can only provide care with out reimbursement just so long. If you are a nurse my advice to you is to be realistic and watch your back. Gather up all your acorns and nuts and store them for the winter. There is a downward trend in wages over the horizon!

October 22, 2008

2008-10-22T17:34:00.000-07:00

Today was a train inside day. Overall, went great. I really felt strong on the run after biking. Did a lot of incline work, and there was a lot of pedal left. It was like I was Grace Jones in Conan the Destroyer. Kicking ass. The incline on the treadmill was set in a range of 3.0-8.0 on the incline. And it felt like I was crawling. About time.

I haven't been feeling strong for awhile now, and I know it is because of the time off from running to recuperate the foot. It still talks back, but it is crunch time. Tuning out, unless it gets louder.

Kids did some of their boo bags tonight. It is so funny watching them drop the bags of candy, and run like hell. One of Chey's friends is the math teacher's daughter. He stood on the front steps and yelled to his daughter that someone left candy. Chey was hiding behind his tree out front, and he said someone must have ran pretty fast. Not really-she was standing there sweating bullets. Too crazy. Yeah, teaching my kids how to prowl. Bad, Bad, Bad.

Cleaner Than I've Ever Been

2008-10-14T17:56:00.000-07:00

I had a new swim suit. Like it is 3 weeks old. It was dark blue and had some ugly red flowers on it. It didn't matter, it was for swimming not fashion.

Today, I went swimming at Princeton. Mike was on a mission to go shopping and I will not interfere with that! So he dropped me off and went about his business. The water seemed really "heavy" , like it was easy to catch or something. What little got in my mouth tasted terrible. Well, an hour and a half later I had my answer.

I was sitting in the steam room when I noticed that the swimsuit had turned to a very faded light blue and the flowers are now pink. Apparently, Princeton has taken issue with all the nasty stank people who refuse to shower after a workout before they jump in the pool. "Hey, let's just bleach them dirty slimeballs!" Now, my suit looks like it has been used daily for months. I will look like a real swimmer in it now!

John Muir Ride

2008-10-12T16:25:00.000-07:00

Awesome riding with Mike on Friday. We got 15 miles in; good power work but the scenery was even better. What a great break from the train drain.

In the last 3 miles, I took a fall and bent the brake bar on the right. Guess you cannot replace the break lever without replacing the shifter. The shifter cannot be purchased without the left one as well. UGH! So, the set is $50.00 for the two. I checked several places in Madison.

It was tough to decide to put that kind of money into my bike. It is a Trek 4100. One of the most poorly balanced mountain bikes on the market. The components suck on it too. But, it did only cost 350 new. Mike had the same bike as I, but his kept repeatedly busting. He had to have the bottom bracket changed out, bent a rim, deraliur gave out during the Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic. Over the past year, I have been able to hear my bracket clicking as well. This is how his started. Now he has a Specialized Stump Jumper, and he loves it. Savannah has the Rockhopper, which is also a great model.

I have commited to sticking more into this bike, because while mountain biking is a lot of fun, it isn't my first priority.

Overtraining

2008-10-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

I am over trained right now. Took 2 weeks to admit it to myself. Hill climbing SUCKS right now. In fact, anything that requires power sucks right now. The lactic burn will not quit. My averages are down, too. Mood is gone to crap. I don't really care if I eat or not either.

Arizona is 7 weeks away. The way I see it, I need a week off, a sort of reset if you will. I think I need to do this, although I'm not really wanting to. Last year I ignored the signs, and it cost me the month of January in training time. Seems you just keep skimming down your reserves until there is nothing left. The crappy part is that I could so easily have competed in IM WI this year. I was ready. Now, it is like trying to maintain a peak for forever.

Yesterday was the Tyranena Oktoberfest Ride. It was a really good time, and the weather was great for it. I rode with Jeff, Kerry and Dave. We stopped for a woman who fell and did a nasty dislocate of her left arm. As I'm whinning internally that this is not what I want to deal with (thinking head injury), I discover she only struck her arm on the fall and is fully concious. There was another wreck about a mile and a half up the road and medflight was there for that. So really, could have been worse. We never did hear what happened to those riders.

Cold Week

2008-09-30T18:08:00.000-07:00

Today, got a quick 30 miler in. Damn windy, too. Managed to eek out a decent mph, due to the stiff push out of town and ducking out of it on the way back with some hills. Tomorrow will be another brick. I want to get going early to try to cut down on the wind.

There are dictionaries sitting on the table that need names put in for the third graders. Procrastination is beginning to wear me down. Maybe I will get that done tomorrow.

Bike Nutrition

2008-09-28T03:31:00.001-07:00

Missed a swim last night, due to being on call. I will take call today also, as backup. Lately, the backup goes in about 90% of the time. We will see about a bike ride later today.

On the bike, I have started to play with a few different "mixes" in my gatorade. There are more than a few good articles about BCAA's and maltodextrin. Have been using those with the gatorade, and it keeps me from running aground on long rides. This comes out to about 70 grams of carbs an hour. 70 g instead of 60? Easier to measure the maltodextrin. Now, there was an article in this month's running times about using fructose and glucose in a 1:2 ratio. Apparently, it boosts your uptake of carbs significantly over other combinations or glucose alone. Makes sense, when you think about all those metabolic pathways you learn in biochem. In the past, they were looking at glucose transporters, and 60 grams was all those pathways could handle per hour.
Powerbar is the only one on board with making this new 1:2 glucose/frucose formula in their gel. Gels are gross. I once heard at a race "do you spit or swallow" and that came from a man. He couldn't have been the only person that thinks that. I think simply buying the two powders and mixing myself will be much cheaper. I may try that on a few rides. But, I am wondering what happens to the body's uptake of sugar after exercise and during the exercise for that matter, if you do this all the time. What I mean to say is that if those muscles don't have to become more effecient at storing glycogen, do we eventually have less capacity?
Less capacity could be devastating on a long course event. Many people, myself very much included here cannot handle this kind of sugar on the run. When all your blood heads south to the legs, the guts don't want to do their job anymore. So, after racking the bike and heading out for that marathon, gatorade is about the stiffest drink we can handle without excessive port-a-potty trips.
There are several long rides before IMAZ. A few of them with the "new formula" and a few without. If it works great, it will be on the bike and in my special needs bags for the bike.

I am a Nurse!

2008-09-25T21:40:00.002-07:00

Lately my attitude has been crap. Ornery about everything. Things that I have invested myself in, I am ready to throw the towel in on. I just haven't felt that what I was doing was appreciated. Case point, I requested addresses for our ANNA local chapter from nationals at the beginning of the summer, and twice more since. No response. The other day, I get this e-mail saying they have set up a "task force" to figure out a way they can assist chapters that are struggling. They would like me to take a survey to tell them what I think. ARGH! Are you kidding me? So I thought about how I would respond to this for awhile. Then I got mad and said some things in an e-mail that weren't very nice. I mean, it wasn't terrible or anything. It was professional. But it could have been said nicer. BAD KARMA!

At work, we are striving to get Magnet Status. Some of the higher-ups have asked to interview me to discuss my involvement with professional nursing organizations and how it has affected my practice. Also, they wanted to know about my volunteer work in the community as a nurse and if it made a difference. It got me thinking about what it is that I do on my own time and what it is that I like about it. This was a good thing, since I seem to be functioning in a burned-out zone. About time for a reset, I would say!

I have been working in nephrology related areas for the past five years. In that time, I have been involved in American Nephrology Nurses' Association for the past 3. Last year, I was the chapter president-elect for the Badger chapter. I traveled to our national convention in Dallas. I am now the current President for our local chapter. We offer numerous topics for furthering education. This summer, our chapter planned a certification review course and hosted a certification exam. I sat successfully for this exam, and can say with pride that I am a Certified Nephrology Nurse. The national chapter encouraged me to become certified, by role-modeling and mentoring. Certification furthers understanding of the standards of your practice, which is the root to being able to provide the best possible care to your patients. Programs that discuss the importance of access is on example of how they have impacted my practice. I now discuss the benefits of utilization of a fistula for access with my patients and encourage them to protect the access they have. The best dialysis equals the highest quality of life for patients who have chronic kidney disease. ANNA encourages collaboration with other groups to further education and improve the quality of offerings. This September, our local chapter collaborated with the National Kidney Foundation to host an all day event for medical professionals. The topics presented were all aimed at improving the lives of kidney patients. We provided programs for dieticians, social workers, nurses and dialysis technicians. The program included 13.5 continuing educational credits. October 7th, we will be hosting an audioconference entitled "Getting Your Patient Ready for Transplant" here at UW. Being involved with others who share my specialty allows me to discuss things that impact the health and lives of my patients. It is a great way to gain new ideas and to feel that I can make a difference to my patients, who often struggle to cope with an illness that can be very difficult to accept. This keeps me excited to go to work, gives me the chance to share what I learn.

This past spring, another nurse form UW got me involved in Touched Twice. She is really "out there in the trenches" when it comes to giving of yourself in the community, and really a gem of a human being. Touched Twice is an organization that sponsors free clinics throughout the country. We participated in a clinic in Sun Prairie. All services are volunteer based. I was responsible for contacting chiropractors to assist with the clinic. There were four that volunteered to see patients. At the clinic, I provided vitals, weights and blood glucose monitoring. I provided health screenings prior to patients seeing a physician. I didn't realize we would have so many people coming who otherwise would not have access to primary care. Information was given to assist them in getting prescriptions free or reduced. I was saddened to see so many children who did not have basic access to care. I remember a patient who came in with severe depression, who had suffered for months untreated because of lack of insurance. Many like these were referred to professionals offering pro bono services. It makes me tear up just to remember that day. But so many people were helped and I really felt that we were needed, both our skills as professionals and as fellow human beings that could simply offer an ear to those hurting emotionally. I left that day, knowing that I had gotten so much more out of this experience than the people who sought my services.

As a nurse, I have the greatest job in the world. I just sometimes forget it, getting caught up in the negativity that is so abundant in our work culture. But I really cannot think of another job where what I do makes such a difference to those in need. These are real people, many with very serious health problems. Invest yourself in them and you get so much more back. A kind word, a bit of reassurance. Responding quickly to requests, thinking ahead to what they might need. Providing expert care. Explaining the why's they don't get when the doctor tells them what to do. I am honored to be part of their lives, if only for a snapshot in time. They probably will not remember me personally. But you better believe they will remember how I treat them. I am a nurse.

I am a Nurse!

2008-09-25T21:40:00.001-07:00

This past spring, another nurse form UW got me involved in Touched Twice. She is really "out there in the trenches" when it comes to giving of yourself in the community, and really a gem of a human being. Touched Twice is an organization that sponsors free clinics throughout the country. We participated in a clinic in Sun Prairie. All services are volunteer based. I was responsible for contacting chiropractors to assist with the clinic. There were four that volunteered to see patients. At the clinic, I provided vitals, weights and blood glucose monitoring. I provided health screenings prior to patients seeing a physician. I didn't realize we would have so many people coming who otherwise would not have access to primary care. Information was given to assist them in getting prescriptions free or reduced. I was saddened to see so many children who did not have basic access to care. I remember a patient who came in with severe depression, who had suffered for months untreated because of lack of insurance. Many like these were referred to professionals offering pro bono services. It makes me tear up just to remember that day. But so many people were helped and I really felt that we were needed, both our skills as professionals and as fellow human beings that could simply offer an ear to those hurting emotionally. I left that day, knowing that I had gotten so much more out of this experience than the people who sought my services.

As a nurse, I have the greatest job in the world. I just sometimes forget it, getting caught up in the negativity that is so abundant in our work culture. But I really cannot think of another job where what I do makes such a difference to those in need. These are real people, many with very serious health problems. Invest yourself in them and you get so much more back. A kind word, a bit of reassurance. Responding quickly to requests, thinking ahead to what they might need. Providing expert care. Explaining the why's they don't get when the doctor tells them what to do. I am honored to be part of their lives, if only for a snapshot in time. They probably will not remember me personally. But you better believe they will remember how I treat them. I am a nurse.

I am a Nurse!

2008-09-25T21:05:00.000-07:00

The Accountability Factor

2008-09-21T04:39:00.000-07:00

My swimming sucks. Plain and simple. I am beginning to think about what it is going to mean when I don't make the swim cut-off time. This isn't something that I'm just not being realistic about. IM WI was in 2:04. No, the waves didn't slow me down. Think barge. Last time I was pulling my daughter in the raft, with no change in speed. I seem to be missing a gear.

Fitness is NOT a factor. Got the bike and run down pretty much without concerns. Can ride century rides without soreness, now doing bricks of 75/5. Those are going very well. I have doubled and tripled the bricks up also. No real issues there.

This time around, I am just avoiding swimming. It doesn't go well, the water is cold. The excuse list could be miles long. The only legit reason I have is that it aggravates my back. Too much extension in a swim position. It needs to be practiced, it will get better.

Swimming has not been made a habit. The biking and running gets done, because I love to do it. More importantly, it is a habit. There is a tendency to love the things you do. Once you get in there and make yourself do it, it gets easier. Ever notice how the longer you miss workouts, the easier that gets?

I am going to try to get up early to swim at Princeton on days that I am on call, as a way to overcome my excuse of swimming with a beeper. On the other days, I can swim after work there. At least once a week, I should get into the race for sighting practice. This will also force me to overcome anxiety about being in open water. This sort of panic can only be really understood if you have or have had this, and seems to be a REAL race limiter for me.

Controlling Armadillos

2008-09-20T05:07:00.000-07:00

Brodhead beat East Troy last night by at least 40/7. Don't know the final because we left with 3 minutes on the clock and we saw Brodhead intercept one as we drove away. On the way home, we got on the topic of running things over with the car. We started to speculate about what hitting an armadillo would be like. Do they just crumple up and die, or is it like punting a football? We have been northerners all our lives, and this simply isn't an issue we encounter. They look kind of cute in an armored-car sort of way, and seem harmless enough at the zoo.

This discussion lead in to what do they eat. I thought bugs, but wasn't sure. When we got home, we did a little search on the beast. What disgusting rats with shells they turned out to be! They are unbelievably diseased! 53% have leprosy. Hell, if you saw one without a leg you wouldn't be thinking that was the cause. Yuck! Salmonella, tape worms, rabies. The list goes on and on. Armadillos are a common wildlife pest species in the south. The biggest problem that they cause is that they dig up people's yards, besides being nasty and stank. Here are a few of their favorite hobbies:

Making large burrows under the house
Tearing up & destroying landscaping
Making holes all over the yard
Tunneling leading to cracks in foundation
Destroying pipes under home

For the above reasons, it's often a good idea to have nuisance armadillos trapped and removed from your property. This is the only effective control means. I guess that leaves the Toyota out of it. They pretty much eat anything, but mostly insects.

There are buisnesses all over that remove them. The Trapper Guy and Orlando Armadillo Control are just a couple. I can't believe what a gross job this would be. Imagine even touching a cage that had an animal with leprosy in it. I would be inclined to just shoot the damn thing myself, but imagine baby armadillos under your porch rotting for three years...and having to remove the carcass yourself. Mike was thinking high-powered riffle, to make sure you penetrate the hide. Awsome, blown tapeworms and leprosy-infected tissue all over the yard. Yuck, yuck, yuck. I'm staying in Wisconsin. Skunks, coons and possums are piggy enough.

Patient Quality of Care Success!

2008-09-16T16:00:00.000-07:00

National Kidney Foundation and American Nephrology Nurses had our annual symposium today. We had 145 people there, and about 75 were nurses and dialysis technicians. The whole thing was incredible but tiring.

My favorite speaker was Bob Hanisch. He has a degree in exercise phys and is a certified diabetes educator. He has competed in Ironman triathlons also and runs Peak Performance out of Brookfield. I want his job. We talked about training plans and implementing them for patients, along with some specifics for renal and diabetes. Funny, last year we had Shad Ireland. He was the first dialysis patient to ever finish the Ironman. Great speaker, but I bought his book and that wasn't so much. Yes, I can make my job about the Ironman...We are already looking to next year to figure out what to have our talks on.

On the lighter side of things, this weekend was my cousin's wedding and then off to my brother in law's for the annual Packer/Lions Party. It was an awful lot of fun and we came back late exhausted. Too much drinking not enough sleep. Packers rule!

My sister in law was telling me an icky story about my brother. Seems he grows attached to his pillows and has a tendency to drool on them. He will not allow her to throw them away because none of the others meet his stringent standards. She calls his favorite "the pillow of stink".

Mike has the same issue to some extent. Not a drooler, but he sweats. Also won't let me replace the sacred pillow. The girls and I have tried twice in the past 12 months to buy a replacement, but he tries them and no-go. Back to the pillow that is literally falling out of the case.

Before we left for the wedding, Chey took out the pillow and was going to put it in the car. It didn't make it. She set it on the table and off we went. Sunday night, we came home to find the dogs had pulled it appart and had pieces all over the living room. Mike was having a fit. I could hear him outside, and I had to stay there until I could stop laughing. I did tell him that I was sorry about his pillow, but he said I must have dipped it in bacon grease. NO! The damn thing smelled dead. I just know they rolled around on it before they pulled it appart. My sister in law has a corgie dog. Just a little suggestion could go a long way!

IM WI 08

2008-09-10T14:41:00.000-07:00

Busy weekend, but awfully fun too. Mike and I volunteered in registration on Friday. Only 800 registered of the 2200 on Thursday, so we were hopping! All volunteers get a tee-shirt. This year, they have a cow on the front that strangely looks more like a goat. It is original, for sure.

Saturday, Angie, Chey and I went up to deliver our course signs. Angie hadn't been back since 06', but the IM village is still the IM village. Lots of ways to spend your pennies.

Sunday morning, we made church. Then I got a run in. Then off to the IM! Kids were checking the IM splits as often as I was, and they did not want to go hang on the course. So, they stayed home monitoring the computer. I met Mike after his shift, and we took mountain bikes down on the run course by picnic point. There we saw mostly everyone, except CJ. Got some pics too. Supper was pizza and then back on the course. One of our friends who trains at Princeton came through there, along with CJ. Course was complete, with Batman cheering on the participants.
We talked with people along the course. I wore my IM finisher shirt, looks good, but basically I was totally freaking out about IM AZ....Mike was trying to keep my head on, but easy for him-he isn't doing AZ!

Next morning, I was in line for volunteer sign up at 7 am. Lots of nervous, excited banter in the line. Really, that part is suprisingly fun! Some very nice guy handed me his laptop to make a hotel reservation. Sweet!

Triple Brick

2008-09-03T15:00:00.000-07:00

Well, for those of you who just cannot get enough fun out of a brick workout...Today I did a triple brick workout that I had read about in one of our numerous tri books. One hour on the bike, 1/2 hr on the treadmill, and repeat that twice more. Mike was along for the first hour of biking and then he went home. It was windy and cold, so the second lap went to my house for a sweatshirt.

The workout went quite well. Surprisingly enough, it was much simpler to do this workout as a brick than all of the distance on the bike and then all of the distance on the run.

The recovery was good too. Got home and made sure the 100 grams of carbs with 25 grams protein was in within 20 minutes. Got a quick nap before Chey got home. Got up and ate like a pig. My appetite has been unreal.

I had a great ride out to Lake Ripley on Sunday. It was beautiful out. The SWAT team hung out and we did some grilling. Some of us swam. Kitty kept us all up to date on the members doing IM Kentucky. I took off for home about 3 or 3:30. It had gotten really hot, and I nearly couldn't make it home. When I finally got home, I laid on the bed with a bag of ice on my head. Really thought lunch was coming back to haunt me. Unfortunately, Tawnya was unable to complete her IM in Kentucky. I know I would not have finished in those conditions either. I was fortunate enough to finish my IM the first time around. It was on one hand, good/solid training, and on the other a shit load of luck that it wasn't HOT. What a heart breaker to travel there and be at the mercy of the weather after all you put in to your training.

Still have to figure out the agenda for tomorrow. Need to swim, but the pool is closed. Probably drive to Princeton. Need another intense one-will be busy with IM WI this weekend.

Shocker!

2008-08-29T18:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, layed the old bike down. Was raining, and Mike and I were rushing to make the ERC ride on time. Slipped on the paint and damn I knew better. So now I am minus a bunch of skin, pair of new bike shorts and now with a banged up knee just after the foot finally started feeling better. Jeff accused me of being sullen. Well, the impact is huge. I NEED to get running again, and knee swelling is not a great sign that the running program is getting back on track. If I were a recreational rider, I could set it aside as no big deal. Take a week off and get back out there. But there are about 55 training days left, then taper time. I really slept like crap. Look like I have a huge saddle bag on my thigh. So that has me not so happy.

The shocker came via the mail today. I passed the Nephrology Nursing Certification. Phoey, never knew you could get so many wrong and pass. They explain after the fact that they design it to get more than half wrong and still pass. The median score is 100, and mine (by some miracle) was 120. I was so sure I bombed that test. Never took a test I felt so poorly about. Just didn't know I was supposed to get so many wrong. So after reading the letter several times and then making my daughter read it to me, I'm pretty sure the opps we screwed up letter is on it's way!

So now I'm a CNN and actively looking for work other than what I am doing. It is one of those things where you are looking for changes so your license is better protected but that never seems to happen. I had an experience that made me examine this idea, and now I am looking to protect myself. I am irritated with management that nothing changes. I am not a slacker. 5 years of employment, have gotten the BSN, PALS, ACLS and now the CNN. I do a lot of committee work as well, and constantly precept when I work.

The crux here is they are looking for Magnet status. What a washed out, overrated, commercialized label this has become. Hire a consultant and they will show you the way. They want the status but they don't hear the nurses when they are telling them it isn't safe to work 36 hours. Why on-call is something different, I will never understand. I just know I don't want it to be me that kills someone when the hours have gotten to be too much. Our current contract negotiations are suggesting a ten-cent raise to compensate for this. What a joke. Really stears clear of the heart of that issue. Just look at what happened to the nurse at St. Mary's. They are magnet status, yet she was over 12 hrs when she killed that teen. Nice how they sent her packing right away, even before all the details were out about what happened. Exactly what would happen to any one of us in the same shoes. It could happen much easier than any of us would like to think.

Retard Rocket

2008-08-27T05:53:00.000-07:00

About a year ago, I was headed to work through Brooklyn. It was garbage day, so everything was out. Someone was tossing a 80's model Schwinn 10-speed. That, of course went on the bike rack. Plenty of rust and nothing left with shine. Nice bulge in the back tire. I thought it was great. I used it for a while to make the .75 mile hike from parking to work. For some reason, the tires still held air. It stayed parked outside the hospital and nobody thought about stealing it. If it rained, the seat stayed wet for a week, and it wasn't nearly as pretty as the other bikes there.

For some reason, I thought it should come home. Mike declared it the "Retard Rocket", and placed two bottle rockets under the seat. He thought it was hilarious that I rode that to and from work. Bike snob.

Shit, it was a nicer bike than I ever owned when I was a kid. I saved for my first bike, it was a Huffy 10-speed from Shopko that went everywhere. It was freedom before a driver's license. It went inside and I always used the kick stand. Loved that bike. That someone owned a Schwinn road bike the same vintage and trashed it? Unthinkable, really. It should not ever been left outside.

Now it has become a project. Everything about it is a project. Even getting the seat post out to replace the seat was a project. If it hadn't been aluminum, it would have been hopelessly fused to the frame. It was worth it, the Itale' Selle actually looks pretty good on this ride.

The most current issue is the rear end. When the bike was ridden with a bulging tire, you figure the resistance is from that. When the tire is off and you realize the rim is bent, it becomes something else. Just for the hell of it, I put the new tire on anyways and took it out for a spin. Now, with the tire on is when I bothered to realize that the tire never could spin freely.

Tire off, axel out and looking at the cassette. The cassette isn't even worn save for the rust. Good clean up, should be fine. The bearings should slide right out in this type of set up, but the lube has cogealed up into something more of a glue. They had to be picked out. Now to get the damn cassette off. What I need is a "special tool". Lockring tool and chain whip.

Thing is, I don't really know if I need that. Thinking possible conversion to a single-speed or fixed gear. The drop out has some room for adjustment if you wanted to change up the gears. This is a decision point, as it will change what is done with the rest of the bike. Either would rid the need for shifter cables. A friend of mine recently converted a Nishiki, but it was a bit simpler as it was a newer bike. Either way, got to come up with a rim. Then I can figure out what happens next. I think if I found another bike, same vintage for parts it would make this easier. Then it would just remain as a 10 speed, and I could simply put it back together.

Insanity

2008-08-22T18:01:00.000-07:00

The past two weeks have been crazy. It started with the hosting of a Nephrology Nursing Exam Review. Then we had the Humane Society Bake Sale. Then I hosted the Nephrology Nursing Exam in Madison. This week, I filled 13 applications for CEU's for a fall symposium. It wasn't supposed to be solo, but my helper moved to Arizona 3 weeks ago. Tuesday I got sick, knocked me on my a** . Didn't really do anything for training. Attempted to run Tuesday, but after 2.5 miles ( and 2 stops in the woods) I thought better to give it up. The crappiest part was it was the last day for our SWAT workouts, and I have really enjoyed doing that this year. Today, 5.5 miles in 1 hr, with a easy bike ride of 8 miles. It was ok. But the pressure is on big time to get moving again. IM AZ is CLOSE.

Out to MR again today. Picked up my ride, put the new QR seat on it. Bought a new seat for the new ride. I always HATED that old seat, but am finding I put up with a lot more than I ever should have. The last helmet I had went 10,000 miles before I bought a new one and the thing practically gave me bone spurs on my forehead. Some wonderful person knocked it on the ground at SORT and broke the front of it! Wish I knew who that was so I could thank them properly. I now have a cheaper, but much more comfortable helmet.

We are ordering duffel bags for our Sugar River Bike Tour. Oh Mylanta......I tried to reach the one responsible before they did it, but they were not available. I think it will be better than t-shirts, but most cyclists want a bag they can wear if they are riding their bike. Or a shirt that wicks-but cover it in writing defeats the purpose. SORT shirts are like pinning cardboard to your chest to run in, the logo is so huge. Now a jersey would rock....but is expensive. The whole idea is to raise money. We made a ton last year and several thousand went to Children's Hospital. Couple thousand went to help a local family when their son got cancer.

Tomorrow, I will try to get in a hill workout before we head to Six Flags. I still need to get food packed for the trip..They are having a sale right now. Personal pan pizza and a drink for 13.00. Such a deal. The kids are bringing friends; I'm hoping to get out of a lot of riding.

Chey's Bake Sale and Other Stuff

2008-08-15T18:32:00.000-07:00

She pulled it off! Made 242.36....Sunday is a trip to Monroe to see Zoey Jane and Phoebe. She will give them the check then with her friends.

Tomorrow is my Nephrology Nursing Exam. This comes at a time when I am seriously considering heading back to ICU. Mike has a good racket at the VA. The turnover is incredibly low. Looking at the Surgical ICU. He is in the Cardiac ICU.

Every day I work, I am training someone. And I end up with a lot of call because of the turnover. Call is a serious issue, really. Some days you work your 12 hour shift and then you are out on call all night. Then scheduled to work the next day. Your choice-burn your personal time and lose your overtime OR stay the next day and work. I know I am not at my best then and it is so scary. It gives me lots of biking time, but it is eating my vacation seriously. Last time, I was out on call all night with someone's child. I would not have been my first choice if it was my kid whose life was on the line. Hence the turnover.

We have finally implemented Epic at our hospital. There is a lot of moaning and groaning. It isn't that bad to navigate really. With time, maybe it won't take an eternity to do routine documentation. My sis is in the ER at the same place. They have been on Epic for months and it is smoothing out nicely.

So now that my Nephrology Certification Review, and the Exam I set up are nearly complete..
Need to get cranking on CEU apps for the NKF conference this fall and the Badger Chapter Christmas party stuff. UGH! Glutton for punishment here. I should be looking for a clinic job I can bike to. Alas, it is the curse of someone who always has to be doing something.

Green County Humane Shelter Bake Sale

2008-08-13T17:51:00.000-07:00

About a month ago; my daughter Cheyenne decided she wanted to help raise funds for the shelter. She has been supporting a dog and a cat for three months now. I should add that Chey is not even 10 yrs old yet.

Cheyenne has always wanted to become a veterinarian. It is always all about her pets. When she is away from home, she calls me and wants to talk to her cat on the phone. In May, she was surfing the shelter's site and decided to sponsor a cat. When she got to the shelter, she took on a dog also.

Her dog is Zoey Jane, a beautiful pit bull that I would love to take home. If you know the breed, they should not be left alone with other dogs. We have an adopted Whippet and a Doberman Pincher. But she is quite an amusing dog that goes out of her way to entertain. Once a month, we go to the shelter and walk her down to Culvers for a burger. Last time, she crawled on the ground like a lizard and rolled around in the grass. The more Cheyenne and her friends laughed, the more Zoey carried on. She is only 18 months old

Her cat she has never seen due to illness. She is always in quarantine. Not seeing the cat doesn't seem to upset Cheyenne. She goes in to the cat area and has to play with all of the cats. It drives me up the wall, but I keep those thoughts to myself. It is her compassionate nature to get in there and want to do all she can for them.

What I am driving at here, is that I have been very impressed by how she has handled the arranging of this sale. She contacted the bank for a space to sell. She contacted the paper and interviewed so she had some advertisement for free (at the bank's suggestion to her). She has been calling her friends to bake things and has a list of people for me to pick up on Friday. Damn, that sure wasn't me when I was nine.

Iron Demands

2008-08-11T18:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was another awesome bike ride brought by my iron addiction. My obsession with biking is at an all time high. The new bike and great weather. I am so there. You scoff at the idea of addiction? You laugh at that? Look it up. I am sure it is in the DSM manual by now. All of the symptoms are there. Persisting despite guilt. Persisting by family suggesting you stop (my mother), telling you you’re obsessed. Coworkers telling you that you don’t work enough Eating in excess, even though you know you should stop. Skin changes to a very dark hue. Weight loss and especially fat wasting.
Looking the best you have ever looked, yet unable to stay awake for sex. Going without sleep to obtain your next fix on the run.
.
I was reading IronPol today; and totally relating to the demands of Ironman training. After spending a day assisting with the end of VBS, he gets to go run 10 miles in the dark. Alone. The problem is the world doesn’t stop for the crazy people with iron obsession. It is so irritating how the rest of my house cannot understand that when I get home from a ride, I NEED to download the Garmin. I don’t give a crap if I need to make a septic system apt at that moment….Then the recovery food, and then I can think about the other stuff. BTW, it takes longer if you are waiting for me to mow the lawn. Don’t know who ever thought up that idea in the first place.

It isn’t like we can’t bear our own company. Some of us are pretty solitary people. It just can get really lonely sometimes. It doesn’t help that I am totally the most boring person ever. I have learned this through hours of my own company. At least I’m not inflicting myself on as many people as I would be if I engaged in a team sport. A fellow SWAT member asked me if I like biking alone. Don’t know what he was getting at…But to some extent, my family appreciates that I give them a break and go bike.

Stress!!!

2008-08-09T21:14:00.001-07:00

What a long day! The conference we have been planning finally set up and done with. Yah! Then a drive (7hrs worth) to pick up my kids from relatives. Now finally home. Tomorrow is another century ride. Tues and Fri were both 107 miles, each included one loop of the IM WI course. Heading into another busy week. More running this week than anything else, due to time constraints. Nephrology Certification Exam on Saturday....ugh.

Superior Ride

2008-08-04T14:09:00.000-07:00

The plan was to take off from Chatham, MI and do a loop around Harvey, Marquette, Christmas, Autrain, Munising, Forest Lake and finally back to Chatham. The plan was to include the breathtaking scenery around Lake Superior, maybe stop for a snack in Christmas and stop in Munising to see my sister.

Started out great. The weather was sunny, in the 80's. By the time I was 30 miles out, the rain started. A good soaking rain. The temp quickly dropped to the 60's and the wind off the lake was a chill. By the time I really cooled off, it was 40 miles out and the entire loop 86 miles. What do you do? Keep going! The rain eventually died off, but a rock sliced the New tire(I purchased for SORT) and gave me a flat. This was just west of Autrain. I pulled off to change the tire and had to pee so bad I was gonna DIE! One of those great places where if you do, you are totally busted. The tire had to be patched from the inside and then a new tube put in. I figure that was about a 10 min stop. Lost my new valve stem adapter and the new screw/stem cap goofing off in the dirt changing this. Then there was really not much time to make a pit stop, so I did a bit of a climb to a scenic outlook to the bathrooms. Anyone familiar with the area knows the last scenic point as you come in to Munising on M-28. UGH!!! There was a time when that would certainly been walk material. Now is a seated climb; go hard work! After that, I was starving. In to Subway I went, finding 15 people in line. That place is always packed, and makes me wish I owned it. The sun was setting, so I left without eating and headed for Hardees (which was DEAD). From there on in it was uneventful back to Chatham.

Say Ya to the U.P. EH?

2008-07-28T09:03:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we leave for Michigan. A week of county fair showing and attempting to get my training done as well. Should be a challenge. The beauty of it is that there are many new places to explore on the bike. Roads there tend to have a shoulder. Mapmyride.com has some nice routes on roads I am familiar with. Presque Isle is a must just for the view. The family will take in some swimming at Deer Lake. No, not Superior...it is just to cold. Some of you can relate, having just been in Lake Michigan. For those in the know, Superior is a lot colder because of the depth. It doesn't give up her dead either, and one sure way to not be one of em' is to not go in in the first place.

Maybe I will get some running in too. Will just have to see how the week works out. With any luck, we will be back in town for the Tri Out on Tuesday.

Ironman and Diet

2008-07-27T12:19:00.000-07:00

So, here is the problem. I eat anything and everything I want whenever it occurs to me to eat it.
Bike progress is slow. Run progress tapering. Swim progress???? What is that?

CJ said something yesterday that turned on that old bulb waaayyy back in the attic of my brain. Not so much what was said, but what is behind it. We all want to do our best. She simply said "The muscles don't fire right with the wrong kind of fuel." Yeah, and they fire much better when there is less to haul around, too.

It isn't that I have a lot of weight to lose, but there are easily 5-8 lbs around the waist that should go. There are several very nice bike jerseys I do not wear because of the sausage effect. Someone at my health club asked me if I was going to lose all the weight I put on for Green Bay (MORTIFIED!).

My diet is terrible. I pound the gatorade every workout. So each workout is easily 6-1200 calories of the stuff. Not good nutrition there. Most days I forget the vitamin supplements, although I know I eat trash. I found these habits when needing to make weight for the Athena division in Green Bay. My weight was 143-145. Took some pizza to get where I needed to be.

Anyone accustomed to training knows if you cheat calories, the workouts suffer. So you have to be careful when dropping weight, like cutting calories in very small amounts. But I ate a whole frozen pizza myself just last night, which made my older daughter announce that I am a pig. Overweight, and I won't try to tell you I don't eat much to be this way. All these rumblings of discontent, and still no action on my part....

Wake up. I want that Ironman body back. Don't care what the weight in the end is. I've been standing in my own way long enough. Going for a look here. Accountability is a problem, so I'm posting what I eat to make it public. Now, we just need a little more action around here.

Ironman Loop

2008-07-26T15:18:00.000-07:00

Today was IM WI bike loop x 2. Did IM 06, and hadn't been back to bike it. I don't know why, I just haven't. I've been around it so many times, it was like visiting an old friend. Yesterday was a slam, with 2 hrs of intense hill work. That meant that I couldn't give the ride today the justice it deserved. But, other members from SWAT were out there too and still fighting the fatigue from Spirit of Racine.

For three years, I have fought with a bike helmet that rubbed the crap out of my forhead. There were 2 big red marks always on my head. Last week was magic, the helmet did not make it through the HIM. Someone must have knocked it down, because the front piece is split!!! YAH! Could kiss whoever did that. After the ride today, I cruised into Erik's and ordered a Specialized 360. Seems to fit right, the one I tried. We shall see. For now I ride with a cracked shell.

The best part was finding 2 new pairs of bike shorts on sale. Keep finding holes in the ones I'm wearing. Will have to try these out. One pr tomorrow for sure. Now thinking about the bike shoe issue again...

They have a very SWEET specialized bike there. It is the S-Works Transition, and it is beautiful. I like the 53 ring and the 10 on the cassette. But the geometry is sweet also. Unnecessary really. I need to ride more. More expense, more work. Less work, more ride. No, Angie I won't forget those 80 hr weeks as a self-employed fool. Now is play time.

John Muir

2008-07-23T17:08:00.000-07:00

The family headed to John Muir for the day. It was a great time. We started out with a picnic lunch and then headed out on the trails. Chey was leading the group which quickly turned out to be a mistake. It could take that kid a week to realize her breaks do not work, because she never uses them. She went flying down a stretch of tree roots and did a bounce off her seat onto her crossbar and slammed her crotch good. She at least was laughing as Nubs asked if she needed the seat pulled out of her rear. From here on in, it was decided that Nubs would lead because she is a bit more cautious. That lasted for two miles and then she wanted to take off. Mike and her left Chey and I half way through our loop. Wasn't far down the line and Chey started to crap out on me. Luckily I didn't have to nag. The mosquito's were quite persuasive. When we turned back, Chey took off down a stretch of tree roots again and hit a corner kind of fast. She slipped off the edge and bowled over two small trees. She was lying on her side with the bike between her legs and couldn't get up, because she was off balance. I pulled her up and we were quickly back on track. She gets goofy when she is tired. Just starts falling off her bike, but she keeps her sense of humor. Three times it seemed she just jumped off her bike. I would just ask her what she was doing and she would laugh. She was all red-faced when we got back, so a second loop was out of the question. The bikes got packed up and we went to Whitewater Lake to hang out. All in all, it was a really nice day.

Post Racine

2008-07-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

I'm a shit. Totally not sore from the HIM on Sunday. The best time previous was a 7:10; I cut that time to 5:52......Thought no way to the Pigman, would be to sore. Now, I think it wouldn't be a problem. That is ok, I prefer to continue the IM AZ training and not have recovery from misc. events to deal with.

I need a week of lay off. Tomorrow, we will do some mountain biking with the kids out at John Muir. Nothing too strenuous. Sunday, we will kick it back up.

My heart rate was very low throughtout Spirit of Racine. Hypothermia was a factor, but it didn't pick up a whole bunch.

My rims are fine, although they took a hell of a hit. Kyserium rims are the way to go. Besides, figure anyone who can't at least go 20mi./hr looks pretty crazy with $3,000 zip rims. Really, won't improve your time more than my losing 20 lbs would help mine.

Spirit of Racine '08

2008-07-21T06:07:00.000-07:00

This weekend was awesome. No other word for it. We triathletes are an interesting group in any setting. I was worried about joining a tri club for fear that it would somehow interfere with training, and failed to see what an asset they can be. For the most part, everyone is warm and welcoming.

Saturday night, the SWAT met at Infusino's for some good food and camaraderie. Service was slow, because of the overwhelming influx of the SORT groups. That was actually not bad because there was plenty of time to get to know some people better.

Our hotel reservation fell through, but a call to Expedia moved us to Brookfield for the night. It was an hour away, but worth the drive. Never book a hotel you don't know if it isn't a chain. Lesson one for this tri.

We were up at 4:30 in the morning and headed to Racine. Mike stopped at McDonald's and I ate a very nutritious breakfast, as I'm sure you can imagine. Fried taters are magic...those fats act like carbohydrates at 9 calories per gram. So when you see me with fries in my bento box, don't laugh, look up the research.

Swim was delayed like 4 times; until 8 am. Usually, this would be extra time that I would be freaking out worrying about details. Instead, Mike walked me out to the start and members of the SWAT team kept each other entertained with some crazy banter. One of them said to make sure we donate her organs, but somebody else pointed out that the bottom half would be useless because of the extensive bike seat damage.

Swim buoys were moved in towards the shore to manage the cold water. The temp at the start was 58 degrees, and it was COLD. Within the first 200 yards, anyone with a brain got out of the water and stayed out. The rest of us pressed on, determined to remove ourselves from the gene pool. Really is no swimming in this for quite a while, because every time I stuck my face in the water I would suck in my breath. Then you chill off, and catch a rhythm. Technique is a bit problematic when the limbs go numb. Somehow, it seemed people made decent time. There was a lot of coughing/sputtering and standing in the water, but many of us found out we were quite good at dog paddling when motivated. The cap and goggles came off at the beach. Mike was standing there and I announced that the swim was the "stupidest piece of self-torture I had ever engaged in". Some guy there thought that was pretty funny. I was so serious.

As usual, I dawdle in the transitions. This is always a problem. I chatted with Mike in t-1, and my heart rate there was 44. Got hypothermia? Again, chatted with Mike and girls in t-2. The official times aren't posted yet, but I bet I spent at least 10 min. total there. Slacker...

Bike was awesome. Two miles out, saw Allan on his mountain bike and Anne screaming along on foot out in front of him. She can really move, makes me jealous. It took me five miles to get my heart rate moving from hypothermia. Wind was not really a factor at all. Racine is really not a hilly area, and what hills there are are spread out. The condition of the roads isn't very great and I will need to check over the bike thoroughly to make sure it came through OK. In the last 10 miles, I managed to slam the front tire into one of those raised sections of concrete on a bridge. Really, really lucky to be able to continue with out a flat or a ruined rim. Jwim was the only person I remember seeing on the bike that I knew, looking quite strong after that bad ass swim. Good news for her, I really cannot imagine a tougher swim occurring in Lake Monona. I passed a lot of really sweet rides.....can't buy the motor!

The run went very well. I started seeing a lot of the SWAT team. I caught up to Brian (looking as though the run were easy), Alison on the way back and Darin while heading out for loop 2 (that only took an eternity-and as I told Mike IM training makes you slow). If Darin were training for the 1/2 instead, I'm sure I would never see him. Swim time is hard hard hard to make up for. Bigmike600 and Jwim out on my way back from the first loop. The plan was to keep moving only walking aid stations until such point that I felt a walk break was needed. This was nearly mile 12, and my overall run time was just slightly over my usual half-marathon time based off of the full marathon time. This was in the new Newton shoes, yeah the expensive ones. About 10 minute miles for the overall time....can't buy the motor!

About 40 yards from the finish a chick surged forward and passed me. Then I saw her marking and realized she thought we were in the same division. No way was she Athena, one of those stick legged chicks. I kicked it in and overtook her about 10 yards to the finish with a sprint she couldn't touch. HA, teach her to mess with a big chick.

Lake Michigan

2008-07-18T19:25:00.001-07:00

Yikes, the lake has really been cold lately. I am beginning to freak out about the temp. I do not own a neoprene cap, but own booties. Calling all over Madison, I was unable to locate anyone with any left. Middleton Cycle says they got about 15 calls today requesting just that sort of cap. Currently, there is a silicone cap that I can put under the latex cap required for participants. Lame, I know.

There is a brand new Grand Prix 4000 waiting for the front rim of the "precious". For those of you who have ridden slicks before, you know they are not a good idea for wet roads. Cheap side says they are fine, the rest of me says "not after a swim behind an ice-breaker!" So, a quick trip to Budget Cycle, and I will change it out in the morning.

My husband, Mike says not to worry about the temp. He reminded me of April 2005, wandering around Lake Decatur with no booties or hat. We were navigating around, him in the canoe. The water was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit at that time. The lake was new to us, and we were searching for consistency in depth. I don't remember that being a problem for me then. Hopefully, he is right. He is always so reassuring to me. Keeps my head on right.

Spirit of Racine

2008-07-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, July 20th creeping up fast...I've been freaking out about all of it. Usually when stress increases, I start dreaming. This time I was at the swim at Lake Michigan. It started out as incredibly difficult just walking into the water, as it kept pulling me down and I couldn't stay upright. When the water was deep enough to begin swimming, I suddenly realized that I had forgotten to pull the top half of my suit up. Somehow, I ended up on my bike but off course and nobody seemed to know how to get back to town. Fortunately the alarm went off, so I don't know how the run went. I can only say that I know I didn't finish because the dream went on all 8 hrs of my night and I hadn't begun running yet!

The only cure for this is a real plan. Start packing the car today and take the bike for a short spin to be sure EVERYTHING is in working order. Get the food and drinks set, lay out the outfits, etc. Marathoning is so much simpler! All these transitions to think about, what to eat when....

Cheyenne typed me out a pack list, which is remarkably close to all inclusive. She rocks! As my up and comming training partner, she really is getting the knack of this.