Even the PT needs a PT

Who needs rotation when they swim bike and run? I do! And what happens when i dont rotate? I overuse things! Yup here comes a PT post:)

Below is an OLD picture of me, as a high school senior, serving a tennis ball.

Weight into the back leg, then spinal rotation Right, then forward motion ( Weight shift) into the front ( Left) leg and spinal rotation left ...along with a whole lot of funky shoulder ( gleno humeral) things that go on. That is the best and simplest way to show you the service motion and the fact that serving or any sort of proper ( notice i said proper, not good) tennis stroke...backhand, forehand and even volleys all depend on rotating your thorax/rib cage over a moving pelvis ( ie your lower body/legs)

Alas, this is somewhat easy to do when you have had the motor program and hand eye coordination hardwired since the age of 8.

Now fast forward to some random running ( court drills, time miles) that was short and fully anaerobic, and now fast forward even further to today. OR more specifically 2 years ago when i started training longer and harder and let go of the rotation that innately comes from moving to and setting up to smash a tennis ball. Or in some cases, just make contact:)

Believe it or not your thorax (ribs) must rotate over your pelvis when you run. And most importantly your pelvis must rotate over your femurs, hips as you run. The picture above shows this ever so slightly, but you can see as I weightshift Right my Left shoulder rotates forward just a bit and my Right adductor works to keep my pelvis and hips from falling out to the side ( Right) it truly is too hard to try to show this in a stagnant picture and even a video is hard unless you have slow motion. My point in even trying to show this is that I DO NOT ROTATE WELL to my left ! I have struggled in the last 2 years as my body wants my pelvis and my thorax ( think rib cage) to sit to the right. Likely due to dominance and a sport that wired me heavily to the right but when i get OFF...its like the car is sitting sideways on the chassis!

Here are some terms that may ( not ) interest you:

Sagittal plane motion would include forward and backward motions, like sit-ups, back extensions or biceps curls. The sagittal plane cuts through the center of the body, so the motion is front to back or back to front, including straight forward running. Squats involve flexion (forward motion) and extension (backwards on the way up), so would fit into the sagittal plane.

Frontal plane motion would include leaning from left to right as in sidebends and lateral raises, or perhaps you might picture jumping jacks for a good image of movement along the frontal plane.

Transverse plane motion is the hardest to picture because the plane is horizontal as it divides the top from the bottom, so it’s hard to get our heads around it being a rotating action. The main thing to remember is rotation. An example of a transverse plane exercise would be floor to overhead diagonals with a medicine ball, and a transverse activity might be swinging a golf club.

Most traditional strengthening, and running and biking are in the sagital and frontal planes.

Unless you are using pulleys or a free motion machine likely you arent working the transverse plane. And granted you can modify some of this and some of TRX in the all 4's can include some transverse plane movement engaging the core/obliques. I am thinking specifically of the side planks with the touch or dip. Also what i call the " helicopter" exercise where you are all fours and you swing, controlled, your legs /hips to the side while maintaining a neutral pushup hand position.

And all 4's means prone, hand on the ground, your hips and legs extended with feet in the straps, so technically you are not on all 4's.

So while some of you may pound yourself silly with traditional weights and strengthening i spend my strengthening hours doing things like this:

It kinda cracks me up, when I think about it. Today after swimming my friend Steve and I Walked up the stairs backwards. Shifting into our L hips, rounding our lower backs ( to engage the abs) and while the ladies tried to get down to their aqua class we looked like freaks who had too much chlorine for breakfast. But it works. And if i hadnt gone to PT School and worked for many years with my own issues and other athletes using a heavily weighted straight plane motion of thought, I may have found this avenue sooner. It's sad in someways, that when i go to Bikram yoga I have to modify poses so that i can END shifted LEFT and have to really use caution doing anything where my pelvis ( think "zipper") points Right. I have to keep that zipper pointed LEFT. Because for me, that zipper LEFT means neutral. Yup. Whacked out body.

TRX....The lastest and greatest...?? I already brought this up above but...

Now if only they could modify that so it had some sort of pulley. So as you did some of the standing exercises you could also work on rotation and weightshift.

TRX is fine, but its alot like pilates. Straight frontal and sagital plane work. Nothing into the transverse plane and no rotation with weightshift. That is a shame, bc it could help me alot more. As it is I am an accident waiting to happen if i do too many R one-legged standing poses.

And I love TRX, I think for most bodies it is great. No motive to rip on it, just food for thought.

***Now, for those of you that are seasoned TRX users it has been brought to my attention that the following exercises will get you some of the transverse plane movement. If you are just starting out or read the inserts you may not see these and i am working on clarifying what they are with those that are TRX veterans. I also highly recommend that before you start your own HEP ( home program) you consult a TRX trainer or take a class so you dont hurt yourself!

Here are some examples of transverse/rotational ex in TRX; X-ing balance lunge 1 arm row 1 leg row 1 leg chest press Kneeling Oblique Roll out Woodchop Twist to arms OVH 1 Arm Power Row or Neo Row or Twisting/Squat/Row TRX Knee Tuck Obliques TRX Scorpion

If you are feeling stuck in an injury or like doing the same old same old stuff at the gym ( and you know what i mean...the squats, the bench, the leg press ) isnt doing it for you then think about seeing a PT that does Postural Restoration. You wont get a hotpack and a massage, actually you wont get any modality at all. You may have to drink the kool-aid for a bit till you are a believer but trust me, you will believe once you can run or swim or walk like you used to.

New Friends and Bous Video's!

Today i slept till 8:30 am. I stayed up last night till midnight. I went for a walk today, with Rich. We walked slow. We went to get coffee, we sat there and didnt leave till 11. We shared a muffin, it was all cake like. Not grainy or good for you at all. Then i came home and had some halloween candy.

This is NOT my normal MO.

I was out last night with these fun ladies:

Kortney ( 2 kids down, one heck of a nice person and a magnified Vo2 max, hmm pregnancy anyone?!) Suzie ( lovely Suzie, who has the cutest dogs and a fabulous smile ..oh and dont mess with her on the bike), Hannah ( the nicest, and best Gear West staffer/manager/friend, dog mom who is hosting the next party in her sauna..who looks very serious here but i think that is bc the host was taking like 5 minutes to take the picture), Your's truly, and Marta( who ended up with a $52 salad after the parking ticket) Blah on that.

We kept it tame, good Greek eats and one bottle of greek wine ( for 5 of us, i would say we kept it tame!) These are my fantastic teammates. I am so lucky to have friends that are also people who love multisport. But best of all is that i think we genuinely like each other even if we werent swimming biking and running too. That is what this sport has come to mean to me. Friends, people that have a life outside of the sport, and despite our odd quirky love to tear ourselves up, I have gotten to know these women more off the race course/ training course than on. Pretty cool.

It took me a while to remember that I had these: Our group pic..I am in the middle

straight down from the E in "Best"...

As for the video they are not in order, but it goes T2, Run finish, then some swim video.

I may or may not have gotten cabin video in there too. oops. My biggest fan, Rich, took these video's and as you will hear, has a very loud voice!

I have another week of no structure coming up. That is just fine as i am taking my time getting back into the swing, searching for a pool that isnt 83 roasting degrees, biking outside on my road bike while its still above 40 and easing back into runs as my posterior allows. Not sure on that one really and since the A game doesnt need to be in full swing until next spring, why rush it? ( Easier said than done as i saw runners out today on the trails and ached to be running, not walking! ) Seems i am a huge wuss walking. I can envision running miles and miles but walking seems so long and hard and boring at times.

Anyways enjoy the video!

Recovery

So.."Are you enjoying your off season?" How many of you have heard that lately? And how many of you were SO EXCITED To get there and now that you are there, you are ready to get going again ? Anyone?

I know I had to really work at letting myself have some true time off. I mean its been a week?

It's funny how for me, it isnt really that i miss the suffering. Trust me. I dont. But i miss the organization my wko's give my day. Sorta funny, that i get up and my first thought is " what should i do now?" Obviously there is work, and lots of it, but I tend to be the person that is much more efficient AFTER my morning wko.

With the seasons changing here we have plenty of yardwork, pool closing, wardrobe switching around closet to closet and of course the box elder bugs keep me busy sweeping them up and getting them out of the house. I am also making tons of yummy eats. Baked vegggies, stuffed squash and more apple crisp than I can keep up with. ( Rich seems to have a bottomless apple appetite, so no worries there)

It was April 2010 when i did this race. Texas 70.3. What a summer it has been since the opening day!

So how is the recovery going? Really? You want to know?

It helped to spend a day and a half in lovely La Jolla, CA after BOUS. REally I am so lucky to know this area and feel like it's home. Rich had never been to the LJBTC and when i was greeted by the tennis pro's, the owner/manager Bill kellogg and many more people there it felt like i was home. Sadly there was no tennis for me. But there was lots of ocean time and of course, the sunsets:

It was warm and I napped and hung out on the beach, We walked to the pier, watched people paddle board and wipe out, surf and wipe out , and of course saw Marit and ate at my favorite place, Piatti, in the shores. I had Fro-Yo twice and decided that Red Velvet is not meant for Fro-Yo. Not a fan. Cake batter, that was do-able:)

At home it is cooler, the leaves are all over the place and its a bit harder to sit still. I am going to start moving a bit next week, yoga ( Bikram!) and some gentle walks and maybe a bike. But to be honest everytime i think about running or even riding i kinda go "Nah." I Cant tell how my butt is. It feels like my hammie is sorta frustrated with me, but since i havent run, and i wont run, I dont know. I just have to trust that the more time i give it to get happy, the better.

And it does kill me to not run, but it will kill me more if i cant run in december when i am totally house bound, so why not show some patience now. As we know, nobody needs a champion in January.

BOUS weekend and race report!

Best of the US!

This picture was my nightmare worst case scenario for this race. Luckily the pic was AFTER the race and not in the middle of the race, so all was good. PHEW. As many of you know about 2 weeks ago I encountered a case of the " MY BUTT wants to be done" -ITIS, it was the same day as AG natz that my butt started saying " You said TODAY was our last race, what is this 2 weeks to go stuff?" Turns out the temperature change, a hard week of running and just general body wanting rest made the 2 weeks leading up to BOUS a bit of a mental and physical challenge for me.

But...I was going to go and give it the old college try. Why not? I had plenty of sleepless nights about my sore backside, and my overactive PT brain had me thinking WAY too deeply about this. Finally I had to just say " I AM NOT INJURED" over and over again and that seemed to work.

Rich and I arrived friday afternoon and got settled, we flew into San Diego bc we would spend a day in La Jolla on the backside of this journey and fly out post race. We drove up to Mission Viejo and got a good nights rest friday and saturday then started with a bang! We kept MN time bc it would prove to be helpful for a 7 am race start sunday. So we were up early friday and went to Lake Mission Viejo to swim and bike and run. Other than they wouldnt let us in the water, oh well. It is a lovely lake, and let me tell you, Mission Viejo is a lovely place if you ever get a chance to visit. I know its a big swimming town, and this lake is owned by the community who pays to maintain it. Super nice. So instead i just biked and ran, and well...the run didnt go so well. Ok. Dont cry. 9 minutes of running and my butt was not happy.

Here is Rich showing me how to cross the finish line:)

Sigh. I did meet Seeley and we talked a bit and then Rich and i headed back to the hotel for another breakfast. Rich was killing me! I had been trying so hard to eat really well, and he goes and buys carrot cake whoopie pies! Oh and Red wine cube juice boxes! ( not for breakfast!)

We had a busy day planned with packet pick up, a race meeting with a Tri coach from the area. She was SOOO enthusiastic but she kinda stressed me out bc she was SOOOOO enthusiastic. I think she must have been a 1st grade teacher or a drama major. Or just really really hyper:) Anyways we headed out to drive the course and boy was i glad i did. It was hilly but LONG hills, the kinds i love:) And i knew i would need to use the small ring a few times. But what a descent it would be when we got to go down into the canyon.

We made it back to the 2pm Bous meeting where Jerry and Trudy introduced alot of the athletes, we "meeted and greeted" ( bad grammer, but you get the idea) and got our numbers and our wine:) hee hee.

What a great race goodie. It's a local label called Wyland with wildlife on the label. Yum!

The only sorta stressful thing ( other than the tri coach lady who was doing cartwheels and talking REALLY loud) was getting T2 set up the day before. I have had separate T areas before, like at KS, but i have never had to leave my run shoes outside all night. So i wrapped them up in a baggie with my visor and my nutrition and we left those at T2. I was lucky that i thought ahead bc many people race morning were without warm up shoes since they didnt have two pairs of run shoes.

I slept ok, not great, but ok and got up around 3:45 am ( PT) The lake opened at 5 am and the parking was going to be tight so we figured we would get a spot right at 5 and then take our time getting into Transition. That worked like a charm. It was so helpful to have Rich help with my bike, carry some stuff and just calm me down a bit pre-race. I tell ya, those headlamps are pretty cool but i dont know if people who are wearing them know HOW BRIGHT they are in your face when they turn to ask you a question! Whoa, blinding.

I warmed up a tiny bit in the parking lot with my special pair of shoes:) I did laps up and down and actually felt OK! WOW. Dont jinx it, just go with it. I have to admit that i did start taking celebrex (bid) the day before ( for my period, which thank you very little arrived race day too! Alright, this is gonna be a sufferfest for real!) And then figured i didnt need to win the warm up and stopped.

Marit was arriving and i found her right before i got into the water to warm up! Pink socks and all I cant say how fun and special it was to see her, and for Rich to have a veteran Triathlete to spectate with all morning. Most the race day pics are from Marit, who truly knows how to capture a moment on film. And who knows how to say just the right thing to make me feel like a champion:) more on that later.

Ok did you want to read about the race?:) you know some of that is a blur but here goes:

SWIM: The water was about 74 and perfect. I was not hot or cold in my wetsuit and was glad to have it on for the added protection it gave me from the arms and feet smacking me around. I Did start up front, or close to it, so maybe it was my fault that i got kicked around a bit.

I cant say i had the best swim. I got my goggles knocked off/ or at least the left goggle got wedged off my eye in the first 200 YArds from an errant foot. I was going to stop but it was chaos and i realized i could still see out of the Right goggle and so i soldiered on. I was VERY trusting of the women next to me, bc i could not sight a dang thing. There was one buoy about 800 Yards out and a lifeguard boat with a flashing light in btween that first buoy ( where we would turn right and i would get kicked again) and the 2nd buoy where we would turn back intowards shore. So i just kept that red light to my right and prayed i would suddenly see a big yelow buoy. Horray there it was! I turned right and SMACK, i got kicked again. Oh well.

One more turn and i was able to catch up to a few people but now the sun was right at us and again, I prayed i was headed in the close vicinity for the boat ramp. It wasnt a straight shot back, it kinda veered to the left and i just kept the shoreline parallel to my swim and then veered left at the final buoy and seemed to find the boat ramp. Phew. I made it in!

I ran up the ramp and headed to my bike!

Bike:

I debated shoes in or shoes out. I just have tried to be consistent and they stayed in, despite a real uphill T area and start. I started in the small ring so i thought that would be adequate.

All was fine till i was getting my Right foot in and UGH, AGAIN. my shoe liner bunched up. I nearly had to come to a a full stop, but i just pushed my feet in so hard that the liner bunched in the toe area and i said " Ok i can ride 24 miles like this. it will be fine" and off i went.

I do need to figure that out bc its the 2nd time i have had to come to a nearly complete stop bc the liner slides when i put a wet foot in.

Somehow out of nowhere i pulled my next Bike 101 error, I pulled a Schleck. I really cant tell you what i did, but yup, my chain was off. I tried to back pedal to get it to catch but it was too far off so i did have to stop. And that just added another UGH to the early ride. I Was happy with how easily i just let those both go. I kinda forgot about them until i saw another gal drop her chain on a major climb and it made me feel a bit better.

The ride was so fun. It was alot of climbing, and as it was about 7:30 am you would go thru these hot and cold pockets as you climbed up Santiago Canyon. When we dropped down into the canyon it was alot hotter and the roads were so fun to ride. I am not sure if it was my Coffee Powergel or that i was having so much fun but i felt like i was flying! I knew we had to climb back out of the canyon and that was going to be hard, but then i knew we had a great descent to look forward to. The bike went by super fast and i played cat and mouse with a few gals and that kept me honest and made me work hard. Coming into T2 we had to get on a bike path the last 2 miles. That was super fun and tho i was a bit cautious ( one of the things the hyper Tri lady told us was that we would have to SLOW DOWN to get on the path, and it was no passing on the path) well the path became as wide as a road so there was plenty of passing room but since it was dark, and the shade made the road hard to see i just rode fast ( at times 30 mph!) but safely behind a few gals. All the sudden they are yelling dismount line! What?? I did nearly throw myself from my bike but i got it together in time to do this:

My ride was good ( despite the early mishaps) but this was the sweetest dismount ever:)

Now to be honest I didnt even know who that girl was but she bolted past me in the first mile and i think she ended up like 6th. But it was sweet while it lasted ! I got my stuff out of the bag, and didnt fumble too much and i was off on the run. My mantra was " I am not injured" and i planned to focus on anything that did not hurt. So for mile 1 I was thinking " LEFT ARCH LEFT ARCH!" you see i spend alot of time working on my foot strike and NOT falling out to the outside of my feet. I tend to oversupinate ( spend more time on the outside of my feet) and that can lead to peroneal issues and of course the big bad ITBS. So left arch it was. The first few miles are downhill, gradually down hill, and on the same path we were biking in on. I passed a gal right away and then just kept chasing. The Hammer gal who i passed in the dismount area was not impressed with me and had left me in the dust:)

They had said there would be water stops "about" every mile, but that was rough so as i was starting to get tired i just sorta zoned out and had no idea where i was on teh course or what my pace was. I never race with anything, HR or clock, i just have to GO HARD. The first of the hills came about mile 3, i think. Up up up a woodchip path and i thought it was hard but not too bad. I passed another gal and we exchanged " goood jobs" And i thought..."HMm, they said the hill was at mile 4, we arenot at mile 4..." knowing deep down i wished we were. Then all the sudden i see it. a sharp left turn up Vista Del Lago. That sucker went on and on and on and it was not a gradual hill. I thought about staying up tall bc i felt like my 5 foot 9 stature had shrunk to at least 5 foot 4, i felt so hunched over. Lots of volunteers greeted me at what felt like the top of the world ( i guess it was about 500 yards long?) and said "That is it, no more hills! "

Um not really.

Of course every little incline felt like a hill after that:) I knew there was a gal behind me, i coul hear her and i had a gal in front. I just could not close the gap on the path bc it was weaving andup and down. But i sure tried. When we turned onto the final mile they take you past the finish area, down about 200 Yards then back up to the turn into the Lake MV park. I Tell ya I HATE seeing who is behind me on those out and back! IT's funny how the people i see in front look liek they are going SO Fast, but when i turn around i see the people chasing me and i think " WOW they are going fast I am gonna get caught!" So i tell ya, it was ZONE 5 from that point on. I didnt want to look back bc i didnt want to know and its a waste of energy to do that. CAtch me if you can was my thought, and i just picked it up as hard as i could.

Not until I turned into the park, and the slight downhill towards the lake did i glance and see nobody. But i still was gonna get this done ASAP.

IF you want a glimpse into the pain locker here it is:

My lovely hubby was there to greet me, and i still look a little bit wasted.

I was really really happy with the run, the race and how my butt held up! I would be lying if i didnt say that even tho i went into this race with a slight mental hurdle of the sore butt, i was still going for top 10. I knew i was close. And when i found out I was 11th by about 20-30 sec's I was heartbroken. I wanted nothing more than to podium for our state, for Jerry and Trudy, and for me new Gear West Bike and Tri team. I told Marit that i was bummed. I felt like it was so close, and then i realized that I had all the sudden gotten SO GREEDY. 3 hours earlier, or even 43 minutes earlier ( before the 10k) I was not sureI could even run!) and all the sudden i am pouty lipped ( not really) at finishing 11th? When i looked at Marit i felt selfish, and i quickly apologized. My good friend has been faced with more challenges than any young person should have to, and I am thinking....boohoo I didnt podium??! Julia, pull your head out.

Thankfully Marit ( as i said, she knows what to say!) said " Julia you are a great athlete, you set goals and you extend yourself beyond your limits to try to reach them, its normal to be disappointed, but that doesnt mean you didnt have the race of your life."

And how well said, that sure made me feel happy and proud of myself, proud of Marit and so grateful that my butt let me do one more race!

It didnt hurt that Jerry came up to me and said our MN team had gotten 3rd! Woohoo! And that was quite a treat as well.

Me and the fastie Matt Payne, who got 3rd OA! What a nice guy, It was great to meet Matt and his wife! They headed to San Diego and Sea World after the race.

and a few more images from Marit:

This is a great picture that i am thrilled to end the race season with. I gave it all I could and I am so thankful for the chance to go race with the best in 2011.

Thanks again to Jerry and Trudy. You seriously know how to make us feel special and i applaud your quest to give back to the amateurs that are racing day in and day out for the love of the sport. Many thanks to my husband of course, my coach who led me to the pain locker but never closed the door on me, she let me do that myself, and to all the super fun friends on blogland, fb land and in real time that are so supportive of me and this amazing sport! I am super excited, as i said, to be joining a new team for 2011 and racing and laughing with the Gear West Tri Team.

We already have our first race this coming weekend. The Beer Mile. I am not sure i can race but i will do my best to sherpa for anyone that needs me:)

More on the recovery later!

But it started that night with dinner in La Jolla at Piatti with Marit:)

Race Week

Yes.

Original title I know:)

But here we go. I am ready in spirit, the body is lagging but if it can hold on for one more race I will be quite happy. To be honest I havent really thought too much of the "what if's??" That doesnt mean i havent had my fair share of restless nights and dreams about stress fractures and odd things that likely as a PT I know WAY TOO MUCH about. Yup I can tell ya all the worst case scenarios from one little symptom. So my mantra continues to be " I AM NOT INJURED." Bc I really dont think i am, I think i just need some extended rest.

Lots of peeps i know are in Kona, a few going to Dallas, and a few doing Chicago.

For all of us I think the comraderie of "Getting it done," Should help along with my motto of cross the line smiling no matter the outcome. That may be hard if i am throwing down a 50 min 10k, but i know what i am capable of healthy and i have every intention of working towards that on sunday!

Good luck to everyone racing. Have a blast!

Comme Ce Comme Ca

That is how things are. Not better not worse. Thanks for all the good vibes. I will let ya know how the pilot study for the 2 week taper is. Perhaps I am on to something that we can learn from:) All in all I am trying to pull my head out and not let the worry settle in my piriformis. I have all the best PT knowledge and then some ( thanks Libby!) working for me.

I found some pics from the Square Lake Tri, thanks to Minnefoto Moments. I can see why i nearly drown. Nearly ran over the photopgraher who decided that sitting right in the middle of the shoulder while the roads were open, was a good idea, and thatI am getting some shoulders. Finally. ( oh and JH says "Barely"...haha, camera adds 10 lbs really? not on my shoulders, that is real muscle!)

La dee dah, 5 more minutes....5 more minutes....freezing in the mean time.

While we were getting the " just 5 more minutes," for the 3rd time we were asked to say hi. that is me with the big old wave.

And now that is me using that butt to kick people off me. I think i am that half submerged red cap near the front. Being used as a bungee to propel someone over me.

Alas i survived, and was able to hit the road to try to take out the photograher. Can you tell i am like "dude, you are taking up the ENTIRE shoulder!" His car was parked there too. Hmm.

Exiting T2

Finish. I am not sure why i was running past the finish line???

And this gives me hope that yes i can run. I can do this. And I will do it! My butt will be ok, and I am doing everything i can to get across that line healthy!

Hang in there....

Those are words to myself, and words from coach and others. I was gonna be done after AG natz. That was this weekend. Congrats to all that raced in hot temps in the armpit of Tuscaloosa. Ok i have no idea, i just listen to my friends talk about Crimson Tides, and stuff that being a small college gal up in the northern parts i have no idea who is who. Anyways..In what seems to me to be ideal weather ( haha i know i know., i am running races in 50 and dry up here and Pr'ing ...that would NOT BE THE CASE in Alabama....) my bud's did great.

But I am not done.

Apparently my A$$ wishes it was done. The combo of the great track wko, TRX, some more outdoor rides and runs = LOCK down on my piriformis. The Deep 6 and the Piriformis went on strike sunday. I managed thru my long run ( in 40 degrees to start, double shorts and compression socks) but when i got done IT was done. HOUSE ARREST.

My A$$ was putting me on house arrest. I have one of those little bracelets that Lindsay Lohan has. I cant get near my bike or my run shoes till i am 95% or the bracelet sends coach an email and she promptly flies up to spank me.

It's doing better today, i learned that the ice baths are NOT gonna help loosen up those muscles that are SO tiny and so tight. And that hopefully they will let go so that my femoral head will stop feeling shoved into my labrum and the hip socket. And if you have no idea what i am talking about google Piriformis Syndrome and Deep hip rotators. I dont feel like explaining it.

So I am on opearation ARRIVE in one piece for BOUS. I am gonna wait till this sucker calms down and if that means a 12 day taper, then lets go for it. Hopefully the lockdown will ease up each day and i can get back to some run and bike by the weekend.

Congrats to all that are done, and my lovely husband has graciously offered to eat all the cookies and drink all the wine and caffeinated bevies i am avoiding till Oct 10, at 9:20am PT.

Hopefully when i will be DONE!

The Workout of Truth

The TRACK!

I was trying to come up with some other clever title that was close to THE RACE OF TRUTH. But since i am not talking Bike TT's I didnt want to use that phrase. And since i am not really racing at the track ( unless you count me racing the junior high kids that were warming up today while i was smack dab in the THICK OF IT) then i am not racing anyone but the clock.

Hence, the run or workout of truth.

Last time i went to the track the wind was 30-40mph, and it was quite iffy whether i could make the workout worthwhile. But since it was 400s and it wasnt super rainy, coach and i decided i would just go give it a go. The interval was challenging but i think well within my reach, on a GOOD DAY. With the wind it made for some interesting challenges, but lets just say that the 400's where i finished WITH the wind were executed with a bit better form than that ones where i finished into the wind.

Training this late in the season for me is weird. I am really doing ok with it, after a hicup around labor day when i was DONE. It got cold, it is dark, I wanted to be done. I started racing in April this year, and that was after an intense 3 weeks in Tucson in March, so if i do the math its gonna be Oct before i am done.

That is about 7 mos of pretty hard core GO GO GO.

But Fall. Ah Fall. I love Fall. And today at the track i had a flashback to fall tennis. The cool mornings the crisp but sunny afternoons, and the sun at an angle where no matter where you threw the ball on your service toss, the sun was there. I thought to myself " I can do this fall stuff. Fall is tennis time. I did this for how many years in highschool?" And then in college? We played 2 seasons and fall was always better weather, fall tennis was much better than our spring season!

So fast forward to today. Forecast is for winds of 10 mph by 9am, and sun! Yes!It was about 48 when i got to the track, about 52 when i left and a breeze but nothing like old man wind above! Coach is really smart ( in my opinion) with how she gives me track workouts. I am not a spring chicken despite seeing a workout on paper and thinking it looks tame, i know how the track, like a time trial, can humble you in a mere 3 minutes.

So today was 6 x 800 with some warm up and cool down. The interval she set looked ambitious, but then i remembered i had run a 5k this past weekend and kept an average pace of just about 15-20 seconds above this pace ( extrapolated) so i thought...ok, this looks AWESOME. See in my opinon you want a track wko or a bike TT to kick you around but not DESTROY you. I may be seeing double at the end, but i dont want to see double on the first interval or throw up until i am done:) But really I have never thrown up after a race. Great now i likely have jinxed my luck.

I hit the first 800 5 seconds faster than my starting goal. OOPs. I figured it would just have to be a "well lets see how this goes." 2nd 800 is 4 seconds faster, on purpose i held back. And i was feeling good.

3rd 800 I am descending now and it is starting to H-U-R-T. Rich was there too, he was doing some post ride running, and he cheered me on. What a fella. I was trying to take them in 2's. So after the 3rd 800 I thought, OK you are half way done! This is where the breathing and the pukeing starts to be a challenge.

4th 800 I am going strong and then i see them. The junior high boys are headed out for PE and they are warming up on the track. I figure I have about 200 yards till i either plow right into them or i start some fancy footwork. It's their track, and i am a guest, so i do the fancy footwork and dodge the boys. Rich said there a draft effect when i went by, they tailed onto me and sped up until they lost the draft:) I hit that interval about 15 seconds faster than the intial goal time. Yikes. This last one was gonna be a sufferfest.

I was needing to walk a bit before my easy jog and i knew i had to finish with good form and without throwing up on their track, now that i had the teachers and the kids out there.

Last 800 was just perfect, 2 seconds slower than the "dodge a kid" 800 but spot on and it hurt.

This is what i imagined myself doing:

Light on my feet, arms pumping, and trying to steady my breathing. NO matter what the 400 is hard and after that it just gets harder. I dont care if its 800's or 1200's or 1600's for me i have to steady my breathing and focus on my form or the aftermath isnt nice.

So what is my point to this post? Just that as much as i love time trials I love the track. There is just something so simple about it. Either you make the time, or you dont. I also get to wear my racing flats which i dont wear other than racing, so that is fun bc they are pink:) simple pleasures. And i get to take an ice bath. See life can be so simple with these little joys!

And at the same time i have huge respect for the track bc i know it can do harm if i am not healthy and orthopedically secure. So each corner i round and each kid i dodge, i do with gratitude that my body is letting me do this. And thanks to a coach that doesnt give insane volume at the track. For me at least, that is a recipe for self destruction. My mantra for tennis used to be "one more." This meant alot more than one, in most cases, serves, forehands, backhands, overheads, whatever it was the perfectionist wanted to finish with the perfect hit.

That doesnt really translate so well to the track:)

Stop while you are ahead, is my mantra for the track!

For all you people who are racing cross and / or doing one more tri or du, good luck! For those of you who have eased into some off season time, I am on my way! Happy Fall Solstice!

A Two-Fer post

Part 1, an email my mom sent me: remember my parents are in their 80's so i listen to their advice:

Q: Doctor, I've

heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life. Is this

true?
A: Your heart

only good for so many beats, and that it... Don't waste on exercise.

Everything wear out eventually. Speeding up heart not make you

live longer; it like saying you extend life of car by driving faster.

Want to live longer? Take nap.

Q: Should I

reduce my alcohol intake?
A:

No, not at all. Wine made from fruit. Brandy is distilled

wine, that mean they take water out of fruity bit so you get even more of

goodness that way. Beer also made of grain. Bottom

up!

Q: How

can I calculate my body/fat ratio?
A: Well, if you

have body and you have fat, your ratio one to one. If you have two

bodies, your ratio two to one, etc.

Q: What

are some of the advantages of participating in a regular exercise

program?
A: Can't think

of single one, sorry. My philosophy is: No pain...good!

Q: Aren't

fried foods bad for you?
A:

YOU NOT LISTENING! Food are fried these day in vegetable oil.

In fact, they permeated by it. How could getting

more vegetable be bad for you?!?

Q:

Will

sit-ups help prevent me from getting a little soft around the

middle?
A: Definitely

not! When you exercise muscle, it get bigger. You should only be

doing sit-up if you want bigger stomach.

Q: Is

chocolate bad for me?
A: Are

you crazy ?!? HEL-LO-O!! Cocoa bean! Another vegetable!

It best feel-good food around!

Q: Is

swimming good for your figure?
A: If

swimming good for your figure, explain whale to me..

Q: Is

getting in shape important for my lifestyle?
A: Hey!

'Round' is shape!
Well... I hope

this has cleared up any misconceptions you may have had about food and

diets.

And remember:
Life should NOT

be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an

attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways -

Chardonnay in one hand - chocolate in the other - body thoroughly used up,

totally worn out and screaming "WOO-HOO, what a ride!!"

AND.....

For those of you

who watch what you eat, here's the final word on nutrition and health.

It's a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting nutritional

studies.

1. The

Japanese eat very little fat and suffer

fewer heart attacks than Americans.

2. The Mexicans eat a lot of

fat and suffer

fewer heart attacks than Americans.

3. The Chinese drink very little

red wine and suffer

fewer heart attacks than Americans.

4. The Italians drink a lot of red

wine and suffer

fewer heart attacks than Americans.

5. The Germans drink a lot

of beer and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than

Americans.
CONCLUSION: Eat and drink

what you like. Speaking English

is apparently what kills you.

So what do you think i do when i read this?

Believe it?

Decide to start speaking French?

Nope.

I signed up for Ironman Wisconsin, 2011. But i am not speaking English on 9/11/11. Ok?

Ironman and Active.com have a few things to learn about how to best process 1000 hits in 1 second, but other than that stress, and feeling like i had the same nervous stomach pre sign up as i do pre race I felt ready. I knew that after the site went online it was out of my hands and if i didnt get in, well that was meant to be. But finally on wednesday i got in. And thursday I woke up with a hangover( not a real hangover) and a "WHAT DID I DO?" And a groan. Then again i think that was bc coach had assigned a challenging trainer wko for the day AFTER the sign up and i was not recovered enough and was scared of it. I think coaching protocol should change so that the day after sign up you get a recovery day. Just sayin'....Hear that coachie poo?

But in all seriousness, i mean this is a serious topic. NOT.

I know if i trust her, I will get to the finish line. End of story. There is plenty of time to think about wheels ( do i ride sewups, can i change a sewup,) and technology ( i dont have a Garmin, do i need a Garmin?) and all the other one million and three questions i have for all of you.

So I cant possibly post all the thoughts that have gone thru my head but the bottom line of signing up for an Ironman is that in my heart of hearts I know i can do it. I am excited to train and i am excited to expreience the highs and lows that day will bring. I have already started apologizing to my family. My family gets it, I am not sure if my inlaws will but here is what my mom and dad said:

Mom "As long as you can come to the family reunion in Iowa in August that is fine. You can bike down to Iowa, get there in time for the ice cream social."

Dad " Is that the thing your sister did in Hawaii?"

* here is studly sister last year in Galveston....as she reminds me " i did IM / Kona BEFORE GELS were invented." And actually that is pretty cool, i think!

Me " Yes dad but i only have to go to Wisconsin."

Dad " Oh that sounds better."

When i asked Rich to remind me that i can do it, ( meaning when i am crying on a 100 mile ride and whineing next summer) he said "You can do it." NO I dont need you to " ecoutez et repetez" now i mean when it counts! I know i can do it NOW, but when i need you is later, like in March when i have to ride 100 miles on my road bike. To which Rich says " Ok, but can we stress about some other stuff first?"

Ha, how well he knows me.

And you see, I am familiar with this position after long rides. I am READY!

5 x 5k relay tommorrow with some fun Gear West Bike and Tri teammates. I have to take photos and will hope its above 50. We have had an abrupt start to fall. Not at all what i want right now. Other than our pool is 59 degrees. Free ice baths, if you live local, come on over!

Lessons Learned

This is actually a race report but i decided that what i took from this race was more education than anything so why not blog about it! I have very mixed feelings about this race. Some of it was the race itself, some of it is that I am ready to be done with my season and start planning for 2011!

Sept 11 was the Square Lake short course. As you know Square lake is the lake that i swim at weekly. IT IS LOVELY! ...usually....

Saturday it was a bit angry but it was by no means the worst i have seen it, temperature wise OR wind wise. So I was confident since we got to wear wetsuits that i would be just fine. Actually I was hoping friday night that we would have an angry lake. Bring it on!

Having never done this race before and knowing that at times the organizer has struggled to get enough help I made sure to have my course knowledge down and to know exactly where i needed to go, etc.. I felt pretty confident in the bike course and knew it was punchy with some tricky cornering and an infamous covered bridge that drops you down into Marine on the St. Croix. Having raced my bike on that course i knew that when its wet under there you have to use caution otherwise...ruh roh. So i felt ready for that.

The run is fun, lotsa gravel roads, some punchy little hills and then some longer ones to the finish. Yeah, lets RACE!

Race day turned out to be warmer than I thought. IT was about 53 when i got up and when i got to Square it was misting a bit and the roads / T area was very wet. Bummer. I racked, and pretty soon that got to be a mess bc they dont have Elite racks so people were just putting their bikes wherever. That is ok. I just figure you gotta be able to get in and out so i tried not to let it phase me. I got warmed up, got my wetsuit on and went down to the beach around 7:45 to get a warm up swim in. The race was SCHEDULED to start at 8am. OR so that was the plan.

It was cold! I Got in but since sometimes these races dont start on time, and another guy got in and said he was freezing now ( tick tock) i didnt really do a good warm up. That may have come back to haunt me, i am not sure. So when we finally got to start Wave 1 was ready to go.

"one more minute!" was shouted about 3x, sigh.

And when we finally took off it was the ELITE men and women. AND....

Men ( boys?) under 30 yo ( say that bc i talked to at least 3 high school boys)

AND..

TEAMS....

Ok that must have been the biggest wave i have ever been in for a beach start.

And yes I Got hammered. I was good for about 150 yards and then all the sudden i had a BIG person on top of me. Not just clawing at my feet, but literally in a bear hug around my midsection. Ok my core may not be too big but since this wasnt going away I made the FIGHT OR FLIGHT decision to leave a mark, and I did the strongest kick and body thrust with my core that i could muster and ya know what? bye bye leech. Of course i was quite pleased with myself but at the same time the huge adrenalin rush left me gasping for air. I thought of Kari. ( sorry Mayhew) and i pulled up and did some breast stroke. I thought " can i keep going?" I saw a person doing backstroke right ahead of me. Seriously? how far back am i? And so i just did breast stroke, then some easy free, then some breast stroke. and some easy free. I started to feel better and told myself that i can swim as EASY AS I NEED to. Just keep moving forward.

Funny, tho in hindsight where did the BIG LEECH go? I mean nobody went by me...so anyways when i was nearly at the turn buoy ( swimming Clockwise, rectangle) to head back across the lake i started to feel ok and started to pick it up. I swam strong and started passing people and passed a bunch of people as i headed back into the beach. I came in with another gal, that was funny bc Laura and I swam eye to eye for about the last 300 yards ( it was a 1/2 mile swim)and we got out together and said good job. I think there was one elite woman ahead of us, but then it was Laura and Me. I saw no other women as we ran up the steps ( long steps!) and went to our bikes.

I got out of T1 fast. NO messing around. I was on the road and didnt see Laura and didnt see anyone else anywhere near or behind me. I was flying and having a good ride. But i looked down and had blood all over my aero bars, and my water bottle. Red, goes with the GEAR WEST colors at least. I am not sure how i got that but i had a pretty good cut on my left hand. and it was just bleeding like there was no tommorrow. Whatever. I did a quick check to be sure that was the only place i was bleeding and it was so i carried on.

There was a bit fo wind, but nothing that was really upsetting me, and i passed the elite woman who came out of the water first. It was hard to tell since there were relays in there and our calves were just marked with our ages so i have no idea if the guys were AG, relay or Elite. Anyways..I felt good on the bike and thou little punchy hills made the spedometer say 16-18mph i also had some good stretches were the disk was carrying me at 24-26mph. I passed a few guys, and was passed back by a few guys as well. With only a 16.5 mile bike i was feeling pretty confident. At about mile 12 I got passed by the Jenny and another guy. We all came into T2 pretty close together, though the guy stopped about 100 yards from the dismount ?? not sure why...

I decided early on not to wear arm warmers. I just figured this was practice and it would be good to see if i could do it and still shift. I was fine. My Kiwami gear dries in about 3 minutes, so i was just fine, not cold at all and my fingers worked. The sun wasnt even out so i felt lucky.

My feet, on the other hand...I did lose some time in T2 bc i couldnt get my right foot into my shoe bc i couldnt feel my feet. It was a bit humerous bc i was dancing around with 3 toes in and 2 toes out and couldnt figure out why they would not go in easily. Then my braids got stuck on the aero bars, so bye bye Herbal Essence hair endorsements:) But i ran out right after Jenny, and did my best to keep reminding myself to run hard, practice my nutrition, and keep #2 intact. Plus an old adage from bike racing was " You never know what is going on up the road," as if you are dropped from a pack and are riding solo or with one other person you never know what is going on up there, so you always need to keep your plan and dont give up. That is how i ran, i figured you never know what the person ahead of you is doing.

It was a good run, i felt fast and i felt light and i felt like i had a good pace that i could have carried over for another few miles for a 10k. I did a track wko earlier this week which was short but hard, and i really have been so pleased with how my run speed is improving.

I got 2nd OA and had the pleasure of seeing some gals from my Y that were doing the race. KJ won her AG ( 45-49) and Amy did her very first Tri, in rough conditions. Her son was so amped that he said he is doing it next year as well. I stayed till the very end, even tho i wanted to go home and see my family and to get some coffee to warm up, bc I wanted to see if i could win something as Gear West was generously there giving away a wetsuit, and a knapsack and helment and lotsa neat stuff. I was super close to the wetsuit number and so wanted to get it so i could give it to rich ( and then convince him to do more Tri's!) but another gal was closer.

So Lessons? Did i forget the moral of the story? :)

1) Never give up on the swim. Do whatever you need to do to keep moving forward, and know that you are ok. I have a harder time in cold water, I am not sure if that mattered or not, but likely it did. So i need to get a better warm up and also try to seed myself a bit better. But in a wave like that? I mean?? and also i know that the 70.3's i did ( KS and TX) were deep water starts. I loved those. Wish we had more here.

2)Be proud of my bike no matter what. I am used to being the RABBIT, Bonny and I do alot of TT's where she is chasing me so i am not new to that position. I need to keep that TT mentality for 4 more weeks! I rode really well today. I have no regrets.

3) Run! Oh how i love you my run. and how i love my kinvara's and how i love my PT who has helped me be able to run injury free, and my ART doc, and my coach for putting my rehab in my TP plan and of course i love myself for doing the exercises:) You may not know that but when i first decided 2+ years ago to start doing more Tri after tennis/bike racing, I couldnt run more than 3 miles without pain and injury knocking at my door. I would do 1 race a summer ( usually Waconia or IronGirl Du ) and i would be sore for at least a week from the run. I still have a great respect for the run, but to have a coach that knows my body, yet pushes it appropriately, and to have the last 2 years that i have had running injury free makes me feel like a frickin rockstar! I love it. I want to be 45 yo and run faster than i did when i was younger ( ok fill in the blank, i am not picky.) 44yo will do.

4) And last lesson, is that this Tri thing is bigger than I am. That is good to know, and good to remember. I am not curing Cancer. I felt a bit like a Bridesmaid AGAIN yesterday. Its like WIN A RACE, would ya? But then i realized that i am winning everyday.

Last year i did my first half distance race. Liberty Tri, June 2009. I remember emailing my coach and saying " I think i should wait till August for Pigman, I cant do a Half in June." I think this was in like february. Ha! She set me straight and i did great, i had a ball. I loved it. I did what i should for that race. I raced cautiously but with a smile on my face and came across the line in 5:06. I was amazed. 1st AG.

As cliche as that sounds. I would think i was a Tri bridesmaid if i didnt have the most wonderful husband in the world, and a great balanced and fun life. I am SO lucky to be where i am today! And very grateful for all the friends, family, work, my health, wow so much to be grateful for!

And of course i cannot leave out Ruby and Ruby's pal, Henry. Dogs really do make the world go round. Oh, or was that LOVE that makes the world go round? :)

Cabin Bears!

Weekend started with a drive up north friday afternoon and then fish tacos chez cabin with the folks and my honey. Saturday dawned and we were off to a chilly and challenging double brick on the Grandma's course. Lets just say that we waited a bit, 9 am to be precise, to start since winds of 15-20 mph and a temp of 44 was not what i wanted. It was our weekend and we decided that other than a 4:30 pm party at another cabin and the lodge picnic we had all day!

The brick went well, windy, hard, honey was a trooper and stayed by my side as we loaded the bike in and out of the car for my 1st T run. It was cold. I had forgotten that "quads feel like ice picks" feeling. Toes cold and the reminder that my patients/residents with neuropathy have this every day. So i sucked it up! The 2nd bike was shorter, but harder, and off we went. The wind was there, but it really was just There and we both decided we were going to ride thru it and not let it bother us. Victory! After the 2nd run we headed back to the cabin as my sister had brought up a growler...of COLD PRESS!! ha! IT was delish. hot or cold, cold press is wonderful.

The rest of the weekend was spent napping, eating, resting, reading, hiking, visiting with family and friends, and running Ruby in and out of the Lake. There were a few ice bathes taken. And MY O MY, the river has cooled off significantly since august. I didnt dare go to the lake as i could tell from Ruby's temp that it was way below ice bath temp necessity.

We also found some new friends:

Our new bear "Elizabeth." Ok that isnt really her name but it's funny and is a dumb story so i wont tell you all. ( Eliz is my sister)

And as we left to head home, somebody was very sad to see us go:(

I got in a good hard swim at the lake today ( the lake meaning SQUARE LAKE) and yes indeed the temps there were dropping as well. I Didnt wear a wetsuit but if i hadnt been doing starts and sprints i would have needed one. My cool down was just that....a COOL DOWN and i was happy to be done.

Happy week to everyone and good luck to you all racing in Madison. You are gonna do great and I cant wait to cheer you on!

Moving On

Thanks friends. Enough of that, go back and read the MG tri report, its far more fun than the recent post. Sometimes things just get whacked. For the record i had no evil or mean comments. For all of you thinking that, I appreciate your willingness to defend, guns ( pipes, biceps) drawn.

I wish that was all it was. Anyways...Life is good, go out and enjoy it.

And send some Flushing Meadow love to Rog. We want another Open title.

Have a great week!