She finally arrived…my new Trek Madone WSD 6.5 (http://www.trekbikes.com/women/wsd_products/bikes/) and she is light and comfortable.  The engine is in need of some repair-work, but the bike is ready to race.

Last year I took most of the year off for health reasons.  That was the easiest way for me to focus purely on recovering.  I see too many people, including myself, rush through recovery and compete at 75% of their best effort instead of just taking some time off so they can come back and compete at 100%, and I was going to change this pattern for me.  

So, once I took care of my health, I decided to tackle some ongoing issues I have been having since my knee surgery in 2005.  Well, and to be fully-honest here, the decision to address my knee was really instigated by Kyle’s remark at our Team Timex Camp earlier this year when he point-blank told me that I ”run like a duck.” 

I rushed through my rehab post-knee surgery because I was so focused on RACING rather than being patient.  Following knee surgery I had some swelling that impinged a nerve and my VMO basically shut-down.  I could NOT get a full extension with my left knee.  After many weeks of therapy and a LOT of atrophy, I just got frustrated and figured that ’eventually’ my leg muscles would start working properly.  I mean…at least I could swim, bike and run, yes? 

Fast forward 2 years and well…we all know what happens when there is a discrepancy in leg strength.  Other muscles soon start taking over and doing the job others should do, injuries begin to occur because one leg is working more than the other, the run gait is causing a problem with knee tracking, and performances always remain sub-par. 

I promised myself a ‘no-excuse’ triathlon season this year, and Kyle’s remark prompted me to seek help.  I recently went to Tektonic Sports and began working with Dr. Sutton and had a Wingate test, a VO2/LT test for both the bike and the run, in addition to receiving sports-performance rehab on my knee.  The test results have not been pretty but at least I know what needs to be corrected!  My Wingate test came back at…I am almost embarrassed to say this…a leg discrepancy of 65% vs. 35%.  I was also videotaped running and cycling and that has really helped me to actually see what I was (or was NOT) doing.  I have had to have some thick skin when analyzing all these results, and I know I have some work to do to get this engine back into form, but I finally feel like I am on the right path. 

The Powertap (http://www.saris.com/) is an invaluable training tool for me as I work on rebuilding this engine.  The Powertap in conjunction with my Timex Bodylink help keep me honest when training on my bike.  I am really a work in progress but I am hoping I will no longer be running like a duck.  Until then, waddle-on!  :)     

No one can really pull you up very high–you lose your grip on the rope. But on your own two feet you can climb mountains.
 - Louis Brandeis

How can I wrap up the season when I feel like it never got started? 

Triathlon Race Results:  One DNF (hypothermia), a top 10 finish at Ironman Florida 70.3 and a “What the hey happened” at Buffalo Springs. 

Life’s Results:  More free time on the weekends to spend with the kids…I did not realize just how much my girls noticed that I was out training until my youngest daughter would repeatedly say to me, “Mommy, what’s wrong with you?  You sure don’t exercise that much anymore.”  

Lessons learned:  We will keep having the same experiences in life until we finally learn and apply that which is trying to be taught. 

Life’s Goals:  Balance, health.

Race Goals:  I will define my goals.  I will NOT be defined by my goals.    

I am so grateful to Timex and our sponsors.  I almost felt bad for my beautiful red hot Trek Equinox 7.0 WSD…it screams fast, sleek, and ‘race me!’  But, it had to settle for training rides.  My Spenco Ironman Cycling Gloves made all these training rides a bit more  enjoyable by making the ride more comfortable.  My Timex Heart Rate Monitor has kept me in-line making sure I am working at the correct intensity and it also lets me know when my resting heart rate is elevated.  In addition, not only does it help me in training, but it is the first thing I hear in the morning with its trusty and faithful alarm. 

I did get to use my Blue Seventy Helix wetsuit and PointZero3 swimskin once this year…note that I WISHED I had my Blue Seventy Helix when I took to the chilly waters at California 70.3 earlier this year!  In addition, I am SUPER excited to hear that the PointZero3 was granted approval by FINA for open water swimming at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.  My 13 year-old daughter is anxious to try her hand at an open water swim event in the near future, and is looking forward to trying it out…she will do the suit justice.  This suit, similar to the Trek, says “fast-only please!” 

My every-day attire includes my Wigwam IM socks and Rudy Project sunglasses (ok, not just the two of them, there are other things on too!).  I don’t know what I would do without these things.  Even though I was not racing for most of the season, I still felt like a racer, and was easily targeted as ‘a triathlete or cyclist or some sort of athlete’ whenever I wore the Rudy Project glasses.  And, last but not least…Fuel Belt, Gatorade Endurance and Headsweats…what can I say except that I know there is NO way I could make it through a Houston summer of running without them.    

Congratulations to my fellow teammates…it was always fun to watch and cheer for you online.  It helped to fill the void of not being there in person.  Looking forward to 2008! 

Oh, the wisdom of a 7 year-old. 

After listening to me sing the ‘poor me’ song one time too many, my 7 year-old, Hanna, looked at me with some frustration and said, “Mom…you get what you get and you don’t pitch a fit.”  Amazing how those little ears hear and retain everything…well, everything that is except when I am loudly exclaiming, “It is bedtime, now go to sleep.  No more talking!” 

Even prior to racing in Lubbock this June, I knew something was wrong.  I had been feeling run down for a long time, I could not retain weight and I was losing muscle mass.  Workouts were hit and miss, and regardless of the amount of sleep I got, I was still tired.  When I raced at Lubbock it reminded me of how I felt in my last High School Cross-Country meet when I raced with mono and was subsequently hospitalized.  It was during the run in Lubbock that I made the decision to step back from racing triathlons for the remainder of the season and focus on getting my health back in order.  Of course, implementing this plan was not a simple process for me…my mind was a battlefield of ‘Train More versus Train Less’ and my family was caught in the middle.      

Yes, there is a time to push things, but as I have learned (the hard way) there is also a time to just…REST.  Rest is a difficult thing to do for us self-proclaimed obsessive-compulsive types, especially during the racing season, and when it does not come on our terms.  I would be lying if I said this is ‘easy.’  Rather, quite the contrary, it takes [me] more discipline to hold back rather than to continue to push myself.  We all start out the racing season with goals and expectations, anticipated race schedules, and when these plans get derailed, due to illness, injury, stress, work, etc. it can be a hard pill to swallow. 

I have been reading Brad Kearns book, “Breakthrough Triathlon Training.”  It is a good book that has at least provided me with some mental relief, especially with the chapter, “The Myth of Suffering.”  Now, not all will agree with what he has to say, but I believe there is merit when he talks about the emphasis we, as athletes, place on suffering.

  
I have come to the realization that there is a distinct difference between persevering and suffering.  According to Wikipedia, perseverance is “human endurance”, while suffering is “a negative basic feeling or emotion, that involves…harm or threat of harm.”  I do not believe persevering involves the potential for harm or damage.  That is not to say one will not suffer at some point in an Ironman or another race, but I think the key is maintaining balance and knowing when to step back.  Persevering through a race is honorable.  Suffering through a race or workout at the cost of permanent damage to your health or serious injury is questionable decision-making. 

I am not writing this to whine or complain…no, the anger and frustration have since subsided.  When your 7 year-old is telling you to ‘get over it’ one cannot help but to move-on, or as I choose to look at it now…move-forward.  I know everybody has their mountain to climb, and most often we come out stronger on the other side.  Besides, there are many other ‘mountains’ I would not even want to attempt to climb.  Temporary setbacks do not mean ‘forever’ and while I did not get to complete my 200 meter butterfly [yet] or compete at the races I set out to do at the beginning of the season, I have found  immense joy in watching others complete their racing goals and have found new interests and goals outside of triathlon. 

I am constantly reminding my girls that life is not fair, and that we cannot always control what comes our way, but we do control our response and attitude to what life throws at us.  Ironically, it took my 7 year-old to remind me of this.

“You must treat your body with kindness and respect and come to the realization that this is your vehicle to move through life and you should not abuse it.”  
-Tim Sheeper, as quoted in “Breakthrough Triathlon Training” by Brad Kearns.
 

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.  You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.”      
-Eleanor Roosevelt
 

I am now officially registered for event #6 in the USMS National Long Course Swim Championship.   This means I am one step closer to the challenge my oldest daughter presented to me earlier this year.

So, how has training for the 200 fly been going?  Quite honestly…I feel like a first-time marathoner who is less than a month out to race day, and has yet to complete a half marathon!  I really wish I had specified ‘short course’ versus ‘long course’ because in my training I have realized one thing…I like walls. 

To make matters a bit more humbling, Lauren and the other kids from her swim team will be timing our events that morning.   Great…this is the opportunity for Lauren to experience what it is like to have to sit in the heat and watch your loved one swim, and a perfect occasion for Lauren to yell and scream at me to ‘kick faster!’ while fully aware that I am already going as fast as I can.

I only hope that cameras are barred from the pool deck.

Happy Training.
 

RIP Jon “Blazeman” Blais August 30, 1971 - May 27, 2007
He Leaves The World A Better Place Because He Was A Part Of It…
(posted on http://www.alswarriorpoet.com/)

Emerson wrote, “To laugh often and much, to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends, to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch…to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.  This is to have succeeded!”  

Thank you, Blazeman, for your enduring inspiration to myself and numerous others.