Thursday, May 12, 2016

I Don't Know

"I don't know"  I say that phrase a lot these days - I have very inquisitive three year old.  Why is it raining Mom?  Why does sun go down Mom?  Why aren't there dinosaurs anymore Mom? Why can't we go to Sodor and visit Thomas the Train and his Friends Mom?  How can reindeer fly when they don't have wings? Most of the time my answer is "I don't know", because I truly don't know the answer. Then his smarty pants daddy suggested respond with "It's science".....to which the toddler started asked "What do you mean?  Why is it science?"  Seriously Kid?!?! [Quick side note - When I told him this morning the reindeer fly because Santa has reindeer dust - he laughed and said "That's silly Mom, reindeer don't really fly because it's just a story - Santa Pup is real"  (My father in law "Pup", dressed up as Santa this year and we all thought T bought it - obviously he was just entertaining us) Sorry fellow moms if T is the one who explains to your toddler about the 'real Santa']

But on the way home from taking him to school this morning I started thinking that I should really start getting my training plain on paper (my first triathlon this season is in um....Holy Crap - THREE WEEKS...um haven't swam since march 2015....this should be interesting).  I was reminded of what a fellow athlete mama asked me weeks ago.  We had just met and started talking and she learned that I race triathlons and that I also did an Ironman post baby#1 (said Toddler)  She has two kiddos as well and raced marathons previous to being a Mom, but as we all experience, Mom 'anything' time goes down the tubes when you start popping humans out. (And Dad 'anything' time for that matter)  I mentioned that I signed up for all of my races this summer and she asked "How do you know you will be ready?"  You know?  I hadn't really thought of it.  To my advantage are the many many many triathlons already under my belt, so understanding what I was getting myself into was well known.  But will I be ready?  What is Ready really?  
Will I be ready to win?  Certainly not 
Will I be ready to place?  Probably not
Will I be ready to beat my previous race times?  Huh - I don't know - I hope so? (Yes J, I realize hopes not a method)Will I be ready to finish?  Even if I'm crawling.
Will I be ready when the starting gun goes off?  Yup
Will I be ready to try my hardest until I puke?  You Betcha
Will I puke? Chances are......
Will I be ready to give my son a high five down the finish shoot?  YES
Will I be ready to grab my 5 month old daughter after the finish line?  HELL YES
Will I be ready for the tears before, during and after?  Most Certainly

I don't really know if I will be ready the way I would like to be ready.  And I won't know if I'm ready until I try.  The worst thing that could happen is I don't even show up.  Screw not finishing - You can't even do that if you're not at the starting line.  I'm running and biking once each week.  Doing Yoga Barre 2-3 times per week (thanks www.blooma.com !)  I haven't swam a full set since my last race in March 2015.  And i haven't had a full nights sleep in 4 1/2 months.  Definitely not the training volume (or recovery) I'm used to committing to racing.  I don't know if I'll be happy when the alarm goes off that tells me I have to get up for the race before dawn.  But I'm going to do it - it beats cleaning the house - and I love seeing my kids in an environment of community like there is at a triathlon.
I want them to see their Mama try.  And I want them to see their Mama struggle.  I want them to see their Mama being strong and tough.  Heck - I want to see me do all those things!  This might not be the season of PRs, but it gives me something to chase, something to be better at, something to keep me healthy, something to inspire other Moms spectating the race who have been thinking "I could do that!!"
Yes, you can mama.
YES YOU CAN!


Friday, April 15, 2016

Miri's Birth Story

[OK so this isn't really about triathlon, but our birth photographer shared her experience of Miri's birth, so I figured I might as well share my version as well]

As with my first born babe, this was a very planned pregnancy.  We felt like we were getting a handle on our 2 yr old (we knew nothing).  Mama was in great shape.  And our guess date would be well after football season was over (Dad is a coach).  It was time.  And so it was, I became pregnant with a guess date of 18 Dec (Babe#1 birthday is 22 Dec – foreshadowing).  Babe #1 was a surprise breech water birth.  And when I say ‘surprise’, I mean, the midwife realized when my son’s testicles were in her hand, and I realized a few moments later when his entire body was out and his head remained to be seen.  A few days before he was born our midwife had a hunch that he ‘might’ be breech, but probably not…..And so we welcomed our breech babe, in the water, at home, healthy and safe.

But this isn’t about my first breech vaginal birth at home…..this is about my second.

As it became time in my pregnancy for my midwife to check position, we were in constant awareness of baby’s position.  Confirming, visit after visit, that babe was head down.  I attended a Breech Balancing class with both my midwife and doula, just in case we would need to try to turn babe, but it was mainly ‘maintenance’ for me as an added precaution.  As my belly grew, so did my midwife’s ‘hunch’ that this baby was not head down – not necessarily bum first – but perhaps not head down as we had thought.  I mean really….two breech babes???  We sought other midwives opinions and confirmed, basically, that we couldn’t confirm what position the baby was in, so, my midwife and I decided an ultrasound would be the prudent thing to do.  I wasn’t very happy about making this decision, but I trusted my midwife and followed her lead.  What I was most worried about was confirming a breech position and then, being 39 weeks pregnant, having no options but a cesarean.  I had no doubt I could deliver a breech babe again, so if we didn’t do the ultrasound and it was a surprise, then no worries – been there done that.

And here in lies the rub.  Knowledge is power….right?  The more we know about the babes position, the better we are able to prepare for the birth right?….but not in the case of breech position.  In a clinical setting, Mom’s have no choice when breech position presents – the only decision is to go into labor naturally before the Cesarean or simply schedule the Cesarean.

After just moments into the ultrasound, it was confirmed that Babe#2 was in a breech position.  Everything about baby looked great, size, organs, blood flow, placenta, fluid – all looked as it should.  As the tech is apologizing to me for the ‘bad’ news, I tried to explain to her, that breech doesn’t have to mean cesarean, and I kept on telling myself that until I called the midwife. Honestly, I didn’t really know what my options were.  Babe#1 was breech, but there was no turning back when we realized it.  I resolved to be stubborn to have this babe at home, until I spoke with my midwife.

Thankfully for me and my family, we had Aly.  A midwife who was ready and willing to go on this wild ride with us.  I called her on the way home from the ultrasound and we decided she would come to the house for a visit and we would discuss options.  I was so thankful that she was willing to spend the extra time with me, as it really helped me map out what our choices and ultimately what our decision would be.  Although I was determined to have this babe at home, it was important for me to be smart and not put anyone’s health at risk.  So we came up with four options:
1.     Scheduled Cesarean – Just get the babe out
2.     Planned Cesarean where mama goes into labor in the hospital (some labor can help mom with hormones even when Cesarean is planned) to follow with a Cesarean section.
3.     ECV to try to manually move babe into a head down position
4.     Begin bodywork with a Breech Balancing massage therapist to try to turn babe, and get body nice and ready to birth baby breech if baby didn’t turn and have babe at home.  Come up with an altered birth team to allow for additional support and possibly a breech birth expert – Gail Tully

All options had their own considerations and their own risks.

I was not comfortable with doing the ECV this late in pregnancy because of the risks of going into labor in the hospital where my only path would be a cesarean.  I was not comfortable with the Cesarean options as there were risks with those as well, but we also had to have a very real conversation about the risks of having a breech baby at home.  Also, I was not the only decider in this equation.  Dad had some say as well, and after discussing the 4 options when he got home, we planned for him to have a private discussion with the midwife so he could speak with her freely about his thoughts and concerns.  It was pretty obvious what I wanted, and I was just trying to convince him to come on my side of the fence.

After lots of discussion between the midwife and Dad, we decided to take it one day at a time and access our options.  One thing to consider was Gail would be out of town until Tuesday 15 December, just 4 days before my due date.  We all really felt more comfortable with her being at the birth, so ….. if I could just hold out until then.  We also decided to schedule as many appointments with the massage therapist for body work to get my body in the best shape possible to have this baby breech at home.  Our midwife would start assembling different options of the birth team as it would include midwives that also have their own practices and could be at other births, so lots of alternatives had to be planned out.  We would check in every day to see how everyone was doing and if anything had changed.  At this moment, we were a go for having a home birth with the knowledge that the midwife would have much tighter bounds on when we would go to the hospital, and if, at any time, any one of us started to think we might want to go to the hospital – we go and do a cesarean. 

So, I did my inversions, laid upside down on the ironing board, did my stretches….but I really didn’t think the baby was going to flip, I was just using it as time to talk with babe and start visualizing her birth. 

Tuesday came and went, So we had another meeting at our house with the midwives we hoped would be at the birth, including Gail and her pelvis and baby, to show me how baby would be born and the complications that could occur.  This was such a fun time for me as I felt so supported by three midwives who weren’t trying to scare me out of birthing my babe at home.  They were simply stepping through what her birth might look like, what my preferred birth position was (hands and knees), and allowed a space for me to ask any questions, and voice any concerns.

My midwife and I discussed, again, the risks associated with having her breech at home, and we decided it would be good for Dad and I to sign a liability statement.  We wrote our own statement, listing out the Risks and benefits of all 4 options as well as our decision to proceed with a vaginal breech birth at home. And although the verbiage in the documents seemed scary, as to what could happen to babe if she got stuck, I felt no hesitation that our decision to have her at home was the right one.  Honestly, I was more scared to go into the hospital for surgery.   I had so many things going for me.  Second time mama CHECK.  Second home birth CHECK.  Second Breech Babe CHECK. Great health markers throughout pregnancy CHECK.  Baby heart rate and movement great CHECK.

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday….

Saturday, 20 December,  night I woke up with contractions.  This was it!!  Contractions weren’t very long and were pretty far apart.  I was able to sleep through them, but thought I should call the midwife.  She said call when they start to get stronger, longer or closer together……they stopped by morning. We decided to check in later on Sunday – no change

Sunday night I woke up with more contractions, but after three of them, similar to the ones the night before, I decided I would call the midwife after the next one….which never came…. and I woke up in the morning.  We had an appointment scheduled for lunch that day, so we would chat then.

Monday, at our appointment, we did the normal checks, chatted about how we were feeling about our plans, and both of us said the same thing.  At times when we thought about the plan, we were a bit anxious, but once we got into the same space together, all was calm.  I felt even a little giddy thinking about the new path we were about to blaze for both of us.  That just solidified more that our chosen path was the right one.  Although my midwife had never planned a vaginal breech birth, I trusted her to the moon and back, and had no worries that she would do the perfect job helping me bring my daughter into this world.  Then as she was palpating my belly, baby shifted from her back on my left side to her back on my right side!  All of a sudden!  She was in an even more ‘perfect’ breech position.  So I headed home, knowing that if things started moving before traffic hit – I needed to call the midwife ASAP as it would taker her a while to cross town if it was rush hour.

And so I called her around 2:30pm?  I seemed to be having some contractions and thought it best to call her.  She decided to come to our house after running some errands and just take a quick snooze at our house.  She had a couple of long days recently and knew she wouldn’t get any rest at home, and if this babe was coming, she would already be here.  I wasn’t going to argue with that.  What mama doesn’t want her midwife upstairs taking a snooze when she is in early labor?  So she snoozed form 4ish to 7ish?  I had Dad come get her when I felt like the contractions were getting a bit stronger, and she was already up – apparently my most recent contraction was on her radar and she came down to get some vitals from babe. 

We started to make calls to get the rest of the birth team there and realized something…….exactly 3 years ago (to the day and time) we were gathering together to welcome my son into the World.  This was going to be even more special J

And so birth goes….slow and waiting….contraction after contraction…slow and steady.  Dad and I decided to head upstairs with the doula to avoid feeling watched and slowing labor, had one more contraction and things had seemed to stop.  Was this not it?  Seriously?  We started walking the stairs and Gail suggested for Dad and I to simply lie in bed together and share some space.  Dad had been sick for weeks and I had been avoiding him like the plague, so we hadn’t been close.  We lay down, the contractions started, and after 2 or 3 of them, my water broke.  This party was getting started.

The entourage of 3 midwives, midwife assistant, doula, and photographer all joined us in our bedroom and the business of getting this babe born was about to begin.  I was directed by my midwife to sit on the toilet for some contractions…augh….I knew I was not going to like this….and I didn’t….I can still hear my midwife’s words in my head (ringing from the first birth as well) “Leslie, the pain is what brings the baby”.  I could have punched her in the face- but I didn’t J  On the toilet,  One foot on a toilet paper roll, one foot on a yoga block, I felt like I was starting to push and the contractions seemed to be coming very quickly.  I was directed to the bed to get on my hands and knees, but couldn’t make it there without a contraction in between. 

I got up on the bed, on my hands and knees, and started the hard work of getting my daughter Earth side.  I don’t really remember much of this other than it was painful and I was having contractions.  Baby’s heart rate was great, and I was working like crazy to get her here.  Then I hear “We saw some of your baby this time Leslie” – What???? Already???

Then I have no idea how many minutes, or pushes it took, but it didn’t seem long.  There was her bum, then her legs came out and plopped on the bed, then her arms came out and she was sitting like a little Buddha on the bed.  Then the midwife mentioned for me to shift forward just a bit, and there was her chin, lips, nose and there she was!!!  Bright eyed and beautiful.     53 minutes from water breaking to her Miri’s birth.  1:04 22 December 2016…..on her Big Brother’s 3rd birthday.

It was an amazing gift that these women gave me and my family, to bring my daughter (and son) into this world in our home.  I’m tearing up just thinking about what the alternatives were. The alternatives that were not acceptable to me, and thankfully not to my midwife.  Tearing up thinking about the beautiful calmness in the room as I pushed her out.  Tearing up thinking about all of the wonderful encouragement I was given throughout my pregnancy and her birth.  I owe a lifetime of thanks to those women who gave me a gift I remember every time I look at my childrens’ faces.  A gift of choice.  Our choice.

If I included it all, it would be a novel (it’s already too long), but special thanks of course to my midwives, Aly Folin at Northstar Midwifery, Rebecca Polston at Roots Community Birth Center, Rachel Voigt, Margaret Owens (Mothering by Mom), Alli  Parfenov (Indigo Birth Photography) and Gail Tully (Spinning Babies).  Also a big thanks of course to my Mother in Law who was willing to trust us, while she cared for out toddler while babe was born.  And of course, to my most amazing husband – the man who puts up with my ridiculous stubbornness every day and the man who makes me realize the woman I want to be every day.  I love you all with everything that I am. 

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Just Try Your Best Mom!!

So, it’s been a while.  For a couple reasons - a three year old and a 9 week old.  Yup that’s right people.  I made another human.  [Mic Drop] Man, I wish I was that cool!!  But sadly, as my husband would say, I am just another person living closer and closer to the middle.  At least that’s how it feels most days.

So let’s just get right to it.  As much as I want to have this amazing life at the moment, I feel more and more every day like I am barely getting through each day above water.  Most of you know my drill and most of you would say I have it pretty good.  I do.  I’m not denying that.  My family and my life are pretty ‘amazing’.  But I just don’t feel amazing most of the time.  I feel like I fall short every day – On lots of things.

So I have this three year old.  Who.  I. ADORE.  And who also loves to ask “why” until there are no answers left for me to give.  Who has a ton of energy.  Who drops f-bombs at appropriate times.  Who likes to do everything himself.  I really do try to give him lots of rope.  To let him try experiments that I don’t think will work, but he has to test them out.  To go outside after dinner, when it’s dark out, to sort rocks until bathtime just because.  And with all of this ‘energeticness’ he often gets frustrated.  I try to remind him when he says “I can’t Mom”, and respond “did you try your best?”  Sometimes yes, sometimes no – but he almost always TRIES AGAIN.  If he’s unable, I help him.  If he’s able – total win.

It seems such an easy piece of advice for me to give my toddler.

One year ago – almost to the day – I was prepping my family to travel to New Zealand where my first order of business was to finish my second Ironman.  We went and I did.  I was in the best shape of my life.  I am now 9 weeks post partum and any triathlete dreams I have for this summer seem unattainable.  I’m sore after yoga.  I’m so tired that the thought of getting up early or staying up late to get in a workout seems ridiculous.  And I recently told my husband that I wasn’t going to race this summer because I just don’t see how I’ll have time.  I was ready to put one of the biggest things that makes me me, on hold, because I couldn’t find the time.  And I realized, it was, simply honestly, less scary for me to not try than it was for me to fail. 

The other day T and I were playing ‘hockey’ – rolled up coloring books are ‘whackers’, a golf ball is our ‘ball’ and we ‘pitch’ the ball by hitting the ball with the whackers back and forth – he finds so many ways to play new games - and the ball went under the couch for the millionth time.  I just couldn’t reach it without moving the couch AGAIN.  I just.  Couldn’t. do. It.  And then T says “Just try your best Mom”.  I started to cry.  Of course that wasn’t my best.  Just move the stupid couch.  Who cares if it was the millionth time it happened – just get the ball. 

And I started to think. I must try my best.

It’s important to understand the difference between trying your best and doing your best.  You can always try your best.   You can’t always do your best.  Your best is different every day.  You’re tired.  You’re dehydrated.  You just don’t have the right mindset.  Some days you do your best, some days you don’t. So today, I tried my best.   I ran for 3 x 1 minute parts of my walk – not much but more than I did yesterday. I signed up for yoga classes for the rest of the month.  I ate half a chocolate bar (ok, I could have skipped that part, but it felt good).  And the triathlons I have on the calendar – I signed up and paid for.  So look out – 4 triathlons on the calendar in pen – 1 pending.  Doesn’t matter what I look like in my tri kit – Chances are I’ll be the only one with a 6 month old on my hip when I go up to get my medal!


So, Just Try Your Best Mamas.  With your Friends.  With your Kiddos. With your Family Members.  With your Partners.  And most importantly Try your best for yourself and whatever makes you the wonderful YOU that you are. 

Friday, September 11, 2015

Here we go again!!!

A lot has happened since my last report of my Race in New Zealand in March - well not a lot really - Just big news of Baby #2 set to arrive December 2016 - and my rekindled love/hate relationship with being a pregnant triathlete.

I'm not even sure what I want to say in this first post, but I'm already emotional just thinking about it.  Yay for pregnancy hormones!!! 

I started this blog 2 1/2 years ago after the birth of my son, to bring a voice to my unexpected struggles while trying to get back to being a competitive triathlete.  It was hard.  Much harder then I expected.  Both physically and emotionally.  Now I'm struggling during pregnancy, and wanting to bring a voice, some hope and some new resources to those who can resonate with my stories.

The beginning 12 weeks of this pregnancy were not fun.  I felt hung-over every day, all day, without the fun the night before.  Although that has gotten better, my diet has not been up to the par I expect from myself, and my decrease in exercise is bumming me out.  (Future blog post about the expectations we put on ourselves as moms:) )  My energy has also gotten better, and I find the more active I stay, the better my energy is throughout the day.  I was able to walk/run up until about a week ago, now the run is only 4 minutes of my 30-40 minute session - so I started swimming this week!!!  I haven't swam since my race in March, and although I look pretty funny doing wide legged flip turns, I have a small bit of time where I don't feel SO pregnant.  Plus just being in the water is, I think, good therapy for anyone.

So that should all make me very happy! Right???  Don't get me wrong, when I have the patience and time to look at my life and get my attitude right, I can't complain, I've got it pret-ty good.   But it's really hard sometimes to 'Be OK' with getting bigger.  And with Baby #2, it happened a lot sooner than with my son.  I know my body is doing the good work of growing an entire human in my body.  I get it.  But it still bums me out when I can't reach my bike handle bars anymore, or my 2 1/2 year old runs faster than I can - dead serious.

I have to remind myself every day that this pregnancy will soon be over and I will miss it:)  I have to remind myself every day that it's nice to slow down for a 10 month+  'season' and enjoy not having to train and race.  I have to remind myself every day that I simply need more rest while being pregnant, working and taking care of a toddler.  All of this will pass all too soon.  But it's a daily struggle to feel beautiful.  I feel like a barrel and my boobs just wont stop growing.  seriously.  they're huge.  And I can't help but think what they will be like when nursing before the start of a race next summer :)  I'm sure it will turn some heads.  Every other pregnant woman I look at looks ADORABLE, with a fabulous belly, but I still feel like I look like I gained 28 lbs and people can't tell if I'm pregnant or not.

Some of you that know me are probably rolling your eyes thinking I look great, I'm an athlete, I'm active.  But it's all about how we see ourselves.  How we feel about ourselves.  I quietly struggle with my physical self in a very emotional, internal way, and it's hard to overcome that sometimes.

Then something like this happens - while getting dressed at the gym this morning, a woman passes by and tells me I look adorable.  Brought the biggest smile to my face.  I rubbed my baby, gave her a quick squeeze, and got on my way.  It's another opportunity for me to Win This Day, and be the best woman, momma, wife, sister, daughter, friend, triathlete (if I can' still call myself that - idea #2 for future post), I can be.  So if you see a pregnant momma, tell her she looks beautiful.  She might cry, but you just made her day.

There is a community that has just begun here in the Twin Cities, called the Mid Drift Movement.  I encourage you to check it out and watch their quick film.  Their goal is "to change society’s unrealistic expectations of what a mother’s body should look like and to embrace motherhood’s physical transformations."  I can't wait to work on this myself as the months go forward, and I look forward to spilling my guts about my struggles and triumphs as baby's Birth Day get closer, and then, how in the world I am going to train and race with a newborn and a toddler next summer?  I have no idea - but I'm going to Tri!!!

XOXOXOXXOOO!!!

 





Monday, March 30, 2015

Race Report - IM NZ 07 March 2015

Well IM NZ is in the books and I couldn’t be happier, or sadder.

Travel went well, except for a ‘little’ hiccup in MN that almost kept us from getting on the plane, and more probably from the entire trip altogether (I’ll spare you the details, mostly because I’m trying to strip it from memory, but HUGE thanks to cuz D), our air travel to NZ went pretty well.  T did great, slept on the long 12 hour flight from CA to NZ, and did the 4-hour car trip to Taupo without too much fuss.  I wasn’t really able to move around or stretch much during the flight, but stayed hydrated, and basically just tried to go with the flow until we got to our final destination for the race.  Got a quick run in on the day we arrived as well.  Got up early on our first full day.  Assembled my bike to make sure everything was OK.  I took off my rear derailleur this time because I thought it would be prudent for such a long flight – note to self – make sure you know how to put it back on correctly – Because as I was getting the bike together I just wasn’t 100% sure I did it correctly and ended up at the closest bike shop to ensure my bike was A-OK.  $50 later and a day in the shop was well worth it.  Pre-race week - Got my swim/bike/run workouts in for the most part.  Skipped my last run before the race because it was very hot by the time I had a chance to do it, so figured it was better to rest.  I felt like I did a good job ‘relaxing’ before the race, but I was also on vacation in an amazing place with another family, so I felt like I had to ‘do’ something at least one of the days before the race, so on Thursday we all did the ‘craters of the moon’ walk.  It was hot and I was pretty tired by the end of it.  Should have skipped that, but I skipped my run instead and just let the stress that I may have used up too much energy roll off my back.  Registration went well.  Bag/Bike drop went well.  Got my bearings wrt where my bike was in relation to swim in/bike out/bike in/run out.  A girl I met during one of my swims was right next to me on the bike racks, and she let me borrow her pump, so that was set.  Just needed to get special needs and race stuff together and show up.

Goal Achieved – Truly wanted to do my best at being relaxed and not getting hung up on things I couldn’t control.  Certainly with a trip that long with a toddler, something is bound to go poorly, and things definitely did, but we rolled with the punches and I think I achieved this in my book.  This will serve me well for the rest of my racing (and mommy) days.  This was actually a huge achievement for me.

Learning point #1:  Make sure to know how to 100% reassemble your bike, or know that you will take it into a shop and have a plan for that.  My situation wasn’t a big deal and was remedied fairly easily, but would have been nice to not have had to take it in for that full day and the 2 extra stops we took into town that day.
Learning point #2:  Don’t feel like you have to ‘do something’ when on a bucket-list vacation race.  Sitting on the beach three days in a row in the shade watching your son have a blast is still ‘doing something’ J
Learning point #3:  Although I do feel like I was much more laid back and calm about things in general on this trip, I felt like I could have been more organized.  I did have checklists of checklists, but I felt like when we got to NZ I didn’t know where anything was and I wasted a lot of time searching for clothing/tools/race items etc.  It added a layer of stress.

Saturday 3/7 – RACE DAY!!!!!
Got up early no problems.  Actually slept really well.  My husband covered 100% of the logistics with the kiddo for race day (and pretty much almost everything kiddo related up to now), so that really took a layer of stress away from me.  Had my coffee and breaky and we were on our way.  The race venue was really easy for parking and maneuvering around the course, certainly compared to other IM race sites we have been to.  Race morning went pretty much as expected.  We had about 15 minutes before race start to get in the water for warm-up so a quick good-luck kiss from the hub and I was off.  I did some drill/swim/drill/swim as planned. Tried to move up to the front of the pack, started getting a little elevated heart rate as things were a bit more congested, and then the gun went off.  I didn’t think I was that stressed until the swim started.  Immediately, I wanted to quit and decided never to do another triathlon again J  Man it was packed.  I felt like I couldn’t get a breath.  There was no such thing as form for the first  half mile.  It was bad.  I felt like I couldn’t race the first part to get ahead because it was so congested.  Still pulled off a PB at 1:03 – so happy with that.
Learning Point #4:  If I’m going to go hard at the beginning of the swim, get in the FRONT, and get going, then settle in.
Transition to Bike went as expected, I’m never as smooth as I plan, but still better than most, but I could stand to practice that a bit more simply by racing more.  Then the bike.  Oh was it cold at the beginning.  I felt like I just couldn’t warm up.  My hands were so cold that I felt like I couldn’t really shift or brake effectively.  But as the rain subsided and the sun came out, things got better.  About 90 minutes into the bike I felt as though my ‘line’ was fast approaching and got a bit nervous, but I seemed to pass through it as I came back into town at the turnaround and saw supporters.  That gave me an extra little boost to get through the second loop.  Nutrition – My plan was working fine….except I really had to pee….and I had a hard time peeing while riding.  So I just kept plugging away with my electrolyte/nutrition trade-off.  I really started to get some bad cramping, but it really felt like it was from having to pee so bad.  I was afraid to back off my nutrition too much as I didn’t want to get behind, but I did feel as if I was hydrated and full of calories.  I never got ‘wonky’, so I really don’t think it was my nutrition, but that’s something else to test the limits on wrt my keto-adapted athlete approach.  The roads were crap.  My seat was actually OK, but my shoulders felt like they were going to fall off when I would come up out of the aero position – which proudly wasn’t often. The wind was a tough mental game.  I kept on taking myself to my many 5-hr trainer rides and one 6-hr trainer ride.  I just got it done.  Not happily, and pretty much decided I never want to do another IM Again J  but I did it.  I pulled a 6:30, which was longer than expected, but I wasn’t really affected by it. 

Learning Point #5:  If you have to pee on the bike, and can’t physically do it, take the 2 minutes it takes to stop at an aid station and go to the porta-potty.
Learning Point #6:  Trust your keto-nutrition and take in fewer calories during the race.

Transition to Run went well.  I was happy with my ‘bag within a bag’ system.  Running with my visor, nutrition and race number in my smaller bag out of transition seemed effective.  My tummy was still a bit of an issue at that point, but still, it didn’t feel like nutrition, it felt like I was still holding on to some discomfort from not peeing for so long on the bike.  So I tried to take it slow, but was running a fast pace.  I seriously tried to run as slow as possible, but couldn’t go slower than 9:30 so just went with it.  I didn’t’ realize the wind was at my back J  Then at the turn around, I realized why it was so easy going out on that first loop.  So I did deal with tummy issues, much of the run.  I only took in water the first 18 miles and after that I started with coke.  At the end of the race I weighed exactly the same as I did at registration, so that tells me I had my hydration OK.  I continued to run the whole race – even when the wind was so bad I was literally leaning into the wind and winding my hands all around trying to stay upright – seriously.  I have never been in weather like that in real life before – it was crazy.  But as my husband reminded me when I was coming back on my second loop – I wanted a memorable experience – and I got it.  My left knee really started to hurt on the end of the second loop and had me pretty worried.  This same thing happened at my first marathon and I could tell it was because my inner leg muscles start to do most of the work while my glutes and hamstrings are tired and my knees start to knock, making my outer knee ones start to bump into each other – it really hurts, and I thought I might be done.  But I just remembered that the faster I get to the end, the faster it will stop.  I rubbed my knees and gave them some heat, and just kept going. 

Learning Point #7 – AGAIN, because it needs repeating, TRUST my keto-nutrition.  I could have taken in less on the bike, dropped my water a bit and been able to take in more sugar on the run to spread it out a bit.
Learning Point #8 – Focus on Run form, and strengthen bigger running muscles to help improve my speed and less time out on the course to injure my knees
Learning Point #9 – Since 9 is my lucky number, seems perfect to finish on this.  Find success.  PB Swim.  PB Run.  PB overall time. 
Felt like I never even really hit my line, but I approached it many times, and just got through it.  And I felt good enough to make it to the midnight finish with my husband.  Incredible.  What an experience.  As I approach the end of my travels in NZ, I can recommend this race, and certainly this country for a bucket list trip. 

Thanks for everyone’s support – I couldn’t have done it with this much flair without you J
Cheers,
Leslie


Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Deep Thoughts and Thank You

In The 6th Discipline Post, I mentioned that little voice inside our head and visualization while training and racing.  As I trained almost all of my workouts in the dungeon that is my basement, on the trainer/treadmill, and swam watching that straight black line for hours…….I thought……a lot.  We focus so much on the training.  Am I getting faster?  Did I push hard enough?  What was my heart rate?  But as I tried to find my mental strength in that basement,  I had to find things to focus on to work on that mental strength.  Anyone who has ever done an IM can tell you, that if you show up 100% physically ready and not mentally prepared, the day will eat you alive.  I just talked with my coach this week for a little mojo boost going into race week and he reminded me that all that mental work I put in will serve me well on race day.  So I thought I would pass some of those deep thoughts along to you and encourage you, if you are short on time, to cut that next main training set short in order to get in one of these ‘workouts.  I do think that ‘training’ that mental strategy needs to be integrated into training in order for athletes to be as successful as they can be.  We all know the elite athletes do visualization of their sport – if it’s helps them be the best – it surely can help us.

Flawless execution of the basics  Before $XX,000 bike that is 100 gms lighter than your other one, before $X,000 wheels, before extra light race tubes; If you don’t have the basics down – swim race start technique (Do you know what it feels like to sprint for 400m and then ‘settle in’ to a swim?), racing the ride (Do you let your heart rate go all over the place because you are focused on your speed and the other athletes passing you or are you staying steady, strong and focused on your level heart rate, getting in perfect hydration and nutrition?), being patient on the run (Do you stay patient on the front end of the run so you can crush the end of the race or do you rush to the end, only to end up walking?  Did you not practice your nutrition in training and end up spending more time in the porta potty?)  If you don’t have the basics down, the oober light equipment and the unrealistic pace goals you set for yourself will be of little help.

Focus on the process not the outcome – If your race time is the only measure of success for you on race day, you could end up sorely disappointed.  Did you really do all those months of training to only have a moment of happiness on race day?  I really hope not, because that was a lot of time away from family and friends for just a few moments.  The training IS the process.  Race Day should be a CELEBRATION of all the hard work put in.  It’s the part we love (don’t we???).  It’s why we get up at 4:00AM.  This also applies to training.  Not every day is our best day.  My swim this morning was crap – but I had a terrible night’s sleep (well, my kiddo had a terrible night sleep ergo…..) – so it was expected.  I also had a run set directly after my swim that I crushed because I was able to forget about my run in the locker room and reset my mind for my 2 x 1 mile sets.

Commit to the plan and process -  When training for an Ironman, you could be training anywhere from 12-24 weeks.  In reality, we sign up a year in advance to make sure we get a spot and start our training then.  So make a plan, commit to it, believe in it, and execute.  When it comes to looking back at your training and racing, if you are trying to learn from mistakes, but didn’t follow a set plan, how will you know what to fix next time?  If you don’t like your plan, or not quite sure if it’s right for you, ask someone.  Hire a coach.  We spend all this money on equipment, race entry and travel and then skimp on having a coach along with us for the journey.  I have a friend (you know who you are K :)) who struggles with sticking to a plan because she loves to be informed and take bits and pieces from plans that ‘fit’ her.  And every season I try to encourage her to just stay the course, and in the end, there are just too many variables to make progress efficient…….she’ll start listening someday (you know I love you!!).   I started as an Endurance Nation Athlete this year.  It was a much different process than I had done before, and certainly for IM training.  For my previous IM I did a 24 week, high volume training plan.  This plan was a 12-wk plan with only 1 long ride each week.  BUT I bought in 12 months before and worked on getting faster during summer race season.  I worked my tiny booty off during the outseason, only did 5 workouts/week and made them count.  I didn’t swim for 14 weeks during outseason (and I wasn’t one ounce slower when I started my 12 week IM training btw – I was iffy about this – but how do you know unless you do it??)  And I said ‘”OK” to only 12-weeks of training and to a lower volume at that while my counter parts were putting in 10+ more hours than I was.  We’ll see what worked and what didn’t…..

Focus on what you are doing NOW – During training, make a focus.  What is your workout today?  What are your goals? Make the most of it.  On race day – did you have a bad swim? – forget about it – get to the bike.  Are people passing you like crazy?  Hmmmm most likely you will see them on the run when they are walking and you’re running because you didn’t use up all your effort on the bike.  Are you H-U-R-T-I-N-G??  Are you barely making it from tree to tree?  Focus on your stride length.  Count to 100.  Focus on 5ft in front of you.  Focus on knee drive.  Oh next aid station is already here?  AWESOME.  Focus on your stride length.  Count to 100…..you get the idea.  Focus on the task at hand and do whatever you need to do to put one foot in front of the other.  You can do it.  And if you can’t your body will collapse :)  You’re mind will give you EVERY excuse to quit, you have to shut that off, and figure out a way to get it done.

It takes patience and discipline to GO SLOW – It seems counter intuitive, but it’s so much easier to do a VO2 max set than it is a slow Z1 run.  Both are necessary in training -Both deserve the same amount of focus - Because on race day - When you get on that bike and people are blazing by you, you MUST KNOW what it feels like to go slow.  You must know what that ‘I could do this forever as long as someone gave me food and drink’ pace is on the bike and the run.  This is the hardest of all for me.  Not in training, but in racing.  I get anxious on the start of that run.  I’m not ‘fast’ really at any of the disciplines, but at an IM distance, if I can just not slow down over the course of those 26.2 miles, and keep inching up my speed on that run (like I have done for 100s of miles on that stinking treadmill), I will start pegging off my competition like there is no tomorrow.


Visualize your BEST and your WORST day - Every morning when I do my breathing exercises, I think through different parts of my race day.  Being calm on race morning.  Visualizing each leg of the race - including transitions - and telling myself how strong and fast I am.  As my coach reminded me, it's also important to visualize the 'hiccups' that could happen on race day.  Race day never goes as planned.  At some point you fall apart; You have someone grab your ankle and use you as momentum - do you let it rile you up, or 'just keep swimming'?  You drop a nutrition bottle - do you stop and pick it up?  If not, or you're simply unable to logistically, what is your alternate course of action?  Your bike explodes (or some version :) ) - Do you freak out and quit? Or do you take the opportunity to slow down for a sec, get some food in, stretch out your back, and get to the business of fixing your bike.  Do you feel tummy troubles coming on? - Do you just ignore it, it gets worse and you end up passing out in the porta potty? or do you slow down, stop the nutrition, get your tummy right and re-start your run plan.  

Just in case I don’t get in another post before we depart on our long journey.  THANK YOU.  Thank you to the 5 people who read this post and make me feel like I’m putting smiles on faces.  Thank you to all my friends who have supported me through this indoor training.  Thank you to all my family who think I’m crazy, but support me anyway.  Thank you to my Endurance Nation Family.  Being a part of the EN team and family has been awesome – I’m not sure how I would have done this without their help and support.  That community is an awesome place, and I’m happy and proud to be a part of it.  And of course, to my ‘One Thing’.  Even though there are two of you,  There is no T without you.  Thank you for watching T every morning while I got up at 4AM and high fived you in the kitchen when I was done and you had to go to work.  Thank you for taking T all day Saturday while I slaved away on that beloved trainer.  Thank you for all your inspirational messages on the white board that I stared (and cried) at during my runs.  Thank you for coming down to the dungeon and teaching T “GO MOMMY GO”.  Thank you for being willing to embark on this unbelievable journey.  Your love and support will be what carries me through that finish line and gets me from tree to tree.  I apologize in advance for any impossibleness I convey during our trip half way around the world.  I love you.