Family Tree Stuff

Today's project: Get as far on the family tree as possible. Here's how far I got:

Acheson/Reif Family Tree (a work in progress)

Radnor Lake

Today was a fabulous day: Workout with Will (5 on, 5 off thru 45 lunge, glute wall squat, and push up followed by 5×3 each side Russian twists), work (where we had a party for lunch with pizza, taco salad, pigs in a blanket, chicken, and a slew of other things—it was quite the variety!), then Radnor Lake for a 5.5-mile hike with Anna. It was a good way to work off the chocolate cake we'd eaten the night before at the Pampered Chef party :-)

On a bridge in the middle of the first trail

Anna on the same bridge

The deer are fearless. We were no more than 10 feet away and she never even flinched!

It was absolutely beautiful, with all the leaves falling and super colorful. There were a few times we were unsure whether we were on the trail, but we managed to not get lost and to enjoy the walk and talk.

Swim—Timing 50s

Another fun workout with Will (and Zach): 1 minute on, 1 minute off, repeat 5 times.

• Wall squat
• Glute Ham
• Lunge R, L
• Push up on knees

Then it was off to the pool to swim:

• 200 warm up
• 3 sets of 5×50@15 seconds: 1) catch up fist, catch up regular; 2) catch up regular, swim (count-stroke); 3) 10-kick roll (on your side, with bottom hand out front and top hand on hip, kick 10 times, stroke and roll, and repeat; face stays in water except to breathe)
  
• 50 easy
  
• 10×50 pull@15 seconds (breathe every 3 strokes for 25, breathe every 5 strokes for 25 without taking a breath immediately off the wall; I had a lot of trouble timing my turns on this set and thus did not make the 5 strokes immediately off the wall the majority of the time)
  
• 6×50@15 seconds: medium (42.31), medium-fast (42.99), fast (40.71), 1-min rest, medium (47.44—Lachelle and Kim were doing butterfly and I caught up to and couldn't pass them), medium-fast (43.28), fast (42.17—again, I had obstacles and wasn't timing my turns very well); these might have been slightly faster because I was timing myself and wouldn't turn off the timer until I'd already touched the wall, and since L and K were in front of me, I had to try to avoid them while still swimming hard.
  
• 1,300 total

There are definitely benefits to swimming with a group, but there are downsides as well. Benefits include being able to draft, and downsides include having obstacles in your lane. On the positive side today, I did not run into anyone even though L stopped right in the middle of the lane in the middle of a 50; I was paying attention!

5 Minutes Again?

Will surprised me this morning by requiring another set of 5 minutes of work:

• Lunge R, L
• Standing extreme ham
• Push up on knees
• Preacher curl with 10-lb dumbbells
• Russian twist: 5×3 each side

The lunge was interesting. Nancy, Bill, and Zach were all down there with us, so he just told me to go and I started. I expected it to be maybe 10 seconds or 30 seconds (I saw him start the timer), so I thought I'd just work really hard for that amount of time and then get a rest. But the time kept ticking on until 5 minutes were up. Then I got 5 minutes of rest and did my left leg. This time I knew it was for 5 minutes and I paced myself. That made it way harder, and although I lasted without touching my back knee to the ground for at least 2:30 on the right leg, I lasted only about 1:30 on the left leg. Push up was about 4:35. I would like to think I could have gone the remaining 25 seconds had I known, but probably not. I could have known had I looked up at the timer (pretty sure I was just thinking about swimming a 500 and thus had my eyes closed), but I pretty much went as long as possible. Preacher curl was all 5 but I could not move my arms after!

What's up after work is a volleyball double-header (provided it's not raining or too wet to play) and 1:15 on the trainer. Psych, here I come!

Today's totally random project: Contact PowerBar to compliment them on their Gel Blasts, lemon flavored, and try to score some coupons or free products. Result: Success!

The Contact Us form wasn't working, so I called and talked to representative Ryan who informed me that the product is no longer being produced. That would explain why I couldn't find it on their website. I have since checked all the suggested sites he gave me and it's not available anywhere, so that's a bummer. But, he offered to send me coupons so that I can try some of their other products. Hooray! Maybe the strawberry-banana flavor will be good, I can find some good deals, and I can share them with the team.

Rest Day (or at least, an-easy-swim day)

Bill and Nancy came to work out with us this morning, so it was a full house in the Landings' workout room! It's fun to listen to their family interactions. Zach might join us eventually, too; I think that we all will be a challenge for Will.

5 minutes of work:

• Wall squat
• Glute ham
• Standing ham
• Push up on knees
• Preacher curl (10-lb dumbbells)
• Finish later: scap pull up and crate crunch (I wish I would have remembered this when we were finished because I would have done them right then!)
  

Swim:

• 100 warm up
• 4×(50 kick, 50 drill, 25 swim)
• 3×50 butterfly kick
• 3×50 butterfly stroke (right arm down, left arm back)
• 4×25 butterfly
• 50 cool down
• 1,050 total (short day, which is nice for a rest day!)
  

Then I left, but they were doing a few more butterfly drills before finishing

Team Ride, Sprints (100s, 400s)

Team Belladium has been open enough to let me ride training rides with them. Today was absolutely amazing. The weather was perfect, the crowd was big, and the ride was great.

Before that, though, I ran 30+ minutes (33:11 [Moores to GGP and back], 3.89 mi, 8:31 pace [6:56 best], 465 cal, 171 HR [187 max]).

Then Will and I went to the track at Centennial High to run sprints. Well, Will was running sprints and I was there to time him. He is fast! He did 40s (5.07 and 5.09), 100s (11.81 and 11.72), and a 400 (1:05.xx). He did the first 40 and the first 100 without my timing him because I totally messed up the stop watch. I felt terrible! I found some results on the CU Yellow Jackets' website from a track meet they competed in (May 5, 2008) to get an idea of speeds of athletes at the college level. He could definitely compete at that level!

Men

• 100-meter dash: 11.09 - 13.14
• 400-meters: 48.46 - 55.20

My results were OK. I did 100s (14.25 and 14.25) and a 400 (1:21.xx). My 400 times earlier this year when I was actually doing speed work were 1:30xx (2-25-09) and 1:38, 1:30, and 1:35 (3-10-09). Actually, today's results are better than I'd thought! Of course, I was racing Will's times, so that made me go faster. A little slow to compete in either event at the college level, though.

Women

• 100-meter dash: 12.37 - 13.34
• 400 meters: 59.05 - 1:06.90

We left for our ride around 1 and did the following: 1:43:08 (actually, we finished around 1:30 but rode around a bit until the others arrived), 30 miles, 17.4 average (30.3 mas), 1,791 calories, 159 HR (191 max).

Me, Kelli, Lisa C, and Shelly's husband behind Lisa S and Parri--Lisa is brave to take pictures this way!

When we all returned to Lisa's house, we ate leftover chili and great desserts and had a team discussion. They are making me feel like part of the team and I love it! Great, strong women to ride with!

Todd, Shelly, Parri, me, Valerie, Lisa C, Jonell, Cali, and Kelli (with Lisa S behind the camera)

Beautiful Weather!

Will and I (along with his parents) worked out early today, when it was still cold, but it sure warmed up nicely! It's a shame I didn't take any pictures during my walk on the path in Brentwood--the trees are in full color and beautiful!

• Glute ham: 6-6-6 EDI
• Standing ham: 300 rebound. That is a lot of standing hamstring!
• 1-leg squat: 5 on, 5 off thru 25. R, L, R, L
• Push up: 10 seconds, 1 rep, repeat 3 times
• 1-arm dumbbell row: 25 lb, 6 reps R, 6 reps L
• Repeat the previous two 5 times
• The previous 2 were supposed to have been bench press heavy and bentover barbell row but we improvised.

As previously mentioned, I went walking instead of swimming (I just could not be inside when it was amazing outside, and none of the outdoor pools are still open). Then it was off to church and Todd's house for a chili dinner (Jack makes some good chili and I enjoyed his only even though there were at least 11 choices and we were supposed to judge them all) and a movie (American Flyers, cycling-themed, of course).

Swim:

• 300 wu (4–5 RPE) tech.
• 12×25@10sec RI drills
• 10×25@15sec RI kick
• 12×25@10sec RI pull
• 300 cd (4–5 RPE) tech.

Ride:

• 56:30, 16.12 miles, 17.1 mph (28.3 max), 1,000 calories, 154 HR (175 max)
  
• This was the windiest ride ever!

Then I went to Blue Coast with Aunt Renee, where we sat for about 2 hours and just chatted. It was so nice!

Training with Will

• Lunge: 10 times 15 seconds each leg
• Wall squat: 10 times 4 altitude drops with 3-second pause at bottom
• Glute ham: 10 times 4 quick style from arm's length (I had a really hard time keeping my glutes engaged the entire time; Will said 1 and 2 were rough and 3 and 4 were good on the first few sets, but then as I began to focus they were all much better)
• Push up: 5 minutes iso extreme (this was supposed to have been a wide push up, like with your arms spread while you stood between two squat machines or something, but since we were in our little workout room, we did push up on knees)
• Push up: 10 time 4 altitude drops with a short pause at bottom (this was supposed to have been altitude drop bench press but that wasn't an option)
• Bicep curls: 10 times 4 quick style (we used 10-lb dumbbells; he said it was supposed to have been with a heavy-ish bar, I think)

Have I mentioned lately that it's great having Will around to train with? There's something I like about being told what to do and not having to think about the workout itself but rather being able to focus on just doing it, and something more I enjoy about having a good friend nearby.

My lunchtime run was less than stellar. I had to get out because it's supposed to rain later, and it was absolutely beautiful—sunny with very few people on the trail. Unfortunately I was running slow (8:30s or so) and my stomach was not feeling well at all. But I managed 35 minutes, which is what I needed.

The focus of the run was glutes. Since I failed a lot during glute ham this morning, I thought I'd really work on it during the run. These are supposed to be technique runs, after all, and they are short, so that affords me time to focus. My hip flexors have never been so tight on or after a run before!

Inversion's activity for the night, instead of the usual Bible study Thursday, was to meet at the church and head out to Spring Hill and the RippaVilla Plantation. The plan was to go through their corn maze which, according to the website, is the most challenging at night. It was night and it was dark, but it was not a maze and it was not challenging. Before we paid our $6 entry fee, Jonathan set the challenge: The team in and out in the fastest time wins, and three teams will get rewards. My team was Jesi, Amanda, Brandon, Mike, Christian, me, and 4 other people (teams of 10). We were tipped off to the fact that it really wasn't a maze when they handed us all maps upon entry. The map showed a cut-through from the entrance to one exit, so we entered, cut across, exited, and stopped the clock: 16 seconds. We then went and told Jonathan that it wasn't a maze.

All was not lost, though. We reentered, went all the way to the end, and then found our way back out, stopping along the way to look at signs they had set up. It was a tour of the solar system. I broke off from my group when they started hiding to scare people and joined up with another group (Clint, Jonathan, Amy, Haddon, Hayes, Laura, Laura, and others) that was actually interested in seeing all the planets and constellations. Haddon (4) and Hayes (1.5) were loving it; kids always make things so exciting because everything is new for them. The rain put a slight damper on the fun, though, and we headed over to Buffalo Wild Wings. That made for a late night/early morning, but it was fun and thus worth it. Plus I think I was able to encourage the few people I talked to: Brent, Carolyn, and Amanda. If they see the love of Christ in me, I am serving Him well as His ambassador.

Firsts

This has been a week of firsts: First swim class, first day staying at work past 6, first time running in a swim suit. Yes, I decided to try it. If the ITU girls and even some Ironman pros (Bree Wee and Fernanda Keller come to mind) can do it, it can't be that bad, right? It's definitely not the most comfortable, but it's not so bad for 20 minutes, either. That's all I had to run, and I did it on the dark trails behind BFY. Because of the darkness, it was actually a fabulous run. I could not be distracted by anything because I couldn't see anything, so I was focused on looking straight ahead and thinking about how I was moving my legs and how I should not be moving my chest when I breathed and how I should breathe through my nose and expanding my diaphragm instead.

I forgot the Garmin and used my watch and the markers instead: Mile 0–1: 7:30.53; Mile 1–1.6 (turnaround at the entrance to Crockett Park): 4:10.85; Mile 1.6–2.6: 7:06.88 (18:48 cumulative, so I ran another 2 minutes to hit 20). My goal was to negative split the first and last miles, and I definitely succeeded (23+ seconds!). It was the same part of the trail that I was running on both directions, so that felt great. Then I already had my swim suit on, so I jumped in the pool.

On the way out, I ran into a fellow Ironman, Robert. He recently moved here and was thrilled to have met another Irongirl. I'm sure I'll see him around the Y now, training.

Legs Only

Today's leg workout was difficult, and even though I'm currently sitting at my desk and will be here for the next 2 hours before I can ride, I think it will be a good ride. During the lunges, I was really trying to think about running and riding—pulling up and pushing down with my legs, lifting and lowering by using my big muscles (quads, hamstrings, hip flexors, glutes), and being still.

• Lunge: 30 seconds, alternate legs, 3 times each leg
• Glute ham raise: 3 altitude drops, 3 regular reps (arm's length)
• Repeat the previous 5 times

Because I took 1-minute rest intervals between each set, it took nearly 20 minutes and I couldn't finish (Russian twist, 10×3 each side), so I did that after my bike ride.

It was a good ride indeed! After a quick chat with Will, I headed out with no route in mind. I quickly decided to ride hills; after all, 3 of the best hills in Williamson County are right out my front door!

• Total time: 1:01:44 (Lap 1 out: 30:11; Lap 2 back: 31:32)
• 1,116 calories, 14.54 miles, 14.1 average (46 max), 165 HR (189 max)
• Route: Moores Lane to GG Patton to Mallory Station to Franklin Road to South Berry's Chapel (Hill #1) to Lynwood Way (Hill #2) to North Berry's Chapel (Hill #3) to Holly Tree Gap (turnaround).

I uploaded this to the route to mapmyride:

There are some bright colors from the ascents and descents!

You know it's a tough course when you can go from 46 mph to 4 mph in 0.5 miles.





It was also a good ride because I found $20.01. I picked up the 20 (it was a 20 and I was climbing slowly at the time) and left the penny (it was only a penny and I was riding quickly at the time). Fantastic!

Swim Class + 1930s Cookies

I finally did it. I went to a swimming class. When I was swimming at BFY on Friday, Karen, one of the lifeguards (who was then swimming, not guarding), mentioned that they hold an adult swim class between 8 and 9 Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. Since I had yet to make it to the Masters Swim group at MFY, and I know I need to swim with a group, this seemed like the place to go. The time is certainly not ideal (I'm usually at work by 6am so I can leave by 4), but the group was nice and the swim was fun.

Jenny was leading, and the other swimmers today were Susan, Nicole, Annette, Heather (who I promptly kicked out of my lane by nailing her in the face after 325 yards—we were the only two swimmers in the lane, I was swimming side-by-side, and she was circle-swimming. Then we ran into each other. She got out and never returned, wandering around the Y with an ice pack on her eye. So sorry!), and Doug.

The workout looked like this:

• 300 warm up
• 4×75 kick 25-drill 25-swim 25; the swim leg was a build (300)
  
• 400 kick
• 300 pull
• 300 swim (breathe every 3 strokes for 25, breathe every 5 strokes for 25, repeat)
• 2×(3×50) at 15 seconds with 1 minute between sets; medium speed-slightly faster-sprint; first set: breast stroke; second set: free style (300)
  
• 4x25 butterfly kick (100)
  
• 2,000 yards total
  

She said something about next time learning butterfly. If we do too many not-free-style strokes, I might end up having to still complete my own workout, but having someone direct 2 or 3 days (I might not go on Fridays if I want to leave work by 11am) will be great. She told me today to really focus on extending my left arm; evidently, my right arm strokes well but the left lags behind slightly and enters the water too soon.

Baking Gramps' 1930s cookies

 

They were good...

Proof that I can be creative when I think about it

The recipe said to bake at 375 for 10 minutes and then at 325 for 10–15 minutes. I baked these for 5 minutes at 375 and that was too long!

Baking Day

Sunday was a fun baking day. I made Applesauce Raisin Cookies and 1930s Cookies (just the dough because it has to be refrigerated for 36 hours), roasted almonds, made supper, and watched Psych. Good thing it was chilly outside! Oh, it was nice enough for a 45-minute ride on the trainer followed by a 30-minute run outside (followed by a little hike through part of our apartment grounds and the cemetery). It's too bad the trails aren't very long (about 0.2 miles total!).

Simmering raisins; the cookie recipe called for 2 cups, but I recommend doubling that because the few that I tried had no raisins in them!

Roasting almonds...enhances flavor and aroma

Setting out the necessary ingredients

Another project I started; I needed something to do with all my t-shirts

Summary

This week I have been less than diligent about blogging, but that doesn't mean I haven't been training. I just haven't wanted to take the time to write everything out; this has left me time to think and pray, which I have been doing a lot of lately. But here's a summary of Thursday through Saturday:

• Thursday: 30-minute run on the trails behind Brentwood Y (4 miles), Inversion
  
• Push up on knees: 5 on, 5 off thru 20
• Visualize recovery for 10–15 seconds (Breathe correctly and visualize blood flowing from heart to lats & pecs and glutes & hips.)
• Plate front delt raise: 30 quick style (standing, holding a 5–10-lb plate at 10 and 2, raising from just above thighs to eye-level)
• Repeat all the above 5 times
• 1-leg squat: 5 on, 5 off thru 20
• Visualize recovery for 10–15 seconds (Be creative!)
• Glute ham: 1 rep every 5 seconds for 1:30; start up at arm’s length and go down then up
• Repeat all the above 5 times 
• The glute ham set was especially hard, and I split the two up, completing arms at lunch and run/legs in the afternoon.

• Friday: 1-hour ride on the trainer at night (because I spent the afternoon with Anna!). Note to self: It is too dark by 6:15 to be out on the road then!
  

• Saturday 300 swim in the morning, then the following with Will in the afternoon:
  
• 10-6-3 EDI (slow 10-count, 10 reps, slow 10-count, 6 reps, slow 10-count, 3 reps; think manual holds)
• Body-weight squat
• Glute ham to arm’s length with violent stops
• Bench press with light bar
• Plate front delt raise with 5–10-lb plate: iso at bottom (Thrust chest up and squeeze glutes; don’t relax at all, especially glutes and hamstrings!)
• Push up on knees
  

Finished Yesterday's Workout

Today's workout looked like this; I completed the ones that don't have a strikethrough (3 sets):

• Front-foot–elevated lunge: 1 minute iso extreme
• Lunge: 30 rebound following immediately after lunge
• 60–70 seconds rest
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
• Standing extreme ham: 1 minute iso extreme
• Glute ham: 30 rebound from arm’s length
• 60–70 seconds rest
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
• Push up on knees: 1 minute iso extreme
• Bench press: 30 rebound following immediately after push up with light bar (20–30 lb)
• 60–70 seconds rest
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
• Preacher curl: 1 minute iso extreme with 
• Curl: 30 rebound with 5-lb dumbbells
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
  

The ones with a strikethrough I completed yesterday. Here are a few notes on rebounds: rebound curl, light bar: Drop bar by pulling hands away quickly; drive back up THROUGH the bar to top; arms moving fast, and driving back up to the top before starting the next one. I was glad I looked at this beforehand because I definitely needed the reminder on the curls. Even still, I ended up doing 3 sets, the first with 5-lb dumbbells and the next two with no weight. I just did not feel like I was moving my arms fast, and I definitely wasn't thinking about driving my chest up. It turned out to be a good thing, too, because then I swam a little right after. I didn't do the entire swim, but it was more yardage than I've done in the last maybe 3 weeks? The focus of the swim was keeping my chest up and kicking. Just kicking. If I can get my legs to work effectively during the swim, I hope to see better overall results. And 30 glute ham rebound reps, 3 times, is a lot. It's a good thing I didn't do these yesterday when I was doing push up, though I was really trying to use my glutes and hamstrings the entire time—I'd be interested to see what these actually look like to the average observer.

Halfway Done

Trainer Will gave me so many things to think about for this week's workouts. The main thing is visualizing recovery and using my imagination to help. I much prefer when he just tells me what to do and I don't have to think about it; creativity is not my strong suit! We'll see how Thursday's workout goes...

Today's workout looked like this; I've completes the ones that have a strikethrough:

• Front-foot–elevated lunge: 1 minute iso extreme
• Lunge: 30 rebound following immediately after lunge
• 60–70 seconds rest
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
• Standing extreme ham: 1 minute iso extreme
• Glute ham: 30 rebound from arm’s length
• 60–70 seconds rest
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
• Push up on knees: 1 minute iso extreme
• Bench press: 30 rebound following immediately after push up with light bar (20–30 lb)
• 60–70 seconds rest
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
• Preacher curl: 1 minute iso extreme with 
• Curl: 30 rebound with 5-lb dumbbells
• Repeat all the above 3–5 times
  

The ones with no strikethrough I will complete tomorrow. Here are a few notes on rebounds: rebound curl, light bar: Drop bar by pulling hands away quickly; drive back up THROUGH the bar to top; arms moving fast, and driving back up to the top before starting the next one.

I ended up riding an hour on the trainer because it's raining. It's really the only way I can keep a 6–7 RPE HR, and I succeeded today: 144 average. My average cadence was around 88 every time I checked. Not quite high enough—I guess I'll have to work on that!

And, due to the rain, no volleyball tonight. Hopefully we can reschedule and move from tied for third into third on our own or up to second!

Splendid Sunday Cycling

Although it started out chilly this morning, it turned out perfect and that led to a great ride. Parri, Lisa, Shelly, Jonelle, Todd, and I met at Lisa's for a 1:30 endurance ride. It is everyone's off season, so the focus for these base miles was staying steady. Here's the route:

 Not too hilly, not too flat

• 1:30, 27.61 miles, 18.5 average, 2,030 calories, 153 HR (186 max)

I learned during this ride that my "steady" is not everyone else's "steady." The first hill I led up, I kept a steady speed and powered up. Then I learned that I should probably keep HR steady instead of speed . When I tried to keep my HR steady, I was at a higher risk of falling off (although I wouldn't have let that happen—all I had to do was up the HR and I was back on). I guess this is something I'll have to work on; or perhaps we'll all know the route next time and I can ride my "steady" and they can ride their "steady." Todd beat us all to the first sprint sign...

Every cyclists sprint marker, but we all forgot until he passed us and was too far ahead to catch (and yes, it was a Brentwood City Limits sign, but I can't find any images; it doesn't really matter what city it is, though, because we race to all of them!)

...but on the way back, Parri, Lisa, and I had dropped Shelly and Jonelle, Todd went back to get them, and we stayed ahead; we beat him to the last sign! Then the three of us took off. I had been itching to go and did; I knew we were within a few miles, and I pulled them for about a mile at 26/27 mph. They went around me up the hill, but I caught them on the downhill. This will be a great weekly ride! If you're ever in the area at 2pm on Sundays, come join us!

Prior to the ride, I completed another third of my mission (the final third was a run, but since I raced yesterday I did not run today).

• Wall squat: extreme slow 3:30
• Body squat: 50 quick style (short pause at top and bottom, but quick down and even quicker back up)
• Glute ham: extreme slow 3:30
• Wall squat: 50 quick style
• Standing curl: extreme slow 3:30, 15-lb dumbbells
• Towel curl: 50 quick style
• Push up: extreme slow 3:30 on knees
• Towel front delt raise: 50 quick style

Between this and the ride, I had about an hour to eat lunch and get ready. I was nervous that the ride would be tough, but I felt great! Will said later that if you do it right, you should feel energized because this basically primes your muscles (or something; I forget his exact wording). I was definitely focused on doing it right, fast, and well; but it took pretty much all the composure I could muster to NOT laugh at and want to talk to the girl who was in there running.

Whitney and I were the only two working out at the Landing's fitness area at the time, and she was running on the treadmill while wearing headphones and watching TV. Nothing abnormal about that; what was abnormal was her workout. For the entire 45 minutes, the treadmill was running. She would run about 10 paces, get off, tie her shoe, stand for a minute, run another 10–20 paces, get off, tie her other shoe, repeat, fix her pants leg, repeat, repeat, repeat. I desperately wanted to ask why, but I refrained and let her continue. Then I laughed about it later. Maybe it had a purpose?

Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure

Brentwood was anticipating 10,000 to 12,000 participants in this morning's race at Maryland Farms, and I just couldn't pass up running with that crowd. But neither could I pay the ridiculous $43 race entry fee. So I did the next best thing and ran with no chip. Although this wasn't my fastest time, I posted some of my better results for a 5K with this sized field. So I'm slightly disappointed in myself that I hadn't registered (but I'm sure I would not have received my entry fee back in any way through prizes, so I guess it's pretty much even).

I can't be in Kona cheering on the ironmen, but I could dream!

Since the Garmin is back working, I have stats!

• 22:47, 3.16 miles, 377 calories, 185 average HR, 199 max HR
• 7:10 first mile
• 7:14 second mile
• 8:23 third mile + 0.16
• Average pace: 7:14

I rode my bike there to warm up, but we ended up starting late and the standing in the start chute for 15 minutes did not do me well—I could not feel my feet for most of the run even though it was about 55* and I was wearing capris, fake under armor sleeves, another shirt, and gloves. Maybe a hat would have done the trick?

Had I been registered, I would have ended up with the following placements: 2 of 55 in age group,  7 of 326 females, and 47 of 527 over all. I knew the entire time that I was up near the front, but I had no idea that I was within the top 10 women! It feels good to finish that high in the standings!

I geared up the Giant bike for the trip down to Brentwood—I don't think it's been out since trainer Will's epic ride last year!

People still finishing; I don't think the projected 10,000 people showed up, but there were a good number of runners and walkers

Cheering at the finishing line

Swag from PowerBar—the girl volunteered to fill my entire bag with the chews they had

Lunch at Chick-Fil-A—It must be the place to go for lunch in Brentwood, evidenced by their very own traffic director in the parking lot (complete with a Chick-Fil-A reflective vest!)

Today is Hawaii Ironman day, and my complete intention was to have ridden to the race, raced, swam, and then ridden home. But who knew MFY would be closed? That meant to swim and one happy, cold duathlete (backwards, though). 30-min ride there, 22+-min run, 30-min ride home. Tomorrow's mission: Ride, run, and isos.

Windy Mack Hatcher

Mack Hatcher felt like the Queen K Highway today. So, in honor of everyone who is racing Ironman Hawaii tomorrow, I extended my ride (from 45 minutes to 1:13, 21.25 miles, 17.5 average) and rode up and down Mack Hatcher. The tail wind was nice the total of 5 miles, but the cross wind and head wind were fantastic. Although slow, it was anything but a leisurely ride!

I kept thinking I was out in Hawaii racing. Then I pretended that I was chasing Chrissie (current female IM world champion) and Bree for first place. In my dreams, but it made me work hard. No stats, but I did get the Garmin to work. Actually, Mike from Garmin support helped me out; the watch needed a soft reset but the manual didn't say how to accomplish that; he informed me that you hold the Lap and Mode keys simultaneously for at least 8 seconds, let go, then press the Power button. Success! This will be great for tomorrow's run.

Angela and I tried to play a little tennis, but the sky was looking ominous. The wind was going to make it hard to actually play, so we settled on only serving. We each had served maybe 20 when the skies opened up and we got poured on. It was fun while it lasted! That meant, though, that I could try to complete today's workout. I plan to try to race the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Brentwood (12,000 people expected!) tomorrow and will be happy to get stats from the races—especially since I think the course is the same as or similar to the Firecracker 5K course, on which I have my PR.

Yesterday I did 5 on, 5 off thru 45 then 40 on, 5 off thru 5 preacher curl. Today I did 5 on, 5 off thru 20 lunge, glute ham, and push up. Then I remembered that Will usually has me do 5 on, 10 off thru 30. We'll see how this translates to speed tomorrow.

Thursday was Aunt Renee's birthday, and today I went over to their house to celebrate with her. Bennett and his friend Caleigh were there, so it was fun being with a big family! Lauren and I had a little theological discussion—who knew that you could have such a discussion with a 10-year-old? Uncle John took iVideo, but I doubt I'll see it, so unfortunately there are no pictures. Lauren decorated the cake beautifully, and then we watched youtube videos. Not sure if that's what ARenee would have chosen, but she let the boys enjoy their time.

Sunrise Progression

No one was here to watch the sunrise with me this morning, but I thought I'd share a little of what I saw. As usual, pictures just can't do it justice, but they captured a little of the beauty!

Unfortunately, it's currently cloudy, but it's better than dreary and rainy!

Lisa and I took a little run on some trails behind Ravenwood. The mileage is an estimate, as is the route, but I do know we left from her house! She has ridden her mountain bike through there a few times, but there are tons of trails to explore. Some afternoon when she's up for a longer run we will definitely be exploring! Unfortunately I have no stats because my Garmin still isn't working. But I am trying to fix it or get it fixed!

During lunch, I ran to the Donelson Y to do my workout from Will. I had planned to do at least glute ham and preacher curl, since those are the two that definitely require equipment. To my dismay, the glute ham stand has been removed! This Y was the only one in the area that had that particular piece of equipment. I talked to a few of the ladies who were working; after I explained what it was and why I wanted it, they informed me that they likely will not fix nor replace it, even when they (soon) get all new equipment. Bummer! So, preacher curl it was; I started with a 20-lb bar for 5 on, 5 off thru 45 and then used 8-lb dumbbells for 40 on, 5 off thru 5. I could have continued with the 20 if Will had been there to help me lift it, but I improvised again. Some day.

-09

Improvising

The start of the sunrise...the sky was cloudless but it was still amazing
 

My favorite lunchtime spot: The pond across the street (especially when the ducks, geese, other birds, and turtles are out in full force)

Cool Springs was a mess today. I never made it out to the highway, but I'm sure that was a mess as well. There was an accident on the highway that I noticed when I was driving home (at 4:25 pm), and I'm sure that affected much of the evening traffic. It felt like 10 am on a Saturday morning during Christmas season!

Looking West on Moores Lane

 

Looking East on Moores Lane

Instead of swimming, to which I was headed when I turned around, I went on a good run. mapmyrun said it was about 3.65 miles, but it felt like more because I thought I was moving quickly. Unfortunately, my Garmin wouldn't turn on and doesn't look like it's charging; I might have to take care of that this weekend, because it's currently one of the best tools on the market—it has pretty much every statistic a triathlete could dream of. Although I've heard that Trakkers will rival it with better features—your family will be able to track you during races! Hopefully I'll be able to try out their technology next season.

I had a little mishap while running...yes, it has been raining!

Better Today Than Last Week!

Since Will is gone playing hockey, it was me only completing today's workout. Despite my troubles last week, I felt strong today.

• Rebound lunges: 100 each leg with 40-lb bar between legs.
  
• Glute ham: 10×3 overspeed; I was really trying to move fast and on the first one, I moved the bench, and bar with 45-lb plates on either side! So I put another 45 lb on and continued.
• Bench press: 10×3 overspeed altitude drop with 30-lb bar.
  
• Russian twist: 10×2 each side

I would like to think my ride would have been fast, but since it was raining or threatening and definitely wet, I hit the trainer. Good thing, too, since I had to make a bunch of phone calls about volleyball. We ended up playing, but it was only Jeff and me playing against four others. He was having a great night, but I wasn't and we ended up losing 13-21, 21-14, 13-15. We'll get it all together eventually!

Family Photos

Today was a fun day. It rained all day, so I went to church, did some grocery shopping, and sat around all day. We were supposed to have ridden at noon but didn't, and I thanked God for the reason to not train. Will worked me hard last week and I needed time to recover. We are going to try the same workouts this week, every other day instead of consecutive days, and I hope it will go better and that I won't be as exhausted. Talked to Lana, talked to Robin, talked to my dad, and relaxed. Lovely!

This was my note to Will.

Here's my proposal for this week: I will train T/T/S and repeat last week (you said that was an option, right?).

Here's how I felt over the last week:

• Saturday's workout: good
• Sunday's workout: tired
• Monday: day off absolutely necessary
• Tuesday: OK—rode well, worked out, tired and slow later
• Wednesday: fatigued (you knew this; you asked during the second set of lunges if I was really tired)
• Thursday: exhaustion was compounded, but I tried really hard to not let it show
• Friday: rode all junk miles on my bike because I was so tired—my legs would not move fast
• Saturday: sat in a hot, hot tub and that's it—I wasn't sore, just super tight; it felt akin to having run a marathon!
• Sunday: riding later and we'll see how it goes, but I think it will go better than Friday

I don't think I can do three days in a row effectively. This will give you a chance to focus on hockey this week and not worry about other stuff, and it will give me a chance to do this one well and hopefully riderun better during the week.

I have high hopes that this week will be better, but I am sad that I will have to do it alone.

In family news, Aunt Jean sent some great pictures of some of our immediate and extended Acheson family. Here they are!

Grams 1940s

Gramps 1950

Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma Spring, the Berres (I don't know who they are) 1950

Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma Spring 1950

Ed, Jean, Judy, Cliff 1958

Judy, Jean 1959

Judy, Grams, Dad 1961

Muriel and Bud (Grams and Gramps) August 1975

Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma Acheson October 1975

Great-Aunt Lucinda (or Lucille), Great-Grandma Spring December 1975

Great-Aunt Barbara, Great-Grandma Acheson December 1975

Great Grandma Acheson, Judy, Great-Grandma Spring, Grams August 1976

Gramps January 1, 1977

Gramps, Grams, Aunt Lucy, Uncle Ed,
Aunt Judy, Dad, Mom, Aunt Jean 1979

Grams, Great-Grandma Spring February 1979

Gramps, Reid, Jean, Grams, Mom, Dad
Great-Grandma Spring and Michelle, Great-Grandma Acheson and me, Great-Grandpa Acheson
Judy and Robin, Ed, Lucy Christmas 1984

Judy and Michelle, Lucy, Ed, Grams, Gramps
Dad, Mom and me, Great-Grandma Spring, Jean and Robin, Reid July 1986