Sunday, October 31, 2010

Giving

One of the blessings of couponing is giving away. For my Ragnar Relay Race this weekend, we are required to give 2 cans per van at one of the major exchanges, but I'm hoping my van will give as much as possible. There were some great deals in this week's ads and I had some stuff I didn't need, so this is what I'm giving:

I'm praying that it will make someone happy and satisfied.

I went to Farkas' for dinner and the evening, and I helped Lauren with her Halloween costume. She went as, well, a weirdo. Spelled wrong (on purpose). It was definitely wacky!

Lauren and Virginia ready to go

Rest days are the best days.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

A Tough One

This morning I met Valerie at MFY for a quick workout. Todd, coach of Team Belladium, had held a strength training session that I missed while I was in Hawaii, but Valerie had the notes and I wanted to see what I'd missed. So we met and she took me through the workout. It started with about 15 minutes on the spin bike to warm up a little, and then we started the real workout. For everything, we were supposed to do around 2 sets of 10, and that's about what I did except where otherwise noted.

  • Squat: 65lb for the first set, 75lb for the second set, definitely could have done more, but knew I had another workout coming
  • Lunge: 10lb for the first set, 15lb for the second set, quick-style (because I could)
  • Step up: 10lb for the first set, 15lb for the second set, 10 times each leg for each set, stepping up onto and then off of a bench
  • Step over: keeping R foot on the bench the entire time, step from L to R to L with L foot, switch legs, 10 times each leg for each set
  • Push up
  • Triceps push up (we alternated 10 push ups, 10 triceps push ups, repeat)
  • Single-arm row: I did what Will had required (only more because I'd forgotten what he'd said) with a 10-lb dumbbell
  • Alphabet: write the alphabet with your leg, not just your ankle; this one was fun
  • Plank: 1 set, front, side, side, 60 sec each
  • Bicycle crunch: 1 set, I did crate crunch instead because it was required later, 30 reps, quick-style
  • Take aways: 1 set, holding physio ball between legs, lift legs and lift arms to legs to grab ball, lower both, lift both, switch ball between feet and arms
  • Reverse: 1 set, laying on stomach on physio ball, lift and lower legs with glutes, 10 times each leg for each set
  • Jack knife: 1 set, feet on ball, roll ball toward stomach (I skipped these the second time around and finished crate crunch instead)
  • Repeat plank, crunch, take aways, reverse, and jack knife

The real workout for the day was similar to another one I did, February 1, 2010 (with Will, though, and today I was solo). It's nice to have the workouts already typed out.

  • GHR 40 seconds; 10 quick-style squats; 1-leg dead lift RIGHT leg, 15 reps, 45-lb bar; rebound 1-leg squat, RIGHT leg back, 30 reps
  • Switch legs, then repeat, doing 3 times each leg
  • 1-arm bench press, 25 lb, 3 breaths at top, 3 reps, switch arms, 6 sets of 3 each arm
  • Rebound bent-over 1-arm row, 25-lb bar (or less or 15-lb or so dumbbell), 3 reps, switch arms, 6 sets of 3 each arm
  • Crate crunch, 3×30 quick-style reps

That was what he told me to do. After Valerie and I finished, I started with the first thing on the list. And I completely failed. This was the first time in weeks that that's happened, and it frustrated me a lot. The reps were too many, the weight was too much, and I just couldn't manage. I tried again later, exactly as written even though Will told me I could cut the reps in half if necessary. It went way better the second time, though I did skip the last two because I had actually done those well earlier. I was happy to have accomplished this when I knew I could, and I realized it was probably that I was just hungry and tired earlier. After I got some food in me, calmed down a little, and took a little nap, I did much better.

What was most frustrating I think was that I knew I could do it, reps and weights and all, but I just couldn't and I ddin't know the reason. Once I figured it out and actually did it, I felt good. But when I couldn't do it and didn't now why, I felt like a failure. Oh the struggles I deal with that really don't matter in the long run!

Friday, October 29, 2010

Granny White Park

Anna and I ran at Granny White Park today. It was a great 3.65-mile run followed by a 1.45-mile walk. So now I'm up to 23 miles for the week. Woohoo! My goal is to get in a good long run tomorrow and then be done for the week.

Then we headed to Gallatin to Shuckles corn maze. We got there a little late but still managed to find time to wander through the maze (incorrectly, since we ended up where we started), enjoy some hot chocolate, stand by the fire, play some corn hole, and run through a corn tunnel. It was a cold and beautiful night. Hopefully pics will come, but they're all on Josh's phone, so we'll see if they post them somewhere that I can access them.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Impulse Workout III

This workout I know I've done before. And I was able to find it! The last time I did it was February 5, 2010.

These were all phasic exercises that will hopefully help me be fast (since they basically make you turn your muscles on and off as quickly as possible). It was the same methodics for all exercises: 10 reps, 3-count rest, 15 reps, 3 rest, 20 reps, 5 rest, 25 reps, 5 rest, 30 reps, 10 rest, 35 rest, 10 rest, 40 reps.
  • Standing front delt
  • Bent over lateral delt
  • Leg curl
  • Leg extension
  • Bent over front delt
  • Biceps curl
  • Hip flexion
  • Hip extension
The last on the list was 1-leg dead lift, 30 each side, 45-lb bar. The weight was a little much on the first leg (R) but fine for the second. Strange, since I did L leg first on all the other exercises and my R leg felt so much stronger.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Wednesday's Runs

Today's early run was not nearly as good as Monday's runs, but I ran and still felt good. It was beautiful out and I think even if I'd run 9s I'd have still been happy just enjoying the sunshine. My 4 miles from the DHY took me R up to the TN School for the Blind then R at the fork up to the bridge to turn around. 5K pace was about 8:17—a good 20+ seconds per mile slower than Monday's run (but still below marathon/BQ time, so not super slow). My calves were feeling the hills from my Monday afternoon run!

For the afternoon run, I headed to MFY and cut the 10K loop a little short, completing only 5.25 miles. I say only, but that brought my total to 18 miles for the week so far! Last week I did 20 total, and this week I'm determined to surpass that number.



Also, I finally have a couple stats since I actually have my Garmin next to me.

  • Mon morn: 32:27, 4 mi, 8:07 pace (4:58 best), 478 cal, 169 HR (187 max); 24:32 5K (7:55 pace)
  • Mon eve: 24:12, 3.1 mi, 7:49 pace (6:28 best), 370 cal, 179 HR (197 max)
  • Mon eve: 13:25, 1.5 mi, 8:57 pace (7:02 best), 175 cal, 174 HR (190 max)
  • Wed morn: 25:40, 3.1 mi, 8:17 pace (6:37 best), 370 cal, 170 HR (187 max)
  • Wed morn: 9:09, 1 mi, 9:09 pace (6:37 best), 120 cal, 160 HR (187 max)
  • Wed eve: 25:37, 3.11 mi, 8:15 pace (6:48 best), 370 cal, 179 HR (229 max)
  • Wed eve: 18:40, 2.16 mi, 8:40 pace (6:09 best), 258 cal, 166 HR (184 max)
  • Totals: 2:29:12, 17.95 mi, 8:19 pace, 2,141 cal

If I could really run that pace for 18 miles, and then add another 8 to the top to complete a marathon (all consecutive, that is, as in during a real race), I'd finish a marathon in about 3:38. That would be perfect! Someday I'll get there.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Impulse Workout II

I thought I'd done this workout before, but I couldn't find a log of it and Will said I hadn't done it, so maybe I hadn't. It still felt familiar, especially the part where I had to try to adjust from doing isos to doing phasic/impulse reps. I told Will and he said, "That is the idea of the workout!" At least I was focused on the right thing.
  • 1 minute lunge, each side; 50 hip flexor phasic reps; repeat the previous two 3–5 times
  • 1 minute GHR; 50 hip extension phasic reps; repeat the previous two 3–5 times
  • 1 minute push up; 50 row phasic reps; repeat the previous two 3–5 times
  • 1 minute scap pull up; 50 front delt phasic reps; repeat the previous two 3–5 times

Monday, October 25, 2010

Ready to Run

After taking Sunday off from running and only training Saturday, my legs were ready to roll today! I wasn't fast by most standards, but at this point mine are the only standards that matter, so I was fast. That is, faster today (24:32) than last Monday (26:17) and Wednesday (25:55). These were all 5K times, though today I ended up running 4 miles—I just couldn't stop, and since I was faster today I had a little extra time :-) Also, my route today was slightly different. All were on the trails at the DHY, but Monday was up to Stewart's Ferry then down to the fork to turn around, Wednesday was right at the fork to the bridge to turn around, and today was left at the fork then down to the missing quarter-mile marker to turn around.

 Monday's early run

Today's fun also included a hill that neither of the others included, and my pace was 7:55 for the 5K and 8:09 overall (yep, totally slowed down for the mile-ish cool down). Not going to complain about going sub-8. Someday I'll be able to put together multiple 7-minute or sub-7 miles, hopefully in races, but right now I'll take what I can get as long as I keep improving.

 Birthday treats at work...yum! Happy birthday, Jennifer!

My afternoon run (I passed on the cheesecake but took a piece home for later) was on a different course than I've run over the last week, but it was still the fastest 5K I've run in the last week. Not my fastest by any means, but my 24:12 (7:49 pace) here beat my 24:32 from this morning, so I'm happy with the continued improvement. Again, like this morning, my legs were ready to go.

Monday's later run—Moores Lane is such a fun hill (hah!)

Then I though later, Maybe I know knowing I'll be doing more than 5K so I can go hard for a few miles and then cool down for 1+. Who knows; it's probably all a mind game anyway.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Softball Tournament

Back Row: Brandon, Jeff, Terrah, Rebekah, Brad, Jim, Kristen, Brian
Middle Row: me, Lindsey, Lyndsay, Michelle, Kelly, Melissa
Front Row: Kevin, Herb

Today marked the end of the softball season. I had a blast playing this year and remembered how much I enjoy the game. Even after having taken 2 or 3 years off, I jumped right back into it and surprised myself by still being pretty good. We ended up taking second in the league, and placing we hope to build on for next year.

Fielding--I had a pretty sweet diving catch today, too :-)


That was all I did today as far as training since I decided to use today as a rest day. I'd intended to run yesterday and didn't and wanted to today, but I also need a rest day/Sabbath ever week, and today was the day. I know I won't regret it tomorrow. I still got in over 20 miles in just 3 days of running this week, so it's been a successful week as far as mileage and as far as attitude since I've nailed all my other workouts too. The better my attitude, the better I do, and I've focused on having a great attitude this week. Success!

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Varied Workout II

Today's workout was exactly the same as Tuesday's, and I did not mind at all. There was no running, but it wasn't easy. I was determined to do the same as or better than Tuesday, and I think I succeeded. I went to the CSY to do it since I like their options for tall things to stand on.
  • Altitude drop legs: 10×5 reps, 5 breaths rest
  • Wall squat: 1 minute on, 30 seconds off, 3 times
  • Altitude drop GHR: 10×5 reps (20 seconds rest)Did GHR instead because I couldn't find a good mat for my knees.
  • Standing ham: 1 minute on, 30 seconds off, 3 times
  • Bench press: 65 lb, 10 deep breaths, 1 rep, 6 deep breaths, 2 reps, 3 deep breaths, 3 reps; 2 total times (breathe while holding bar up)
  • Dead lift: 75 lb, 10 deep breaths, 1 rep, 6 deep breaths, 2 reps, 3 deep breaths, 3 reps; 2 total times (breathe while standing holding bar)
  • Curl: 25 lb, 10 deep breaths, 1 rep, 6 deep breaths, 2 reps, 3 deep breaths, 3 reps; 2 total times (breathe holding bar at top)
Then I went to Farkas' to say hi, hear about their trip and tell them about mine, and have Aunt Renee help me fix one of my suit tops and my new pants. Success.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Impulse Workout

We have done this workout once before; Will mentioned something about it, and I vaguely remembered having done it while I was doing it. I did not, however, remember the 12 minutes of wall squats, but as this post from February 4 indicates, we did indeed do it.

The methodics looked like this: phasic 20 seconds, tonic 30 seconds, 5 deep breaths rest, phasic 10 seconds (PTP), followed by a 3 minute ISO. The exercise order was this:

  • Bent over lateral delt PTP, wall squat ISO
  • Bent over front delt PTP, wall squat ISO
  • Leg curl PTP, wide push up ISO
  • Hip flexion PTP, wide push up ISO
  • Biceps curl PTP, wall squat ISO
  • Bent over triceps extension PTP, wall squat ISO
  • Leg extension PTP, wide push up ISO
  • Hip extension PTP, wide push up ISO

The wall squats were definitely tough, but I felt great after having accomplished it all! Then it was off to Inversion, where we were reminded to not retaliate and to love our enemies. This is all part of Jesus' teaching so we know how to live to please God, but it's still not easy!

I also read the following, which are so encouraging!
"I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O LORD, I will sing praises.

"I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.

"I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me. A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness.

"Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; the one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, him I will not endure.

"My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in a perfect way, he shall serve me. He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who tells lies shall not continue in my presence. Early I will destroy all the wicked of the land, that I may cut off all the evildoers from the city of the LORD." Psalm 102:1–8

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the LORD upholds him with His hand." Psalm 37:23–24

Double Day

Today's lunchtime run was nothing too special, but I did get it done: 5K on the trails at DHY, beautiful weather, lots of people on the trail, no stopping to smell the roses or be otherwise distracted, and a little faster than Monday. My legs are a bit sore, but they are not nearly as sore as I'd expected from yesterday's hard training session after 2 weeks off. I knew I was going to be sore so I just worked as hard as I could figuring I'd pay now but be stronger later.

The evening run was slightly longer (and less hilly I think) on the trails by River and Tower parks in Brentwood. It was OK, kinda slow, but pretty consistent. Then it was off to dinner at Chuy's to meet my Ragnar Relay teammates Chris, Todd, and Andrew (I already know Brad, and Craig wasn't there). It was a great meeting and the race is going to be so much fun. We worked out who's running what (allowing for some flexibility if necessary), and I will be doing 36.1 miles total! It will take approximately 1,755 minutes if we run an average of 9 minutes per mile for the entire 195 miles. What a great 29.25 hours!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Varied Workout

Today's workout was just what I needed. There was no running, but it wasn't too easy. And there were a couple different things, so there wasn't anything boring about it either. I went to the CSY to do it since I hadn't been there in forever. Plus I like their options for tall things to stand on.

  • Altitude drop legs: 10×5 reps, 5 breaths rest (I forgot that part but did 20 seconds, which was probably about right)
  • Wall squat: 1 minute on, 30 seconds off, 3 times
  • Altitude drop GHR: 10×5 reps (20 seconds rest)
  • Standing ham: 1 minute on, 30 seconds off, 3 times
  • Bench press: 65 lb, 10 deep breaths, 1 rep, 6 deep breaths, 2 reps, 3 deep breaths, 3 reps; do 2 total times (breathe while holding bar up)
  • Dead lift: 75 lb, 10 deep breaths, 1 rep, 6 deep breaths, 2 reps, 3 deep breaths, 3 reps; do 2 total times (breathe while standing holding bar)
  • Curl: 25 lb, 10 deep breaths, 1 rep, 6 deep breaths, 2 reps, 3 deep breaths, 3 reps; do 2 total times (breathe holding bar at top)

Monday, October 18, 2010

Tigger

Tigger, the dog I'm currently taking care of, left me an unpleasant surprise when I returned today. He's OK being on his own, but he's certainly not used to it being for 11+ hours. I sent him outside and cleaned up, and now I'm hoping I don't come back to the same mess tomorrow. I could never have a dog if I had to take care of it on my own--I'm just not around enough to give an animal any attention. He can survive one more day, I think. I just hope I don't have to clean up after him again tomorrow. He'll be thrilled when the rest of the family returns.

I took a lunchtime run today (5K), and I hope to run again this afternoon if it stays nice. My legs aren't feeling too tired which is good, and keeping up 2 runs per day 3 days per week is definitely doable for the next 3 weeks while I prepare for the Ragnar Relay. However, I can't wait for another good workout from Will; I haven't done any in two weeks now and my hip flexors are feeling it! Hopefully he gives me something that will make me fast and help me recover well, too. I'd been hoping to get in an afternoon run, but Tigger and I walked a mile and that was it.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Sunday Run + Softball


Today I ran starting from a different location than normal, and it was super nice not to have to start with a big uphill like the one getting out of my apartment complex. It was a shorty but it felt good to get back out on the road. Before the run I got to play a little softball. I'd missed last week, so I was really looking forward to it. We ended up splitting (won the first, lost the second), but I had fun, threw well, hit well, scored lots, and loved the sunshine.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Back to the Real World

Aloha, Hawaii! Aunt Robin, Allie, Mom, and Dad met me at the Kona airport

Now that I'm home and integrating back into the real world, I am going to try to quickly recap everything I did while on vacation in Hawaii. I'll include a few pics (or maybe only one if possible) from each day otherwise I would have way too many.

We made it up a little farther than this, but off the beaten path and no one was there to get another pic

Monday was a travel day that included a stop in Phoenix to visit coach Will. During my short layover, we got in a good workout (I finally got to use a glute ham stand! I did 5 on, 5 off thru 40 GHR, front-foot elevated lunge, push up, and curl; and 3×3 RL and bench press), with Lisa, Sarah, and Chris; ate some brunch at the breakfast shop (outside!); climbed what we could of Camelback Mountain; and headed back to the airport so I could continue my journey.

Enjoying Camelback

Will tried to make me do a silly pose—jumping off that rock behind me at his suggestion was my attempt; I don't do silly pictures, so thankfully some girl came and rescued me by volunteering to take a picture of us together.

Tuesday Mom and I ran in the morning along the ocean. We spent some time in downtown Kona and enjoyed the Ironman Parade of Nations. Everyone walks down the street behind their country flag and waves. We ate some dinner at the King Kamehaha Hotel, which is home base for the Ironman.

Me, Allie, Dad, and Mom enjoying nachos at King Kam

On Wednesday, we went to the airport twice, once to pick up Grandma Rita and Grandpa Bob and once to pick up Joel, with a stop at Altermans' for dinner in between. Dad and I also got in a good bike ride, covering some of the IM bike course and doing a little climbing.

Midway up Kam IIIthe view was amazing!


On Thursday, Lana, the final contingent of our party, arrived. Hooray! But before she got in, we got to enjoy (endure? not sure what the right word is) :-) the underpants run, which is really what it sounds like. It's a comical mockery of people who think it's cool to wear speedos during the Ironman. Mom and I also attended a women's breakfast during which Karen Smyers, the 1995 women's world champion, shared some of her story. Today was a busy day, because we also went snorkeling at Kahalu'u Beach and attended the Ironman Welcome banquet. Lana, Allison, Joel, and I had VIP tickets and felt super special sitting up in the front fenced-off section. The entertainment during the banquet was a native dance show that also included fire dancing. Sweet!

Greeting Lana at the airport

Friday was another busy day. We swam in the ocean with tons of other people and then made sure we volunteers (me, Dad, and Lana) were registered and ready for race day. The highlight of the day was going to South Point to jump from the cliff at the southern-most tip of the United States. We wanted to get out of the house so Mom could get ready for everything on Saturday and picked up pizza to eat with Grandma Rita and Grandpa Bob.

Joel, Grandpa Bob, Grandma Rita, Dad, and Lana at Altermans'

Precariously enjoying the view at South Point

Saturday was race day, which deserves its own blog.

Lana and Mom prerace but post-bodymarking

Sunday Lana had to leave so we took her to the airport, and then we went to Solid Rock Ministries for church. It's my parents' home church, and the people there were huge supporters of my mom leading up to the race. They're studying the attributes and names of God, and it was fun to be there worshiping together. We also went to Altermans' for a post-Ironman party so that all of Mom's friends could congratulate her. Oh, and we played (and I dominated) a few games of Bananagrams and played (and I lost) a few games of ping pong. No pictures yet, since whatever ones were taken are all on Aunt Robin's camera.

Monday was an epic day. We borrowed a bike from Dad's friend Mark and headed to Mauna Kea to do a little climbing. It was a 6plus-mile climb, which I did in just over an hour.

Climbing up Mauna Kea was tough!


There were a couple times we stopped and a few times I waited for Dad and Joel; if I did it again, I'd definitely do it under an hour! The last big Ironman Mahalo party was tonight, and we all (Mom, Dad, Joel, Aunt Robin, Allison, Grandma Rita, Grandpa Bob, and I) enjoyed the food and prizes. After that party, we stopped at the Sheraton by Mom and Dad's condo to admire the manta rays. The hotel has lights that they shine on the water; this causes the plankton to do their thing, and the manta rays come to eat the plankton. They are huge, weird-looking fish, and it was amusing to watch them.

Tough, but I made it the whole way (well, all the way to the visitor's center, that is; as you can see behind me, there's still another 4,000 feet up and 4+ miles up to get to the very top)


Tuesday was back to the airport to send Joel to the mainland, but before that, we did a little run on the Pinetrees Trail near the ocean. I got distracted long enough to complete something on my list: Write something with white rocks.

My goal is to race with a confident attitude next season (and to train the same), so this was to remind me.

We didn't see any pine trees, but I did meet and chat with Hillary Biscay. Dad, Grandpa Bob, and I went golfing, and with my handicap I ended up tied with Dad. I did get a legitimate par on 15, though, so I'm happy. We also spent some time with the Altermans.

Golfing at Makalei, getting a beautiful view of the ocean on nearly every hole

On Wednesday, Dad and I rode our bikes again, this time from the house up Hina Lani and back. We'd planned to go up Kaloko as well, but that just wasn't happening since we were both feeling Monday's climb. We went snorkeling again at Kahalu'u, ate dinner at the Kona Inn and enjoyed the sunset, found a couple little souvenirs, and ate some ice cream. Yum :-)

Riding from the condo; we could've added another 7-mile climb but decided against it

Thursday was my last day on the rock and the first day with no real plan. We relaxed at the KSV pool, did some paddle boarding and kayaking and swimming with dolphins at King Kam beach, ate a picnic supper at the old airport which watching the sunset, and walked around downtown Kona. Then it was (unfortunately) time to board the plane. Adios, Hawaii!

Paddle boarding on the oceanseeing 17 dolphins in the process!

Mom, Dad, Grandma Rita, me, and Grandpa Bob at the old airport

Friday was a travel day that included a fantastic stop in Phoenix again. I did not have nearly as long this time as last Monday, but it was worth the short visit. Will and Nancy picked me up from the airport and we headed to Mimi's Cafe for breakfast. We ate quickly, then headed back to the airport. Short and sweet; I love the Roberts and am always encouraged after spending time with them. I finally made it home after nearly 24 hours of traveling—thankfully Anna and Josh were willing to come late to the airport to pick me up. And now vacation is over!

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Ironman World Championship 2010

Today is race day, and it was amazing. I couldn't recap everything in Saturday's recap blog, so I decided to give Saturday, Ironman race day, it's own (mostly picture) blog.

 Me and Lana ready (at 4am) to do some bodymarking. Stamps, check. Ink, check. Athletes? Coming!

This was Dad's and my stamping station. It was a popular one for the media crew because of Dad's great idea to stamp above the numbers so we knew what we were picking up.

Athlete #567. Super easy to remember! And Mom got a circle around her numbers so everyone would know she was a big-islander.

Not Mom's bike (Bree's, maybe?), but it pretty sharp and looks fast!

Swim start—pretty sure this is the pros warming up. Lana and I had a great spot on the pier to watch pretty much the entire swim.

Mom's the one on the middle with the pink cap. She was surprised we actually got a picture of her (there were about 1,799 other athletes), but I knew about when she'd be coming in, what she was wearing, and what her stroke looks like, so we knew her when we saw her.

Mom slowly made her way into the transition area, which was right behind where Lana and I had watched the swim from.

And there she goes, looking for her bike and ready to hit the road!

Lana enjoying some Scandinavian Shave Ice. We had to have a treat while Mom was out biking.

Macca won; we had a much better view of him at the finish line than we had of Mom, but we did get to watch Mom finish.

This might be Mirinda? She won the women's race.

And another treat. Spectating is grueling work! This was Lana's meal, and it was the perfect box for her.

Every time we saw Mom, including here around mile 10 of the 26.2, she was smiling.

Grandma Rita, Grandpa Bob, Allison, and Aunt Robin were at an aid station for part of the day, and they cheered Mom on all day.

Grandpa Bob, doing his job of handing out water to the runners.

When you got to this spot, you were almost done. The Ford sign was lit with neon lights, but you can't really tell that in this picture.


We knew Mom wouldn't have a daylight finish, so I brought glow sticks with me. We made this the chemical compile for Belladium.


Waiting for Mom to come in. We'd played a few games of Bananagrams, but then we lost daylight and chillaxed. :-)


Just after Mom finished. We didn't have the best camera spots, so I think everyone missed getting a picture of her actually crossing the finish line.


Bobbi Acheson, you are an Ironman!

I stayed up and watched on ironmanlive.com the final finishers come across the line. I had thought about staying down at the finish line, but by the time Mom was ready, everyone was exhausted and the finishers were straggling in, so it was much easier to watch on the computer and get a few things done at the same time.

Overall, it was a great day. I loved the whole environment and experience, and I'd like to be back there as a competitor in the not-too-distant future!

Monday, October 4, 2010

Hawaii 10

It's Ironman time, and that means Kona! I was able to work out my itinerary so that I had a layover in Phoenix; it was just long enough to get it a workout (5 on 5 off thru 40 GHR and front-foot elevated lunge, 4×3 RL, 5 on 5 off thru 40 push up and curl, 4×3 bench quick style, and 5×40@30sec rest crunch) with trainer Iron Will, eat some lunch, hike up Camelback Mountain, and jump back on the plane (almost literally—I got back to the airport at 1:15, my plane was supposed to have left at 1:55, and I still had to check in at the ticket counter plus go through security. We ended up sitting on the tarmac for an hour due to rain so I could've had a little extra time, but it was a great amount of time and a fantastic late morning.


Me and Will halfway up (that's as far as we made it, and only there because we ran up and down)

I finally made it to Kona after nearly 22 hours of traveling and was ready for bed!


Allison, Dad, me, and Mom at the airport (Aunt Robin took the picture)

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Helmet?

My ride today started out semi amusing: I left the house and got 0.5 miles away before I realized I didn't have my helmet on. Yikes. I immediately turned around to get it. I was glad I realized it then and not farther away!


The first mark is the start. The second (person waving) is where I saw Luke and Morgan. The third (lap) is the start of my climb up Lynwood Way (starting at the 3 signs before South Berrys Chapel, 1.1 miles, from 730 feet to 1060 feet), and fourth (lap) is the road where I split (it's not quite the top but there's not much more climbing to do and it's a good landmark), and the fourth (lap) is the bottom of the hill (I got up to 43 descending, but I had to use the breaks quite a bit because there were lots of cars; thankfully the guy behind me gave me plenty of room and stayed behind me).

I ended up not racing this morning. I felt OK when I woke up, but I just wanted a day to not have to run and to spend some time on my bike. So that's what I did, and my calves are much happier to have ridden than run.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Double Run (Or 2-a-Days)

My next big racing adventure is the Ragnar Relay, and I figured there was no better way to start preparing than to run twice in one day. I originally intended to run in the morning before work and then again right before/during lunch, but I decided to spend the morning reading and run the first one right before lunch and the next around dinner time. Plans changed, however, and though I got my 12:30 run in, my evening run became a 4pm run. My legs were feeling it during that second one!

The first was at the DHY, a good 6+ miles in about 50 minutes. I really enjoy running the trails there. A good amount of the route is in the sun, and if you do all the out-and-back sections, you can get about 8.5+ miles in without venturing more than 2.5 miles out away from the Y. Perfect for if I need an aid station or porta-potty (neither of which I needed today but both of which I've needed in the past).

The second run was with Anna at her apartment complex. We got a little later of a start than we'd intended, so we stayed within the complex and ran two loops for a total of 3.4 miles. That means that, including a few little walks I've taken to cool down after my runs, I've gotten in over 20 miles this week. That's more than I've ridden! I was thinking about racing a 5K tomorrow, but that might not happen depending on how tired I am in the morning.

For tonight's entertainment, I went over to Farkas' for dinner with the McMurrays. The food was good, and then I went inside with the kids to play Set and play on the drum. The boys were really enjoying it! (Pics to come when I can upload them.)