Race Complete!

Well I survived my first multi-sport race yesterday. It was awesome! I completed the race in 1 hour 47 mins. Guess thats my PR for that biathlon. I ran the 5 miles in 47 min 32secs, which I was hoping for under 50mins. The bike took a little longer then expected, 1 hour for 16 miles. I can see I really need improvement there. Anyways I will post a full race report tomorrow.

Ready for Race Day

After 4 months of training, which includes running a total 113 miles, biking 199 miles and two 5K races, I am ready for this biathlon. Back in May I could barely run a mile and didn't touch my bike in probably a year. Looking back it has been so amazing to see how far I have come. Now I just have to go out there on Sunday and give it everything I have, and to not only complete the race, but to have fun and celebrate this major accomplishment. Thanks to everyone who has supported me and I will post my results Sunday.

Bike Course

I took a ride on the biathlon's bike course today. I didn't want to go full out but I did push it a little. The course is a 8 mile loop that will be done twice. It is mostly flat with a few small hills but nothing major. I completed the 16 mile ride in 54mins 40sec. A good time for me. I figure I will be around the same time on sunday since I didn't run 5 miles before today's ride. I am going to shoot for 50mins on Sunday. So If I can run the 5 miles in 45 - 50 mins and bike the course in 50mins, I am looking good for a sub 2 hour total time.

So tomorrow I plan on a short 3 mile run just to stay loose and to give my legs a little rest. Saturday I will not run or bike so I will be ready to go on Sunday. 3 days to go!

Last Long Run Before the Race

Today I set out to run my last 5 miles before the big race this Sunday. I planned on just running an easy 5 miles with no goal in mind but to finish. After a few minutes of stretching and getting some water into me I was off and running. I had a little trouble getting into a good rhythm but it worked it self out quickly. After the first ½ mile I noticed that I was running a little faster then normal. How could this be? I wasn’t going any faster then I normally do, I think? First mile – 9mins 13sec. Pretty fast considering I still have 4 miles to go.

While running the second mile I began to think about my running form, specifically how my feet hit the ground while running. I have noticed in the past that most of the time I am a heel to toe type of person. And from what I have read, that could be a bad thing, especially when it comes to shin splints. So today I began to land more on the mid portion of my foot rather then the heal. Second mile – 9mins 30 sec. Wow another sub 10min mile, Nice! But would I regret it later in the run? I was running faster then normal and I can only think it was my new foot placement while running that made me run faster. Third mile – 8mins 02 sec – Holy Cow??? Still going along at a good pace and felt great. Fourth mile – 9mins 19sec. On the last mile and I started to feel tired and my breathing became very heavy. Looking at my watch I knew I had a chance to run 5 miles in 45mins. So I struggled to continue my fast pace and had to stop for a 20sec walk break to catch my breath and relax and then back off again and once I could see the mile marker I ran as fast as I could to come in at a time of 45mins 30secs. That was awesome! If only I can repeat the time this Sunday it would give me a huge boost in my confidence to finish the race in under 2hours. I just don’t want to drain all my energy on the run. So I will see how everything is shaping up on Sunday to determine how fast I am going to run.

I got my bike back from the shop I plan on taking a ride on the bike course tomorrow. That would give me a great sense of what is in store for me on Sunday.

Mock Biathlon

For today’s training I went to the bike path and did a 4 mile run and a 12 mile bike. I wanted to see how I would fare completing one right after another. The run was good. For once I found my rhythm right away. It normally takes about a mile or so to find my running stride and breathing. I ran the first mile in 9.41, Second – 10.03, third – 9.55 and fourth – 9.44 for a grand total of 39.24. This is a great time for me and I did not walk once.

The bike portion was a little slow considering all of the stop signs and cross walks I had to stop at. This was the first time riding the new bike. I put it together so I was a little nervous about really kicking it up and riding fast. But the bike was great. What a difference between riding a mountain bike and a road bike. After training I dropped my bike off at the bike shop for a tune up. I want everything to be ready for the race this weekend. As for the training, I did 12 miles in 50.30 on the bike for a grand total time for bike and run, 1 hour 29 mins (if my math is right).

What this showed me is that I have room for improvement in the run and bike, but I can definitely finish the race. Going into this weekend I have a goal of completing this race and a side goal in completing it in less than 2 hours. It would be really cool to finish under 2 hours, I mean it is a race and I should push myself to go as fast as I can and to finish strong!

5 Miles

Ran my first 5 miles today with a time of 53 mins 32 secs. Great run on the bike path. It was a little humid but there is a lot of shade on the path and there was a nice breeze which definately helped.

4 miles Down!

Since I have been training for the Shoreline Biathlon coming up in 2 weeks, I knew I would have to up my mileage on my runs. So last Saturday I went to the local bike path which is nicely measured out and ran 4 miles. It was a great run. It took my 40min 58 sec. to complete the run. I was definitely happy with that and knew after the run I could run the 5 miles in the biathlon.

Today I went for another 4 mile run. I went to the bike path again and set out to do an easy 4 miles. Just before I started my run, a lady ran passed me. Watching her stride, it looked like she was going about the same speed as I normally do. So I started running with the full intent of catching up to her and passing her. I figured it would be like a race setting where you find that one person in the pack that you want to pass. I caught up to her within the first mile! I still had 3 to go. So I started talking with her and we chit chatted about running and kids and stuff. Next thing I knew we were at the mile 1 marker, I looked down at my watch and it read 8:30! I never ran an 8:30 mile! So I asked her what her normal pace was and she replied around 8:30. This was cool. So we agreed to run with each other for awhile. We hit the 2 mile marker, which was the turn around point at 18:20. Wow what a great 2 mile time for me! I was still feeling good at the turn around and I thought that I might be able to finish the run without taking a walk break. We separated around mile 3. She started running a little faster then me and I didn’t try to keep up. I did end up walking for approx 30 seconds, but it was good to slow down and catch my breath. When I started running again I could see the girl that was running with me and decided to try and catch up to her again. Well I didn’t catch up to her but I did post an awesome 38:32 for my 4 mile time! It was so cool that I ran the 4 miles under 40 mins and blew away my previous 4 mile time by over 2 minutes!

So this leads to this weekend in which I WILL run 5 miles. I have no doubt that I will complete the 5 miles this weekend which will boost my confidence going into my last week of training.

No Walks for Me!

Today I reached a milestone with my running. I ran 3 miles without stopping for a walk break. Now I know it doesn’t seem like much too some people, but to me it means a lot. I actually felt like a runner today. I found my stride right off the bat. I was cruising at a good speed, faster then normal. And nothing hurt. Just an all around great run today. So now my plan is to run 4 miles on Saturday, just to see how I do. If I can run 4 miles with maybe 2 walk breaks, it will give me a lot of confidence going into next weeks training runs and eventually the race on the 16th.

I just wanted to give a quick note about some fellow bloggers that completed their journey on becoming an Ironman. 140.6 miles: An Ironman Training Journal (Courtney) completed the Ironman Louisville race this past weekend, and Fat Girl to Triathlete (Jessica) completed Ironman Canada also held this weekend. Both of them did an awesome job and both are very inspiring not only for me but everyone who visits there blogs and followed their journey. Congrats to both!

3 Weeks and Counting

Well let me start off by saying that I didn’t have a recovery week last week, I just didn’t do anything last week. I really can’t say that. My schedule at work was changed due to training, my mother came into town from Florida and I was preparing the house for a family party on Saturday. I know I could have found time to get a run in, but I was just too darn busy.

I did realize something during the end of last week. Something I never thought I could imagine, I missed running. Kind of crazy but it was true. I couldn’t wait for Monday to arrive so I can get back into my little training mode, getting ready for the big showdown next month.

Speaking of the Biathlon, it is rapidly approaching. I have a little less than 3 weeks of training to go before the big day. Every run from now on must be over 3 miles with a focus on getting to 4 miles by the end of next week. Then try for one, 5 mile run a week before the race just to get a feel for what I need to get myself ready for. Sometime this week I am going to head down to Westerly and check out the run and bike course. I might even try to run the course once before the race.

So today after my bike ride I jumped in the pool and tried to swim a few laps. I did maybe 2 laps before everything came apart and got tired. I will need to focus on that some more after the biathlon.

Have a great day!

Run Hard and Bike Hard

So after yesterday’s little rant on lack of motivation, I went out today and ran hard and biked hard. That’s the best way to get back in the saddle and get things moving. So I took off on the bike and went to the YMCA, which is where I start all of my runs. I went inside the Y to stretch and do some abs stuff, then back outside to start my run.

The run was good, not great. About half way thru my run my right shin and ankle started to tighten up. That never happened before. I didn’t know if I should run through it or stop and rub it or something. So I stopped running and started to walk. After about 30 seconds it felt fine and I started running again. About a half a mile later it started to tighten up again. This was crazy. So I started walking again for a minute and then started running again, this time I wasn’t going to stop. Everything else felt really good. My left leg wasn’t sore and I wasn’t tired or breathing hard. Once again my right shin and ankle tightened up, but not as much as the previous times so I just continued to run to my finish point today. 2.77miles in 28:20mins. Would have been better but there is always tomorrow.

After the nice recovery walk up the hill of death (there is a big hill that the YMCA is at the top of. I normally start my runs at the top of the hill and end them at the bottom, but today I wanted to at least run up half the hill. I have only ran up the hill once, just once) I drank some fluids and jumped on my bike and headed into town. I really didn’t know where I wanted to ride my bike today. I only knew I wanted to go for a long ride. So once I got into town I decided to head down to my brother-in-law Mike’s new Mexican grill which was about 7 miles out toward Scarborough beach and Point Judith. It was a nice flat ride out there. Once there I found a seat inside and ate a powerbar and had some water. Mike was way to busy to talk so I just poked my head into the kitchen and said hi. So after my little break I got back on the bike and headed down to the beach and back home. I took Ocean drive home since I wanted to ride past Narragansett beach. The ride home was long and I started to get tired and my legs started burning. By the time it was all done, I rode a little over 16 miles, which is good considering that’s the distance of the biathlon next month. After this long ride I asked myself how much easier would the ride have been if I did this on a road bike instead of a mountain bike. I am hoping to get a road bike soon.

Well off to New Jersey this weekend. See you all on Tuesday!

Where is my Motivation?

Today was an off day for me. I had plans on going out for a 15 mile bike ride, but after I dropped the kids off at daycare, my stomach started hurting so I went home and relaxed.

Looking back on my training log, it appears that I have been slacking off on my work outs and training for the past few weeks. Is it because of the few days in Vegas or last weekends trip to Atlantic city? I don’t think that’s it. Could I be burnt out on the whole training thing? I look at my training log for June and July and see just how committed I was, going all out almost everyday, getting ready for my first 5K. Now, I should be just as committed since I have a biathlon coming up in less then a month and I haven’t touched a bike in almost 3 weeks. Its almost like I had slacked off because I reached one goal and that’s good enough. It seems to change every day, my lack of motivation, drive to achieve, commitment. What is it?

We are going away this weekend to Kim’s Uncle’s Lake house in New Jersey. It will be a welcomed peaceful weekend. Far cry from the past 2. I was actually thinking about trying to get some swimming in at the lake. I would love to see how far I can actually go.

I am sure this little phase of mine will pass. It better, or my times at the biathlon will suck!

Vegas Report

Standing at the starting line of my 2nd ever 5K race, I thought to myself, what am I doing? So here is the break down. I was in Vegas for a little vacation with some old buddies from my Navy days, Naret and Mark. We booked the room and flights about 3 months ago, just about the same time I started really training. So I figured it would be a good idea to see if there was a 5K road race in Vegas that would be my goal race to prepare for. After a little searching I found the Midsummer Nights Dream 5K/10K. Well if you have been reading my blog, you know that I have already completed a 5K 2 weeks ago, so this was not going to be my first race.

Anyways, so we get to Vegas on Friday the 3rd and the first thing I noticed was the heat. I knew it was going to be hot, but not that hot. Of course we go hit the clubs that night and get back to the room by 3:30AM. Just a little tidbit of info, if you calculate the time I got up to catch the plane in Providence which is 4:00AM and the time I went to bed, 3:30AM and add the 3 hour difference in time zones, I was awake for over 26 hours. So with probably 5 hours of sleep and drinking water all day, Mark and I get to the race with about 15 mins to get ready.

The course was a 2 loops around a drainage basin and a little path thru a park. Seems simple enough, no hills! At the start everything seemed good. Then around a quarter of the way thru the first lap my mouth started getting dry. Around half way thru the first lap I needed a drink. Did I mention it was hot? They had 1 aid station set up at the start finish line, which I think they should have had one at the other side of the loop. By the time I finished the race I was sucking down cups of water and Heed like it was going out of style.

I finished the race in 32:09 mins, not a PR but I am just glad I finished. Mark ran it in 28:18. We met a girl from Texas who was also on vacation with her husband and decided to run the race as well. We had celebratory beer while waiting for the cab to pick us up and drive us back to the strip.

I am glad I ran the race. I would probably do it again, but maybe in the winter time.

5 Days to next 5K

So I have 5 days until my next 5K. This one will take place in Las Vegas! Its the Midsummer Night Dream 5K\10K . This is the race I have been training for the past 3 months. Just think, 3 months ago I couldn't even run a mile and now I am running my second 5K in 2 weeks! Feels pretty good! The only thing I am worried about is the heat. I mean come on, it is Vegas in the middle of the summer. I looked at the forecast for Saturday, 102 degrees. Nice! yeah right. Good thing I am only doing the 5K and not the 10K. So tomorrow I am going to change my training plan a little and bike tomorrow as planned but run 3.5 miles on Wednesday becuase I am working during the day on Thursday and won't have any time to run.

This past weekend was the Blessing of the Fleet in Narragansett. This is a huge weekend event in the town and it is kicked off by a 10 mile road race and seafood festival. A few of my friends ran in the race. I wish I could have been there to cheer them on. Next year I will be running in the race. I'll have to put that on my goal list! I guess I should get ready for the biathlon first.

Slacking

Ok I have been slacking on my posts. But it has been a rough couple of days with my daughter waking up at 12:30 and not going back to sleep until 2:30am, then waking up at 5:30 with my son and on and on. But I have managed 2 runs so far this week.

So I have developed a training schedule to get me ready for the 17th Annual Shoreline Biathlon which will be held on September 16, 2007. It is a 5 mile run and a 16 mile bike. Since I have not ran 5 miles and probably only rode my bike 16 miles once, I created a structured schedule that incorporates a gradual increase in time in both running and biking. I figured with this training schedule instead of going for a certain distance I would put in times for both areas for the given day. With 7 weeks to train for this event, I should be able to finish with a decent time.

Today I hit 228 for my lowest weight so far. My goal of 220 before myVegas trip might not happen, but 225 or so will do just fine. I figure by the biathlon I should be around 215 - 210. Hopefully by tomorrow I can lose 1 more pound to 227 and that would put total weight loss at 40 lbs! We'll see!

First 5K!!!

What a great race today! My first 5K done and over with. It was a good event. I would say there was about 300 people there. I started at the back of the pack to let all the fast people go ahead of me. Well lesson 1, don't start all the way in the back. it took me a good 20sec to even start running, then I had to watch out for people slower then me, what a traffic jam. So next time I'll start in the middle. My goal for this race was to come in under 32mins. I figured a little over 10 min mile pace would be a good goal.

The first mile was good. It took me a while to get a good pace going for myself. It was differant to me seeing people on the side of the road cheering and handing out water. I grabbed a cup of water and tried to take a sip but half of it went up my nose. Guess I need to work on that.
First mile done in 9min 55sec.

The second mile was pretty more of the same. I took a 45sec walk break to catch my breath and give my legs a rest. After the break I was ready to go again, feeling nice and refreshed.

Heading into the final mile we turned the corner and there I saw Kim, Brady and Reese. It was great to see them there, cheering for me, even though once Brady saw me he wanted to run to me. The final mile felt like it took forever. But at the turn around I picked up my pace a little bit and when I saw the finish line I ran as hard as I could.

Final time: 31:03min @ a 10min mile pace.

Lessons learned:
1. Pee before the start of the race.
2. Dont start in the back of the pack
3. Leave it all on the road, you can rest when you cross the finish line.

Now I can't wait for the Vegas 5K. That will be alot of fun!

Race is on for Saturday

Well I signed up for the Celebrate Summer 5k that will take place in Snug Harbor. I am kinda nervous already about the race. I know I can finish the race. I just need to do it! So now for the next few days I need to prepare myself for it. So since I will be working until midnight on friday, I will get as much sleep as I can before work on Friday.

As for training, I ran 3.6 miles today with one, 1 minute walk. My main reason for signing up for the race is becuase of the distance run today. Plus, I found a $20 bill on the ground while running so I kinda took that as a hint to run the race. The run felt good. I find if I concentrate on my breathing helps me not think about my legs getting tired and other things. For some reason the first mile seems harder then the other 2 miles. Plus the walk break works wonders!

Well now I have my first race coming up and I can't wait.

Do I or Don't I

For the past week I have been thinking about running the Celebrate Summer 5k in Snug Harbor. I know I can run the race and finish, but how well I do at the run is questionable. Maybe I should just do it. I was checking the times from last years race and it seems like I at least won't be last. I will think about it over night and talk it over with Kim to see if we have any plans for that morning.

So today I took a nice long bike ride around town and up the bike path to the train station. In all I logged a little over 14 miles. I definately need a road bike, or at least a mountain bike that fits me to make the long rides a bit easier.

Long Term Goals

I have been thinking for the past few weeks what my long term goals should be. The past few months I have been meeting my short term goals:

• Hit 229, my lowest weight since getting out of the navy
• Running 20 minutes without stopping
• Running 3 miles
• After almost 2 months I finally got my pool clean and clear, no green!!!

So I thought I will make a list of long term goals and a new list of short term.

Short Term - 2 months:

• Run my first 5K in Vegas
• Lose 20 more lbs
• Run 5 miles
• Bike 25 miles

Long Term - 3 months to a year:

• Hit 190lbs
• Run 10 miles
• Bike 40 miles
• start a swimming program
• Train for my first Sprint Triathlon.

The Sprint Triathlon will be my ultimate goal for next year. I think by this time next year I will be ready to complete a sprint tri and not totally suck while doing it. Oh yeah, probably buy a new bike in the next few months too. I don't think riding 25 miles on a mountain bike is to much fun.

Long 4th of July Week

Well the 4th of July has come and gone.... GOOD! It has been rough for the past week trying to stay on my "Diet" and not eat to much bad stuff. From my birthday on the 1st, the 4th of July and my 6th year wedding anniversary(Went on a Breakfast buffet cruise in Boston, lots of good food and desserts!) on the 8th, I gained 3 lbs and now weigh 232. So I am going to spend the next week trying to lose the weight I gained and jump back into my training schedule.

So for the past few months I have been eating powerbars before my bike rides or runs. So today I thought of trying those Cliff bars. Damn are they good!!!!! I almost felt guilty eating one. I had the Chocolate chip one and it was so good. So from now on its CLiff Bar all the way!

Today I ran a little under 2 miles, 2.7. I struggled with the first mile or so. It was probably do to the heat. By mile 2 I was soaked from sweat and couldn't wait for the run to end. So I pushed myself until the end of my run.

For food:
Breakfast: bowl of wheaties
Snack: a little slice of heaven called Chocolate Chip Cliff Bar
Lunch: small piece of pork chop
Snack: handful of peanuts
supper: turkey sandwich on Pumpernickel
snack: either some lite peaches or a yogurt.

Later!

First 3 Miles!!!!!

My first 3 miles! It felt great! I decided to run through town today instead of the side road I have been running on. I figured running through town would give me more to look at and keep my mind off of running, breathing, leg pain..... After 2 1/2 months of training I finally ran the 3 miles. Now I feel I am ready to run a 5K, even if I only ran 3 miles once. I felt strong in today's run. Now I am going to build on these 3 miles and get myself ready for the Hot 5k in Vegas in August.

Feels good to accomplish one of my goals!!!!!