Sunday, December 27, 2009

lets play a game

After an EPIC boxing day celebration at Touch last night and what felt like very little sleep, I was awoken by an amazingly fabulous 'wake up Erica' dance from my sister. It was unreal. I wish I had it on video so I could share it with the world. So up I got and we played a ridiculously competitive Wii marathon. Not gonna lie, my shoulders might actually hurt a little bit. I haven't laughed that hard in a very long time. So much fun. I had an amazing ride as well. I feel like I've finally had a chance to settle my brain a little and actually remember how to relax. I needed to spend some quality time with the horses. My horse time really saves my sanity. They focus me. I feel fabulous!!

Saturday, December 26, 2009

shiny pretty things

I made it to the gym, still have to work 2 horses but I managed to find time to place a new SUGOI order!! Even though it's not really that cold here, I find myself lacking in the warm running tights department. So the star item of my order this week is the Sugoi MidZero tight. I'm super thrilled because I need to demolish my last remaining excuse for not running....."i'm cooooooold." Not anymore. Also had to get another Brand Champion fizz tank because I'm so in love with the one I already have that I feel like it needs a friend to keep it company!! I love pretty new things!!

oh ya

So I didn't end up making it to Elk to run. Xmas never really goes as planned, does it?! I did, however, get to go to Butchart Gardens, which is possibly my favorite xmas activity of ALL TIME!! True story, I love it there. And we got to go skating and ride the carousel. It was super fun! It was really lovely to see all my cousins and have a chance to catch up.

Also, I may have played Wii Mariokart for somewhere around a hundred billion hours yesterday. Love that game. Tomorrow, Wii Boxing!! YESSSSSSSSSS. Getting pumped right now for boxing day at Touch. Pretty excited, I have a new dress. Well, lets be honest, I have 6 new dresses. They were 2 for 1. What else was I supposed to do?! Anyhoo, gonna run to the gym right now before things get crazy and get some super fun jump rope intervals done!! wooo. This week's goal, back in the pool!!

Friday, December 25, 2009

So this is Christmas

it's xmas everyone!!!! And I'm trying to decide when I can fit in a run, I have to pick up the relatives at 1:30 for lunch/dinner at 2 then walk the dog then take them back to the ferry with the fam. So I'm thinkin I can hit elk lake after the 2nd ferry trip...we'll see.....

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Merry Festivus and all that Jazz

Well well well, the holidays are slowly slipping away. I've been catching up on SLEEP....which is unusual and very welcome! I'm getting old I guess, but sleep seems more important than it ever was before! Speaking of getting old, we had a little birthday party on monday at Touch that went amazingly. Crazy party, so many awesome people came out, it was wonderful. There was even a cake, which is wicked cool!! Because the holidays are so hectic, especially considering I'm in the middle of moving, the gym has been a little lacking. I've been doing 20 mins cardio then jump rope intervals with weight training and then 60s of jump rope in between each set. That way I get everything in as quickly as possible and still feel like I'm accomplishing something!! It seems to be working. Marathon in february in seattle. I guess that means I should be running more. fml. ok. I'll do it!

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

back on track

well, it's been a long few weeks of projects, missing group members, late nights, serving gala dinners, working and making big decisions. it's been really stressful but it's over til january now. yay!! i start this weekend at a new job also. Touch Lounge on friday and Sugar on saturday. Change is good. back to the gym tonight and get team rachel going again so she can kick Chris's ass in the biggest loser HMGT....good times...

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

the biggest loser HMGT

SO! in my class there's a guy who wants to be ripped like the wolf guy from twilight and a girl who wants to look like J-lo...so we've created a "biggest loser HMGT" group. They have until march 1st to reach their fitness goals!! And guess who the trainer for Team Rachel is.....MOI! Funsies!! I love new games. Rachel killed her first workout on monday and yesterday I took her and Quinn for our first HMGT Team Rachel bootcamp!! So much fun!! It was a success, they're both sore today and I'm so proud! Stay tuned for fun updates from Team Rachel!!

Sunday, November 22, 2009

hilly

Well the Bear Mountain 10k was yesterday. Now I know why they call it the hardest 10k in Canada. Cuz it is hard. And hilly. I had some extensive chiropractic work done right before the race and I must remember never to do that again. One of the areas he worked on must have been inflamed or irritated because I was in excruciating pain for the entire race and then most of the day after. The usual things that hurt didn't hurt tho, which was amazing, We'll see how it is today, headed out after work for the usual sunday run with Vic.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

almost that time

so it's race day on saturday...yay bear mtn 10k....goooood times. hopefully it doesn't kill me. hills hills hills...yay fun!! looking at taking a little road trip to seattle in the new years to run another marathon, that'd be fun.....29 days left til my last exam!! then winter break, move in with my sister and all kinds of good times. Doing some renos at the club so I get 2 weekends off, which is ok because I've got5 5 shifts a week at the golf course since jay's in mexico...so it all works out. Should be fun to get to go out with the crew!! I'm excited....

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

fighting the infection

Just sitting in buisness class with L-Hutt, avoiding doing a question. This class makes me sad, it's at the end of the day, and 2 hours long and I'm sleepy....and the sun goes down so early...I blame the recession...anyhow, that's all the complaining I'm gonna do! Work tonight and then tomorrow off school! Yay!! So exciting! 11 days til the Bear Mountain 10k!! Yay!! Run run run!! Alright, back to work!!

Sunday, November 8, 2009

my quads hate me

sprintervals.....they make my legs sore...i like it....might end up being awake for the rest of tonight working on school stuff.....yikes...focusing on the work!!! Hill training and sprintervals are more fun than school!!!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

avoidance

feeling good....foot is a little tweaky after my workout today, but not painful, just kinda achy. 10k tomorrow will be a good test of it's healedness.....which i don't think is even a word.....

currently on the couch, avoiding taking my post-workout supplements....because my liquid iron tastes like garbage....
well, not garbage, like cold chicken broth. that's exactly it, cold chicken broth. it makes me wanna vomit every day. So i avoid it. It takes me a good half an hour after each workout to work up the bravery to take my iron....blargh....ok ok ...here i go,
iron time
ugh

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

back at it

back at the gym, makes me very happy!! running outdoors for the rest of the week and some good solid gym time to keep the rest of me happy! foot feels fabulous.....Bear Mtn 10k is comin up fast...train train train...school is lovely...getting close to the end of this semester.......so much fun...i can't get over how fabulous all of my cohort is...they're all so wonderful! would really like to be getting to bikrams more often, it makes me a much happier person...and is really good for my racing...it's just really hard to get it into my schedule...GOAL! my goal for november/december is to get to hot yoga twice a week....

Goals are the backbone of training
and training is the shortest distance between fit and unfit......

true story

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

blahhhhh

SO once this week is over I'm back to training for the Bear Mtn 10k. This is crazy pub week, I don't even have time to ride my horses....at school all day every day....until thursday...YAY....once this pub is over I'm going to have a huge weight off my shoulders....but it is going to be super fun!!! week 8 of 12.....and i'm getting fatter every day! yikes.....foot feels awesome tho...feeling totally confident about getting back to running...maybe I'll fit a run in tomorrow...that'd be sweet....

Friday, October 23, 2009

Grrrr

stressed about school.....it's our pub this week, feeling behind on my costing and menus and stuff....ACK...it'll be fine..wish I didn't hafta work tonight...moooo.....it'll be fine...run on sunday, up finney, down the back and back up again...that'll get the stress out...it's gonna be fine....

Thursday, October 22, 2009

can i run yet?.....how bout now?

so.....remember how much I hate running? well somehow whilst training for the marathon, something magical happened....did I start to love running? no....did I get good at it? not really..just faster....I got hooked. I'm totally addicted to running. Kinda like I got addicted to triathlons. I still hate it just as much, but I hate not doing it more....it's wierd....I've been off, nursing my injured foot and realized that after the 3rd day I was going mental. I'm going to have to go for sure on friday or I might go completely nuts.....wierd. I have no idea when that happened, but it sure did. School is super crazy and I need to run to regain some clarity in my brain. It's becoming a little cloudy in there. Just a little!

Monday, October 19, 2009

taking it easy?

So!! Went to the doctor. He said the foot isn't broken. YAY!! He thinks that I've torn/sprained a tendon/ligament and that it should be better with rest. Rest eh? hmmm. not so good at that one. So I'm not going to run all week. See if that helps. Do a light run on friday and see how it feels. Hill training will proceed as soon as the foot feels good. It actually feels better today than it did yesterday and I'm getting ready to head to the pool. Gotta get back to the swim training and that'll be easier on my foot as well. Next race is the Bear Mountain 10k, known as the hardest 10k in Canada due to the hills...can't wait!! November 21st. It's on. Marissa is going to train and run with me. Katie too. Should be goooooood times!!!

Saturday, October 17, 2009

here comes the rain

Well it's officially fall in Victoria, which means it's rain season.....ugh...i'm still all sensitive and spoiled and don't like the rain....give me a week and i'll be perma-damp until march...foot is feeling better-ish....still considering getting xrays, but that sounds like a lot of work....lol...i know, i know, i'm going to do it....20k tomorrow with Vic, we'll see how that goes....I'll tensor wrap it and that should hold it together...in theory...OH..excited for rain running!!! that, my friends, is what we call a silver lining....feeling uninspired...more later...

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Definately Maybe

First run post-marathon went well. Just a little guy, did the Gorge route, tried to take it a little easy, ended up pushing my pace  and doing bench sprintervals, I can't help it, the Gorge route just makes me feel the need to interval train. Everything felt decent, foot was achey but fine. And then I took off my runner after and my foot felt like it was going to explode. I think I need to get an xray. It's not getting better. I'll tensor wrap it before I run tomorrow, that should help. It's making wierd grinding and crunching noises and it just feels wrong. yuck. Training now begins for the Bear Mountain 10k. Lotsa hills. ugh. Printed out the course map today, giving it a try with Marissa tomorrow.
Sidebar: I don't feel good about Starbucks instant coffee. I know, I know, I haven't tried it, but it just seems fundamentally wrong. Although instant coffee has gotten a bad rap. Maybe I should give it a try before I condemn it. However, my first reaction is to feel not good about the whole thing!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

RVM


So lucky to have awesome parents who showed up at the finish line to take photos of me!!!

RVM


How beautiful is the background of this shot?!

RVM


Here's me approaching the finish line at the RVM...

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Recover This

I am the queen of recovery!! Feeling great today....foot sore still, but not as bad as yesterday....quads still hating me, finding wierd aches and pains, knees, ankles....etc. But moral is good and I'm thrilled I did it. Gonna head to the gym tonight and get some stretching done. A little upper body workout sounds like just what the doctor ordered!!

Monday, October 12, 2009

This is What We Came For

Marathon day was yesterday....it was hard, long, painful....and I can't wait to do it again!! All things considered I'm pretty proud of myself for getting it done. I was unprepared for the the full. With the amount of training I had done, it would have been more appropriate to have run the half. But when I went to register the half was full, so I said screw it and went for the full, but I did register for the early start time (6:30am instead of 8:30) which gives you 7 hours time limit instead of 5 hours, which is the regular time limit. Which I'm glad I did, but that doesn't mean I was properly prepared, considering the furthest I've ever run is 20k, 42 was a bit of a stretch! After work on saturday night, I went home for an hours rest, slept in, and missed the early start time. Not to be deterred, I just decided to go for the 8:30 start and hope I made it in 5 hours. As per usual, the first kilometer sucked. But once I found my pace, the first 26 went by pretty quickly. My hip started to go after that...i told myself some funny stories, zoned out on my music and kept going...by the time I got into the 30's I was hurting...my knees and bad hip were hating me...i had to take a few walk breaks but ran most of the way....if you're not someone who's as crazy as I am, you won't know what happens to your body when you run that far....things hurt...EVERYTHING hurts...especially if you aren't prepared....even my skin hurt.......my feet cramped....my back spasmed...hip dislocated...but you run through it...my Sugoi fizz tank is the best performing piece of clothing I've ever owned.....no chafing or moving...it was amazing. Other race highlights include:
- making new friends along the way...when you have the same pace as some people you spend a lot of time with them...you've got 5 hours to chat..
- the cheerful cheering volunteers along the way....they really are motivating
- whomever put the motivational posters on the trees along the side of the road during the last km, you are my god!! "you started this.....now finish it", "you own this" and other such posters really made the last km not so bad

The only lowlight was the volunteers on the side of the road who were sleeping, or looking grumpy, or yawning....seriously? Are you really sleeping in front of marathoners? Really? If you're gonna sleep, you should have stayed home. All my friends had the courtesy to sleep far away from me....

At the end of the day, 5 hours and 16 mins later....I crossed the finish line....aches and pains and all.....my mom and dad were there cheering, which was amazing....i'm so proud of myself. Best training run ever. Just another stepping stone on the road to Ironman Canada....

Saturday, October 10, 2009

1 more day..

hooooly crap......it's almost that time...MARATHON TIME!!!!  this time tomorrow I'll be drinking a bloody mary at the local and eating a soft pretzel with hot mustard sauce....as a reward for having run 42 frickin kilometers....ack....i can do it!! I was BORN ready.....doesn't mean I'm not a little scared....that's a long way to run...today is the fun part...CARB LOADING!!! yay!!! loves it!! at the end of the day, the marathon distance is just something I have to start doing if I plan on making it to ironman canada, which i do.....so I have to look at this as training, not the end result...somehow that makes me feel better...not sure why...i guess i need to justify why I'm doing this when I hate running so much....i'm a triathlete, not a runner....that makes it ok....picking up marissa in a little bit, we're doing a nice lil 10k, just to work out the kinks....i know that apparently you're not supposed to run right before a race but my body responds better to constant abuse...rest, not so much...lol...or at least thats what I tell myself.....wish me luck!!!! marathon countdown is ON!

Thursday, October 8, 2009

soooo soon

well, it's thursday....the marathon is on sunday. I really feel like running is a cataclismic battle within my brain where half of me is yelling to keep going and half of me is yelling to stop....it's festive in my head, I tell ya. But, I'm doing this, for better or worse....my winter training goal is to work on my running and that is what I am doing...Bear Mtn 10k in November, should be delightful....I know that all this work will make me a better triathlete, but that doesn't make it any more fun....at least I have some fantastic friends who are helping me along the way!! Marissa and I have a scheduled weekly run in between classes on weds and I will be running 20k with Vic every sunday (other than race days, of course). Having happy, motivated people around you makes you more happy and motivated!! It's a scientific fact!! My sugoi order arrived today....sweet new Brand Champion tank and Picadilly armwarmers...love my life!! Getting back on the bike on thanksgiving monday...SWEET!!!!

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Sneaky Run!

I'm in computer classs right now....finished my assignment....made me feel inspired to do wierd things like make letters large and colorful....lol....we have a 2 hour break before the next class...going for a run....at the Interurban campus today so it's awfully close to Elk Lake...Marissa is coming with me.....yay for running!! Almost marathon time.....yikes....

Monday, October 5, 2009

Creepy Mc. Scarealot

Kickin it at the golf course....all night....all alone...well except for the ghost...it's a long story, suffice it say that it's worth my while to be here til 5am, checking the attic for fires.....CREEPY!!!! It's a good thing Doris (the VGC ghost) and I are buddies...she'll take care of me! The cleaners arrive at 5:30am, which is when I get to leave. At that point I'll go pick up Marissa and head out for a lap of Elk Lake before school. I wish there was more time for sleep in there but I can sleep when I'm dead. Hoping to keep the 10k time under an hour...which means we'll have to keep the pace up....marathon on sunday!!!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

20k

sooooo Vic and I ran 2 loops of Elk Lake today....20k...and by ran i mean ran most of the way and walked some of it....but the name of the game is getting the distance in....the most exciting part is that my cardio was awesome. Felt like I could run forever...HOWEVER, my hip gave out on me...stupid injuries....i feel like it will get better...when I first started training the 10k distance my joints hated me....and I pushed through it and now the 10k distance is easy.....now this is a new distance, new pain to push through.....so i feel like it'll get better....in all fairness I made a huge training distance jump..it's only fair that my body takes some time to hate me for it....so this week is tuesday 10k, thursday 15k and then sunday marathon!! sounds like fun, doesn't it! No? I didn't think so either.....

Saturday, October 3, 2009

nutrition

i'm becoming more and more aware of how much I suck at nutrition for distance training. I'm all good when I'm just strength training and what not but this whole marathon training is making me realize that I need to sort this out. Yesterday I climbed Finlayson in the morning, went to school, rode 2 horses and the ran 10k. I had a protein shake and a sandwich and that was it. Almost died when I had to work at the nightclub. That's not enough food. I must eat more!! Must remember to carb load. Tried to be better today. 20k run tomorrow. NO DRINKING at work tonight!!!!!

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

week 4 of 12

well....school is ridiculous...we've already had one person drop out of the program...people are starting to go a little crazy from all the assignments due....and it's only the beginning of week 4....however its the beginning of week 4!!!! That means that this semester is 1/3rd finished! YIKES!!! I should get some more stuff done!! Actually, I'm doing pretty well. Most of my projects I'm ahead in! Horray! Training, however, not so much. Marathon is coming up! AHHHHHHHH that's a LOT of running....as we've established before.....lots and lots of running.....ugh...and you know how I feel about running....booooooooo. 10 k tomorrow....10k friday.....20k sunday....it's ON!!!!

Sunday, September 27, 2009

still running

so, you know how you do something over and over and you get better and better at it and you like it more and more?? well that's the exact OPPOSITE of the relationship that I have with running. Don't get me wrong, I'm getting better at it but I still hate it just as much. However I just have to keep on doing it. Marathon in 2 weeks today. Yuck. So much running. Boooooo.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Slayed it!!

Today's run was EPIC. but first....a little about my recovery from the 20k run. I was surprisingly unsore, just a little quad tightness. I was however, SUPER drained. Super tired. I definately didn't do enough carb loading the day before, and should have eaten more on sunday after the run as well. So for this week I must be more careful about my nutrition. Big pasta meal on saturday night for sure and NO DRINKING AT WORK!!!! So anyhow, back to today. Had a super solid run. Ran with Vic and we really are quite a good running pair. She tends to rush and burn herself out before the end of the run and I'm good about pacing so I make her pace herself as well. And she keeps me running when I feel like walking. We ran the whole loop at a steady pace. It began to get dark in the treed part of the trail and that definately kicked us into a higher gear as well. Checked the pace and slowed a little going up the last hill, which was great. Coming down past the rowing club we upped the pace a little, not out of our comfort range but definately a good pace. Feeling awesome. Another 10k tomorrow, then rest day then 20k. This week Vic is going to do the full distance with me. It's gonna be tough, but judging by the quality of todays run, we'll be ok as long as we can pace ourselves. Super busy with school right now so gym time is sparse. Focusing on the marathon right now, gym time comes later!!

Monday, September 21, 2009

20k

So I ran 20k yesterday. 2 loops of the Elk Lake trail. Vic ran the first loop with me and then she took off and I ran the next one alone. Not gonna lie, I walked a good portion of it. I'm mostly interested in getting the distance in, getting my body used to that much run/walking. Had a great chat with a golf course member who is also a gym teacher and fitness instructor guru guy. He made a good point. I was planning on running 30k next sunday but he thinks that going from 20 to 30 k is too big a jump in distances. Which is a good point. If I up my distance by that much so soon I have a way bigger chance of stress fractures, injuries, etc. It'd be more beneficial for me to be comfortable at 20k and then increase by 5 or so. He's also a big fan of the taper method of training. Which I don't really like. I find I like to continue to train right up until race day. Otherwise I get even lazier than usual! Surprisingly enough I'm not even that sore today. My quads are a little sore but that's about it. More than anything I was really tired today. And hungry. Must be careful to make sure I'm properly carb loading and depleating. The harder I train and the further I run the more aware I'm becoming about exactly what my body needs to function at this level. It's pretty cool.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Progress

Had a great training session with Chris. He gave me some awesome new core/stability excercises to help me keep me injury-free during my training. Lots of cool cable excercises and stuff! And the PISE facilities are UNBELIEVABLE!!  I love it there!! The gym is just unreal. Ran the Elk Lake loop again yesterday and it went much better than my wednesday run...tomorrow I go 2 loops. 20k. Yikes! Vic is going to be joining me for the first loop and I'll continue on alone. Also gonna hike Finlayson with Christina tomorrow morning, just to really tire myself out. haha. So this week is will have a run every 2nd day, with another 20k on wednesday. Then next sunday it'll be 30k. And that will be the real test. Marathon in 21 days. I can do this!

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Mediocre at Best

Well, my run today was not so great. I guess in all fairness, I'm still recovering and 10k is quite a bit to push for this week. We did run/walk intervals and got the distance done, which is the important part, and better than nothing. So I'm still not 100% after the egg retrieval, which is understandable. They told me to lay off the excercise for at least a week and it was a week on tuesday. I still feel some cramping in my ovary but nothing major, and it was definately agrivated by the running. But, I made it out, did the distance, that's all I can really hope for. Next run will be more running, less walking! Gave myself a day off the weights because I'm hoping to go train with Chris from PISE tomorrow evening so I want to be fresh for that. Not really sore today from my workout with Shorty except for a little soreness in the head of my bicep. Tomorrow is run, train, school. Love it.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

owwwwww

Dinner and the evaluation for school went well. Good times! Workout was epic!! Got 20 mins into my run and Shorty showed up so off we went to workout. Bi's and tri's were on the agenda. We traded our favorite excercises and I MAY DIE tomorrow!! Shorty showed me a few new sweet cable exercises for both muscles groups and I got her to do some excercises on the bosu. We have two very different training styles. I tend to gravitate towards total body exercises because with all the triathlon training I don't have time to focus on any one body part. Shorty does a lot of weight training and is more focused on training an individual muscle group in each workout. So for us to share and combine training techniques is really beneficial and a really interesting variance to my regular workout....therefore....i'm gonna be SORE tomorrow!! Horray. Did another 10 min run after our weights so that's 30 mins running total which is about 5k. Which isn't far enough. 10 k tomorrow and Elk Lake weds. That's the goal!!

Monday, September 14, 2009

Running

So, I'm focused on running right now....no triathlons throughout the winter and due to my recent procedure I'm not allowed to swim for another week so I'm totally focused on training to hopefully run the Royal Victoria Marathon. Which might be pushing it. We'll see. I was supposed to train with Shorty last night but I wasn't feeling well. So hopefully tonight instead. I like having someone to push me because sometimes I get lazy. So, here's the plan:
Monday: run (treadmill) weights
Tuesday: 2 horses to ride, weights, run (treadmill)
Wednesday: Elk Lake 10k
Thursday: run (treadmill), weights, climb Finlayson
Friday: 2 horses to ride, Elk Lake run
Saturday: run (treadmill) weights
Sunday: long run, Elk Lake, 2 loops

So, in theory I'm going to make it up to 20 k runs this week, which I'll need to do if I plan on making it to the marathon. Headed to dinner with a classmate to get some school stuff done...then gym!! More later!!


Monday, September 7, 2009

Vacation?

Well, I've been on semi vacation for the last week. By semi I mean I went to Penticton for a wedding, which was amazing! I had a chance to chat with some really inspiring Ironman athletes, since Ironman Canada had just finished the day before. The buoys were still out in the lake and everything. Really exciting. 
Goal: Complete an Ironman by the time I'm 30. 
Thats the goal. Ideally I'll do one before then, but that's the deadline! 
The wedding was fabulous and magical and I had a great time, but I didn't get to train. I got to do a lovely beach run or two but other than that nothin much. So then I was home for 1 day, within which I worked a double and then flew to Toronto the next mornng at 6:40am. So now I'm in Toronto. I've been doing a few stair intervals but other than that, nothin! Mostly because all the hormones that I've been on for this whole egg donor buisness have been killing me. I've been lethargic, bloated, etc. Plus apparently I'm very affected by the hormones, I'm hyperproducing eggs. Yikes. So therefore, I'm soooo not ready to race in Sooke. So I'm just going to focus on the Royal Victoria Marathon. Which means I need to frickin run. Stupid running....boooooooo. October 11th. It's on.

Friday, August 28, 2009

moooooo

Love my new gym!! it's so super awesome!! Working out whenever I want is just fabulous! However, the hormones that I'm on right now for the egg harvesting are really kicking my ass. They make me sooo sleepy! I'm leaving on sunday to go to Clancy and Caelins wedding, which should be SO much fun!! I can't wait!! Then next week it's off to Toronto! Yay! Just did a photo shoot with Darren Stone...so much fun. We got some really sweet shots!

Friday, August 21, 2009

New Gym

I'm making the switch!!! That's right, I'm switching gyms. I've been at the Y for the last year because I need a pool. Well I don't really end up swimming there. I swim at Oak Bay Rec. I don't really like the change rooms at the Y and the hours suck. I feel like the Y is trying to make me conform to their wierd unreasonable hours....well NO MORE! J works out at Odyssey and told me to try it...I frickin love it there!!! New equiptment, a kettleball station, huge tv's right next to my fave cardio machine...and...the best part.....24 HOUR ACCESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's right. You heard me. I worked out at 1am the other night. Loves it. So I have to go to the Y today and tell them to beat it. Which should be fun. C is away right now so I'm the mattress showroom queen!! Classes finished this week, so now I have a little break before my crazy crazy september hell time begins. Also, hormone treatment for the egg retrieval has begun. Yup, I'm donating eggs. For realsies. I have to inject myself with hormones everyday. Pretty intense. I go to Toronto for the harvesting (not sure if that's the most appropriate word) sept 4th - 8th! yeaaaaa

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Sooke triathlon is sept 13th.....gotta get training!! I'm getting flown to T.O. sept 4th-8th to  donate eggs to an infertile couple...love my life...

Monday, August 10, 2009

I hate being Sick

Sooooooo sick. Haven't been able to train, sleep, or breathe for days. Chest cold....booooooo. Hoping to get back in the pool today. In other news, I'm getting super pumped for co-op next year. I have my heart set on Switzerland. Can't wait. I figure I'll just buy a new bike when I get there. Europe is like bike heaven. Very gloomy today...rainy, etc. Grrrrrr....hope I'm all better tomorrow. OH! New bike came home today!! It's the sweet Norco that B found for me. I think I'm going to name him Fernando....Nando for short...not sure yet tho...I definately feel like he's a boy bike. Currently on a mission to plaster my life in Oak Bay Bikes stickers. It's a respectable goal, I think!

Monday, August 3, 2009

We let down the team....had to pull out of self-transcendance....B's back was acting up and I'm horse-showing all weekend so it just worked out better to not go....the chest pains that plagued me during the Vancouver tri have not abated....very annoying...must see a doctor........hoorse show is going super well, Femo is being such a good girl. I'm thrilled with her, couldn't have asked her to be any better...tomorrows our last day of showing so hopefully her good behavior continues through to tomorrow.....

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Really?

Seriously? Really? I STILL can't put on a swim cap by myself? That's right. I said it. I can race in a triathlon but don't expect me to put on a swim cap without some serious assistance. I'm trying. My new non-latex swim cap is just divine, BTW, super warm for ocean swimming....yea....i like it. Latex allergies are no good. Rode an extra horse today, which was lovely. SO hot out, it was nice to spend some extra time with the horses. Managed to swim 1200m after work which is getting easier and easier...gonna do it again tomorrow after work. Must go to the bike shop tomorrow and make sure the team entries are all filled out for Self Transcendence....DON'T LET THE TEAM DOWN. lol...that's the goal....everyone's gotta have goals...school in the morning...it's our Hell's Kitchen challenge lab today.....i'm blue team...pretty excited...learning is fun...BLUE TEAM GO!

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Photo Contest!!

Won the sugoi photo contest!! yay!! SO EXCITED!!!! Apparently I won by almost 100 votes! So I get some sweet new bike kit from sugoi which is super awesome!! Gotta get out to the pool....still training for the Self-Transcendence Elk Lake Tri. Tryin not to let the team down. Or really, not letting the team down by makin sure B doesn't let the team down is more appropriate! lata!

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

It's On

Upped my daily swim distance to 1km yesterday. Actually, I swam 1.2 km yesterday.....kinda by accident...I'm really working on my strokes and strength in the water because that's a weak spot for me. I really don't want to let my team down on Aug. 2nd so train, train, train!! The courses for the Self-Transcendence Tri are up so I think B and I are going to do a few training days using the set course, which will be good. In other news, tomorrow we're riding the horses out to the beach! Fun fun times!! Off to work!!

Monday, July 13, 2009

Sometimes you gotta run around in your underwear

Spent the weekend in Van. Saturday night was the Underwear Affair, the 10k run through downtown Vancouver, dressed in underwear. All the fundraising proceeds go to cancers 'below the waist'! It was such a great event! Fun booths for underwear decorating, games, free things! And people in crazy crazy outfits!! It was so much fun! T and I rocked out in our jager gear and had a killer time. I finished in 1:02, which is not great. As per usual, my hip starte giving out on me, definately not as bad as it has before, which is promising. The slow pace was just fine because I had to race in the Vancouver International Triathlon the next morning. It was a tough one, my first open ocean tri!! I fully mangled the swim, but made it. There were a few people who gave up and turned around after like 25m. It wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. Going to have to jack my swim distance up to 1 km this week because I have to swim the 1.5km as part of a team for the Self-Transcendence Triathlon on Aug 2nd. 

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Let's do This

Alright....so .......I'm just gonna race on sunday...open ocean scares the crap outta me. Not cuz I'm worried about sharks or anything...it's just gross and stinks and there's waves and whatnot. And it tastes like garbage and salt......it'll be good for me....B found me a sweet norco that was hiding in a box in the depths of the shop...gonna go try it out today...sounds pretty sweet....heading out to ride Phoebe, love my horse time!

Monday, July 6, 2009

Perhaps??

So now I'm thinking that I really should just race on sunday........I'm already going to be in Van to race in the Underwear Affair 10k so it just makes sense that I stay the night and race sunday morning. But am I ready?? That is the question....
I was born ready! I can totally do it....it'll be my first open ocean triathlon which is a little frightening but I think T and I will be doing an ocean swim tomorrow and I'll hit the pool tonight. Hmmmmmm
My photo in the Sugoi Photo Contest (rockin out in my Brand Champion wear, rock climbing) is currently leading in votes which rocks. The winner gets full bike or running kit. Fingers crossed....voting closes July 17th so I'm hoping I can make everyone I know vote by then!

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Rethinking

So I'm feeling super unprepared for the tri this weekend and am thinking that I should skip this one. I didn't swim at all while on vacation. Goin to the pool after work, see how that goes. Lake swim tomorrow too. 

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Vacation!

So I'm having a great time on vacation! A and I drove from Vancouver to Banff and spent a few days there.....day trip to Radium hot springs....dinner and drinks every night with some old friends that I haven't seen in a long time. Drove to A's parents house, she hadn't seen them in 3 years....tiny tiny town. 400 people and 9 churches, I was concerned about being crucified...having sambucca margaritas now with W's parents just outside Calgary. Headed home tomorow! Gotta get back into the routine for the next tri,, July 12th!

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

The threshold

So I finally found my exhaustion threshold....after the tri on sunday I took monday off and then yesterday went mountain biking for the first time. D made me jump off stuff far beyond my skill level (I say made like I didn't love every minute of it) which was so much fun...I jumped off a ladder bridge and then hit a tree at one point...it was awesome...I had such a great time! After dropping off the bike, hit the road for a ride with B, and did 40km....came home, passed out. So exhausted....possibly should consider taking another day off after a triathlon. Made it up at 5am this morning for yoga and came home and slept more. So that was offically too much. I feel great, don't get me wrong. Shoulders are sore, but my legs are fine. I have bruises and scratches...all of which I'm very proud of. Can't wait to do more mtn biking. It's definately an adrenaline rush and at the end of the day, that's what I'm after!! Back in the pool tomorrow, up to 700m swims now I think. After vacation I'll bump it up to 800m.....very excited about vacation! Gotta go pay my property taxes...yikes! I've been avoiding doing it and now it's almost too late!

Sunday, June 21, 2009

T-Day

Raced in the Elk Lake New Balance Tri this morning. Had to work saturday night so was entirely NOT well rested. The lake was warm, which was great since I prefer not to wear a wetsuit. My sugoi velocity tri shorts performed admirably, as per usual. They dry so fast, it's amazing. My swim went much better this time, and I improved my swim time by appx 3 mins, which is huge. Overall I beat my last time by appx 8 mins, so I'm completely thrilled! During the last stretch of the run it began to rain which was actually quite refreshing...until I stopped running. All in all a great race. I definately need more open water swim training before the next race, although I'm much more comfortable than last time. I didn't even mind getting kicked a few times....which totally freaked me out last race....more later....sleep now....

Friday, June 19, 2009

3 days.....

So, I had a tri-mare last night....nothing horriffic...just things going wrong and then when i dove into the water I couldn't swim....my limbs just would not move....
So that was fun. I'm fairly certain I'm just stressing out about it. I feel very unprepared but in reality  I'm more prepared then I think I am. I'm far more ready than I was for the last tri and I survived that one. B and I have been clocking some serious bike time and I'm way faster than I was a month ago. I've even done some open water swimming with T. In the ocean no less. We're going to swim in the lake later today so I'm sure that'll make me feel better. I'm trying hard not to push it these last few days before the race, only because I know I'm not supposed to. I'm dying to go to the gym but i need all my strength for sunday! No sore muscles allowed!
Just headed out to ride a few horses. Phoebe is the sweetest mare you'll ever meet and I'm having so much fun with her. She's been going for almost 2 months now, and she's really coming along nicely. Waiting in eager anticipation for the sugoi apparel I ordered to come in. The Brand Champion line is SO cool. It reminds me of all the Haida art back home. Well, time to get outside! Have a great day!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

4 days...

I'm new to this whole blogging thing, and realistically, no one is going to want to follow me, so it's probably not too important what I say....but I'm doing it anyway.
First of all, I type on my blackberry too much, and am currently upset that my laptop is not correcting my spelling and punctuation for me..
2nd of all, if you don't already know this about me, I'm training for a triathlon. I raced in one last month and am preparing for my second one...which is in...you guessed it....4 days...sunday morning, 7:30am, I head out into Elk Lake to swim, then jump out of the lake to bike and run. I know, crazy, right? I don't know what I'm thinking, 3 sports at once....crazy. But for some reason I love it. I love the challenge and love feeling like I might die. I think life isn't worth living unless I feel like I might die at some point during the day, it just makes everything more exciting!
Where was I...oh right...triathlons. Yes. Fun times. I'm a very bad person and I didn't swim yesterday....therefore i MUST swim today or I run the risk of being unprepared and drowning in the lake....which would be unfortunate...
It's that time...off to work! Have a great day! Happy training!!