Running on Sugar

Training Update

2012-02-11T20:04:00.000+01:00

For once, my absence from blogging isn't because I haven't been training. On the contrary, I have been training VERY consistently. So, obviously, there isn't much time left to blog about anything. As you may or may not (care to) know. I am currently training for 3 big (for me) events: the Rotterdam Marathon, the ROPA run (along with the NHTV team) and the Zurich Ironman... My #1 priority is to not get injured, #2 is to be in good shape to finish all three events without getting injured, and #3 to finish them all smiling.

I have been using the bike trainer DILIGENTLY!

Training wise, I'm in pretty good shape. I have managed to build up my training to where I can fit (quite comfortably) about 10 hours of training in each week, with most of it happening during the week. Right now, the mix is heavily tilted towards running (about 50% of my training hours) for two reasons: the weather (too cold to ride outside) and the marathon in April. As soon as it gets warmer, I will start building up the weekend long bike rides. That should add another 5 hours of training each week. I will try to maintain that during March and April and start building up the training even further (to about 18 hours) in May and June by doing some more swimming. Despite spending a fortune on one of the Training Peaks plans, I have decided that what works best for me is just keeping a routine and go slow. I'm definitely NOT into complicated workouts that require too much math. Training is for me (whether it involves swimming, biking, running) a time to relax. I already overthink work, can't ALSO do it during leisure time ;-)

I ran 10K on a frozen beach today... Happiness!

Between training and work, there isn't too much time left to socialize. To solve that quandary, I have started using training time to hang out with some good colleague/ friends. 5 x 500m go by so much quicker if you know that at the end of each 500 you can chat a bit again. Same for the cardio sessions at the gym: the chit chatter makes them go by so much quicker!

Tried something new: wall climbing!

So, all in all, training is going really well. I did miss out on most of it last weekend due to a crazy snowstorm. I did run right after the snowstorm, when all was still nice and soft. But the snow froze and it got too slippery to run my planned 15 miler. Below is a summary of my training so far...

Week 1: 4.5 hours (including Egmond Half Marathon)
Week 2: 7 hours
Week 3: 8.75 hours
Week 4: 11 hours
Week 5: 8 hours (only 1 hour weekend training due to snowstorm)
Week 6: 8.25 hours (with hopefully another few to go)

I'm trying to put it all in a spreadsheet with nice graphs and all. But I'd rather spend the time training. Instead I use the Runner's World calendar.

The Low Tech Option, Just as Effective

Happy training y'all!

PS: for those wondering, training 10+ hours per week does NOT contribute to weight loss.Only to an increased appetite...
PPS: I do foresee some difficulties in future training due to vacations/ family visits but they are so TOTALLY WORTH IT!

Egmond Half Marathon - Race Report

2012-01-09T08:08:00.003+01:00

So... yeah... I'm a gazillion race reports behind, but I updated the race page so you can go and sneak a peak there. The fall 2011 season has basically consisted of me running many races for which I was not trained or prepared for. Also, I got to re-run some of my favorite races of 2010 at a much slower time....
Egmond aan zee half marathon was no different. I ran this year's (2012) edition a jolly 15 minutes slower than last year's (2011). BUT, I also ran a total of 69 miles in December 2011, vs a whopping 131 miles in December 2010. So... yes, training helps. Which is why the motto for 2012 is train more, race less (but more on that in a latter post, in the meantime see the side bar for clues) --->

So... Egmond 2012... Well, I enjoyed this year's edition EVEN MORE than last year. First of all, the day starting with meeting the lovely Renée (also known as pinkypie) and her husband. Totally made my day! She ran the 1/4 marathon while I had coffee and apple pie with Ron (maybe not the wisest pre-race fueling strategy but it did not bug me). I chit chatted with them a bit too long after Renée's race and still had to make my way to the race tent area to drop my bag. That took forever so I missed my 12:34 race start. Whoops! But not to worry. Another buddy was running the 1/2 and had a start time of 13:00 so I lined up in that corral. Once we started moving I decided I really needed a last minute bathroom stop so scored a free porta pottie (I hate those things). Best idea ever!

I started the race really slow. I was aiming for 10 min/miles (unlike last year's 9 min/miles) but except for the first one (9:47) I was even slower than that. Once we hit the beach (miles 3 to 7) I settled into a very comfortable 10:15 to 10:45 pace made even better by the wind in our backs. Fortunately I had dressed very well for the occasion! I was only occasionally glancing at my watch, no pressure! The run was gorgeous. Last year, we had the wind against us and I was almost 2 min/mile faster!

Once we left the beach and hit the dunes, I kept the slow pace and enjoyed the scenery for another 2 miles. Around mile 9 we turned around for good and got the wind against us again. Don't know what happened there, but I picked up the pace .Despite a strong headwind, the next 2 miles were at 9:50 pace (including slowing down once for water and a second time when I saw my buddy), then I had a mile a 9:27. By then I really thought I'd be toast, but I picked the pace even further for a final 8:36 mile... This is the second time in a row (last time was Nijmegen Zevenheuvelenloop 15K) where I found myself with a very decent quick at the end... Very enjoyable!

All in all I had a great time at Egmond. I love how within one race we get to experience so many different conditions. It makes the race go by so much quicker!

Race Report - Singelloop Breda 5K & Half Marathon

2011-10-15T09:08:00.000+02:00

Yup! I did both! I signed up for the half marathon through my gym for 7.5 EUR (something like 10 USD) including entry, tech shirt (and a nice one too), refreshments and food afterwards, and goody bag... But then, my cousin and her friend decided to do the 5K and I thought it would be fun to join them.

Start of the 5K (from the Singelloop official pictures)

End of the 5K!

The start of the 5K was at 11:00. I picked them up at the train station and we made our way to the start. We ran together, I just adjusted my speed to theirs. I had my camera with me and I would occasionally speed up, find a nice corner, stop and take a picture of them. It was really fun. We finished in 35:51 and got a medal... My cousin and her friend were suffering a bit from the heat as it was already 23C (73F).

We had a drink in town, and then I went home to change (into my Half Fanatic singlet!!!), eat, and DRINK. It was getting really hot out there, and I figured I should get as much fluids in before the race as I could, especially since I did not have enough time to really eat anything serious... Again, my training was pretty minimal, except for that 1 10-miler two weeks prior...

The half marathon started at 14:00. It was close to 27 C (80 F) and we all know (well at least I know) I do not do well in the heat. So I placed myself completely at the back of the group. I must have been one of the last people to cross the starting line... The run consisted of two laps of about 10 K each.


Before, showing off the Half Fanatic singlet!

The first lap went very well. I was being very patient and deliberate with my pace. I think all my 5Ks were within 1 minute of each other. I was really really hot, but I took advantage of every kind person volunteering to drench me with his or her garden hose. I had also taken my Nathan handheld along for the ride, filled with Nuun + salt+ water. Three minutes before the end of the first loop I was lapped by our friendly Kenyans. The pack zoomed past us at an incredible speed. They finished, we started lap #2.

Mile 2: still happy!

Nathan Handheld Exchange at mile 7

The second lap was much harder. It was just too hot! And... I don't do well in two lap courses. It's kinda boring if you ask me... My legs were cramping up, I was running out of water, there were fewer spectators... Fortunately, my hubby was waiting for me with a second Nathan (same recipe). Also, a visiting buddy had found a spot where he could see me every 30 minutes (and document my disintegrating state by taking a picture) and then raced to the finish to see me there. It was a great motivator to keep going.

2 miles to go!

Well... I finished!!! In 2:09:31, so my second worst time ever (after Utrecht which was even hotter) but really, it was fun and I did a great job nutrition and pace-wise.

Done!!

Dam to Dam Race Report - 18 September 2011

2011-10-15T08:33:00.003+02:00

I am 3 (!!!) race report behind already, with a fourth one coming on this Sunday... So this will be brief!

The Dam tot Dam is a HUGE race that has you run the 10 miles between AmsterDAM and ZaanDAM. It's a beautiful course, along many small, cute (and very wealthy) villages. I wasn't planning on running this race but a colleague received three Nike sponsored entries and offered me one... How could I refuse?!
Unfortunately, due to circumstances, I was the only one of the three actually running the race. He was kind enough to come to the start on Sunday morning to give me my number.
The race was fun, albeit wet. Thirty minutes before the start it started pouring and it did not stop until we finished. I was (very) untrained for this race (like usual) so I had zero ambitions beyond finishing...Instead, I focused on pacing (and enjoying myself...). I figured I might as well make this race part of my Ironman training...

Best outfit choice!

Miles 1-3. The first mile was the toughest as we went throught the Ij tunnel. By Dutch standards this was a very long and steep downhill, followed by a very long and steep uphill. It did not really bug me to say the truth.
Miles 4-7. These miles were beautiful, I was having a good time! There was some faraway thunder & lightning!
Miles 8-10. The thunder & lightning got much closer. I was worried that they would cancel the race and I was SOOOO close so I picked up the pace...

I finished in 1:35:33. This was my first 10 miles so this would also be my PR :-) I did not care much about the time, but realized that 10 miles is a fantastic distance. It's like a half-marathon without that last, painful, 5K... Hmm... I guess that also means I should not run 10 miles at half-marathon pace... But you know, it was great training for the Singelloop half marathon two weeks later...

Could it be...?

2011-09-27T06:32:00.001+02:00

10K run on Sunday
20M bike on Sunday
10K run on Monday
and now heading for another 10K run on Tuesday...

Could it be? Did signing up for Ironman Zurich (and forking over a fortune) light that fire again?

Still here...

2011-09-23T17:05:00.000+02:00

Latest development in bullet points:
I have not trained since the Leiden Half Marathon (my new PR)
Despite that, I ran the Zwolle Half Marathon in June and still enjoyed it.
I ran the Dam tot Dam Loop (10M) untrained and had a blast.
I am gearing up for three half marathons in three weekends (see sidebar)
I am officially (and have been since June) Half Fanatic #1165!
I signed up for Ironman Zurich

Despite what the above suggests, I am still sane...

Happy training!

Zeeland Bike Tour

2011-06-13T17:18:00.001+02:00

I never said this was a running blog, did I?
So this (long) weekend, the hubby and I loaded our bikes and took off to Brielle (South Holland). We were supposed to bike from Breda to Brielle, spend the night in Brielle, ride on to Middelburg (Zeeland), spend another night there, and then bike back to Breda, for a total of +/- 285 over 3 days. It did not happen exactly that way. Instead, due to "circumstances" (read bad things happening to good people) we left Breda late (around 2 pm and after 20k made it to Zevenbergen. We stopped there for coffee (and to let a rain shower pass) and decided to take the train from there to Maasluis. We did exactly that and arrived 1 1/2 hours later in Maasluis. We biked from Maasluis to Brielle (including a short ferry hop across the Maas) and arrived in Brielle in time for a (pancake dinner) and a great night's sleep (10 hours +).

After a good breakfast, we biked from Brielle to Hellevoetssluis and then across the long bridges of the Delta werken to Middelburg. Those bridges went on and on and on, and the headwind was pretty impressive. Either way, it was an amazing bike ride and we made it :-)

After a terrible night's sleep (never ever book a hotel without checking the reviews on tripadvisor first) we spend 1 1/2 hour discovering Middelburg. We then biked to Arnmuiden and Goes. In Goes the rain caught up with us and we decided to call it a day, and caught the train home. All in all, a fantastic weekend of biking and sightseeing with my favorite hubby!

Bikes on the Ferry

Hubby's first time on the ferry

Brielle, South Holland

Hellevoetssluis, South Holland

All we saw of Renesse...

Weather turned ugly on the bridges

Veere, Zeeland

Middelburg, Zeeland

The flagpoles that kept us up all night (sounded like machineguns when they shook)

Arnemuiden, Zeeland

Goes, Zeeland

Maastricht to Aachen Bike Tour

2011-06-04T07:15:00.000+02:00

I am two race reports behind... Hope you forgive me...

In the meantime, in celebration of the four day weekend, the hubby and I took our bikes on the train to Maastricht, and biked to Aachen through the beautiful landscapes of Limburg and Wallonie (yes, that's right, three countries). The weather was perfect!

Solar tourist bus in Maastricht

Maastricht

On the way between Maastricht and Aachen

Vijlen maybe?

Diner in Aachen: Flammenkuche

German pastries are the best

And so are Belgian pastries...

Belgian breakfast in Aachen (Germany)

Aachen main square

A little Tea Garden on the way back

Hubby's latest adoring fan

Wallonie Castle

Limburg: cycling paradise

Limburg Castle

The End

Slovakia Vacation Report

2011-05-17T21:28:00.000+02:00

(the race report will be forthcoming when I find some nice picture to go with it)

The great thing about working in education is that we get 10 weeks of vacation a year. Having family in more than three countries and on two continents means we get to travel a fair bit. We spent our May break in Slovakia, visiting the hubby's grandparents and enjoying the sights, some biking, and tons of good food.

Here is our week if pictures...

We encountered these guys on our bike ride to Austria

We rode our bikes to a place called Caruntum

Where they rebuilt some ruins into the ancient roman places they were

Even the trees looked imposing

The views in Austria were beautiful

We even saw some Austrian trains

Post-day-long ride poppy-seed strudel = Delicious

Some tea to go along

Lunch at Elesko

Consisted of Bryndzove Halusky: a dish composed of potato gnocchi, sheep cheese, cream, butter and bacon...

My new Slovak ride :-)

We spent a few days in this cottage

New ride - take 2

Slovak Drink: Red Grape Juice

Bratislava Main Square

Chestnut & Ice Cream & Meringue

Meringue & Red Currant Bavarois

Grandma's Flowers

Another Chestnut Dessert

Coffee European Style


Armenian Honey Cake

New Half PR!!!!

2011-05-15T18:12:00.000+02:00

Last week was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster (bad stuff happening to good people, not us), so the Leiden Half Marathon was a welcome distraction. I wasn't supposed to "race" it, but the weather was PERFECT (12C, cloudy, no rain, and some wind), and the course was absolutely FANTASTICally beautiful. So what can I say, I got inspired. The full race report is coming soon, but I am happy to announce my new PR of 1:56:51 (I know, it's less than 20 seconds...).
Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Name Change

2011-05-09T09:15:00.001+02:00

No... not my married name. Since I kinda gave up on Triathlon, I decided to rename my blog to the more appropriate: Running on Sugar, since that is literally what I do!!!

We just got back from a WONDERFUL vacation, more on that later!

Happy running!

The Nicest Run!

2011-05-03T14:28:00.000+02:00

My running has been getting better lately, not so much in quantity as in quality. My heart rate stays low(er) and my digestion stays where it should, making the runs much more enjoyable. So what is different? I think that most of February and March I was running in a very dehydrated state. I always run first thing in the morning, and by then, I haven't had much time to drink. For the past 3-4 weeks I have been drinking two big glasses of water straight out of bed, then eat my breakfast and drink my coffee, wait 1/2 hour and then go running.

Saturday was such a day. I drank my water and coffee, ate my breakfast, waited a bit, filled my nathan handheld, and packed a gel and went for a very pleasant 10 mile run from Breda to Galder and back. 10.3 miles in 1:41:40 (way to Galder was 51:20, way back was 50:20 with only two stops for red lights), an average of 9:51 per mile and 168 bpm. So all is good in my running world.

Happy training to y'all!

Utrecht Half Marathon - Race Report - Cruel and Unusual

2011-04-25T22:05:00.000+02:00

I'm going to go all Dutch on you (aka direct) and tell it how it was: this race SUCKED! Obviously, it wasn't the race director's fault that it was 25+ degrees (77 Fahrenheit). BUT, the weather forecast has been showing high temperatures for more than a week, so it was absolutely INEXCUSABLE that the first two aid stations were out of water!

At least the color of my face matched my top

Now that's out of the way, let me say the following. THANK YOU to the ambulance personnel and Red Cross for being out in force on the course. Every time I saw an unconscious person by the side of the race, they were receiving professional help. Sadly, some of these people seemed to be doing quite poorly (at least one was out cold and at least on one a defibrillator was being used...). I hope they all make a full recovery (good vibes their way).

Also, a big SHOUT OUT to all these kind Utrecht residents that opened their arms (and sprinklers and hoses) to us. I very happily took advantage of every single opportunity to turn this race into a wet t-shirt contest. Fortunately, I was wearing pink!

Finally, THANK YOU to my hubby and our buddy Steve who interrupted their lovely long bike ride to wrestle the streets of Utrecht to meet me at mile 8.5 and hand me a fresh bottle of water (saved my day) that would lead me to the end.

Now that's been said. Overall, I think I did a great job running this race. My preparation (in quantity of miles) was definitely not up to par with Egmond aan Zee. So, either way, it would not have been a stellar performance. I used this race to practice preparation and nutrition, and I think I did a great job with that. I ate breakfast at 8, then a sandwich at 11am, and then a luna bar 1/2 before the race. I also drank 2 glasses of water every 1 1/2 hours or so. I was definitely properly hydrated going into the race, but despite drinking at least two full water bottles and quite a few water cups left and right, I think I got dehydrated about 2/3 into the race. My back was hurting, something I have never suffered from before.

I ran the first three miles as planned (09:20 instead of 09:40; 09:20 and 09:00), thinking I was being conservative. I never picked up the pace... It was just too freakin' hot. I was taking a few sips of water every 1/2 mile or so, and took my first gel right on time at mile 3. At the first aid station (mile 3.X), there were three tables, but no water. I repeated the water sipping and gel taking until the next water station. Still no water. I got very mad, not so much for me, but for all those people that were working hard, trying to do their best, and being failed. The race director's chatter over the PA made it worse. What I think he said was that they were sorry there wasn't more water, but they were doing their best, there would be water later...

Approaching the hand over...

My heroes... (hubby on the right)

By then I had decided that if my hubby wasn't there to meet me at mile 8.5, I would quit. I usually am not a quitter when it comes to races (I quit a lot of my workouts instead), but being safe is much more important than finishing. I saw too many people laying on the side of the road. However, hubby was there, and I got to continue. As soon as I was out of sight though, I started walking... I was just toast. I walked for about three minutes and then started running. My splits after that point got even slower. I stopped one more time to untie my shoe laces even further, my feet were swollen beyond my usual lace allowance...

The last 3 miles of so were pure torture. It really is cruel and unusual to put an out-n' back at the end of a race. Every 250 meters or so it looked like were were nearing the turnaround, but no. Also, in those 3 miles I had to stop twice(!) to let ambulances through and witnessed a defibrillator being used on a runner. This really scared me and made me realize that the finish time, or even finishing is not as important as being able to walk away. It's easy for me to say, I never really care about my time anyway, but I now care even less about finishing.

Starting up again after the stop was HARD!!!

And yes, I did finish after 2:15:27 of sweltering heat (2:12:03 chip time), making me #290/491 in my category and 1650/2102 overall ( I was told 3,700 had signed up for the race). The time is my personal worst (PW), but I cannot stand heat very well (never have, even as a kid), so the fact that I was able to pace myself and drink enough was quite an achievement. Also, I was told 3,700 signed up but only When I got home and got ready for the shower, I found a forgotten water sponge stuck in my bra...

PS: Don't you love my new running outfit? The skirt is from skirtports.

Utrecht Half Marathon - Prep

2011-04-24T20:35:00.001+02:00

Tomorrow is the Utrecht Half Marathon. This was supposed to be the half where I went sub-1:55. However, as things stand, I did not train enough to be able to pull it off this time. Instead, I signed up for another half on June 18th in Zwolle where I WILL go sub 1:55. My (not so) secret goal is to go sub-4:00 at the Amsterdam Marathon in October, so a sub 1:55 in June would really set the stage.

So, my revised plan for tomorrow is as follows: practice! Tomorrow I will practice my nutrition and even most importantly, my pacing during the first 6 miles (and then I can blow up). The plan is to start with 9:40, 9:20 and 9:00 minute miles and then try to stick with 08:50 miles until the end. If I keep the 08:50 miles up long enough, I will be able to go sub-2:00 (but I probably won't...).

I will bring my own water and GO GELs. While I had no nutrition problems at Egmond aan Zee, I really had trouble with the aid stations in Den Haag. So, I want to see if it's feasible for me to carry my own water for 13.1 miles. The hubby has very graciously agreed to meet me around the 12k mark for a bottle and gel handover. I think 3 gels (every 30 minutes) and a pre-start Luna bar should do it.

According to the forecast, tomorrow will also be very warm, and I really don't do well in heat. So, I plan on drinking a lot during the day tomorrow, and trying to stay out of trouble [insert cheesy smile here]. My bib number is 21569 and the half marathon starts at 2pm. Happy Easter y'all!

Brugge!

2011-04-24T09:10:00.000+02:00

Our friend Steve from the US, my hubby, and I spent two amazing days in Brugge, a Unesco world heritage site in Belgium, also referred to as the "Venice of the North"... Enjoy the sights!

Tempo!

2011-04-17T12:20:00.001+02:00

Now that I have a goal (sub 1:55 on June 18th), I had to come up with a plan to achieve it. So... I took my sub-2 or bust plan from Runner's World and made some adjustments to the recommended times. My first tempo run was supposed to be on Thursday, but got moved to Saturday for practical reasons.

I have to confess, I really don't like running fast. I get really hot really quickly so I tend to blow up. Saturday's tempo run was no exception. The original plan called for a 5 mile run, of which 3 miles at 8:50. According to the McMillan running calculator, my tempo runs should be around 8:30, but I knew there was no way I could do that so I settled for trying for 9:00's.

I first warmed up with 2 miles (the ones that include the stop lights) at 09:34 and 09:45 (faster than the 10:10 I was planning for) and then sped up. I had set the Garmin to Average Lap Pace, but I must have started too fast because it showed 08:15 for at least the first 1/2 mile. I slowed down and finished the first mile in 08:54. I got really hot during the second mile and after the turnaround. I took a 2 minute walking break (FAIL) during which I stopped the Garmin to get my heart rate from 180 to 140. I finished the second mile (08:49 excluding the break) and did not stop until I finished the third mile (08:52). I then took another 2 minute (it might have been longer) walking break and started jogging the last mile home. Fortunately, I met quite a few colleagues and had a good excuse to switch back to walking ;-) Total: 5.2 miles in 47:54.

While I really don't like speedwork or running fast(er), I am secretly looking forward to the next round!

Happy training!

Week 14 in Review - Switching Gears

2011-04-12T07:55:00.000+02:00

Now that triathlon is out, and running is in, I am switching gears and focusing on running a sub 1:55 half and (maybe) a sub 4:00 marathon in 2011. I just signed up for the Zwolle half marathon (with a maximum enrollment of 3,500) on June 18th (at 8:15 PM!). This time, my goal is to really follow the plan (with a few minor adjustments since I will be running two other halfs during the 10 weeks) and to go sub 1:55.

Last week, I tried to get back into running-only mode. I ran Tuesday (6 miles), Wednesday (6 miles) and Friday (8 miles). Every single one of those runs was at around 9:50 pace with an average heart rate of 168 or so. So I think I am getting back in running shape.

I ended up skipping my long run on Sunday. The weather over the weekend was AMAZING, so we ended biking to Zevenbergen on Friday (30-something miles), biking to Willemstad on Saturday (40-something miles) and I went to my bike/racing clinic on Sunday (another 25 miles or so).

Totals for the week:
Run-training: 20 miles
Bike-recreation: 95 miles

All good!

Willemstad

2011-04-10T08:50:00.000+02:00

Now that I have decided to focus on running instead of triathlon, I can actually enjoy long leisurely bike rides with my hubby without worrying about distance or pace. And that's exactly what I did yesterday. We biked from Breda to Willemstad and back. It took us about six hours, including two coffee breaks and one longer snack and sightseeing break. The weather was beautiful, and the scenery mostly amazing...

Etten-Leur

Apple pie break in Zevenbergen

It's baby season!

My bike in its touring outfit

More babies

Hubby climbing to new heights

View from the same heights

Second break - Willemstad

Willemstad - people actually live here

Willemstad Harbor

Third and last break!

Such a beautiful day!

I'm off to my bike-skills class today! Happy training!

Still around!

2011-04-05T21:24:00.000+02:00

I'm still here, still trying to train, although I have completely switched gears and decided to focus on running. I just don't see a lot of enthusiasm in the Netherlands for triathlon, and I have to confess, I find cycling in the Netherlands incredibly boring. I miss the hills of Pennsylvania, where I could measure myself up a 5 mile long hill. Around here, the only way to get a workout is to go really fast, but I am too chicken for that.

The hubby and I went to the South (Maastricht) this weekend to find some hills...

So... I'm going to give up the tri thing for the time being and focus on running, and keep cycling and swimming for fun... Now I need to find a new blog name... Any suggestions?

CPC Loop Den Haag (Half Marathon) - Race Report

2011-03-22T07:56:00.000+01:00

So... Not much to tell. I knew I was getting my eye laser-ing done 10 days before this race, and January and February were pretty low on training. I think I started the triathlon season a bit too enthusiastically and it bit me a bit in the bum... So instead of a race, this was supposed to be a nice long run, with 30,000 of my closest friends.

No seaside running...

And like any long run, I went at it a bit too laid back. Sunday morning (races around here start late), the hubby and I biked to our favorite hangout in Meersel-Dreef for coffee and cake (yum!). We were a bit late on the way back, so I had to rush to get my stuff together. I remembered the forecast called for rain, so I got my hat and sunglasses (needed to protect the super-eyes), my rain jacket and brand new Garmin 310XT. While my mind said to take the running capris and expensive Nike socks, my heart was set on my beautiful running skirt and pink compression socks... I stuffed it all in my pink backpack (easy for gear check-in/out) and ran out the door. I got to the station at 12:07 (train was going at 12:09), hesitated whether I should get food first and take the next train, or vice versa. Decided to make a mad dash for the train and just made it. When I got to Den Haag, I got a banana, coffee and water and ate/drank that along with my luna bar... less than an hour before the start...

Skirt & Compression Socks!

The "Mad Dash" Miles - 1-4
The start was pretty massive and crowded for a long time. Obviously, I started out too fast (sound familiar? see here, and here for two recent examples). I also got hot, really really hot very quickly, but I was waiting for the rain so I did not take my jacket off. Silly silly silly! I decided to wait until the water post at the 5K mark to drink, take a gel, and take the jacket off. 5K came and went (I should have studied the course map a bit better) and no water. It finally came right after mile 4. This is also where I realized that I was NOT going to manage to keep the pace (miles 1-4 went in 8:44, 8:35, 8:36 and 8:40). So I walked the aid station and had 1 cup of water and 1 cup of Extran (sportsdrink I had never heard of) and started running again.

The "Drinking Miles" - 5-8
I finally got to the gel around mile 6 and took my jacket off. It was so hot! And right after, the second aid station showed up and I did the water and sports drink again. Slosh, slosh, slosh. I got really nauseous from all those liquids sloshing around. The pace went south very quickly (miles 5-8 went in 09:34 (aid station), 09:00, 09:23 (aid station) and 09:34.)

How much further?

At least the outfit was awesome....

The Sloshing Miles - Miles 9-11
I gave up on the last aid station and on my gel and focused on finishing. Towards the end of mile 11 I took a walking break. We were in an area of town (Scheveningen) that I knew well, and I really did not think there was any way I could break 2 hours. I was HOT! I gave myself 1:20 (minutes, not hours!) to walk and started running again and kept at it until the end (miles 9-11 were 09:37, 09:24 and 10:14 (walking break).

The "Are we there yet" Miles - 12-13
I knew I was close to the end, and from experience, I know this is the endless part, made somewhat less fun by the guy at mile 12.5 being tended to by two ambulances and a huge collection of paramedics and cops (hope all ended well). The finish was a bit of a let down as it was in one giant mud field. I grabbed my medal, sat for a few minutes and then went to my sister's for a really nice dinner (thanks sis!). (miles 12 and 13 were 09:20 and 09:35).

Yeah! DONE!!!!

About the Race
It's a nice course, well organized race, with good crowds cheering. However, it was a bit too "big" and a bit too "sterile". Perhaps adding first names to bibs like many other races in the Netherlands do would help?
Also, I think there should have been aid stations earlier (at the 5, 10 and 15K marks instead of waiting until almost 7K and then right again at the 10K) and on both sides of the road (would have prevented lines and tripping over each other). I also think organizers should be a lot stricter with spectators making mad dashes (with kids, dogs, bicycles, strollers...) across the runners. One idiot in particular tried to bike across and ran into a runner... IDIOT!

What did I learn?
The same usual: NEVER UNDERESTIMATE A RACE! Each race requires thoughtful preparation and especially around here since races start much later in the day.

Pre-race nutrition: make sure to take enough calories and fluids long enough before the race so that they can be digested. I did not eat enough and drank too much too late, hence the sloshing and ensuing nausea.
During-race nutrition: make sure to know where the aid station are on the course. If they start too late, bring your own bottle that you can throw away. If the race is using a brand that you have never heard of before, try it or bring your own. I did not realize the first aid station would be so late, and that they would be so close together. Also, experimenting with Extran on the day of the race was not smart.
Check the weather forecast, and re-check it the morning of the race. Be prepared to have to adjust your clothing during the race. Yup! I failed at that too!
Decide on your race strategy before the race based on your training and stick to it! I knew I probably did not have sub 2-hour in me, yet I got carried away at the start and blew up very quickly. If I had started conservatively, I may have been able to negative split the race...

My next race is on April 24th, the Utrecht half marathon. I would like to try for sub 1:55... So training starts today again!

Therapy... of the two wheel kind

2011-03-20T07:58:00.000+01:00

Bicycle and I are in the train on our way to our counseling session (bike skills class)... 7.30 am on a Sunday morning...

2:02:51

2011-03-15T07:29:00.000+01:00

I ran the CPC Loop in The Hague, NL on Sunday. I finished in 2:02:51, not a PR, not a sub 2-hour, but another learning experience (yes another one) in what not to do... I still had a great time though. Race report to follow soon!

Supervision

2011-03-08T18:01:00.001+01:00

Like I mentioned in my previous post, I had laser eye surgery last Friday. For the first two days I was pretty much blind. I was very sensitive to light and walked around, in the dark, wearing dark glasses. I also spent many hours sleeping. Since yesterday the sensitivity is mostly gone and I can see enough to get around (and sneak in some blog reading). I went to the doctor for my check-up today. He measured my eyes at NEAR PERFECT and PERFECT. My right eye had -0.25 of myopia left and my left eye had nothing left. Considering the starting values (5.5 and 5 of myopia and 1.75 and 0.75 of astigmatism, this is really fantastic). In practice I probably won't be able to recognize my husband tomorrow at the airport. After the doctor removed the protective contacts, I started seeing worse again, but that is supposed to heal, and I should be very functional by the end of the week. Needless to say, there has been no working out this week... Happy training to y'all!

Eye Laser

2011-03-07T09:02:00.001+01:00

What does a triathlete that cannot see OR go oitside do: dance to old LPs inside :-)
I just had my eyes lasered the old (painful) way. I was not a candidate for LASIK. Since I cannot see very much (typing this on my iPhone with brightness at minimum and wearing sunglasses) I have been pacing the house, sleeping and re-discovering my Dad's LP collection. Hopefully it will be better in a couple of days...

Week 8 in Review - Wimpiest

2011-03-03T20:32:00.000+01:00

Week 8 was the wimpiest so far. Monday I went for a swim, Tuesday and Wednesday I did NOTHING, Thursday I went for a 6 mile run in the morning and rode 15 (very slow) miles with my hubby to a nearby town in the evening. Friday I went swimming again. Saturday the hubby and I went biking again, same place, same distance. And Sunday, after an entire day spent working on a paper, I went for a 10 mile run (which I survived!).
Total for the week: 6 hours.

Week 9 started badly: I skipped my swim on Monday to go get blood drawn (on the doc's instructions) and woke up on Tuesday to some pretty major food poisoning symptoms. So Wednesday was out too... Wednesday night I flew home to Greece... I'm just wondering was comes after: wimpy, wimpier, wimpiest...?

Week 7 in Review - Wimpier

2011-02-20T20:16:00.000+01:00

Yup. Even wimpier than last week. I don't know why. I feel completely exhausted. I managed to swim 3 x 2,500m (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning). I skipped my run on Tuesday (legs were still mega sore from Sunday's 10K), I half-heartdly went running on Thursday (6 miles in 1:03:41 and average heart rate 168). I skipped ALL other workouts. Saturday, I tried the same 6 mile run again. Same time, but my average heart rate was 175 and by the time I got home I was completely dizzy. Sunday, I managed a very slow 60 minutes on the trainer at the gym. And now I am on the couch, wondering how soon I can go to sleep... Next stop: going to the doc to check my iron levels... Dinner tonight was an ~~ironman~~ ironloading session, that included eggs, toast, spinach, chicken soup and milk (and cookies and chocolate of course). I'm done nagging now.

Groet Uit Schoorl 10K - Race Report

2011-02-16T20:53:00.000+01:00

The day before this race, I finally got around to checking out where it was taking place and how to get there. I found that getting there would involved walking to the station (15 min), taking two trains (2:35), and taking a shuttle to the start (30 mins). Hmmmmmmmm.

So on Sunday morning, we took our sweet time waking up, having breakfast, and snuggling in bed. Around nine-ish I half-heart-idly decided it was about time I packed up, which I then did very reluctantly. I left home around 09:50. After buying my train ticket, whilst waiting for my train, I decided I probably was going to need some lunch, since the 10K did not start until 1:30pm. I very wisely chose to buy a chocolate croissant (because everyone knows that French pastries are the best pre-race fuel) and two bottles of water. Obviously I got bored in the train and the croissant was gone pretty much before the train had pulled out of the station. I also had a Luna Protein bar soon after because I thought one croissant would probably not be enough.

When I finally made it to the race site, I was pleasantly surprised by how quaint the village was. Also, the 30K and half were finishing up, so it was fun to see all those people nearing the end of their race. However, except for the finish line, nothing was marked, so it took me forever to find the bag drop-off.

Once I finally did, I was worried I would be too late to the start, so made my way there. Thirty minutes later, when I found the start, I realized that if I warmed up, I probably would get sweaty, and then really be cold waiting for the start. Instead, I spent the 30 minutes I had left eating my Luna Bar, drinking my water, and freezing my butt off.

I was a bit too close to the front of the "amateurs" (the pros/elites/fast people had their own coral), but I never realized how many people were behind me. So when the gun went off, I merrily tried to keep up. Whoops.

Mile 1: I was planning on running mile 1 in 9:00 and the rest at 8:30 (I wanted to go sub-40). Instead, mile 1 flew by in 8:00 which I knew was way too fast... I just kept getting passed, which made me think I was going slow... I quickly started breathing very heavily and thought to myself that perhaps I should have used my asthma inhaler, but after a while I relaxed and was breathing fine again.

Mile 2: mile 2 went way too fast as well. 08:02. I knew I would not be able to keep this pace, but I really did not want to give up. However, this section had quite a few downhills, and I should be trying to save some time on the downhills.

Mile 3: I had officially blown up by then. Also, I was surprised at the number of downhills, and was getting worried that the second half of the race would be all uphill. Mile 3 clocked in at 8:31. I lost some time walking through the waterstation, and I also took my one gel around this time.

I passed the 5K mark in 25:56.

Mile 4: I was completely done at this point. I kept getting passed by all the people I had seen at the start that started conservatively and were negative-splitting their race! I tried to get out of their way, though :-) Mile 4 clocked in at 09:04.

Mile 5: I was sooooo tempted to walk some of this. The nature around us was breathtakingly beautiful, so I felt I should walk to savor it. My Garmin stubbornly was sticking to 4.XX miles for the longest of times. So mile 5 felt endless! It only took 09:06 though. I was also still waiting for the monster uphill....

Mile 6: ...which never came. Mile 6 had a few rolling hills, but finished off with a massive descent back into town. So by what miracle was this a "descent only" race? None. Turns out there were some pretty substantial elevation gains (according to Garmin) throughout the race, but I never realized I was going up, I only realized I was going down... So no wonder some of the miles felt so hard... I was going up in the world. I finished mile 6 in 08:32 and the last itsy bitsy (0.26 miles) in 2:11 minutes.

Total time: 53:39
Place overall 895/2327
Place women 136/900
Total elevation gain (according to Garmin) 215 ft
Average HR 189
Max HR 216 (!!!)

So... not too shabby!

Week 6 in Review - Wimpy

2011-02-13T20:19:00.000+01:00

I started this week on last week's high note, but that did not last... My legs were completely shot from working out 3+ hours on two consecutive days.

Monday was supposed to be a 2,500 m swim, which I cut short to 2,000. The excuse, my brand new goggles were bugging me. Tuesday's run was *very* slow, on account of those legs still being shot. I also skipped the bike and strength, and did those on Wednesday morning instead, skipping the AM swim. I also skipped Wednesday and Thursday's runs. I was just completely tired, and spent those hours reading on the couch.

Friday I got 1,500 of the planned 2,500m of swimming in (cut short due to really painful goggles), my 90 minutes of cycling, and the strength training. Saturday, I did another 90 minutes of cycling, which felt really good, and ran to, and back from the gym (2 x 1.25miles). I skipped the 4 mile run I had planned, as it was getting dark, we had company, and I decided I was just too tired and needed to keep my strength up for today's 10K. Which turned out to be a great idea, since I PR-ed by more than 7(!!!) minutes. But more on that tomorrow.

In honor of our guest, I made lasagna last night! (I rarely cook...)

Week 6 (07 Feb - 13 Feb)
Swim: 3,500m (last year: 2,400yds)
Bike: 53 miles (last year: 75 miles)
Run: 14 miles (last year: 19 miles)
Total: 7.5 hours (last year 8.9 hours)

I won't formalize this week's workouts, since my hubby and I have some exciting errands (nothing related to V-day, I promise), but I will try my best to stay on track.

Have a fantastic week!

What was I thinking?

2011-02-12T20:29:00.000+01:00

About a month ago, in the middle of my once-a-week working-at-home-day, an e-mail popped up, inviting me to sign up for the Groet Uit Schoorl run. There were10, 21, and 30k options and the races were taking place in the same area as Egmond-aan-Zee. I was still looking for a February race, so it seemed like a no-brainer. Five minutes later, I had signed up for the 10K.

I did the math today. I need to leave home at around 10, and probably won't be home before 7 or 8pm, to run a race that will hopefully take less than an hour... On the bright side, it is apparently a very beautiful area, and the weather will be cool and cloudy, with no rain.

I'm hoping for a PR. I will be better prepared than for my last 10K, but not by much ;-)

Stats

2011-02-10T21:44:00.001+01:00

At work I am known as "the quantitative one" as I mostly use quantitative methods in my research. While I'm not too fond of the title, it's true that I like statistics. I especially like the stories behind them. So.... I have been very excited by the prospect of collecting and analyzing statistics on my blog (thank you blogger.com).
So, what kind of fun stuff have I seen so far? Well, that my blog is not very popular or well read. But, some funny stuff as well! (well, at least to me).

The last person (and only) to look at my blog today, got here through a google search. The keywords? Europe Norovirus. Since one of my posts is Norovirus 1 - Alinda 0, and the last word in my blog is Europe, bingo, I was #3 in Google's list. On the bright side, this person got distracted from the woes of diarrhea by reading some 20 posts. Thank you! Hope you feel better!

I have a reader from Russia! Someone googled the URL to my blog in a search engine called http://yandex.ru. Ok, so they may not actually be in Russia, but I like thinking I'm being read in such exotic places!

Someone got to my blog by googling european workout. I was really curious to see what a European workout entails (except for working out in Europe) so I googled it myself. Self has a story about it.

In other interesting keywords, someone googled "never look back during a race" and another search was for athlete boink.I think that about sums my blog's contribution to athletic knowledge.

The most read posts are my little windsurfing vacation (hope it's not because of the bikini picture) and my early morning musings. True, that post was pretty cool. That's all folks! Thanks for reading!

Updating the Blog

2011-02-08T20:11:00.002+01:00

I started working on the various pages on the website, adding information about races, gadgets and travels. Nothing too exciting yet, but I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Week 5 in Review - Score!

2011-02-06T20:49:00.000+01:00

I was really hoping this week would be the week where things fell into place triathlon training-wise. I am very happy to report that they did :-)

Sunday:

run 8 to 10 miles - DONE 10 miles, really great run

Monday:

swim 1,500m - DONE 2,500m in 50 minutes/ last 100 in 1:36

Tuesday:

run 6 miles - DONE and it was a great run!

Wednesday:

swim 1,500m - DONE 2,500m with some serious heartburn from the previous night's fries and kroket

bike 60 minutes and strength train s - FAIL, decided to slack on couch instead...

Thursday:

run 6 miles - DONE, but HR with high for the slow pace.

bike 90 minutes - FAIL, decided to slack on couch instead...

Friday:

swim 1,500m - DONE

strength train - skipped it and instead biked 60 min (unplanned)

Saturday:

run 6 miles - DONE

bike 90 minutes - DONE with extra 2 x 1.25 miles of running to and from gym

Sunday:

long run 10 miles - DONE

bike10 miles to lunch - unplanned

Week 5 (31 Jan - 06 Feb)
Swim: 6,500m
Bike: 43 miles
Run: 31.5 miles
Total: 10.92 hours

Overall I am *very happy* with what I managed to do this week. I need to work on getting my bike mileage up, as this is the longest part of the triathlon, and getting at least 2 strength sessions per week. As a comparison, the same week last year I did the following:

Week 5 (1 Feb - 07 Feb)
Swim: 4,800 yds
Bike: 64 miles
Run: 12 miles
Total: 7.75 hours

"Back then" the furthest I had run was 6 miles, and I was getting ready to run my first 8-miler!

The plan for next week is very similar, with a bit of a breather towards the end, as I am running a 10K on Sunday.
Monday:
Swim 2,500m - day off from the legs
Tuesday:

Run 6 miles

Bike 60 min and strength train

Wednesday:
Swim 3,000m
Run 3 miles at the gym at 4% incline (we don't have many hills around here)
Thursday:

Run 6 miles

Strength train

Friday:
Swim 2,500m
Bike 90 min

Saturday

Run 4 miles

Sunday

Groet uit Schoorl Run - 10K Race

Have a great week!

138

2011-02-05T21:15:00.000+01:00

138.... was my average hear rate during the 1,500m I swam on Friday night. As a data/gadget junkie, I always felt frustrated about the lack of info on my swimming. My Garmin 405CX takes care of my data needs when running, my Sigma bike computer takes care of my data needs when biking outside, and my good old Polar F6 took care of any other cardio, including spinning classes and the elliptical. Yet, I always missed having some good info on my swimming.

And then... came the Polar FT80. I got it as a replacement for my F6. I collect points through my savings account, and could get it for EUR125 instead of EUR250 (plus EUR10 of administration costs), so it was time for an upgrade. On Thursday, while going through the forums, I discovered I may be able to use it in the pool. So, after a 60 minute ride on the gym bike, I switched to the pool and tool the HRM and the watch along. It took a few minutes for the watch to pick the signal from the HRM, but it worked great after that. It helped that I was able to tuck the HRM strap under my swim top, which helped keep it in place.
So, if like me you are itching to get some HR information during your swim, get yourself a Polar FT80. It looks good, works very well, and you can even pick up a GPS add-on to use it instead of a Garmin.

In other news, training this week is going really well so far, I don't want to jinx anything so I'll wait until tomorrow to post something. We have been in the throes of a huge windstorm since Friday, and while I managed 2.5 miles this morning (running to the gym and back) and 6 miles this evening, I am not sure I'll be able to do my 11 miles tomorrow if the wind does not die down a bit...

Month in Review - January

2011-02-01T06:55:00.000+01:00

After a pretty stellar December in terms of running, January was the month I would resume triathlon training. That was a mixed success. January included a 10-day taper and a week-long recovery for the Egmond Half Marathon, and a 5-day hiatus from running because of a tiny injury. All in all that took away a lot of time from running. I did however manage some decent numbers for January, including:
Swimming: 4 swims for 6,300m and 130 minutes
Biking: 6 workouts for 79 miles and 375 minutes
Running: 14 workouts for a total of 82 miles and 810 minutes
Total: 1275minutes or 21.25 hours of exercise.

I give myself the onion ring award for January

So all in all not too shabby. These numbers do not include leisurely bike rides for Sunday lunches (about an hour), commuting by bike, or strength training (which happened about three times...)

Goals for February:
Really pick up the swimming and bike and get started on a routine schedule
Build up to my second half of the year
Lose the 2k that attached themselves to my thighs when I working out in the fall.

Have a great February!

The Meah Days

2011-01-30T09:18:00.000+01:00

It's Sunday morning here in clog-land, it's foggy, and it's -8C (17F). The combo of fog and cold means it's also very humid (100% humidity actually). It's time for my long run of the week (8 to 10 miles). Trying to get motivated by reading other people's blogs. Thanks Fran,Tall Mom, Charisa (even though I got very jealous), Michelle, and TMB, who all had posts this morning for me to enjoy with coffee :-)

Admit it! You want some!

So why was this a "meah week"? Nothing special really. I pulled my hamstring on Sunday, which kinda threw all running out for a couple of days. We also had some really dark days at the beginning of the week (very cloudy, and short) which also threw me a bit off. Thursday evening I cycled, and that felt good. However, I felt really crappy on my Friday run. Yes, I did make it out, I wasn't back after 10 minutes, and ran a total of 5 miles. But my heart rate climbed pretty high pretty quickly, and no matter how much I slowed down, it would not go down. The same happened before my race on Sunday. I also felt pretty bad the rest of the day, until yesterday morning. I heard from a colleague he had exactly the same, so maybe some bug was going around our office?

Yesterday I ran to the gym (about 1.25 mile), cycled, and ran back (1.25 mile) and that felt pretty good. So I have high hopes that today's run will be a good one and next week will be a good week of training. I would like to do a half Ironman on June 26th, and need to start training a bit more seriously.

They also have a half ;-)

The plan for this week is:
Sunday (today): 8 to 10 miles
Monday: swim 1,500m
Tuesday: run 6 miles
Wednesday: swim 1,500m; bike 60minutes and strength train
Thursday: run 6 miles, bike 90minutes
Friday: swim 1,500m and strength train
Saturday: run 6 miles, bike 90 minutes
Sunday: long run 10 miles

Wish me luck :-)

Back to Running!

2011-01-28T06:52:00.000+01:00

My hamstring was still bugging me after my nosedive in the mud on Sunday, so I skipped all my Tuesday to Thursday workouts and runs (Monday was a rest day). Cycled an hour on the trainer yesterday, and I'm about to go for a run now. It's a bit early (for me - 6:45) and a bit chilly (for me - -3C), so hopefully I won't be back in 10 minutes... Have a beautiful day!

Looking back... to the Wiesbaden scandal

2011-01-25T07:59:00.000+01:00

Yeah, I know. Never look back during the race. But a bit of retrospective after the race is pretty good. So... the Mastboscross. In hindsight (which is 20/20) I probably should have run the 5K, my legs were not yet available, especially since triathlon training resumed this week as well. However, the big bummer is that I must have pulled something when I stumbled (and felt flat on my face) since my right hamstring has been screaming at me since Sunday night. So, I am on self-imposed injury recovery rest until Thursday. (Which gave me time to cook dinner and setup my new coffee machine yesterday, yeah!).

So far, I have raced 15 times since March 2010, from a 5K to a full marathon, with 3 half marathons and a half Ironman in between. So far, I have gotten ill after two of these races (R.I.T.N.Y. 5K and Wiesbaden 70.3) and hurt after one (Mastboscross).

I was looking through my blog's statistics yesterday and found that quiet a few people googling Wiesbaden 70.3 norovirus ended up on my blog. If you remember (or not), I was taken down pretty hard by a stomach bug that I assumed to be norovirus after the race. Through facebook, I found out another person had too. My family was concerned that maybe long distance racing was not for me, since it made me so sick. But yesterday, my interest peeked by those key words, I googled "norovirus nach Wiesbaden 70.3" myself. Apparently there was a scandal going on and I wasn't even aware of it.

I found several articles in the Wiesbadener Kurier and, according to Google translate (my German is non-existent), at least a few 100(!!!) people complained to the race director that they got sick with norovirus after the race. Like me, symptoms started on the Tuesday after the race, and were pretty heavy. According to those articles, they estimate that at least 500 got sick. They suspect it may have been the harbor water.

So my question is: as I scientist, I know causality will be hard to prove. However, if 500 out of 3700 athletes get sick, it is very probable that the race had something to do with it. Shouldn't the race organizers have sent a message, acknowledging some foul-up and offering a promise that it would never happen again?

Never look back...

2011-01-23T21:17:00.001+01:00

Friday, as we were preparing for a lovely Friday night/ Saturday in Utrecht, I received an e-mail with race information for the Mastboscross on Sunday January 23rd. This struck me as odd, since the Mastboscross, a 10K through our local forest, was not supposed to be on until the 30th. Or was it?

Well, despite what my agenda and race schedule said, the 10K was on the 23rd. It did not make a huge difference to me, since I was just going to use it as a training run. A quick check of the entrant list showed there were only 18 women registered (only 13 finished), so I had a decent chance of being last. Especially, since people around here take their running *very* seriously.

On "race day" we woke up a bit late, so I ate my usual 2-bread slice breakfast. My tummy was rather unhappy about something I ate yesterday so I almost decided to stay home, but didn't. I slowly jogged the two miles to the start instead of a warm up. Even though my heart rate was too high for such a slow pace, I felt good, so I went ahead. The line for packet pick up was very short, which was great since I got there 15 minutes before the start. At 9:55 I was at the start, chatting with a co-worker and one of our students who were coincidentally also running (they rocked it).

The 5K and 10K started simultaneously, with the 10K running 5(!!!!!) laps. The gun went off and we started. I felt like everyone passed me within the first half mile, but I looked back and saw a few more people. After that I felt I was running pretty much alone the whole time. And it was a looooooooooooooooooooooooooong time. Seriously. I was unprepared for how challenging the course would be. There were several races going on that weekend, including a long cross race (9.8K) and the 10K. So I figured the 10K would not be a cross, but it sure felt like it. There was a lot of mud (especially after it started raining half way), a tree trunk across the road we needed to jump over, a few very steep ups and downs where you could fly down and get some speed to go back up, a lot of branches to avoid... It was cross-ier than I expected.
The first lap was painful. I went out too fast and couldn't sustain that pace. The second lap was painful too, but it was still early. My hubby got a few pictures half way through the second lap, sadly on the flatest, most devoid of trouble section.

The third lap was starting to be routine. I was recognizing all the landmarks and wondering how much longer the torture would last? My legs were toast and I realized I did not have my usual pre-race Luna bar and I probably should have brought a gel along as well. I thought "it's just a 10K", forgetting that a 10K is an hour long affair. Note to self: stay on top of nutrition. The third and fourth laps were the worst mentally, knowing that I still had to go through two, and one more time. At the end of the fourth lap, I think the announcer thought I might be turning to the right, towards the finish... Instead I took a left and he had to announce: "this lady is taking a left". Duh!!!

The last lap was good. I knew I would be seeing my buddy tree trunk and his friends mud puddles for the last time. I bade them farewell as I charged towards the finish. They also gave me a parting gift: a face plant, 100m before the finish (fortunately I was still under tree cover and almost no one saw it). I was looking behind me to see if anyone was trying to pass me, and I knew there was at least one woman behind me. I must have looked behind me a bit too long, because a root jumped out in front (probably to wave goodbye) and my foot caught it. I totally dived into the sand (fortunately not a mud pit), made a yelp, crawled back up and continued running while thinking "I hope I did not hurt anything" and fortunately I did not!

Moral of the story: never look back!

After the race, I collected my medal, chatted with colleague and student who very nicely cheered me on at the finish, ran/shuffled to work (about a mile from the race) and picked up the bike I left there on Friday. Biked home, showered, changed and biked the 30 minutes to our favorite restaurant in Meersel-Dreef (Belgium) for a lovely lunch with the hubby :-)

Early morning musings on a rainy day.

2011-01-18T21:38:00.004+01:00

[06:00] Alarm goes. I should get up and go for my run.
[06:05] Hubby is not getting up either. Might as well stay in bed too then. I'll go run tonight at 6, before my phone date at 7 and our dinner at 8. Go back to sleep now.
[06:08] Whooops. I have to stay at school until 6pm, so no way I can get my workout done. Gotta get up.
(Me) I'm getting up now to go run.
(Hubby) Grunt. Grunt. Wake me up before you go. Grunt.
[06:12] Pfff. Scale has gone up again.
[06:15] What should I wear? Oh yeah. My awesome new Saucony reflective jacket (might as well give it the rain test), with my Azalea triathlon shirt.
[06:20] Food. To eat or not to eat? Eat. I'll have two slices of ontbijtkoek*
[06:24] What is the New York Times saying today? Cool. New opinion columns.
[06:38] Done with eating. I should probably go. Nah. What does CNN.com say?
[06:45] Oh. I have not checked people.com in a loooooooooooooong time. Pink looks so cute pregant. Hmm. It's still dark outside. No iPod.
[06:55] Fine, I'll get up now. I bet it's raining outside, but it's too dark to see. Maybe I can check the weather online. Oh, but if I do, I'll spend another 30 minutes reading blogs.
(Me) I'm going for my run now. ..
(Hubby) Enjoy your run, I'll see you soon.
[07:01] Where ARE my shoes? Oh, yes. By the door... Duh...
[07:06] What is taking the elevator so LONG?!**
[07:10] It's POURING!!! No way am I running.
(Hubby) Back so soon?
(Me) Yeah... It's really pouring out there.
(Hubby) That does it! Already giving up on your new training plan...
[07:16] He is right! If I give up now, I'm no longer gnarly. I can handle a bit of rain! Where is my cap?
(Me) Hmmm. You're right. Fine. I'll go! See you in an hour.
[07:19] Where ARE my shoes? Oh, yes. By the door... Duh...
[07:22] What is taking the elevator so LONG?!**
[07:24] Lucky me! The rain has gotten lighter. Why won't the garmin find the silly satellite so I can start running already?!
[07:25] Ok GO!
[07:34] First mile, easy peazy
[07:35] Argh! The buckets have started falling! Hard!!! Must avoid huge muddy puddle.
[07:36] Splash. Whoops. There goes the left shoe.
[07:37] Splash. Where did that puddle come from. There goes the right shoe.
[07:44] Am I the only gnarly person running in the complete dark, in the pounding rain, or am I the only stupid person running in the complete dark, in the pounding rain?
[07:43] Two miles down, three to go.
[08:15] Made. It. Home. Jacket soaked. Shoes soaked. Pants soaked. But t-shirt completely dry. Jacket awesome.
(Me) I'm back! Can you take a picture?
(Hubby) Why?
(Me) Cuz this was an epic ride and I am completely soaked.
(Hubby) Really? You don't look wet.

I promise, I was really soaked!

*Dutch spice bread/cake, very light on the tummy, but good combo of fast and slow sugar.
** I always take the elevator down in the AM. No point in injuring myself by missing a step or two due to sleeplessness.

Egmond Half Marathon Race Report

2011-01-12T20:32:00.000+01:00

My first race of the year (the 5K was technically still in 2010) is a fact, and was a complete success. I wasn't planning on racing the Egmond Half Marathon, until a colleague bragged that he was running it and that it was a really hard race. Hard race? Count me in!

It was that pretty! (photocredit: residencezeezicht.nl)

The Egmond Half Marathon is considered hard, since about a third of it (7 of the 21K) is run on the beach. This is what IAAF has to say about it: "The popular but difficult race is contested partly over a North Sea beach and on a road through sand dunes." Their description was spot on. The course starts with 2 miles though the very pretty little town of Egmond-aan-Zee. After a short run in very deep sand (balance losing kind), the course reaches the harder section of the beach. During these 4 miles, the sand wasn't as much of a hardship as the wind! Boy was it blowing (in the wrong direction of course ;-) The next three miles or so were over the sand dunes, on a little winding path that went up and down, left and right. It was not paved, merely covered with hay (?!) so we would at least not sink in too deep in the mud. The last few miles were paved, so a lot easier. I was thinking I could probably finish it in 2:10, definitely in 2:05, but was secretly hoping for sub-2 hours. However, despite logging more than 120 miles in December, my only speedwork was a 5K...

Pre-Race
We flew back from the US on Friday and arrived in Amsterdam on Saturday. After an hour long nap, we woke up (or the alarm did). In a moment of inspiration, I decided to re-do our hobby room, moving every. single. piece. of. furniture. Great on the legs of course. I managed to fall asleep at a decent time, but woke up halfway through the night (jetlag). I eventually fell back asleep, but 7am came way too soon. I got up, decided on an outfit (+ backup), grabbed my gels, handhelp, ipod, and Garmin and started the trek to Egmond. I took the train to Amsterdam, and from there a colleague (the same one that goaded me into signing up) picked me up (that was very nice of him) and we drove to Heiloo, a village close to Egmond, where we took the shuttle to the race site. Pfew. When we got there, I perused the expo (and scored a really nice Saucony jacket for EUR50). I got ready, dropped my stuff, and walked the 1.5K to the start. I wasn't nervous. I was really excited about running, since I felt I had trained sufficiently for once. But I was COLD!!!

Race
The race went really well. It was a lot harder than I expected, but I was also much better prepared than I thought. I really wanted to start slow, but as usual I got carried away (and there was a downhill). Those two first miles in the town went by really fast (08:35 and 08:34).

Miles 3 to 6 were on the beach, and they were hard. I was planning on running the beach miles in about 10:00min/mile, but decided to run them on perceived effort instead and stopped caring about what Garmin said.The sand wasn't bothering me too much, but the wind was really making it difficult, so I was working hard. I managed mile 3 in 09:03, mile 4 in 09:12 and mile 5 in 09:02.

*** RANT ALERT***

During that time, this little itsy bitsy girl started drafting off of me. She was running one step behind me and was using me to shield her from the wind. I know how big of a difference it made from the few big guys that passed me and gave me the brief reprieve from the wind). She drove me insane!!! Obviously I thought it was unfair that I was doing all the work and she was just tagging along, but mostly, I got pissed off that she would not look at me. The few times I turned around and told her (after 2 miles) that it would be nice if she went ahead, she completely ignored me. Also, she was running so close that I was worried we would trip each other up. So eventually, I started running to the right, slowing down, accelerating... She would not budge! So I just stopped dead in my tracks for three seconds, so she had to move on! She found herself a sweet older guy that probably felt flattered and followed him for the next two miles...
What do you think? Was I wrong to get annoyed?

*** END RANT***

The final miles on the beach was tough. I finished mile 6 in 09:24 and mile 7 in 09:47. This last mile was especially hard, since it included crossing the really deep unpacked sand to get off the beach, and a very steep hill through the dunes. Fortunately, mile 7 was also where the aid station was. The next section was a path through the dunes. I got worried there, because I was hoping the section would be easier than the beach, and it wasn't. It was pretty narrow, so it was hard to pass other runners. It also was not paved, so I occasionally sunk through the mud. But I have to admit, I really liked the rolling hills, they gave my sand running muscles a bit of a break. Miles 8, 9 and 10 took respectively 09:00, 08:57 and 08:46. The last few miles that took us back to town were paved thankfully. After mile 9, my body was just about done and my brain took over. I kept on trying to calculate whether I could still break two hours. I was really just doing math for four miles. For example: to get sub-2 hours, I need to run 9:07 min/miles. Which means I need to finish the 10 miles in close to 90 minutes, etc. Those thoughts kept me going despite a strong urge to just WALK!

I crossed the finish in 1:57:08, a new PR!!!!

I was very excited, obviously, to have managed a PR, on such a challenging course. So secretly, at my next race (half marathon in march) I am hoping to PR again! A few things that I think contributed to this good race:

Good training (obviously)
Good nutrition plan (I found some great gels that don't make me gag)
Music (this was my first race with ipod)

So, all good! Thanks for reading!

December 2010 and who knew I had it in me?

2011-01-04T00:18:00.000+01:00

*** This is the last post in a series of 5 posts meant to catch up on five months of blogging absence***

December was my last month of prep for the Egmond aan Zee half marathon. I managed to run 128.4 miles according to my Garmin, my highest monthly mileage EVER. Mostly injury free too :-) We spent early December recovering from our many wonderful visitors, getting used to the piles and piles of snow that came down, and to prepare for our trip to the US.

Race of the Month: Run Into The New Year 5K
I love US races so much more than European ones. People are much relaxed and out to have a good time. So what better way to enter 2011 than a midnight 5K? So that's what I did. My in-laws joined me and walked the 1 mile while I ran the 5K. The run was entitled R.I.T.N.Y (run into the new year) and started at 11:59PM on December 31st. It was to benefit the Miracle League of the Triangle and took place on a parking lot in Cary. I had just run my last two long-ish runs of the Egmond aan Zee half marathon (January 9th) the days before so my legs were total jello. I wasn't planning on racing it hard, but it was a good opportunity to get a speed workout. I finished in 25:20, 12 seconds slower than my PR, so a good race in all. I was 3rd in my AG (30 to 39) so not shabby at all.

Wearing my Amsterdam marathon shirt

Finishing!

I was wearing my Amsterdam Marathon shirt, my new running skirt, and my new pair of shoes. I know, nothing new on race day, but this was just a good speed workout. I had to laugh (a bit) at the other runners who were looking funny at me, thinking I was underdressed. Most of them were running in compression cold wear, with multiple layers, gloves and ear muffs (?!). Obviously, 8C in the south is really cold! In contrast, this was my warmest run in at least 6 weeks...

Training this Month
Training this month was very gnarly! I managed 128.4(!!!) miles, despite the fact that there were snow and ice and sub-zero (celcsius) conditions at every single run! I think what helped is that I knew there would be no better days. When the weather is only 50% bad, it is easy to skip a run and wait for the next good day. When days are 90% bad, might as well suck it up and go ;-) So, except for three weekends, I did all of my runs in the dark and cold. My long runs were therefore special treats, as I could run in daylight with music (no music when it's dark). Some memorable long runs included a Monday night 8 miler (the ice on Sunday was too thick), 10, 11, and 13 milers in sunny snow and my last 11-miler on the Outerbanks.

The bike path I usually run on

When the weather gets nicer, I'll run IN the woods

Since everything around home is flat, I do hill repeats on the overpass

My 11-mile run on the Outerbanks, in the sun, was wonderful!

My shoes got old....

... so I got new ones, and it makes such a difference!

Travel for the Month

We kept things easy for the first part of the month, and then flew to the US to spend our 2-week vacation with my in-laws. Since the weather was pretty bad and we did not trust the Dutch railways (they are usually very reliable, but have been failing a bit too much lately), we spent the night at a new airport hotel, called the CitizenM. So far, there are only three hotels, Amsterdam city center, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and Glasgow. The concept is pretty neat: high tech, high design, for a low price. The room is pretty small with a huge bed. However, since the toilet and shower have sliding doors, it doesn't feel very small. I would, however, not recommend you share a room with someone you are not very intimate with...

Citizen M hotel room

We got to NC on the 25th, just a few hours of a mega snow storm... I was looking forward to some nice warm runs in NC, but alas, that was not to be...

Waking up on the 26th...

I did run 4 miles in this...

Instead, I had a few cold runs, and some huge amounts of good food.

Hibachi at the Crabtree Valley Mall

Ridiculous Steak Sandwich at City Beverage, Durham, NC

Then, we lived it up at the Sanderling Resort & Spa on the Outerbanks

Sunrise (jetlag after effects)

Breakfast: Cinnamon Raisin French Toast with Creme Cheese

Frozen Water (Sand Side)

Anyone up for a ~~swim~~ skate?

Jockeye's Ridge

Lunch after the 11-miler

Followed, soon after, by dinner...

And yes, I did get completely wasted on one cosmopolitan...

This concludes the August to December review. Next up, regular blogging...

November 2010 and the Nijmegen Zevenheuvelenloop

2011-01-02T03:07:00.001+01:00

*** This is post 4 in a series of 5 posts meant to catch up on five months of blogging absence***

Things got back on track (well almost) in November. I started getting inspired in my training, and I got better at fitting workouts in before and after work. I think I had trouble running in the dark in October, but by November I was used to it. I ran one 15K race, the Nijmegen zevenheuvelenloop, and it went well (finally). My parents and our best buddy from the US came to visit, so we had some delightful times with them.

Race of the Month: Nijmegen Zevenheuvelenloop (15K)

I entered this race on a whim. It just sounded like fun. Zevenheuvelenloop literally means: the run of the seven hills. Now, if you are familiar with the Netherlands, you will know that the Netherlands are FLAT. So I thought that the race was misnamed and the hills would be a bit of a joke. Ha. Ha. Ha. Those were real hills, but the race was still a ton of fun. Ondrej and Dan (our buddy from the States) came with me to Nijmegen. While they went in search for lunch, I went in search of the changing area. This race is huge (I think about 25,000 which in the Netherlands is huge). However, it was extremely well organized, with areas available for people to change and leave their (non-valuable) things. Once I got changed, I went to find the boyz and joined them for a drink (the non-alcoholic kind of course).

The Run

The start was freezing cold (another sub-zero day) so I kept all my clothes on. I really needed to use the restroom, but the lines were huge, and the smells terrible so I abstained. I was in the last start group, and the winner of the race (Leonard Komon) achieved his world record before our group even started...

The Elevation

The race itself was great. I started strong and kept a good pace. I felt I was giving it a hard effort but I was pretty consistent. There were indeed 7 real hills so it was hard to keep an even pace. My first two miles were sub-9 minutes (warming up). Mile 3 had a good hill and took me 9:17. Mile 4 was a bit congested and I was struggling to get some layers off (gloves and sweater). Miles 5, 6, and 7 were the bulk of the hills and took me 9:28, 9:19 and 9:31. The last 2.35 miles were all downhill and took me 9:06 and 8:43 with the last little bit taking 8:53. I finished in 1:25:34 (1,149/2,133 in women up to 34 years old). It was not a great time, but it was the first race in a long time where I felt I was doing well. All good!

Looking pretty happy!

Training this Month

November training went pretty well. I came back from my Greek vacation rested and ready to resume training. I was looking forward to the hour changing, in the faint hope that there would be light in the morning again. That was not to be, so I just learned to suck it up and run no matter what the weather. I think this helped me keep on track with the running. Except for the couple of days after the zevenheuvelenloop, where I was battle a cold, I was very consistent with my runs, most of which took place before work. One memorable run was on Sunday 28 November. We went (again) to this little town that is simultaneously in the Netherlands and in Belgium. I did my long run (8 miles) of the week there, in freezing cold weather (-8C). However, despite the cold, the landscape was beautiful and the run felt (almost) easy.

Two days later, I had my first run of the snow season. The Netherlands can be cold, yet rarely have a lot of snow. This year however we got piles and piles of it.

I did not know it at the time, but November 30th was the first of many many snow runs. The slow paces tell the story...

Total running for November was 77 miles according to my log (80.2 according to Garmin, I round down on my log), and 30 miles of biking, no swimming. I gave up on the cross-training which I think is one of the reasons (along with faulty shoes) why I was on the verge of an injury.

Life and Home reports will have to wait, I forgot my pictures in Europe...

Next and last in this series: December and the Run Into The New Year 5K

October 2010 and Amsterdam Marathon

2010-12-30T22:29:00.001+01:00

*** This is post 3 in a series of 5 posts meant to catch up on five months of blogging absence***

October was a bit of a disaster. I fell of the working out wagon (post-race soreness, my hamstring was hurting and my teaching load grew exponentially). We had some nice trips to Aachen, Germany, and home to Greece. The Amsterdam marathon was the big event of the month.

Race of the Month: Amsterdam Marathon

I signed up for this marathon right after running my first half-marathon in under two hours. So, I was feeling pretty cocky, thinking I could definitely train for a full. Unfortunately, life got in the way (you've heard that before) and I toed the marathon line completely untrained. Two weeks before the Amsterdam marathon, I ran the Breda singelloop, ~~relatively~~ untrained. That half-marathon caused a lot of soreness, keeping me from running for almost a week (as if those two weeks would have made any difference). I tried to change my registration from the full to the half, but it was too late. Sooooo... Here is how it went down.

Pre-Race

I spent the night at my aunt's an d uncle's in Amsterdam, walked (and got lost) to the train station where I took two trams and walked to the starting line. I had planned to wear a sweater and a jacket to the start and leave them there. However, it was literally freezing (1C/33F) so I kept them on until the start. The ambiance at the start was very good, the organizers were trying to have a new course record set (not by me ;-) so they had pulled all the stops. We started in the Dutch Olympic stadium, so it took a while to get stated.

First 10K (1:03:47)
I quickly took off the jacket and tied it around my waist before crossing the start. About 5K into the thing I started feeling warm enough to also take the sweater off. We ran through the Vondelpark, a very nice park in Amsterdam where I had never been before. I was feeling a bit apprehensive, body parts were already starting to hurt.

Second 10K (1:04:14)

This part of the race was along the Amstel river. It was very scenic and beautiful, with a small out and back along a windmill. I was feeling good, passed the half marathon point in about 2:15.

Third 10K (1:12:42)
I hit the wall shortly after the half-way point. Mile 16 to be very precise. I started my walking breaks around there as well. It did not help that this part of the run was along an industrial area, and therefore pretty ugly. Things looked better a bit further, when we rejoined the residential areas. My aunt lives around the 30th kilometer. About 2K before the place we had agreed to meet I started walking. My legs were completely cramped up. They saw me walking up to them, ready to go home.

I had told them the night before that, if I decided to quit at that moment, they should remind me I only have another 10K. There was some negotiation going on. I handed over the extra clothes.


Handing over the extra weight

The last bit

And then I started that last 10K. Which incidentally took 1:25:49. I think I walked most of it... As I was walking through the Vondelpark, a woman spectating tried to cheer me on. I wasn't having any of it so she offered to run with me. That got me going, and she kept up for a good 500m. I was trying to cajole her into finishing the darn thing with me but her high heels would not allow for it. Still, this encounter inspired me and I kept running after that and until the finish.

I finished in 5:02:03. Not even achieving my C goal (A was under 4:30, B under 4:45, C under 5:00). The finish was bittersweet, the fast 1/2 marathon people were zooming past. In general, that last 10K was utter sufferance. I swore I'd never run another marathon and gave up on ever doing an Ironman. Of course, I changed my mind 10 minutes after finishing of course ;-)

Training for the Month

Training was rudely interrupted by the two races and it took me a while to get going again. I spent three days in Amsterdam at the end of the month for a conference and logged some delightful miles running around in between banquets. However, I think was too soon after the marathon and my new shoes were not up to par, and I ended up with a very sore knee. I went to runners world, a major running store chain in the Netherlands to get fitted for new shoes, right before the marathon. The guy was extremely arrogant, completely dissing my current shoes. According to him, I underpronate, and those were overpronation shoes. So he sold me a pair of New Balance shoes for 150EUR (yup, almost 200USD). I did not wear them for the marathon, but I did use them in those early post-marathon runs. My knee completely imploded and my running mojo was gone. I initially thought the pain was a marathon after-shock, but after many trials and experiments, I am 95% confident that it was due to the New Balance shoes. Total running for October (including marathon) 59 miles. Total bike 58 miles (mostly the week before the marathon when my hip was hurting). No swimming.

Travel for the month

We went to Aachen for a weekend, to visit a family friend. I spent three days in Amsterdam for the conference, and we went to Greece for fall break. All good trips!

Munching on some delicious German pastries

Sightseeing in Aachen

More sightseeing

Hubby enjoying the views

Waiting for the train back

Life this month

Life was good this month! We finally finished furnishing the house, and our stuff came from the States. The last trips to IKEA were made, the last screws were put in place. All was good!

September 2010 and Singelloop 13.1

2010-12-29T15:32:00.001+01:00

*** This is post 2 in a series of 5 posts meant to catch up on five months of blogging absence***

September should be renamed IKEA month. Seriously. We spent the month buying and building IKEA furniture. My in-laws came to visit, we went on a weekend trip to Baarle-Nassau to celebrate my hubby's birthday and I found my way to the gym and the pool.

Race of the Month: Breda Singelloop half-marathon (1st weekend of October).

This race was organized in my new town, looped twice around my house, so obviously I had to sign up. The distances were 5K, 10K, 15K, or the half-marathon. Since it was two weeks before the Amsterdam marathon, I was hoping it would help me train.
The name singelloop comes from the word singel, which is used to refer to the myriad of canals surrounding the historical center of Breda. Most of the run was along those.

The half marathon was supposed to start at 2pm. I was busy nailing some furniture (what else), and got carried away. So I had to dash to the start, and got there at 1:55pm, just in time to make some small talk with all the serious runners that already had their ipods on. It was a LOT hotter than I had anticipated. It was 24C, which is rather high for a Dutch fall day, but I wasn't too overdressed.

The race consisted of two loops. The first loop was fun, but a bit too hot, and I was feeling my lack of training. The second loop started right next to the finish. I passed that point just a few minutes before the winner. It is really a strange feeling knowing I still had half a race ahead of me, yet some people were close to done.
The only big downer of this race was that there were only two water posts, very close to each other, so I was getting very thirsty. Fortunately, the race passed close to my house, and my hubby was there waiting for me with a bottle of water. It would have been SO easy to stop and go home there, but him being there was good motivation to keep going. About 2 miles later, the race passed close to our house again, and the temptation was large. I started walking, pondering over my choices. Eventually I decided I really wanted the medal and to be able to wear my t-shirt, knowing I had finished the race. My legs were cramping really bad, so I finished the last 1/2 loop using a combination of running and walking. I think many other people suffered from the heat and lack of water. Surprisingly, I finished in 2:08:54, 52nd out of 94 women. So, not even too shaby. If I had run the same time as my Pittsburgh half, I would have finished 24th.
Moral of the story: I need to train a bit more!

Training for the Month

Things got better! Yes they did! I found a pool, and I found a gym. The hard part was getting used to a new routine. We do all of our commuting by bike, which requires some good preparation.

This is what my new bike looks like

We started getting up at 6 again, so I would have time to work out before work. The pool is only open Monday-Wednesday-Friday from 7 to 9 and I tried to be there at 7, to make it to work on time for 9. Then after work, I tried to fit in a second workout. The results were mixed. Most of my efforts were focused on running, since the Amsterdam marathon was looming ahead. I totaled 55 miles of running, 72 miles of biking, and 2,000 yds of swimming (hey, I found the pool, it doesn't mean I also used it...).

Travel for the Month
My in-laws came to visit us for two weekends. So we spent one weekend in Scheveningen, and visited Breda, Nijmegen, and Eindhoven. We also went in a day trip for lunch to Meersel-Dreef (Belgium) and on an overnight trip to Baarle-Nassau (20k by bike) for Ondrej's birthday and spent the night at a B&B.

Scheveningen Beach with Ondrej and his mum

The dunes

A delicious lunch of spare ribs (me) and mossels (Ondrej's mum)

Our new coffee hangout: Inspire in Breda

Spinach Bacon soup (delicious) in Meersel Dreef

Off to Baarle-Nassau (Ondrej on his folding bike)

Traditional Dutch roadside view: cows

The sun was shining for a bit

Loads of rain showers too

Life this Month
Pretty good. Getting used to our new routine. How to get to work, how to workout before and after work. Where to hang out for coffee during the weekend, where to do groceries. Ondrej's parents' visit was also a huge highlight!

Progress on the furniture corner: dining room corner

August 2010 and Wiesbaden 70.3 Recap

2010-12-27T13:24:00.002+01:00

*** This is post 1 in a series of 5 posts meant to catch up on five months of blogging absence***

So August was the month of many transitions. We moved to the Netherlands on August 1st, spent a few days, then went to Slovakia for a 1-week vacation, to Wiesbaden for my race. After coming back (and a nasty bout of norovirus), Ondrej started working and I got the keys to our new apartment. A few days later, I also started my new job. So yes, August was very very hectic, but also very rewarding.

Race of the month: Ironman Wiesbaden 70.3

I went into this race with zero expectations. I had not really trained in a while (due to life getting in the way). My last swim had been on July 12th, and my last bike training on July 11th. I had kept up the running a bit longer, but in the three weeks preceding Wiesbaden, I logged a grand total of 11 miles. So yes, I had one hell of a taper. I was hoping to finish and that was about it. I realize now that planning my first 70.3 during such a hectic period of our lives was maybe not the best idea in the world.
You know the rule of "nothing new on race day"? Well, that only can be applied if you had the opportunity to try things beforehand. I had many new things on race day, fortunately everything worked out. "New on race day" items are marked with *. I'll spare you further details, but here is how the day went down.

Race Morning
I woke up, ate a chocolate croissant* and drank hotel provided instant coffee (disgusting).
I took the bus (got motion sick) and made my way tot T1. I realized that apart from uncovering my bike, changing into my wetsuit and surrendering my clothes, I had nothing else to do but stare at other people doing a zillion other things and feel clueless.
A torrential downpour started. But really torrential.

While waiting for the start, I made small talk with fellow triathletes. I waas amused by how threatened they felt by my size (I am pretty tall) and their disbelief when I said I was completely untrained.
Swim
Fortunately, this race had a wave start, with the women starting straight after the pros and elites.

The Swim Start

I made my way into the water and my brand new, never tried before goggles* broke. Mild panic set in, but I fixed them. I decided to start on the far end, where fewer people were waiting. The swim was U-shaped, so everyone was keeping as far to the left as they could. I was happy to have the right side to myself. This was a great move, as I was surprisingly fast. I had never used a wetsuit to swim before* and had never realized how fast those things make you. Score! I passed a lot of people on the swim, even a few elites from the wave before. However, 3/4 in, I was starting to look forward to getting out!

The new wetsuit got me out fast!

T1
I must have had the slowest transition ever. 8+ minutes to be exact. I was really thinking very hard whether I wanted to go on the bike... I also took a long time changing into a dry pair of shorts and a dry top.

The Bike
I eventually decided to start the bike. My HR was 180+ after running to the mounting line. I got passed a lot during the first 10 miles. They were flat-ish miles, but I wasn't in a hurry, I had not been on my bike in forever, and I knew I still had 5000+ ft of climbing.

Eventually the climbing started and I stopped being passed. Despite weighing almost 150 pounds, I am a pretty good climber. I just am terrible at the downhills, so I got passed a lot during those. I did not help that it was pouring again (really pouring).

Like I said: POURING

At some point, with 10 miles to go, I really needed to pee, so I decided it was time for a potty-break. The porta-potty was very precariously perched and kept wobbling, I was soaking wet, so the process took a lot longer than necessary. When I got a out, a guy was desperately in need of a pump, so I kindly lent him mine, which took him forever to figure out. Total length of the break: about 12 minutes. Needless to say, the few people that had not passed me by then, zoomed by.

T2
When I finally got to T2, I knew there was a good chance I would finish. A volunteer took my bike, another one gave me my T2 bag, and off I went to the tent. I had put too many choices of clothes and food in the bag, so it took me a bit too long to decide on what to change into.

The Run
The run consisted of four laps through downtown. The course was flat-ish, but VERY muddy. The first two laps were fun. For some reason running off the bike came easily. I slowed down considerably at each aid station to eat.

The third lap was a lot more painful.The course was getting boring, and I was only half-way. Fortunately, I spotted my buns cheering, so that made me want to go a bit faster, so that I could see him again :-)

The last lap was hard! My legs were really cramping up, so things were a bit slower. There was a lot of walking in that last lap. Fortunately, it was also the last one.

And no, it wasn't me that finished in 5:55 (that was a relay team). It took me over 7 hours to finish.
So what did I learn: I need to plan my training better around major life events (duh), I need to work at my bike handling skills (I really only got passed going downhill), and perhaps I could save up for a carbon bike (I must have been the only person racing on a steel bike). But it was a complete blast, and I was very proud of myself for finishing.

Training for the month

Not much. Except for Wiesbaden, I logged one 5 mile running workout. That's all folks.

Travel for the month

Loads and loads. Moving from State College to Breda. We also went for a week to Slovakia to visit Ondrej's grandparents. We had loads of good food, nice walks through town, and some museum visits.

My all time favorite Armenian Honeycake

Another delicacy including poppy-seed, butter, and powdered sugar

Loads of good coffee

A long weekend at the cottage in Modra

After Slovakia we went to Wiesbaden, where we visited some cool places.

Life Events

We moved and started our new jobs. Ondrej started on the 17th, while I started on the 23rd. We got the keys to our apartment on the 19th. So, the end of August was packed with IKEA visits, and furniture assembly.

Our apt building, in the middle of a park

The living room

Our first (and only) piece of furniture: the sofa bed

For the first two weeks we slept on the sofa bed in the living room. Finally, we also got a bed.

Our tiny bedroom (the master bedroom became the hobby room)

Towards the end of August, we also had our living room area done

Next up: September

Whoops... Update

2010-12-20T07:29:00.000+01:00

It's been four months since Wiesbaden 70.3. So many (good) things happened. My hubby and I started our new jobs, we got our new apartment in Breda. We also made some fun trips, including a weekend to Aachen, Germany, a trip to Scheveninigen, and two weekends to Baarle-Nassau. I raced a half marathon, a marathon, and a 15K since. After three months of transition pains (finding a pool, finding new runs and picking a gym), I have been training consistently for about a month, despite the weather's best attempts to thwart me (see below). Over the next two weeks or so I am planning four blog entries to summarize these past four months (and races) before my good (blog) intentions for 2011 kick in:-)

Sunday's Long Run

Fortunately, the bike paths were mostly clean

Garmin 310XT - One More Time, With Feeling

2010-09-04T17:09:00.000+02:00

DC Rainmaker is giving away yet another one of those... Yippee!!!

Norovirus 1, Alinda 0

2010-08-18T11:52:00.000+02:00

Yup, been taken down by norovirus. Will return to regular programming soon (with the race report).

I did it!

2010-08-15T22:18:00.001+02:00

Yup, I survived 1.2 miles of swimming, 55 miles of biking, and half a marathon despite at 6+ week taper. Here are the stats:
Swim 33:36 (8/52 in AG)
Bike 4:08:05 (46/52 in AG)
Run 2:20:56 (43/52 in AG)

All in all pretty slow, but considering the POURING rain, the mud and the lack of training, I am HAPPY! Race report to follow :-) In the meantime, check out my lovely wubby's post... Isn't he the best?

First BIG Rookie Mistake

2010-08-13T22:05:00.000+02:00

So we made the 4 1/2 hour drive from Den Haag, The Netherlands to Wiesbaden, Germany. This was my first time in 3 years driving in the Netherlands, and the first time in 9 months driving a stick shift, and the first time in 3 years driving a rental car... However, I am very happy to report that drive was pretty uneventful.

We are staying at the lovely Radisson Blue in Wiesbaden. My only pet peeve is the price of valet parking (25 EUR/day for them to park our car in a public lot...). So I parked my own car, thank you very much, for a price not much below that... So parking in Wiesbaden is a rip-off.

On the (very) bright side: the city is completely, and absolutely STUNNING! (sorry, pictures will need to wait a couple of days). So, if all goes to bits on Sunday, at least I will have a great walk through an amazing city.We also had some great all you can eat sushi, so all is happy.

Now, for the triathlon stuff (well, yeah, that's why we are in town). Since I have NOT been training for the past two months (my last real training session was early June, WHOOPS), I have decided that my goal for Sunday is to enjoy the race, and if things go really well, finish before the 5:30pm cut-off. There, I said it. I will be a triathlon-tourist. I will stay out of others' way, cheer them on, and enjoy the sights. And if I finish? GREAT! In my infinite (lack of) wisdom, I signed up for a half ironman that has 1,500 (5,000 ft) of climbing, and "technical descents" on a day like this:

So, at least I won't get too hot...

On an even funnier note, I manage to do my first huge silly ROOKIE mistake: I did not bring shoes. Yup! You read this right. I was soooooooooooo worried I would forget my running shoes, I decided to wear them on the trip and to walk around Wiesbaden. I have done so for all my races until now. But while driving, I realized I had to give my shoes on Saturday. See, for this race, instead of setting up the transition ourselves on race morning, we get to rack our bikes the day before (Saturday), and put all of our other stuff in three bags, two of which we need to surrender on Saturday. Also, the swim-bike transition is different from the bike-run transition and I don't think I get to see T2 until race day...

So long story short, I had to pick: option 1) surrender running shoes on Saturday and walk barefoot... 2) keep running shoes and walk barefoot, 3) buy a cheap pair of shoes... I present you, the shoes of shame!

If you want to see whether I finish, I am pretty sure that you can follow the race at: www.ironmanlive.com. Find Wiesbaden 70.3. I will be number 685 :-)

First European Workout

2010-08-06T15:52:00.000+02:00

Today is our fifth day in Europe. We arrived in the Netherlands on Sunday, and after a whirlwind three-day administration spree (registration at cityhall, signing of work contracts, residence permit for the hubby, signing up for utilities, and all that good stuff) we flew to Bratislava for a one-week vacation. Slovakian vacations are always fun, relaxing and delicious as they involve loads of good home-cooked food and visits to pastry shops.

Coffee and Cake in Bratislava, Delicious!

Today also marked my first European (real) workout, a 30 minute run. The run was painful and slow, as I haven't really worked out in a while. Also, since I don't really know my way around the neighborhood and my Slovak is non-existent I decided to just run laps in the cul-de-sac in front of the house. Each lap is about 0.25 mile so it wasn't too tedious. I was aiming for 60 minutes but called it quits after 30 or so. I am hoping to start building up some running in the next 10 days, so that I can at least finish the Wiesbaden 70.3 triathlon next weekend...

Garmin 310XT

2010-08-05T13:02:00.000+02:00

DCRainmaker is giving away a Garmin Forerunner 310XT which is getting me very excited (I am a gadget maniac after all).

Next up: the Netherlands

2010-07-31T21:39:00.000+02:00

The hubby and I are in Philly, waiting for our flight to Amsterdam. Life has been wonderfully hectic the past month, moving out of our State College apartment, and getting ready for the Transatlantic move. We said goodbye to many wonderful friends, renewed our vows (in the middle of the move) with our families there, and dealt with a mountain of admin. Now we are ready. The bike is on the plane along with four suitcases. The adventure will continue in Europe now.

Renewal of Vows

Windsurfing Mini-Vacay

2010-07-23T03:56:00.000+02:00

The last leg of my parents' visit to the US involved a trip to NC, to see my in-laws on their home turf. Last year, I had decided that my reward for defending my dissertation would be windsurfing on the outerbanks. PERFECT! The hubby and his buddies stayed at the parental residence in Cary, NC. All four parents and I went to Duck, NC for two nights. The trip involved loads and heaps of good food (best steak, best mashed potatoes, and the most bestest chocolate fudge brownie sundae ever), two beautiful sunrises, a dolphin sighting, a kayak eco-tour, two runs, and... 3 1/2 hours of windsurfing.

The 5 minutes spent reading on the beach...

Pre AM-run.

Sunrise, with assorted dolphins...

Best for Last: Taking the Big Sail Out...

I know...

2010-07-17T02:44:00.000+02:00

I've been a terrible blogger. But for a good cause. My Mum & Dad are visiting from Greece, I passed my dissertation defense (yesterday, so you can call me Doc now), I am sorting a transatlantic move (we are moving to Europe in less than 2 weeks), I am wrapping up our lives here, and preparing for our new adventures in the Netherlands. Sadly, blogging wasn't the only thing at the bottom of the list. So was training. So I have 4 weeks to regain the fitness I had built up before the dissertation took over... Next week we'll be in North Carolina, visiting my in-laws (with parents and friends), so those are going to be some toasty runs...

Millheim Pool Sprint Tri Race Report

2010-07-01T19:30:00.001+02:00

Last weekend, the wonderful hubby and I combined the Millheim Pool Sprint Tri with a bike tour. In the early afternoon of Friday, we mounted our bikes and leisurely rode to Millheim. We put a Knog rackless pannier on my bike, and I stuffed it with all kinds of goodies. So even though we went really slow, it was quite a workout.

Fully loaded bike, with new hot pink wheel rims!

We made it to Millheim's Elk Creek Cafe, where we had a formidable dinner. I had the burger and fries, and hubby had two salads...We then went to our B&B and had a great night's sleep.

Meal Extraordinaire

The next morning (Saturday) I got up early and went to the pool where the tri was held. I was seeded #10 with a 4:35 estimated 300 yards. It turned out we were not allowed to flip turn, and since I had not been in the pool in quite a few weeks, I was worried that the 20 seconds head start I had on #11 would not be enough. Fortunately, I held #11 at bay, and we both passed #9. My swim time including run to transition was 4:55:90, good for 9th swim overall...

I spent way too long in transition (times are included in the bike portion) trying to figure out what to wear, whether to put the Garmin on or not, start the Garmin and stuff my phone in my wet jersey pocket. I thought I HAD to wear my race number and had forgotten my race belt, so I put the number on a t-shirt and ended up putting the cotton t-shirt over my wet tri-top. Very silly... Also, we were asked to carry cellphones, and trying to stuff the phone in a wet tri top took forever...

The bike... Bike went really really fast. I was on a roll, and kept on passing people. I also had new wheels (with pink rims) so I felt I SHOULD go fast, to honor the wheel made especially for me by Justin at Freeze Thaw. And I did. The bike was done in no-time. My total time (for 16 miles including transitions) was 54:24:80, 29th bike split overall.

Yeah! The finish line is in sight!

The run... That was BAD. After not running for a while, totally overdoing it on the bike, over-dressing (2 t-shirts in 25C+) and starting too fast on an uphill, I TOTALLY BLEW UP. So I decided there was no shaming in walking and waved at all the good people that passed me while I was taking a leisurely stroll.Run time: 36:01:40! 46th run split overall...

Now customary finish picture...

Total time: 1:35:22:10, good for 35th overall, 7th woman, and 1st in Women 30-34 (out of 3...). So I got a cute medal and a beer mug... I was also quoted in the local newspaper... Not my best line...

Afterwards, we packed up and rode the 25 miles or so back to State College, with a massive lunch stop in the middle.

Getting ready to head back...

I would like to thank wonderful wubby for organizing such a cool trip and taking loads of pictures!!!

Isn't he cute?

What did I learn:
I need to prepare better so I can transition faster and not end up overdressing. Forget the Garmin!

I also need to pace myself on the bike so I do not blow up on the run, adrenaline only gets you this far.

Feedback on the race:
The organization was absolutely excellent. There were many volunteers to help on the road, and they cheered like crazy. The bike route was absolutely gorgeous and the run route was fun.

Next up:
Happy Valley Sprint Tri on Saturday (I am number #165).

Back in the Game!

2010-06-25T17:26:00.000+02:00

So.... I had a friendly visit with the doc on Monday, just to make sure I was getting better. Turns out I had bronchitis, so I got myself a brand new collection of pills, including 5 days of antibiotics and some chastising for running on Saturday. Whoops! On the happy side of things, he did compliment me EXTENSIVELY on my nice and slow heart rate, low blood pressure and high spirits. So all in all, a very pleasant visit. He did ask me not to exercise for a couple more days, at least until the icky cough was gone. So today, Millheim Tri D-1, I went to the pool to make sure I still knew how to swim. Mission accomplished. 1,800 slow yards later, I am getting excited about participating (not racing) tomorrow. The doc said to take it easy, and I will. Sorry I did not make it to anyone's blog this week, but I finished the first draft of my dissertation. I will catch up this weekend! :-)

How Not to PR - Race Report

2010-06-19T21:49:00.000+02:00

Sooooo... If I ever uttered "the sentence "it's JUST a cold" please forgive me. I was ignorant. I have not been sick in sooooo long. My last really nasty cold was November 2008 (Thanksgiving with my in-laws). My last flu was in 1998. That was also the last time I had a fever. It all started with a sore throat on my flight back from Vegas. Then came the cough, then the very painful deep cough, then the congestion, the sneezing, more painful coughing, and finally the bouncing headache. From Sunday to Thursday it kept on getting worse. I even skipped work on Thursday afternoon and went home. And I know it's JUST a cold, and a lot of people have it so much worse. But I don't remember ever feeling this bad. It did not help that I was working 12 hours days trying to finish my dissertation.

Tussey Mountain Ski Area Pavillion

But today... Today I felt better. So I ate a huge greasy breakfast and made my way to the Clearwater Conservancy Strides for Nature 6K. I had convinced my good friend Dan to sign up, and felt bad to let him run it alone. So, I went there, with zero expectations, just excited and happy to be out and about and able to run again. This is how it went down (and down it went)...

My only attempt at a "race" outfit was my awesome BondiBand

The course was gorgeous. Loads of trees, birds, cute little creeks. A delight. The course was also very well marked, which was important since most of the time I was running alone... There weren't that many people, which was very nice.I could just go at my pace.

I started really well. My legs were raging to go (no exercise in a week, worse than a tapper). Sadly, I blew up pretty much straight away since I am still very congested and loads of gunk is coming up from my favorite lungs. It did not help that it was all uphill until the halfway mark. So after 14 minutes I told my friend Dan to go and I WALKED... Yes, I did that. Am I proud? No! But my HR was at 197... I walked for about 1 1/2 minute, until Dan was far enough that I would not try to catch him. I got passed by others but that was OK. I was just happy to be running again.

I ran until the aid station, got some water, started running straight into a monster climb. I decided that my pride was already gone, and I might as well walk that hill too... Just walking the hill made my HR shoot up to 197 again. I think I walked for about 5 minutes, until I got passed by two high school girls. They stopped to walk at the TOP of the hill, when I decided to start running again. I never saw them after that. I was on my own, on a single track trail, in the forest. Very cool.

I was running pretty comfortably. It turns out that you don't need lungs to run downhill. However, it was very steep, with loads of lose gravel, so I wasn't going very fast anyway. I almost fell a couple of times. This was really not a course to PR on.

The last section was back on the road, and was mostly flat. I could see one woman ahead, that had passed me when I was walking the hill. But I did not have it in my heart (or lungs) to even try to catch up. It was just too hot, my belly was complaining, my lungs were screaming...

I love laying on the grass...

So... I don't know my exact time. I forgot to stop my watch. Something around 42 minutes for 4.25 miles... And even though I have never run a 6K, I will not claim this as a PR. I was not prepared,and the course was really tough. So I did not race this, so I don't deserve a PR. But I did have a great time. I really enjoyed hanging out with buddy Dan and meeting new people, the post-race food was excellent and the organizers amazing. So, I'd still call it a great day :-)

I will try to catch up on blogging after Tuesday, when my dissertation draft is submitted... Happy training y'all!

Fabulous Las Vegas

2010-06-13T19:56:00.000+02:00

So this week I was at a conference in Fabulous Las Vegas, NV. I flew there on Wednesday and back on Saturday. After last week, I was determined to stick to focused workouts, none of that improvisation stuff I had been doing so far. Before my trip, I researched the facilities at my hotel and BINGO! the hotel had a pool and a gym. So I figured, I could get my swimming done in the hotel pool, my biking in the hotel gym, and my running outside, very early. Did that work? NO!
The pool was beautiful but a bit of a joke. It looks pretty big on the picture (trick photography) but it was less than 10 yards long. Flip turning on one end pretty much guaranteed a bump on the head on the other end...

The itsy bitsy tiny swimming pool (max 10 yds long)

The gym was similarly sized: 2 treadmills, one elliptical, and one RECUMBENT bike... I went there on Thursday morning, around 4.30 AM. Needless to day, I only lasted 20 minutes on the treadmill (the bike was being used by someone else), before succumbing to claustrophobia. So I called it quits (I was giving a conference presentation that day so I did not want to try anything too adventurous).

On Friday morning, I went for a run at 5.30 AM. I woke up at 4, but had to wait until daylight. Jetlag is awesome that way: my run felt like a midday stroll, without the scorching heat! I ran for 6 miles along the Strip and felt like a champ!

I passed all the famous Las Vegas landmarks: including Paris.

A Paris...

All the drunk individuals walking home were cheering along and trying to high five me. I humored some of them. Boy, those were the shortest 6 miles ever (6.6 to be exact).

Local Superstars (during my 6PM sightseeing stroll)

Saturday, before my flight, I went for another 9 miles at 5.30AM. Those were slightly more adventurous, including a drug bust along the route (not me, I promise). All in all, this was a good trip. Too little working out, quite a lot of work, and a bit of sightseeing...

Today, I woke up with a cold that could become nasty. I decided to take the day off from working out and SLEEP! My hubby is taking good care of me and letting me indulge.

French Pastries from Bellagio

(Over)Training Update

2010-06-07T22:11:00.000+02:00

Being a newbie attempting her first half-Ironman this year, I am slightly petrified of not doing enough. I built up my training to about 10-12 hours per week very quickly, after just a few months. However, I think I have hit a wall in terms of quantity. These past few weeks, and after the half-marathon, it has been very difficult for me to maintain those 10-12 hours and I find myself frequently too tired. As a result, I skip some workouts and cut others short. I think part of it has to do with the heat, but some of it is probably related to over-training. Lately, I have been neglecting my swims, either skipping them or cutting them short. I have been enjoying my rides a lot, usually going out 2x per week for 40+ miles and doing one indoor 15 to 20 mile session on the trainer. I have been struggling with my runs, usually cutting them short after trying to go out too fast. Also, I have not been giving my recovery weeks the respect they deserve.

For instance, this weekend while going over my training "plan", I realized I was finishing what was supposed to be a recovery week, yet I did not do any "recovery". So I decided to skip my long run and second long ride of the week, and take an easy weekend. And not so surprisingly, my Saturday run was one of my best ones post half. The Sunday ride was nice and relaxing, and this morning, I had my best swim so far...I did 3,800 yards of which 3x800 in 14:08, 14:00 and 13:32 (!!!)

So... What did I learn from this? That I need to focus on doing less and doing it better... I still enjoy all my workouts (when I don't, I quit and go home). And sometimes doing a bit less, means I can do it better. I need to separate short/fast runs, from long/slow runs. I need to learn for shorter bike rides, not all of them need to be over 40 miles. Even though I love going out in the mountains for 3+ hours every change I get, my body gets trashed. And, I need to remember, that even if I neglect my swimming for a month, it's right there waiting for me, with very little loss of fitness, so no guilt trips...

I also need to remember to use sunscreen. I have accumulated a crazy amount of tri-gadgets that have helped me ward off the elements (helmet, sunglasses, X-Terra wetsuit...) but have been neglecting the very basics: protection from the sun. I am lucky to have a nice Mediterranean-style olive skin. However, I am already at my FOURTH sunburn of the season. Nothing major, just a bit of painful redness that dissapears within 24 hours. I did not even really lose any skin. But I know the sun can be harmful, and along with the olive skin I have a gazillion cute little moles that do not like the sun. So if you have some good sunscreen to recommend, that is not too icky, please let me know.

In the meantime, happy training and enjoy the sunshine!

Fly by Night Duathlon Race Report

2010-06-01T01:56:00.004+02:00

So... The Fly by Night Duathlon... was AWESOME! My hubby and our friends were all living it up in Europe (albeit separately), so like a big girl, I loaded the car, drove the 3 hours to Watkins Glen, setup my bike, raced, re-packed the car, ate, and drove back. That does sound pretty easy doesn't it? Well it wasn't.

Morning of...

I was helping out a friend on Friday night, so I got home pretty late, carbo-loaded (as if I needed it) and went to bed. I tried to sleep in, but I was wide awake at 6.30, so got up and had breakfast. I was planning on leaving between 9 and 10. However, at around 8.30 I started having some digestive issues, either because of pre-race nerves or my new and improved diet. I think that by the time I was done, there was zero fuel left. I tried to drink a lot to make up for all the "losses" but that also did not go as expected. For a 3 hour drive, I had to stop 2 times to use the bathroom.

At the Track

My trusted friend, Tom-Tom, got me to Watkins Glen without a hitch, through some beautiful scenery. Sadly, I have no pictures since I needed to hold the steering wheel. I got there around 2 or so, in plenty of time to watch the Porsche Clash. The Glen was closed to the public, but I got a cool Pit Pass bracelet, which allowed me to oggle the Porsches up, close and personal.

Oggling the Porches... I still like my ride better though...

The Fly by Night Duathlon is an evening race, and was to take place after the Porsche Clash. So I watched the last Porsche Clash start and then made my way back to the car to get ready. Let's say that part of the trip did not go very smoothly, and I greatly missed the hubby...

I had managed to get the bike in the car, while only removing the front wheel with the quick release skewer, so putting it back together wasn't such a big deal (although I was petrified that the wheel would pop out during the race). Being the good little athlete, I had also brought our floor pump (and five extra tubes, "just in case") and attempted to pump the front tire. Suffice to say, that did not work out as planned. Three nice people took turns helping me out (2/3 were unsuccessful) and we finally managed to get my tires to some acceptable yet undocumented level of pressure. The bike was ready to go! Now me!

Lady is ready for her race, and is definitely sexier than a Porsche

After the bike (which I am thinking of naming "Lady") was ready, I changed into my racing outfit.I normally don't care too much about what I wear, as long as there is no danger of chaffing. However, I needed padding for the bike that would not get in the way of the run. So I used the cute little triathlon outfit that my in-laws got me for the Azalea Triathlon with a very generous service of chamois cream... My new Bondi Bands also came in right on time. I got five of them using Molly's at I'm a Sleeper Baker, FIVE for twenty-five code and I made sure at least one them would match my triathlon outfit and glasses. I got the crazy glasses during Tall Mom's Silent Auction, and they counted as my birthday gift from the hubby. The outfit was completely great, even if I looked pretty dorky. The Bondi Band kept my hair out of my face AND fit really well under my helmet. The glasses made it much more comfortable to ride during the sunset. And I never thought of my lower half, either during the run or during the bike.

Geeky yet very PRACTICAL outfit

Soon after I was ready, I made it over to transition, which was to be set up in the pit lane (how cool is that?). Since the organizers had to wait until the cars were done, we had to wait until transition was set up. That is also when we got our timing chips. Quite a few people mumbled about having to wait, but I liked how laid back everything was. I biked one practice lap, and ran for about 10 minutes before the start. That's when I realized I was in trouble. There was zero juice in my legs... Nothing, Nada, Zip. I don't think I've had this feeling since I started training in January, so that was new.

A picture from last year's transition: it was exactly the same this year

So this is getting pretty long, and I haven't even started the race...

The Race

The race director announced that the race was going to start 15 minutes late, to give everyone a chance to find a spot in transition, make a practice lap, and get their timing chip. So at 6.20 we all lined up for the start. Since my legs were completely dead, I decided to start at the back of the pack, and not let myself be carried away. After all, I had FIVE sprints to do. I was listening to a few women chit chatting and completely missed the start. So I started running and tried to start my watch at the same time. I did not take the Garmin or a heart monitor to the race, since I wanted to race based on my perceived effort.

Run #1

(1.75, 1.8 or 1.86 miles, depending on who you ask)

This was baaaaaaad. It was still pretty hot. One minute into the run we had to go over a bridge (the one that says welcome to... in the picture above. Since it was so quickly after the start, there was a traffic jam and I had to stop and walk up the bridge and only started running again on the other side. For the rest of the first run I was mostly passing people (the advantage of starting at the back), yet going very slowly. The final part of the run was a pretty long hill, and that completely destroyed what was left in me.

I am not sure what my pace was. According to the website, each lap was 1.8 miles. I ran it in 15:41 which is about a 08:43 pace. However, according to the official results, my pace on lap 1 was 8:58, which assumes they used 1.75 miles to calculate the pace. I compared last year's paces to this year's paces, and either the fast runners have gotten much slower (to the tune of 00:30 to 00:45 seconds/mile slower) or the course was longer than 1.75 miles. I'm just sayin'... I knew my legs were trashed, but to run a 1.75 sprint slower than my half-marathon pace... Curious to say the least...

Either way, by that stage, I really did not care about my pace. I felt so slow and could not imagine doing that 2 more times, let alone bike. I went through transition pretty quickly (47 seconds), grabbed helmet and bike, and went on to the bike.

Bike #1 (3 laps)

I started the bike pretty slow, figuring I should save some energy. However, I quickly started accelerating. The same thing had happened at the Azalea Triathlon. The longer I bike, the stronger I get. The course was pretty exciting. After all, it was a car race circuit. However, I don't know about you, but when I think car circuit, I think flat... Not to be... There were quite a few hills. The sad part was, that, while I kept on passing people on the hills and flats, most of them would pass me right back on the downhills. There were two epic downhills, that ended with steep turns. I was too petrified of missing the turn, so I held on to the brakes for dear life. It was fun yet dispiriting at the same time to constantly pass the same people going up, only to be passed again on the way down. I already knew I was a wimp on the downhills, but I have been practicing (which is why I am so good at climbing, because to go down you have to go up).

The Bike Course

Either way, after three laps I re-entered pit lane and made my way to transition. I made sure to slow down and spin my legs during the last 1/2 mile to make the run a bit easier, despite the hill (yup, same hill as the running). I finished the second bike in 35:47, for a very decent 17.5 mph average. Transition 2 was also pretty speedy, clocking in at 41 seconds.

Run #2

Nothing special happened on run #2. It had gotten a bit cooler, so I was feeling a bit better. The liquids in my belly were still sloshing around, making funny noises. I focused on keeping a good pace, and told myself that, after run 2 was done, it would be mostly over. I did run #2 in 15:57, a 09:07 pace according to the official results. Transition 3 took me the longest because I was very thirsty, and stopped to drink. I also had trouble getting my helmet on. So I wasted some time there.

Bike #2

I really enjoyed bike #2. It took me a while to recover from the run, but I quickly perked up again. I did take this one a bit slower, but I still was passing people left and right on the hills and flats, and getting passed on the downhills. However, I noticed that, when I hammered on the flats after the uphill, I could put enough distance between me and the others not to be passed again. I think a lot of people relax at the top of a hill, while I like taking advantage of my high heart rate to push a bit further. I was very glad I was wearing sunglasses, because by then, the sun was really low. So this split was 37:17 for an average of 17mph. The last transition took me 38 seconds. I was ready to be DONE!

Run #3

I tried, I really tried. But my legs were gone, in a land far away, and without me. I guess that's what happens when there is no fuel in the body. I tried to keep up a good pace, but I wimped out and walked the few steep hills. On the final hill, I looked back to make sure no woman was close enough to pass me, and took a final walk break before running to the finish. The last lap took me 16:10 (an official pace of 09:14). The grand total for the day was 2:04:05 which was good enough for second in my age group (there were only five of us...), 14 out of 44 females, and 126/190 overall. So pretty average, but I got a fun trophy to show off, and some great and very unusual racing experience.

The Bondi Band stayed in place the WHOLE time!

So what did I learn: first, if I am going to race, I need to prepare! That includes nutrition, technical issues, digestive issues, and most importantly tapering. I did not do any duathlon specific training for this race, I have not done any spring training since at least my last 5K, and I worked out pretty hard all week. However, I think my digestive problems were mostly to blame for the lack of energy, so I am not sure about what to do better next time... I guess I'll have to think about that one for the few weeks. I have three races coming up at the end of the month: the Millheim Pool Sprint Triathlon, the Happy Valley Sprint Tri, and the Firecracker 4K. So I guess I need to go work on that speed....

Second!

2010-05-30T06:55:00.000+02:00

I was second in my age group at the Fly by Night Duathlon. No official results have been posted yet, so no race report yet. And after 4 hours of driving to get there, two hour of racing, and three hours to get back, I am ready for food, shower, and sleep, in that order.

Fly by Night Duathlon Race Prep

2010-05-29T13:34:00.002+02:00

So.... Today is the Fly by Night Duathlon. It is taking place at the Watkins Glen International racing facility, after a Porsche Clash. This is only going to be my second multi-sport event, the first being the Azalea Triathlon, in March. The race isn't until 5 or 6 tonight, so I only need to be there by 3 for registration (and Porsche oggling). Can you believe the transition area will be in the pit lane? Awesome. The race consists of a 1.86 mile run, followed by a 10 mile bike ride (3 laps of the track), followed by another 1.86 mile run, followed by yet another 10 mile bike ride, followed by (finally) another 1.86 mile run. So yeah, that's going to take me a while.

My goals for this race are pretty straightforward:
C Goal: I want to run a good/smart race: not blow up in the first 3 sections, go really hard on sections 4 and 5 (last bike and last run).
B Goal: If the track permits, I want to get my runs at under 8:20 pace, and my bikes at at least 17 mph average (although there are some speed turns and hills).
A Goal: I want to get my runs at sub-8 pace, and my bikes at at least 18 mph average. And place in my AG. There, I said it.

However, I have not trained for either my B or A goal. I have been focused on the half-ironman in August, meaning that I have been working hard on my endurance, and neglecting my speed. I also did not taper for this race, since I am putting all my energy in the half-ironman training. I am doing this race for three reasons: 1) it's going to be fun, 2) hubby is away so it will be nice for me to do something that is going to keep me busy and around others, 3) it is great racing practice.

I have about 1 1/2 hours to prepare, before leaving. According to google maps, it is about a 3 hour drive. If I leave by 9 or 10, I should be there in plenty of time to put my bike back together, test it, pump up the tires... My hubby usually does those things, but this week, he is is living it up in Europe, leaving me to fend for myself. I was also supposed to clean and lube the bikechain, but I got home late last night and focused on carbo-loading... Pasta and Ben & Jerry's Karamel Sutra. Yuuuuuum!

My little plan to eat more healthy backfired a bit. I managed to eat more fruit and vegetables than I normally would,protein at almost every meal, and slightly less junk (but still had bagels, lemon cake, ice cream, pasta, pretzels). However, I lost 1.2 kg in three days and my digestion has been a bit turbulent. So for today, I will stick to carbs, carbs, and more carbs, because I do not want any surprises, either for the 2 x 3 hour drive or the 2 hour race...

I need to go finish packing. I hope you all have great races and great trainings this weekend!

Do Fruitbars Count As Fruit?

2010-05-27T04:30:00.000+02:00

So... I have been thinking about my eating habits lately and decided it was time for an intervention. Even since I started training (January), I have been eating and eating, and when not eating, been hungry... I guess going from 4 hours to 10-14 hours of exercise does that to a person. Before starting, I was at a scrawny-yet-flabby 62 kg, and I ate pretty badly but not too bad (think loads of carbs, little protein, and very little fresh fruit and veggies, but also very little processed food).

After I started training, I started eating a lot more, yet instead of adding healthy foods to my diet, I just kept on doing the carb thing. I initially put on about 3.5 kg (well, actually, I put on 2 kg over Christmas break when I went home to visit the folks and failed to lose those, before putting on another 1.5 kg when I started training) and have remained pretty stable at 65 to 66 kg since. So nothing dramatic weight wise, most of the extra weight is muscle (but the initial flab remains) and I still have good energy levels. However, I just can't imagine that eating so little protein, and so few fruits and veggies is good for me. And how will I feel if my food intake was a bit more nutritious?

So... cue challenge #1. My goal for this week is to
1) eat 5 servings of fruit and veggies every day (I usually manage 2 oranges a day and that's it)
2) at most 2 of those servings will be the same thing (aka no 5 oranges in one day)
3) eat one serving of protein at each meal
4) lay off the carby snacks unless I am hungry for them.

So how did I do on day #1 of challenge #1... No too shabby. Breakfast was 1 orange, 1 glass of milk, and one croissant with nutella, lunch was a huge avocado, egg, and romaine salad with 2 slices of whole wheat bread (1 with cheese, 1 with chocolate sprinkles), dinner was pasta with tomato sauce and a huge bag of cookies. When I got home I had two oranges and a fruit bar (can you spot it behind the oranges?). So, even though I only succeeded in part 1) of the challenge, I consider this good progress, but now I need to crank it up a notch...

Do fruit bars count as fruit?

Speaking of cranks, I took my awesome bike for a spin today. 55 miles of hills, hills and more hills that I tried to fly over. I went out really hard and kept the hard effort for the entire 55 miles. 3:40 minutes and 1,800 calories later I got home, drenched in sweat, but ecstatic that my bike skills are improving so dramatically, so Wiesbaden 70.3 sounds a bit less scary.... The weather was also just awesome, doesn't hurt right?

How Geeky can I Look?

At least the glasses were hiding this...

This afternoon I went for a short swim, and then spent the evening battling a statistics software for my dissertation data analysis... Hubby is out of town, so I can work late... Heck, I am supposed to work late.

I hope y'all are having fun!!!

First Annual Rock Your Socks Half Marathon Race Report

2010-05-23T01:26:00.000+02:00

Yeah! I did it. Second half-marathon in three weeks. Thank you Tonia at Racing with Babes for inspiring me!

So, about a month ago, Tonia and her teammates decided to host the First Annual Rock Your Socks Half Marathon and 10K. At that time, I was struggling to get my long runs in, so I thought this would be great motivation to get my long run in, at least for one week out of the 27 weeks of half-ironman prep. So I signed up!

Fast forward to this week: I am so glad I did. This is my third week post Pittsburgh half-marathon and the first week that I had some decent workouts. Being a running/multi-sport newbie, I thought the half-marathon would be pretty much like a long run, maybe with a few extra days of rest, so I did not budget rest in my training plan. So, for this week's half, my plan was to really treat it like an extra long, long run, so that I would not jeopardize any more half ironman training.

The day started so and so, with a headache that happily did not progress into a migraine (although it did mess with my digestive system a bit). However, by noon it was gone and I was ready to Rock my Socks. So I got ready, chose a pretty pair of socks, then took them off since I realized it was actually quite warm outside. I skipped lunch, ate some pretzels and a Luna bar instead, filled my water bottle, packed some Jelly Beans, the iPod, and the Garmin and headed out!!!

Sporting my awesome pink plaid socks

Realizing these would be much more practical

And it was awesome. It was my longest long run, my second half-marathon, and a jolly good run! The stats:

Distance: 13.1 miles
Time: 2:18:54 (moving time 2:18:06, there were a few lights)
Pace: 10:36 min/mile
Calories: 1,500 something.

Obviously, this was a far cry from my sub-2 hour Pittsburgh half, but 1) it was a training run, 2) it had a lot more climbing than Pittsburgh, 3) most of it was on the trail with a lot of rocks, mud, and obstacles. But it was as satisfying since it is a lot harder to run 13.1 miles solo. The splits were: 10:22, 10:31, 10:25, 10:05, 10:20, 10:55, 11:07, 10:49, 11:02, 10:24, 10:20, 10:18, 11:10 (included hill-from-hell), and the last little bit was 1:00.

The route was a combination of my two usual haunts. The first two miles were quiet road, in a residential neighborhood, followed by 2 miles along a fast high way. At mile 4.3, I started the trail/gravel section, with a 4.1 mile x 2 (out and back). The last little bit was a very steep hill (123 feet of climbing) that led to campus. I finished my run at my favorite cafe, Webster's, where I got a steaming hot chocolate milk latte. I also picked up some ice for my ice bath.

Post run...

I think I did everything I needed for the best recovery possible: chocolate milk, coffee, ice bath, compression socks, walking (a bit) and rest. If there is anything I am missing, please let me know!

Thank you Tonia for organizing this, it was a great way to get inspired to get some miles in!

In other news, I would like to welcome a new follower, Molly from I'm a Sleeper Baker! Hi Molly! Thank you for joining!

Running Mojo is back too..

2010-05-22T17:43:00.002+02:00

So yesterday, after a lovely 20 mile bike ride with Nate, I went for an 8 mile run, which also went really well, despite being blasting hot. I averaged 09:28 miles/minute and managed to (almost) do every mile faster than the previous one. My splits were: 09:43, 09:48, 09:43, 09:25, 09:37, 09:30, 09:21, 08:37.

This morning I woke up with a bit of a headache. I am waiting for it to go away so I can do the Rock Your Socks Half Marathon. In the meantime, I am entering every giveaway I can find. A couple of weeks ago I won my first one (thank you Momma Twitch!!!!) so now I can't get enough. There is so much cool running/biking/workout stuff being given away from awesome bloggies. So far, I found:
RXSorbo until May 25th
Silver Maple Jewelry until May 25th
"Choose You" Healthy Style until May 26th
Bondi Bands until May 26th
CEP Compression until May 27th
Peaceful Mountain until May 30th
Tanks and Tunes until May 30th.

I even added a special sidebar.

But the even more important thing is I get to "meet" new bloggies :-)

Bike Mojo is Back!

2010-05-21T01:32:00.000+02:00

Today was a beautiful day. I got to ride my bike again, no wind, no falls. Just pure joy. So today's ride will hereafter be known as Mojo-is-back-Ride.

It all started a couple of days ago. The awesome guys from Freeze Thaw Cycles have been helping me make some adjustments to my bike. Last week I got a new crankset with bigger chainrings and a outboard bottom bracket (hubby helped put this sentence together). I don't know what that means, but is sure is faster!!! I first tried it on Saturday (also known as first metric century Saturday), but did not really notice any difference. I was still riding scared from 1) fall Wednesday, and 2) windy Saturday. But today was different!

The other change (on Tuesday), was a minor adjustment to my saddle (lower and further back). On rides over 1-2 hours, my back starts hurting me and my neck/back muscles get very stiff and painful. So Jordyn from Freeze Thaw Cycles, bike fitter extraordinaire, suggested I try this first, and then report back. Sadly, the change did not improve the back/neck problems, but it sure made me faster...

Not being very adventurous (especially when riding alone), I like to stick the same route, with minor modifications. The advantage is that I can time myself. So today I started with State College to Bellefonte on Seibert Road (I have four different ways of going from State College to Bellefonte). My old record on that route was 44 minutes and 16.6 mph average. Today, I did it in 43 minutes and 17.4 mph average (it's about 13 miles). That part of the ride is relatively flat.

The next 20 miles I tried to find long uphills (3 miles +). I did three of those (followed by the inevitable downhill that follows) and then went back on Seibert road again. I did 48 miles in about 3:25 hours, not including a couple of stretching, eating and drinking breaks.

In addition to getting my biking mojo back, I also practiced nutrition (2 x 100 calories in jelly beans and 1 Luna bar) and drinking on the bike (1 1/2 bottles ). Even though I did not completely bonk (an improvement over other rides), I was still well below what I needed. I also worked on going faster on downhills and am happy to report that I hit 35 mph (still below my 37 mph record) and exceeded 30 mph on several other occasions.

Post mojo-is-back ride, I made wubby and myself an epic lunch (included egg, peppers, onions, cheese, with salad, avocado, loads of bread (and butter), and Nutella... I think I was eating for over an hour, and my plate kept on looking full...

In other news, next week is the Fly by Night Duathlon, consisting of run-bike-run-bike-run on The Glen, a racing circuit. They still have spots open, so please join if you can! The more, the merrier!

Life is good, biking is better! Happy training!

First (Metric) Century and Bullets

2010-05-17T16:22:00.000+02:00

My dissertation has finally taken off (yeah for nice people filling out online surveys) so training has taken a hit. For the sake of saving time (so I can go workout and you don't get bored) I thought I'd break with my ultra-long post tradition and post the highlights of the past two weeks in bullets, in chronological order.

Monday & Tuesday post half-marathon I could barely move, so no workouts
Wednesday I went on a very enjoyable 40-something bike ride and fell when stopping at the red light, 0.25 miles from my home. I forgot to unclip from the pedals, in front of the lunch hour traffic... No injuries except for bruised hip, sit bone and pride, and sore abs from laughing.
Friday feeble attempt at running. Slowest 6 miles since I got the Garmin... (10:10 min/miles)
Saturday AM, aborted bike ride. Tried to beat the severe wind-related weather alert but ended chickening out after being blown off the road a couple of times.
Sunday was an even slower 8 mile run (10:30 min/miles)
Monday-Tuesday I was stuck in the office working on my dissertation. My knees were hurting from sitting too long. It was pouring down rain too...
Swimming did also not work out this week, the pool was only open noon -3pm...
Wednesday PM was another 8 mile run, slightly faster than Sunday's but still very slow... (10:04 min/miles)
The metric century was Saturday and was AWESOME. I went first out on my own for about 30 miles then Ondrej (hubby) and Bob (personal bike guru) joined in and we did another beautiful 30-something miles to Bellefonte and Centre Hall. The weather was perfect. Due to my European heritage I reserve the right to celebrate 100 kilometers as an achievement.

Now my question is, how long does it take to recover from a half-marathon? I thought that after a day or two I should be back to full training mode, but my running legs were gone for the past two weeks.

In other miscellaneous things, I finally cut my hair since it was getting to the point that I did not have the time to wash it or even brush it, both very time consuming activities when you have enough hair to keep an army warm. However, aside from hubby, few people have had positive responses... Is it really that bad?

And, the best for last, I got my first follower!!!! Hi Erica!!! Thanks for joining!

We interrupt training for...

2010-05-12T16:05:00.000+02:00

dissertating!

I finally got some data for my dissertation. That, combined with the atrocious (cold and rainy) weather we have had the last couple of days has lead to a lack of training which will probably persist until the end of the week.

Here is what I look like before the 1,200 surveys....
and after...

Happy training!!!

Pittsburgh Non Race Report

2010-05-08T02:12:00.000+02:00

Here are still a few pictures of our awesome weekend in Pittsburgh with Dan.

Amtrak pulling into Altoona Station

Dan and I getting off the Amtrak in Pittsburgh (very sleepy)

Our first sighting of Pittsburgh

Breakfast on Saturday: Dan-and-Ondrej-without-glasses-totem

Ondrej and I on one of the many Pittsburgh bridges

The Monongahela Incline

View from the top of the Monongahela Incline

The Best Soft Service Ice Cream

Pittsburgh Half Marathon Race Report

2010-05-03T21:34:00.000+02:00

UPDATED to add pictures

Finally! Another adventure has been lived, a new milestone reached, in the quest for the half-ironman. Yesterday Dan and I ran our first half-marathons. And we both thought it was an amazing experience!The short story: Dan finished in slightly over two hours and I finished in just under two hours (chip time was 1:59:24) and reached my best case scenario goal. I also was 108th out of 738 women in the 30-34 age group which I thought was incredible since I really am not a runner.

The longer story: On Friday, Dan, Ondrej and I skipped work/school/obligations a bit early and drove to Altoona, PA to take the Amtrak. We got to Pittsburgh nice and early, and walked briefly downtown before heading to Dan's place. After getting there we treated ourselves to ice cream, watched some telly and went straight to bed.

On Saturday (the day before), Dan, Ondrej and I spent the day visiting Pittsburgh. This entailed a whole lot of walking, eating, sightseeing, fun-making and picture taking (one of my favorite hobbies) and therefore was fantastic.

Meet and Greet at the Expo

Dan and I first went to the expo to pick up our packets and then went on to visit the Monongahela incline with Ondrej (another post with many more pictures will follow). I was a bit worried since my knee was hurting but I was definitely not willing to sacrifice sightseeing. In the evening we went to some funky church-turned-restaurant-brewery for some serious dinner. I ended up eating way too much and had heartburn most of the night.

Modeling my new bag (I love bags)

Lunch!

Sunday! I think I woke up every hour between Saturday night and Monday 5.30 AM. I usually am a very sound sleeper but I was THAT excited (the heartburn may also have had something to do with it). Finally 5.30 came and I jumped out of bed, got dressed and made breakfast. We were supposed to leave at 6.00, but when there are so many people involved (and so many bathroom visits) things get delayed a bit. Finally, Dan and I made our way out at 6.30 and went to the bus stop. After a few minutes we saw some women that were clearly on their way to the marathon walking and bypassing the bus stop. That is when we realized that we really did not know whether 1) the bus was going and 2) if yes, how often. WHOOPS!!! So we decided to walk.

It was already 6.45 or so, and the race start was 3 miles and 45 minutes away so we hauled our rear-ends. We got close enough to the race start at 7.15 that I felt comfortable pausing and using the porta-potty. There was quite a line but it was moving quickly. However, while I was waiting, they started playing the US national anthem. I am not a US citizen but I still took my hat off thinking that was the appropriate thing to do. I was surprised that most people did not, and all continued going in and out the porta-potties. I guess I am being a bit over-sensitive in the whole "respecting other cultures thing" but I was glad that the anthem was over before it was my turn.... That was also my first time using a race porta-potty and I am glad to report no disasters. I was expecting the worse, but there was paper, hand-sanitizer and a flush...

At 7.25 Dan and I made it to corral D. That was the corral that included the 2:00 half-marathon pacer. It was pretty packed but I was completely relaxed. I think I was as prepared as I could be, I had a goal, and I was willing to let go of that goal depending on how things went. Finally the countdown to the start finished and we were off!!! It was amazing! There was such a joyful spirit, people were happy and excited. Here is a youtube video of the start... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUMSwfGuEdo. I started my Garmin but it was autopaused for a while. I think it took me about 2 or 3 minutes to get moving and another 1 or 2 to cross the start. I lapped the Garmin at the start line so I would have a better idea of how long I still had to go.

My first two miles I really took it easy. I focused on keeping my pace, passing people that were much slower than me and not tripping. I did the first lap in 9:30 and the second in 9:21. My awesome hubby was waiting for me around mile 2 or 3. We had agreed on a very specific spot for him to say hi and to take a picture. I saw him first and gesticulated like crazy. He was so worried about spotting me and got so distracted by my antics that he forgot to take the picture. Very funny! I ran up to him and gave him the pre-race Luna bar that I did not eat and the pack of tissues I did not need for my visit to the porta-potty. Then I resumed running, stopped, and went back to give him a much appreciated kiss. I figured if I missed my sub-2 hour goal by 30 seconds because I went back to kiss him that would be time well spent...

Laps 3 to 5 I picked up the pace a bit. Two minutes after seeing Ondrej, it started raining, really really really hard. That was actually rather nice since it was pretty warm and very humid. At that stage I had already decided to run conservatively the first six miles and pick up the pace the second six miles (I tricked myself into thinking the 1/2 marathon consisted of two times 6 miles... ). I did miles 3,4 and 5 in 9:00, 9:05 and 9:01 respectively. I saw Dan around that time. He had started faster than me and I had quickly lost him. Around mile 5, I suddenly heard "Hey" and there he was, running right next to me. I was still feeling really good, so I decided to pick up the pace a bit earlier than planned.

Mile 5...

Miles 6,7 and 8 I did in 08:44, 08:44, and 08:40. I was really enjoying the course, despite the rain. The spectators were very enthusiastic, the bands were awesome, the bridges were impressive and the people running around me were very inspiring. I was consistently passing people, one of the benefits of starting so far back. The course was very flat, the only uphills being the bridges. I tried to keep a good pace going up and accelerate going down. I also started trying to find the 2:00 pacer. I had lost sight of him around mile 2 and was hoping to see him again before the end.

Mile 9 included a steeper hill which by all standards was peanuts (65 feet according to Garmin) but I pushed it a bit too much I think because my thighs completely jammed up. I still managed a decent 08:57. I knew I was close to the 2 hour mark, so I did not want to slow down.

During miles 10 and 11, I kept on worrying about missing the turn for the 1/2 marathon (and being stuck doing the full one...). Fortunately that did not happen but I was suffering. My legs were really tight, probably a side effect of being wet for two hours but I really wanted that sub 2:00 hours. I was about to slow down when I saw the 2:00 pacer ahead. I did miles 10 and 11 in 08:51 and 09:01. I briefly stopped to re-attach the time/rfid tag on my foot. The rain had messed with the glue so it had come undone.

Mile 12 really hurt. It was endless! I kept inching closer to the 2:00 pacer but could not pass him. I kept remembering that he had started ahead of me, forgetting and trying to catch up, and then remembering. My legs were toast by then, but I still was hoping for the sub 2 hours. I managed a decent 08:58 pace for that one. The last little bit hurt. I was getting passed but I did not really care, as long as Mr. 2 hours stayed close. I have zero memories of crossing the finish line. I only remember getting food, water, gatorade, my medal and my picture taken.

Not once during the race did I think "why I am doing this?". It was more like "when can I do it again" and "when can I do a full marathon?". Fortunately I am already signed up for the Amsterdam marathon on October 17th. Sadly, on the way back the bus still was not running, so we had to walk the same 3 miles back, and this time uphill...

Overall:
I think I got very lucky with the pre-race logistics. Bathroom issues were taken care off, I hydrated well, I ate even better... I might not get as lucky next time.
I paced myself well. I got lucky with my goal, especially since I think I was a bit under trained running wise.
I had a great time!!! Thank you Ondrej and thank you Dan!
&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/ifra

Pittsburgh Half Marathon Tomorrow

2010-05-01T23:56:00.000+02:00

Pittsburgh is completely amazing! Dan, Ondrej, and I walked the city up and down and left and right. We also had an amazing breakfast and awesome lunch (and ice cream) and are getting ready to go for a great dinner.

Dan and I went to the expo. I picked up my race bag (which had some awesome goodies). We thankfully also managed to get Dan signed up for the half tomorrow as well (they had messed up his registration). I also got some compression socks that I already am in love with (more in a future post).

Yesterday I did a very easy 20 miles on the bike to try to get some of the tightness out. I swam for 1,100 yds after that. When I got out of the water and got up I pulled something in my knee and it was hurting ever since. However, after some good old Advil (and maybe the compression socks) my knee has been perking up. So all is well race prep wise.

I am sooooooooooo excited. I am still trying to figure out if I am even going to try to go under 2 hours. I don't think I can succeed, but I also don't think I have much to lose, so why not try? My only 12 mile run I did in 2:02:something, included trails, hills and stops to cross busy streets, and I was not even completely destroyed. On Tuesday I ran 6 miles at an 8:50 pace. To finish 13.1 in under 2 hours I would need to run a 9 minute pace for 2 hours. Yeah... When you put it like that... I think I might settle for 2:05. We'll see! I'll keep you posted on how it pans out... Or you can track my (lack of) progress on Facebook. I signed up for some twitter/facebook service that promises to do exactly that :-)

Happy weekend to all you readers (Ondrej, Dan and Stephen)!

4 days until the 1/2 marathon

2010-04-29T02:41:00.000+02:00

Four days to go until 1/2 marathon... After reading so many blogs and so many books, I think I have mastered the theory pretty well, even if the application eludes me. So here is what I know:

- The Pittsburgh 1/2 marathon was not supposed to be an "A" race, which means I should not taper too much for it.

- I should not have great expectations since it is my first race and tons of things are doomed to happen.

The reality is vastly different. Initially I chose to do the 1/2 marathon as practice for my 1/2 Ironman in August and to keep me motivated to run (which I thought would be hard). However, after three months, I am enjoying running and look forward to the 1/2 marathon as a great opportunity to test my running. I was not going to taper for the 1/2 marathon, since I figured I need all the training I can get before this summer, however it all worked out differently.

I think I worked out a bit too hard last week, and despite taking Saturday off, could not coerce my legs to move on Sunday. So I skipped Sunday's workouts (the fact that the weather was crappy made the decision pretty easy). My totals for last week were:
Week 15 (19 April)
Swim: 8,400 yds
Bike: 80 miles
Run: 20 miles
Total: 11 hours

This week also did not start very promisingly. I cut Monday's swim short (this swim did include my personal best on 200 yds x 3: 3:12, 3:12, 3:13 and 100 IM, 1:49) and skipped Monday evening's run. On Tuesday morning I did make it to the gym and did my hardest gym-bike-trainer to date. 2 hours at an average of 17.5 mph (it was a gym trainer so who knows how well calibrated it was) and an average heart rate of 142. I guess I did manage to rest the legs after all.

On Tuesday evening, I timed myself on a 10K and did it in 54:35. According to McMillan's calculator, I could finish the 1/2 in slightly over 2 hours (2:01:27). When I plug my last 5K time (25:06 on a certified course), I could even do it in 1:56:01. So my super super goal is to get it done in under 2 hours. My more realistic goal is to finish in under 2:15. And my more basic goal is to just finish the thing and have fun...

Yesterday after my 10K and groceries. Pretty happy reading blogs and EATING!

So now, I am trying to balance the need to keep up with my triathlon training and keep my legs rested for Sunday. Today I went for another 2 hour gym-bike-trainer workout and only managed to hang on for 1:45 before calling it quits. Tomorrow and Friday I am planning to swim in the morning, bike tomorrow evening and run on Friday night. Saturday we will be visiting Pittsburgh so we will be doing a lot of walking. Excluding the walking and the 1/2 marathon, that will still be about 10 hours of training.

Update

2010-04-24T23:48:00.001+02:00

I just realized that I had not posted in almost two weeks. And no, I have not yet quit. There just wasn't much to tell. Training has been going well. Yet, as I was reading through my older posts I realized it was nice to have some kind of training journal. So instead of posting my training on Facebook, I think I will try to keep the blog a bit more up to date.

The past two weeks have been pretty good training wise. On Friday of last week I finally managed to get that elusive 12 mile run in. I was planning on 8 to 10, but after I started I decided to go for 12. According to my brand new buddy Garmin, my average moving pace was 10:07. That means no sub-2 hour 1/2 marathon for me next week but at least I should be able to finish... On Tuesday of this week I tried to duplicate the feat, but I blew up after the very steep hill half-way through mile 11. So I cut my run short to 10.89 miles. My average moving pace for those first 10 miles was 10:12 (Friday) vs. 9:53 (Tuesday) so only about 20 seconds per mile faster. I don't think I was going that much faster. I also did a few shorter runs, mostly 4 milers including one (Wednesday 14th) at an average pace of 8:47, the same day I did 45 miles on the bike for the first time.

Biking is going well distance wise. I managed a 45 mile ride last week and a 55 mile ride this week. Both were pretty hilly and therefore slow (average speed 12 to 13 mph). For the next two months my goals are to get comfortable riding for 55 miles (and not just "survive) and gradually increase my speed. I also started going to spinning class.

This week my swimming went much better than last week. Last week I wimped out and only managed one real swim (that was cut short). I paid for it dearly on Monday, when I got tired after a paltry 2,400yds. I redeemed myself with 2 3,200 yds swims. On Wednesday, after a quick 800 yds warm-up I timed myself on 1,650 and 800 yds. I can't remember the times but they weren't stellar. On Friday I did a 1,200 yds warm-up (I skipped the 200 yds kick and 4 x 50 yds sprint), followed by 2 timed 800 yds. The first one was 13:55, the second a crazy 13:25. I know these times are pretty pathetic, especially for a former swimmer. But I haven't done any serious swimming in years, and even now, I am working hard on my running and biking. I figured there isn't that much time I can make up on the swim.

Last weekend we went to Washington D.C. with my in-laws and had an amazing time. We went sushi eating, museum seeing, sushi eating, bike accessories shopping, running pants shopping, sushi eating, capitols steps watching, zoo visiting, and more sushi eating... It was awesome. I also got two half-hearted workouts done in the hotel gym. They weren't too bad, except for the extremely hung-over guy that started sweating profusely on the bike next to mine. The smell was disturbing... The drive to DC was however very unpleasant as most of it was done in a terrible storm. We stopped at the Dunkin Donuts in Urbana, MD and got completely soaked in the short distance between the car and the shop. Ondrej (my hubby) did not have a second pair of pants so he had to borrow one the pairs of workout pants that I had brought along... CAREFUL: as it may damage your vision...
These are my totals since the last time I posted them:
Week 11 (22 March)
Swim: 7,150 yds
Bike: 94 miles
Run: 15 miles
Total: 11 hours

Week 12 (29 March)
Swim: 6,000 yds
Bike: 100 miles
Run: 33 miles
Total: 13:15 hours

Week 13 (05 April)
Swim: 8,400 yds
Bike: 120 miles
Run: 20 miles
Total: 13:45 hours

Week 14 (12 April)
Swim: 3,200 yds
Bike: 105 miles
Run: 30 miles
Total: 13 hours

The week ending tomorrow sounds promising. I already got my "long" run in on Tuesday (the 10.89 miles), and my long bike on Thursday (55 miles on hilly Purdue Mountain Road) with a few shorter runs here and there. I would like to get another 40 miles in tomorrow, but the weather does not look very promising. I also am thinking of doing a local 5K. The cause is worthy (special olympics) but the price is high ($35). But the temptation to go for another 5K PR is great. I took today off (after 3,200 yds of swimming, 6 miles of running, and 20 miles of riding yesterday) so my legs should not be as tired tomorrow as they were on my last 5K. And if I remember not to overeat breakfast, to use my inhaler, and to not overeat breakfast, I should be able to drop my time...?

5K PR (again)

2010-04-12T00:29:00.001+02:00

The joys of starting out a training program are many. The best one must the 5K PR at each attempt. Today, my good buddy Dan and I ran the Kines 5K. With three weeks to go to the Pittsburgh Half-Marathon, I am trying to practice running in crowds (not my favorite). And I really wanted to beat my time from last week (26:05). Learning from last week's mistakes, I did not forget my asthma inhaler (still was wheezing and coughing but I think it helped), I did not have a supersized breakfast (just mildly so) and I warmed up (for five minutes).

The course starts with a looooong downhill, followed by a mild uphill with a few steep parts thrown in for fun and ends with a slow downhill.I don't know what my splits were (I got my brand new Garmin 405cx in the mail yesterday and practiced/tested it yesterday on a short run, but miserably failed to get it going at the start of the race...) but I think I slowed down a lot on the last mile, I was completely done. I was a bit disappointed that I did not have anything left in me for a final sprint. A few people ran past me on the last 0.2 miles and I could just not follow. But I think 4+ hours of training the day before kinda did me in. Maybe at the next attempt I will ease up the day before. I still bettered my time by an entire minute (actually 59 seconds but 1 minute sounds better) and finished in 25:06. I would have been even more excited to win one of the road ID vouchers at the raffle, but I can't have it all :-)

Even though I put in a very good week that included 120+ miles on the bike (of which 48 outside at a good pace) and 8,000 yds in the pool, I failed miserably (again) at the long run. I think a mild norovirus struck early today. I managed the 5K despite some "discomfort" but I could not imagine running for 2 hours... So yes, I failed again at the most important workout of the week. As of next week, I am moving my long run to Friday or Monday, first thing in the day. Nah.

So far, so good

2010-04-08T03:16:00.000+02:00

So far this week has been good to me. I nailed my Monday AM swim, even though I really didn't feel like finishing the workout. I did 10x100 and if I recall correctly, kept them all under 1.37, but it might have been 1.33. Today I did another 3,200 yards, including 3x400. They clocked in at 6.37, 6.37 and 6.25. I also did 4x50 and I think I did 43, 43, 44, 42 seconds. Monday PM I took a rest. Yesterday included 30 miles on the gym's bike trainer and 8 miles outside in really really hot weather (29C). This evening I did a spinning class which kicked my rear end royally. So 5 good consecutive workouts in 3 days. Only 7 more to go until my next day off...

My dilemma is to Garmin or not to Garmin. Still thinking about that one. I am a data junkie, so I think having numbers to play with may motivate me to run further and faster. But I should be able to do that without 300+USD on a new watch right?

New 5K PR and lovely ride

2010-04-04T03:24:00.001+02:00

I ran in the Lactic Acid 5K today, organized by the Penn State Triathlon club. Until about an hour before the race I wasn't sure I was going to go since I had planned a 45 mile ride. The one I have been postponing for several weeks now... In the end, even though I ran 6 miles every day on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, I decided to try to set a new PR. I was a bit disapointed that I did not get under 25 minutes, I felt I could have. But I was happy with 26 minutes and something (no results posted yet). I made a few key mistakes.
#1 I forgot to use my inhaler, so the wheezing started pretty much straight away
#2 I ate waaaaaaaaaay too much breakfast (I thought I was riding 45 miles...)
#3 I did not warm up (I was worried about #2)
#4 I went out too fast (sub 8 minute 1 mile)
I was a bit worried since all the runners (at least 95%) looked extremely fit and like they knew what they were doing. Still, I managed to stay ahead of a few of them.

I used this picture to enter Steve in a Speedo's contest.

After the 5K, awesome wubby, great friend Dan and I went on a ride to Centre Hall, PA. We stopped on the way at the Mount Nittany Winery and Vineyard for some sightseeing (and no tasting) and then went on for some massive pizza at Brother's Pizza in Centre Hall. On the way back we rode through Lemont (another picturesque PA village). 35 very easy miles. My legs were tired. I still owe myself a real 45 mile ride, and I am several long runs behind, but for today my legs were shot. Tomorrow I am attempting (again) the 12-mile long run. Pittsburgh 1/2 marathon is only 4 weeks away...

Week 10 Recap

2010-03-24T02:05:00.000+01:00

Last week was week 10 of my training and also my biggest week so far, despite some trouble getting it started. I guess my first triathlon gave me some inspiration. While I logged many more hours last week, I also felt I was achieving something. I plotted my hours of training so far.
I tried to do my long run on Monday morning, but bailed out after 7 miles. I started too fast (miles 2,3,4 and 5 were all 10:10) and just blew up (mile 6 was 10:16 and mile 7 was 11+) so I stopped.

Tuesday I did an easy 20 miles on the bike trainer at the gym in the morning, and a nice and easy outdoor (yeah for good weather) 5 mile run in the afternoon. Wednesday I made a timid return to the pool (1,200 yds) but skipped any afternoon workouts.

Things started to pick up on Thursday. I got my bike back from our local (and favorite) bike shop (Freeze Thaw) with a new set of cross lever breaks and PINK bar tape. So I went on a ride to Bellefonte and did three repeats of Seibert road. I rode 30 miles in 2:15.

Friday I had an awesome swim. I did 3,200 yds. In addition to a 1,200 yds warm-up (that included all four strokes) I did 2x5x200. I did most in 3:20, with the second to last 3:24 and the last one in 3:17, a new best. I then joined awesome wubby on another ride to Bellefonte, this time on Purdue Mountain Road. As the name indicates, there were a lot of good hills there. It took us about 2:30 hours and we stopped for an epic lunch at my favorite place, Cafe on the Park.

Saturday we got to go doggie sitting for Ondrej's department head. While there, I did my first long run in many many weeks (3 to be precise). I stuck to 10 miles, in 1:45, about the same time as my last 10 miler (I had hoped for some progress but sadly, no).

Sunday I went yet again to Bellefonte on Purdue Mountain Road. I wanted to know how much faster I could go. Bob, my bike guru, was kind enough to join me and give me pointers on how to improve my biking. That was completely awesome. Under his guidance, I started going faster on downhills. I am a complete wuss, and will usually not go faster than 24mph on downhills. I have recently succeeded in increasing that to 28mph for short downhills, but with Bob, I managed to increase that to 30mph. I guess that is the easiest way to improve my speed... downhills...

So, I totaled 112 miles on the bike, 4,440 yds in the pool, and 22 miles on my feet this week. Starting this week, I am switching to a Saturday to Friday week. Also, I will be focusing on learning how to use clip pedals (present from father in law) and nutrition. I am doing more and more 2 hr + workouts so it's a good time to practice eating and drinking...

Happy training!