a rolling stone gathers no moss

The title of my blog was the phrase of the day (although in reference to a very old crappy car) as my wonderful friends Tara & Carl picked me up to go to the St. Patty's Day 5km here in Vancouver, BC.

Rest assured, I won't linger on a boring race report.  Here it is in short.

My improper haiku version:


I run fast.
I go boom.
I got passed.
I hung on.
Then Art passed me.
Finish line, thank god.  I am a marathon runner.

I think I finished 9th or so, so who's really complaining?  I was there to 'race' again.  I have done a lot of training, a lot of 'work', but racing is another ART (no pun intended but I can tell I'm subconsciously suffering) altogether.  I have some racing to get better at!!

you know who

So, a rolling stone gathers no moss.  I'm better of racing than not, and finally FINALLY I have something to give me that 'edge'.  For me, in triathlon, as everything is still new, I'm thrilled each time I race.  I'm always getting better because I'm on a huge learning curve.  In running, I've been there for a while (at least a few years!) so when I get beaten I take it on.  I don't necessarily take it personally, I just take it 'on'.

Now I've been meaning to sit down and write a blog but I'm finding I'm a bit for lack of time these days, so I didn't mean to write this after today's race, but there you go, I have some down time before moving on to the next workout, and barfing green scones in the pool might be frowned upon at the pool (but it is St. Pats...and the VAC has it's crazies) so I have some catch up time.

daymoonlight, mt washington

Life has been great & full and BUSY.  Now I know why I did so well last year - I had so much time.  However, I'm bumping along with a pretty good routine and a new set of expectations and rules for how to handle the load thus far.  I have been settling in to a bike fit for a triathlete (weird!), constantly smelling of chlorine and finding that dry hair is a luxury, so those must be good signs.  I'm trying to keep my mouth shut when I show up for workouts and feel suboptimal.  I am wrapping my head around this again.

mt washington

My new found love of XC skiing has kept me going every few weekends, where I get to escape up into the mountains and away from the regular training routine and find a way to be totally refreshed and totally exhausted at the same time.   And humbled, don't forget being humbled.  By 60 year olds, no big deal.

While I had hoped that triathlon #1 for the year would be the California 70.3, airfare is pricey, and I'm no longer in a position to go into great debt for this sport.  (I did that last year taking a 1 year pay-cut, that's enough).  So, moving on & to one of the races I get more and more excited about the more I read about it and look at the course, is IM St. George in Utah this May.  After racing a 5km today I couldn't be more excited to go back to the pace of a IM race (I'm no fool, I know what I'm good at), and St. George sounds tough & long - great!

To realize I was only 7 weeks out from an Ironman was a little scary, an early season race can kind of sneak up on you, and I've been a bit distracted going back to work and getting simple things done (like my Pig Pen laundry collection? Or the stacks of bottles that surround my trainer? or making a solid healthy meal?)  But it's also exciting because it helps me understand why I'm training more intensely, or longer, or both.

me.  most of the time.

Also if all things bode well, I'll test out my 1/2 marathon speed at the BMO Sunshine Coast April Fool's Half Marathon, fittingly, on April 1st.  Much more my comfort zone, or at least, more in line with what I've been training for.  It's such a great race and is so well supported by the community that it's really hard to pass up the opportunity to do this race!  If you've never done it, it's worth the trip, and I think it would be a great pre-cursor to anyone doing a marathon in May (which is to say, most of Vancouver).

vancouver. may. marathons.

I also had my birthday last week and became one year older.  Every time this happens I swear I hear more cracking and crunching in my body.  Can't wait until I'm old like gold, that will be a treat!  I also feel older and wiser though, so that comes as a bittersweet touch, as I think my wisdom may have prevented me from making the ever-referenced 'dying animal' noises I heard going up the hill at the end of the race.  Next race, a little less wise, a little more "Hmmmmmarrrrfppppfthaaaaablappt".

In GOTRIbal fashion, onwards & upwards!

noel blanc, or, eat your fruitcake

Hello!

I'm up on Mt Washington, happily staring out into a big white blizzard and drinking tea after a mid-day cross-country ski to re-acquaint my legs with things that slide.  I'm a happy girl.

Without sounding like a debbie downer, I had a rash (no, not a real rash) of unfortunate viruses that have plagued me for most of November and December.  When I had finally recovered & refound fitness after the first quite unpleasant smack in the face, I turned the other cheek, and I was delivered a Bjorn Borg backhand that knocked me entirely off my feet.  I got the flu.  It's no joke.

Luckily, I had gone through the stage of frustration, exercise withdrawl and unrealistic notions of fitness lost through the first virus, and I was also so sick the second time around, I really didn't even care that I couldn't swim, bike or run.  I was just happy I wasn't coughing, worrying that each cough brought me closer and closer to the Crowie Cracked Rib scenario.  However, with the passing of time, antibiotics (my bugs needed drugs), inhalers (my virus gave the gift of asthma this holiday season), and quite a few holiday movies, I pulled through.  Hooray.

Although I was only home for about a week to try some things out, I managed a few swims, 1 bike, and 1 run.  I definitely noticed the distinct sharpness of losing my breath when I tried to use the majority of my lung capacity, but that will come back as things continue to heal.  Instead of being mortified, I was somewhat amused at the amount of ache my legs held after my first run (after 15 days of no running).  Doing 50 squats (something I don't usually blink an eye at) brought laughable leg burn.  Swimming was really the only thing that felt normal.  It made me wonder, will I eventually become a swimmer?  As in, how I was once a runner now triathlete, would I be a once a triathlete now a swimmer?  Scary thought, as I always thought of the varsity swimmers across the hall from our varsity soccer team, as aliens in spandex who were always way too friendly with each other.  Times have changed.  Now I look much more like an alien in spandex.  Thankfully, I'm still not very friendly.

Credit: Teresa Nightingale

In the meantime I've been transplanted up the mountain and couldn't really ask for a better distraction than the fun, sliding sports that I have access to.  Time away from the others only wants me to do them more, so that's not a negative in the least.

The other benefit of having the downtime of an illness is the mental energy you have to give to yourself to better understand the 'big picture'.  I will eventually sit down and wrap up my thoughts for the year on paper but I'm not quite ready to do that yet.  Having the end of my year coincide with the holiday season has given my year new depth and perspective, in the vein of what really constitutes a 'gift', and what is really important in life, and what we hold most dear.  These things changed for me this year, and it's been interesting to take notice this December.  But, for another post, as I can't quite wring my brain out of it's tidings and joy.

In the meantime, if you have the chance, I strongly suggest you take a break from your normal routine and enjoy some of the things that only come once a year.  Or don't, and have a mid-season burnout and breakdown on the side of the road (but that would never happen to you....right?).   Fruitcake, I suppose also fits into that category but I don't think that's a 'must-try' of the season.  XC skiing, on the other hand, is an unbelievably nice activity if you've never tried before.  So is snow-shoeing, whether you run or not while you're on them is up to you.  It's just about having fun.  Snow and surviving the cold to come into warm tea and a sugary treat is what winter's about.  Don't skip it this year, embrace it.  You'll be glad you did.

More tales on how I'm going to ski my body into fitness to come.  The benefit of bad technique is that you really must make up for it with more fitness.  This is directly related to the case of the poor swimmer, of which I certainly fit the bill 2 years ago.  Now swimming seems so easy and effortless - I can't wait for the day when xc skiing feels like that.  Until then, it's all madness and double poling like a european until my arms give out and I fall on my face, laughing all the way.

May the snow be with you.
gillian