Monthly Archives: July 2011

Why I Want to be an Iron(wo)man

Last Saturday, the night before my first Sprint Triathlon, Mike, my good friend Asia, her boyfriend Jeremy, and I signed up for Ironman Couer D’Alene which takes place in Idaho in June 2012. I am possibly even as shocked as you are to read this, as I never thought that I’d sign up for such a task without having tried it for myself first. However, when you know you want to do something, sometimes you just have to commit, even if people may think you are crazy and you are scared!

What is an Ironman?

For those of you that don’t know, an Ironman Triathlon is a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride, and a 26.2 (full marathon) run. The Ironman starts at 7 a.m. and all racers must complete the swim by within 2 hours and 20 minutes and must be finished with the bike by 5 p.m. If a racer does not make these cut offs, they are not allowed to finish the race. The entire 140.6 miles must be covered by midnight. Although the majority of athletes are finished well before midnight, there are some that finish with just minutes or even seconds to spare. About 10% of entrants do not finish an Ironman event.

The Path to Paying $600 for Self-Inflicted Torture

It was just a little over two years ago that I found out what an Ironman Triathlon was. And to be honest, I was quite taken aback. I was shocked that human beings would put their bodies through that much pain. At the time, I had only run one half marathon, which I thought waas my last. I hadn’t enjoyed training mostly alone on a treadmill for the race and I much prefered my turbo kickboxing and body sculpting classes over logging time running.

After I returned from my 4 month backpacking trip to Southeast Asia at the end of 2009, I took my fitness to a new level and began to work out 5-6 days a week instead of 3-4. That was when I met Mike, my current boyfriend, who had just competed in the 2009 Ironman Cozumel. I was very impressed by Mike’s determination and level of fitness but was even more shocked when he told me that he had a good female friend that trained and competed with him. To be honest, the thought of a woman competing had never crossed my mind! I was the first of most of my friends to even run a half marathon, let alone something like a triathlon.

Mike and I spent our first year or so together training and working out separately. I trained for the AFC half marathon in August 2010 with my friend Asia and with a running group for the Carlsbad half marathon in January 2011. Mike ran these events as well but trained haphazardly on his own (he has years of athletic background and some natural gift that allows him to barely train for a half marathon and run it under 1:40). However it wasn’t until Asia introduced us to P90X that we took our fitness to the next level and that we really trained together. In January of 2011 we started our first round of P90X and a few weeks later started training for our first marathon (Mike’s first marathon without a 2.4 mile swim and 112 mile bike before it). As my body transformed and my fitness increased, I set my sight on more and more goals. I also started reading books by Dean Karnazes, an ultramarathoner that has run races of up to 226 miles. It started to seem like a marathon was child’s play. Running 18 miles on the weekend wasn’t difficult any more – it was actually fun! My mind started working in overdrive.

One morning after a particularly enjoyable 14 mile run on the scenic coast of Del Mar, Mike and I went to breakfast together. We were thoroughly enjoying a fabulous runner’s high, excitedly discussing our fitness goals, when he brought up the fact that his new running partner Jeremy (my good friend Asia’s boyfriend) had expressed his desire to do an Ironman. I already knew that Mike wanted to do another Ironman at some point as well. Mike followed by saying that he knew that if Jeremy did an Ironman, Asia would want to too. And if Asia, Jeremy, and Mike did an Ironman, he betted that I would want to too. And that’s where the Ironman seed was planted.

Our Scenery For 140.6 Miles!

That little spark turned into a wildfire, and soon I began thinking more and more about the possibility of an Ironman. Soon afterward, I signed up for the Solana Beach triathlon which would take place in July, knowing that I only had 6 weeks to train for it after the marathon that we would run on June 5. I also set my sights on an Olympic distance triathlon in September that would give me a better idea of whether or not I wanted to go the full distance. Asia and I began to talk about our Ironman goals and eventually the discussion became full-blown planning between Asia, Jeremy, Mike and I. We had originally decided that we’d do a half Ironman in July of 2012 and then go to Couer D’Alene the following June. We chose this course because it was fairly close to home (a short flight) and it is very scenic. Apparently it is regarded as the third best Ironman course by many (Kona and Lake Placid are first and second).

However, after Asia took a private swim lesson with her swim coach and he told her that she could be Ironman ready in as little as 6 months, the wheels started turning that perhaps 2 years is a little too long to wait to achieve our goals. Two years is a VERY long time. Two years ago I was traveling through Vietnam, a single, jobless vagabond seeking out adventure. Here I am today, in a committed live-in relationship with a stable job, running races nearly every month. In two years everything could change. Mike at one point told me over dinner that we have the momentum now and that sometimes you have to just run with it.

The idea sparked into a discussion and after speaking with Ironman competitions themselves and thorough research, we determined that it was possible for four very fit people with a marathon running background and very little cycling background (well except for Mike of course) to train for an Ironman in about a year. It wouldn’t be easy, but it could be done. Training for an Ironman is never easy.

So, on Saturday July 23, the four of us eagerly met at Asia and Jeremy’s house and sat around our computers (I used my IPhone!) and signed up for waht will be the most challenging race of our lives, Ironman Couer D’Alene, 2012 (CDA for short). Next we signed up for the Ironman California 70.3, a half Ironman in Oceanside that takes place on March 31, 2012. Last, we signed up for the TriRock Olympic Triathlon, which takes place September 11, 2011. My credit card got shut off before I could even register for the last race. The total damage – $1,200.

So The Real Question is – WHY?

Why do I want to put myself through 6 months of intense training (up to 20 hours/week at peak times) and a race that can take up to 17 hours? Well, I can’t completely answer that question but I do know a few things about myself:

I love a challenge. This is the ultimate challenge and I’m ready to conquer it!
I genuinely enjoy endurance training. I honestly like waking up early on a Saturday morning and spending hours outdoors (even better that I get to spend it with friends).
I love to run but I also get bored easily. Triathlons appeal to me because I can spend time on three sports, not just one.
I like to do things that shock people. Quit my job and backpack through SE Asia? Do an Ironman? Same thing right?
I want to hear Mike Reilly call my name when I cross the finish line “Nicole Woyski, You are an Ironman!”

Are these motivators enough to get me to the finish line in one piece? I hope so! Luckily I have a great support system to train with as well as unlimited training resources thanks to the TriClub.

Am I Crazy?

Last year, before an Ironman even crossed my mind, Mike showed me this comical YouTube video which pokes fun at Ironman contestants. At the end of the day, we all just want to be Ironman …it doesn’t make sense, but we do!

My First Sprint Triathlon!

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Sunday was the first official race of my triathlon career. And I LOVED it! It was so fun. I actually think I haven’t had more fun on a race before.

Pre-Race Preparations

On Saturday we started our race weekend with a 9 a.m. beginner ocean open water swim clinic on the beach at Fletcher Cove, where the race would be held the next day. After a discussion of entry and exit techniques (Solana Beach Triathlon is a running ocean start) and general ocean water swim tips, we practiced running into the water. I must say it was pretty intimidating to run into the water. Not only was I afriad that I’d step on a sting ray and get stung (I’ve been stung and believe me it hurts!), the floor of the ocean was very uneven and I kept falling into random holes. Once we got out far enough to swim, we found ourselves swimming through seaweed. At one point I looked over and Asia and my new triatlon friend Kim ( I met her at my TriClub pool swims) were covered in seaweed!

After our practice swim, we changed and headed over to the Expo where we picked up our bib, timing chip, swim cap (purple for women 30 and under), and t-shirt. After the Expo, we had a delicious pre-race brunch with our good friends Asia and Jeremy. After some relaxing, that evening we went over to another friends house for a pre-race dinner. Nine friends ate pasta, bread, salad and frozen yogurt and discussed race day strategy, fears and excitement. When we got home, we set our all our race gear (luckily I got a handy triathlon check list from one of the vendors at the expo) and got to bed before ten.

Pre-Race Morning

My Transition Area

We woke up at 5 a.m. on race morning, ate our peanut butter banana toast, got our gear together and headed out the door. After stopping at 711 for our pre-race coffee ritual (started at the La Jolla half in April), we drove the five miles to the race start, parked and were at transition before 6 a.m. I was the first of the four girls (from our dinner party the night before) to arrive at the transition area. I picked what I thought was the best spot left, racked my bike (by watching others), and set up my two piles (one for bike stuff, one for run stuff). Shortly afterward Asia and Amber joined me in trasnsition and I got my body marked (arm, left thigh and left calf), made a bathroom trip and did some dynamic stretches. Soon after that, we were instructed to clear the transition area and make our way down to the beach.

Getting Ready to GO!

Once I was on the beach in my wet suit, putting my swim cap and googles on, it really became real. My nerves were in overdrive and I couldn’t wait to just start and get it over with. Asia and I asked the lifeguards which way the current was pulling and were happy to hear that there wasn’t a real current. We then asked them which side they recommend that we start on and they pointed left. To the left of the crowd it would be! After our lifeguard pep talk, we got in the water for a five minute warm up swim. When we came in, we lined up with the rest of the women 29 and under (this includes 25-29, 21-25 and 20 and under age groups) for our start.

The Swim & Transition 1

Our swim was delayed 10 minutes and the anticipation was killing me. The four of us (Amber, Vanessa, Asia and I) positioned ourselves at hte very front of the pack, but slightly to the south. We didn’t want to be right infront of the buoy in case the current pulled us north and we’d miss it and have to turn back to go around it. When the gun went off, adrenaline kicked in and I sprinted into the water. I ran as far as I could then started to dive under waves when they came. Sometimes I’d have to dive under, then stand up again then dive under another wave. Eventually I started swimming, probably a little bit before most of the others started to swim, but I was sick of trying to move forward on my feet.

Although this course is short, the 100 meters to the first buoy seemed to take forever. As usual, I was pushed and bumped from all angles. However, it was not as rough as my first beginner triathlon or either of the aquathons I have competed in. The aquathons can have up to 400 partcipants, including some pretty big men. The girls in my age group weren’t nearly as rough as those guys! While I worked my way parallel to shore to the second buoy, I tried to focus on lengthening my stroke rather than taking shorter, quickly strokes (as my friend and former college swimmer Miranda pointed out, my strokes are short considering how tall I am). I probably sited the buoy a few too many times (according to the swim talk on Saturday you can lose up to 10 seconds every time you lift your head to look for the buoy) and as usual, I veered to the left and had to move my way back into a straight line a few times. Overall though, I felt strong. When I finally reached shore and stood up, I felt that I was near the front of the pack. My swim cap had fallen off in the swim, but at least my goggles stayed on! As I made my way out of the water, I unzipped my wet suit and pulled it down to my waist. Once I was out of the water, I jogged up the very steep incline and made my way to transition (the reason this swim is so short – 400 meters - is because the transition is about 1/4 mile away from the water’s edge).

Once in transition, I realized that I was the first of my friends to get back and one of the first in my age group as well. I quickly took off my wet suit, put dried off my feet, put on my socks and cycling shoes, and got my helmet on. I grabbed my bike and trotted (when running in cycling shoes you kind of have to awkwardly trot because of the way the clips poke out on the bottom of your shoes) to the transition exit in anticipation of my most feared portion of the triathlon – the cycle!

Swim & Transition 1 Time: 11:45 (13th in age group)

The Bike & Transition 2

I smoothly clipped into the bike without an issues and made my way out of transition and onto the course. The course is two 4.5 mile loops with very tight turns at each end, plus a newly added triple turn (basically turn right off the course, ride 10 yards, make a u-turn and turn back onto the course) in the center of the loop. So although I could really get my speed up at some points, I had to slow down several times. The first part of the course is fairly basic - no hills. However, after the aforementioned U-turn loop, the course heads north into Cardiff and there is a fairly nice downhill portion. Although the benefit of this downhill was offset by the heavy headwind once you reached the bottom. I found myself pedaling hard at the bottom of the hill rather than being able to fully use it’s momentum. The way back up the hill was farily difficult and I put my bike into high gear and got out of the saddle both times as I made my way up it.

The bike portion is cool because you can see everyone (ie your competition) several times and can tell if they are gaining on you. I was surpsied that I wasn’t passed often on the bike, other than by men that started in the wave ahead of us. I don’t even think I was passed by a man in the age group 10 minutes behind us until the run. I also had the fun of passing several people on teh bike, including some from my age group and several guys from the group ahead of me. At some point starting at the second loop I was playing cat and mouse with two 16 year old girls wearing matching red sports bras and spandex shorts. One of them was clearly a rookie and nearly ate it during one of the turns because she tried to take it too quickly. However it seemed they really wanted to beat me. Eventually I took a lead on them and kept it and didn’t see them again.

The bike was so quick and before I knew it, it was over. I dismounted well and ran my bike into transition, replaced my cycle shoes with running shoes, ate a vanilla bean GU, drank some water and put on my hat. Then I was out of there!

Bike & Transition 1 Time: 34:01 (28th in age group)

Run!

After having some trouble running quickly at the Aquathon the previous Thursday (I improved my swim time by 3 minutse but got passed by person after person on the run), I was nervous that I may lose my lead on the run. Since the course is a loop, you see your competition frequently. Also since everyone wears their age group on the back of their left calf, you know when you are getting passed or you are passing someone from the same age group as you (ie moving down/up in the rankings!). I started the run by passing a few people which felt good. I definitely didn’t feel “fresh” but I didn’t feel horrible. For the first two miles I focused on keeping my heart rate within reason while pushing it a harder than comfortable pace. I took water at the aid station on each loop but barely drank – I dumped the rest on my head (at this point it was getting hot!) to stay cool. Mike passed me at about mile 1 of the run, which was expected. I honestly thought he’d pass me on the bike! However, no one else I knew passed me. Once I got to mile 2, I really started pushing it. Near the finish line, a bystander shouted for me to really give it gas, so I did and finished strong! Mike was on the sidelines cheering me on. After the split times were online, I couldn’t beileve that I ran the 5k at a 7:36 average pace! Although I’ve only done two other 5ks in my life (Nov 2008 and Nov 2010) this is a big PR for me!

Run Time: 23:32 (22nd in age group)

Triathlon Number 1 Complete!

Overall Time: 1:09:16 (23rd in age group out of 84)

We Did It!

It was such a relief to be finished! I was also so happy that I did so well. I knew that I was in the top half of my age group and felt proud of that achievement considering it was my first triathlon and I had only really trained for six weeks. One of my favorite parts of the race was all the supporters I had there. Asia’s family came and I had several friends competing in and watching the event. I heard my name called at least five times during my race and saw several friends after it was over. I’ve only been in the triathlon community for a few weeks now and I already feel like I’ve met so many people. I can’t imagine what it will be like when I race in this event next year.

After we watched the rest of our friends finish and made our way through the crowds, congratuatling friends and being congratulated, we checked the results and sure enough – I came in 23rd place in my age group of 84 women with a time of 1:09:16. I was pretty happy with that number! All I have to do is drop 6 minutes and I’m in the top 3! Mike did well too – he came in 7th in his age group and was off from 3rd by only 30 seconds! If only he hadn’t gotten that cold over 4th of July and spent the last few weeks in bed.

After it was all said and done, we headed over to a local cafe with Asia and Jeremy and Asia’s family for breakfast. We spent the majority of the time recapping the race and we all agreed that it was a ton of fun.

Room for Improvement

After getting my split times for the race, I was able to really focus in on what I need to improve on. I have a strong lead coming out of the swim, but I lost it on the bike, with a time that was 28th in my age group. I picked it up on the run, coming in 22nd on that leg. So what I’ve learned from this experience is that I need to bike more! The top finisher biked 7 full minutes faster than me and third place biked 4 min 20 seconds faster. However, the top finisher only outran me by 1 min 48 seconds and outswam me by 1 minute 41 seconds.

Another good exercise would be to run after the bike. Although my time was great, I know that I could improve it by working on running after swimming or biking. The only BRICK workouts I’ve done so far have been the practice triathlons and the aquathons put on by Tri Club. I haven’t done a single two sport back to back workout on my own.

My next race is September 11 and is the TriRock Olympic Triathlon. I will swim 1,500 meters (nearly 4x the sprint), bike 24 miles and run 6.2 miles. It’s going to be a test of endurance for sure! My goal is to get on a ride of at least 35 miles before the race and to ride at minimum two times a week. I definitely don’t think I will be fully prepared for the race but at least I know that have some natural ability on my side!

Beginner Cycling Tips

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My First Cycle Experience!

By far the most anticipated part of my upcoming sprint triathlon is the bike portion. As a swimmer in high school and a recent marathon runner, I am fairly comfortable with the swim and run, but the bike is foreign territory. As of six weeks ago, I had never ridden a road bike, let alone clipped into a road bike! My first time riding the bike was at the beginner triathlon put on by the San Diego Tri Club (read more about that at my blog here). The ride was 7 miles long. Since then, I have been on the bike about one time per week, riding anywhere from 9-16 miles. Luckily, the triathlon this Sunday is only 9 miles. Although I have the endurance to run for 26.2 miles at a 9:15 pace, admittedly a one hour bike ride seems nearly as difficult as a two hour run.

The most important thing for new cyclists is to spend time on the bike. I was tempted to start regularly attending spin class, but Mike encouraged me to skip spin and just get on the bike. The first few times I cycled I didn’t really feel like it was a workout – in the end, my back and butt were in much more pain than my lungs and legs. I thought that going to spin would be a better way to get a workout in. Although I definitely would burn more calories in the 60 minute sweat fest they call indoor cycling, I’d go faster on race day if I just get comfortable on the bike.

Tips for Beginner Cyclists

How do you get comfortable? The main way is to ride. But here are some other tips that can help new cyclists get into the groove on the cycle portion of swim-bike-run:

Relax your upper body as much as possible. You will waste valuable energy by gripping the handle bars for dear life.
Shift gears frequently. If you are riding a road with rolling hills, you should be shifting nearly constantly (lower gear for uphill, higher gear for downhill).
Don’t pedal in high gear for long. Try to keep cadence between 70 and 90 rpms.
When heading over bumpy road, lift your rear off the seat and put your weight in the pedals and handlebars.
Change position frequently while riding. Move your hands around the handle bars and move your rear around in the saddle to avoid getting numb from being in one position too long.
Follow traffic rules, including stop signs and stop lights. Never assume that a car will stop at a stop sign or stoplight – always make eye contact with drivers and/or make a signal that you are going to go.

My Cycling Improvements

I must say that in the past five weeks I have seen dramatic improvement in my bicyling. I am much more comfortable on the bike (in the beginning all I could think about was when I would stop next and have to clip out without falling). Although my longer rides (12-16 miles) have been on Fiesta Island which has a 2.5 or 4 mile loop and relatively little traffic, I have ridden on Pacific Highway near our house three times. These have all been early morning rides (before 7 a.m.) to avoid heavy traffic, but I have seen dramatic improvements with each ride. I no longer worry about emergency stops (I had to unclip unexpetedly twice this morning at stoplights), my back and bum pain is less, and I have practiced on some short, steep hills (nearly fell over going up one the other morning but rode up it again this morning successfully). Steep downhill is my far my weakness – I lay on the brakes the entire time and am wracked with fear. I’m definitely not ready for any solo rides or any bike rides to work (10 miles each way), but I can tell that I will be there soon. It’s also becoming more fun the more I ride!

Do you have any tips for me as a beginner cyclist?

Vacation Diet Survival Tips

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Vegas Vacation!

Although my recent trip to Las Vegas certainly wouldn’t be classified as a good example of how to lose (or even maintain) weight while vacationing, the trip inspired me to write a blog post about how not sabotage all your diet and fitness efforts while on vacation. A coworker of mine who purchased P90X and Shakeology from me recently had to go out of town to visit family for a little over a week as a result of a family emergency. Knowing that she would be tempted to skip workouts and eat unhealthy Southern cooking, she came to me and asked for some advice. I was more than happy to give her some pointers and was even happier when she came back from her trip feeling good and having actually lost weight while she was there! Here are some of my tools for keeping weight off on vacation:

1) Plan to work out extra the week before you leave. Kowing that I would miss two big workout days while in Vegas, I front loaded my week. I got in four P90X workouts (no Yoga unfortunately) as well as a swim, bike and a long run (9 miles) prior to leaving. It was definitely tiring, but I knew that I’d feel much better in a bikini at the pool on Saturday!

2) Pack your own snacks. Although it’s difficult to eat healthy for most meals on vacation (and plus, you’re on vacation – you deserve to enjoy a good meal for all your hard work), you can fill in the gaps with healthy snacks. Pack portable snacks such plastic baggies with 1/4 cup almonds (170 calories), protein bars and hard fruit (apples, oranges). These come especially handy in airports, where junk food is abundant and boredom can drive you to snack on buttery pretzels and sugary candy. The morning that we left for Vegas I did my workout and had a healthy breakfast, then had almonds in the airport before we boarded the plane. I also had a protein bar after my salad lunch at the pool when we arrived because my salad was far too small. Had I not had backup, I may have had to order another entree! I also brought two apples which I ate in the hotel room both mornings while we were getting ready for the day.

3) Bring workout gear. Even if you aren’t sure that you will be able (or want to) work out, it’s alwasy good to have clothes on hand in case the opportunity presents itself. Obviously I didn’t get any workouts in during my trip to Vegas, but I did get a cardio fix with hours of dancing!

4) Plan fun active activities. If you are camping, be sure to go for an extra long hike. If you in a tropical location, book a kayak or horseback riding tour. Many resorts or foreign towns are now offering yoga classes. What could be more awesome than a yoga session on the beaches of Thailand? Although you many not get your normal sweat inducing cardio in, you can still burn plenty of calories having plenty of fun!

5) Start your meal with soup. It has been proven that people that start their meal with a cup of soup (try to go for a broth based soup) eat less total calories per meal.

6) Start drinking after dinner. This one is alwasy hard, but you are far less likely to overeat if you are sober. At the very least, have your beverage with dinner rather than before. Pre-dinner cocktails will lead to post-dinner belly ache (believe me, I experienced this in Vegas).

7) Don’t sweat the small stuff. You’re on vacation. Although you don’t want to sabatoge all your hard work, at the end of the day, you aren’t going to put on 10 lbs in a weekend (I’ve heard of it happening on a two week vacation though, so watch out!). My personal motto is that I always order what I want for dinner on vacation and I always have dessert if I want it (which I always do). I don’t count calories, decline an alcholic beverage because of its effect on my waistline and I most certainly don’t skip the bread basket. I work so hard the rest of the year and I deserve to have fun without regret.

In the end, if you go on vacation, pig out and lay on the beach all weekend, don’t get too upset over it. Just jump back into your normal routine when you get back. You could even do something like the Shakeology Cleanse when you get back to jump start your weight loss efforts.

Happy vacationing!

P90X Results – Round 2, Phase 1

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I can’t believe I’ve already started Phase 2 of my 2^nd
round of P90X! These last four weeks of Phase 1 flew by and I must admit,
things are definitely different this time. Here are the key changes in my 2^nd
P90X round compared to the first:

P90X and Triathlon and Half Marathon Training. During my first round of P90X, I
blended P90X with marathon training. During the first phase, however, I only
ran about 1-2 times a week and the most mileage I put in was 8 miles. However,
during Phase 1 of P90X this time, I am consistently doing three double days a
week: 5 P90X workouts plus a bike, long run (8-12 miles), speedwork run, and 1-2
swims. I am competing in my first sprint triathlon on July 24 and my third half
marathon of the year in August. My focus is mostly the triathlon, with the only
real training for the half marathon being my weekly long run.
Blending Phase 1 and Phase 2 Diets. Most weekdays I’ll eat eggs and cottage cheese
for breakfast and salad for lunch, but on weekends (with long runs and other
activities involved) and occasional weekdays, I’ll end up following more of a
Phase 2 regime – more fruit and an extra carb.
Not as Strict on the Nutrition Plan. Going along with my “blended” plan, I’ve also
been less strict. With weddings, graduation parties, out of town guests, and holidays
(4^th of July), I’ve allowed myself many more cheat meals than I did
during Phase 1 the first time. If you remember, I only cheated one time during
the entire Phase 1. Although so far in my second round I haven’t had a slice of
pizza, an ounce of fried food or any other large, greasy meals (ok except for
at the wedding and 4^th of July), I’ve been a bit more lax on the
dessert side (I can’t resist!). However, I have been good about resisting treats at work, including
cake pops and cookies several times. I also have been logging my calories every
day (except some weekend days) and have stayed between 1,800-2,200 (more
calories on double days).
Coffee.
Oops. Mike and I gave up coffee cold turkey in round 1. We literally didn’t
have it for 90 days, with the exception of a half cup before the La Jolla half
marathon, which was in Week 12. This round, however, I’ve probably had coffee
on average three times a week. I include the creamer in my calorie tracker.
Shakeology Cleanse. I kicked off my 2^nd round of P90X with the Shakeology
Cleanse.

Phase 1 Results:

Unfortunately I didn’t do any measurements (or even the fit
test) before starting this phase. I plan to compare my final measurements from
the first round to my final measurements of round 2, although admittedly there
were some changes between the time I finished Round 1 and started Round 2 (there
was about a month and a half in between where I was full scale marathon
training and tapering and I gained a few pounds from overindulging).

As explained in my Shakeology cleanse post, I weighed in
very heavy on Day 1 of Round 2. I actually weighed a little over 6 lbs more
than on my final day of P90X Round 1 (yikes!). However, I lost 5.8 lbs in three
days on the cleanse. I only gained one pound back from the cleanse the day
after I finished it (surely from the fact that I ate more real food). However,
since then, I haven’t lost any more, and in fact the scale is showing me 1-2 lb
weight gain (albeit a net 3-4 lb loss from that first day). This hasn’t been
encouraging to me in the slightest, and I know my sporadic faulty nutrition is
part. However, I also know that I have become significantly stronger in the
last 4 weeks, and I do believe that a large part of the gain is muscle mass. I can tell
a significant difference in my shoulders and arms and I am also able to lift
more and do more push-ups (30 now!) than I was able to at the end of Round 1.
My stomach is back to being toned and flat and I can easily complete Ab Ripper
with all the advanced moves again. Although the scale says I’m a couple pounds
above my previous weight, I definitely don’t think that it’s fat.

Learning to Ignore the Scale

That being said, I can’t help but be a little disappointed that
I haven’t lost more. I have been working very hard and I was hoping to see a
bigger move in the scale. My ultimate goal is to lean out more in order to
improve my running and triathlon race times, as I’ve read several times that
the leaner the racer, the faster the time. However, I need to remind myself
that the scale is just one measurement of success.

Robyn, a blogger I follow, wrote
a really interesting blog post a few weeks ago about body image and included a link to an article about Lolo
Jones, an Olympic hurdler who is 5’9” (my height) and weighs in at 160 lbs.
Click here to see a sexy semi-nude picture of this “heavy” girl. Knowing that I weigh significantly less than this woman and she is super lean
looking encouraged me to stop looking to the scale for results. Obviously after
the marathon when I slowed down my workouts and ate whatever I wanted, my
weight was telling me that I needed to make some changes, but when I’m consistently
working out and eating right as I am now and the scale isn’t moving, I need to
remind myself that it doesn’t matter. Easier said than done!

Phase 2 Challenges

Phase 2 definitely poses some challenges of its own. I plan
to continue my Phase 1/Phase 2 hybrid meal plan but I have two very non-P90X
friendly vacations rapidly approaching: a weekend in Vegas (i.e. major
drinking, no exercising, little sleep and
a steak dinner and who knows what else) and 5 days in an all inclusive resort
in the Dominican Republic (i.e. lots of drinking and eating). Luckily our Phase
2 rest week falls during the Dominican vacation and the Vegas trip is only 2
days long. As for rest week workouts, I plan to utilize the resort gym for a
few runs (the half marathon is just two weeks after we come back) and hopefully
get in a couple beach yoga sessions. In the end, I’m not going to kill myself
if it doesn’t work out. I deserve a vacation – from work and from working out
and careful eating. My goal is to exercise moderation. Hopefully being in a
bathing suit 24/7 will be enough motivation to avoid a second round at the
buffet!

Triathlon Gear List

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If you’ve been around me the last few months, you may have heard me say several times so far that triathlons are expensive. Well, they are! There is a lot of required gear that most people don’t have lying around. Techinically you don’t need to buy all the fancy gear, but since I do plan to compete in several triathlons, I made the investment. Here’s what you need for for a triathlon (price ranges are for typical items; all of these things can cost A LOT more if you buy high end brands):

Swim Gear

My Xterra Wetsuit

Swim Suit: A quality one or two piece racing suit that can be purchased at most sports goods stores (Sports Chalet, Sports Authority, etc). Mine is TYR. $40-70

Swim Cap: Usually given to you in the race but you’ll need one for practice. $2-4

Googles: Get some nice anti-fogging ones. $10-40

Wetsuit: Optional but definitely recommended. A wetsuit can improve your speed significantly in the water. I purchased an Xterra wetsuit on Ebay for $200. $150-600

Bike Gear

My Cycle Shoes

Road Bike: Although technically you could ride a mountain bike or beach cruiser, you will want to at least borrow someone’s road bike. I borrowed my dad’s road bike so luckily I’ve deferred this cost for a while. $1,000 – 10,000

Helmet: These are required, no exceptions! $40-150

Biking Shoes & Clips: If you ride a road bike, you should have one that has pedals for clipping in. Therefore, you need biking shoes and clips. $60-200

Biking Shorts: Not used in the actual race if you use a Tri Suit, but you will want bike shorts for practice rides. $30-150

Biking Jersey: I personally didn’t buy a jersey and just wear my running tops, but its common to see cyclists wearing jerseys with their shorts. $30-100

Sunglasses: Optional but very useful. $6 – 300

Tire Repair Kit: Includes extra tubes and CO2 bottles to fill up a flat on the go. $10-15 including tubes

Bike Water Bottles: Bike shops sell special water bottles that fit right into the holder on your bike (if your bike doesn’t have a holder, you can buy one at the bike shop). $3-10

Tire Pump: Bike tires need to be pumped up with nearly every use. $7-20

Car Bike Rack: You probably won’t be able to ride your bike to the race, so you’ll need a way to get it there (although Mike and I live close enough to Solana Beach to ride there on race day!) $50-200

Bike Tune-Up: My dad’s rusty old bike needed a tune up. You should take your bike for a tune up at the very least once a year. $30-$80.

A Gym Pass: This is optional but it’s nice to have a gym that offers a spin class for days when the weather won’t allow for a good outdoor ride. $20-100/month

Run Gear

Running Shoes: Some runners opt for lighter weight running shoes for sprint distance triathlons but you can wear any running shoes that you’d like. $50-150

Running Socks: Go for dri-fit. $15-30

Tri Laces: This is another optional item. Some serious triathletes buy triathlon laces that are elastic so that they don’t have to be tied. ~$5

Running Hat: Optional but i like to put a hat on after the swim and bike becuase my hair usually looks terrible! $10-20

Race Day Gear:

My Zoot Tri Suit

Tri Suit: This is a suit made specifically to be worn in all three segments of the race. It has less padding than cycle shorts and dries quickly after exiting the water. $100-250

Tri Bra: If you are female and need extra support, you’ll need a bra to wear under your tri suit that is suitable for the water. I got mine at a bike shop. $30-50

Bib Belt: This belt is worn around the waist during the bike and run and is used to display your bib with your racing number. $5-15

Timing Chip Strap: Usually included in race fees, this is strapped around your ankle and holds the timing chip. Free

Race Specific Swim Cap: Most races ask you to wear a swim cap given to you at the Expo. The color of the cap signifies your start group (i.e. 25-29 year old females wear red caps, etc). Free

Triathlons are Expensive!

Needless to say, getting ready for a triathlon is eating me out of house and home! I’ve spent over $800 so far on my gear. However, I did buy a high end tri suit (I had to buy the one that looked best and it happened to be the most expensive!) and a nice wetsuit. There are ways to cut back on the expenses, but definitely expect to shell out some dough if you want to compete a few races. If you are only going to do one, then don’t go out and buy a tri suit, wet suit, or bike. Just borrow everything you can and if all else fails, wear a bathing suit during the swim and do a towel change in transition into your other gear. If you aren’t very serious, the extra time isn’t going to cost as much as the gear!

Ocean Water Swimming and My First Aquathon

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Entering the Water is CHAOS

I am knee deep in training for my first sprint triathlon and
I’m feeling more confident with each passing week. Although in total I will only
have “officially” trained for my first sprint triathlon for six weeks, I feel
that it has been a little easier for me for two reasons: I just ran a marathon
and I was on the swim team in high school. My biggest challenge so far has been
getting used to the bike, but that’s another story. The one thing that I wasn’t
sure how to anticipate is the open water portion of the swim. Although I swam
4-5 days a week for three years in high school, I haven’t ever swam freestyle in
the ocean before. I suppose I’ve thrown in a few strokes for good measure, but
I surely haven’t donned a swim cap and googles for a several hundred meter swim
at any point.

Tri Club Resources – A Lesson in Open Water Swimming

My first taste of “open water” swimming was at the Beginner
Triathlon put on but the San Diego Tri Club (see that post here). We swam 300 meters
in the bay on Coronado island and there were about 100 swimmers at the start.
My start group at Solana Beach triathlon will be of similar size (slightly
smaller actually) and distance (400 meters) but the main difference is the waves.

The Solana Beach triathlon has seen VERY
large waves for the last two years; so big that some people don’t finish the swim
as a result. In preparation for the open water portion of the swim, fellow newbie
triathletes Asia, Jeremy and I attended a beginner open water clinic put on by
the Tri Club a couple of weeks ago. We met in Del Mar at 9 a.m. on a Sunday
morning and after a brief instructional, we were paired up with an experienced
swimmer who would teach us the ropes on open water swimming.

Mike came with me to the clinic for support, and also didn’t
wear a wetsuit although nearly everyone else was wearing them(except for Jeremy
whose wetsuit was also backordered from Xterra at the time). Our
experienced swimmer was helpful but hesitant right away about whether or not we
needed any help at all. He started by asking about our experience and Mike
quickly said he was there to support me, and I told him that I had swam in high
school. After questioning our need to be there, he proceeded to give me some helpful hints for entering the water:

During your warm up, pick a spot on the beach
directly in front of you on shore. Get in the water and then note where the
spot has moved. If you are now to the
left of it, you know that the current is pulling you that way. You can use this information to position
yourself at the correct spot on the beach. If you know the current is going to
pull you to the right, you want to start on the left of the buoy so that you
don’t accidentally miss it and have to back track.
At the start, run into the water until a wave
comes and then dive underneath it, dolphin kicking as you go.
Upon returning from the swim, try to catch waves
and use them to body surf in.

After I did a few dolphin dives and then body surfed in on a
big wave, our experienced swimming partner announced “I’m wasting my time. You
know how to swim.” And then told us that we should go for an open water swim on
our own. He pointed out a spot about a half mile away and said to swim to it
and back. He gave us our blessing and swam away! Mike and I looked at each
other, swam for about five minutes, and then decided to go in. It was freezing
with no wet suit and we had planned to do a 7 mile long run with Asia and
Jeremy after the lesson. We didn’t want to wear ourselves out with this
unplanned ocean swim! Despite the fact that I didn’t get much instruction
during the lesson, I felt much more confident coming out of it - an experienced
swimmer noticed that I was a good swimmer! I also learned that open water
swimming is kind of a free for all – there’s not so much you can do to plan for
it. Good to know.

Tri Club Aquathon

Each month in the summer, the San Diego Tri Club puts on an aquathon
event at the La Jolla Shores. The tri club aquathon is a 1,000 meter ocean swim
followed by an approximately 3 mile run on the sand. I was quite nervous to
participate in this event as I have never in my life swum 1,000 meters without
stopping ( I competed in the 500 meter swim in high school once and I was
exhausted afterward) and especially not in the open water where there is no possible
way stop and put my feet on the ground. However, after the ocean water swim and
a solo swim session in the pool that Monday, I felt that I could at the very
least complete the swim without dying and probably not come in last. When looking up the
results from the previous month’s aquathon, I noted that the first swimmer came
in at 10 minutes and the last at 35 with the majority of swimmers completing
the swim in about 20-24 minutes. I figured I’d be in this range, especially
since I didn’t have wetsuit, which can take off up to five minutes per mile on
a swim.

I planned to arrive at the aquathon by 5:30 so that I could
hear the course talk and get ready before the race. Unfortunately traffic getting
to the race caused us to arrive just six minutes prior. We had to find a spot
for our towels, set out our shoes, strip down and run down the beach to the
start. I didn’t have time to even stretch let alone get in the water and figure
out which was the current was going to take me. However, right before the race
we saw our “expert” swimming buddy from the previous Sunday. He told me that I
was going to great and that he could tell that I’m really good swimmer. That made
me feel SO much more confident. I was seriously more nervous for the aquathon than
I was for the marathon I ran just weeks prior!

We stood ankle deep in the water with over 200 other swimmers when a
horn blew (or someone shouted, I honestly have no idea) and we ran into the
water. Luckily there were no waves that day so the entry was pretty easy.
However, getting around 200 other swimmers was not. The beginner triathlon was quite
crowded, but this was a new level of overwhelming. I was getting kicked, my toes touched both
other swimmers, bumped into, you name it. It was scary at times and definitely
not easy to swim with good form. I just tried to do my best to get around
people as best as I could and to avoid people that were bumping me. The first buoy
seemed pretty far out, and I ended up swimming on the inside of it and having
to back track back to go around it. Several swimmers just ignored the buoy and
turned without going around (cheaters).

At this point things were pretty jammed and there were a
couple people ahead of me that were going slow but I couldn’t pass them. I
finally did and at probably about 400 meters into the swim I finally found a
rhythm. I tried to focus on my breathing and on extending my arms far into the
water and pulling down close to my body. The swim seemed to take forever. I
wasn’t sure how hard to swim and my shoulders were starting to burn and my
breath was heavy but I just wanted to go as hard as I could. By the time I
reached the next buoy, I had to take a few breast strokes to let my shoulders take
a break. I was relieved to see that the final buoy wasn’t too far off and then
all I had to do was swim to shore.

By the time I reached the second buoy, I had a clear reign for
swimming alone and hard. I used the current of the water to get a good pace and
swam in until my hands were nearly touching the bottom. Then I stood up, ran in
and checked the clock – 16:30!!! I was shocked. I had no idea that I could swim
1,000 meters in open water that quickly.

I was slightly disoriented but I found my bag and towel and
put on my shoes and started to run. About ¾ of the way down the .75 mile run to
the pier I saw Mike on the other side. I was surprised that I wasn’t too far
behind him (of course he got much farther ahead on the run). I also saw my open
water swim buddy who shouted words of encouragement. I felt good! Once I turned
at the pier and made my way back toward the finish, I was happy to see that I
was ahead of a lot of people and that there were several still swimming. When I
turned onto my second, and last loop, I was feeling pretty good. In the end, I
finished in 42:20, which means I ran the slightly longer than three-mile course
in about 25 minutes (give or take with transition), which is about a 8:30/mile.
I was happy with that time, as the swim pretty much wiped me out!

Time is Ticking to Race Day!

Race day is in just 2 ½ weeks. I hope to get at least two
more ocean swims in before the race, including the July aquathon which is just
three days before the triathlon. I hope to have my wetsuit in the next couple
of days (Xterra had it backordered until June and then failed to inform me that
it was backordered again until August- after they charged my credit card. I canceled
my order and bought one on Ebay for $20 cheaper and will never do business with this company again) so that I can test it out and get comfortable swimming in it.At this point I’m feeling pretty confident in my ability to swim the 400 meter ocean swim on race
day. The bike is another story….

Misc Open Water Info

I also found this really informative video online (that
takes place in San Diego) about how to enter the water in a triathlon: http://triswimcoachonline.com/tri/open-water-race-entry/

Aquathon swim course:

http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/united-states/ca/san-diego/881127330439565253

Aquathon run course:

http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/ca/san-diego/227127330468692561

My Go-To Healthy Salads and Sandwiches

Fitness Fatale

Conquering Fitness Goals One at a Time

Monthly Archives: July 2011

Why I Want to be an Iron(wo)man

My First Sprint Triathlon!

Beginner Cycling Tips

Vacation Diet Survival Tips

P90X Results – Round 2, Phase 1

Triathlon Gear List

Ocean Water Swimming and My First Aquathon

My Go-To Healthy Salads and Sandwiches