Quitting is not an option

After riding on yesterday and today, I could really be okay with not getting on my bike again until race day in 1 week. However, I will ride again on Wednesday since I have some folks interested in coming out to Hains Point.

Yesterday, I did an open water swim without my wetsuit at Sandy Point in the Chesapeake Bay. The water was very choppy, but I still managed to keep my positive self talk going as I swam. I can say that I did it again and if it is too hot to wear the wetsuit on race day, then I will be just fine. Swimming without a wetsuit is definitely harder!

After the swim, Lisa and I headed out for a bike ride (I was thinking that we would ride a max of 15 miles) when we saw a group of cyclist roll up. Before long, we were saddling up and off to ride 20+ miles with our new found friends. The pace was about 19mph on average and I think that I did a pretty good job keeping up.... except for on the hills. I was going with the flow, but as I started to slow down on the hills, they were picking me off and passing me up one by one. The group consisted of 7 men and 1 woman, so I felt that I had to represent and not make these guys think that they are more fit than us ladies! At the end of the ride, I surprisingly was not tired, but kindly accepted the ride back to my car.

Prior to going out with the crew of cyclist that we met on yesterday, I told Tish and David that I would go out for a 27 mile ride with them this morning. I really don't think that I ate enough prior to this ride or the day before, but I still went out with David and Darren (Tish punked out on us, saying that she had other plans). I was not aware that their street was a steady incline and made me want to quit by the time I got to the top. I wanted to quit again before mile 3 and by the time we got to mile 10, I wanted to turn around and go home. See, these guys ride this route every Sunday and between me not having that much experience riding hills, the 20 mile ride that I did the day before and not having enough nutrition on board, I was a negative, whiny, wanting to quit chic at mile 10. David honestly warned me of what lied ahead and told me turning back was even more hilly. I wanted to call Tish to come and pick me up! But being the positive person that I usually am about all of this stuff, hearing David say, "you'll be all right. You just have to have a positive attitude", made me change my whiny ways and saddle up again. It was my turn to lead, as they change the lead person every 5 miles. So, not only were we about to embark upon the most hilly part of the ride, but those two would be drafting off of me. Just great! I realized that quitting was not an option, sucked down some water, ate some Gu and got going....

I think that I cursed more on this ride than ever before, but I did it. In total I cycled 26 miles today (after cycling 20 miles and an open water swim on yesterday). What was the take away lesson? Quitting is not an option!

Today's ride with Tri Unify

I started to question my decision to schedule a bike ride today when I saw that we were under a heat advisory. It felt like 100 to 105 degrees with the heat index. I asked fellow Tri Unify members to join me and I was a little nervous that I would go through all of the preparations to get there and everyone would punk out on me due to the heat. I sent out a few texts and 2 people told me that the heat wasn't stopping them from training. I had been hydrating all day and got ready for what was going to be a hot one.

I decided to drive instead of ride, as I didn't know what to expect once Tarus said that he would put together the workout. After I somehow crossed the Potomac on my way to Hains Point, I ended up being late, but was happy to see 3 others waiting for me when I arrived. Before long, I looked up and we were a group of TWELVE riding! I was quite impressed with myself for initiating a ride and getting that type of response. Tarus asked if I will do this weekly, and I think that I will. Last week 2 others rode with me in the rain and this week twelve of us rode in the heat. I think that we have a pretty dedicated group. 

Tour de Cure

On this past Sunday, I cycled 33 miles for Diabetes. I have raised $645 to date (just a little short of my $700 goal). Although it was hard, I never wanted to quit... at least not until I reached mile 20. That always seems to be my breaking point: the dreaded 20th mile! I seem to loose any motivation at that mile marker and really start to question my sanity and why I decided to ride that far...

It was quite easy to motivate myself to keep pushing, as this was a Charity ride. A few people gave donations and asked that I ride for their family and friends... some even asked me to ride for them. I thought of my Mom and how she had a stroke recently. When the doctor told me that this is consistent with what happens with Diabetes patients, I knew that fundraising and riding was not something that I was going to back out of!

When my alarm went off at 5am and every 5 minutes for the next 30 minutes, I started to question if I should do the ride. I was sleepy and it was looking like it was going to rain. I had just had my hair done and didn't want to get it rained on. I was nervous because I did not know if the route had crazy hills and if the group that I was going to ride with would leave me in their dust. I thought about all sorts of reasons why I should not go. I got dressed and said that I would at least show up for the group picture and would leave if I wasn't motivated to ride. When this young girl that was wearing a red jersey which read, "I ride with Diabetes" told me "Thank you for riding for me, I teared up, said "Thank you" and headed to my car to get my bike. I was in!

I was still nervous, but a little happy that the two guys showed up with mountain bikes and I knew that I could probably take them and the chic that rode with us. She was lean and all, but I thought that I could take her! Mind games, I tell ya... mind games... I thought that they were all out for joy ride and was trying to take it easy to ride in a group at first, but then I had to break away. My motto is, "if you're gonna do it, then DO IT!". We finally got out of the neighborhoods and when we hit the trail, I TOOK OFFF. I had to get in a little speed work, so I left them. We all caught up at the rest stop and probably rested a little too  long. The guys were all goo goo eyed for the Coconut Water girls and so, we hung out.

We took off again and at the 20 mile mark, I started to get tired! We stopped for another photo shoot at mile 23.

I knew that I had to finish this thing and had to quit playing with them, so I took off and left them again. I played a little game and tried to pick off every chic or dude that I could see in front of me. I got passed by quite a few people and tried to keep up with them, but ended up eating their dust. I keep pushing and before you knew it, I was DONE!

I played around and cheered other folks on and then about 10 minutes later, the others rolled in.

We got some grub and stretches and even hung out with  a little character that I had never seen before, Doc Broc! He made me so happy!

I brought my stinky self home, showered up and hit up Travel Diva's Anniversary party. I tried my best to not look as tired as I really was. I think that I clean up pretty well!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to all of those that supported me! Yall ROCK!


Love,
Tri Becca

Time is running out!

While, I have managed to keep up some level of fitness over the last few months, I have definitely not been training hard consistently for this Triathlon in 3 weeks. The thing that I have not done is train for the distances (1 mile swim, 25 mile bike ride and 6 mile run).  

The swim: I have only swam a mile once (1600 meters), 1200 meters once and 1100 meters once since September. I plan to really pick up my distances in the pool over the next 3 weeks and always swim a mile up to 2000 meters 3-5 days a week to get myself ready.

The bike: I have cycled 20 or more miles a few times, but not consistently at all. I rode for 23 1/2 miles today and was WORN OUT! I have to cycle more and get to the point where I am not completely spent afterwards, as I will still have to run 6 miles after the 25 mile ride on race day. I am cycling 33 for Diabetes education and research next weekend and I am no where near ready. I need to be on that dang bike like every other day getting myself ready!

The run: This is the part that is really a joke. I have not been running consistently and definitely not covering the distance. I have a plan in place for this. The plan is to run as much as my I can stand between now and race day. On race day, I will run to a water stop and take a break and  repeat to get through it that way. The water stops are about 1 mile apart. I will focus on running 1-3 miles over the next 3 weeks and just make it do what it do on race day.

This is the first time that I felt this unprepared for a race. I will finish and get another metal once I cross that finish line, but ti won't be pretty and it sure as heck won't be fast.

I feel a big difference in my energy level this year, as I have been trying to monitor my caloric intake more. I had much more energy last year when I ate more.  Getting proper nutrition without gaining weight is a big challenge for me.

I plan to make the New York City Triathlon my A race for the season and really pick up my training. I feel that I will have my ass handed to me after this race in 3 weeks and that will make me train harder to be prepared. I have to get to the point where I am cycling at least 25 miles twice a week and running 5 miles twice a week to be prepared. I am learning who I can really count on to get trainings in and am more comfortable with training alone when I have to. I also want to start incorporating more cross training like boot camp, kickboxing and dancing into my schedule too. I think if I mix it up, it won't get mundane and it will make my Triathlon training easier, as my endurance will be greater.

This week wasn't so bad (run 1 mile on Monday, Swim 700 meters and run 1 1/4 mile on Tuesday, swim 1100 meters and walked {my ankle was achy}2 miles on Wednesday, cycled 23.5 miles on Thursday.

The plan: walk/run 3 miles on Friday, Dance and swim 1600 meters on Saturday (hopefully with Tri Unify), Brick workout on Sunday with Tri Unify, swim 1 mile on Monday (at disgusting gym), 30 mile bike ride (hopefully with Tri Unify) on Tuesday, Run 3 miles and swim 1 mile on Wednesday... and figure it out from there

What makes a Triathlete

It's not about how fast you go, it's about taking on a challenge and never quitting. There is no turning back.  It takes perseverance, dedication, and endurance. If it was easy, everyone would do it! This is what makes me feel extraordinary, like a super hero... except for when that little old 60 year old lady passes me by and tells me to have quick feet and straighten my back out some when running up a hill, and says, "Let me show you". Then, I see HER as a super hero and aspire to be like her at 60.


TriBecca

PeasantMan (practice) Triathlon

On Sunday, Lisa and I completed the PeasantMan (practice) Triathlon. We did the Sprint race, which didn't feel much like practice to me. It was the real deal Holyfield! The day before, I drove up to participate in the Open Water swim clinic. There was a 500 meter course set up, which I completed with ease. I was quite impressed with myself, but I was a nervous wreck leading up to this day. I did go to the Wilson pool the night before and swam 1200 continuous meters to prove to myself that I could do this. But, it took a lot of good positive self talk before hopping in on Saturday. At no time did I get tired or panic and I finished feeling refreshed with a low heart rate! My mentee Rasheem was a little ambitious for his first time in open water and swam 2 laps for a total of 1,000 meters! I was like a proud mama! He finished all disoriented looking with wobbly legs, but he did it! I got dried off and waited for Lisa to arrive.

There was supposed to be a big bonfire that night, but we had to turn it into a plain ol' cookout. Lisa brought the largest marshmallows that I had ever seen and we made s'mores on the grill. Some people joined in on the fun. We conversed with several new Triathletes and met this really cute couple that are now married after meeting in the 1st grade. We hung out until about 9pm and then headed out of the woods to our hotel that left a lot to be desired. It was only for a night, so Lisa and I tried our best to ignore the blood stains on the bathroom wall, adjust to our doors being on the outside, no concierge to call on if needed and pretended that there was no weird pissy-like smell.

Race day

Lisa and I got up, stumbled around and whined about why in the hell we were doing this. Before long, we were on our way and got all posted up and people watched. The race start was a running beach start which was pretty cool (this means, we all lined up on the beach and when they said "GO!", we all ran into the water and dropped down to start swimming). I kept my cool in the water and made it through the 750 meter swim. The bike ride was adventuresome and made me wonder why I haven't been training more on the bike. The run was fun, although I walked a bit. I just made it fun and talked to other racers and volunteers along the way. All in all, it was a great race and it let me know that I have to really pick up the pace so I can double the distance in 6 weeks.

TriBecca

Words are Powerful

I never realized the power of words and how they can move someone to action until I started to blog about my Triathlon experience last year. I now know, more than ever before, how words are powerful and just like they can motivate someone, they can do the exact opposite. See, I am usually pretty optimistic, strong and don’t let too much shake me up. However, even the strongest person can be affected by someone’s negative words.

About a month ago, I wrote about how that trainer told me some things that lead me to feel like he was a douche bag. Some of my friends thought that my description of him was perhaps a bit harsh. But no one knows how that man’s words affected me. I tried to think, “oh, forget him… he couldn’t do a Triathlon if he tried…. I will take some of what he said but will trash the rest”, however I have not been able to shake it. For the last month, when I look in the mirror, I no longer think, “ oh man, I can’t wait to see how much muscle is under this fat” or compliment the good things about myself and acknowledge the bad and then remind myself of my plan. Now when I look in the mirror, I see all of the negative and think very negative thoughts. I have not even been that motivated to train. I have often wondered, “What’s the sense? I’m obese anyway, this training is not helping me, and maybe I should just focus on doing something else like that man said.” See, that is the power of negative words. They are powerful. They can break someone. They can have you thinking negatively and doubting yourself. No one realizes how harsh their words can be to someone, even if what they are saying is true. I try to always turn a negative into a positive and motivate people however I can. I also realize that feelings are not right or wrong, they are individual. So, if I think someone’s comments to me is harsh and I think that they are a non motivating douche bag, then that is just what the hell he is.

I have been struggling to train, to eat healthier, and to keep in mind all of those things that that man said to me. One would think that it is easy to just shake it off, but it’s not always that easy. Words are powerful, man. POWERFUL.

Today I made the decision to get back on track with training. I have a plan in place to decrease my body fat and tone up. I will be a Triathlete again this year. Fuck with that man said. I have a little less than 8 weeks until race day.