First Brick

I will admit it up front:  I feel too "immature" in my training to claim that I did a brick.  But I did.  (For those of you not into triathlons, don't feel bad if you don't know what a brick was.  I didn't know a year ago what it was, either, and I don't feel bad.  ;)  But here's the explanation:  "Bricks refer to training on two disciplines during the same workout, one after the other with minimal or no interruption in between, just as you would in a race."*)

Husband and I unexpectedly and simultaneously had a window of time open up today, so we dropped the bikes onto his car, drove off to a nearby park, and rode 8 miles.  I will admit to feeling exhausted.  I will admit to being afraid of little yappy dogs that came out and chased us.  I will admit to discovering the back of my throat being a great gnat-catcher.  And I will admit to being sore at the end of the ride.  So what did I say?  "I need to run and get rid of this bike soreness!"  Husband did not have running shoes with him, but he was a good sport and ran along side me wearing his Crocs.   Yes, I was even more tired after the run/walk, and had even more gnats stuck all over me, but I am physically relaxed tonight and that feels GOOD.

So, for the stats:  bike 8 miles in 36 minutes at 13.12mph average; run 1.3 miles in 16 minutes at 12.3 minutes per mile.

*Quoted from Beginner Triathlete.com

How a Choleric Learns Swimming . . .

. . .  "Get to the point.   Just tell me the bottom line."

How a melancholy teaches swimming . . .  "Well, you need to angle your elbow out about an inch more.  And you should cut the water with the top of your head, not your forehead/hairline, at a 45 degree angle.  Keep your wrist well bent.  Straighten out your waist and point your hips; don't bend at the waist.  Align your body like it's being pulled from the top of your head.  Shove your arm in front of you like you're pushing it down a sleeve."

"Ugh.  Just get to the point, alright?!  What is the bottom line?  I want to know that.  We'll fill in the details later, okay?"

That's about how the lesson tonight went.  All the instructions leave me cross-eyed and scratching my head.  I mean, pushing one arm while pulling the other and immediately rolling to the side all the while kicking my feet is worse than that old trick of patting your tummy while rubbing your head.  And WHEN do I breathe?  It's just not that easy, especially when one is 39!  I should have learned swimming when I was 8.  It would have been so much easier!

Regardless, we bought membership.  Me and gym memberships just do not go together.  Till now.  Sigh.  Running on a piece of stretchy fabric to the unchanging scenery of walls and sweaty people just has never held any appeal for me.  Give me the fresh air, the pebbles under my feet, the trees and skies, even the rain on my face and the cold air that scars my throat as I gasp for breath.

I am learning a lot about sacrifice while starting to train.  In the end, when I stick with it, I know I will be better off.  And on those good days, I WILL be outside!  But the swimming?  Well, here comes a tummy-ache of pool water, thanks to that membership.

First Bike Ride

So I went around a parking lot for my first ride.  Really.  Around and around and around and . . .  16 times, to be precise.

Fridays are difficult days to squeeze in anything extra, but Husband was kind enough to clean the bathroom sinks for me and help Daughter finish up the dishes, thus freeing me up to go ride.  He really, really wants me to do this.  I couldn't let the guy down, so I hopped on my ready-prepared (by Husband) bike, and got in my ride.

So, 16 times came out to . . .  a whopping 6.88 miles.  Woohoo!!!  Considering much of the time I was going around corners, I will be satisfied with a 13.68mph.

I hope to not take every ride around a parking lot.

I have to say, I continue to be surprised at how GOOD I feel.  Yes, I feel fatigued after exercising, but after a good night's rest, I wake up feeling refreshed.  And those mid-life mood swings are not nearly as severe.  I'm not sure if I'm still on a high from starting all this, or if this is a new trend.  I'm hoping it's a new trend, as I could handle feeling this good on a regular basis!

Team Support

Tonight's run at the track:  3 miles in 35.11.03 minutes with pace of 11.7mph.

Husband ran the first mile with me, then took off for a speedier second mile.  Our kids were hanging out in the middle of the track, observing progress.  After husband had lapped me twice, Son said, "Mommy!  Daddy is SO far behind you!", to which Daughter retorted, "He's running so fast he's running circles around Mommy!"  Nice to know we each have some support.

* * *

I'm starting a mileage log in the margin to record my workouts, largely for my own benefit of quickly seeing progress.

Swimsuit Shopping

In one word:

Ugh.

Who knew that "racing and training" swimsuits don't in any way match your clothing size?  The one I got is 3 even sizes bigger than my normal dress size.  (Great for the ego, I tell you!)  And can you make any guesses as to how many I struggled to get into before I figured that one out?  Good thing they're made of stretchy fabric or I might have had to buy all 8 of them!

Sigh.

I now have one of those racer-back ones that's supposed to make me fast, fast, fast.  Oh, and goggles to match.  Hopefully  my eyeballs don't pop out when I suction-cup them off my face.  

A Putz Run

I met my trainer* at the track tonight for a run.  He kept telling me to slow down.  I didn't want to slow down!  This is the difference between a strong melancholy who follows every "law" to the detail, and a choleric who wants to "get the job done".  Any guesses as to which one is me???  ;)

At any rate, we ran 2 1/4 miles, and then did a short sprint followed by a short cool-down run.  I actually felt better than I had anticipated.

The stats:  31 minutes and 2/12 miles with a rate of 12.48mph.  Ugh.

* * *
Husband

First Swim Lesson

So I watched Husband do the Cohutta Tri today.  As he ran to the transition from swim to bike, I ran along beside him on the other side of the boundary ribbon and hollered and cheered for him.  He was fairly-well ignoring me as he stripped his wetsuit off mid-run, so I yelled at him, "Come on!  Enjoy the cheering, 'cause this is my last time to cheer you on!"  He grinned in recognition of what this means and picked up the pace as he continued on.

Being at a Triathlon event is very inspiring to me.  It is not unusual at all for me to have tears running down my face as I think of all the effort and determination that has gone behind most of the athletes represented, to say nothing of the amazing bodies God has given each one of us!  I come away wishing I was one of "them".  Today was no different, except that I actually TOLD people that next year it would be me as one of "them".  For awhile, early on in the process, I considered telling no one about my goals, as, if I copped out, I would not be breaking my promise to anyone.  It's truly been a hard mental decision to determine to do this.  It's not like the goal is only a week or a month away.  I am committing to a full year of training, which will hopefully be one step along the path of the rest of my life.  So telling people of my goal has been a way to cement the decision to go down this road.

Coming home from the triathlon, we changed into swimsuits, got into the car, and drove to the pool.  Yes, my first drowning  --  I mean swimming  --  lesson!  Husband had told me that for my first lesson he would teach me how to float.  Yes, float!  Admittedly, I have no style or form, but I CAN doggie paddle, and I CAN float!  So I was a bit miffed about my first lesson's plan.  But we did indeed work on floating -- properly.  And surprisingly, Husband thought I did quite well.  Ha!  We moved on to some more things, like how to turn and breathe while keeping the body in alignment.  There IS a science to this, apparently.  Husband thinks I will be a natural.  "WILL" and "BE" are the key words I heard.  I told him that if I didn't have to breathe, I was sure I could do quite well at this sport.  Hey!  How about a snorkel?!!  (I HAVE actually seen this in a triathlon, believe it or not!)

Aside from snorting several cups of pool water up my nose and obsessing over the water droplets in those wicked goggles that give me the coon look and suck out my eyeballs, I think I survived my first lesson.  Feeling satisfied, we happily enjoyed the hot tub till I almost passed out.

* * *

Aunt N is following my progress and encouraging my attempts.  In an email of "harrah's", she ended with a phrase that I'm adopting as my mantra through this process.  Here it is:

~Faster by Forty!