Michele's Training Blog
This is my old blog - see here for my latest blogging.
June 24: I have 3 days left to worry about how I’m going to ride 150 miles this weekend. If nothing else, I’ll be happy to
have the ride over with so I can quit fretting about how much my butt is going to hurt, whether I can do the ride, how I’ll
feel being the last one on the TriForMS team to hit the finish line, whether lunch will be gone by the time I hit the feeding
station, whether it will be dark when I arrive in Ft Collins, whether Steve will get tired of waiting for me, whether I will
get a flat tire, whether I will fall off my bike… oh the things I can worry about are endless!
June 23: With all the training I’m doing, I need extra calories; it’s a food lover’s dream! Though I would like to replenish
those burned calories with a couple dozen chocolate glazed donuts and several tubs of Ben and Jerry’s “Everything But
The” ice cream, I’m trying to be slightly more disciplined by fueling my body with decent calories. However, Connor
whipped up a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies on Friday, and I’ve gotta tell you, that was a treat eating those
on my bike rides this weekend! Steve is burning an unbelievable amount of calories with all his training, and trying to
keep him fed is a challenge too.
June 22: Weekends are for training, eating and sleeping! Steve and I are still trying to defy the physical laws of training
and see if we can make up for the 3 weeks of virtual bike riding; mentally doing a ride doesn’t yield the same benefits as
riding on the road.
I ran 9 miles Saturday, followed by eating, and then rode 16 miles with Steve, followed by napping and laying on the
couch. We rode up Rampart Range Road from home which is 8 miles up then 8 miles down. I have learned I hate riding
fast downhill. I practically wore out both my brakes and Steve’s patience as I rode the brakes the whole way down. I’m
still such a beginner at this bike thing; I don’t have the stability, confidence, and experience yet and still feel anxious on
these rides. After Saturday’s ride, I was one downhill mile away from bronzing my new bike shoes instead of wearing
them, and hanging the bike in the garage. Sunday’s 50 mile ride in Fountain, however, restored my confidence enough to
comment to Steve at the ride finish that I liked the ride and by then the shoe bronzing idea had passed. As we drug
ourselves home for more food and more napping, I almost felt good. Depleted, tired, fatigued….. but good. With one
exception. I don’t think I’m going to be able to sit down for 3 days. That 10 square inch rock covered in leather that the
bike companies euphemistically call a “seat” is like sitting on, well, a rock. After a certain point on Sunday’s ride, I
changed positions about every ½ a second trying to find a less painful way to have practically all my weight supported
on 2 small bones that sit atop a small rock. I tried to keep my whining to a minimum, but after the 3rd comment about my
butt hurting, Steve’s supportive advice was “The good thing is, the hurting doesn’t get any worse”. I’m not sure I can
agree with that….. I have thoughts of standing at my desk and in meetings on Monday.
June 19: The best way for me to describe jet lag is it’s like having your eyes open but your body and mind are asleep. I
haven’t gotten a good night’s sleep yet this week, which makes swimming, riding and running a bit more interesting. I
like to think of it as that extra challenge thrown in that will ultimately improve my racing (or in my case, just getting me to
the finish line).
June 14: 1st day back from Australia and I am dreading my first bike ride and swim. We hauled our bikes all the way
there and back and didn’t ride once. The days were too short, drives too long and main roads not good and safe enough
to ride on. If we had more time to talk to locals about good riding routes, we might have gotten some riding in. It was
worth it though! Now, on to getting my butt back on the seat. Rode my mountain bike on Sante Fe Trail today (16 miles)
after running 8 miles in the morning. Trying to make up for 3 weeks of training all but lost is like trying to rush having a
baby in 8 months instead of 9. There are just some things that take time.
Connor and Michele get a run in on Hervey Bay
Steve and Michele get one swim in -
we're swimming in a man made lagoon in
Airlie Beach.
(Note the lack of photos of us cycling in
Australia......)
May 22: Steve, Connor and I did the Incline (http://www.inclineclub.com/incline/) this morning for our pre 24-hour-travel-
day workout. The Incline is still my favorite training workout of all and if Tracker could talk, I’m sure he would concur. As
we drive there, he can tell when we get close and his excitement level (and whining and yipping) rise to volumes that
Bose headphones wouldn’t block out. Steve takes off, practically running up the Incline while Connor and I take it one
step at a time and take turns talking about what hurts the most. We estimated today that there are about 1600 steps to
the top. The best part is reaching French Creek and watching Tracker drink and bathe in the cool mountain stream water,
then running the 4 miles down Barr Trail.
We leave for Australia today! Everyone is looking forward to spending 3 weeks on the Australia Gold Coast. I’m not sure
everyone in the family is looking forward to 3 weeks together in an RV, but we’ll make the most of it. I am surprise CBS
didn’t contact us yet to see if they could do a reality TV show of us.
May 21: Then are days when your training doesn’t go according to your plan. Today was one of them. Woke up tired, and
out just plain out of sorts. The decision point was: go to the gym anyway, or stay home and eat everything in sight and
fall back into bed, call in sick, and eat my way through a couple of pints of Ben and Jerry’s. I did make it to the gym and
had a very intense workout that included 10 minutes of the spinning bike pedals carrying my feet around in circles and
then, exhausted, crawling to the treadmill and walking at a snail’s pace for 10 minutes. The intensity of my workout was
so overwhelming that I had to go home and replenish the calories I burned by eating an incredibly large breakfast.
May 18th: It was a good training week. Some weeks work and everything comes together.
May 11: Back in the (bike) saddle again to do the Fountain loop again with Steve, Kathy and Diane; the same ride that
instigated the worst bike ride ever. I have a new helmet (always buy a new helmet when you smash yours after
unexpected contact with the ground). This likely accounts for the incredible speed I was cycling at today. I finished the
loop in 3:03 today, shaving off a whopping 12 minutes off last week’s ride (last week’s time didn’t include the time spent
on the ground. I had the presence of mind to pause my Garmin after I gained consciousness.)
One of the most enjoyable things about training and doing these events is the cool people you meet. We met Kathy
through the Pike’s Peak Triathlon club. She was diagnosed with MS in September of ’07. She used to do tris, but her MS
affects her running; she drags one foot slightly and can’t maintain her gait and balance when running, so she is sticking
to the bike and training for the MS150. I met Diane for the first time today; a 55 year old grandmother of 2 who does
triathlons. Both women kick butt on the bike! Which brings me to one of the things I mentally struggle with in my training
and participation in these events: I’m tired of being the slowest person I train with! Either I have to get stronger and
faster or find slower training partners!
May 10: Connor and I did the MS walk this morning while Steve served as the official walk event photographer. It was
chilly and windy again today; causing us to curse this year’s Colorado weather for the 1000th time (Connor had 4 of 6
track meets cancelled due to snow this Spring!).
After the walk, Connor and I went for a run and ran about 10k
in just over an hour. One of my best runs so far this season.
When Connor is having a good running day (meaning I don’t
hear excuses like “I can’t run because my toenail broke” or
“My hair hurts today, I can’t run”), he is one of my favorite
running partners. When he’s motivated and enthusiatic, he
is so much fun to run with; we chat about anything and everything
and I learn all kinds of things about what is going on with him
(today I learned Steve is his hero because he runs those
marathons really fast ). He wants to run a ½ marathon this
summer; if he trains, we’ll let him run the Georgetown ½.
It’s too far of a distance for a 13 year old’s growing bones,
but we said he could do just this one for his 13th birthday
challenge. Steve, on the other hand, was fed up with the
weather gods, was chilled from being out all morning at the
walk and skipped his planned 18 mile run for today. It’s a rare
occurrence when Steve skips a workout.
May 9: Some days just don’t go according to schedule. Planned on a tempo run at the YMCA on the treadmill and I felt
crummy. Ran a mile, walked, jogged a little, and decided today’s training wasn’t going to go according to plan. I generally
take these days in stride and listen to what’s going on with my body and mind; I push it when I feel good and don’t push
it on the bad days. My imaginary coach tells me I must push through the crappy days too if I want to improve, but I turn
up my ipod and tune him out.
May 8: “Work interferes with training”: 7 AM work meeting means no morning training. Crazy busy day at work, so today
turned out to be a day off instead of my speed run day. Where do speed dialing and marathon meetings fit into my
training schedule?
May 7: Easy 1 hour spin in the living room while watching the Women’s Triathlon Olympic Trials on my DVR. When I think
about slowing down or how much I hurt it helps to watch the 11 women who are kicking butt at the trials in Tuscaloosa
Alabama last weekend. Colorado Springs local Amanda Stevens (http://triusa.googlepages.com/home) did not do well;
she caught the flu on Thursday and the trials were on Saturday. We had the opportunity to meet Amanda when Steve
photographed her for George Dallam’s upcoming book “Championship Triathlon Training: http://www.amazon.
com/Championship-Triathlon-Training-George-Dallam/dp/0736069194/ref=sr_1_2?
ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210592815&sr=8-2 . Very inspiring woman; she tells the story of studying while in med school
during her swim workouts – she would put her papers on the kickboard and study while doing laps! It got her 4.0 in med
school….
May 6: Recovering from my traumatic bike wreck on Sunday. Did an easy 2500 yd swim today with an extra strength
Tylenol chaser.
May 5: Yesterday’s bike ride was the worst ride I’ve ever had (not that I have vast experience to draw from). I’m finally
recovered enough this morning to write about it.
I did so many little things wrong, things I know to do and not to do. I didn’t prepare for the ride like I should have and
was already tired from a long run yesterday. I’ve only done about 2 hours max, or 25 miles max rides this year and
yesterday’s ride was a 40 mile loop. Weather was great; and Steve had a 10:00 ride scheduled for our TriForMS bike
team. I ate a good breakfast (high protein waffles with applesauce) but didn’t eat again before the ride. I went out too
fast and too hard the first 15 miles; I was riding with our friend Mike and I was pushing myself. I had a blast drafting off
him though! I didn’t drink enough and slowed down a bit. I was riding with Steve at about mile 20, and was drafting off
him. A gust of wind came up and blew me into his back tire and the next thing I remember I was laying on the side of the
road on my back. I laid there for a few minutes then got back on and rode along at a more leisurely pace. I didn’t take
enough to eat, and starting slowing down and bonked at about mile 30. I didn’t wear sunscreen and got sunburned. By
the time we got back to the car (40 miles, 3:14) I was spent. Went home and crashed on the couch, but couldn’t sleep
because my head was pounding. I had the worst headache I’ve ever had. Finally went to the ER around 6 to make sure I
wasn’t going to die. They said it was a slight concussion, but didn’t think I needed an MRI. Downed some extra strength
Tylenol and went home. Not a great night’s sleep as my neck proceeded to stiffen up as the night went on. I am thankful
for Steve who made sure I was taken care of today!
Let this be a good lesson learned for me: over prepare for a ride (or long run), ride with a group so they can watch out
for you when you crash, push hard, but know your limits, hydrate and keep your calorie intake up, and most of all, be
thankful that I have the opportunity to ride (even bad ones) because so many people can’t.
May 3: Long run day. Ran with my running partner (Tracker) on the Sante Fe trail. Finally, great weather. Ran 9 miles, 1
hour 30 minutes. Feeling pretty fatigued when I finished! My great joy today was I wore Tracker out.
April 27: Had a great ride on the Air Force Academy with a member of our bike team, Kathy. Kathy was diagnosed with MS
in September of 2007. She is a marathon runner and triathlete and is getting adjusted to what she can and can’t do with
her MS. She can still ride, but running is a challenge as her MS causes her right foot to drag. She had a great attitude and
is finding ways to keep her love of training going despite the limitations MS is giving her.
April 30. Weather is finally nice enough to be outside! At least that is the excuse I’m using today for not getting out of
bed by 5 AM and going to the gym and running. I did a sprint workout at lunch, running around the HP parking lot and
then I biked after work in one of the most beautiful spots in Colorado – Garden of the Gods. It was about 75 degrees at
5:00. I wasn’t well prepared for the ride – forgot water, so grabbed a sugar filled Iced Tea from our admin’s hidden stash
at work, and dashed out of the office. I put my Garmin watch on just before getting on my bike and hear that awful tone
that tells me the battery will die about 5 minutes into my ride. I know many of you can relate to this quick decision
making point – my Garmin battery (or ipod battery) is dead – should walk/run/ride later? Since I was practically already
moving on my bike, I decided the ride was more important than the data. So… I rode 2 loops through the park and since I
have nothing to disprove it, I’m sure it was at least a 15 mile loop and I was zooming at top speeds. The beauty of not
having the data is I can imagine myself going at any speed I want!
May 2. Why is it harder to get up in the mornings now – it should be easier since it’s light earlier. By the time I opened my
eyes, Steve was long gone. Finally stumbled into the gym at the YMCA at 6:15 to get in a run. 45 minute tempo run today
at 10:00 pace (yes, fast runner friends, 10:00 is a tempo pace for me). I thought I was going to have to skip my run as
someone was on MY treadmill. The good thing about things not going the way you planned is you learn something new.
I used a different treadmill and discovered I liked it better; I can set the display options the way I want instead of having
to wait for the display options to cycle through to the pace to see just how slow I’m running. I finished up with triple play
of Jon Schmidtt playing Waterfall.
May 1. The snowstorm today is quite a contrast to yesterday’s beautiful day! Today’s ride was 45 minutes on the trainer
in the living room before work. I woke up in an awful mood and the VRU at DirecTV got the brunt of my frustration when
the DVR wouldn’t pause. I can’t be expected to watch COMMECIALS while catching up on the news on CNN!
April 8: Back from the lovely trip to Coorg (India) and back at the service apartments. I ran around the apartments this
morning; it was similar to running on a treadmill in a steam room.
April 5 – 7: Took a nice long weekend trip to Coorg, about 5 hours
from Bangalore. I finally got some sleep and my luggage arrived an
hour before we left, so I got some short runs in. The place we stayed,
Orange County resort,
(http://www.nivalink.com/orangecounty/index.html) is a gorgeous
coffee plantation. There was a “jogging trail” around the resort and
I enjoyed my run as I ran through a dense tropical forest, saw
parakeets, coffee plants, pepper plants and beautiful tropical flowers.
I took a side road one morning, and got about ½ mile down the road
before I turned around. It appeared that I was on a local road and
the people walking to work who I passed gawked at me and one
group of kids giggled as I ran by; I assume either my Colorado tan
(i.e extremely pale) amazed them or the unusual nature of a white
woman running in public exposing her legs startled them (I’ve yet
to see a woman in India were shorts, or even a long skirt, in public).
I wasn’t able to get any cycling in; the bikes for rent didn’t have aero bars, so I couldn't ride.
April 3: Missed flights, delays, lost luggage, not staying at the Leela Palace (which has a nice gym and pool), 36 hours of
no sleep, jet lag – the training plan is quickly becoming just a spreadsheet on my computer rather than something I am
actually doing!
April 1: April Fools! Off to India for 2 weeks; not sure how I’ll get decent training in. The most I can do is run on a
treadmill at the hotel as the steets can be a bit crowded!
