I had an epiphany at the North Carolina State Fair on Saturday as I watched hogs complete a lap around a miniature track for Cheetos. I believe the phrase that popped into my head was something similar to The Wizard of Oz, when Dorothy tells Toto, "I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." Hog racing is a far cry from my tropical South Florida childhood, no doubt about that. But embrace every new experience, right?
Erica and I trekked through the rain to the fair after my 13-mile run through a downpour that morning. Due to a missed run and an unsuccessful swim training the day before, I wasn't starting out on the best foot. By the end of the run, however, I was feeling great. Eloise (my friend/occasional running partner) and I even managed to pick up the pace as we ran uphill for the last two miles! So all in all, a good run. It's funny how, a few months ago, 13 miles would have seemed like a very long run. When I looked at my training schedule last week, my initial thought was, "Great! Only 13 miles. Easy."
However, the food at the fair didn't treat my stomach well at all. I clearly remember, when I went to the fair with friends during my freshman year at UNC, eating fair food didn't bother me at all. I sampled a candy apple, corn, a bloomin' onion, fried oreos, a BBQ sandwich, a corndog, french fries, a funnel cake, etc. This past Saturday, some funnel cake and part of a bloomin' onion left me nauseated and wanting to run to a trash can.
Luckily, I was feeling better the next morning because I had a full day's workout ahead: 100 miles on the bike and then a one-hour run after that. In all honesty, long bikes rides (especially alone) are extremely psychologically challenging. I've managed to test and try new methods of hydration and nutrition, but I am really excited/interested to see what a competitive atmosphere will do for my bike time.
I have five weeks to find out...
(AND Morgan will be in the U.S. in seven weeks!!!)
Monday, October 26, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
A Weekend of 20-Mile Runs, 80-Mile Bikes, the Rock Wall and Cuban Coffee: 6 Weeks To Go!
How William Harrison ever managed to qualify for Kona (i.e. the World Championship of triathlons), run Kona and then land his dream job this year - I'll never know.
I'm not even trying to qualify for Kona and I can barely juggle all of my responsibilities this semester: school, radio and TV projects, two part-time jobs (the rock wall and teaching indoor cycling), training and an internship at a local TV station. I noticed that I had Fridays off -for the first time in my college career- and I thought "Perfect! Space for an internship." I clearly make it look like I don't want a social life.
However, I do enjoy most aspects of all of these things: even 20-mile runs, one of which I did on Saturday.
I've been doing 16,17 and 18-mile runs, but for some reason the additional two miles really made a bit of a difference. I managed to finish and I'm not worried about my endurance, but I am worried about my habit of ALWAYS needing to go to the bathroom during these long runs...typically when there are no restrooms to be found. I've gotten better about this over the past few months and I thought my days of using "nature's restroom" were over. But it just so happened that I had run about 10 miles out into a forested area when I realized I needed to use the restroom...desperately. The only building in sight was a gymnastics clinic and it was closed. So I did what I had to do...and trekked into the forest.
Writing this, I feel as though this might come off as inappropriate to some, but if you run long distances, you know EXACTLY what I am talking about. The less glamorous side of being able to run for hours on end.
I did lose it a bit towards the end of the run. In terms of endurance, I was fine, but I hadn't paced myself when eating GU. As a result, I got a stomach ache from slurping one too quickly and then I didn't want to eat another. The bad part of that is that I need to have at least 100 calories (or 1 GU pack) every 45 minutes or so. So I was finishing a three-hour run with a caloric intake of probably 150 calories. The fact that it was 40 degrees (and I'm sure I needed even more calories to allow my body temperature to be maintained) didn't help. But of course, I finished and had about 45 minutes until I had to volunteer and then go to work at Duke.
The Cuban coffee may not have been a wise choice for training, but I'm not worried. It was during the few minutes that I had to hang out with my friend, Erica, before I had to dash off to teach my Saturday spin class.
As far as the bike, I was supposed to do that yesterday, but I was busy filming/editing a VO-SOT for a 5K race and then I went to the North Carolina State Fair to encourage people to use alternative sources of energy. (I was working as a volunteer for NC GreenPower: a 'go-green' state organization.) So the bike happened today and for some reason, it was a little more mentally taxing. Honestly, there are times when I wish I could mentally slip out of my body and let my muscles keep working, which they gladly would. It's a strange thing to describe. I'm tired, but my muscles aren't. They can easily keep going and if I could continue riding while asleep, I probably would.
While I may sound burnt-out, I cannot contain my excitement (and also my nervousness) for Cozumel. SIX WEEKS! I was reading through the race site today and the course description has definitely changed from what it originally was set to be. I'm not thrilled about the 3-lap bike (112 miles) or the 3-lap run (26.2 miles). Essentially, I'm going to pass the transition area/finish line twice before I can actually cross it. I suppose this might be a good thing for families who come out to support competitors, as well as other spectators. Abuelo and Abuela will be able to see me several times before I can actually collapse in front of them at the end. Which makes me wonder... do they know what they're getting into? My grandparents have been to one of my races, but this will last about 10 hours longer and triathletes (such as those that will be racing in Cozumel) are definitely a breed of their own.
Did I mention the great 'swag' for this race? (*Apparently, some people I've met say that they're going just for the cool gear that a new Ironman course will probably include in the goodie bags.)
I'm not even trying to qualify for Kona and I can barely juggle all of my responsibilities this semester: school, radio and TV projects, two part-time jobs (the rock wall and teaching indoor cycling), training and an internship at a local TV station. I noticed that I had Fridays off -for the first time in my college career- and I thought "Perfect! Space for an internship." I clearly make it look like I don't want a social life.
However, I do enjoy most aspects of all of these things: even 20-mile runs, one of which I did on Saturday.
I've been doing 16,17 and 18-mile runs, but for some reason the additional two miles really made a bit of a difference. I managed to finish and I'm not worried about my endurance, but I am worried about my habit of ALWAYS needing to go to the bathroom during these long runs...typically when there are no restrooms to be found. I've gotten better about this over the past few months and I thought my days of using "nature's restroom" were over. But it just so happened that I had run about 10 miles out into a forested area when I realized I needed to use the restroom...desperately. The only building in sight was a gymnastics clinic and it was closed. So I did what I had to do...and trekked into the forest.
Writing this, I feel as though this might come off as inappropriate to some, but if you run long distances, you know EXACTLY what I am talking about. The less glamorous side of being able to run for hours on end.
I did lose it a bit towards the end of the run. In terms of endurance, I was fine, but I hadn't paced myself when eating GU. As a result, I got a stomach ache from slurping one too quickly and then I didn't want to eat another. The bad part of that is that I need to have at least 100 calories (or 1 GU pack) every 45 minutes or so. So I was finishing a three-hour run with a caloric intake of probably 150 calories. The fact that it was 40 degrees (and I'm sure I needed even more calories to allow my body temperature to be maintained) didn't help. But of course, I finished and had about 45 minutes until I had to volunteer and then go to work at Duke.
The Cuban coffee may not have been a wise choice for training, but I'm not worried. It was during the few minutes that I had to hang out with my friend, Erica, before I had to dash off to teach my Saturday spin class.
As far as the bike, I was supposed to do that yesterday, but I was busy filming/editing a VO-SOT for a 5K race and then I went to the North Carolina State Fair to encourage people to use alternative sources of energy. (I was working as a volunteer for NC GreenPower: a 'go-green' state organization.) So the bike happened today and for some reason, it was a little more mentally taxing. Honestly, there are times when I wish I could mentally slip out of my body and let my muscles keep working, which they gladly would. It's a strange thing to describe. I'm tired, but my muscles aren't. They can easily keep going and if I could continue riding while asleep, I probably would.
While I may sound burnt-out, I cannot contain my excitement (and also my nervousness) for Cozumel. SIX WEEKS! I was reading through the race site today and the course description has definitely changed from what it originally was set to be. I'm not thrilled about the 3-lap bike (112 miles) or the 3-lap run (26.2 miles). Essentially, I'm going to pass the transition area/finish line twice before I can actually cross it. I suppose this might be a good thing for families who come out to support competitors, as well as other spectators. Abuelo and Abuela will be able to see me several times before I can actually collapse in front of them at the end. Which makes me wonder... do they know what they're getting into? My grandparents have been to one of my races, but this will last about 10 hours longer and triathletes (such as those that will be racing in Cozumel) are definitely a breed of their own.
Did I mention the great 'swag' for this race? (*Apparently, some people I've met say that they're going just for the cool gear that a new Ironman course will probably include in the goodie bags.)
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Food Comas and Long Rides: 7 Weeks Until Cozumel
I feel like a mix of these two would definitely describe what the past few weeks have been like, particularly this last week.
After nutritionally crashing on my only swim for the week (I hadn't eaten enough calories beforehand), I was a little worried about my swim at Pinehurst, the Olympic-distance triathlon which would be my last tri of the season. I wasn't worried in the sense of "Can I do it?" But rather, I was concerned about how strong I was going to come out of the water. I also didn't anticipate only getting five hours of sleep the night before the race, so I'm almost positive that I didn't fully wake up until about halfway through the swim.
The course itself was tough. I remembered it being tough, but I just learned that morning that the bike had been rerouted and included an extra five miles at the end. I should consider myself lucky though because I later heard that many people didn't know at all, even after starting the bike.
Technically, the race was pretty terrible for me. I hadn't slept much, it was only my third time wearing a wetsuit and my watch didn't start when I hit the "Start" button when the horn for the swim sounded. I'm not obsessive about sticking to a certain time, but it's always good to know how long each leg is taking me to do and a general estimate of my pace. BUT the fun didn't stop there. My bike computer sensor was knocked off-kilter and my chain was stuck before I even mounted my bike. After I got the chain undone, I hopped on only to realize the computer issue. I attempted to align it with the other sensor, but to no avail. I had rode in races without knowing the exact distance, but I always had an estimate and I ALWAYS knew my speed. I had no idea how fast I was going or how far I'd gone by the time I asked another competitor about how far we'd gone. Thinking back, perhaps she thought I was being a jerk for asking her how much we had left on the course as I was passing her, but I was very poilite and only asked her because she looked nice enough to answer. Her response? "Why don't you get a bike computer?" Rude, definitely and clearly, I had a bike computer... it just wasn't working.
Luckily, there were mile-markers spray-painted on the road every five miles. It was about this often when I also saw racers changing flat tires. I don't know whether it was all of the burrs from the parking lot field or the poorly paved segments of road, but people were popping tires left and right. And the run? I would honestly say that about half of everyone competing stopped to walk at some point, if not more. Imagine doing a 10K on a golf course. A LARGE golf course. Same thing with the bike. Hills that could be the unknown stepsisters to those in San Francisco. No joke.
http://www.setupevents.com/files/PHFRes1.htm
In the end, I faired much better than I had thought or rather (without a timer or a computer) guessed. It was good to squeeze one more race in. Now just a half-marathon and possibly my first century race before Cozumel.
However, I have been putting in 4-7 hour rides on the bike, either alone or as a part of brick training sessions on the weekend.
And those food comas?
I'm finding that nutrition is probably just as difficult, if not harder than the actual training itself. I have to constantly listen to my body to figure out what nutrients I need more of, less of or maybe if all I have is an upset stomach. I've started taking electrolyte tablets, which I've been told can cause upset stomachs. ...Actually, I was kidding about my own upset stomach, but you get the point.
So I think my body just waved a white flag last night as I ate a ton of peanut M&Ms (which I had decided to buy and save in case I ever needed a super-quick fix) and some bread with olive oil and garlic. Weird combination and terrible nutrition by anyone's standards and I soon realized what a bad decision that all had been...when I was stuffed from the bread and had a nasty sugar headache. And then I woke up this morning feeling like an actualy peanut M&M.
After nutritionally crashing on my only swim for the week (I hadn't eaten enough calories beforehand), I was a little worried about my swim at Pinehurst, the Olympic-distance triathlon which would be my last tri of the season. I wasn't worried in the sense of "Can I do it?" But rather, I was concerned about how strong I was going to come out of the water. I also didn't anticipate only getting five hours of sleep the night before the race, so I'm almost positive that I didn't fully wake up until about halfway through the swim.
The course itself was tough. I remembered it being tough, but I just learned that morning that the bike had been rerouted and included an extra five miles at the end. I should consider myself lucky though because I later heard that many people didn't know at all, even after starting the bike.
Technically, the race was pretty terrible for me. I hadn't slept much, it was only my third time wearing a wetsuit and my watch didn't start when I hit the "Start" button when the horn for the swim sounded. I'm not obsessive about sticking to a certain time, but it's always good to know how long each leg is taking me to do and a general estimate of my pace. BUT the fun didn't stop there. My bike computer sensor was knocked off-kilter and my chain was stuck before I even mounted my bike. After I got the chain undone, I hopped on only to realize the computer issue. I attempted to align it with the other sensor, but to no avail. I had rode in races without knowing the exact distance, but I always had an estimate and I ALWAYS knew my speed. I had no idea how fast I was going or how far I'd gone by the time I asked another competitor about how far we'd gone. Thinking back, perhaps she thought I was being a jerk for asking her how much we had left on the course as I was passing her, but I was very poilite and only asked her because she looked nice enough to answer. Her response? "Why don't you get a bike computer?" Rude, definitely and clearly, I had a bike computer... it just wasn't working.
Luckily, there were mile-markers spray-painted on the road every five miles. It was about this often when I also saw racers changing flat tires. I don't know whether it was all of the burrs from the parking lot field or the poorly paved segments of road, but people were popping tires left and right. And the run? I would honestly say that about half of everyone competing stopped to walk at some point, if not more. Imagine doing a 10K on a golf course. A LARGE golf course. Same thing with the bike. Hills that could be the unknown stepsisters to those in San Francisco. No joke.
http://www.setupevents.com/files/PHFRes1.htm
In the end, I faired much better than I had thought or rather (without a timer or a computer) guessed. It was good to squeeze one more race in. Now just a half-marathon and possibly my first century race before Cozumel.
However, I have been putting in 4-7 hour rides on the bike, either alone or as a part of brick training sessions on the weekend.
And those food comas?
I'm finding that nutrition is probably just as difficult, if not harder than the actual training itself. I have to constantly listen to my body to figure out what nutrients I need more of, less of or maybe if all I have is an upset stomach. I've started taking electrolyte tablets, which I've been told can cause upset stomachs. ...Actually, I was kidding about my own upset stomach, but you get the point.
So I think my body just waved a white flag last night as I ate a ton of peanut M&Ms (which I had decided to buy and save in case I ever needed a super-quick fix) and some bread with olive oil and garlic. Weird combination and terrible nutrition by anyone's standards and I soon realized what a bad decision that all had been...when I was stuffed from the bread and had a nasty sugar headache. And then I woke up this morning feeling like an actualy peanut M&M.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Chewed Up, Spit Out and Rejected... But A Pretty Good Week
I have 8 weeks left until Ironman Cozumel and if you had asked me a few days ago if I was feeling extremely confident, I have no idea what I would have told you.
Every week has been and will be hectic, but I am slowly learning how to use every second of the day more effectively. Still, I had to miss a run (I had only slept for 3 hours the night before and had to return a recorder to one of my classmates at an exact time that wouldn't be feasible to do if I ran) and a swim (I was out with one of the ABC 11 reporters covering the set up of a U2 concert and barely made it back to the station in time to head off to work at the rock wall). Busy, busy, busy.
I also had two interviews this week regarding my post-grad plans: a telephone interview with Teach for America and an in-person interview in front of a nominating committee for the Luce Scholars Program. On Tuesday, I find out if I will be granted a final interview for Teach for America and unfortunately, I already found out that I did not receive one of the nominations for Luce. While I'm disappointed, I think I will be MUCH more disappointed if I don't make it to the final round of interviews for TFA. Luce is an exciting opportunity, but one that might be better suited for me in a few years once I've gotten to have more experience outside the realm of broadcasting and also, when Morgan and I aren't still living on two different continents.
BUT I did say that I would share the good, bad and the ugly in this blog, but I didn't mention this hilarious. I try to always look on the positive side of things and even though Luce didn't work out for me, the interview itself was quite an experience! I went down to the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School and waited in a room of refreshments and large couches until someone came to escort me to the boardroom where my interview would be held. On the walk there, the man escorting me (also on the nominating committee) informed me that the interview would be taped and there was a camera inside, so not to worry. Upon walking in, I noticed five deans of various schools at UNC sitting across from me at a long boardroom table. They greeted me politely and got straight down to business.
First question: "Where will you be in 10 years?" This is the oldest question in the book. Furthermore, I feel that anyone who thinks they know exactly where they will be and what they will be doing in 10 years is kidding themselves. So of course, I talked about the things I wanted to accomplish in the next 10 years and places that I wanted to go, the type of work I wanted to do, etc. One of the women on the panel looked up and asked me if I didn't know what I wanted to do and implied that I was lacking direction because I couldn't tell her where exactly I thought I would be in 10 years. Haha, I probably should have just lied and pretended I knew exactly where I wanted to be 10 years from now.
Second question: "I see that you have been to South Africa... tell us about AIDS in Africa." Well, isn't that a controversial question and also the world's most general question. AIDS IN AFRICA. While I recognized all that this question encompassed, I felt confident in the responses I gave. But really... "tell us about AIDS in Africa"?
There were a few other questions in between, but this was the kicker and the final question: "Do you consider yourself a feminist and why?" Somehow, I felt as though the topic of reproductive rights (i.e. abortion) was unavoidable and that is how I ended the interview. I also may have inadvertently referred to my dad as a homophobe (he isn't) and I happened to mention how often I was told that people were "praying for my soul" the summer that I worked at Feminist Women's Health Center. None of the above are wise things to mention in an interview, particularly an interview in the South.
But you know, these are growing pains and lessons learned. I definitely found the interview situation, looking back, quite funny, but I am somewhat disappointed, too. The fact that my workouts have been suffering so much because of my school/internship workload hasn't been great either. This weekend's workouts, however, began to make up for some of that.
Yesterday, after two days of missed workouts, I ran 18 miles without a second thought. In fact, I rushed back and then jumped on my bike to go to an interview at UNC's football tailgate. I woke up slightly sore this morning and was happy. Today, I biked 75 miles and then ran for an hour afterward, all at a moderate pace. I worked on my nutrition and hydrated more, which helped a lot. I also had GU packs and tried electrolyte tablets for the first time today. Even after 75 miles on the bike, I managed about an 8-minute mile for about 7 miles, which I was pleased with.
All in all, a pretty good week.
Every week has been and will be hectic, but I am slowly learning how to use every second of the day more effectively. Still, I had to miss a run (I had only slept for 3 hours the night before and had to return a recorder to one of my classmates at an exact time that wouldn't be feasible to do if I ran) and a swim (I was out with one of the ABC 11 reporters covering the set up of a U2 concert and barely made it back to the station in time to head off to work at the rock wall). Busy, busy, busy.
I also had two interviews this week regarding my post-grad plans: a telephone interview with Teach for America and an in-person interview in front of a nominating committee for the Luce Scholars Program. On Tuesday, I find out if I will be granted a final interview for Teach for America and unfortunately, I already found out that I did not receive one of the nominations for Luce. While I'm disappointed, I think I will be MUCH more disappointed if I don't make it to the final round of interviews for TFA. Luce is an exciting opportunity, but one that might be better suited for me in a few years once I've gotten to have more experience outside the realm of broadcasting and also, when Morgan and I aren't still living on two different continents.
BUT I did say that I would share the good, bad and the ugly in this blog, but I didn't mention this hilarious. I try to always look on the positive side of things and even though Luce didn't work out for me, the interview itself was quite an experience! I went down to the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School and waited in a room of refreshments and large couches until someone came to escort me to the boardroom where my interview would be held. On the walk there, the man escorting me (also on the nominating committee) informed me that the interview would be taped and there was a camera inside, so not to worry. Upon walking in, I noticed five deans of various schools at UNC sitting across from me at a long boardroom table. They greeted me politely and got straight down to business.
First question: "Where will you be in 10 years?" This is the oldest question in the book. Furthermore, I feel that anyone who thinks they know exactly where they will be and what they will be doing in 10 years is kidding themselves. So of course, I talked about the things I wanted to accomplish in the next 10 years and places that I wanted to go, the type of work I wanted to do, etc. One of the women on the panel looked up and asked me if I didn't know what I wanted to do and implied that I was lacking direction because I couldn't tell her where exactly I thought I would be in 10 years. Haha, I probably should have just lied and pretended I knew exactly where I wanted to be 10 years from now.
Second question: "I see that you have been to South Africa... tell us about AIDS in Africa." Well, isn't that a controversial question and also the world's most general question. AIDS IN AFRICA. While I recognized all that this question encompassed, I felt confident in the responses I gave. But really... "tell us about AIDS in Africa"?
There were a few other questions in between, but this was the kicker and the final question: "Do you consider yourself a feminist and why?" Somehow, I felt as though the topic of reproductive rights (i.e. abortion) was unavoidable and that is how I ended the interview. I also may have inadvertently referred to my dad as a homophobe (he isn't) and I happened to mention how often I was told that people were "praying for my soul" the summer that I worked at Feminist Women's Health Center. None of the above are wise things to mention in an interview, particularly an interview in the South.
But you know, these are growing pains and lessons learned. I definitely found the interview situation, looking back, quite funny, but I am somewhat disappointed, too. The fact that my workouts have been suffering so much because of my school/internship workload hasn't been great either. This weekend's workouts, however, began to make up for some of that.
Yesterday, after two days of missed workouts, I ran 18 miles without a second thought. In fact, I rushed back and then jumped on my bike to go to an interview at UNC's football tailgate. I woke up slightly sore this morning and was happy. Today, I biked 75 miles and then ran for an hour afterward, all at a moderate pace. I worked on my nutrition and hydrated more, which helped a lot. I also had GU packs and tried electrolyte tablets for the first time today. Even after 75 miles on the bike, I managed about an 8-minute mile for about 7 miles, which I was pleased with.
All in all, a pretty good week.
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