Experimenting

So I am playing around with creating a new blog on my iPad and seeing which site will work best. Now how do I add more than one photo without them ending up all at the bottom?

Training for BMO Begins

So with about 3 months to go, I have decided to start training for the BMO half - should be interesting.... I got injured last April and took way too much time off to recover and lost a lot of my fitness.  Thats what I get for choosing a trip to Australia instead of intense physio!  Ideally I should have done both!  But no sense ruminating about the past.  Point is, I am scared for this half.  It feels like I am starting all over again - but maybe thats not a bad thing?   In yoga, they always talk about the importance of a Beginner Mind, so that you are always in the moment, learning again and being aware of anything you may have missed the first time.  So maybe this is my chance to start again, learn something new as I begin again.

Back

So I haven't blogged in awhile - whats new in the world of my fitness?? Well i was doing well, really well until the 2008 Vancouver Tri, which was a bit of a disaster. I woke up when i was supposed to be checking in, somehow managed to make it to the race, but was a mess. The swim went well - no freak outs like last year, but everything went downhill from there. My time was slower than normal, but that wasnt the disappointing part - I was disappointed that I couldn't talk myself out of a foul mood to have a good race.

So i got a little depressed, and my training waned away. BUT im back!!! And more devoted than ever. But isnt everybody as soon as they get back into it?? no but seriously. Watch out pavement - here I come!

Tri-ing

Distance: 750m swim, 19km bike, 5 km run
Time: 1:33:22


Ok so i don't look like a professional yet (no aerodynamic posture on a nice and fancy road bike) but i still had an awesome time. September 3rd was the Vancouver Tri - both sprint and Olympic distances. I'm really thankful i didn't do the Olympic because as it was, i found the swim really difficult. I found the wet suit had its pros and cons - it gave me extra buoyancy, but i felt constricted around my neck, and it made it hard to do breaststroke when i got tired of doing front crawl. Oh well! Despite wanting to give up before i had even reached the first buoy, i finished the swim about middle of the pack and ended up 84th of 180 something overall, 3/7 in my age group! But more importantly I completed it, without it being too traumatizing, mentally or physically. My plan now is to take some swimming lessons, so that next time I actually enjoy the swim portion and am not starting the tri off with a lot of doubt and a little freaking out!

My First Tri

Distance: 400m swim, 20km bike, 5km run
Time: 1:27:00

So its been awhile since i last wrote! After the Vancouver half, i took about a month and a half off to let my knee recover, which thankfully it has, and has shown no signs of coming back now that i'm running again. Last weekend my mom, cousin and I did My First Triathlon at Harrison Mills - it was awesome!!! The swim was a litttle hectic - people everywhere and i got mildly hit a couple of times. The water was freezing, but since the swim was only 400m it didn't even really seem like it was part of the race - more like a quick dip to get you energized. The bike was good, and the run was fine once I got used to the feeling of running on leaden legs! I enjoyed the whole thing so much that i've signed up for the Vancouver Tri on september 3rd - im not quite sure what im thinking since i'm going on a week long bike trip right before. Oh well!!

The picture is of me showing off my race number after the tri!

Vancouver Half Marathon!

Distance: Half Marathon (21 ish km)
Time: 1:55:57

Yay! I was able to run the half! Actually I am betting i would have been able to survive the full.. but probably not happily. Even though i was almost 6 minutes slower than the April Fool's run, I am pretty happy with my result, considering I havent really ran much since the April run. And whats better yet... no knee pain today!!!! I am still super sore, but thats just regular muscle tightness, my knee feels awesome! I definitely plan on continuing my training and running a marathon in the fall... I am thinking of the one in Victoria... :D!!

Just do what?

I got a t-shirt for my birthday, a Reebok t-shirt poking fun of Nike with "Just Do What?" across the chest. I think its great, although I do like the slogan "Just Do It." I mean really, what better advice is there? Always dreamed of doing something?, well Just Do It.

As for my knee...I am healing, slowly but surely. I was able to sprint from a class out to the bus stop today to pick up some newspapers, which may not seem like a big feat, but trust me, it was! I have cut back to running about 5km a few times a week. And even though its probably not the best for my leg, I play ultimate every so often. Lots of sprinting and turning sharply... so much fun! If anyone has never played ultimate, I would highly recommend it!