Friends, Food, Training, Sun!

This past weekend was a great one. I met a number of cool people, caught up with David Saintsing (a very cool Doc I met from Wildflower), had some great food (Thai and Vietnamese!) and put in some solid training. David also was a swim coach prior to going to medical school - so we flopped lastnight and he took a look at my stroke mechanics. Every little bit helps - especially in the swim department! He taught me the "bam!" :)


Saturday - BAM swim practice 1.5 hours. It was a solid swim practice where I met up with another pro Abi Bayley from the UK. The practice was primarily freestyle. I kept a harder race-pace effort throughout. After some food, I headed towards Brainard Lake. I told myself that no matter what, I am going for some high wattages (with a solid HR). It went awesome! I took off 8 minutes from my set timing point. My average heart-rate was 3 beats higher than last time though. I am hoping that the 3 beats isn't what took off the 8-minutes. Later, I headed to the gym for my gym routine I skipped on Friday.


Sunday - Rode my powercranks to the Scott Carpenter Pool for another BAM practice for 1hr25min. I kept the swim very easy - I was TIRED! Powercranks are tough - and were even tougher on the way home. Total time on the PC's: 1hr25. I had a mellow afternoon working on the computer and hanging out with Chris Velez (athlete/friend). He gave me the computer I am typing on and fixed my new email account! Thanks Chris! I later met up with David for a flop 25minutes.


Monday (thus far): I made myself sleep in for the first part of the BAM practice (lacking a lot of sleep). I swam the 2nd practice (1hr). Easy day for me... no riding.

Wholefoods - Great Food (unfortunately a bit expensive though)

I took it on myself to consider that I have been training quite hard lately and was very tired in both my workouts today. My legs were feeling heavy and I just had no oomph. I think I made the right decision not to go to the gym today. It is always hard to do this - for me anyways. I always think I should push, push push. And if I don't do something that was scheduled I feel like crap. I feel like I am just being lazy. However, I am learning via Chuckie to listen to my body.

So....

Tonight, instead of going for a gym routine, (I will add this to Sunday and a bit tomorrow) I decided to check out the big Wholefoods here in Boulder. I was craving a semi-home cooked meal. And that is exactly what I had! Turkey meatloaf, roasted veggies, radish salad, grilled sweet potato and more protein: chicken braised with teriyaki and black sesame seeds! YUM!!!!

I was feeling tired and actually had the gym stuff ready to go but decided one night to myself would be fun. I people watched, checked out every aisle in the store and enjoyed every bite! I am afraid however, I think I overindulged! :) Actually, I know I did. It was just too good to pass up. The tummy is just a bit full.

Heavy day tomorrow! Off to bed early today and hopefully I will get a few more hours of sleep prior to BAM practice at 7:30.

Living it up!

Thursday - Chuckie left with some of his athletes he coaches to the Lubbock 70.3 race. I was left to my own demise on the bike! I started the day with a quick gym routine and a flop. After some chill time I headed out for a 3hour ride with 2hours at mid-aerobic range. By the end of the ride the winds were crazy. I was literally doing 15mph or less. It was a good ride on the flats outside of Boulder. This place is great! I did have a few run-ins with some local riders who kept passing me and then I would catch them again. I was the one keeping steady. I ended the day with a BAM workout at the Scott Carpenter Pool. I love that pool!

Friday - Today I went and did two of the BAM morning practices. I keep it easy so that I can focus on my form. Chuckie's Words are now stuck in my head: length before strength, strength before speed. The plan later in the day was to ride up to Ward. I knew I was tired before I even got on the bike. I ended up getting in a solid 2.25hour nap first and then, an easy 2.25hour easy spin around Boulder. I love the bike path and Baseline. I was just looking at Google Maps and I would like to ride Boulder Canyon Road. I will have to see if its doable for cycling.

For the rest of the evening I may do an easy flop and gym routine. I am planning to go Lefthand Canyon to Ward tomorrow so best be getting some rest.

I feel like I am doing well in terms of training but am forever reminded of the state of my finances. Not working and having a solid income for food, living expense, etc., is about the scariest thing there is. Thanks to Ernie Wyder who is my sole spon$or for helping me in this department right now. Without him I think I would be heading back to Canada next week! It is tough, but every penny is needed and put to good use toward my dream. My bank account for some reason is now in the lower end of the triple digits. Yikes! I need to focus and believe in myself. The more time I put in training, eating right and resting - the more confidence I will have at Vineman 70.3 - and then hopefully a check will follow! :)

Yesterday - more flats than shoes.

Yesterday started out with a nice flop in the moming and a some cross-training session to augment 'no running'. After a good breakfast - the best by far (eggs, sesame seeds, greens, pepper, salsa, few grapes), Chuckie and I headed out towards Flagstaff Mountain. It is a climb here in Boulder that's about 6miles up to its first summit with gradient ranges up to 15% and a total of 2,300 vertical feet. It was big gear day with the main workout being 4 sets of (3min seated in the aero-bar position; 3min seated normally; and 3min standing).

We started on the bike path for a warm-up and after 45minutes of riding, Chuckie suffered a flat. Mishaps happen, but with Chuckie they seem to happen more often than not. I never really believed him at first when he said he gets more flats than anyone (he is cursed), but he really does. Then again, he tends to ride more than anyone else.

Flats seem to come in waves. We started up again and missed out on some solid warm-up time because of the stop. Chuckie had me do my Tabata sprints on the bike (these are tough!). Tabata sprints are 20 second all out sprints with 10 seconds rest, repeated 8-times. The goal is to get as high as wattage as you can (which usually happens in the first two sprints).

Shortly after these and a quick recovery, and before starting the big gear work, Chuckie had another flat. I was just in the middle of one of the 3min intervals, so, like a good coach would, Chuckie told me to keep going. And like a good athlete who listens to her coach, I did. Unfortunately, I guess what he said was out of panic at first and me, not really paying attention to the situation , continued climbing up the hill (I do have to say - I was just doing what I he told me to do!) So I continued on my merrily way, enjoying the views, the climb and the sun rays. It is a great climb...but not so great when you have to descend and see your coach on the sidelines...just a bit perturbed at you.

When I descended down I was surprised I didn't meet him yet. Then, I started thinking, "$#&%! I screwed up." I should have turned back and checked on him. I try to listen and do what he says so I just did that and didn't really use much common sense. Sorry Chuckie! Honestly, it sucked when I saw him sitting in the shade (a small area at that) and I felt like crap. I wanted to come down and say how good the climbing was but....it was not the place, nor the time. :( He used all his spares and was 'spare-less' (a bit scary...).

I attempted to help the best way I knew how...basically, letting Chuckie vent and giving him some food. :) We took out my spare but unfortunately, it was a small valve stem and wouldn't work...and to make matters worse, it had a hole in it. I never get flats (knock on wood!) so I never really paid much attention before this mishap.

So, we were about 2 miles up the hill with no spare to fix his flat. We tried attempting taking my tube off my bike for the long valve stem and to exchange with my short-stemmed spare. Of course, with a hole in the spare - this didn't help matters. Chuckie however, managed to "pull a McGyver," as he called it, and knotted the one of the flats so we could get down the hill - S-L-O-W-L-Y. Luckily, Jenni Keil (an athlete who rocks and is also coached by Chuckie), saved the day and picked us up. In the end, I got a great hill climbing workout in, and Chuckie, well, got a good butt workout - sitting on it for an hour!

Lessons learned:

1. Carry at least two spare tires (with no holes) with you and a pump.

2. Always double check with Chuckie (or anyone for that matter) before leaving them. (I feel really bad I left - sorry Chuckie).

3. If you are ever stuck somewhere with no spares - tie a knot in your tube and see if it will hold air to help you get home.

4. It is important to have a cell phone or someway to contact someone on a ride (I need a phone I think - they are just crazy expensive).

5. Chuckie, in all honesty, is a GREAT coach (this one I already knew though) because he forgave me after his rant and asked how my ride was :), and gave me some spare tubes for my bike!

Thanks Chuckie and Jenni! I owe you both.

PowerCranks with Chuckie

Today was a solid easy day of training. I say easy, because it didn't involve any hard efforts on the bike, on a cross-trainer or in the pool.

Chuckie and I started our morning with a Masters Swim at the Scott Carpenter Pool. It wasn't a good morning start - the temperature of water was below 70 Fahrenheit. I managed to stay in for both practices (2+ hours) but poor Chuckie, with his stick figure frame, only lasted 30minutes. He chilled (or should I say, warmed up) while I finished the workout. The swim was solid though. I kept it rather mellow since the duration was the goal.

We then headed out on the bikes for an easy spin, after some good food and quality Internet time, if there is such a thing. I rode my PowerCranks while Chuckie rode his 12 year old road bike. He reminded me a number of times during the ride to keep my cadence up. It sure is tough having a coach with you for every workout (I mean this in a good way of course!) Using the PCs, it is difficult to keep the cadence steady without continually accelerating. I was riding my brakes a lot so as to not ride away from Chuckie or half-wheel him. Trying to hold a cadence above 100rpm for any length of time is truly difficult.

In the end, the main focus was to actually just continue spinning (not worrying about cadence) and to develop smoother pedaling circles. At the 1hr42min mark I was ready to walk home! I managed to ride more consistently than last time (3 days ago) because we stayed on the roads rather than riding on the bike paths. I looked like a piston on a bike when attempting the high cadence because my whole body was moving up and down (this is not a good thing). I am sure I was embarrassing Chuckie as the local riders rode by us; his riding style is as smooth as you'll ever see on a bike. My PowerCrank riding definitely need some work.

I ended the day with a brief weight routine and watching Chuckie do pull-ups! I wish I could do just one! One day I will surprise him and bust out 10. Right now though, I am doing the mental practice by sitting on the sidelines and just watching. :)

CONGRATULATIONS to Heather Wurtele - Ironman Coeur d'Alene Champion!

AVIA Rocks! This past weekend Ironman Coeur d'Alene took place.

Congratulations to my AVIA commrads:

Heather Wurtele, a fellow Canadian and good friend that I had the opportunity to meet and hang-out with at Wildflower, WON the race! Awesome job Heather! It was her first pro Ironman win!

Ben Greenfield, good friend and my exercise physiologist that works at Champion Sports Medicine in Spokane, WA (and joined us at Chuckie's Solvang Triathlon Camp last March), qualified for Hawaii!!!

Julie Vieselmeyer, who works in marketing for Avia and who is also such a fun person to hangout with, finished 21st in her age-group!

And finally, other athletes that are not sponsored by Avia but still worth a mention:

Chris Velez finished his first ironman ever! I met Chris at one of Chuckie's camps. He was such a great guy to hang out with. He even sponsored me by giving me a small computer that I am typing with right now! Awesome Chris! However Chris, now you need to make the move to getting a good Coach. Hmm...should I suggest: CHUCKIE V.

Sara Gross, another Canadian I met in Penticton, finished 4th overall! Great job Sarah!

And everyone else that I forget to mention here - awesome job! I can only imagine finishing an Ironman one day! I know there are a number of athletes who joined us at the Solvang Triathlon Camps who did this race. Send me a quick comment to make sure I can add you on this list!!

Living the 'high' life.

In the past few days I have met a number of great people, joined a great Masters swimming group BAM, and have started to get into a bit of a routine for training. The last two days were all about 'going thru the motions'. Yesterday I rode my PowerCranks bike for the first time at altitude. It has been a while since I rode the Powercranks and my hip flexors were burning after 30minutes. Chuckie and I rode the bike path and he had to keep telling me to keep up the spinning. It was easier to just coast! :) Overtime, my goal is to be able to spin consistently for two hours on an easy day.

Today, I rode up to the Ranger Station near Brainnard Lake again. I rode part of it with Jeff Keil and met a new cyclist, Stann Vernon. The plan was the same as last time: keep a steady HR and have fun! This I did. By the time I reached the top though, the clouds rolled in and it was a bit of a chase to get home. In the end, the rain-clouds subsided and I was safe. I think I am slowly getting acclimatized. My power output on the Powertap is low still. Hopefully in the week or two I will see a big change!

I am just watching the Live Tracking of Ironman Coeur d'Alene. Good-luck to Chris Velez, Heather Wurtele, Sara Gross and Julie Veiselmeyer!

I am ending the day with a flop and possibly a gym routine.

By the way, the picture is to remind me just what it means to be a runner!

Riding in Colorado

Yesterday was a great day for training. I rode up toward Brainard Lake. It is in the mountains and has an elevation of 10,300 feet! It was truly awesome; check out the picture! Chuckie met me and encouraged me to keep going while he rode his motorbike and coached from the side. I haven't met another coach who does this for his athletes!

The ride rocked because:
1. The elevation: riding up to 10,300ft is unbelievable.
2. The road was remarkable - smooth shoulder and no potholes!
3. The weather was perfect!
4. The views were spectacular!
5. Chuckie was there supporting my whole ride
6. The descent was just as fun as the ascent.

I road the entire 21 miles up at a moderate high-end range heart-rate. I stopped once to give Chuckie some training numbers (watts and HR) and then headed to the top. Chuckie was able to also get me some fresh spring water that I drank in gallons! (Altitude is dry! I need to make sure to increase my fish oils.) There was a ton of butterflies on the way up, as well. I must have seen 40 (2 for each mile I rode!).

Overall, the ride time was around 4 hours 40 minutes with warm-up and cool-down. This area is a great area to train -you just have to find ways around the traffic when you are in town. So far, I haven't had any big mishaps but am reminded daily by Chuckie and his other athletes to be safe!

I ended the day swimming in the local Stroke and Stride at the Boulder Reservoir. This was crazy. I did two 750m laps and walked between the laps. I had to be careful not to re-injure my toe. The start of the swim was CRAZY! I was pushed, toppled on, and kicked! It was a bit of a gong-show really. At each turn-buoy all the athletes were bundled and that is where I was kicked in the face. Luckily my goggles saved my eyes. I didn't swim on anyone's feet...something I really really need to work on. By the second lap everyone was spread out enough that the fist-fighting stopped.

It was fun. I had a blast and any extra time in open water swimming, with fist-fighting, helps my cause!

A long time running

I am now in COLORADO!!! It has been a tough week with the travel and a lot has happened. Here are some of the details since my last update!

Starting with last Wednesday...

Wednesday - Big gear work up the Fig. Total time: 4:03, 49miles. We did the front side of the Fig doing 3 x (3-min seated aero-bar "grinding"; 3-min standing big gear; and 3-min seated spinning) mixed in with some light riding because of the descents scattered throughout the climb. Afterward, it was all steady state riding up to the top. Total time up 1:13, avgHR 145. We then did the backside starting at the first creek crossing: 5.3 miles - avgHR 148. It was a bit tougher than a couple of days ago but so far we have done a lot! :) I ended the day with an easy 30-min swim.

Thursday - 30-min swim at the Swim-Ex at Peak Performance in Solvang. The YMCA pool was closed due to a broken pump. Steady easy pace; I was tired. I then went and road for an 2 hours around Happy Canyon and Baseline. It was a packing day and we packed for at least 5+ hours (Chuckie packed all day!) We left at around 10pm to travel to Huntington Beach to stay with Chuckie's Cousin Dav V.

Friday - Cross-training day: 9-min warm-up and 1hour at avgHR 140. I was really tired and I couldn't get my heart rate to stay higher. I felt like I was going to fall off the machine I was on. I must have been tired or seriosuly in need of some equilibrium/balance work. I did some upper body weights as well. This was done at Huntington's 24-hour fitness. Later that day was the best part. We met up with the AVIA crew and I got to see my new bike I'm getting! I'm stoked. It is getting painted right now and I should get it in the mail in about two weeks.

Saturday - Travel day- stopped at Mesquite, NV, and trained in their local gym. If you are ever up that way this is a good place to stop (25m pool, weight room, and some decent cross-trainers). I did an easy 30-min of cross-training - with 10-min at HR140. I did some lunges and leg press, and swam in the pool for 2,500 yards (main set: 10 x 200s averaging 1:22-1:123/100y). I have been living off caffeine because of the travel. There was no way we were going to try to get my bike out of the back of Chuckie's truck. Iy was jammed in the pack with all our goods, and on top of that, it was over 100 degrees in Mesquite.

Sunday - No training. This was a pure travel day to get the miles under the belt to finally make the final hill into Lafayette and The Front Range. We made it to the area at around 5pm. We had a good dinner with Chuckie's stellar friend Lucho, and his family, and also Jeff and Jenni Keil (other athletes and friends coached by Chuckie).

Monday - Swim with Jeff and Jenni at their posh fitness club (Lakeshore Athletic Club)- main set" 4 x 125s repeated 4 times through with 1 and 3 pull, 2 and 4 free - all at bace pace (BP) Total: 3,200m. So far I don't feel the altitude has hit me yet. I ended the day with an easy, easy spin (1hr 22-min) on local bike paths. Boulder rules with bike paths!

Tuesday - Swim in the morning - mellow workout with some BP - 1:25/100m. 4,200m total. (8 x 100s) Later in the day: 3 hour super mellow ride with Chuckie and Jenni - avgHR 94! Follwing that: a 1,000m flop and 36-min on a Cross-training machine (to augment no running right now) with 30-min at avgHR 144.

Wednesday - Swim with the Boulder Masters (BAM)- around 2hours but only 4k or so. Not bad, but I need to work on my high elbows. Later Jeff, Chuckie and I rode up Lefthand Canyon to Jamestown (elevation: 6,926ft), a small town in the mountains (total: 5o miles, 3:14). We had to time trial to meet Jeff for the first 35-minutes of the ride, as we were running late. During the effort I had a VERY high heart rate, but later, during the climb of 8 miles, I averaged around 140HR. I ended the day with an easy flop of 1,000m, 33-min on x-trainer with HR lower than 135, and weights - mostly upper body.

It has been a bit crazy with organizing stuff here and finding out about the area. I feel like I am still trying to settle in. The toe is feeling great and I should be up and starting to run/walk/jog on it regularly at the end of next week! I am excited!! I am not sure how I am suppose to feel at altitude but so far, so good! I have to keep my fingers crossed.

It is beautiful here. I am just outside of Boulder in a town called Lafayette, or near it anyway on a farm! It is nice because you don't get the hustle and bustle of Boulder and yet, are still close enough to get to the Scott Carpenter Pool (which, by the way, is awesome!)

An awesome day indeed!

A recap for the last couple of days: Chuckie had me working hard, while he hardly worked. We make a good team like this!

Yesterday I started the day with a 5500y swim with the main set: 5x500s, 4x400s, 3x300s, 2x200s, and 1x100. It was all easy swimming with some pulling. I was focusing on my major weakness - high elbows! I then did an easy 30min cross-training session. Later in the day, I finished my 'day at the office' with a 1hr50min easy spin around the valley. It was around 4ish when I left and I love that time while riding. Everything is so serene.


Today I woke up and headed straight to the pool, where I swam 4,100yards with half of it at race-pace. My swim stroke is improving but for some reason everyone who sees me swim lately mentions that I "need to finish my pull". There is always room for improvement! - which in my case is a guarantee for swimming!

After the swim I did some indoor riding for a focused session of one-hour at a moderately hard effort. Chuckie doesn't like for me to share data unless he okays it first but this workout wasn't too bad. Indoor riding can be tough but I borrowed Chuckie's MP3 player and zoned out listening to his 80s music. I also jumped in the gym and did 20min of upper body weights.

And if that wasn't enough, I would end up riding again in the late afternoon for another time-trial type of effort: we picked a small town called Sisquoc that's 45 kilometres away and rode there and back at slighter lower than race pace heart rate. Chuckie calls it 'Lydiard style but on a bike'. Whatever the name, it hurts...especially when it's your second ride of the day!

Two Places at Once

Well today was a great day! Apparently I raced at Escape from Alcatraz and finished 17^th! I'm not sure how that happened because today I was on the Fig here in Santa Ynez Valley doing some hill climbing. It was hot, hot hot!

Here are my "results" at both places!I have to say, 17^th for Escape for Alcatraz is not a bad finish!

Escape From Alcatraz: Female Pro 17th Swim split: 33:47, Bike split: 1:03, Run split: 1:07, TOTAL: 2:54.52

Up and around the FIG: Split hill climbing: Climb 1 - 16min at 242watts, Climb 2 - 39min at 221watts, Climb 3 - 40min at 211watts.

An Update FINALLY

I have a lot to update since my last blog prior to departing for the Boise 70.3 race last weekend. Sorry for the delay! To make a long entry into a short one I will put the most important points (the ones to me anyways!) in bullet form:

• The drive to Boise was great. It took 2 days. I stayed at one of the best home stays ever! The Benzing family treated Chuckie and me like royalty by providing us with great food, great rooms and great conversation. Samantha, their daughter, helped us get to/from their local pool and showed us around Hidden Springs.
• The race was not so great. The water was freezing and my feet were so numb coming out of the water that I didn't even know I stubbed my right big toe hard enough to break it. I stubbed it while running up out of the water. They had a rug held down with a number of sand-bags. The timing mat was not secured to the ground and I got caught up in the mess and stubbed my toe -HARD! I ran up into transition and onto the bike with no idea taht this happened. On the bike, I felt awful for some reason - possibly because my body was in defense mode for my toe, just not a good day for riding and/or mixing some of my gels. I couldn't eat any of my gels (I only took in two) and I could only manage 3/4 of one water bottle for the entire ride. Once I got to the run I felt like I had no energy and my foot was throbbing. After a mile I stopped because of the pain and limping I was doing while running. I hate dropping out...it is the worst feeling. I was having a very crappy race to say the least but I never want to be known as someone who gives up. After meeting up with Chuckie, we headed to the med-tent where his friend PZ Pearce (the race's medical director) suggested to us to get it x-rayed. We left the course and went straight to a walk-in clinic. The very last bone of the big toe is broken but stable.
• After the race, I flew home to Penticton for a few days. Training was minimal as many things went on at home. I have decided to make the US more of a permanent basis for my training, and that meant having some long talks with family and packing up many of my belongings for this purpose. I am not sure what the future holds but I do know that this choice is what I want in my life right now. I know it takes a lot of focus and effort to give it your all to be a champion. I want to say I gave 100% when I get older.
• I flew back into Santa Barbara two days ago. I am headed to Colorado in a few days when Chuckie leaves so we can continue the daily training and team-work.
• I plan to race next at Vineman 70.3 . We are alternating the training a bit to include more long rides and more base-styled training. We will cross-train for running and continue to work on my slow and steady road to faster swimming. Personally I think I am going to be able to start running sooner that what the doctors have said. I can push off the wall while swimming and can walk with no pain and even balance on the injured foot without difficulty. Since the bone that is cracked is the very last bone on the big toe, it is used minimally for normal walking. Running is slightly more difficult but I think in three weeks if we try it out - we are going to be surprised! :) It is good to be positive. My doctor always told me I had blood type B positive! :)

And I guess that brings us to today. Training is getting back to normal and I am slowly coming around to getting my head focused. I know with my decision to come down here to the US again will creep up sometimes, but I believe 100% that this was the best choice I could make toward my dreams of doing my best as a triathlete. Chuckie is a great coach and being around him makes me that much more motivated, positive and focused.

Today I rode with Chuckie and Jesse Leyva (a friend or ours). We rode for an easy 3 hours and I swam prior to the ride: 4,100yards. We are slowly increasing the intensity due to the time I took off while at home and some, because of the toe. We will start the run cross-training shortly and get back into a more intense schedule when we head to Colorado, where I'm sure the altitude will affect me.

And finally, a big THANKS goes out to my sponsors for their support and help for Boise 70.3: AVIA, Standard Process, and Ernest Weider - Momentum Financial. Thanks to the my supporters: Sable Optics, Cocymela, my secret extended family donation for travel expense to the race, Specialized for my race helmet and new triathlon race shoes, Francines Finest Food specialties, and Whole Foods in Penticton.