Cranberry Tri

Completing a tri takes a pretty good amount of coordination. I bring a basket with swim stuff, biking stuff and bike, running stuff, transition area stuff, nutrition stuff and clothes for after. Add a baby to this mix and oh goodness! Today was about dividing and conquering, Joe was on baby duty and I had everything else with the added addition of boob stuff. Yes, a pump and 4 bras. Why 4? One to wear to the race that allows for pumping in the car, 2 for racing and 1 for after. I said this was complicated. The race itself was a good time, once it started and I stopped freaking out about what I was getting myself into. I would argue with the race directors that it was not a half mile swim, seemed short to me, but that doesn't really matter. The master's swimming has helped tremendously with my stroke and confidence, maybe next time I'll start with my wave rather than hanging back and letting everyone else go. The bike was not my favorite but what can I ask for given I refuse to train on my bike. It was also broken, yep a broken spoke that I remembered needed to be fixed after last year's race. Eventually I would like to try a longer distance so with that goal in mind I will train better and race with a bike that's not broken. The run felt better than anticipated, see it's this whole low expectation thing working out for me. I didn't break any records but had a good time out there. The highlight of my day was not my own finish but being able to watch a friend finish her first tri. Being a part of someone else's celebration made all the hassle and pre-race jitters worth it. Like always, I finish with the tri bug, wanting to do more and more.

Miles raced today: .5 swimming, 11 biking and 3 running

Clubbing it

Never having been part of sports in high school or college this whole group thing is somewhat new to me and I continue to be amazed by it. How a group of adults with nothing in common beyond running can gather together and form bonds and connections is kind of amazing to watch and be a part of. I've run with the same club for the last several years and made many great friends and had wonderful experiences. It never ceases to inspire me, this morning I watched as 3 people who did not appear to be close friends connect over the difficulty of understanding their nutritional needs with marathon training. At the same time 2 other people were celebrating their perceived end of summer with the kids returning to school. Mind you this was all at 6am on a track. After these connections everyone took off for their repeat 800's at differing speeds but you could hear quiet words of encouragement when groups ran by each other. Recently I've started to swim with another group and they do it as well. This week there was no coach but it would have been difficult for an outsider to see as everyone showed up and helped each other through a planned workout. And again the same thing this weekend with a group that completes open water swims together. I went with a friend and we must have looked terrified but people came over and engaged us in conversation. At the end of the swim those who lapped us offered words of encouragement and well wishes for an upcoming race. There were many invitations for us to join them again. Even places like yoga it happens, just by going and practicing with the same people week after week these connections form. Without the running club I wouldn't have achieved many of my accomplishments over the last few years and I certainly would not have had as many laughs. I guess what I'm trying to say is go and try it. Too often our own fears and worries hold us back but these groups are filled with people having a good time doing what they love and enjoy sharing it with others.

Miles run today: 3

Man that felt good

It was just me and the kid on the Blvd this morning. I have to admit these jaunts around the Blvd are getting a bit old but it's a nice route when I'm running with the jogger. I'm not quite ready to tackle the hills at Lincoln Woods with him yet. Every run around the Blvd is exactly the same, I start by Lippitt Park and head down towards Lincoln School, running against traffic. Of course the downhill side always goes much faster. As I started back up and was loosing interest in the run I spotted a man running ahead of me and decided to catch him. He couldn't have been that far ahead and clearly wasn't moving fast if I thought I could over take him but off I went in hot pursuit. I passed him at Rochambeau. Yep, he got passed by a lady and a baby carriage. I can't tell you how many times I've been passed by someone with a carriage but man it felt good to finally be the one doing the passing.

Miles run today: 3.7

Chasing the rabbit

There was a brief moment I thought about skipping track and running on the road with Joe and the kid but then I remembered The Duel. I need speed to win and I'm not going to get any faster without the workouts. Little did I know that I would be chasing my rabbit tonight. I was like a cheetah analyzing my prey. Watching for her short comings and planning on how I'll take her down. As she makes jokes about costumes and flings vulgar hand motions in my direction I'm taking this all seriously, very seriously. It was hard not to spring into action tonight, but I have to take it slow. My confidence is building and my running is feeling more smooth, come October it's on. As far as tonight, I barely made it out of the house with my running sneakers never mind the Garmin so I'm not sure what I was running for time, but things are starting to feel a bit better. I did note that my rabbit didn't seem that much quicker than me, her recovery was faster but during The Duel there will be no recovery. My knees aren't as sore as they had been so I'll take that as a positive. After the race on Sunday I wasn't crying for PT or a massage. Falmouth is the next challenge and lets just be honest, it's going to suck. What can you do, I got the chance at a number and I am too stupid to pass it up :)

Miles run today: 3

Run 4 Keri = Success

It was a bit touch and go in the morning. Remember the running rules? I could hear the rain from bed when I got up. What to do, what to do?? With the city shut down for the half and the rain I knew that if we didn't make it to the race my feet weren't going further than my couch today. Then we also had to deal with the kid, the rain, the new schedule...things are very complicated now. In the end we packed up the car and hit the road. Luckily it wasn't raining in South Kingstown like it was at home. The race itself was like most others, I had the pit in my stomach at the starting line, wishing I was anywhere but minutes from a race. Once I got going it wasn't terrible. I owe a lot to my running nemesis who sacrificed her time to stay with me and act as a distraction (nemesis title only due to The Duel, sorry). Having the rain and cloud cover was nice as the humidity was high and when the sun is out this course can be brutal. In the end I finished in under my goal time (beating the Q-Tip), the husband was at the finish cheering and the kid was snoozing in the stroller. Hopefully he'll wake up in time for my next finish, but at this point I'll be happy he wasn't screaming. Now I need to psych myself up for Falmouth and convince myself that 7 miles is no biggie.

Miles raced today: 4

Ready for Sunday

The Run 4 Keri has been one of my favorite races since starting running. It's one that we try to do most years, I think only missing it once since starting running. It's a good sized 4 mile race that happens to be located right at our beach. Nothing better than a road race followed by a dip in the ocean. I'm planning to run it on Sunday and had been a bit worried about the distance. Today was just the test I needed. I ran the track workout which happened to be intervals on the Blvd. I now know I can run the distance and to be honest I might use the intervals to get me through the race. It was easier to focus on my watch and running to the next minute or 2 minutes, rather than get lost in my head about how much longer I had to be out there. Tonight it was run 1 min fast, 1 min slow, 2 mins fast, 1 min slow, 3 mins fast and 2 mins slow repeated 3 times. I only had to get through 2 of them before heading home, that and running the 3rd repeat would have brought my mileage higher than I needed or wanted it to go yet. We'll see how it works to get me through on Sunday. The only goal is to finish with a smile, time doesn't matter yet. Time won't matter until the Duel.

Miles run tonight: 4

First Family Fun Run

Today was the day, Joe was finally ready to allow the kid out on the road. This was after he allowed the kid to sit in the jogger in our living room, then a few days after that he went for a walk with the kid in the jogger. So this morning, we laced up our running shoes, Joe took an ativan (not really but he should have) and off we went with the kid in the jogger still in his PJ's. I'm a little surprised that Joe didn't have us all dress in construction orange and have a police detail to stop traffic. Running with the jogger wasn't as hard or as unwieldy as I had anticipated but it's not until you run without it that you appreciate the effort it does take. Joe and I switched off throughout the run. The kid passed out after the first mile. I'm hoping this allows for us to run on a more consistent basis. And I'm sure next on Joe's to do list today is a trip to the pediatrician to ensure there was no lasting damage from the run!

Miles run today: 3