10 Year High School Reunion

Dude. I had my 10 year high school reunion this weekend. DUDE.

Apparently, this event made a lot of my other classmates feel old. I didn't feel old at all...am I the only one? I think it helps that most of my friends are older than me, so no matter what, I will always be the young one. Well, I'll be the young one until they all die and I have to make friends with the spring chickens at the nursing home that is.

Nonetheless, after much difficulty planning the stupid thing (Yes, I planned it It's who I am. I can't fight my destiny. But no, there ain't no way in hell I'm planning the next one.) with Kelly, the event went surprisingly well. I think all had a good time...there were complaints here and there, but hey, when you raise your kids to think they deserve the world and then you fail to deliver, they get a little angry. So, eh, sorry you didn't get your free coke...we decided a free keg of delicious beer was a better use of the money. My hangover thanks you.

So, it was fun. It was a lot of fun. It was great to see everyone and catch up with old friends. I expected there to be a mish mash of people, but unfortunately for my gossip mill, most everyone that showed up was still thin, attractive, and succesful. My mom promised me that all the mean girls in school would grow up to be fat and nasty...but I think she lied. Or else they just aren't fat and nasty yet. I'll continue to hold out hope.

But I would say that the biggest let down of the evening was Facebook. Through Facebook, I have caught up with so many old friends which is awesome. HOWEVER, through Facebook, I caught up on all the litle details of their lives: Are they married? Do they have kids? Are they fat? Where do they live? Etc... So, when it came time to make small talk with this person I haven't seen in a decade, we had nothing to talk about. We already knew all the stuff. I knew you had a kid and it was a girl and she has a wierd name...I've been stalking you in on Facebook for a solid 2 years. Duh!

But the best part of the reunion was catching up with my old friends Sara and Alicia. Those girls got me through the hard stuff in high school and most of the hard stuff in college. I miss them dearly and hold our friendship so close to my heart...I wish I lived closer so it would all be easier. But, it's not and I have no intention of moving...so hear this Bez and Al, I WILL be keeping in touch better. So prepare!!! Love you guys!!


I think the highlight of my evening was going home to parent's house afterwards and smoking the cigars we found in the attic that my dad bought when I born...they say "It's a Girl". Dude. 28 year old cigars that have been living in the attic...you know you had fun when you think, "eh, it's not too bad".

Week 15 - 169 Miles

In the water: 0 miles - 0 minutes.
On Rocky: 154 miles - 9 hours
In my Asics: 14.6 miles - 2 hours 29 minutes
On the bosu ball: 1 hour

Total Mileage - 168.6 miles - 11 hours and 29 minutes

It was an interesting week. My foot is "okay"...no speed work for awhile and I need to stay close to home on runs so I can quit if it gets too bad. Otherwise, I'm continuning to train as normal! But because of the foot issue, I spent a lot of time on the bike and I am basically biked out...which doesn't bode well for someone who is about to enter the really hard part of their training schedule. Can we say 100 ish mile rides for the next 5 weeks?? Blah!!

Today I ate my sandwich and then iced my foot with the sandwich baggie. That's pitiful.

FINALLY.

The candy companies have FINALLY gotten it right.

For years I have wished that Starbust (and all other fruit flavored candies) would just ditch the gross yellow, orange and green flavors and stick with what the people love..RED. Red candy is always the favorite, always the crowd pleaser and always the first color to disappear from the 1 pound bag.

There is no need for those other flavors other than it gives me an order in which to eat my candy...always eat the gross ones first and make sure to end on the favorite. So, in the case of Starburst, I alternate between yellow and orange, and then I alternate between pink and red, usually ending with the red, but it depends on my mood.

But they got it right. Starburst has come out with a package of FavReds. All your favorite red flavors in one happy caloric indulgence place...I was in heaven.

It's only a matter of time before the rest of the candy manufacturers fall in line and my world becomes a cavity ridden utopia.

Cletus the Former Fetus...

...Is what I plan on naming my first child. Regardless of gender.

Dear lord, this woman is hysterical.

Oh, and BTW.

Oh, yeah, so, I, uh, got this new great job, which is uh, very awesome...but it unfortunately does not give me as much time to blog at work as I once did. So, don't judge.

If more of you slacker arses read this thing then maybe I could just be a professional blogger, but since I don't have anything remotely interesting to talk about and you don't love me enough to read it anyway, I have to attempt to do this job to the best of my ability.

So, here goes nothing!!

Week 14 - 101.5 Miles

In the water: 0 miles - 0 minutes.
On Rocky: 70 miles - 5 hours 5 minutes
In my Asics: 31.5 miles - 6 hours 10 minutes
On the bosu ball: 2 hours

Total Mileage - 101.5 miles - 11 hours and 15 minutes

We are officially on week 15, which means things are starting to heat up. Only 10 weeks left until the race. From here on out, my mileage is SUPPOSED to be pretty hard core. BUT since I think there is a good chance that I have a stress fracture on the top of my foot, my mileage may be suck-core and I may cry.

I have a doctors appointment tomorrow - so hopefully he can rule out anything major. Fingers crossed that I have jus tbeen lacing my shoelaces too tight or something. And in the worst case, let's hope that I caught it in time to prevent any serious damage. FINGERS CROSSED!

One Flight.

That's all there is. But man, one flight of stairs is almost enough to send me into cardiac arrest.

I moved to a new cubicle in my office and it is infinitely more convenient to take the one flight of stairs up to my desk (as opposed to the 4 flights at my previous desk) than to go to the elevator. But I seriously can't make it. I walk up those stairs, huffing and puffing all the way, and my heart rate doesn't get back down to resting levels until about noon.

I often have to sit and take a breather at the top of the stairs at my house. Is that pathetic?

And I think I can do an Ironman in 75 days? I can't get up one flight of stairs without passing out and I think I can swim, bike and run for a minimum of 15 hours?

This does not bode well my friends. This does not bode well.

Week 13 - 76.5 Miles

In the water: 0.75 miles - 20 minutes.
On Rocky: 70 miles - 3 hours 30 minutes
In my Asics: 5.75 miles - 1 hours 1 minutes
On the bosu ball: 2 hours

Total Mileage - 76.5 miles - 4 hours and 51 minutes

Now, in my defense, I was SUPPOSED to do a half Ironman on Sunday that got rained out, so it's not quite as bad as it seems.

But I'm still beating myself up over it. Ugh.

PrairieMan was a non-event. We drove all the way to Dallas, then all the way to the race site on race morning, only to decide that it was too dangerous. The weather was ridiculous...severe rain, flash floods, etc. Not worth the risk. Sooo, we drove home and got on the trainer for an hour and a half. Not exactly the stuff winners are made of. Blah! All in all, I'm most upset that I ate all that pasta and didn't workout at all...ugh.

Sabotage Is My Anthem

My last race of the season is this weekend - PrairieMan Half Ironman - in Grand Prairie. It's supposed to be a good, albeit VERY hot race (there is no shade on the run at all), but a great place to PR (if the wind holds off).

I should do really well at this race. I'm in great shape and I am GREAT at flat races...hills and I, not so much. My biggest obstacle this weekend will be my mind...my only goal is to leave it all out there. I want to cross that finish line and collapse. I want to not be able to walk another single step because I pushed it that hard. I want to know that I did my very best and pushed myself to my ultimate limit. Because I know if I do that, I will have pushed myself harder, further and faster than I ever have before.

Never before have I been able to push myself to that limit. At the end, I can always go a little bit further, run a little bit faster, go a little bit more. Always. I have always liked feeling great after a race, but if I am going to step things up, I have go to figure out how to push myself. It's a mind game though...and I have never tried to overcome it. I normally just hang out and enjoy the scenery...which is fun, by the way, but not testing my limits.

So on Sunday, my only goal is push myself to the end. I want, for the first time, to cross that finish line knowing that I gave it everything I've got.

Listen all of ya'll, this is Sabotage!!

Somehow We All Passed the 3rd Grade.

Hanging out with my girlfriends the other day, we just happened to come across a number of words that we weren't sure how to pronounce. After much debate, argument and hair pulling, we busted out the trusty computer and did some research. And then we continued to say them wrong anyway.

Ethereal: \i-ˈthir-ē-əl\
Cairo (as in Cairo, Egypt): \ˈkī-(ˌ)rō\
Damusk: \ˈda-məsk\

I NEVER say "writhe" correctly. Ever. Now it's so confused in my brain that I can't remember which way is right and which is wrong.

And yes, I even have a college degree. And NOT from Phoenix Online.

Week 12 - 115 Miles

In the water: 0.62 miles - 20 minutes.
On Rocky: 94 miles - 6 hours 12 minutes
In my Asics: 20.7 miles - 3 hours 29 minutes
On the bosu ball: 2 hours

Total Mileage - 115.32 miles - 10 hours and 1 minute

Gotta love a recovery week!!

I will say this though...for the first time since we've begun training, it is becoming a reality. I can do this!!

Next week is PrairieMan 70.3, so I will be taking it easy this week to taper...my only goal for this race is to leave it all out there. I'm not great at pushing myself and my limits, but I'm working on it and I know that if I can jst leave everything on the race course, I will rock it.

Hooray!1

I Have a Dream.

Not really. Because I don't sleep. Ugh.

This is a short but sweet post, that links to a long and moderately angry post about not sleeping (by my favorite blogger - the one with the crotch parasite?).

Currently, I am passively looking to acupuncture and just going to bed at 8PM. I figure that if I am at least IN the bed for 8 hours, at some point, I've got to dose off. So far, no results.

Someday. I hope.

To Pee Or Not To Pee.

That IS the question.

I talk about my bowels and pee way too much on here, but eh, it's my blog. This is what I think about everyday...you can either suffer through it, or leave. (Please don't leave. My following can't stand another casualty.)(I promise to tone it down.)(After this post.)

If you've ever gone on a ride or a run with me, you are probably acutely aware of how frequently I pee during a workout. For example, on the morning of a long run, I pee when I wake up, I pee again after I eat (about 10 minutes later), I pee again before we leave the house (about 5 minutes later), I pee next to the car when we get to the park (about 5 minute later and no, I don't use the port-a-potties there because it's dark and creepy), and I typically have to pee approximately 5 minutes into the run. Depending on luck, my mood and how painful the run is, I can typically hold out for next pee break till about mile 5. But it depends.

Either way, it's risky. Luckily, I'm not snobby about where I pull down my pants. This is not to say I will pull down my pants for anyone, because, well, that's just slutty, but I will pee anywhere, on anything and in view of anyone (other than cops, because that's just dumb)...and surprisingly, I've only peed on my shorts once. I just poured a bunch of water on myself so you couldn't tell. I've mastered the art.

Take notes young paduwon. (How in the world do you spell that? Chewie? Help here?)

During a run, it's pretty easy to find a small shrubbery, duck behind, and take relief, but during a bike ride, it's a little more challenging. During a running race, I can hold it longer than I can on the bike because on the bike my legs are smashing my bladder with every. single. painful. bladder. crushing. revolution. OMG. It's hard. And then, when you finally stop - once you have flagged down your whole group to let them know you will be stopping behind that there tree - you have to get someone to hold your bike, because dude, it's a $3000 bike, you can't just lay it on the ground. Dear lord. And then you can scamper away to find your tree. It takes a little while.

This has always been a problem for me since I am a big pee-er. I never met a toilet I didn't like. Or a shrub for that matter. Or an open field.

Anyway, I was presented with some valuable information last night, from the lovely Kathleen who claims that she pees her pants while riding. (I hope that wasn't classified, but I figure if you are peeing your pants, people are probably taking notice anyway, right?). I often wondered how the pros got all the way through the Ironman without taking a potty break, but learned early on that they just peed their pants...I didn't realize that it was acceptable for the rest of us too!!

Kathleen offered some words of advice:
*It's accepted during a race, but not always during a training ride. Know your training partners.
*Always wear black shorts if peeing your pants is expected.
*Try to pee while going downhill...coasting makes it easier.
*Make sure to wash out your shoes.
*If you need to pee while running, find a place to pause, out of the way, and relax.
*Make sure to wash those shoes too.
*Replace your seat often.
*Disinfect EVERYTHING post workout.

Thanks Kathleen. I hate to admit it, (but let's be honest, I can't keep a secret, so you would find out anyway) but I will be attempting to pee my pants on my training ride this weekend.

Beware the water trail behind me. Muuuuhahahaha.

I'm a Texan.

I'm a true-blue, down-home, southern Texan...and even more so, I am a Houstonian...and I know this because today, after my workout, I was driving to work with the windows down (I was far to stinky to have them rolled up and have my stench contained for the duration of my 30 minute commute) and I was freezing. Absolutely freezing. My fingers were frozen, numb, and had lost all color. I had the seat warmers on and the heat on full blast. And it was 75 degrees outside.

And I was still cold.

My goosebumps STILL haven't fully gone away.

I wish I had been smart and worn a jacket like Maira.

On another note, I ran a 25:40 5K today...HOORAY!

Love and Puppies.

I love dogs. I probably love dogs more than people. And this is my love for dogs on crack.

But just to be clear, I don't love all dogs. I love nice, clean, dry, well-behaved dogs. And if it's large and fluffy, it is much more likely to be loved by me...the smaller the dog, the smaller the open space in my heart. Dogs aren't meant to fit in purses. That's what flying squirrels were for.

Week 11 - 178 Miles

In the water: 0 Miles - 0 minutes. Ugh. The pool hates me.
On Rocky: 155 miles - 8 hours 36 minutes
In my Asics: 23.74 miles - 3 hours 57 minutes
On the bosu ball: 2 hours

Total Mileage - 178 miles - 12 hours and 33 minutes

Whoa. I can't believe it. This will probably be one of our longer weeks of training this season...at least in the Top 5. Surprisingly, I felt great. I feel pretty great even today (although, I didn't work out this morning because my stomach hates me...macaroni is NOT a good pre-run meal, FYI).

We did the HotterNHell 100 Mile ride in Wichita Falls on Saturday...it was fun, but also a giant cluster and I will probably never do it again. It just reaffirms my lack of desire to ever do the MS150. I support MS and all, but that ride is a death trap. The ride went well though - I wiped out once at a support station and got a charlie horse in my hip and couldn't unclip...it was pretty funny. But painful. All in all, we averaged about 17mph for the ride...but that includes probably about 30-45 minutes of pit stops and chatting. So, the average speed in the saddle was probably more like 19-19.5mph. I'm shooting for 18-18.5mph at Cozumel, so this seems like a reasonable estimate! My transition run after was pretty quick and felt pretty good - I think I was averaging about a 9:45 pace for about 2 miles. I kept trying to talk to myself like I was actually going to run 26.2 miles (instead of just 2) and it seemed okay. I think I could have done it. OMG. That's crazy talk.

We did a really nice 10 mile run from my parents house on Sunday - turns out my parents live in the mountains?? Dude, it was HILLY. My butt was burning...and not from the mac and cheese. It felt pretty good though.

My friends Laura and Tara did IMCanada and IMLouisville, respectively, yesterday and they both totally conquered the courses. Laura finished in a blazing 12:36 and Tara in a very fast 13:20...my goal is 15 hours for those of you trying to figure out what those numbers mean. I have never in my life been so jealous of another human being...why can't Cozumel be here already?!?!?

That being said, I am feeling great about training. We are trying really hard to do the workouts we enjoy with the people we enjoy instead of just sticking to a regimented routine. I think if we are doing something we love, we are less likely to get burned out. That being said, the laundry, lack of sleep and hunger are started to weigh on me...this blog says it very well (read the comments too). We are very lucky to have such a great group of friends who are so active that we can train with several days a week...so, thanks guys! You make it worth it!!

Fore-a-cast

There is a guy in my office who says the word "forecast"...but he says it like "fore-a-cast". It's driving me nuts. Surprisingly, this is a word he uses a lot.

On another note, I have gone 65 miles this week. 55 cycling and 10 running...I am planing on doing a 100 mile ride this weekend with a transition run after and possible a 6-10 miler on Sunday...ouch. I will defintely be an Ironman this week.

Laura will be competeing in Ironman Canada on Sunday and I couldn't be more jealous. I am actually turning green with envy. Why can't it be me? That being said, the weather is supposed to be 91 degrees...no thanks! Wish her luck.

I found this video (well, actually, the link is to another blog that has embedded the video...i can't get YouTube at work, blah blah blah). It's funny. You need sound, but it's work friendly. Enjoy.

HotterNHell 100 is this weekend. Yeehaw!

Week 10 - 140.36 Miles

10 weeks down...14 weeks to go until the big show.

In the water: 0.7 Miles - 23 minutes.
On Rocky: 113 miles - 5 hours 56 minutes
In my Asics: 26.66 miles - 4 hours 44 minutes
On the bosu ball: 2 hours

Total Mileage - 140.4 miles - 11 hours and 3 minutse

Dude, I totally wish I had walked to the end of my street and back...then I would have done 140.6 miles and then I could say, "Christy, YOU are an Ironman...this week". Darn you!!

All in all, it was a great week of training. Mon-Wed were really, really, really hard, so Thursday was painful and I took Friday off. I did my first un-painful swim in awhile. I had to force myself to get out of the pool after 23 minutes. Siiigh.

I think Tommy and I have decided to move Turbo Tuesdays to Thursdays so that we have 3 key workouts in a row, 1 day off, then 2 key workouts...instead of trying to do 5 key workouts back to back. I'm tired just thinking of it!

My long run this weekend blew, like, totally blew. Every single step I took was irritating and miserable. I'd say that I had fun for approximately 3 seconds out of the 2 hours we were out there. Eh, everyone has off days...let's hope things are back in track!

In other news, Laura has IM Canada this weekend!! She is #2147, so track her online! She is going to be great!! Much luck to you my friend!! Canada is the hat of our country.

Pinot and Picasso

A few weekends ago, I convinced my wonderful, loving, sweet, caring husband to accompany me to a Pinot and Picasso. You go to a painting class, bring your own wine and snacks, pay like $40 and they provide canvases and paints...and then teach you to paint something.

I was excited because I loooove painting and hadn't found the time or the inspiration to paint lately. Pretty much since Tommy and I moved in together, my inspiration to paint has been about zilch. Essplain that one to me Lucy! I have had a half finished painting intended for my sister's Christmas present (in 2006) sitting in my living room since 2006 (duh.). And I was also excited because it's fun to show the people you love the things that you love...and it seemed pretty easy because really, the more wine you drink, the better painter you become!

Us before the painting begins.
It was a lot of fun and a great place for a date.

Tommy pretending to paint...we were very thankful that the outline had already been drawn on our canvii.

Us, with aprons, and all our pretty pretty paints!

Tommy attempting to repaint the scary neon orange porch he started with...

Tommy is not looking so happy with his brown porch. Ah, the struggle of the arteest.


Us with the final paintings...they look surprisingly good. And yes, we did them all by ourselves. I was impressed too.

Week 9 - 88 Miles

In the water: 0 miles - 0 minutes. Ooops.
On Rocky: 63 miles - 3 hours 24 minutes
In my Asics: 25.12 miles - 4 hours 17 minutes
On the bosu ball: 4 hours


Total Mileage - 88 miles - 7 hours and 41 minutse

Yeah, that's right. That averages out to 1 hour and 6 minutes everyday. Slacker!

In my defense, it WAS a recovery week AND the miles that I put in were hard miles, not chillin'. AND I only worked out 5 days, so, really, I averaged an hour and half each day. But still, I know I know. Slacker!!

I took time off of swimming...my shoulder has REALLY been bothering me so I figured total rest might help. Biking aggrevates it a little, but overall, it was much better this week. AND I possibly broke my pinky finger at some point in the night last week...which makes swimming tough.

I did 2 pretty tough running workouts - Monday I did 400x400's and Wednesday I did 8-60x60s. I did both at a pretty full out pace and felt decent. Tuesday, we did a Turbo Tuesday Transition workout that was a lot of fun - 10 minutes hard on the bike, 10 minute hard run, 8 minutes hard on the bike, 8 minute hard run, etc...it was fun. Don liked getting to go on multiple walks. Ha. Friday was long (but was short since it was recovery week) run, we did 10 miles at about a 10:10 pace and I felt pretty good. Focusing on increasing my turnover has REALLY helped. Long(ish) bike on Saturday - 43 miles - and I FINALLY felt my legs come back.

I've been pushing my run so hard lately that I knew SOMETHING would have to give and my biking ha sbeen suffering in silence. I'm going to try a more balanced approach from now on...we will see. If my workout today is any indication, I'm totally screwed. GST's...running sets of 400 with weights in between...1st set - 1:38, 2nd set - 1:48, 3rd set - 1:49, 4th set - 1:52 (ouch), 5th set - 1:48...and a 2 mile cool down. I ran with a guy named Tommy who does triathlons who is not my husband. Kind of creepy.

I need to get my biking back on track...my running has always been slow, it won't be terribly upsetting if it continues to be slow. No need to worry about that now!

2 weeks till Hotter N Hell and then 2 more weeks till PrairieMan!!