Tough Training Week

Today ended my third week of training for the triathlon, and it was a tough one.  Each week we increase the training time and intensity by 5-10 percent.  Next week we will scale back and then start building again the following week.  My body is so ready for a week of scaling back.  I can't even tell you.

Yesterday I taught a 45 minute spin class and then immediately ran 4 miles.  I knew it would be a painful run, but I have to put myself through it in order to be ready for race day.  I can't remember when running 4 miles felt so horrible.  The first two miles were like running against the wind through sand.  The last two miles felt slightly faster, and the pain was less, but that's not surprising since I was so fatigued that my body just felt numb.

Today, we swam for 40 minutes and then biked 20 miles.  It was a rough 20 miles.  For me anyway.  The Husband seemed to do just fine.  My least favorite words of encouragement of the day were, "Get right behind me and draft up this hill!" as he quickly pulled further and further away.  I would have needed an electromagnet to catch his draft.

Most of my memories of this ride are of hearing my labored breathing, feeling soaked in the muggy heat, and seeing this.

I couldn't focus on the scenery or the wildlife.  Today, I just needed to get through it.

Pulling into the parking lot, there were no big smiles.  Just a huge sigh of relief.

A Ripple in My Plans

Swimming this morning felt fantastic.  It was my first time back in the 50 meter pool since the dreadful diamond incident.  (Still no good news.)  I was in the pool before 6:00am, because today I had to swim for 60 minutes and make it to Young Scholars by 8:00.  We beat the swim team there, so the Husband and I even had a lane to ourselves.

My stroke felt strong.  The length of the pool wasn't overwhelming.  But as I picked up my head between strokes to breathe, I noticed an advancing ridge of dark clouds.  I know the rule.  If the lifeguards hear thunder or see lightning, the pool is closed.

I know my training is about time spend in each sport, and not the distance covered, but I started to swim a little faster anyway.  Could I at least finish race distance before the first rumble?

No.

After 1350 meters I heard the whistles.  "Pool's closed!"  I finished my lap and looked at my watch.  But I had only completed 30 minutes!  I was only halfway done!

"What do we do about this?" I asked the Husband as I cleared the water from my ear and headed for my towel.

"Nothing.  We're done."

"Do we make up the time another day?" I asked, starting to mentally scroll through the schedule on my iPhone to see where I could fit in another swim.

"Nope."

"But, we're supposed to swim for 60 minutes," I said, starting to feel anxious.

"It's all a part of training."

"No!  The schedule says 60 minutes of swimming.  I only did 30!"  I was really bothered by this.

"Some days you follow the schedule, and some days you can't.  It's out of our control."

I was having a hard time dealing with this rude interruption in my training as well as in my day.  Then I realized that it wasn't just about the training schedule.  I have a hard time with a change of plans in general.

I'm a planner.  I put a lot of thought and effort into making my plans too.  So when life gets in the way and disrupts those carefully laid out plans, it really throws me off.

As I moaned about my frustration, I remembered Proverbs 16:9.  "In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps."  How many plans have I made that were changed because of something I couldn't control?  And looking back, many of them were changed to a better plan, a plan that I could not have made on my own.

The Husband and I planned to run a full marathon last April.  We trained in the dark, bitter cold mornings of December and January.  We fought injuries that plagued us all through the month of February.  By the end of the month, we knew we had to let it go.  We were not going to run this marathon.  Oh, it hurt.  It hurt more than my aching hip to think of all the work that we did, and for what?

"But the Lord determines his steps."

Looking back, finishing our training for the full marathon would have been even more disappointing than stopping midway.

No one expected a line of storms to come through Nashville the morning of the Country Music Marathon.  No one expected them to be so severe that they'd reroute runners early to the finish line.  No one expected that their marathon medal would forever symbolize the fact that they had only finished 18 miles and not 26.2.  Now THAT would have been disappointing.

And that would have been US.

And, if not for my injury, I wouldn't have known the blessing of running the Half Marathon with Andrea.

So I didn't get to swim for 60 minutes today.  It's but a ripple in my plans.

I got to swim for 30, and it was a great 30.  Two weeks ago, swimming 30 felt like swimming upstream.  Today felt like jogging in the park.

And instead of dashing off to work after my swim, I had time to sit and enjoy breakfast with the Husband.

I'll keep making my plans, but I pray that God will always determine my steps.

Trying to Sparkle and Shine Through A Hard Day

Today was not a good day.  It started with the longest training swim I've had yet.  53 minutes.  The Husband and I found an empty lane to share at an outdoor 50 meter pool, which is twice the length of the pools that we trained in last week.  This means swimming twice as far before touching the side, taking an extra breath or two, and pressing on.  The extra 25 meters made a huge difference!  After the first lap and a half, I had to resort to the breast stroke just to catch my breath.  What was I thinking committing to a triathlon when I can't even swim two laps in this pool???  Thankfully I was able to continue the crawl after that, but it put my mind in a dark place.

At least in this pool I can touch the side after 50 meters.

What in the world am I going to do when I swim in the lake and can't touch the side or stand on the bottom?

This pool was so long I couldn't even see the other side underwater.

Would I be able to see anything in the murky lake water?

At least now I can see the bottom of the pool and follow the lane lines.

How am I going to be sure I'm swimming in a straight line at the lake?

That's right, there are buoys.

I can only breathe on the right side, and the buoys will be on my left!

What am I going to do???

My chest felt tight, and I was out of breath, not just because I was swimming so far, but because I was terrified.

I'm still terrified.

And if the morning had just stopped there with my fears, I probably could have found a way to put my fears at ease, at least for a while.  I could have found a way to tell myself that my body will respond to training, and I will gain endurance.  I would have remembered that the Husband is going to schedule a few open water swims so that I get some experience with sighting.  I could have remembered that after lap 20 today I was in a grove and felt great all the way to lap 40.  I swam over a mile today, and it's only week two.

But then something happened that was even worse than my fear of the unknown.

After showering in the locker room and getting into my car, I looked in the rear view mirror and noticed that I was only wearing one of my diamond earrings. 

These are the diamond earrings that the Husband brought home from Tiffany's in New York City.

These are the diamond earrings that haven't left my ears since that Christmas morning five years ago when I opened that beautiful robin's egg blue box.

These are the diamond earrings that I thought I'd have forever.

Eyes glued to the ground, I retraced my steps to the front desk.  I tried not to cry as I gave my name and phone number should anyone find my earring and turn it in.  I checked the shower and the locker room.  I did find another woman's pair of earrings on the wet tile floor, and she was quite grateful.  Dressed in a towel, standing outside her shower stall, she prayed over me when I told her of my loss.

I notified the lifeguards.  Then I put my wet swimsuit and goggles back on and slowly walked the 50 meter lane with my face in the water, diving to the bottom to check every piece of debris.  By now, the lane lines were being removed and families with kids were descending on the hottest pool spot in Middle Tennessee.  Dodging flippers and floaties, I kept looking, feeling more and more hopeless by the minute.  A sixteen-year-old lifeguard told me that I couldn't be in the slide area anymore.  "I'm looking for my earring and doing the best I can!"  I blurted out without thinking.  He was just doing his job.  I was doing the best I could just to hold it together.  Tears filled my goggles so that I couldn't even see the bottom of the pool anymore.  I knew that my search was over.

Meanwhile, the Husband had just arrived at his office and received my frantic call.  He drove all the way home and started the process of pulling apart the bed, the couch, and even the pipes under the sinks.  Every pulled-apart room spoke love.

As the Husband hugged me, I told him that I knew my diamond earring was just a thing.  It's just that it was such a special thing.  Such a beautiful thing.  Such a sentimental thing.  He reminded me that at least I'd lost a replaceable thing.  Yes, I'd only lost a replaceable thing.  We've been blessed with so much.  I have the best Husband a girl could ask for.  Every day of life with him is a gift that has a sparkle of its own.  I have a God who loves me unconditionally and cares for me perfectly.  Our lives are beautiful blessings.

As for my diamond earring, I'm hanging on to a shred of hope that it will be found.  Maybe not even a shred, but a fraying thread.  I'm hoping that my beautiful little earring will swirl its way to the filter by the end of the day, and that the head lifeguard will see a little sparkle and fish my diamond out of the debris.  And if not, I know life will continue to sparkle and shine.

But my heart might be a little bit sad for a few days.

So This Is Why They Call Them Bricks

I survived my first week of triathlon training.  I consider that to be quite a feat since I also subbed three extra spin classes at the YMCA, and then there was my really HOT Hot Yoga experience.  (Phew!) 

The week ended on Saturday with my first brick workout.  A brick, completing two discipline workouts in one session, is very important in triathlon training.  It helps to practice transitioning between sports and increases endurance.  But it also helps shorten the time that it takes our legs to stop feeling like heavy bricks when switching from swimming to biking or biking to running.

Our training schedule is organized by the time engaged in each sport, so on Saturday we swam 29 minutes and biked for 58.  We got a bit of a late start, and because it was Memorial Day weekend, we had to share the pool with the families who were coming to spend the day at the newly opened pool.  Lesson number one:  Get up earlier.  After swimming, I was determined not to slow the Husband down.  I raced for my towel and headed for the locker room.  After swooning for a moment as I put my shoes on, I learned lesson number two:  Keep your head above your heart while it's racing!  I was quite proud of myself though, because I beat the Husband out of the locker room and to the truck!  No girlie transition times here!  Let's get moving!

Once on the bike, my legs quickly reminded me why these are called brick workouts, and I had to call ahead to the Husband to wait!  I did my best to keep up.  We live in a VERY hilly area.  In spin class, we simulate hills all the time with a turn of the resistance knob, but climbing a true asphalt hill on a road bike is quite a different beast.  I'm still trying to figure out efficient gearing, but I was proud of myself for making it up every single hill.  I even let out a hoot when I conquered that butt-kicking eternal hill.

Toward the end of our ride, we passed two girls on bikes who were climbing the same hill.  I don't know what came over me.  Maybe it was the exhaustion, delirium, or Pavlovian training, but as I passed them, I started to holler at them to push harder and make it up that hill!  "You can do it, dig deep, you've got this!!!"  I probably completely freaked them out.  I definitely freaked out the Husband.  There's just something about seeing women do something challenging that gives me energy and makes me want to encourage them to do their best.  And there's also the crazy spin instructor mentality.

Last year, when I watched the Husband finish his first triathlon, I cheered like crazy, but I also went nuts for every girl that crossed before and after him.  Girl power.  I love it!!!

As we pulled into the parking lot, the Husband said, "Now just for fun, take your shoes off and run across the parking lot."  What???

So I leaned my bike against the truck and fumbled to take off my shoes.  But these are my nice white socks!  I hadn't brought running shoes, so this was the best I could do.

I instantly knew why he had wanted me to run off the bike.  LEGS OF BRICKS!  Yes, we have a strange definition of "fun".

I'm really glad that I just had to run across the parking lot and back!

It was a great workout to end my first week of training.  Only 11 more weeks to go.  I really am enjoying this new type of training.  I think it's important for us to change our fitness routine regularly to keep surprising the body.  Do you feel like you're doing the same thing over and over and not making any progress?  Switch it up!  Try something new!

But my favorite thing about this training season is working out with my training partner.

He pushes me.  He encourages me.  He makes me laugh.  He makes me laugh at myself when I take things too seriously.  He's the best partner I could ever ask for.

The Maiden Voyage

This was a big day.  The training schedule said to swim for 48 minutes.  This would be the maiden voyage of the DW Ship.  So, I got up early, put on that really unattractive swimsuit, grabbed my goggles, and we drove to the YMCA.  On the way, we hit rush hour traffic, and I was thankful.  That gave me a few extra minutes to find some courage.  I actually asked the Husband to drive a little slower.  I'm not sure what I was so worried about.  You don't just forget how to swim, right?  I think I was worried because I didn't know what to expect.  Would I swim three laps and then cling to the side of the pool gasping for breath?  How far would I get in 48 minutes?  Could I even last 48 minutes?  What was I thinking announcing that I was starting to train for a triathlon when I had no idea if I could even complete the first event?!  The Husband patiently listened to all of my wonderings and drove on.  Slowly.

Thankfully, the pool was fairly empty except for a large group of aqua exercisers bouncing up and down with floaties, so it was easy to find a lap lane to share.  The Husband wished me luck and he was off.  "See you at the other side!"

My first lap was great, the second lap was even better.  On the third lap I started to feel my biceps straining.  What?  I thought swimming was a shoulder workout.  By the fifth lap I seriously thought my arms were not going to be able to take another stroke.  Then somewhere during the sixth lap, something magical happened.  My arms suddenly felt fine.  The muscle fatigue was gone.  My body felt great!  So I just kept swimming.  And swimming.  And swimming.  It became a numbers game for me.  I knew that 64 laps in this pool was a mile.  I had no idea if I could swim that far in 48 minutes, but on my non-flipturns I'd check the clock and do a little math.  Was it possible?  Could I really swim a mile my first time out? 

I didn't push.  I just swam and counted, swam and counted.  And believe it or not, I did it!  I swam a mile!!!  A whole mile!!!  And I only had to stand up once in the middle of the pool sputtering when the Husband's splash choked me as he sailed by.  When I saw that I had completed my mile in 42 minutes, the next six minutes were spent celebrating, bouncing, bobbing, and floating on my back, not a whole lot of serious training there!

So, I'm feeling a lot better about my ability to do the first leg of of the triathlon.  But I have some huge anxieties to get over.

This picture sends my heart into my throat.

This picture makes my heart pound out of my chest.

The ripples WAY the heck out there is the first wave of men.  The Husband is out there somewhere!

But that's a whole 11 1/2 weeks away.  For now, I'm just taking one day at a time, hanging onto the side when I need to, giving this thing my best shot.

Crazy, Stupid, or Both?

Last year, the Husband completed his first triathlon.  I watched him train like a maniac all summer long.  I swam a few laps next to him during his training swims.  I biked with him after he completed his 30 miles for the day.  I even ran a few of the shorter runs with him.

On the day of his triathlon, I was his road support, his cheerleader, and his nutritional adviser.  I was thrilled to be there to support him.  But as soon as he crossed that finish line (ten minutes before his goal time too), I was jealous.

I might be crazy, or maybe just a little bit stupid.  But I think I may train for the Fall Creek Falls Triathlon this summer.  It's an Olympic length tri, which means swimming 1,500 meters (just shy of a mile), biking 24.9 miles, and running 6.2 miles.  Gulp.

I can run.  I've completed five half marathons now.  I can knock out 6.2 miles.

I can bike.  I teach at least three spin classes each week and during spring break the Husband and I completed a 35 mile ride through beach towns.












I can swim.  Kind of.  If you dropped me in the middle of a lake, I could survive and swim to shore.  It wouldn't be pretty, but I'd get there.  I can do the crawl, but I can only breathe on one side.  While swimming laps, I often hit the lane dividers, and there's no way I can even attempt the flipturn.  I hate sharing a lane with someone because their splashing makes me choke.  I think I could survive a mile swim in a zigzaggy line.

But all three in one morning???  That's what training is for.

I'm already a little behind.  I only have twelve weeks starting, well, yesterday.  Part of me thinks that since I'm fairly fit already, all I have to do is ramp up the endurance to complete a 3 plus hour event.  The rest of me has no idea if I'm even capable of such a feat. 

So, training started yesterday with a 5 mile run.  It continued today by teaching a spin class and buying my first ever swim suit NOT designed to wear sunbathing by the pool.  Training will continue tomorrow with my first swim since last summer.

Am I crazy, stupid, or both?