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Hello,
I have a new blog now which combines all of my interests into one domain.
It is http://www.homeinthekitchen.com/


Hope to see you at my new location!

US Air Force Half Marathon 2011

I never blogged that I did finish my first half marathon last year, 2011, so finally I’m writing it down. I did the US Air Force half marathon. I accomplished this with my two friends Cherie and Stephanie! I couldn't have done it without their encouragement, and the many hours we logged in training. We did awesome :)

Here is a link to the US Air Force Marathon/Half Marathon website:
http://www.usafmarathon.com/

I must say it was the scariest endeavor I had taken on at that point in my life. I was so nervous. Could I continue on for 13.1 miles? To my amazement, I did. It felt good to cross that finish line and earn my medal. I had a goal of finishing in about 3 hours, and my time ended up being 3:05:47. So not bad at all.


I have plans to run a full marathon one day, but I need to build up my endurance again. After the half marathon last year, my body was wrecked. My hips hurt really badly, and I had to go to a chiropractor. However, the doc straightened me back out, gave me some orthotics for my shoes,
and I’m back in running condition once again.

So no more excuses. One day I’ll tackle my 26.2!

Museum of Aviation 5K - 2011

I did the Museum of Aviation 5K again this year. The first time I did it I finished in about 50 minutes and walked most of the time. This time I wanted to run the entire thing and do it in about 30 minutes. I did run the entire distance! No stopping :)

My official stats:
Official time= 35:52, pace per mile= 11:33, 26th place in my age group

So not bad for a year's difference.

I've also finally started to run more, which I attribute to me being able to run the entire 5K. I started running with a group that meets every Sunday at 9am at the Bare Bulb Coffee shop in Bonaire where I live. It's great to have people to run with and we can encourage and learn from each other.

I have also biked more. I have started doing spin class twice a week; Monday's and Wednesday's. I really have gotten addicted to spin. I just feel so good afterwards. It's always worth the sweat, and my back side has never looked better, ha!
I also have been biking outside with my friend Lisa. Last ride we did 20 something miles, and we plan to do many more.

I guess the only thing I have to do now is start swimming again. Swimming and running were the two areas of my triathlons I needed to work on. Swimming the most, so when I finally schedule my first triathlon for this year, I'll have to set up a swimming plan. Definitely need to put in more laps this time.

Besides all the running, biking, and swimming (oh my! lol) I ordered the P90X system. I ordered it on Amazon and got a great deal, and free shipping. Unfortunately I ordered it early this January and I just got it today. The snow we received in GA slowed everything down, including UPS. It was nice to have a snow day in the south though, so I can't complain too much.

I will try to update this blog with my progress on the P90X program. I'm hoping to be able to do at least one chin up after all the hard work. I have never been able to do a chin up or pull up, ever, in my life. I would like to build the upper body strength, finally, to meet this goal. Also, the strength training will 0nly help my triathlon training, so I am excited.

Training or Off-season, don't know

Whelp, I've still been at it, although I do not know what I'm training for right now. I kind of want to do a half marathon, because that would be one step closer to me training for a marathon. I have decided I want to run a marathon one day. Not sure how soon that will be, but I feel it will happen. I just want to push my body to it's limits. For some strange reason, it makes me feel like I am real, I am not putting on a show, I am just me. I know, I know, I sound kind of existential, but say la vie. However, I don't know if I will do another triathlon before the half-marathon or not. Maybe a half marathon could help me train for my next triathlon. I just get bored with one sport; I like the swim, bike, and run!



My training so far has consisted of going to spin class every Monday and Wednesday at the end of the day fitness leave at work. On Friday's I will either walk with David on the 3 mile trail or run on the treadmill. I've also been working out with my Mom on Saturday's or Sunday's at her gym. Every time I go with her on the weekends I will run 3 miles. Last time I was able to only stop twice, and jogged/ran the 3 miles in 40 minutes. My goal is to run a 5K in 30 minutes, so I just need to get faster. I will sprint while I jog to try and gain speed, but it will take time. At least I've gotten past the initial pain of running. It feels good to finally be able to jog for a long period of time and not feel like you're going to pass out.



Goals for the future include running in the mornings before work in my neighborhood, eventually everyday, but twice a week would be a good first step. I would like to bring Cody, my dog with me on the runs as well. I would love for him to run a 5K with me someday. I know he could do it, he's so full of energy. He's also a very good runner. With some training and plenty of water and energy packed treats, I think he could do it :P Of course the first sign of anything going wrong with him and it's no more training. I have to take care of my sweet Cody man :)



Also, I would like to start riding my bike after work with my friend Debby on base. This will require me to wake up early on those days, to get to work early enough to take off in time for me to meet her and go riding. Ha! Wish me luck on that one, lol. But I really would like to start group riding more. I plan to get a road bike next income tax return, but for now I only have my mountain bike. So I will group ride with my friends, and then hopefully join the Bike Store's group rides when I get my faster bike.



OK, I think that's a recap on me for now. Until next time.

First Triathlon

It has been a while since my first triathlon, but I finally have gotten around to writing the experience down. It was the Veterans Park Sprint Triathlon on August 14th. Boy what an experience; I will defiantly be doing another triathlon next year. It will be another sprint level for sure, but another one none-the-less.

I want to first say that without my bf David it just wouldn’t have been as memorable an experience. He kept me calm when I was nervous before hand, and he was there with my camera taking pictures and video at every transition. I got out of the water, he was there, I set off on the bike, he was there, I get back from my bike and fall off my bike (lol), and he was there. He was an integral part of the entire day. Not to mention treating me to a carb out at Pizza Hut that evening.

Ok, the official time of my first triathlon was 2:00:01. I met my goal of 2 hours; that one second just makes it all the more memorable of a PR, ha!

When I was standing in the sand with my friend Christina at the start line I was very nervous, excited, and I just wanted the event to start. Every time they would yell start for a wave of people to go in the water, I would get that much more excited. Finally, my wave – wave 4 – came up. The water was full of a lot of women of all shapes and sizes and most of them were doing their first triathlon too. A kind of camaraderie that would last the entire event started between us, and we were all telling each other, “I just wish it would start”, “if I can just get through the swim I’ll be good!”.

And finally they said, “Start!” and we were off. I started swimming my normal style, not knowing what open water would feel like, but I quickly learned it was like the pool but a lot more, well, open. In fact very open, no bottom to touch, and nothing to hold onto. I had to swim a rectangle of 400 yards, although it seemed a lot longer. Halfway to the first buoy I had to go into the back stroke to conserve energy. Thank goodness for the backstroke. I think I did 70% backstroke the entire time. It allowed me to keep moving even though I was tired. I made it to the first buoy and I just held onto it, glad that there was anything to hold onto at all. There was a woman already doing the same thing when I got there. We rested together, and were telling each other, “ok, now we just have to get to the next buoy”. And we were off again. It was this middle stretch when I had slight twinges of panic because I was breathing hard, my face was red, and I didn’t have anything to hold onto to rest. I literally had to keep going or I would drown. Well, really I wouldn’t have drown because there were boats standing by to pick up anyone that got that tired, but I did not want that to happen. I was going to finish.

After some regular strokes, back strokes, and even some doggie paddling I made it to the second buoy. The same woman was there I saw at the first buoy. We congratulated each other for making it to the second buoy as we caught our breath. Both of our goggles were getting fogged from all the heavy breathing. The more experienced women swimmers started to pass us as we hung onto the buoy; they were very nice and encouraging. They would cheer us on and say “you’re almost there!” and “you are doing great!” It was really nice to hear that; it was a lot better than just hearing my heart pounding from swimming so hard.

And we were off again, the other woman and me, to the finish line of our swimming adventure. We kept saying we should stop at the yellow buoy that is between the one we just came from and the finish line for another rest, but by that time I was ready to get out of the water. I started to swim regular strokes to get to the end faster. Some younger swimmers started swimming right on top of me, which made me a little miffed because they were being so inconsiderate, but it was a race. So after they passed me I swam just a little harder and slapped my hands on the backs of their legs. Just to make it even. I made it to the yellow buoy, but then I thought, “No, I’m going to finish the swim now”. So I just kept swimming till the end. I saw people were starting to get out of the water so I knew I was close to where I could put my feet on solid ground. Finally I lifted myself out of the water, and I was exhausted to say the least, but I had done it. It was one of the toughest things I have ever tried to do, and I did it. David was right there with the camera, and I didn’t know it at the time but he was videoing me getting out of the water. He cheered me on as I ran up the hill to transition. Oh, and yes, of course there had to be a steep hill to climb to get to transition.

Transition one went smoothly as I had my water bottles already on my bike and all I had to do was put on my helmet and my gloves, get my shoes and socks on, chug down a energy gel, and then I would be off to the bike. David was standing there with the camera and talking to me as I transitioned. That was really nice. He even caught my disgusted face as I ate my coffee flavored energy gel. A reminder to me in the future, don’t ever by coffee flavored energy gels again, yuck! The only other mishap in transition is that I had trouble getting my socks on with my wet feet. I finally just plopped down on the ground and then shoved them on my feet; same with my shoes. Then I ran my bike to the starting line and started peddling away.

I have to say the bike portion was my favorite of the triathlon. The wind blowing against my skin felt great after that hard swim. I really didn’t have any problems getting my legs to work after all the swimming; I think I was just glad to not be swimming anymore. One story I can tell about this leg of the journey is that I got stung by a wasp! Boy did that hurt. I wasn’t the only one either, a lot of people were complaining that they had to swat off some wasps. It stung me when I was reaching back to get my water bottle behind my seat; right on the armpit. It started throbbing, and then all I could do to ease the pain was just start crying. I think that is the funniest thing, on my first triathlon I cried not because of fear I wouldn’t finish, not because of pain in my legs, but from a stupid wasp. Another happening during the bike portion concerns my emergency kit my friend Natalie made for me that carried my tire kit. She sewed it up just for me to fit between my under seat water bottle holders. When I was half way through the bike I started slowing down and didn’t know why. I peddled harder but to no avail, I was still slowing down. My first thought was, “oh no, I have a flat tire” Well luckily Natalie had given me this awesome little bag so I had my tire changing kit with me. So I get off the bike real quick and look at my back tire, and I saw that the little sewn bag had started to sag down and was rubbing against my tire slowing me down. How ironic! The kit I brought along to change a tire was slowing me down. So I tightened the little bag up very tight, and I was off for the rest of the bike.

I see the transition area again and I was ecstatic. I even see David sitting there by the red line I have to stop at, ready with the camera. As I slow down to get off the bike, however, my legs must have been a little more tired than I thought because I fell off the bike. I fell right on my knees, and knocked off my rear seat water bottle set-up; one of the water bottles even fell off and started rolling way. I bounced right back up though and asked David real quick if he was get my rolling away water bottle and keep it for me. This all happened pretty quick though, and soon I was in transition putting my bike back on the rack and taking off my helmet. I was pretty tired by this point after my 13 mile adventure, but ready for the last stretch, the run.

I was so excited about the last part of the triathlon that I forgot my paper number when I left transition. This is funny because I had to borrow a running belt from a nice lady in transition to even have something to pin the number on with; after all that I just forget it. I just shrugged it off and kept running. Well, running is what I would have liked to do, but my legs were telling me a different story. It was more of nice strolling jog to the finish. I kept going though; I would pick things in the distance and just focus on getting to that point. During the run I met back up with the woman that I had seen on the buoys during the swim. We jogged together telling stories about our bike portion and encouraging each other. Then another woman came up and joined us as we jogged. I don’t think I would have remembered her except she had full make-up on! I was shocked; I sure would like to know what water proof make-up she was wearing. We jogged together for a little while, and then I had to start walking a bit to catch my breath.

I finally get to the last half mile and everything started to get congested because people were all around watching their friends finish the triathlon. I met up with another woman sharing my pain and we started jogging together. We got behind some person in a car that was in our way; the exhaust from the car was horrible. We were both pretty mad and used enough energy to pass the car. It was only going like 3 miles an hour anyways, so it wasn’t that hard. It shouldn’t have been there to begin with, stupid driver, lol. We rounded the final stretch and this is when I walked a little to conserve a bit of energy. Then I saw David with the camera and then the finish line. I mustered up enough energy and sprinted across the finish line. It was a great feeling. They handed me my medal for completing the event and took off my ankle tracking chip. Then I stood on the other side; just standing there with my water bottle. I was tired, but I could still walk. I was still alive. I had done it. Then I saw David and he immediately gave me a big hug. It was a great feeling.

David and I chilled the rest of the day. We ate some sausage dogs that the event had cooked up, and sat inside the hotel of the event for some air-conditioning. Then I took a sorely needed shower at the cabin we were staying at and then we left for home. He then took me to Pizza Hut and I had the best tasting pizza ever.

All-in-all it was a great experience. I saw, I trained, I decently conquered. Now I have my sights set on my first half-marathon. 13 miles of just running. Hey, that should be easy right, no swimming or biking? We shall see.

First 30 Mile Bike Ride

Well I did it, my first 30 mile bike ride.

The first 15 miles was no problem thanks to the wonderful SAG stops for the 'Tour de Moose.' The last 15 miles, which was the same course just doing the 15 mile loop again, was another story. I got tired and was feeling the burn. However, all the banana's I was eating at the SAG stops must have kicked in because I got a second wind and was able to finish with that loop being faster than the first.

I did the first 15 miles in 1 1/2 hours. The second 15 miles was more like an hour. So approximately 2 1/2 to 3 hours for 30 miles. So that's about an average of 10 something mph. I really should check the times better on these things, lol. That's not too bad for my first 30 miles. I was doing this on the mountain bike again. I really should buy some slick tires to make it a bit easier, and some new peddles with the clip in shoes. I think that would give me a little edge so that I can start to increase my speed.

Interesting stories that happened on my 30 mile adventure, during the first 15 miles I almost got ran over by a car because they didn't know where they were going. Stupid cars, lol. Wasn't that bad though, lol. Got to see in line speed skaters on the ride. Now that was cool. Those guys were awesome! They move so fast. I bet that takes so much energy to do, but really fun. Maybe I'll try someday, lol.


All in all it was a good first 30 mile. I tested myself and passed with average flying colors, lol.

We shall see if I do anything else before my triathlon in August :)

First Tri is Scheduled

I have registered for my first triathlon. It is the Georgia Veterans Triathlon in Cordele, GA, at Lake Blackshear.
I will: Swim ¼ mile, Bike 13.6 miles, Run 3.1 miles
The Race Date is Saturday, August 14, 2010

I have been training, but I will be doing more to prepare for August. Spin class is the best trainer ever! I have started to run after spin class as well, to work on my transition from bike to run. My parents also just got a new pool, so I have my own personal swim training area, that is going to be awesome. Now I just have to make sure I can at least swim 16 laps around the pool in a row without stopping!

I also have a bike ride planned. It is the Tour De Moose at the Avionics Museum. I will be doing the 30 mile with my friend Christina.

Also in training news I have bought a power yoga DVD to work on strength and stretching. This along with my kettlebell workout should help me gain some stability and muscle. I love my 18 lb kettlebell, I will have to post a picture of it soon.