A-ADD

So I had what one might call an epiphany not to long ago.  I got on this kick that I was going to do a triathlon, and keep doing crossfit at the same time (it's doable).  But then I wasn't working out at all.... I knew something was off, but I couldn't put my finger on it, I kept looking for new, bigger, faster, fancier...  Then it dawned on me, I was suffering from some serious Athletic Attention Deficit Disorder (A-ADD).  I didn't have a focus in my crossfit training, and I had a new fancy road bike.  So I got into cycling.  I finished a 100km bike ride.  That was great, I was certainly proud of myself.  I'm not sure what clicked, but I realized I don't want to do a triathlon.... I love crossfit, and to do triathlon justice I would have to back way off of the crossfit and spend lots of time running and learning to swim again, and that did not excite me.  If I'm not excited I'll never get it done....  Also,  I've been wanting to get my level 1 crossfit certification for a long time now, and just wasn't able to put it together (time and money). I was getting frustrated not seeing my crossfit goal come together.  Frankly, I was lost.

So I spent some time re-evaluating my goals.  I was awarded a grant from Team Racing 4 Veterans to cover the expenses of getting my level 1 certification. I really LOVE crossfit, I want to be good at it.  I get that I'll never be a Crossfit Games competitor and that's ok!  I can love it, and I can share my love coaching it.  I love being strong, and I'm coming to terms with the fact that I'm not much of a runner/endurance type athlete, again totally ok.  I realized I do need a goal to keep me focused though, so I'm looking for new goals.  Getting my level 1 is goal #1!  Now I think goal number 2 (and 3) are a Spartan Sprint and a GoRuck Light Challenge in May 2014.  I'm definitely signing up for Spartan (when we get a little closer).  I've been advise that GoRuck is way better with a team you trust, so my buddy Karl and I have started talking about finding a few more folks  to build a team and train for GoRuck together.

In addition to that I've started my own business as a Beachbody coach called Whole Body Health (or find me here on facebook).  I love fitness, I love helping others, and I really do believe in Beachbody products, so it's an amazing opportunity to help others get healthy.  I'm hoping somewhere along the way I get the chance to combine crossfit and Whole Body Health as a career as I moved forward in married life and having kids.

So yeah, I've kind of been all over the map.  But I feel like I am getting back on top now.  I've been killing my work outs the last few weeks, and I am getting married in less than 2 weeks.  All new things lay on my horizon and it is scary and amazing!

Been a while

Guess I better update!

I've been a bit lazy about exercise, no good excuses just lame justifications....  But I did participate in my first ever Dirty Dash and it was a blast!  My friend Errin had the idea months ago and supposedly we had a big group of gals signing up.  When it came to the day it was just Errin and me, and we did it!    We walked pretty much the whole course, but we took on and completed every muddy obstacle they threw at us.  I had sworn to myself I'd never do the mud run/obstacle course events cause they make me so anxious (you really can't know what you've gotten yourself into til your there...).  But I'm glad I did, and I will do more.

Also, we had our annual NAMI Bike Ride.  It was fabulous!  Great weather, lots of riders, and a great BBQ afterward.  I rode the 20 mile route and raised about $700 for our office.  Next years event is going to be even bigger and better!

I was thinking about a duathlon in fall, but the company that hosts it closed.  There doesn't seem to be any word of whether it will still happen or not.  I should start taking training a bit more seriously just in case it still is on.  But we'll see.  It's on the same day as my gym's big competition and I love reffing for that event.  Either way I need to figure out my slump and get to working out...

One Helena Hundred Ride Report

Turns out this was the truth.

I got a road bike in February, fell in love with it, and signed up for a Century ride...  Fortunately for me the event I signed up for had metric century, 100k or 62 miles.  Saturday was the day.  I was super nervous and maybe a little undertrained.  PJ was originally signed up to ride with me, but because of the details of life he wasn't able to train at all so he decided not to ride and worked as my awesome sherpa.

Sherpa #1

Sherpa #2

We headed up to Cascade around 7:00am, got signed in, and hit the road.   There was no start time, just a rough start point to roll out from.  I kind of liked not starting with a group, it allowed me to pick my pace, but also freaked me out because I was totally afraid of getting lost the entire time...

Before

The weather was absolutely perfect, the first 20 miles felt pretty great.  There were rest stops every 10ish miles and after stop one I got roped in by 3 people from Helena.  I told them this was all brand new to me, and they spent some time teaching my how to draft and running in my first ever pace line.  It was a blast, but unfortunately they were moving a bit fast for me so I dropped off after a few miles.

Things starting getting a bit hotter and the negative thoughts started to creep in around the 30 mile turn around.  I knew physically I could do this, but my brain would be my demise if I let it.  I was slow, I got passed A LOT.  By mile 40 I was the LAST person, not by far though, every time I pulled into a rest stop there were a handful of folks there.  The last 20 miles were pretty brutal both physically and emotionally.  Before Saturday the longest I had ever ridden was 40 miles.  I kept reminding myself I'm brand new to road biking, it was my ride and it didn't matter where I finished simply that I finished, and to be grateful to have a body that let me move along such a beautiful road.

Over all it was probably the slowest Metric Century in US history, 5:36:30 was my total time for the day.  When I finally saw PJ at the very end I broke down in tears, I was so happy and proud that I had set this goal, and finished it.  I also was ready to be off that bike! My bum, hips, and shoulders were done with me and done with being on the bike, but I did it!  

I am pleasantly surprised that I am not sore today.  I'm tired (very tired!) and I feel there is no gas in the tank, but I was bracing myself for pain when I got up and there was none.  (I swear EnduroPacks is part of that!)

I learned:

• I really needed more hours on the bike.  It's not just being fit, it's being used to having my butt in that saddle.
• Being a good squatter and having big thighs (thanks crossfit) helps make those hills happen.
• Positive self-talk is really real.  Everytime I let the bad crap in I started to hate the ride and think about quitting, but I'd start the cheesy positive self talk, and I'd be moving right along again.
• I'm pretty dialed on fueling, but I need to drink more water, I let me self dehydrate a bit early on I think.
• My fiance and puppy make amazing sherpas.
• And lastly, I learned I'm pretty freaking awesome if I set my mind to it.

The very last photo snapped before I crawled off of the bike.

First ever "race" report

About a month ago I got a wild hair to sign up for a 5k.  So I signed up for the 4th of July Freedom Run.  Not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.  But this is the farther I've run since getting out of the military over 5 years ago.  And I've never ran in an organized event like this.  I went into it with no running specific training, just my usual crossfit training.  Basically my goal was to not stop moving forward.  So, I did not run the whole thing, there was walking.  But I finished it.  My goal was 45 minutes.  I finished in 43:40.  It's a start :)  I've changed my training schedule, and plan on doing another 5k in October, so we'll see...

Either way, I got out there on the 4th of July wearing my Team RWB shirt, and finished my first ever 5k.  I'm proud.

Team Red, White, & Blue Functional Fitness Camp

A week or so ago I got the amazing opportunity to travel to Virgina for a functional fitness camp with Team Red, White, & Blue.  There were 50 veterans from all over the US and a bunch of phenomenal coaches.  I was super excited before even flying out because I knew I would be training at Crossfit Rubicon which is one of those gyms you always see in crossfit news, and I knew I was going to get the chance to meet a crossfitter that inspires me on a regular basis (Jason Sturm).  What I didn't expect was how much I would learn, and how many other amazing individuals I would meet.

Team RWB Funtional Fitness Camp 2013 at Crossfit Rubicon

I flew in Thursday evening, my shy side got the better of me and I hung to the back at dinner.  I found my roommate who had zero functional fitness experience but was a super excited and outgoing former Marine, and we hit it off right away.

Friday we headed over to Crossfit Rubicon for camp to really begin.  We had classes on squatting, goal setting, mobility, and dead lift.  We finished the day with a team workout (which team 4, my team, dominated).  Saturday was overhead progression (press, push press, push jerk, overhead squat), more mobility with Dr. Larson, the clean, and wrapped the day up with the "21 Gun Salute" workout. 

On one hand I would say I didn't learn a lot that was new to me, but on the other hand I learned so much and haven't really stopped thinking about it all.  It was great to train with different coaches and to better understand the how and why's about their gyms.  I got to watch new athletes discover crossfit, I got to see people without limbs adapt and overcome, I got to see veterans come together and cheer on every last individual through their workouts.

Dale and Derick were the coaches I primarily worked with.  They challenged me, a lot (and yes, I was listening even if it didn't seem like it).  I realized it's been a long time since I focused on the basics.  I can squat and I can clean, but what happens if I move my feet in an inch? or pull myself 2 degrees further over the bar?  I realized that my technique has gotten sloppy and it's no one's fault but my own.  I have learned to just survive my workouts, but not to be conscious or to push myself through them. I've just been going through the motions.  I've been stuck on my plateau for a while, and now I see why.

I am renewed.  I have changed my training schedule to include time for warm ups, mobility, technique, and my wod.  I owe it to myself. I realized that I need to be more present and conscious both in the gym and in my life, and to keep attacking.

So thank you to Team RWB for giving me this opportunity.  Thank you to all the coaches for giving your time and energy to teach. Thank you to all the friends I made, you remind me why being around other veterans is important, and that we all have garbage to over come, I'm not alone in that.

Yes!

In 27 days I am doing a metric century (100km or 62 miles).  Couple weeks ago I did a 35 mile ride that ended in a horrid experience of bonking and really made me question my ability to do the up coming century.

Today all that doubt was cleared up. I'd been having quite a bit of pain in my hand and shoulder (on my injured side).  Everyone kept telling me it was part of getting use to being on a road bike.  My friend Jillian had recently posted in her blog about bike fit and pain.  So I followed her lead and took my bike in to the shop.  The mechanic and I chatted, I sat on my bike, we tried a new stem extension, and chatted some more.  We made a plan for getting my bike adjusted.  As the mechanic sat on my bike he finally said something was wrong with my set up, but he couldn't put a finger on it.  He looked and looked, and finally realized that my handlebars and the gear/brake mechanism had been installed wrong so my handlebars and hoods were in a catiwampus angle.  He fixed that.

Today I road 40 mile (longest ride to date!) and NO pain!!!  On top of the good news of no pain I felt so much more stable on my bike, especially as I got going fast.  I also nailed my nutrition and hydration.  Today gave me the confidence that I am completely capable of doing a 62 mile ride in a few weeks.  I also finally had one of those rides that reminded me of being a kid on my bike.  It was fun and freeing!  I'm tired, but I feel fabulous and I am so freaking proud of myself at this moment for continuing to push myself to train and to get so far out of my comfort zone.

Looking forward to my next ride already!

The Rims - Getting close to home

Lessons in bonking and sunscreen

Today I learned: Don't bonk and Do wear sunscreen

I ventured out for what is my longest ride to date.  My mission was to get a good long training ride in preparation for my upcoming metric century.  I didn't care so much what the mileage was, but more that I spent 3 hours in the saddle with pedals turning. And I accomplished that over the course of 35 miles.

I've never done endurance sports til now, so it's interesting to have so much time alone in my head.  3 hours of riding is a very different beast then 15 minutes of Crossfit (and I love them both for that).  I've gotten a little frustrated with myself my last few rides, so I decided I needed a different mind set for this one, than something dawned on me.  I've spent many hours on a bike in the course of my life. But only in the last couple months have I been on a road bike.  Maybe I'm the only one that feels this way, but too me I feel like I am learning to ride all over again.  The bike responds to differently (and more dramatically) than a mountain bike and that has been intimidating.  So today instead of watching speed, cadence, and distance I road what felt safe and comfortable and practice things like getting my water bottle and looking back to check traffic.  I didn't push myself to go fast, I just let myself get cozy with my bike. It was the ride I've needed for awhile, and the mentality I need to maintain for a while longer while I keep learning.

I love riding if only so I can justify snacking on these delicious vanilla Honey Stinger waffles.

Unfortunately I shorted myself on fuel (snacks) and bonked in the last few miles before the house.  I made it home, but I thought I was going to be sick when I got home.  That was icky and no fun.  But a banana, gatorade, protein shake, and a nap and I'm feeling much better.

Endurance is a whole new beast, and I will not let it intimidate me.  I just need more snacks and some sunblock, then the world is mine!