On September 19, 2011,
in I sometimes wonder what it must be like to coach me. Am I high maintenance, low maintenance, do I follow directions better or worse than others? Is there head-shaking with deep sighs when my emails and workout notes are read?
I got some high praise from Coach this weekend for my “listening skills” owing to perhaps my first ever truly laid back relaxed aerobic run on Saturday. So I was strutting around feeling pretty darn good about that. (I’ve only been working with Coach Jim for 2-1/2 years so you can’t expect to get this stuff right overnight.)
Then today was a short brick – a bit of a ride, bit of a run. The ride was uneventful, albeit a bit dull without the posse from yesterday. On the run I found a nice spring in my step and my heart rate climbed pretty quickly into upper tempo (or beyond?) I was enjoying pushing things a bit, feelin’ mighty fine…..until about oh….3.8 miles into my 4.0 mile run when RELAXED AND AEROBIC AT ALL TIMES flashed in my head like a neon Las Vegas sign. Somehow I had forgotten that part, conveniently, until nearly done. It is a little embarrassing, at my age, to have difficulty following simple directions especially when I know Coach Jim is just trying to save me from myself.
So much for my good listener award.
Pardon the little triathlon departure, but I wanted to take a moment to congratulate Kurt Weidner and Vaughan Twigger for going 1-2 at the WNBF Pro Universe Show in New York this weekend (read more here). Kurt (left) won the overall just edging out Vaughan (right). This is a fitting reward for these two natural bodybuilders who train together at Blacksburg Health and Fitness at the Weight Club (where I work out too). I train with Kurt weekly and can bear witness to his work ethic, discipline, positive attitude, knowledge and life balance that allows him to be in this sport for the long haul and to be so successful. The same is true of Vaughan. These two are so humble and I think very few people at our gym even know what impressive bodybuilding resumes they have. They aren’t walking around in showy muscle shirts and shorts and they don’t talk about what they are doing. They just work smart, work hard, and are patient with their development.
Kurt’s athletic background includes soccer, track, and hockey and he has a master’s degree in economics. He’s the definition of the lifelong learner that we, as educators, want students to become. He is constantly adding to his knowledge of strength training, nutrition, rehab, and recovery. Then he shares it liberally as a trainer and bodybuilding coach.
I’ve been working with Kurt since spring and he’s taught me a lot about how to manage strength training… Read the rest
While June was a busy month for racing, July and early August are reserved for a solid training block to get ready for the second half of race season. I’m averaging about 12 workout sessions a week for swim, bike, run, and strength training. That translates to roughly two-a-day workouts six days a week and one day off. Sessions of course vary in intensity, duration, and purpose. Coach Jim and Kurt keep things fun and interesting (busy brain = happy me) and it is very rare that I don’t look forward to a workout. I try to knock out both workouts one after the other early in the morning to push my endurance and to keep the day clear.
I know I’m gaining strength and confidence and ideally that will translate to upcoming races August 13, 14, and 20. The tendonitis is all but gone thanks to a mix of ice, acupuncture, massage, and strengthening, and so is the bit of pre-run anxiety I had been experiencing because of it. It feels great!
I wrote about tackling some daunting (for me) swim intervals recently. This week were two notable challenges on the bike and the run. On Tuesday Coach Jim made had me do a time trial through our valley and up the big hill into town. The only time I could fit this in was mid-day when the boys were at camp and it was 91 degrees out. I often laugh thinking to myself that one… Read the rest
I keep a 3-ring binder with all my training plans from Coach Jim — one from every single week since I started almost two years ago (we use Training Peaks). Today I added a new stack to the archive and as I flipped back through, I was reminded of the power of consistent training. I’ve come along way from the days of a big-deal “8-minute continuous swim” my first summer!
There are a lot of training variables beyond our locus of control, so it’s nice that consistency and effort are very much up to us. I’m not the fastest or strongest, but I will lay claim to being consistently consistent (!?) and hard working.
As I browsed through the notebook, it dawned on me that the flipside, the negative to having this OCD need for consistency is a reluctance to slow down, take unscheduled recovery if needed, and to back off at the sign of injury.
So I could boast about how few workouts I have missed over the last two years, but it only reminds me of the school kids who are going after a perfect attendance record and show up regardless of flu, strep, bleeding from the eyeballs, whatever. Who does that serve and what does that prove?
Yes, consistency is an important part of balanced, healthy training. But so is backing off… Read the rest
I keep a 3-ring binder with all my training plans from Coach Jim — one from every single week since I started almost two years ago (we use Training Peaks). Today I added a new stack to the archive and as I flipped back through, I was reminded of the power of consistent training. I’ve come along way from the days of a big-deal “8-minute continuous swim” my first summer!
There are a lot of training variables beyond our locus of control, so it’s nice that consistency and effort are very much up to us. I’m not the fastest or strongest, but I will lay claim to being consistently consistent (!?) and hard working.
As I browsed through the notebook, it dawned on me that the flipside, the negative to having this OCD need for consistency is a reluctance to slow down, take unscheduled recovery if needed, and to back off at the sign of injury.
So I could boast about how few workouts I have missed over the last two years, but it only reminds me of the school kids who are going after a perfect attendance record and show up regardless of flu, strep, bleeding from the eyeballs, whatever. Who does that serve and what does that prove?
Yes, consistency is an important part of balanced, healthy training. But so is backing off… Read the rest
I started to write a training update and it bored even me. So here it is in random stream-of-consciousness style. I was shooting for ten, but it got way too long, and you know…boring.
1. I miss the 4 swims a week I did during my winter swim block/injury timeout but there are only so many days in the week and hours in the day. I’m down to 2 or maybe 3 swims a week and it feels like an eternity between. Our outdoor pool opens in 2 weeks and I’ll go on summer work schedule so the frequency will go back up. PLUS, just today I just got the waterproof iPod shuffle from H20 Friendly!!! Just waiting on the waterproof earbuds to come and I’ll be back to groovin’ in the pool. My old waterproof system finally gave out so I’ve been tuneless for a while.
2. Gone are the days when I can ignore (nearly) every pain and strain. Given my ridiculous injury history, and my over-40-ness, anything from the knees down gets TWO red flags. Thanks to my triathlete/physical therapist friend TJ for seeing me today and reassuring me that I can work through my most current nagging issue. (Bummed to find out my orthopedic doc is moving out of state….Now I’ll have to stay healthy!)
I started to write a training update and it bored even me. So here it is in random stream-of-consciousness style. I was shooting for ten, but it got way too long, and you know…boring.
1. I miss the 4 swims a week I did during my winter swim block/injury timeout but there are only so many days in the week and hours in the day. I’m down to 2 or maybe 3 swims a week and it feels like an eternity between. Our outdoor pool opens in 2 weeks and I’ll go on summer work schedule so the frequency will go back up. PLUS, just today I just got the waterproof iPod shuffle from H20 Friendly!!! Just waiting on the waterproof earbuds to come and I’ll be back to groovin’ in the pool. My old waterproof system finally gave out so I’ve been tuneless for a while.
2. Gone are the days when I can ignore (nearly) every pain and strain. Given my ridiculous injury history, and my over-40-ness, anything from the knees down gets TWO red flags. Thanks to my triathlete/physical therapist friend TJ for seeing me today and reassuring me that I can work through my most current nagging issue. (Bummed to find out my orthopedic doc is moving out of state….Now I’ll have to stay healthy!)
This weekend could not have gone much better, both in terms of the race and fun times away with the fam. I am still flying high (even as I unpack, do laundry, and make a grocery list….Mother’s Day or not!)
This is my race report, written more for personal reflection and to learn from the race than anything so if it seems really ME oriented that’s because of the purpose for which it is written.
I finished as the 4th female overall (out of 109) and I shaved a minute off my time from last year, with slight improvements on the bike and run and a significant improvement on the swim, knocking 49s off my 2010 time. (I would have been 54th out of 245 men – I like to see how I compare to the boys!) [full results] After just about 10 weeks back in training, I’m beyond pleased.
The BIG win though, is that I felt positive, happy, healthy, and strong from start to finish.
This was a great confidence boost for me as I carried doubts into this race after the winter injury training interruption. Would I still have “it”? Were last year’s race results just an anomaly? Was I physically healthy and mentally strong? I told myself (and others) this was just an early-season benchmark and would not make or break us. But I am certainly grateful that it worked out, and I am… Read the rest
This weekend could not have gone much better, both in terms of the race and fun times away with the fam. I am still flying high (even as I unpack, do laundry, and make a grocery list….Mother’s Day or not!)
This is my race report, written more for personal reflection and to learn from the race than anything so if it seems really ME oriented that’s because of the purpose for which it is written.
I finished as the 4th female overall (out of 109) and I shaved a minute off my time from last year, with slight improvements on the bike and run and a significant improvement on the swim, knocking 49s off my 2010 time. (I would have been 54th out of 245 men – I like to see how I compare to the boys!) [full results] After just about 10 weeks back in training, I’m beyond pleased.
The BIG win though, is that I felt positive, happy, healthy, and strong from start to finish.
This was a great confidence boost for me as I carried doubts into this race after the winter injury training interruption. Would I still have “it”? Were last year’s race results just an anomaly? Was I physically healthy and mentally strong? I told myself (and others) this was just an early-season benchmark and would not make or break us. But I am certainly grateful that it worked out, and I am… Read the rest
Blurry pic, but it’s all I got!
Friday was my last workout with my trainer, Jake Parks, at the Weight Club. I worked with him 3-4x a week for three years and he was instrumental in helping me to discover the athlete that lurked within.
Jake is leaving to take a job starting up a new weight-loss focused training program at the Reston Hospital Center in Northern Virginia. As much as I will miss him (immeasurably), he is the perfect person for the new position and he has the potential to change countless lives.
Jake is a standout among trainers and is proof of the significant impact a caring, creative, skilled, and motivating trainer can have. He has a loyal group of long-term clients who have experienced many changes and accomplishments due in large part to his direction.
He sees limitless potential in everyone. He believed in me and showed me I could believe in myself. He is perhaps THE person most responsible for bringing about wholesale change in my life. Without him, my life story would not include footnotes of Boston-qualifying marathons, race wins, triathlons, bench press PRs, and overcoming injury. But what is more difficult to quantify is the happiness, purpose, and fulfillment he helped restore in me.
I’ve recounted this story many times, but it’s a significant one. When I walked into the gym three years ago, Jake didn’t write me off as a middle-aged, out-of-shape,… Read the rest
