Support Crews and Birthdays

I haven't gotten a lot of workouts in the last week or so, but I've been distracted with birthday celebrations and trying to be an awesome support crew.

This weekend featured E's first "big day," the first of two practice event days for Rev3 Cedar Point.  It was a heck of a big day - you can read about it at his blog here.  I was official support-crew-lap-counter-bike-hydration-run-hydration-nutritionist.  We spent a lot of Friday gearing up for this and Saturday was the day itself - Sunday we got a much-deserved rest day!

My birthday was last Thursday, and it was filled with great new gear.  E got me a new tri kit, one I tried on several weeks ago that I absolutely fell in love with.  I have a Zoot kit currently, but I've never been thrilled with the way it fit.  Then I tried on the Louis Garneau Pro Top and Pro Shorts.  I felt fast and skinny and ready to kick some triathlon butt!  Amazing how clothes can make you feel!  I can't wait to wear them in the HammerHead Hot Olympic.  Also - I totally love the pinstripe accents.

Sunday I went birthday shopping and decided to treat myself to something I've wanted for a long time:  Lululemon running shorts.  I've always heard great things about their run shorts, and after trying on several pairs, I settled on the Speed Short. They felt awesome and I can't wait to take them on their first run tonight! Look for a review coming soon!

So that's just a little catch up on where I'm at.  I'm close to settling on a marathon training plan - I'm thinking Hal Higdon, one of his intermediate plans.  Hopefully this week I can settle back into a regular training routine!

Happy training!

Wednesday Random

- E and I went for a swim at the UNF pool last night.  Got in 20 laps straight (ok, it's only 1000 meters, but yay!) and a couple laps with my super awesome new paddles (more on those later).  We were however, rudely interrupted by the pool being evacuated due to *ahem* a "floater."  Reasons not to train when there are a lot of little kid swim lessons going on.  We made up for it by finishing the evening out with a couple of miles on the track.

- Last week, I decided on compression recovery tights (these longer rides really encouraged me to move that process along.  I chose the Skins RY400 Women's Recovery Long Tight.  E was smart and recommended we look on Ebay, and sure enough we found them new for $40 less than list price!  I can't wait for them to come in!

- On an entirely un-training related note, I'm obsessed with the VW Darkside contest.  I'll do anything for a free tshirt.

- I'm digging in for marathon training.  Yesterday, I made a free Runner's World SmartCoach plan, just to see what it looked like.  A friend of mine used it to run the Buffalo Marathon earlier this year, and I"m intrigued.  My goal for this marathon is to break five hours (hopefully lower than that but I'm starting my goals low) and this plan has me finishing in 4:28, which I would be pretty stoked about.  It would also start next week, easy, which would allow me to focus on tri training through September, and then really focus on marathon training. Last year was sort of a last minute decision to do the full marathon rather than the half, so I'm digging the idea of being able to focus on the training for the next 27 weeks.

- Additionally, turns out one of our local bike shops has the Cannondale Slice that I'm so enamored with.  It's a ways out before I have enough saved up for a bike, but man it was pretty to ogle it.

That's all for now!  Hope everyone is having a fabulous week!

Finding Crow

Clearly, this is not me.  Source

Isn't it interesting how a group of crows is called a "murder"?  I've always found animal group names interesting.    My topic however,  has nothing to do with the bird and everything to do with the yoga pose. You see, I discovered crow at a local studio that I attend now and again about a year ago.  I was utterly mystified the first time I saw it.  The coordination and logistics that were required to achieve this pose were beyond me.  I just stared, trying to work out how to make it work.  Needless to say, I didn't even approach this pose that day.  It bugged me though.  I just couldn't figure out how to do it.  I asked a yoga teacher friend to demonstrate, and she did, and I still couldn't quite manage it.

Six months ago or so, while doing a class on YogaGlo, the instructor flowed into crow, and suddenly, I got it!  I even managed to get myself there for a couple of seconds.  Success!  I still couldn't articulate what I was doing should I have to explain it, but I was stoked.  Since my yoga practice ebbs and flows, I didn't get to practice it nearly as much as I should have to be able to achieve, though every time it gets a little easier.  Especially if I have a block to catch my forehead, just in case.  Last night, trying out a new at-home yoga DVD, I revisited crow in a way I haven't in a long time, and it reminded me how much I long to fly.  And also, how helpful a block would have been so I didn't bite it when I leaned too far forward.

All of this is a really long way to say that crow is a bit of a metaphor for me in all areas of my life, but especially when it comes to triathlon and running.  That attempt, over and over, to find that sweet spot.  Even though a yoga pose might be "achieved" when you finally reach it, you've never really conquered it - there is always room to improve.  My second year in triathlon has driven that point home to me, that for every milestone I hit, there is another yet ahead, even sweeter to achieve than the last.  Triathlon and fitness is a journey that I am really loving.  I look forward to getting better, stronger, faster.

And oh yeah....I SIGNED UP FOR THE DISNEY MARATHON.  Disney World, here I come!