Right. So it’s been a while since I’ve updated. It’s also been a while since I have trained. My two weeks “off” for the holidays turned into four. This was mostly due to my health being very poor. Not my physical health, my mental health. Usually I can work through one of my “downs” quickly and with the help of exercise. However, with the weather being utterly miserable, my schedule being out of wack, and my motivation being at zero, I just couldn’t do it. I could barely get myself out of bed, let alone to the pool for a swim or to the gym for a run on the treadmill. It felt terrible and I am so glad that it has now passed. In fact, right now I am riding high after a great run this morning. It is currently a balmy -2C outside. It’s like springtime! We had brutal temperatures between -20 and -40 for several weeks in a row. So this is the equivalent of being in Cuba!

I have been thinking about my overall health lately. I find it really funny that just as I had given myself permissed, and asked it from my coach, to take a hiatus from training without any pressure, I felt like I missed it and wanted to get back into it. So here I am on a big up-swing and making goals for myself while doing good things for my brain chemistry like eating lots of Udo’s oil and taking Vitamin D supplements. I think that this week will be my first official week back from my hiatus from training and this blog.

I feel like I need a better way to keep track of my training. My coach gives me my workouts, but I feel like I should track how much sleep I’m getting, what I’m eating, and how my workouts felt. I signed up for Beginner Triathlete’s Training Log things, but it’s not very user-friendly. I mean, I’m getting the hang of it, but it’s not great, and I wish that I could put it into this website. Maybe I’ll see if there isn’t something better, even though I paid for this already.

Another facet of my life that I would like to work on is my nutrition. As a vegan, I am generally very careful  about what I put in my body. However, for the past few months I have developed some very bad habits, which are very unusual for me. Instead of making a “real” meal, I have been relying on processed foods a lot (ie. veggie dogs are my favorite food right now). I eat potatoes a lot and lunch generally consists of a Clif Bar, some toast, and an apple. This is not good and so unlike me! However, I have been thinking that maybe this is just the kick in the pants that I need to start transitioning to a raw food diet. I have essentially decided that I will not be 100% raw.

There are several reasons for my decision to not be 100%. It is essentially impossible here in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, where our food in the winter comes from very far away. I have been looking at books and recipes and we just don’t have access to a lot of things that other people do. Coconuts are rare here! I have heard that you can find a “young” coconut, but I have yet to find one on my own. Also, there are certain things I’m not willing to do, like not go to restaurants or see friends in that social setting. Food is social, absolutely, and I will not compromise my veganism, but it is just way too hard not to eat out with friends. Also, I love crunchy things like toast. Toast is probably my biggest complaint about raw food. I know that bread is generally not good for one’s body, but I think that my body might be the opposite. My body LOVES carbohydrates! If I don’t have enough carbs in my diet, I start to feel all wonky and devoid of energy.

That being said, I would like to be 50 to 75% raw to start with. I’m hoping this transition will be done by February. I started tonight with having an awesome salad with Red Star nutritional yeast, Udo’s oil, a homemade tahini dressing, some baby bok choy and a mix of greens, tomatoes, and some hemp seeds. It was fantastically delicious and super filling! It was quite large as well. This week I’m going to do some grocery shopping and see if I can stock my fridge with some awesome raw stuff. I’m going to make a really great raw chilli that I learned from one of my former raw food potluck friends. It is really tasty and is super easy to make. I figure if I can incorporate a few new raw recipes into my life a little bit at a time, it will be fairly easy to make this transition. While veggie dogs will likely still have a place in my life (15 grams of protein in ONE!), they will not be such a staple.

Here is my training log for today.

For the past several weeks, I have been happily in untraining mode. I have been drinking beer and wine without worrying about calories or whether I have to get up early the next day. I have been generally eating whatever I feel like, including french fries, potato chips, and soy ice cream. My bikes and runs have been mellow and I didn’t even keep track of them! I have no idea how far I ran or biked and I often didn’t even know how long they took. I just went and enjoyed. It was great. Yoga practice was frequent as was walking the dog. It was lovely.

This morning, though, was the beginning of my training plan for Ironman Part Deux. It is less than 9 months away and we all know that a lot can happen in nine months! I am currently easing myself back into training – 5 workouts a week with 2 days off. That is pretty sweet to me. I still get some time to myself and with my puppy. It’s for 6 weeks that I do that. 6 weeks after that is up to 7 times a week, according to my coach’s Macrocycle schedule. Right now I’m increasing my distance and then I’ll be increasing intensity of the workouts. I have my schedule until Christmas, so I can plan everything around that.

I have decided this time to do things a little bit differently: I’m combining some club workouts with my own schedule. I am going to swim with the Saskatoon Tri Club on Fridays for something different. On Tuesdays, starting in November, I’m going to do a coached spin class for bikers. On Thursdays, I’m doing an advanced yoga class. In between those, I’ll be doing my own coached program set up by my coach and buddy, Dan.

This morning’s 6km run wasn’t too bad, but my IT band and knee were sore again. As was my right ankle. I think I need new shoes in addition to a massage. So I’m planning to get both this week. I am only running once a week right now, which is good. I got into an ice-cold shower right after the run and did some yoga after that, which helped a bit, but on my bike commute to work, I could feel the elastic bands in my knee feeling a bit tighter than I would like. I have no idea what the ankle bit is about. I think it’s protesting because it wants new shoes.

This week was my first week with my coach’s training schedule and me being ready and raring to go! My coach and I had a good chat last weekend about a schedule, my goals, and how I’m going to achieve it all. We talked about the burnout the I always feel around the beginning of August (although last year it was in June) because I train too hard in January and February. This year is going to be different… and so far it is!

My training schedule seems so free right now. I mean, I don’t even have a workout to do on Sunday. So I’m going to go cross-country skiing! I FEEL SO FREE!!! It just feels so good to get all of my workouts done in the week, as opposed to skipping workouts and planning to skip workouts. I really enjoy the sense of accomplishment I get from doing everything I’m “supposed to.”

Also, this week I have discovered the beauty of a training buddy. My coworker and friend J. and I ran on Tuesday and this morning. It is so much easier to get up at 5am when I know that someone else is going to be there waiting for me at the doors. J. is a great training buddy because she is a positive person, like myself, and seems to have an endless amount of positive energy to give as we pass the halfway point of our workout. She has exercise-induced asthma, which I am learning a lot about, and I feel a little bit guilty about running along breathing heavily, but not laboured, as she is huffing air through what apparently feels like a tiny straw. However, she assures me that she is fine and “just needs a minute.” My training intensity is a little bit higher than hers right now, but this week she cheered me on through my session of intense intervals. It was nice to have a cheerleader. )

Another part of training that I have thoroughly enjoyed this week is the City of Saskatoon Leisure Pass. I get to go to all of the leisure centres in Saskatoon for the low price of $37/month for 7 months! That will take me to the end of summer and this week I’ve used it enough to be worth my while. I get a strange sense of satisfaction when I scan my card in and it “dings!” me through. I am very proud of myself and my leisure card.

I’m really getting into my training groove this week and it feels great! Next season is going to be awesome and hopefully I don’t burn out before my peak races. Things are really coming together right now and I can’t help but think about what it would be like to train for Ironman knowing what I know right now. Maybe I’ll give myself another year to think about it. )

After a bout of insomnia last night, I decided to use my lack of sleep and tiredness to get in a good swim this morning. A nice 2000m in 1:15, but I’m not really worried about time right now. I’m focusing on form and just getting back into the pool. It feels pretty good and I’m committed to working on my swim technique right now and my arm strength. I am hoping to get in 3 swim workouts this week, 3 runs and at least one bike workout (2 would be nice).

Yesterday I went for a 35-minute x-country ski, which is a lot considering it was pretty cold. We could have went longer, but my eye lashes were sticking together, so tea was had afterwards. Getting outside in this weather is challenging, at best. However, I’m going to keep getting outside a bit and running on the treadmill or on the track.

Last week I was out of town for most of the week at a very intense training workshop for work. This left me less than motivated to do one workout a day, let alone the two that I was hoping for. So I ran twice on the treadmill for 35 minutes each time and got in a good 4km while watching Canada AM. Treadmills are not my favorite things, but I can sure get my heart-rate up on them. I just dislike feeling like a hamster in a cage. Preferably while I’m running, I’m also seeing beautiful trees, some birds, other people, and feeling the wind. None of that happens while running on a treadmill. However, it’s what has to happen occasionally in the dead of winter in Saskatchewan.

This week will be less busy for work and I hope to get in all of my workouts. I guess we’ll see how it goes.

This week was my first week transitioning back into training. I would say it was pretty successful. I only missed two workouts, which is pretty good considering I gave myself a pretty difficult schedule.

On Tuesday I got “back in the saddle” and rode my trainer for 45 minutes on Sky, my trusty road bike. This was the first time I’ve rode her since Ironman. She still has the IM stickers on it and I had to re-set the computer because it still had 8:17:34 on her time tracking. It was a good 45 minutes on the trainer, with the help of my new cordless phone that I got for Christmas that I used with my headset and some good friends to talk to while trying not to count down every second on the trainer. After that, I did a small amount of arm strength exercises and my first core strength workout also since training for Ironman.

I have to say that the past few months have been great, not worrying about training, and just taking it easy. However, I have been itching to get back into it. This week was a really great week to get back on the wagon.

On Tuesday and Friday I got into the pool for the first time in months as well. Tuesday I did a solid 1500m swim at a pretty easy pace. On Friday, I did 45 minutes of also fairly easy swimming, but didn’t keep track of my distance. It was probably around 1000m.

I won the CFCR members draw, which was a one-month membership to the YMCA. I’m definitely going to take advantage of the free pool use for the next few months, that’s for sure.

This morning I went for a good 40 minute run along the river. I struggled quite a bit with my breathing, but I figure it is probably because my body isn’t used to so many different types of exercise. I did some yoga afterwards and now I feel great! There really is nothing like a good yoga session after a run. Yoga is now imperative to my training and will continue to play a big role as I continue to train.

Next week will be very different because I am out of town the whole time. So I probably won’t do as much, but it’ll be a nice resting week with a little bit of running and cycling. Soon enough, I hope to create my plan for the next few months leading into my 6th racing season.

Today I did some holiday baking and knew that I had to get out into the winter wonderland that I live in. So when I got my first reminder about Saskatoon’s 30th Marathon, I was reminded that I am going to do my first running race since I was in Junior High School. I have completed an Ironman, two half Ironmans, numerous other triathlons and duathlons, but I have never ran a long-distance running race. I decided after Ironman that 2008 was going to be my year to do that. My co-worker and I made a pact to do it train and inspire each other for this.

So I went out today and got in a good 40-minute run. I have to admit, though, that my feet weren’t necessarily happy about it. My form started slipping near the end and my back wasn’t as straight as it could have been and my pelvis was “tipping.” So my ankle protested with a slight ache that I took note of right away. I walked for a bit and stretched my ankles a bit. I was near the end of my run, but I wanted to see if fixing my form would quiet the ache and it did. So I ran the rest of the way home, focusing on my form and cooling down.

I have to say that I am very anxious to get back into the full swing of training, but I’m not quite sure that my body feels the same way my mind does. Easing back into it is the best way, but I’m just so excited about it. Luckily, I’m playing lots of guitar, practicing yoga, and developing my website. So I have lots of distractions, but I’m definitely feeling the itch.

So I put up a countdown on this page to remind me of how much time I have to train for the half marathon. A good plan is what I need. I’ll work on that to curb the itch of training.

The other day I was massaging my feet and realized that they haven’t hurt in a couple of weeks. I felt the familiar pang to go running, but I know better than that. So I thought about what I could possibly do to get back into exercising. Honestly, I have little desire to get on my road bike. I have not ridden it since Ironman and I’m sure that she’s kind of mad at me, but I just can’t do it yet. I thought about maybe going to a gym and trying out an elliptical machine, but I generally hate both the gym AND elliptical machines. Suddenly, it came to me… WALKING! Walking is a lower-impact form of running! I deemed myself brilliant at that moment and decided that I was going to get out into the cool, crisp, pre-winter air and go walking in the morning.

So this morning was my first walk and it felt really great. A friend was supposed to come with me, but after waiting for 10 minutes I decided to just go on my own. I have missed running along the river and just running in general. It felt so good to get outside. Here was my route:

For the past couple of weeks I have had a pretty nasty cold. My ear has gotten infected and it is taking quite a while to get better. It is because of this that I’m not in the pool. Pools + ear infections = bad news for me.

However, I hope to get back in the pool soon enough and with this walking stuff, I’m pretty excited to get back into training mode. That’s the beauty of taking time off – it really makes you want to get back into it. I am currently making goals for next season and planning out my off-season from January to April. I’m even starting to itch to get on the trainer, but I’m going to purchase some training DVDs so that I don’t get super bored right away. There’s plenty of time to get on the trainer… no need to rush it.

I have to admit that being out of the training routine has made me a bit antsy. I always have enough activities and interests to fill my time, but I am really missing getting back into my routine.

My feet are healing nicely, which may in part due to the calcium supplements that my naturopath recommended (side note: liquid calcium tastes yucky!). I think I am going to take most of November off from running, but I’m going to get back into swimming on Friday. I’m going to swim with the Masters’ swim club and I might join a gym for a couple of months to see how it goes. However, I’m not going to train so much as just get back into the swing of things slowly. I have forgotten what it feels like to workout just for the sake of my own mental and physical well-being. Ironman really did a number on me!

At the same time, I’m still doing yoga and it is AWESOME! I am loving it so much. I’m sure that it has helped with the healing process as well.