Flipping Out

I arrived on deck at the pool today and looked over our workout. Part way down the board we had 4 x 150 with flip turns (?). Yup, complete with the question mark at the end. I guess this was our chance to try out flip turns.
Apparently all of those line on the bottom of the pool mean something. Who knew? In order to execute a flip turn I was told to:

• Take my final breath just as I was at the T on the pool floor.
• When I am almost at the wall, execute a half somersault.
• Keep your eyes open, otherwise you will get disoriented.
  
• Breathe out your nose.
• Aim for a tight tuck, and push off the wall, at the cross on the wall, with your feet.

Sounds pretty easy, eh? I did wind up getting disoriented on the first few flips and one time almost wound up going underneath the rope and landing in the lane next to me. But after trying it out more and more I started to get the hang of it. I'll definitely keep practicing at swim club from now on.

The first few flips also really affected my breathing initially. I guess it totally threw me for a loop because I started holding my breath on my stroke, and doing a quick exhale/inhale when I was supposed to be coming up for air. It didn't exactly help with the dizziness from doing the flip turn! After executing a few flip turns I was able to calm down and get back to my regular breathing pattern. Success!
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When lunch time came around today it was time to get out for a run. A Chinook blew through town and it was a glorious 6C (43F) out, and I figured for sure it was time to bust out the capris for my run. It was still pretty windy out, but not nearly as windy as yesterday, and the wind wasn't nearly as cold. Capris were exactly the right choice. When I started running I felt so...out of shape...and fat... It felt like such a struggle. And yesterday felt so good! I'm guessing my legs are still a bit tired from the marathon and they were probably a bit tired from yesterday's run. Once I was about 2 miles in things started to click and the rest of the run felt awesome. I even ran into Making Waves out there! 5 miles done, and at a half decent clip, especially for an easy paced run!

A Blustery Day

Today was my first run downtown around the river in quite some time. The last time I was running around the river it was still reasonably warm outside and the river was still running. Then the snow and cold temperatures arrived and I haven't been down there since. It was quite a sight to see the river frozen and covered in snow. I checked the weather before heading out and it was hovering around 0C (32F) and it was clear and sunny out. At first I thought I may have brought clothes that would make me feel overdressed. I left my hat in my office but did go back to get my gloves. As I headed out I realized that it was incredibly windy out. Not only was it windy, but that wind was cold..! I opted to start my run into the wind and it felt like I was running through sludge. And did I mention the wind was cold..? As I crossed the bridge over the river and turned around things improved. Now it was warm, and my running felt great! Just over 3 miles done around the river...and it actually felt pretty good. Tomorrow I have 3 to 5 miles on tap and *knock on wood* the weather is supposed to be a bit warmer!

Love at First Sit?

Swimming this morning was fantastic. My instructor told me to keep my head down in the water more, which raises my bum up higher and makes swimming a whole lot easier. We did 10 x 100 m intervals, with the odd ones being faster than the even ones. I pushed those sprints hard and it felt fantastic. And hey, one of my Bow spin class teammates is also in my swim class!

Speaking of spin class, Angie kicked our behinds tonight. We did plenty of high cadence single leg drills (love those!), some good endurance stuff, and some strength drills as well. She really worked our tails off, and I felt like I really worked hard. The tweaks to my bike made a huge difference and it felt so comfortable. I spent as much time in the hoods as possible to make sure all was comfy. So far the saddle seams to be pretty comfortable as well. By the end of class my rear was slightly sore, but that was just typical "new saddle" soreness. Anyhow, I would say, so far so good for the new fit and the new seat!

Brr!

I fully admit that I've been a wuss this winter. Despite all my rambling that "there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad gear" I have really not run outside in the cold weather this winter. On Saturday I was so busy running around to and from Bow and doing a few more errands that I put off running until about 4 pm. Even though the temperature was -20C (-4F) it was beautiful and sunny out. I bundled up and headed outdoors with a plan to run about 30 minutes or so. Once I got going...I was still pretty cold. Well, my torso warmed up, but my face, hands and legs were still cold. Once I was about two miles in I felt pretty good though, so I detoured to make my route longer. Maybe I'd aim for five miles? Once I detoured the sun started to go away and wow, it felt colder! All of a sudden I became painfully aware that my rear end was freezing. Absolutely freezing. Maybe I should have worn some long johns underneath my tights... Anyhow, I detoured again and headed towards home just as the sun was setting. Oh well, four miles done in the cold weather...at least I finally made it out there!

On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, I had a rest day today but I felt like I could use a good stretch. I dug the yoga clothes out of the closet and went to hot yoga after work today. I was a little worried I wasn't going to make it since I had this nagging headache/weird dizziness feeling happening this afternoon. Luckily a little Advil helped to alleviate the situation though. Class was busy and we had a new-to-me instructor who was pretty cool. I could tell that I was out of practice, but I definitely started to loosen up as the class went on. I found some of the poses challenging, but after I was done I was glad I had gone. Tomorrow...swimming and spin class!

Party Games

I gave my bike a little TLC on Saturday morning. One of my teammates put together a video on how to clean your chain and cassette inspired me to clean my ride up. After that I loaded my bike in the car and went down to Bow to look for a new seat and some aerobars. Specialized has this gel pad thing that you can sit on to measure your sit bones. Sit on the gel pad, raise your feet up, wait 20 seconds and see where your sit bones made an indentation. From there we determined that I would need at 155 width saddle...the widest saddle Specialized makes. Hmmm, so I have wide sit bones...does that mean I have good child bearing hips..?? Haha! I wound up getting a Specialized Ariel saddle since it is supposed to be a good combination of performance and comfort. If it doesn't work out I will be able to return it though.From there it was on to the aerobars. I went for the Jammer GT from Profile Design. I figured I'd feel pretty stable with this shape, plus the width is adjustable so I can play around with it to get it comfortable.
The guys at Bow put my new accessories on for me, but then I still had the matter of the bike fit.

Saturday night was our team Christmas party. Coach's husband could help me out with my bike fit, so she told me to bring my bike with me to the party. It could be kind of like a party game! He took the original measurements for my bike, then set me up on a wind trainer to check angles. He wound up lowering my seat height, sliding my seat forward slightly, and also made a few tweaks to the aerobars. Once I start riding outside again I may find I need a few more tweaks to the bars. But I guess you don't really get a feel for it on a trainer. The interesting thing is, my seat was lowered to the exact same height from my original fitting. Apparently the guy who tweaked my bike after I got my pedals put on was wrong... I did a short 37 minute ride on the trainer today and it felt pretty good. Hopefully it will be just as comfortable at spin class on Tuesday night!

The party was a lot of fun. I had a good time getting to know some more of my teammates. I got a few good ideas for bike routes around here from a teammate. Coach also put together a video of the team at various races last year...Great White North, Ironman Canada... It has gotten me so excited for this year! Can't wait!

A Churn in the Washing Machine

Today was quite possibly the most fun I've had at the pool to date. We were to warm up for 5 to 10 minutes with our choice of stroke, then we'd do a 750 m "open water" swim. We combined two lanes to swim and everyone took off in a mass start to swim round and round. I let the fast kids take off first then I swum hard. The rush of adrenalin as I pushed off of the wall was incredible! Bubbles and churning water were everywhere and I just went for it. I kept up for maybe a loop and then I eased back a bit or else it was going to be tough to finish up the full 750 m at the pace I was going at. I was a firm middle of the packer. I couldn't quite keep up to the fast kids (in fact they lapped me), but I lapped a good number of people too. I even got knocked about a bit, but nothing too bad! While I don't think I'm quite ready to get in the lane and keep up with the fast folks, I think I need to push my endurance in the pool a bit more so that I can keep a faster pace. It is too easy to just fall into the lull of swimming lap after lap without pushing yourself. After we were done with the open water swim it was back to our lanes for some pyramids. I got into the groove of my front crawl and I felt so comfortable in the water. I think this "open water" swim was the proverbial kick in the pants that I've been looking for with swimming. Something that shows me the greater purpose of swimming as opposed to slogging through laps at the pool just because the swim is the first part of triathlon. I always tell people that it can take awhile to discover that you like running, and I think we may be approaching the point where I like swimming...!

No running to report for the week yet. I was booked for both lunch on Wednesday and today so I missed any chance of getting a run in over the daylight hours. After sitting in the car wash line for almost an hour yesterday evening I just wasn't feeling a run. And well...tonight...it is -18C (0F), so I'm not itching to get out in that. And truthfully, my coach has given me a bit of a buy this week on moving workouts around or skipping them if I'm not quite feeling them since we don't want to risk injury right now. Not to worry...I'm sure we'll get back to our regularly scheduled programming soon!

Easing Back In

Slowly but surely I am easing back into things. Nothing too strenuous though since I'm still in recovery mode from the marathon.

Sunday was an amazing day here in Calgary. It was about 14 deg C (60 deg F) out, the sky was blue and the sun was shining. It was impossible to not want to get out for a run. I dressed up in capris, a short sleeve tech shirt and a long sleeve tech top. I was almost overdressed. I took the run pretty easy. There is still some ice and snow out so there were points where it was slippery and fairly slow going, but it felt so good to be out.

This morning it was back to my triathlon swim clinic. Since I missed most of December and the first two weeks in January I think folks almost thought I was going to bail on the clinic. I almost did bail this morning though! I had a rough sleep and opted to reset my alarm for an extra hour when it went off at 4:30 this morning. As I lay in bed I realized I was actually pretty awake so I hopped out of bed and got my behind to the pool. And I was even the first one in the water! I grabbed the far lane and got to work. There were some new people in the clinic and a lady I didn't recognize got in the lane with me. She was most likely pretty new... A few times I'd be swimming up to the wall and she'd be resting there. Just as I arrived to the wall she'd take off, except I was faster than her and kept having to pass her all the time, hoping I wouldn't get hit by one of her flippers. Then a few times I was swimming behind her as we got into the shallow section. She'd hit the shallow part and just stand up and a couple of times I just about head butted her in the back of her knees! Argh, it was frustrating... On the positive side I got to debut my new sushi suit and I got some good compliments on it!

Tonight was spin class at Bow Cycle. The more I ride the more I realize that I am desperately in need of a new seat and most likely another bike fit. I also need to tack some aerobars on as well so I'll probably try to get that all done in one go. Sometime...

I'm sorry that I'm so behind on my comments on your blogs! I still have over 400 posts on Google Reader left to read, plus Blogger has been blocked at work so I can't read and comment over lunch anymore... :( Sincere thanks to all of you that have commented to congratulate me on my race though. I appreciate all of your support!!

As for the rest of the trip...

...Disney World was awesome. Not only did I get to meet Claire, Cranky, Maddy and Marathon Chris, but I also got to meet Jen. Here are a few more highlights:

• Going to see Cirque du Soleil's La Nouba on Friday night. If you are down in Orlando, I'd highly recommend it!
• Relaxing on the beach at the Polynesian on Saturday. I got to be the official race photographer for Angry and Claire's swim off at the hotel pool. Check it out:
• My mom finished the marathon as well - her first one ever! Congratulations Mom!
• Hanging out at Hollywood Studios with Claire and Angry on Monday where we rode the Aerosmith Rock n Roller Coaster a few times, along with the Tower of Terror.
• Getting in my first post-marathon run on Monday night - in 3 inch heels no less! I was running late for dinner at the California Grill thanks to the Disney Transportation system and I was trying to sprint to make a bus. The run hurt less than I would have figured, considering how sore my legs were. Despite getting to dinner late, it was amazing, and was followed by watching the fireworks at Magic Kingdom.
• Raglan Road on Tuesday night.
• Seeing Mr. Potato Head at the Toy Story Midway Mania ride in Hollywood Studios. This is officially my new favorite ride!

Tagged!

By Sonia!

4 Favorite Memories From 2008

• Ringing in the new year in Perth, Australia
• Finishing the Goofy Race and a Half Challenge
  
• Finishing my first triathlon
• Setting some amazing PRs at the Melissa's 10K Road Race and Last Chance Half

4 Favorite Movies Watched in 2008

• Mamma Mia
• Wanted
• Prince Caspian
• Dark Knight

4 Favorite Foods in 2008

• Sushi
• Pancakes
• Fondue
• Bison Burgers

4 Places I Loved in 2008

• Perth, Australia
• Orlando, Florida
• Quebec City, Quebec
• Banff, Alberta

4 Events I Loved in 2008

• The Goofy Race and a Half Challenge - finishing my first marathon!
  
• Minnie Marathon 15K
  
• Melissa's 10K Road Race
  
• Last Chance Half

4 Things I Am Looking Forward To in 2009

• Training with Team Tri Life
• Racing the Great White North Half Iron and the Ironman 70.3 in Lake Stevens
• Finally unpacking all of my moving boxes, despite having lived here for more than two years
• Painting and redecorating my place.
  

WDW Marathon Race Report

*Warning - this is a long one!*

The Plan

While I was stuck in Kelowna on my unplanned "snow day" I spent a big chunk of the afternoon working on my marathon race plan. I had a loose goal in my head of a 4:30 marathon, mostly because the McMillan Running Calculator said it should be doable based off of my Last Chance Half marathon time. I knew the conditions were going to have to be pretty optimal to try and hit that goal, so while it was in the back of my mind, I wasn't basing my success in the race off of whether I'd be able to hit it or not. In terms of strategy to reach said goal? I didn't want to start off too fast and then risk blowing up later, but I also didn't want to start off to slow and have a tough time catching up. So the plan was to:

• Run the first 10 miles at a 10:20/mi pace, heart rate sub-160.
• Hold the pace over the next 10 miles, or if possible speed up to a 10:10/mi pace. Heart rate can build to 165.
• Over the final 6.2 miles hold 10:10/mi, or speed up if at all possible. Heart rate can inch over 165.
  

Before the Race

I was in bed and asleep at 9:00 on Saturday night, and awake right at 2:30 am on Sunday. I felt pretty well rested and ready to go. I showered, got my breakfast ready and headed out the door. My mom was participating in the marathon as well and my dad was our chauffeur/cheerleader/race photographer. He drove us to the start and I chowed down on my oatmeal in the car. Once we pulled in to the Epcot parking lot I said my goodbyes and good lucks to my mom and headed off towards the tents. If you haven't run Disney before, you congregate in the Epcot parking lot for porta-potties, entertainment and bag check, but then walk a fair ways to the actual start line from there. As I was walking through the parking lot I noticed a familiar head of hair emerging from one of the cars. - Maddy! Not bad considering I wasn't wearing my glasses! I hung out with Maddy and her friends at the start for a bit (and got to meet Marathon Chris) and then it seemed like it was time to head towards the start line.

Except Claire and Cranky weren't there yet. I had promised to wait for them at the start so I wished everyone well, then found a quiet spot to sit down. I still had a pretty good amount of time before the race was supposed to start and the porta-potty lines were insane, so I figured if I waited for them (and until things thinned out a bit) I might be in better luck. As I sat there I turned on my iPod (the only time I ever had an intention of wearing it) and just tried to get my head in the right space for the race. I was feeling nervous, but having the quiet time on my own really helped a lot. Finally Angry, Claire, Cranky and I all congregated, grabbed a quick picture, then made our way towards the start. We were all in different corrals and by the time I made it down to my corral the race was about ready to go. Since it had been cool out I wore my NKOTB sweatshirt and felt a bit sad as I donated it to one of the clothing bins. I wanted to hit the porta-potties again but didn't think I'd have time. A few people were rushing and trying to jump the fencing to get into the corral and I saw one fellow who didn't jump very well and got a bit stuck half way over. Not a good way to start the race I'm sure...

The Race - The First 10 Miles

The marathon has two different starts just to help with congestion on the course. I was at the back of the blue start since my predicted finishing time was 4:30 or less. Everyone over that was over on the red start and the courses would converge just after 3 miles in. They sang the national anthem and I started to get a bit teary eyed. I know, it wasn't my national anthem, but it still made me feel pretty emotional! Fireworks went off right overhead at the start of the race. Pretty spectacular stuff!

I decided to wear a Canada shirt for the race because last year I had noticed that a bunch of folks got huge "Go Canada!" cheers with their patriotic shirts. I figured it would be a lot easier for people to shout "Go Canada!" at me rather than trying to read my name on my bib and shout it out and I figured I could use the enthusiasm. I saw tons of other people with the same idea and if at all possible I tried to run with them a bit to ask where they were from.

The race started off on the highway and we headed towards Epcot. My dad was on the side of the highway and even though he let me know exactly where he was I couldn't spot him. I tried to be mindful of my pace right off the bat, but as soon as I started running the humidity smacked me in the face. I was definitely not used to that. I aimed to keep a 10:30/mi pace if possible since 10:20 seemed a bit optimistic.

We entered Epcot for the first time around mile 2. This is one of the highlights of the race since it is dark and the park is empty save for your fellow runners and the wonderful cast members who are out and cheering you on. As you run around World Showcase the lights are flashing and music is pumping. As I ran past Morocco I decided to take advantage of the bathrooms since I had missed the porta-potties at the start line. My heart rate was at 164 already by mile 2. Definitely higher than I expected it to be, but I thought it might be nerves and might adjust. So I just went with it...

Once the two courses converged things got a bit congested. There were so many people running around the same pace as me and we hadn't had enough time to quite spread out yet. Once we exited Epcot it felt like things were so crowded until we hit the main parking entrance for the Magic Kingdom. We'd be running on a single lane on-ramp or off-ramp and it felt like it would take too much energy to try and get past everyone. My pace crept up over those first 6 miles and once things opened up after that I knew I'd need to speed up a bit if I was going to try to keep a 10:30 pace. I must have weaved around a fair bit because each mile marker started to get further and further off... Before I knew it we were at the Transportation and Ticket Centre which is a huge spot for people to cheer you on at. You get so much energy running through here that it starts to get you excited for Magic Kingdom around the corner. I even managed to catch my friend Anne here and she gave me a huge cheer. Once I left TTC I tried to give my dad a call to let him know I was almost at the Magic Kingdom, but no luck, he couldn't hear his phone ring.

I ran up to a lady that was wearing a Vancouver Half Marathon shirt to find out where she was from. She was not overly chatty, it looked like she was hurting pretty badly already. Yikes.

I crossed the 10 mile timing mat at 1:46:42 (10:40/mi), although Garmin clicked off 10 miles at 1:44:43 (10:28/mi). By this point in time my heart rate had climbed to 175. It would stay in the 170s (or higher) for the rest of the race.

Miles 10 Through 20

As soon as you run into Magic Kingdom it hits you - the crowds cheering you on are huge, music is pumping and your adrenalin is just flowing. Even though my dad couldn't hear my phone call he had a good idea of when I should be arriving and we managed to spot each other on Main Street. From there you run into Tomorrowland and the characters are out in case you want to stop for pictures with them. Last year I stopped for a picture with almost every single character. This year I just wanted to run, so even though I had my camera with me I didn't stop for a single picture throughout the race. I just hoped that the race photographers would be able to catch a few good shots of me instead!

We wound through Fantasyland and through Cinderella's Castle. It can get a bit hairy here as people elbow you and cut in front of you to try and get the perfect picture of themselves running through the castle. This year you could run down the ramp out of the castle, then go stand in line at the bottom of the castle to have your picture captured by a photographer waiting down there. You can see a few folks behind the yellow cones in the picture below heading off to do just that.
From here you run through Frontierland, through the backstage, and then you are out on the road for several miles from here on out. There was a water stop just before leaving the Magic Kingdom and I walked and pulled a gu out from my waist pack. I somehow must have hit my Garmin when I did this and it took me a good 8 minutes to realize what I'd done. At the time I didn't know how off my Garmin was, especially since I had done enough weaving on the course to have accrued and extra quarter of a mile at least by this point in time. I also didn't know when I'd crossed the start line so I felt a bit in the dark about where I was at time-wise from here on out. Oops.

Once I left MK I gave Angry a call since he planned to be waiting for me to run past the Polynesian resort. We spotted each other and he asked how I was feeling. I gave him a big smile and told him I felt great. And really, I felt just about as fresh as a daisy at this point in time. There is something about this marathon course that causes a bit of unraveling once you cross the half way point though. Last year in the Goofy this was where I knew I would pretty well be walking the rest of the way if I wanted to finish. This year that was about when the sun came out and started to heat things up. Well, at least they heated up for this girl from up north. With no real reprieve from the sun things got a bit tougher. You exit MK at mile 11 and don't hit another park - Animal Kingdom - until after mile 16 so it feels like you are running on boring roads for a long time. Everyone gets significantly quieter through this stretch. I also got a bit nervous as I approached Animal Kingdom since this was around the distance when things started to go wrong for me at Quebec. Despite the heat and the slight amount of slowing down that I was doing, things were feeling pretty good still.

You don't have quite the same amount of buzz or get the boost from running through Animal Kingdom that you do running through MK. The only way to get to the park is by car so it isn't quite a popular option for spectators. As I was running through the park it hadn't opened yet. In some ways it was kind of neat to be running through the fairly empty park. The shot below if from mile 17, and I'm pretty happy that it looks like I'm running properly and not doing the marathon shuffle just yet!At mile 18 I exited Animal Kingdom and it was straight highway until sometime after mile 22. I was still feeling the heat and was just sweating buckets. After my hydration disaster at Quebec City I decided to carry my own fluids with me. In Quebec my strategy was to drink one cup of water and once cup of Gatorade at every aid station. The cups of water were so much bigger that I definitely got way too much water and was lacking electrolytes. I wanted to be more in control on this race, so I loaded my Camelbak up with about 1 L of nuun. This way I avoided the water and drank when I wanted to. The 1 L wasn't enough to last me the whole race, but I think this strategy worked out really well.
I crossed the 20 mile marker at 3:33:18 (10:40/mi). Hey, those are pretty even splits!

Miles 20 through 26.2

I did make an attempt to speed up a bit after crossing 20 miles, but it didn't last for very long. Ultimately I was happy if I could keep the same pace or not slow down too much. In comparison I felt infinitely better than I did at this point in my last two marathons. I never hit a mental or a physical wall, I was just slowly tiring. You enter Hollywood Studios just after mile 22 and from here on out you are off the highways. We passed through a chocolate stop just before mile 23 and I grabbed a small Hershey's bar to save for later. Except it kind of melted and turned a bit gross. Oops. We ran out of Hollywood Studios and down on to the Boardwalk towards Epcot. Even though I was tired I was passing people all over the place. That was a huge boost! Then just as I entered Epcot there were a couple of guys from the Canadian pavilion cheering us on. When they saw my Canada shirt I got huge cheers from them, which was awesome. Then it was around World Showcase for one last time, past Spaceship Earth and on to the finish line. I even had a little kick left in me for the run to this finish line. I was pretty sure I was going to have some ugly finish line shots as I was really gutting it out, but I guess the camera guy snapped at the right moment...!
When I finished I really had no idea how I did. I just had a general window that I knew I fit between - somewhere between 4:36 and 4:50. I was hoping I had made it in under 4:45, but ultimately I was just really happy with how I ran the race since it was such a drastic improvement over the last two. After all, I really ran this one, which was my goal all along. When I got back to the hotel my results were up though (and have since been adjusted by a second):

4:44:51 (10:52/mi)
Overall Place: 5501/14953
Gender Place: 1909/7144
Division Place: 329/1167

Post Race Thoughts

I estimate that I probably ran nearly an extra mile just with weaving around the course. After all, even though my Garmin was stopped for a full 8 minutes I still measured 25.83 miles, which would mean my average pace was closer to 10:30/mi. I could analyze my pace graph until the cows come home - should I have walked more in the beginning and would that have saved me from slowing down in the end? Or did I take advantage of the cooler temperatures and would slowing down have been inevitable once the sun came out?

The bigger question for me is, is my heart rate accurate during this race? Was I really red lining it for 2-1/2 hours? Or was my reading just messed up? When I did my VO2 max test back in September I conked out at 181 bpm. It is hard to believe that these numbers are accurate, but...who knows?
Anyhow, at the end of the day I'm really proud of the race I ran. I had a good time out on the course and I believe I ran a good race for the day. After walking most of the marathon last year I really wanted to come back and properly run this course. Mission accomplished, and a big PR achieved in the mean time!

WDW Marathon Results

It's official. I'm done. And incredibly stiff and sore. There will be no more fast moving for me today. The race didn't quite go according to plan, but I felt pretty good running the entire time and definitely didn't blow up. I just slowed down towards the end, but I kept running. Definitely a different story from last year's Disney Marathon or Quebec City.

So here are the details. I know I ran more than the 26.2 miles (unfortunately not how much more since I accidentally turned my Garmin off for around 8 minutes), so the paces are a little pessimistic.

Final Time: 4:44:50 (10:52/mi)

5 mi: 54:30 (10:54/mi)
10 mi: 1:46:42 (10:40/mi)
13.1 mi: 2:18:29 (10:34/mi)
20 mi: 3:33:17 (10:40/mi)

At any rate, that is a solid PR by 26:13. One other thing of interesting note? My average heart rate was 173 bpm. That is the top of Zone 4 for me, but we can talk about that later. More details to follow!

Getting to Orlando...and pre-race stuff

Luxury!

I worked until noon on Thursday, then went off to my usual spa for a heavenly 1.5 hour massage. No deep tissue work but it helped to work a few kinks out of my muscles. It was a great way to start my vacation! Just as I was leaving the spa snow started flying. Quite a bit of snow. I started having visions of delayed planes, but when I checked my flight status everything was looking okay. I finished my packing, loaded up the car and took off. I managed to score two of my flights in executive class, including my outbound flight from Calgary. It was so nice to settle in to a roomy seat and dinner on the plane wasn't half bad either.
"You know there is a free shuttle, right?"

We landed in Montreal just before midnight. My flight didn't leave until 8:30 am on Friday so I'd booked a hotel near the airport that was supposed to have a free 24 hour shuttle. After I picked up my bags I called the hotel to find out about getting a shuttle pick up, but there was no answer. I didn't want to wait around for a shuttle that might not come, especially since it was now well after midnight and I needed to be back at the airport at 6:30 am. I figured I'd just hop in a cab since the hotel wasn't too far. Once I told the cab driver where I was off to, his first response was, "You know there is a free shuttle, right?" Yes...but I didn't want to wait around for it. We drove to the hotel and 5 minutes later we arrived. I asked how much it was, and the response? $20! I guess there is a minimum $17 charge leaving the airport... I checked in and asked what time I'd need to be down in the lobby to catch the shuttle in the morning. 6:25 am.

In the morning I hurried to get ready and just as I was rolling into the lobby I saw the shuttle pull away. Bugger... I couldn't wait half an hour for the shuttle to come back so I asked if the hotel could call me a taxi. In a few minutes the taxi was there and the driver asked where we were going. "To the airport please." His response? "You know there is a free shuttle from the hotel, right?"

Luxury, Part II

I got into the check in line and there were a couple of ladies in front of me with their Boston Marathon and running club jackets on. We started chatting and they were flying down for the Goofy Challenge. There were Boston Marathon jackets everywhere in the check in line. My ticket was in economy for the flight from Montreal to Orlando, but I asked for a bump up if possible when I checked in. The bump came through, so it was a nice flight down to Orlando as well.

Burrito Bowls and the Expo

First things first, upon arrival in Orlando it was time to eat. I had been having a craving for a burrito bowl from Chipotle for awhile. My parents were kind enough to indulge me in my fast food craving. It was so tasty... From there we went to the expo right away. Number pick up was super fast as it wasn't too busy, but it was pretty busy around the vendors. The marathon logo merchandise wasn't too exciting, but I did manage to find a jacket that I liked. Probably the best deal at the expo was the 15% off of everything that Track Shack was offering. I managed to pick up a new pair of Asics Kayano 15s for a half decent price. I also managed to meet up with Angry, Claire and Cranky at the expo. I've been reading Claire and Cranky's blogs for ages and it was great to finally meet them in person.

And Other Thoughts

I went out for a quick 2 miler today, just to loosen up my legs and work some nerves out. It is definitely more humid here than I'm used to, and it looks like it is going to be somewhat warm tomorrow. We'll see how the weather plays out in the race tomorrow, but regardless, I'm feeling ready! Today I just have to work hard on relaxing and staying off of my feet.

Thanks for all of your well wishes! I'll be sure to check in and let you know how it goes.

Team Gear!

Check out our sweet new Team Tri Life gear! Richelle requested pictures...so Richelle, you asked and I delivered! I love the jacket!!
I tootled off to spin night this evening. I was under strict instructions from Coach Angie that I was to take it easy. No leg busting workout allowed for me! I took her instructions to heart and chatted with my teammates and got a lot of encouragement for the marathon this weekend. I'm feeling confident for the race and so much of it has to do with the progress I've made since joining the team, the supportive environment, and my coach's fantastic training plan and encouragement. It is hard to believe the marathon is so close! Only a day and a half left of work too..!

Be Careful What You Wish For

What did I say in my last post? That it was too bad that I only got one run in at the Mission Creek Greenway while on vacation in Kelowna? That Saturday's run was to be my final run in Kelowna? Apparently somewhere I forgot to knock on wood... I had the final flight to Calgary with Air Canada booked for Sunday evening. As we were driving to the airport snow was falling. Massive fluffy flakes of snow. I got to Air Canada's line up and the fellow in front of me flagged down an employee to find out if there was a priority check in line.

.AC employee: "Oh well, all flights are cancelled so it doesn't matter."
Me: Huh? Everything was on time when I checked before leaving for the airport...
AC employee: "Except the flight to Calgary, but the runway in Vancouver is shut down so everything else is canceled."
Me: Phew...

I handed my luggage over and sat around with my folks for a bit before heading through security. We knew the inbound flight was delayed coming out of Calgary, but it was pretty disconcerting to see all of the delays and canceled flights on the status boards. It was just one big mess. Finally I headed through security, confident that since my plane was in the air and weather in Calgary was okay that I'd be on my way home. That was not to be the case. Just as the airplane approached Kelowna they closed the runway. The plane had enough fuel to circle for about half an hour, in which case if things hadn't improved the plane would be heading back to Calgary. And the bad news was that the direct flights to Calgary were so booked up that they couldn't get you a seat out of Kelowna until 8 pm on Tuesday.

By that time my folks were home and there were rumours of available seats out on West Jet on Monday, so I had my dad do some digging for me. When they cancelled the flight and diverted the airline back to Calgary I had my dad pull the trigger on getting me a West Jet ticket. At least this way I'd be back home Monday night instead of waiting at the airport all day, hoping for a standby seat with Air Canada. I got my refund, collected my suitcases and my parents came back to the airport to drive me home.

On the plus side of things, since my flight didn't leave until 5:15 pm that gave me plenty of time to get my run in on Monday morning. I had a 49 minute run with 6 x 1:00 hard, 3:00 easy intervals on the schedule. So I headed back out to the Greenway. Only a small loop around Mission Creek had been plowed so I ran a few circles around the creek. I ran 15 minutes at a warm up pace then started in on the intervals. I didn't feel like I was pushing hard enough on the first three. Maybe I was tired, or not quite into it. Finally on my fourth interval something clicked and I was on. I was speedy! I don't normally mention pace too much around here, but I thought it was worthwhile throwing up the graph of my heart rate and pace from this run.You can definitely tell from my heart rate where my easy and hard intervals were. Most importantly, you can see the dramatic improvement in pace between #3 and #4, and that I kept improving. After that I cooled down for 10 minutes, then headed home.

I spent the rest of the afternoon working up my marathon plan for my coach. It really helped me to focus on the upcoming race and think about what I need to do over the next few days to ensure I am ready. Then it was on to the airport where there was a whole lot less drama... The winter storm had passed through and things were running pretty smoothly so I made it back to Calgary without any issues.

Running In A Winter Wonderland

Saturday morning arrived and it was supposed to be the day of my last long run before the Disney marathon. It would also be my final run in Kelowna. When I woke up it said it was -20C out there. Brr! I was tired of feeling like a wuss for avoiding these really cold temperatures so I got dressed and headed out. It was a happy surprise that it wasn't nearly as cold as I thought - only -11C!

My final run was supposed to be somewhere just over an hour and would have 3 x 8:00 Zone 3 intervals. If I could pop up into Zone 4 and hold it then that would be fine too. Because I needed to run according to heart rate zone I wanted to avoid the hills in the neighborhood and figured I'd head out to the Mission Creek Greenway where it would be a bit flatter. I ran out here a couple of times this summer and it was beautiful. I wasn't sure what to expect with all of the snow, but I found out they plow the trail so you wind up running on packed snow. With my Yak Trax on traction wasn't an issue and I could try to be speedy on my intervals.
There was the odd runner out and I saw a couple of cross country skiers. Otherwise it was pretty quiet on the trail. I started off on my warm up and the cold weather must have given me some incentive to go faster but since my heart rate was low I just went with it. The intervals went really well. I was able to hold it in a high Zone 3 and into Zone 4 for all of them. Afterwards I ran for a cool down to stretch the run out into an 1:10. The temperature was pretty comfortable the whole time, although my behind was a wee bit cold towards the end.
It was so beautiful out that it is too bad that I only managed one run at the greenway on this trip. There are definitely some amazing places to run out here in Kelowna! Tonight it is back to Calgary...tomorrow back to work!

A good end to 2008

Fast 100s

I headed out to the pool early on Monday to crank out 2300 meters with a workout that my coach calls fast 100s. It felt really good to be in the pool and I had a whole lane all to myself and I pushed myself hard through those fast sets.

A Bust for Wine Tasting

On Tuesday we attempted to head down south towards Oliver for more wine tasting, only to come up somewhat short since the majority of the wineries tend to close between Christmas and New Years. I did manage to pick up this bottle, which I figured might be useful for a celebration sometime in the future. The question is, do I open it when I register or do I save it for when I finish the race?

Lights, Lights and More Lights

On our way back from down south we drove by to check out the Christmas lights around the neighborhood. There is one house that goes way out for their decorations. It is pretty impressive:
Fartleking Out 2008

On Wednesday it was time to get in my last run for the year and I had a Fartlek pyramid on the schedule. The neighborhood here is so hilly that I ran the same few flattish streets - up and down - to get the Fartleks in. I also had a spin session that I debated on skipping. Ultimately the thought of getting one last eggnog latte for the year was enough to convince me I should get my behind to the Y.

Spinning Like Lance

After lunch I hopped in the car to the Y, complete with my "Spin Like Lance" workout in hand. I found one upright bike free and hopped on. The fellow next to me noticed my workout sheet from my coach and he struck up a conversation asking me about nutrition. I'm so not the expert on that, but chatting with someone helped to take my mind off the workout and I was actually spinning faster talking with him then after he left. Riding the upright bike wasn't the same as doing the workout on the trainer, but it was an okay substitute. Afterwards it was time to head home and get ready...although I was very sad to learn that Starbucks was now out of eggnog... So much for my eggnog latte... :(

So Long 2008

New Year's was a pretty quiet affair as we were headed out for dinner at the Quail's Gate Winery. They weren't staying open for midnight though, so it was just dinner out.Here's me, just before heading out. I've forgotten to mention that I changed my hair colour again. Holy smokes it is dark... Dinner at Quail's Gate was fabulous. Scallops for an appetizer, beef tenderloin for a main, and a sumptuous chocolate trifle for dessert. Of course it was accompanied by some amazing wine. I was chatting with the sommelier about a tawny that they used to make several years ago. He came by the table later with a glass of this tawny...of which only 8 bottles are left at the winery...so I could taste it and compare it to a new tawny port that they made. That...was very nice...
The glass in the center is the good stuff... Afterwards it was back home and honestly, I'm not really one for midnight so I was in bed and asleep when 2009 came rolling through.

A Big Fat Zero for 01/01

I had a 45 minute run scheduled for Thursday and the snow was really coming down when I woke up. I lounged around in my PJ's until lunch hoping that it would slow down so I could get the run in...but no luck. It was snowing so badly that I really didn't feel comfortable driving over the Y, (and I did not want to start the year on the treadmill), so I just postponed it.

The Winery Loop Revisited

One of my favourite runs around here is to do a loop down to Quail's Gate, up the big hill to Mission Hill and back to the house. The snow had stopped today and I was getting a bit bored running the same neighborhood streets so I opted to go for the loop this morning. It was supposed to be chilly out, but the sunshine was out in full force so it felt amazing. I haven't been able to run the big hill up to Mission Hill in one go up until now, but today I took it nice and steady up the hill and made it up with no walk breaks. It was an amazing run!