Yep-it's my b-day. I can rent a car, my insurance drops and I age up!!! 25-29 age group here I come!!!
This week has been crazy. I'm finishing my power point presentation for my Vegas conference for the International Society of Sports Nutrition. I will be speaking about sports nutrition for enduranec athletes, primarily Ironman athletes (very appropriate!). I've learned a lot by doing months of research on Pub Med. There are a lot of great studies out there and being the science nerd that I am, I'm really excited to apply some new nutrition strategies to my Kona training.
Tuesday's run workout (after swim) was ridiculously hard! 16 x 2:00 at 10K pace (HR around 170!) with 30 recovery. It was really really really hard! I spun my legs for a 2 hour ride on tues afternoon and felt a lot better. Taught spin class today and swam a mile for recovery and attempted the Gearlink ride this afternoon. Not so much did I even try to make the loops after warm-up. Oh well, at least I was out on my bike for 2 hours tonight :)
My wishes and prayers go out to Ray Reinders who suffered a bad bike crash at his race the other day. I'm thinking of you ray and I wish you a speedy recovery. I don't know what i would do without Ray to keep me going during out rides!
This should be a good weekend with lots of training as a 25 year old!! haha-ok, enough already ;)
In addition to my b-day (sorry, I said it again! :), Karel and I celebrate our Year anniversary tomorrow...what a special day! I can't believe he has put up with me for an entire year. Good thing we have similar lifestyles. He's back on his bike (shoulder not quite healed) and he even went to San Antonio for some seaded climbing in the hills.
My family is doing great and it is awesome having my bro here before he moves to Pitt for his job at PPG. Although I am super busy and hardly see them, I plan on spending most of the weekend with them...having fun like we always do :)
Registered Dietitian.....M.S. in Exercise Physiology...Vegetarian...Writer...Speaker...5x Ironman finisher.....2011-2012 Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year...Doggy-mommy...Wife to an amazing Czech cyclist turned triathlete...2x Ironman World Championship finisher...USAT level-1 coach...Oakley women, Brooks Running ID, 110% Play Harder and Hammer Nutrition Brand Ambassador.
5/27/07
Memorial Weekend
What fun today! My friend Hunter, his girlfriend, his sister, Karel and I had an awesome day on the boat in clearwater beach. I attempted water skiing, but I should probably stick with triathlons. At least I tried! Lots of sun today to wear me out! It was a great day.
Karel rode with me today...yep, you heard it right. He is still really sore, with an awful bruise on his arm, but atleast he is on his bike. And as if I thought I would be able to keep up with him since he has been off the bike for 17 days...yeah right! He kicked my butt and he was only spinning his legs. We both took it easy today for a nice 30 mile spin. He has an amazing positive outlook on life and he is such an amazing athlete. Yesterday was great as I joined the Gearlink guys for a 16 mile time trial in Tarpon. It was a lot of fun and great to see the guys on their road bikes with aerobars! My seduza finally fit in! Felt strong but didn't push too hard. Still on recovery mode from the Half Ironman last weekend at Disney.
Things are finally rolling with my new "job" of working with BeginnerTriathlete.com and doing nutrition for the members. I absolutely love helping people and although it is time-consuming, it is helping me get excited to go back to school by next summer to receive a RD degree. If you ever have any nutrition/triathlon training questions (or cycling), please feel free to email me at mrakes1@hotmail.com
Kona training starts tues....I'm so ready!
I hope everyone has a safe Memorial weekend! A big congrats to Ray Reinders and Anthony Astrab who are competing in Tennessee this weekend for a stage cycling race. Also, congrats to those racing at Crystal River and at Ironman Brazil.
5/25/07
relaxing...
After months of hard training, I'm finally enjoying a little break this week. Nothing structured, no heart rate monitor and I'm finally recovering from the race. No running, just cyling on my road bike and swimming this week. My quads are still a little sore but at least I'm walking normally again! I guess the pain is from pushing my legs to the limit for 13.1 miles of the Half Ironman. Next week starts my Kona training. Not that I haven't been training long and hard for the past few months, but the workouts get longer and more intense. The focus now is pushing my body for the next 19 weeks to get faster and stronger! And now with the 70.3 World Championships a month after Kona, I will need to train even harder to get myself ready for two big races!
To keep me sane with my training, I stay very involved with the tri-community andspeak to athletes as much as possible to get people excited to start the sport of triathlon. I also do swim lessons for little kids, do personal training, nutrition consultations and I've been helping out at Iron Girl with the upcoming events by doing outreach. Check out my website for upcoming races! Although my life seems to be all about triathlons, I truely enjoy helping people. I have been looking into schools and really would like to go back to school to pursue a RD degree or a PhD. Both degrees interest me and I love learning. I couldn't get enough schooling...but we will see. Right now I'm working as much as possible to earn money for the upcoming race season.
I can't believe this last year! So much has happened with graduating grad school, learning how to be a competitive triathlete and trying to make something of myself in this crazy world! Although I can think about with my b-day coming up next Thurs (May 31st) is that I move up to the BIG GIRL age group (25-29) soon....and I can rent a car! hehe
To keep me sane with my training, I stay very involved with the tri-community andspeak to athletes as much as possible to get people excited to start the sport of triathlon. I also do swim lessons for little kids, do personal training, nutrition consultations and I've been helping out at Iron Girl with the upcoming events by doing outreach. Check out my website for upcoming races! Although my life seems to be all about triathlons, I truely enjoy helping people. I have been looking into schools and really would like to go back to school to pursue a RD degree or a PhD. Both degrees interest me and I love learning. I couldn't get enough schooling...but we will see. Right now I'm working as much as possible to earn money for the upcoming race season.
I can't believe this last year! So much has happened with graduating grad school, learning how to be a competitive triathlete and trying to make something of myself in this crazy world! Although I can think about with my b-day coming up next Thurs (May 31st) is that I move up to the BIG GIRL age group (25-29) soon....and I can rent a car! hehe
5/21/07
Ironman 70.3 Florida Race Report
It all started on sat after I warmed up on the bike for an hour and followed it with a 10 minute run. After making myself a good carb-breakfast, I finished any last minute packing and I was out the door around 10:30am. To keep myself from getting too stressed, I turned up the music in my car and tried to forget about the race. The past week has been a mess for me, with my nerves attempting to get the best of me. I am not a good traveler when it comes to races. The first year when I started tri's (2 years ago) I was all about spending time at expos or at the race site. I.e. lots of time on my feet. Now I want to get to the expo, pick up my stuff, check my bike in and get into a hotel or off my feet. Well, most of that was true for Disney this year, except for staying off my feet. After I checked my bike in, I met up with my good friend Christie and she walked me back to the Wilderness. I meet up with my crew of friends and we had lunch at the Wilderness Lodge. I organized my stuff in the room and before I new it, I was walking around the hotel trying to meet up with friends doing the race. The cops that I coach (Dan and John) were there, Sarah, Hunter and Art were also staying there. It was a busy afternoon. Karel arrived around 6:30 and not too long after, my parents arrived with some yummy food!!! Seeing that I have the best family, my mom, bro and dad brought me a sweet potato, rice and 2 loafs of bread from Outback...yummm!!!!! We sat by the pool and we all had a nice dinner. It was up to the room and lights were off by 10:30am. No surprise-I didn't sleep but maybe 4 hours!! I'm getting use to the fact that I don't sleep before a race. Oh well-Friday night was a good night sleep for me. There were 4 of us in my room on sat night, with a friend of Tim's sleeping on the floor. It was a fun morning getting ready with everyone and I don't think I've ever laughed harder in 24 hours!! Combine carlos, mike and Karel and you have one funny bunch for me!!!
Sunday morning I was up at 3:30am and started eating my already oatmeal, 1/2 banana, a few raisins, a little protein powder and a little PB (in the oatmeal) and drinking my coffee by 4am. We were out the hotel doors by 4:45am and we walking to the race venue. Transition set-up was quick and so was body marking. All that was left was waiting for my wave which left around 7am. I didn't feel too nervous but I was enjoying the moment of just sitting on the beach with all the athletes. This was the first big race for my brother too watch and he had a great time. Nothing new for the parents-they are always there! The swim felt good and after the last left turn to head back to the beach, I checked my watch and it said 24 minutes. I looked up and noticed that I had quite a bit of swimming left but I felt really strong. The water was a mess of people and I found myself passing so many people and being kicked my so many people. I was a little bummed with my swim time of 34 minutes but I heard from a lot of people that the swim felt a little long. Not sure if I can complain at the start of a long day, but I did the best I could and I was hoping for a 29 minute swim time. I was running out of the water for a quick transition and seeing that this race has a long run to T1 I was running fast to get my bike. In around 3 minutes, I was pushing my bike out of T1 and I was off for a 56 mile bike ride. I felt strong during the whole bike ride but I did feel some tightness in my rt. quad during the beginning of the bike. I felt the same thing during my Ironman in Nov and I was too concerned. When I race, as long as I know I put in the training and prep, I try to live in the moment and not get worried about my body. It is going to hurt somewhere when you push hard but I felt good the whole bike ride. I couldn't believe my average of 20.5 when last year I was 15 minutes slower with a 18.8 minute average. This year I pulled off a 2:43 bike time, even with the rolling hills (which I love!) and the crazy winds. It wasn't until mile 30 when I started to feel good and mile 50 when I started to feel great! I was off the bike quick and I couldn't wait to RUN! I was a little nervous for the run since I was concerned that my run speed wasn't there. I did a little self-talk before I got off the bike and I told myself to stay confidence. If there is anything I can do, it is run long. I love to zone out during a long run and I broke this race down into 3 laps. First loop was warming up to see what pace I could hold and get into the zone. Loop 2 was a catch-up lap, now that I knew where the 5 girls were that I saw ahead of me and loop 3 was all or nothing lap where for the first time, I left EVERYTHING out on the course. Thanks to Karel yelling at me telling me that there is no tomorrow and I have to push-it and my family telling me to push-it, I was doing everything I could do to not loose pace. It wasn't until loop 3 and after an hour of running, that I started passing the girls who passed me on the bike. I couldn't catch the 2 girls ahead of me but I put myself into 3rd place with 3 miles left in the run. Old marni would have sat comfortably in my running pace but I didn't give up. I still pushed and I think my 11 minute lead off 4th place showed how much I pushed. I knew I couldn't catch anyone else, but I wanted to give it my all and leave everything on the course. I felt strong and it really helped to have people cheer for me. Please don't be affended if I don't talk back but I really do like it when people on the course are cheering for me-It helps so much! Another highlight during the run was running with Karen Smyers!!!! How cool was that. I heard someone cheering for her as she was on her last lap (my first) and she came up right next to me. Heart rate was sitting comfortably at 150 until she came along and I ran with her for over 3 minutes with a heart rate close to 165. It was SO worth it! I felt so cool!
To sum up the weekend, I first want to thank the MANY people who congratulated me and cheered for me during the race. It means a lot to have so many supportive people. Especially since I train and race long-distance, there is a lot of time I put into my training and I appreciate everyone for putting up with my crazy schedule. Still hurting today (mon morning) I am proud of my 3rd place finish and 5:09 finish time. I PR'd by 21 minutes and PR'd in the bike by 15 and the run by 10 minutes. Last year I was 9th and this year I was smiling proudly with my 3rd place plaque. More so, I qualified for the Clearwater World Champs! Oh my-what I year this has been and is going to be. Not sure how I can pay for everything but I'm looking forward to TWO World Championships in one year! This may not happen again, but with the focus on Kona and Clearwater just to finish, I am counting my blessings for such an amazing year! Thanks to everyone for your support and congrats to those who finished!!!!!
Sunday morning I was up at 3:30am and started eating my already oatmeal, 1/2 banana, a few raisins, a little protein powder and a little PB (in the oatmeal) and drinking my coffee by 4am. We were out the hotel doors by 4:45am and we walking to the race venue. Transition set-up was quick and so was body marking. All that was left was waiting for my wave which left around 7am. I didn't feel too nervous but I was enjoying the moment of just sitting on the beach with all the athletes. This was the first big race for my brother too watch and he had a great time. Nothing new for the parents-they are always there! The swim felt good and after the last left turn to head back to the beach, I checked my watch and it said 24 minutes. I looked up and noticed that I had quite a bit of swimming left but I felt really strong. The water was a mess of people and I found myself passing so many people and being kicked my so many people. I was a little bummed with my swim time of 34 minutes but I heard from a lot of people that the swim felt a little long. Not sure if I can complain at the start of a long day, but I did the best I could and I was hoping for a 29 minute swim time. I was running out of the water for a quick transition and seeing that this race has a long run to T1 I was running fast to get my bike. In around 3 minutes, I was pushing my bike out of T1 and I was off for a 56 mile bike ride. I felt strong during the whole bike ride but I did feel some tightness in my rt. quad during the beginning of the bike. I felt the same thing during my Ironman in Nov and I was too concerned. When I race, as long as I know I put in the training and prep, I try to live in the moment and not get worried about my body. It is going to hurt somewhere when you push hard but I felt good the whole bike ride. I couldn't believe my average of 20.5 when last year I was 15 minutes slower with a 18.8 minute average. This year I pulled off a 2:43 bike time, even with the rolling hills (which I love!) and the crazy winds. It wasn't until mile 30 when I started to feel good and mile 50 when I started to feel great! I was off the bike quick and I couldn't wait to RUN! I was a little nervous for the run since I was concerned that my run speed wasn't there. I did a little self-talk before I got off the bike and I told myself to stay confidence. If there is anything I can do, it is run long. I love to zone out during a long run and I broke this race down into 3 laps. First loop was warming up to see what pace I could hold and get into the zone. Loop 2 was a catch-up lap, now that I knew where the 5 girls were that I saw ahead of me and loop 3 was all or nothing lap where for the first time, I left EVERYTHING out on the course. Thanks to Karel yelling at me telling me that there is no tomorrow and I have to push-it and my family telling me to push-it, I was doing everything I could do to not loose pace. It wasn't until loop 3 and after an hour of running, that I started passing the girls who passed me on the bike. I couldn't catch the 2 girls ahead of me but I put myself into 3rd place with 3 miles left in the run. Old marni would have sat comfortably in my running pace but I didn't give up. I still pushed and I think my 11 minute lead off 4th place showed how much I pushed. I knew I couldn't catch anyone else, but I wanted to give it my all and leave everything on the course. I felt strong and it really helped to have people cheer for me. Please don't be affended if I don't talk back but I really do like it when people on the course are cheering for me-It helps so much! Another highlight during the run was running with Karen Smyers!!!! How cool was that. I heard someone cheering for her as she was on her last lap (my first) and she came up right next to me. Heart rate was sitting comfortably at 150 until she came along and I ran with her for over 3 minutes with a heart rate close to 165. It was SO worth it! I felt so cool!
To sum up the weekend, I first want to thank the MANY people who congratulated me and cheered for me during the race. It means a lot to have so many supportive people. Especially since I train and race long-distance, there is a lot of time I put into my training and I appreciate everyone for putting up with my crazy schedule. Still hurting today (mon morning) I am proud of my 3rd place finish and 5:09 finish time. I PR'd by 21 minutes and PR'd in the bike by 15 and the run by 10 minutes. Last year I was 9th and this year I was smiling proudly with my 3rd place plaque. More so, I qualified for the Clearwater World Champs! Oh my-what I year this has been and is going to be. Not sure how I can pay for everything but I'm looking forward to TWO World Championships in one year! This may not happen again, but with the focus on Kona and Clearwater just to finish, I am counting my blessings for such an amazing year! Thanks to everyone for your support and congrats to those who finished!!!!!
5/19/07
Disney 2006.....memories
Sitting here drinking my coffee and about to hop on my bike for an easy spin. I can't believe it's been a year since I did this race. I remember swimming in the lake (which I LOVE lake swimming - no waves!) and thinking to myself "wow-56 miles..that is really long!" Then I was on the bike and the first big climb came and I had no idea about the benefits of switching gears. I was pushing so hard to get up the big climbs and even more, last year I had these BIG aerobars (sticking up) on my trek. I also was a bit scared of the bike so the brakes were being used the whole time on the downhill. Then on the run, I was feeling really good and couldn't believe that I did an event that took me 5 hours and 29 minutes. As you probably know, I always get in a zone when I run long-distance and for this run on sunday, I have so much to think about (all good stuff) for the 13.1 miles. I might need to run 26.2 to think about the entire year!! hehe. So much I've put into the bike and I'm so lucky to be injury free since I was hurting so bad for 2 months after the Miami Marathon. I really do love this sport. *Note-you might want to ask me how much I love the sport in a couple months....Kona training starts next week and I've got 21 weeks to get myself in TOP shape! Long hours, long miles and lots of mental and physical training. Oh-and lots and lots of money for a plane ticket to kona, traveling with my bike, staying in a condo for a week and much more. It's worth it!!!
5/18/07
100% Guarentee Stress Reliever
If nerves get the best of you.....get yourself a sexy bike!
Yep...I get to ride her for 56 miles on Sunday! Right after a 1.2 mile swim and before a 13.1 mile run.
Results may (not sure) be found on http://ironman.com/events/ironman70.3/florida70.3 or you can check http://www.floridahalfironman.com/ for more info regarding the race.
Yep...I get to ride her for 56 miles on Sunday! Right after a 1.2 mile swim and before a 13.1 mile run.
Results may (not sure) be found on http://ironman.com/events/ironman70.3/florida70.3 or you can check http://www.floridahalfironman.com/ for more info regarding the race.
See everyone at the Wilderness lodge tomorrow! There are SO many people that I know participating so a BIG BIG BIIIIIIIIIGGGG Good luck to everyone!
Remember the hard training you did to get to this weekend and have a safe, fun and memorable race! *Also-good luck to those racing in the Florida State Crit Championships, Columbia Triathlon, Mad Beach Tri, Duathlon World Champs (Celia), Brazil Ironman and any other tris/cycling races!
Thanks to my family, Karel and many others for spending your Sunday as a spectator for the race!
5/16/07
Ironman 70.3 Florida....4 days!
Feeling a little heavy..but I guess that's normal with taper. However, I just received a new Giro helmet that I ordered and it is going to replace the pink Bell helmet that I have raced in my entire triathlon career (all of 2 years!). I also received a bunch of AWESOME clothes from my Zoot sponsor and now I'm getting excited to race. If you look good...you race fast, right? At least that's my philosophy! New race wheels are put together!!! Zipp 404's will be on Seduza. Oh, she is looking Nice for the race. Karel is doing better with his arm and I'm super excited that he gets to watch me race for the first time this season! Not sure if he will be able to go to Kona with me, but I know I will have lots of great supporters on the computer for me :) I am cheering on all my friends this weekend and I can't wait to see SOOOO many people on the course! Training buddies, old friends, friends of friends...and probably lots of NEW friends. I've been keeping busy with my normal busy life and also putting in a couple hours at Iron Girl (which I LOVE!) helping out Judy with Outreach.
Good luck everyone with the rest of your taper. Just a couple more days and we'll be at Disney!!!
5/13/07
Getting back to Normal
Things are slowing down and after Karel's crash, I kinda feel like everything is going to be ok again. We've met with a lawyer, doctor and several other helpful people to keep us positive with Karel's injury. Karel and I are in no way money hungry and we live a very simple life so we just want the court case to be as fair as possible. Well, we do spend lots of money on our sports but we love it and we'd both rather spend $100+ on something carbon for our bikes rather than by nice clothes or an expensive electronic gadget. Let's hope fo rth ebest. Karel is in a sling for the next 6 weeks and all our friends have been very generous and kind to Karel. We had dinner last night with about 10 of the Gearlink members at the Old Chicago Pizza restaurant and it was great to see how many people care about Karel. Although Karel is still in pain and his vicodin is slowly running out, we all think he will be out of the sling by mid-june. Hopefully, he can hop on the trainer next week to atleast spin his legs.
Thursday morning I was extremely tired and I hadn't planned on doing anything on thursday besides taking care of Karel. It is amazing how you can change your perspective on life in just an instant. Training wasn't important and I completely forgot aobut the race on the 20th. However, by thursday afternoon I decided that a run was needed to relieve some stress and enjoy the outdoor air. Although the smokey weather has created several unpleasent mornings, I enjoyed the Clearwater air for about an hour and ran up the memorial causeway at 30 minutes of my run. Friday morning was a brick workout and saturday as well. I still feel like i am catching up on sleep, but at least I have one more week to prepare for the race.
Good luck to EVERYONE that is racing this coming weekend at Disney. I am really looking forward to the race and seeing so many familiar faces. I get to see my best guy friends from south florida, my friend Christie who I met at a New Year Eve Day run 2 years ago (and then we ran at Boston together), several people who I coach here in the Tampa Bay area and many other training partners and friends. Karel will be there cheering me on which is great since he rarely gets to see me race. My family will be there and my bro and dad who are in Spain at the moment, will have just enough time to unpack and then head over to Orlando.
Happy mother's day to all the mommies out there!!! This is your day and you probably deserve more. I know my mom deserves a "thank you" every day and a big "I love you" from her daugther at least once a day.
5/10/07
Accidents happen :(
What a great couple of days. Feeling great on the bike, swimming smooth and long (all of my 5 feet) and running injury free. Wed morning was the normal spin class and there is no stopping my class! It doesn't matter how hard I work them, they keep coming back. It was only a year ago when I started teaching. I can only imagine how strong their hearts are right now! And we have a lot of fun for 5:45am. After the spin class I went for a 40 minute run around Landsbrook. Kept the speed at a little less than half IM pace and put in 5 x 2 minute 10K pace with 1 minute recovery to get my heart rate up. The morning was busy and around 11pm I was stopping at Starbucks for a well-needed coffee (and a capuccino for Karel). I hadn't seen Karel since he got back so I was SO excited to see him. Oh-did I mention I have new Zipp 404 wheels at the Gearlink store that I haven't seen (doubly excited to get there!). After a big hug to Karel we were off to the shippment area of the store to check out my sweet new wheels. Those are going to look great on Seduza!
I spend the day on the computer before getting myself ready for the Gearlink group ride. The ride where I hang out until I get dropped, which is usually 2 loops warm-up and 1 loop with everyone at a slow 26mph. Well, not tonight. I ended up riding up to the group (45 minutes) from Karel's and the wind was not on the light side. No worries-I'm use to it. After riding a couple loops of warm-up I wasn't sure how the ride would turn out. Karel met up with the group right before warm-up and I was really excited to ride with him. We met last year on my b-day (may 31st) and it was the first time I rode with the Gearlink group or any cyclist. To make a long Marni blog short, I ended up huffing and puffing my way through 4 1/4 loops. Let me tell you...although I wasn't rotating, I was working my heart off. And I say that because it felt like I was having a heart attack! My heart rate was 178 at one moment when I looked down and although heart rate monitors can be wrong, I would be suprised if it was correct to read MAX HR 218! For the first time in my life, I was riding as fast as possible and I got dropped because of the last turn and a major increase in speed by the group. However, my muscles were still strong at the end with no pain or burning feeling. That is a good sign for my cycling cause I always have to slow down because of lactate buildup around a HR of 138. Maybe I just don't push hard enough on the bike! After the guys sprinted to the finish of the ride, I asked the guys if they had seen Karel. I guess he thought I drove to the ride and when I called him on his cell he said he had already ridden part of the way home. Since I was heading back to his place I told him to keep going and I'd meet him at his home. Normally I would have taken Tampa rd but for some reason I wanted to follow the road Karel takes and I continued on McMullen Booth to 580. As soon as I made the turn onto 580 I received a phone call from Karel. Not the phone call I expected to hear. Karel was hit by a car. I don't think I have ever pedaled so hard before, especially after over 3 grueling hours on the bike. Luckily, because I decided to take the road Karel took, I was only within 2-3 miles from Landmark where he was at. I didn't see him at the scene but I saw lots of people, a cop car and his beat up Colnago bike. I threw my bike on the ground and talked with the officer. At that time, Mirek (Gearlink owner) was arriving and put our bikes in the car and we went to the hospital. Still haven't seen Karel but after a brief conversation, I heard that he was heading through Landmark to come meet up with me and ride with me home. Now how awful do I feel that loving Karel was turning around to make sure I didn't have to ride by myself. As the tears started to fall when I got to the hospital and saw him with a cut-up knee and a sling on his shoulder, I had no words for the 4 hours we were there. I just didn't have the energy to speak. Even after a bag of pretzels and many hospital Saltines, I was confused with emotions. Half of me was so bothered that a 72 man turned right into a street when he stopped, saw Karel and continued to proceed. The man received a ticket and they will be going to court. Karel ended up hitting his head (helmet was on) on the car and flipping over the fender. The Colnago frame is cracked and I think that is the most upsetting part for him. He paid so much for his bike but more than anything, it is the experiences, tough training sessions and many memories that he has since he got his Colnago one year ago. Thank goodness all he suffered was a couple abrasions and cuts and a fracture in his greater tuberosity of his left shoulder. Of course Karel is trying to be strong but I can tell that he is in tremendous pain even with the sling on his arm. I know this accident could have been prevented if the driver was paying attention, but it goes to show us that accidents do happen. I am very lucky that he is ok. I know that Karel will use the same strength that he has on the bike and he will get through this injury with will and determination and lots of inner strength.
I spend the day on the computer before getting myself ready for the Gearlink group ride. The ride where I hang out until I get dropped, which is usually 2 loops warm-up and 1 loop with everyone at a slow 26mph. Well, not tonight. I ended up riding up to the group (45 minutes) from Karel's and the wind was not on the light side. No worries-I'm use to it. After riding a couple loops of warm-up I wasn't sure how the ride would turn out. Karel met up with the group right before warm-up and I was really excited to ride with him. We met last year on my b-day (may 31st) and it was the first time I rode with the Gearlink group or any cyclist. To make a long Marni blog short, I ended up huffing and puffing my way through 4 1/4 loops. Let me tell you...although I wasn't rotating, I was working my heart off. And I say that because it felt like I was having a heart attack! My heart rate was 178 at one moment when I looked down and although heart rate monitors can be wrong, I would be suprised if it was correct to read MAX HR 218! For the first time in my life, I was riding as fast as possible and I got dropped because of the last turn and a major increase in speed by the group. However, my muscles were still strong at the end with no pain or burning feeling. That is a good sign for my cycling cause I always have to slow down because of lactate buildup around a HR of 138. Maybe I just don't push hard enough on the bike! After the guys sprinted to the finish of the ride, I asked the guys if they had seen Karel. I guess he thought I drove to the ride and when I called him on his cell he said he had already ridden part of the way home. Since I was heading back to his place I told him to keep going and I'd meet him at his home. Normally I would have taken Tampa rd but for some reason I wanted to follow the road Karel takes and I continued on McMullen Booth to 580. As soon as I made the turn onto 580 I received a phone call from Karel. Not the phone call I expected to hear. Karel was hit by a car. I don't think I have ever pedaled so hard before, especially after over 3 grueling hours on the bike. Luckily, because I decided to take the road Karel took, I was only within 2-3 miles from Landmark where he was at. I didn't see him at the scene but I saw lots of people, a cop car and his beat up Colnago bike. I threw my bike on the ground and talked with the officer. At that time, Mirek (Gearlink owner) was arriving and put our bikes in the car and we went to the hospital. Still haven't seen Karel but after a brief conversation, I heard that he was heading through Landmark to come meet up with me and ride with me home. Now how awful do I feel that loving Karel was turning around to make sure I didn't have to ride by myself. As the tears started to fall when I got to the hospital and saw him with a cut-up knee and a sling on his shoulder, I had no words for the 4 hours we were there. I just didn't have the energy to speak. Even after a bag of pretzels and many hospital Saltines, I was confused with emotions. Half of me was so bothered that a 72 man turned right into a street when he stopped, saw Karel and continued to proceed. The man received a ticket and they will be going to court. Karel ended up hitting his head (helmet was on) on the car and flipping over the fender. The Colnago frame is cracked and I think that is the most upsetting part for him. He paid so much for his bike but more than anything, it is the experiences, tough training sessions and many memories that he has since he got his Colnago one year ago. Thank goodness all he suffered was a couple abrasions and cuts and a fracture in his greater tuberosity of his left shoulder. Of course Karel is trying to be strong but I can tell that he is in tremendous pain even with the sling on his arm. I know this accident could have been prevented if the driver was paying attention, but it goes to show us that accidents do happen. I am very lucky that he is ok. I know that Karel will use the same strength that he has on the bike and he will get through this injury with will and determination and lots of inner strength.
5/8/07
Pics
http://new.photos.yahoo.com/mrakes1/album/576460762400653929IF link doesn't work you can go to my blog page links and click on photos. Once you are there you can go to Tri 101 Bradenton pics.
Things are going well. Karel is back in town but haven't seen him yet. Tomorrow is the gearlink ride and I'm excited to ride with him and the group. Bro and dad are in Spain for a little vaca for 10 days. Training is going awesome and I'm not sure if I should feel this good right now. Starting to taper a bit but still keeping the intensity. Reduced the volume just a bit but I'm running very comfortable, swimming fast and cycling great in the wind. The morning swim was really cold so I had no choice but to swim fast. Main set was 8 x 125 on 1:55. Pretty happy with the 5-10 sec. rest I was getting. Followed the swim with an hour run, with 3 x 5 min Half Ironman pace sets in the middle. Tonight I rode 1:45 in the wind and the main set was 5 x 1 mile Half Ironman pace with .5 mile recovery. The smoke was cleared (almost) but today was pretty bad outside!
Hope everyone is training hard or enjoying the week.
Pics from St.Anthony's are up!
http://orders.racephotonetwork.com/QPPlus/Proofs.aspx
Things are going well. Karel is back in town but haven't seen him yet. Tomorrow is the gearlink ride and I'm excited to ride with him and the group. Bro and dad are in Spain for a little vaca for 10 days. Training is going awesome and I'm not sure if I should feel this good right now. Starting to taper a bit but still keeping the intensity. Reduced the volume just a bit but I'm running very comfortable, swimming fast and cycling great in the wind. The morning swim was really cold so I had no choice but to swim fast. Main set was 8 x 125 on 1:55. Pretty happy with the 5-10 sec. rest I was getting. Followed the swim with an hour run, with 3 x 5 min Half Ironman pace sets in the middle. Tonight I rode 1:45 in the wind and the main set was 5 x 1 mile Half Ironman pace with .5 mile recovery. The smoke was cleared (almost) but today was pretty bad outside!
Hope everyone is training hard or enjoying the week.
Pics from St.Anthony's are up!
http://orders.racephotonetwork.com/QPPlus/Proofs.aspx
5/6/07
Tri 101 Bradenton Re-cap
What a busy weekend...nothing new of course! After a quick coffee stop at Starbucks, I headed over to Bradenton on Fri afternoon and arrived safely at the Holiday Inn. Very nice area in Bradenton and it was worth the 64 mile drive over there. I met my roommate for the weekend who was Pro Triathlete Leanda Cave. Her sis Melissa was also staying with us and it was her first time to the U.S. Both girls use to live in the U.K. so I enjoyed learning new phrases and lingos such as sunnies for sunglasses :) Because I tend to talk fast and my KY accent often comes out, I'm always careful how I say things around foreigners. I remember when I told Karel that I was going to run errands and he was a bit confused because my brothers name is Aaron. Honestly, I wasn't going to run over Aaron :) I can't laugh cause when I try to learn Czech from Karel he is very patient with me.
Dinner Friday night was on the beach at a Seafood restaurant. No need to feel sorry for the vegetarian. I won't complain about a couple (ok-more like 3) bread baskets and a nice healthy salad. Yummm!
Saturday morning I headed out for a long run of 12 miles around Bradenton. To my surprise, I see Hillary Biscay in a car lacing up her shoe laces. As a top 5 finisher in several Ironman races, I had to take a moment and introduce myself. After briefly chatting with her, Hillary said she would join me for part of my run. Oh my! Of course I wanted to take her up on this and we started running and chatting. I looked at my watch and we had been running together for over 20 minutes. So my HR was a bit higher than usual and I was beginning to get a side stich, I couldn’t help myself from saying out loud “I’m running with Hillary Biscay-a pro triathlete!” This was so cool. So even though I had already run 3.5 miles and she was warming up, the run was a great start of my day. I ran with a Pro Triathlete!
After the 30 minute run with Hillary, I finished up my run and headed back to the hotel. Fuel belt was empty and I was in need for a shower, coffee and more oatmeal. Saturday I was on my feet all day helping out with registration and sat evening was the pre-race dinner. Aside from a 30 minute rest in my room to chat on the phone with Karel, I was on my feet all day. Thank goodness I was rooming with a Pro triathlete who needed her rest, cause I was out at 8:30pm! Sunday morning we awoke at 5:15am and I braided my hair and put on my visor. Ok-so I was totally in the moment and it was habit to be at a race site and start my normal a.m. routine prior to a race. Silly me. I headed down to body marking and stamped the 150+ athletes that were racing in the Tri 101 race. Afterwards, it was off to the swim start to get the athletes together prior to getting in the water. Then I was off to the transition area to make sure people mounted their bikes after the line and have their helmet chin straps buckled. After a mile walk, I was approaching a fuel station on the 6-loop bike course and I found myself handing out water, gels, bananas and holding bikes as athletes used the port-o-potties. After my Ironman experience, I totally understand how important it is to have plenty of fluids on hand for the athletes. And after much practice at Karel’s races, I am getting very trained at water bottle passing on the bike. Being a volunteer is tough I tell ya! My legs started to ache and I took a long walk back to the race venue as I cheered for athletes on the 3-loop run course. Next, I was at the fuel station on the run passing out Gatorade and water. Then, to the finish! My roommate finished first in the Pro Women field and earned a hefty $10,000 pay check!!! How cool is that!!?? And Hillary (my running partner) finished third!!!What an exciting weekend.
Great news on the other side of the U.S. Karel finished the Tour de Gila in 48th place. After 5 days of racing, over 300 miles and a starting place in the 80's (after the TT), I am so proud of Karel. He dug deep and when his mind and body wanted to quit in the extreme wind and brutal climbs, he found the inner strength to keep fighting. What an inspiration he is. I’m so excited for him to come home and congratulate him. I hope he is eating something good right now—I bet it’s a burger (something he NEVER eats) or pizza and possibly a well-deserved beer. Of course he will follow it with Ice Cream..he deserves it all! Maybe I'll eat some ice cream in honor of him.
I am so excited to race at Ironman 70.3 Florida. I’ve had some of the best moments in my short 2 year triathlon career and I have been very blessed to meet such wonderful people. Training is going great and I am looking forward to my taper at the end of next week. Although I love talking with the Elite athletes and picking their brains on tips to help me turn pro, it is the “normal” athletes who I love to meet and talk with. There is nothing like an age-grouper wanting to finish a race and having a great time doing it. I tell ya-I just love being around people and I wake up every morning just loving life! Yes-I have my bad moments like everyone but I really treasure the good ones!
Dinner Friday night was on the beach at a Seafood restaurant. No need to feel sorry for the vegetarian. I won't complain about a couple (ok-more like 3) bread baskets and a nice healthy salad. Yummm!
Saturday morning I headed out for a long run of 12 miles around Bradenton. To my surprise, I see Hillary Biscay in a car lacing up her shoe laces. As a top 5 finisher in several Ironman races, I had to take a moment and introduce myself. After briefly chatting with her, Hillary said she would join me for part of my run. Oh my! Of course I wanted to take her up on this and we started running and chatting. I looked at my watch and we had been running together for over 20 minutes. So my HR was a bit higher than usual and I was beginning to get a side stich, I couldn’t help myself from saying out loud “I’m running with Hillary Biscay-a pro triathlete!” This was so cool. So even though I had already run 3.5 miles and she was warming up, the run was a great start of my day. I ran with a Pro Triathlete!
After the 30 minute run with Hillary, I finished up my run and headed back to the hotel. Fuel belt was empty and I was in need for a shower, coffee and more oatmeal. Saturday I was on my feet all day helping out with registration and sat evening was the pre-race dinner. Aside from a 30 minute rest in my room to chat on the phone with Karel, I was on my feet all day. Thank goodness I was rooming with a Pro triathlete who needed her rest, cause I was out at 8:30pm! Sunday morning we awoke at 5:15am and I braided my hair and put on my visor. Ok-so I was totally in the moment and it was habit to be at a race site and start my normal a.m. routine prior to a race. Silly me. I headed down to body marking and stamped the 150+ athletes that were racing in the Tri 101 race. Afterwards, it was off to the swim start to get the athletes together prior to getting in the water. Then I was off to the transition area to make sure people mounted their bikes after the line and have their helmet chin straps buckled. After a mile walk, I was approaching a fuel station on the 6-loop bike course and I found myself handing out water, gels, bananas and holding bikes as athletes used the port-o-potties. After my Ironman experience, I totally understand how important it is to have plenty of fluids on hand for the athletes. And after much practice at Karel’s races, I am getting very trained at water bottle passing on the bike. Being a volunteer is tough I tell ya! My legs started to ache and I took a long walk back to the race venue as I cheered for athletes on the 3-loop run course. Next, I was at the fuel station on the run passing out Gatorade and water. Then, to the finish! My roommate finished first in the Pro Women field and earned a hefty $10,000 pay check!!! How cool is that!!?? And Hillary (my running partner) finished third!!!What an exciting weekend.
Great news on the other side of the U.S. Karel finished the Tour de Gila in 48th place. After 5 days of racing, over 300 miles and a starting place in the 80's (after the TT), I am so proud of Karel. He dug deep and when his mind and body wanted to quit in the extreme wind and brutal climbs, he found the inner strength to keep fighting. What an inspiration he is. I’m so excited for him to come home and congratulate him. I hope he is eating something good right now—I bet it’s a burger (something he NEVER eats) or pizza and possibly a well-deserved beer. Of course he will follow it with Ice Cream..he deserves it all! Maybe I'll eat some ice cream in honor of him.
I am so excited to race at Ironman 70.3 Florida. I’ve had some of the best moments in my short 2 year triathlon career and I have been very blessed to meet such wonderful people. Training is going great and I am looking forward to my taper at the end of next week. Although I love talking with the Elite athletes and picking their brains on tips to help me turn pro, it is the “normal” athletes who I love to meet and talk with. There is nothing like an age-grouper wanting to finish a race and having a great time doing it. I tell ya-I just love being around people and I wake up every morning just loving life! Yes-I have my bad moments like everyone but I really treasure the good ones!
5/4/07
I love Races!
On the road again. Not sure how many weekends in a row this is for me, but I am loving every moment! What more could I ask for than to spend the weekend with a bunch of triathletes and I don't have to race!! As much as I love racing, to help out at a triathlon is great because there is so stress involved!
I'm heading to Bradenton in the next hour to help out with the Tri 101 race. Looking forward to a little networking as well. I'm all about meeting people!!! A new race and a new distance is always a good thing in the triathlon-world.
This morning was a great Brick workout and something I feel I should have done weeks ago. While I've spent the last couple weeks training for St.Anthony's, I knew that Ironman 70.3 Florida would be an A-race for me. Starting at 6:30am, Seduza and I did 51 miles, with 4 x 6 minute intervals with a HR at 85-90% with 2 minutes recovery. Aside from a 45 minute warm-up, most of the ride I was holding around 19mph. After the ride I quickly put on my shoes, re-set my HR monitor and I was off for a 30 minute run. Felt really fresh and strong. The run was more on the fast side (holding 7:45-7:50 pace). Tomorrow I will do a long run of around 11-12 miles on part of the Tri 101 race course. Sunday I will watch the race and somewhat rest. Quality workouts are what I'm about! There's no use squeezing in extra workouts if they won't help. I'm sure glad I passed on the run on thursday!
Although I'm not too concerned with speed amd distance when I'm training (I go my HR and time), I know I will need to finish the 56 mile bike at Disney in less than 2:45 for my sub 5 hour finish. The swim should be around 30 minutes and the run is looking good at sub 1:50 (possibly 1:44 if all does as planned). I always add 5 minutes to my time for potty stops, transitions, suicidal squirrels in the road or anything else uncontrollable. I know I'll need to push.
Still waiting for the phone call from Karel and hopefully Stage 3 went well. The 74 mile ride has a lot of HUGE climbs and descents. I hope all the riders were safe. Go Karel and Anthony...2 more days!
Good luck to those who are racing this weekend!
I'm heading to Bradenton in the next hour to help out with the Tri 101 race. Looking forward to a little networking as well. I'm all about meeting people!!! A new race and a new distance is always a good thing in the triathlon-world.
This morning was a great Brick workout and something I feel I should have done weeks ago. While I've spent the last couple weeks training for St.Anthony's, I knew that Ironman 70.3 Florida would be an A-race for me. Starting at 6:30am, Seduza and I did 51 miles, with 4 x 6 minute intervals with a HR at 85-90% with 2 minutes recovery. Aside from a 45 minute warm-up, most of the ride I was holding around 19mph. After the ride I quickly put on my shoes, re-set my HR monitor and I was off for a 30 minute run. Felt really fresh and strong. The run was more on the fast side (holding 7:45-7:50 pace). Tomorrow I will do a long run of around 11-12 miles on part of the Tri 101 race course. Sunday I will watch the race and somewhat rest. Quality workouts are what I'm about! There's no use squeezing in extra workouts if they won't help. I'm sure glad I passed on the run on thursday!
Although I'm not too concerned with speed amd distance when I'm training (I go my HR and time), I know I will need to finish the 56 mile bike at Disney in less than 2:45 for my sub 5 hour finish. The swim should be around 30 minutes and the run is looking good at sub 1:50 (possibly 1:44 if all does as planned). I always add 5 minutes to my time for potty stops, transitions, suicidal squirrels in the road or anything else uncontrollable. I know I'll need to push.
Still waiting for the phone call from Karel and hopefully Stage 3 went well. The 74 mile ride has a lot of HUGE climbs and descents. I hope all the riders were safe. Go Karel and Anthony...2 more days!
Good luck to those who are racing this weekend!
5/3/07
So proud!
I'm so proud of Karel and Anthony. They are doing the best they can in the brutal heat and a very difficult race course at the Tour de Gila!
Wed- 81st in the the 16 mile Time Trail
Thurs - 94 mile road race, 4:32 finish time, over 5600 feet of climbing, 51st place.
3 more days left in the tour.
64th overall as of today for Karel.
Good luck guys!!!! Stay strong.
Doing All I Can
I know what I need to do for the next 2 weeks. Train my Butt Off!!!! I've been fairly smart about my training (for being self-coached) and I have had in my mind a sub 5 hour finish at Disney since I started training for this season back in Feb. After IMFL, I had a joyful 1 month off from anything structured and I stayed focused for for the Thanksgiving St.pete times 10K Turkey Trot!!! Actually, I was quite nervous for that one cause after doing an IM, I have no excuses for races for the rest of my life..especially a 10K!!! And seeing that Karel beat me (what's with those Czech cyclists!!!???) I was anxious to step up the training for the triathlon season. The winter was rough because I hurt my foot at the Miami Marathon and my running hasn't been up to par like I imagined it would be by now. Oh well. I would rather be injury free with two healthy feet than fast and in pain. I love this sport too much to hurt at the end of a long distance triathlon due to pain. I know I have plenty of time before Kona to step it up this summer. I'm rather happy with the improvements in my bike and I know I will see results at Ironman 70.3 Florida in 17 days.
Monday afternoon was an easy hour spin on the road bike and really enjoyed the warm Florida weather. Tuesday morning was rough and while several people enjoyed a recovery swim, there was no rest for Marni.
Main Set:
8 x 100 on 1:25
8 x 75 on 1 minute (yep-that was touch and go..barely made that!)
8 x 50 (25- free, 25- butterfly) on 50 sec (OUCH!)
Total yardage for the day: 4200
Running workout after the swim and my legs have never felt fresher....What a GREAT feeling to boost my confidence with my run (since I've been a little nervous with my running speed). After a 15 minute warm-up, the main set was 3 minute @ half marathon pace (7:30), 1 minute walk recovery, 3 minutes easy pace. Repeated the set 4 times and with a 15 minute cool down, the workout ended up to be around 8 miles or so. Felt so good at the end I had to stop myself from running more. The afternoon bike workout with Sarah went well and I can tell she is enjoying being pushed by me. I worked her pretty hard and I ended up with 44 miles on my Seduza. What a day. As usual, Tuesdays are big days for me. Wednesday I taught spin and once again, worked them hard. I like for my class to visualize, so I mentally took them to Georgia and we did 3 BIG climbs. I jogged for an easy 20 minutes after the spin class and cooled down the body for an easy 500 swim. Didn't feel like pushing in the morning cause I wanted to save myself for the Wed. ride with the Gearlink guys that afternoon.
Well, after riding up to Landsbrook for the ride (about 12 miles), I was excited to push myself with the guys (and Roberta and Celia-two amazing female triathletes/cyclists!!!). The two loops of warm-up (each loop around 3 miles) went great and I was having fun on my road bike. The first loop of the workout was 26 mph and I was still hanging on. However, my cornering skills weren't the best yesterday and I kept falling behind on each of the 4 turns. It wasn't until the end of the 2 loop that I lost the boys. Errrrr. stupid corners. I think if we were going straight, I could have hung on. The pace was picking up for the guys (27+mph) and I knew I couldn't catch back up by myself. I headed home for 12 miles and I was a little bummed for the evening that I can ride in the mountains with the guys but can't stay on their wheels on the flats of Florida. Bummer :(
This morning I really wanted to rest my tired legs but I knew I needed to go to swim practice. If I didn't attend the practice at 5:30am, I'd still swim but I wouldn't push myself like I do with the group. Even though the workout was by myself today (that is-my own intervals) I absolutely love being in the water with everyone else. Hunter shared a lane with me and I am so amazed with his swimming in just a couple weeks of training for triathlons. Lots of the team members are training for Ironman 70.3 Florida so it is nice to be in the water with everyone. Today's set was 8 x 200 on 3 minutes, holding a breathing pattern of every 3,5,7,9 (each 50). Breathing every 7 is getting a bit more comfortable to me but I still struggle with breathing every 9. And then putting that together with making the interval per each 200, I was on the verge of mega lactate buildup. And if that wasn't enough, I laughed at Matt when he wanted me to do 8 x 50's all-out on 40 seconds...WHAT!!!!??? Well, the first one I made on 36 seconds. And then it was down hill for the next 3. I barely made them and it was touch and go as i was coming to the wall about 2 seconds off the cycle. Matt let me rest for a minute and told me that it was all mental. He told me to keep my stroke long, not get choppy and kick. I was determined to make the next four. 36, 37, 38 and 38!!!! YAY baby. With 2 seconds to spare I was making the cycle! I decided to scratch my long run today and postpone it until saturday. My body needs rest, I can tell. I normally wouldn't do this but with Disney in less than 3 weeks, I want to get the most of every workout and with two big workouts scheduled (long bike tomorrow and postponed today's long run until sat) I want to have two quality workouts. I will spin the legs for 90 minutes this afternoon and get myself ready for one of the last long training weekends for Ironman 70.3 Disney.
I'm off to Bradenton on fri until sun to help out and watch the 101 Bradenton Race. Should be exciting as a new racing distance!
Karel and Anthony are off in New Mexico for the tour. The courses are just brutal and yesterday's Time Trial was in awful wind and on and off rain. The course was 16 miles and consisted of a couple big climbs. What a time trail!!! Well, that isn't Karel's strength but he still did well. Today's race has a bunch of nasty climbs at the end of the 94 mile Road Race with climbs at 11-17%!!! Good luck guys!!!
Monday afternoon was an easy hour spin on the road bike and really enjoyed the warm Florida weather. Tuesday morning was rough and while several people enjoyed a recovery swim, there was no rest for Marni.
Main Set:
8 x 100 on 1:25
8 x 75 on 1 minute (yep-that was touch and go..barely made that!)
8 x 50 (25- free, 25- butterfly) on 50 sec (OUCH!)
Total yardage for the day: 4200
Running workout after the swim and my legs have never felt fresher....What a GREAT feeling to boost my confidence with my run (since I've been a little nervous with my running speed). After a 15 minute warm-up, the main set was 3 minute @ half marathon pace (7:30), 1 minute walk recovery, 3 minutes easy pace. Repeated the set 4 times and with a 15 minute cool down, the workout ended up to be around 8 miles or so. Felt so good at the end I had to stop myself from running more. The afternoon bike workout with Sarah went well and I can tell she is enjoying being pushed by me. I worked her pretty hard and I ended up with 44 miles on my Seduza. What a day. As usual, Tuesdays are big days for me. Wednesday I taught spin and once again, worked them hard. I like for my class to visualize, so I mentally took them to Georgia and we did 3 BIG climbs. I jogged for an easy 20 minutes after the spin class and cooled down the body for an easy 500 swim. Didn't feel like pushing in the morning cause I wanted to save myself for the Wed. ride with the Gearlink guys that afternoon.
Well, after riding up to Landsbrook for the ride (about 12 miles), I was excited to push myself with the guys (and Roberta and Celia-two amazing female triathletes/cyclists!!!). The two loops of warm-up (each loop around 3 miles) went great and I was having fun on my road bike. The first loop of the workout was 26 mph and I was still hanging on. However, my cornering skills weren't the best yesterday and I kept falling behind on each of the 4 turns. It wasn't until the end of the 2 loop that I lost the boys. Errrrr. stupid corners. I think if we were going straight, I could have hung on. The pace was picking up for the guys (27+mph) and I knew I couldn't catch back up by myself. I headed home for 12 miles and I was a little bummed for the evening that I can ride in the mountains with the guys but can't stay on their wheels on the flats of Florida. Bummer :(
This morning I really wanted to rest my tired legs but I knew I needed to go to swim practice. If I didn't attend the practice at 5:30am, I'd still swim but I wouldn't push myself like I do with the group. Even though the workout was by myself today (that is-my own intervals) I absolutely love being in the water with everyone else. Hunter shared a lane with me and I am so amazed with his swimming in just a couple weeks of training for triathlons. Lots of the team members are training for Ironman 70.3 Florida so it is nice to be in the water with everyone. Today's set was 8 x 200 on 3 minutes, holding a breathing pattern of every 3,5,7,9 (each 50). Breathing every 7 is getting a bit more comfortable to me but I still struggle with breathing every 9. And then putting that together with making the interval per each 200, I was on the verge of mega lactate buildup. And if that wasn't enough, I laughed at Matt when he wanted me to do 8 x 50's all-out on 40 seconds...WHAT!!!!??? Well, the first one I made on 36 seconds. And then it was down hill for the next 3. I barely made them and it was touch and go as i was coming to the wall about 2 seconds off the cycle. Matt let me rest for a minute and told me that it was all mental. He told me to keep my stroke long, not get choppy and kick. I was determined to make the next four. 36, 37, 38 and 38!!!! YAY baby. With 2 seconds to spare I was making the cycle! I decided to scratch my long run today and postpone it until saturday. My body needs rest, I can tell. I normally wouldn't do this but with Disney in less than 3 weeks, I want to get the most of every workout and with two big workouts scheduled (long bike tomorrow and postponed today's long run until sat) I want to have two quality workouts. I will spin the legs for 90 minutes this afternoon and get myself ready for one of the last long training weekends for Ironman 70.3 Disney.
I'm off to Bradenton on fri until sun to help out and watch the 101 Bradenton Race. Should be exciting as a new racing distance!
Karel and Anthony are off in New Mexico for the tour. The courses are just brutal and yesterday's Time Trial was in awful wind and on and off rain. The course was 16 miles and consisted of a couple big climbs. What a time trail!!! Well, that isn't Karel's strength but he still did well. Today's race has a bunch of nasty climbs at the end of the 94 mile Road Race with climbs at 11-17%!!! Good luck guys!!!
Doing All I Can
I know what I need to do for the next 2 weeks. Train my Butt Off!!!! I've been fairly smart about my training (for being self-coached) and I have had in my mind a sub 5 hour finish at Disney since I started training for this season back in Feb. After IMFL, I had a joyful 1 month off from anything structured and I stayed focused for for the Thanksgiving St.pete times 10K Turkey Trot!!! Actually, I was quite nervous for that one cause after doing an IM, I have no excuses for races for the rest of my life..especially a 10K!!! And seeing that Karel beat me (what's with those Czech cyclists!!!???) I was anxious to step up the training for the triathlon season. The winter was rough because I hurt my foot at the Miami Marathon and my running hasn't been up to par like I imagined it would be by now. Oh well. I would rather be injury free with two healthy feet than fast and in pain. I love this sport too much to hurt at the end of a long distance triathlon due to pain. I know I have plenty of time before Kona to step it up this summer. I'm rather happy with the improvements in my bike and I know I will see results at Ironman 70.3 Florida in 17 days.
Monday afternoon was an easy hour spin on the road bike and really enjoyed the warm Florida weather. Tuesday morning was rough and while several people enjoyed a recovery swim, there was no rest for Marni.
Main Set:
8 x 100 on 1:25
8 x 75 on 1 minute (yep-that was touch and go..barely made that!)
8 x 50 (25- free, 25- butterfly) on 50 sec (OUCH!)
Total yardage for the day: 4200
Running workout after the swim and my legs have never felt fresher....What a GREAT feeling to boost my confidence with my run (since I've been a little nervous with my running speed). After a 15 minute warm-up, the main set was 3 minute @ half marathon pace (7:30), 1 minute walk recovery, 3 minutes easy pace. Repeated the set 4 times and with a 15 minute cool down, the workout ended up to be around 8 miles or so. Felt so good at the end I had to stop myself from running more. The afternoon bike workout with Sarah went well and I can tell she is enjoying being pushed by me. I worked her pretty hard and I ended up with 44 miles on my Seduza. What a day. As usual, Tuesdays are big days for me. Wednesday I taught spin and once again, worked them hard. I like for my class to visualize, so I mentally took them to Georgia and we did 3 BIG climbs. I jogged for an easy 20 minutes after the spin class and loosed up the body for an easy 500 swim. Didn't feel like pushing in the morning cause I wanted to save myself for the Wed. ride with the Gearlink guys that afternoon.
Well, after riding up to Landsbrook for the ride (about 12 miles), I was excited to push myself with the guys (and Roberta and Celia-two amazing female triathletes/cyclists!!!). The two loops of warm-up (each loop around 3 miles) went great and I was having fun on my road bike. The first loop of the workout was 26 mph and I was still hanging on. However, my cornering skills weren't the best yesterday and I kept falling behind on each of the 4 turns. It wasn't until the end of the 2 loop that I lost the boys. Errrrr. stupid corners. I think if we were going straight, I could have hung on. The pace was picking up for the guys (27+mph) and I knew I couldn't catch back up by myself. I headed home for 12 miles and I was a little bummed for the evening that I can ride in the mountains with the guys but can't stay on their wheels on the flats of Florida. Bummer :(
This morning I really wanted to rest my tired legs but I knew I needed to go to swim practice. If I didn't attend the practice at 5:30am, I'd still swim but I wouldn't push myself like I do with the group. Even though the workout was by myself today (that is-my own intervals) I absolutely love being in the water with everyone else. Hunter shared a lane with me and I am so amazed with his swimming in just a couple weeks of training for triathlons. Lots of the team members are training for Ironman 70.3 Florida so it is nice to be in the water with everyone. Today's set was 8 x 200 on 3 minutes, holding a breathing pattern of every 3,5,7,9 (each 50). Breathing every 7 is getting a bit more comfortable to me but I still struggle with breathing every 9. And then putting that together with making the interval per each 200, I was on the verge of mega lactate buildup. And if that wasn't enough, I laughed at Matt when he wanted me to do 8 x 50's all-out on 40 seconds...WHAT!!!!??? Well, the first one I made on 36 seconds. And then it was down hill for the next 3. I barely made them and it was touch and go as i was coming to the wall about 2 seconds off the cycle. Matt let me rest for a minute and told me that it was all mental. He told me to keep my stroke long, not get choppy and kick. I was determined to make the next four. 36, 37, 38 and 38!!!! YAY baby. With 2 seconds to spare I was making the cycle! I decided to scratch my long run today and postpone it until saturday. My body needs rest, I can tell. I normally wouldn't do this but with Disney in less than 3 weeks, I want to get the most of every workout and with two big workouts scheduled (long bike tomorrow and long run on sat) I want to have two quality workouts. I will sping the legs for 90 minutes this afternoon and get myself ready for one of the last long training weekends.
I'm off to Bradenton on fri until sun to help out and watch the 101 Bradenton Race. Should be exciting as a new racing distance!
Karel and Anthony are off in New Mexico for the tour. The courses are just brutal and yesterday's Time Trial was in awful wind and on and off rain. The course was 16 miles and consisted of a couple big climbs. What a time trail!!! Well, that isn't Karel's strength but he still did well. Today's race has a bunch of nasty climbs at the end of the 94 mile Road Race with climbs at 11-17%!!! Good luck guys!!!
Monday afternoon was an easy hour spin on the road bike and really enjoyed the warm Florida weather. Tuesday morning was rough and while several people enjoyed a recovery swim, there was no rest for Marni.
Main Set:
8 x 100 on 1:25
8 x 75 on 1 minute (yep-that was touch and go..barely made that!)
8 x 50 (25- free, 25- butterfly) on 50 sec (OUCH!)
Total yardage for the day: 4200
Running workout after the swim and my legs have never felt fresher....What a GREAT feeling to boost my confidence with my run (since I've been a little nervous with my running speed). After a 15 minute warm-up, the main set was 3 minute @ half marathon pace (7:30), 1 minute walk recovery, 3 minutes easy pace. Repeated the set 4 times and with a 15 minute cool down, the workout ended up to be around 8 miles or so. Felt so good at the end I had to stop myself from running more. The afternoon bike workout with Sarah went well and I can tell she is enjoying being pushed by me. I worked her pretty hard and I ended up with 44 miles on my Seduza. What a day. As usual, Tuesdays are big days for me. Wednesday I taught spin and once again, worked them hard. I like for my class to visualize, so I mentally took them to Georgia and we did 3 BIG climbs. I jogged for an easy 20 minutes after the spin class and loosed up the body for an easy 500 swim. Didn't feel like pushing in the morning cause I wanted to save myself for the Wed. ride with the Gearlink guys that afternoon.
Well, after riding up to Landsbrook for the ride (about 12 miles), I was excited to push myself with the guys (and Roberta and Celia-two amazing female triathletes/cyclists!!!). The two loops of warm-up (each loop around 3 miles) went great and I was having fun on my road bike. The first loop of the workout was 26 mph and I was still hanging on. However, my cornering skills weren't the best yesterday and I kept falling behind on each of the 4 turns. It wasn't until the end of the 2 loop that I lost the boys. Errrrr. stupid corners. I think if we were going straight, I could have hung on. The pace was picking up for the guys (27+mph) and I knew I couldn't catch back up by myself. I headed home for 12 miles and I was a little bummed for the evening that I can ride in the mountains with the guys but can't stay on their wheels on the flats of Florida. Bummer :(
This morning I really wanted to rest my tired legs but I knew I needed to go to swim practice. If I didn't attend the practice at 5:30am, I'd still swim but I wouldn't push myself like I do with the group. Even though the workout was by myself today (that is-my own intervals) I absolutely love being in the water with everyone else. Hunter shared a lane with me and I am so amazed with his swimming in just a couple weeks of training for triathlons. Lots of the team members are training for Ironman 70.3 Florida so it is nice to be in the water with everyone. Today's set was 8 x 200 on 3 minutes, holding a breathing pattern of every 3,5,7,9 (each 50). Breathing every 7 is getting a bit more comfortable to me but I still struggle with breathing every 9. And then putting that together with making the interval per each 200, I was on the verge of mega lactate buildup. And if that wasn't enough, I laughed at Matt when he wanted me to do 8 x 50's all-out on 40 seconds...WHAT!!!!??? Well, the first one I made on 36 seconds. And then it was down hill for the next 3. I barely made them and it was touch and go as i was coming to the wall about 2 seconds off the cycle. Matt let me rest for a minute and told me that it was all mental. He told me to keep my stroke long, not get choppy and kick. I was determined to make the next four. 36, 37, 38 and 38!!!! YAY baby. With 2 seconds to spare I was making the cycle! I decided to scratch my long run today and postpone it until saturday. My body needs rest, I can tell. I normally wouldn't do this but with Disney in less than 3 weeks, I want to get the most of every workout and with two big workouts scheduled (long bike tomorrow and long run on sat) I want to have two quality workouts. I will sping the legs for 90 minutes this afternoon and get myself ready for one of the last long training weekends.
I'm off to Bradenton on fri until sun to help out and watch the 101 Bradenton Race. Should be exciting as a new racing distance!
Karel and Anthony are off in New Mexico for the tour. The courses are just brutal and yesterday's Time Trial was in awful wind and on and off rain. The course was 16 miles and consisted of a couple big climbs. What a time trail!!! Well, that isn't Karel's strength but he still did well. Today's race has a bunch of nasty climbs at the end of the 94 mile Road Race with climbs at 11-17%!!! Good luck guys!!!
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