Iron Team Keeps Me Moving!

Is it bad that I can't wait to get home from spin tonight and get back into bed?  I didn't want to get out of bed today, but I knew I had to finally clean up after Christmas dinner and I knew I would eventually have to get up to go to spin, so I thought I might as well be a little productive today.  So I got up, washed the dishes, went grocery shopping, baked cookies, made turkey and black bean quesadillas, did my laundry, and returned presents to Target and then got a new sports bra, workout top and cute pair of black pants.  Now I am sitting around waiting for it to be time to go to spin, and I just want to curl up in bed, take my heart rate monitor off (it's at 68 right now) and turn on netflix.

But alas, Iron Team is getting me out of bed.  Actually they got me out of bed on Sunday too.  I had a little to drink on Christmas (which wasn't necessarily a little, but was definitely less than what I used to drink), and Sunday morning I so did not want to get out of bed.  But I knew my team was waiting for me, and I thought I just had a 35 mile ride, so I got up and went.  Funny thing is that it ended up being a 35 mile ride full of hills, and a 70 minute run full of hills, and then core.  But after it was done, I was so happy.  It felt so good to be able to know that I worked out for 4 and a half hours the day after Christmas.  I didn't need to worry about the extra chocolates I had eaten.

Me finishing 35 mile ride and then 70 minute run!  I think you would stick your tongue out too!

I really love Iron Team...I think this winter would have been full of a lot of excuses to stay inside (and stay in bed).  But the team gets me out and gets me doing things...and it's an extra bonus that everyone is so great.

Me on the phone during core having to postpone my lunch plans, because training still wasn't over!

And we are always full of spirit!

Christmas Week Training

 This week has been so much fun! I got to finally go to spin class on Tuesday at Studio Balanza...who knew we would also get a dance workout after spin? And then, what a treat, the sun came out on Thursday and I got to get a tan while I swam. Hee hee that rhymes!

2011 is Going to Be an Awesome Year!

I never knew how hard it was to be a model...I mean I should have figured, since when I filmed that commercial last summer, it was so much more difficult than I thought. Who knew Team in Training was going to make me into a star?  Hee hee, just kidding.

Anyway, 2011 is going to be an awesome year, especially since everyone can now have a 2011 Girls That Give Calendar to inspire them all year long.  13 ladies who decided to do something with their lives and give back.  All of them have now run marathons or completed triathlons and are helping to find a cure for cancer!

The shoot was so much fun, and I just have to thank everyone that participated.  Thank you to all the girls who gave up their Sunday afternoon to sit for hours while we got the perfect shot.  Thank you to Rocky, my mentor, for convincing his lovely wife to be one of those ladies, and for helping to direct us all day, and thank you especially to Jose, who donated his time and all of his photos, so that we can really use this calendar to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  And thank you to Club One in Oakland who let us use their amazing facilities all afternoon!

If you want to order one, go to this link: https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dDI2eV9MZUFteE05ODQ3MzdUSEZGN2c6MQ#gid=0

Triple Brick

Yep, that's what I said...triple brick.  But wait, that's not all, first we swam for about an hour and a half.  All in all, I think we did about an Olympic distance triathlon today and this was just a training!

The pool was fun, but I can't wait til we get to go in open water!  (Please remind me I said this when I am hating open water swims in February).  After the swim we did:

30 minute spin
20 minute run
30 minute spin
20 minute run
30 minute spin
15 minute run

The good thing is I feel great! 

See, this is me after the running.  Still smiling!

Ironman Christmas Carol

See it was fun!

Ok, so 4:30 am wasn't that much fun.  It SUCKS getting out of bed that early.  But by 4:34 when I had my swimsuit on, I wasn't feeling so bad, and by 4:38 when I was in the car listening to Ke$ha and Shakira, I was getting pumped. 

The  best thing about getting up that early is no one is going to see you, so no need to bother with makeup!

And the pool is usually empty at 24 hour fitness, or at least the people in the pool are swimming laps, and not just lounging around getting in your way.

And if you wake up that early you have a chance to swim and take a spin class, which as long as you take it on Wednesdays with Tracy, it totally rocks!

(yes, I put a little mascara on for the spin class...I mean there are other people there, and I didn't want to torture them)

NOW DON'T YOU WANT TO GET UP AT 4:30 AM AND DO THE SAME THING?

There IS something fun about 4:30 in the morning

Contrary to popular belief, I believe there is something fun about 4:30 in the morning...ok, maybe the word isn't fun...but definitely something rewarding!  And I am going to prove it to you all.  I am super tired right now. It's 10pm at night.  I have not gone to bed like a good Ironman at 7pm, but I am still waking up tomorrow at 4:30am.  I am going to go to the gym and swim and then take a spin class...and I will prove that it is rewarding.  How am I going to do that?  Well I don't know yet.  Stop asking so many questions.  Just be prepared to want to start waking up that early once you hear how wonderful it is!!!!

Sometimes It's Hard

I just had a great weekend. Full of Christmas parties, fundraisers, and training.  (Not too much studying...but I still have one night to cram for my final), but last Thursday was a pretty hard day.  I woke up really tired, maybe because it was 4:45 in the morning. But I am not always that tired.  I went to the gym and tried to do my core workout and an hour spin class.  I didn't get through the core before the spin class started, so I just decided I was ok with that.  Then I went to spin and it was so boring.  The instructor had sucky music and I kept wanting to fall asleep...so finally I left at 6:45...instead of staying until 7am. 

Now I don't know what it was that day...and most days I have tons of energy and am super happy about everything, but all day long I was plagued by old insecurities and doubts that have almost become unfamiliar to me.  But Thursday, all day they were with me, dragging me back to a place that I hoped I had left for good.  Now, I considered not writing about this, because I don't like to bring people down and talk about things that could be depressing, but the other part of me realized that one of the reasons I am writing this blog is because I hope everyone sees that they can do exactly what I am doing.  If you put your mind to something, you can achieve it.  And if I only write about how great everything is, then it might seem like I am different, and am leading some sort of blessed life.  And although I do feel very blessed, some days I just feel like crap about myself. 

I was thinking about all of this on Thursday, and then I started thinking about what I have been doing lately with my life...and what I will be doing, what I am working towards.  And some how the dark cloud started to dissipate. 

I believe two things.
1. Everyone CAN do something incredible, something that they never thought they had the ability to do. It doesn't have to be a triathlon or marathon, but anything you find truly challenging.
2. Everyone SHOULD do something incredible, something they never thought they had the ability to do.  I realize that challenging myself and seeing that there aren't limits where I thought there were has helped me so much.  When I have those dark days, I am able to get out of them because I think about everything I am doing, and all the wonderful people I am doing it with.  And I also think about all the people who would give anything to be healthy enough to challenge themselves.  Training for an Ironman will probably make me more physically healthy, but what I know it is doing is making me more emotionally and spiritually healthy, and that's something everyone should give themselves.

I'm Training for an Ironman

Thankful for the Small Things

Twice today I was thankful that I don't have to wear underwear with my bike pants.  The first time was this morning when I had woken up at 6:30 to get ready to go for a ride in Pleasanton.  I kind of freaked out, because it was early and I was having a very weird dream (too weird to post about here, but if you ask me about it, I may tell you).  So I had put a pile of all the clothes I was going to use on my ride in the middle of my floor, and as I was going through the pile kind of frantically so I could get ready on time, and for a second a felt a slight serge of panic, because I hadn't taken any underwear out to wear.  I know it's not that big of deal to have to get some from the drawer, but I would have had to decide on the style, and cut, and what matched my sports bra, etc...but then I realized, that I don't need to wear underwear with bike pants.  So I had a little moment of thankfulness.

But I didn't get to be thankful about this just once today, but twice.  On my way home from the ride, after I had delivered poinsettias and door hangings and was running late for a date, I had to pull off the freeway to get gas, rearrange my bike, and go to the bathroom.  I was in a super rush and I was a little worried about leaving my bike on my car, so  as I ran into the bathroom to go pee, the thought occurred to me how much faster it was going to be because I only had to pull down my pants...no underwear to deal with.  So I was thankful once again.

Maybe I should wear bike pants more often!

Super Scared

I have to do my 2 mile marker after work today.  That means I need to go to the gym and run as fast as I can for 2 miles.  Ugh...and I thought I was nervous about the swim marker.  The funny thing is, I am not nervous about what time I will get, because I know it won't be that fast.  I may break 20 minutes, but not by much.  What I am nervous about is how it is going to feel.  I don't know how people go fast, because it's so painful.  Maybe not even physically, but mentally, to keep yourself going, and going, and going.  Margo will be there to pace me.  Last time we did a tempo run I ended up running faster than I thought I would, and it wasn't even that bad.  So maybe today won't be that bad either.  I mean, it's just 2 miles, right?  I can do anything for two miles.



Sure, she looks all sweet and innocent, holding Frunkey, the fundraising monkey.  But she's about to kick my ass in about 3 hours!

Didn't Want to Do It!

My alarm went off this morning at 5:45am.  I sleep with an electric blanket, so it was all warm and cozy in my bed, and freezing in my bedroom.  I had a swim marker to do today.  Which is swim 1000 yards (40 lengths of the pool) for time.  Since 24 Hour Fitness has short pools I had planned on going to El Cerrito Community Pool...which is outdoors.

When the alarm went off, I turned it off, convinced myself I could do the swim marker this weekend and maybe get in a swim after class tonight indoors at 24 Hour Fitness.  I reset the alarm for 7am.  Then I lay in bed for a minute thinking about it....and I realized I just needed to do it.  Nike was so smart when they came up with that marketing ploy...because it is so true.  Just Do It.  That needs to be my mantra.

So I got up, put my suit on and went to the pool.  Lucky for me it was heated, so once I was in the water I was ok.  We had to do 1000 yards of warm up and drills before we started the marker, and it's funny, the whole time I was doing those I was dreading the marker.  Swimming is my best sport out of the three...but I really hate anything that makes me push myself.  A little ironic, I know. I love endurance sports, but I hate pushing myself! Anyway, the warm up and drills came to an end and it was time to start the marker.  When I started it, I realized "It's only 40 laps" that's like two 500s and I used to race 500s in high school.  It really wasn't going to be too bad.  So I checked the clock, took my first breathe, and started swimming at the a pace faster than was comfortable.  I did 1000 yards in 18 minutes and 24 seconds, I think. I lost count at 21 for a second and thought I was on 23, but couldn't remember, so I dropped back down to 21, so maybe I did an extra 50.  So I guess actually this isn't the greatest marker, since I don't really know if I did the correct distance.  Lucky me, I guess I will be doing another swim marker this weekend.

But you know, I don't regret getting up this morning.  In fact, when I was done with the swim and walking to the parking lot, my 7am alarm went off (I use my phone). And I smiled, thinking I had almost stayed in bed. It was a really good feeling!

Me leaving the pool.  You know there is something a little wrong with having to wear your snow gear to go swimming.  I miss the summer!