off for a run...well, kinda...

...cuz you can't call a 50 mile ultra a "run"...
i wish i had some fancy and kewl vocabulary words to throw in here...
i don't so we will call it - CRAZY!
i'm looking forward to this "run" tomorrow for a few reasons.

• i will be out there with 5 terrific and wonderful friends.
• i have an awesome support/personal handler crew.
• i will be pushing myself beyond all of my physical limitations.
• i will learn new things about myself.
• i get to eat a really big, greasy hamburger and french fries when i finish.

although i have run this race twice before, there is something different about this year.

i feel different.

not in some weird way, but as in, about me...

i have made a lot of progress with myself this past race year - dealt with demons, came to amazing realizations...

so, for me, to end this year, with this race, with these friends and this mindset, well, that in itself is what will make tomorrow epic for ME.

- now here's just hoping i finish!

run happy!

-dee

It's Official - I Am A Volunteer!

So, after a few missed calls and some hurried texts today, my partner in crime, EAH and I signed up for our  IronMan Florida Volunteer positions.
We perused the site together, going over our top picks (unfortunately Wet-Suit Strippers and Body Marking were already full...boo!) but I think we decided on a good plan - start in the a.m, have a nice break mid-race to scope out the course, see some great race moments, grab dinner and then head to the second shift - here's what we decided and got!

Dear Dee 
Thank you for your volunteer request(s) for the Ford Ironman Florida. You have selected the following position(s):

Job Position.......: Men's Chg Tent Shift 1 (Yep, this says Men's Changing Tent, not too shabby)
Date...............: 11/05/2011
Time...............: 07:00 AM - 10:00 AMLocation...........: Transition


Job Position.......: Catcher (Finish Line Catcher, uh huh, likely and capable of catching hot, tired, sweaty men)
Date...............: 11/05/2011
Time...............: 06:00 PM - 09:00 PM
Location...........: Finish

All joking aside...this is going to be a fun and inspirational trip!
-d

A Mile, A Milestone, A Moment of Clarity.

About 3 months ago, I received an innocent event invite on FaceBook...
Someone posted something along the lines of "come out to the lake and swim a mile"...
I thought it looked cool, I knew I would need the practice so, after checking my calendar, I clicked "Yes" on the RSVP and truly forgot about it.
About two weeks before the swim's date of July 9th, I got an email reminding me to sign up.
So, on the night of July 3rd, I went to the page to sign up for this casual, fun, relaxed...What? Um, no, more like a Virginia Masters Swimming Race!
Okay, let's not pretend here...I am NOT a swimmer. As you may have heard, I am more of a Swailer (swim + fail = swail) 
After thinking about it though, I decided I really didn't have anything to lose, well at least nothing other than $50 and my pride, so I signed up.
The next morning I got an email from Dave, the race director. He noticed I hadn't seeded myself for the swim waves and needed to know where to place me?
How do you say "can you place me in the spot where I am least likely to be embarrassed by my inability to swim?"
Instead, I was honest, told him I was a beginner and was unsure how long it would take me BUT that I WOULD FINISH.
Saturday morning I woke up nervous - I know this because I did everything in my power to delay leaving in hopes I would be late or hit traffic and miss the start. And then it started...the string of posts, emails and texts from some really wonderful friends - good luck wishes, positives vibes...I got in the car and off I went.
As I was driving that long and lonely stretch of 64West, I was overthinking everything that could happen, then I reached across the passenger seat for a banana and there.it.was...

THE CD...made for me...with love from G! I popped it in and that was it. My mind was clear, my nerves were gone and, well, I was about to swim a mile - with real swimmers, and I was going to be fine.

Here is the view I saw as I was walking to check-in.

As I got my #90 (out of 103) etched into my bicep, I observed the 2-mile swimmers were half way thru their allotted 2 hour time slot, I had 45 minutes to kill so I setup my spot and took to the water's edge. I scoped out a few people with numbers close to mine.
Maybe I wasn't so nuts after all - there were quite a few first timers here and they were all just like me.
I felt so at ease and comfortable - like this group of athletes, some elite and some newbies, offered a
slightly-nervous and inexperienced swailer a giant group hug.
I lined up in the 9th row for the race and suddenly, I think, I heard a blast of an air horn and that was it.
I started slow and easy with freestyle, breathing every three strokes...nice...why is the water so warm here?
Hey, a kayaker...eww, seaweed...ick, I swallowed water...It pretty much went like this for the entire time. But the entire time seemed to fly by. I obviously am not one to focus when I swim. Oooh, a guy doing butterfly (show off), I need to pee...ouch, kicked in the head...
I really can't tell you much more than that - I have no clue what I thought, saw, did, other than I swam.
I swam for 45 minutes and 51 seconds!
I FINISHED - I cross the finish buoys and grabbed my Popsicle stick with a huge smile!
I was number #85! I had done it.



This is all I could do for hours!

Which brought me to the next conclusion...

Why did I limit myself sometimes from things I want to do?

Is there really anything on my "list" that I can't do? Or am I just blocking my own path because of my own fear of failure.

So, today I made a HUGE decision.
A decision that will change everything about the next calendar year for me.
A decision that will get me to the place I have "talked about" wanting to go for, well, at least a year now...

November 5th, 2011, I will volunteer at http://ironmanflorida.com/
AND this will guarantee me an entry into that very race for November 2012.
There, I said it.
Phew.
I can't wait!
-d

Run

I run...

a lot...

It's the single, most-best loved thing I do FOR ME.

Sometimes I run solo...

More often, I run with friends...

Sometimes I do crazy races...

But all in all, the same result...I run because I love it.

I run because I can.

I can't think of any one thing I would rather do for myself.

It's mine.

It's mine to enjoy alone.

It's mine to share with others.

It's just mine...all mine.

Selfish? Maybe...

Get it?

Why do you run?

-d

What Was I Thinking???

I like a challenge...
Okay, major understatement!
I LOVE a challenge...
I love a challenge with competition...
So today I started (thanks to G over at nofsahmof3) "The Ab Gauntlet Part II". 
Tony and I will have our "date" for 15 minutes a day, 4 times a week plus one dedicated cross-train (no run) day.
Good. I like it.
Check.
I ALSO joined another challenge...The 90 Day Challenge...starts Monday, June 6th and ends Monday, September 5th, 5 mandatory workout days a week.
Good. I like this too.
Check.
I have committed to 3 days a week (M,W,F) with Next Level Fitness AND 4 run days a week (one double for 5 total runs) with HCB!
Somewhere amid all of this I have to start swimming at least 2 times a week and cycling 2-3 times a week.
I think I might be insane, but I really am not at all freaked out about it.
Lately I have been feeling, well, in a word...GREAT!
I say that with caution because I have an inner voice that reminds me everyday that I am only human and that "things" happen,
I promise to put my home life first.
My job is stressful.
I won't compromise quality for quantity.
AND I won't give less than 110% at anything I do.
All I can say at this point is...What was I thinking?
Hang on, it's gonna be a crazy ride!


-d

To Swim Or To Swail???

It's that time of year again...

Yep, the glorious and wonderful, sucky time of year...it's time for me to get in the pool.

Don't get me wrong - I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the pool.

Me, a towel, a lounge chair, a new, crisp tabloid ripe for reading...

Buuuuuuuuuuuuut, it's not that kind of pool AND it's not that kind of relationship.

This one is dislike/dislike!

This kinda says it all...

Yeah, that's how I feel about my "swim".

Pretty huh?

Not.

I wish I loved my swim the way I love my run, the way I love my bike, heck, I'd even settle for a slight like at this point. But I don't.

I am not buoyant. I am not graceful, and I am by absolutely NO MEANS, fast. I am more like, well, a brick...with limbs...that flail...out of sync.

Sad.

So I decided to embrace my non-swim talent. I gave it a name: swim + flail = swail.

I will be good at swailing, I will enjoy swailing, I will embrace swailing...and maybe, just maybe, one day, I will LOVE swailing?

And then by my first race day THIS season, I might look more like this:

Please keep me and my swail in your thoughts and prayers!

-d

Okay, it's here...and it's Mighty BIG Bite!

My new training schedule/cycle for my fall marathon.
Yikes.
I decided after reading T's plan @ "racingwithbabes", that I was in...if she would be so kind to share (which she was) and so I figured I had nothing to lose.
In the past, when my coaching for MTT started in June, I was on a Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday run schedule.
Along with my weekly cross-training, I would squeeze in short runs and/or bikes along with swimming (which I hate) when I could.
So, this new plan totally changes things.
I have committed to 5 runs a weeks, a big step up BUT lower miles, shorter long runs, tempos and speed work.
Admittedly, I am somewhat nervous with change involved.
But, in all honesty, I CAN finish a marathon, I am NOT trying for a BQ and I have support, so why not?
I have cross-training Monday, Wednesday and Friday am, a standing "date" of cycle with G @ nofsahmof3 once a week, and unfortunately, I will begin SWIMMING this weekend.
You see, the other side of this is...not only will I be coaching Novice Marathoners for 95% of my training cycle BUT I also have 4 Triathlons, a half marathon and various other race commitments during this time.
I worried a bit what my husband would say when he "remembered" I had a new plan, but tonight I got the sweetest text.
I ran this morning and cycled with G at lunch and knew I had my first speed work session tonight, which would delay dinner a bit. I cringed as I texted the reminder to Bob but his reply made me feel so good...and I quote "I am proud of how well you take care of yourself baby."
This was where I let out my SIGH of relief.
Okay, so it's here. One day is done. 3 workouts complete.
I can DO THIS!
Hell or high water, I can do this.
Giddy up!
-d