GOALS- New & Achieved

I have been reflecting on this journey, and it's so amazing to me, that just a little over a year ago I was pondering the idea whether or not I could run a 5K someday. I still ponder the thought of running the whole thing.. but I know I will DO IT!! I feel like nothing is out of my reach now. Okay so it's taking me forever to lose the 104 pounds I set out to lose, but I've come so far physically and mentally in this process, and just all around HAPPY. God get's the glory. He is my Father running along side of me. How do people live without HIM??

Goals Achieved: Besides the Triathlons, Santa Monica 5K, and the -44 pounds.. the biggest thing I have accomplished is the way I think about food. When we are out of town, I dislike very much eating foods I know aren't doing anything for me.. and actually poisoning me. I physically feel very sick to my stomach. When we get home and I eat better my stomach is better! Crazy! Who would have thought?

I have many non fitness related goals, such as, getting Shane fully potty trained, getting organized and on a better schedule, reading more, creating more delicious meals for my family, more time with God, witness to more people and more.

My fitness goals are:
*Finish at least 3 more Sprint Triathlon's~ Next one scheduled for 10-23-10
*Finish a 25 mile cycle event~Hoping to do Bike the Coast 11-6-10
*Complete the Couch 2 5K plan~Starting TODAY (yes I just couldn't wait till Monday)
*Run a whole 5K with out stopping~Scheduled for 11-27-10 Santa Monica Gobble Wobble ( I switched)
*Run a 10K with out stopping 12-11-10 Can I do it so soon after 5K? I think so!
*Do an Olympic distant triathlon~Avia Wildflower Olympic distance 5-2-11 1.5K swim, 40K bike 10k run (this one is very hard, with lots of hills, so I will try to find an easier one around this time that's not in the ocean) & Morgan Hill Sprint Tri 5-15-11 (called a Sprint but really more like an Olympic.. 3/4 mile swim, 15 mile bike 5 mile run.
*Run a half marathon~2-6-11 (Shane's 3rd birthday!) Really want to do this one... but that's really soon for a half marathon.. so we'll see. It's by the beach!
*A dualathon
* A Mud Run [they look super fun]

So these are all hopes, but I need finances for them all, gas to get there, gear ect.

That's all for now.. more once I accomplish these. Notice they all happen before August 11? Well I HOPE to be at goal by then and we do want more children.. even though timing is ultimately up to God! So if He allows this schedule, and we still live in So. Cal, I will strive to do this schedule. I know the running goals seem impossible.. I am going to work hard and do my best.

Almost there!

I weighed in this morning. I know.. I know.. only been one day. But I felt like I was bloated yesterday from the weekend and maybe eating right yesterday helped that and I would have a little loss. And I did!! 200.0 Soooo close! I am going to weigh again on Thursday because we are having our Strength and Beauty meeting, so hopefully we will see 199! That's a total of -44 pounds now. So motivated!

Davey was looking at our bank last night and realized we were charged $60 from Active.com for a membership!! I never sighed up for one! I called this morning and found out they actually charged us twice! Once in April and once in September. Apparently unless you click a small "No thank you" they automatically charge you for a membership when you use them to register for an event. So good news is they are refunding us $120! I decided to surprise Davey and use $50 of that to sign him up for this. It's a WAR 5K! It has obstacle courses and mud mounds and all kinds of fun things, and it's very close to home. He really wants to do events also but will never pay for them himself, so I surprised him. I know he will say, "We could have used that money for....!" but underneath that he will be so excited. Now he has something to train for. Yay!

I was looking at 5K's for me as well and I choose this one. I can't pay for it now though, but that's OK because it's not until December 11. I am so excited to train for it. It is 10.5 weeks away and the couch to 5k plan I am going to do is a 9 week program. I plan to start on Monday of next week! Yay.

Now... I also really want to do this triathlon and this cycle event. The cycle event is reasonably cheap, it's 26 mile ride in the city I live. The triathlon is much cheaper than most because it's at a college campus in a pool, only an hour away from home. They both don't require any gear I don't already have. Oh what to do what to do?? Well, I registered for the triathlon! Yikes. Why did I do that? And there are no refunds! Oh well, it was practically free with the refund from Active.com. I will think about the cycle event. It would be fun and good training for a bigger tri. It doesn't require any gas or any gear, so really just the small fee. We'll see.

See Jane Run Triathlon Finisher!!

Above is after the race, below is before the race.
Just got the results!! Finished in 1:53:02 (1 hour, 53 min, 2 seconds). Yesss!! Swim: 10:34
T1: 5:26 Bike: 49:19 T2: 1:49 Run: 45:50 (If I can improve run time it will cut so much time out).

Praise God I did it and finished strong! Before I go into detail I will say I am so happy with my performance. I did much better than my first time. I rocked the bike course. The swim was good & challenging, and the run was tough. Event was EXTREMELY unorganized. Many many upset people. I was okay with it all though, I just had fun.

Me & Cody waiting for my wave. Swim caps are so ugly. I know.
Finally started! And another wave! I still have a while though.
Friday September 24-
We left at 1:00 pm, got gas and snacks and hit the road. I was trying to buy something healthy for me for a snack in the car, so I got a bag of pistachios. Note to self: next road trip bring own snacks. Gas stations have no healthy option! So I start snacking on them and about 20 pistachios later I noticed my mouth starting to itch and swell. What's going on?! I am not allergic to any nuts... at least I didn't use to be. Thank God I brought Benadryl to take to get a good nights sleep. I took 2, and it helped my mouth. Then my stomach started acting funny. We had to stop 3 times! I was in so much pain and wondered if it was the nuts or if I was getting a bug. I was getting dehydrated but felt like if I drank too much I'd throw up. I was stressing out, but felt so sick I didn't care about anything but getting to my grandparents and laying down. I took Imodium, Tums, and Gas X. I then felt like I was sick from all the medications!
We made good time and got to my grandparents by 6:30pm even with stopping 3 times. I felt a bit better by then and knew I needed to energy from the dinner my grandma made specially for us, so I at pasta, yams, carrots, and chicken and a muffin (yum) and felt much better. Now I was just worried about my tummy acting up during the race. I got all my stuff laid out, put the boys to bed, took more Benadryl and went to bed by 9:00 pm.

Race Day, Saturday September 25-
I had a good nights rest, and woke up at 4:30 am. I had an Ensure (could only get one down) ate the oatmeal and banana my grandma had made for me, she french braided my hair, and then the boys woke up. My grandma made the boys and Davey eggs and bacon while I got dressed. My tummy was a little finiky, but not too bad. I took an Imodium just in case. We left my grandma's at 6:15 am and got to the park at about 6:30 am. It was still dark, but soooo exciting seeing all the ladies getting their bikes ready and getting ready to race. My favorite things was seeing all the husbands who came and put their wife's bike together than take care of the kids while their mommy went and rocked a triathlon. It was an amazing experience. There were also a lot of ladies that did the race with friends.

The atmosphere was very laid back, not many super competitive ladies racing, it was really more for fun, for a liberating experience. It was a great triathlon for beginners. BUT I noticed, the staff was still setting up the transition area and the Bike Out path. I thought that was odd. I got my bib and timing chip and swim cap. We had some time, so I went and felt the water, not to bad. I decided to go set up my bike in transition area.. here comes more disorganization. In Avia you had a designated spot for your bike by bib number. If I would have known that people were setting up where ever, not in their own rows, I would have went right away and got a spot. Lucky for me a nice lady moved over so I could go next to her. Completely chaotic. I laid out my towel under where my bike was hanging, set another towel folded next to my shoes, socks, hat, and shirt with my bib umber pinned on. I laid out my wetsuit, body glide, and goggles down (still had about 30 minuets before race began and once you get your wetsuit on very hard to go potty). I had my fanny pack strapped to my bike with my inhaler, chap stick and gels inside it. Helmet hanging on the bike with glasses inside.

Went and found Davey and the boys, went to the bathroom, and went back to get my wetsuit on. Going back into the transition area to get ready, I couldn't find my bike!! Because.... there were no visible signs with numbers on them. Oh gosh. Took me like 5 minuets to find my bike. I should have brought a balloon to tie to my rack. Finally found my bike, got all suited up, and went to wait by the shore with Davey and the boys. 5 minuets to starting time, no signs of starting. 5 minuets late, 10, 20, 30 minuets later the first wave finally goes. I had to pee twice while waiting, and wearing my wetsuit. What an ordeal. Then, you'd think the waves would be organized by age or something. Nope. I was in the 7th wave! Very last wave. The waves were every five minuets I would guess.

When my age group, which was 19-25 by the way instead of how it said it would be online 25-29 [much better for me to race being at the youngest end of my group instead of oldest] lined up, there were only about 25 of us! Every other group had at least 100. Weird huh? Well it was good and bad, good because no one kicked me in the face or trampled me in the water, bad because less to compete with, harder to get in the higher percentage.

Swim-
When the horn blew we were on our way. It was much less competitive feeling. I hit the water and ran as far as I could, which turned out to be a very good strategy I wasn't planning, but got me ahead of most. Then I dove in and started swimming. I was in the front with a couple of others for a good part of the way, but my breathing started to feel restricted and I slowed down. I did back stroke. I would alternate between free style and back stroke. One time while doing back stroke was going sideways in the wrong direction, probably cost me 45 seconds! Finally I see ground, and I swim fast as I can until it's shallow enough to run out. I run out see Davey and the boys and run to transition. Which by the way was far away, and had to run through mud, and jump over concrete block. Disorganized.
Me right before we took off. I look like the biggest in the bunch! But their were much bigger participating. One lady 300+ pounds. No joke.
I have the pink on under my suit. In the front closest to the camera. Here I am passing women with pink caps that started in the wave before me. I am the second green cap.. not the one right in front. Out of the water! On to T1
T1-
I got to my bike, tore off my wetsuit, threw on my shirt (btw I did have to wear just my sports bra under my wetsuit because I didn't have any where to put my bib, and it was so fast, no one was looking, and it was all woman..), slipped on my socks and shoes, ate a few gels, had a couple bites of protein bar, put on my hat and glasses, put on my helmet, uh-oh! strap was too tight with my hat on.. cost me at least 30 seconds, drank some water and Gatorade and jumped on my bike and was out of there.

Bike-
Waved to Davey and the boys (can I just say how much I love them for cheering me on so much?!!), up a pretty steep hill out of the park, then a flat busy road. I caught my breath, had some more water, used my inhaler, got passed by a woman and once I caught my breath... I took off. I powered through the wind fighting against us. I passed the lady that passed me, and continued to pass woman right and left. I felt strong and powerful on my bike. It was a smooth course, and the road tires I got last week for my bike helped a lot, although my bike is at least 8 pounds heavier if not more than all the other ladies with 8 pound road bikes. That didn't slow me down though. My legs were pumping the whole time, I barley ever rested them, even while going down hill. There were a few hills, but I never got off my bike (Yesssss!!!!!). "On your Right!! On your left!!" I was shouting all the time as I passed woman. I kept thinking, why are they going so slow? It must be because they are pacing themselves because they know whats ahead. But a lot of them looked so worn out already.
I came up to an intersection and was stopped by CHP!! It was only for a minuet or so but later I found out a lot of woman were stopped for 5-10 minuets! Again.. disorganized. They are trying to work out all these problems that is why I don't know my exact time yet. Hopefully today I will. I passed a beautiful winery on a gradual slope, not too bad though. Then hit the U turn and went back.
Around mile 8 we hit a very steep hill, most people were walking their bikes up. A cycle man (not in the race, again, another disorganized factor) was going up too, and I passed everyone, and kept up with him side by side. Going down hill I saw my grandparents on the corner yelling and waving at me!! I was so excited to see them. At this point they think I am super last because the race started so late and I was the last wave and they saw many others ride by before me. But I passed many woman that started before me, and I could tell by the number on their calf which was their age. (BTW I got compliments on my pink bike :)
Saw Davey and the boys as I rode in, feeling great and knowing I did awesome on the bike, I was ready for the run. But once my feet hit the group my legs gave out and my knees felt like jello. I shook it off and ran to T2.

T2-
Mounted my bike, took off my helmet, had some Gatorade and powerbar, stuffed my inhaler in my bra and ran for the run out. Davey is yelling, "Run hard babe!" and I remembered I forgot to check my phone in my fanny pack to see my bike time (was about 9:05 am when I started) and I shouted to Davey "what time is it?" and a volunteer said almost 10:00 am! Whoo! I quickly realized that I had done the bike course in about 50 minuets!! Whoo hoo! I can make my goal, which is to finish the whole thing in under 2 hours! But this tri is longer than my first, and I had to run an extra mile...

Run-
I wanted to run as soon as I started, but needed to catch my breath. I realized the run course was all trail, up and down hills. Running is my weakest area, so I caught my breath and ran...slow. I ran walked the 3.1 miles. I kept thinking of making it in under 2 hours. I pushed but had such a killer side ache! I chatted with some woman, one lady said I was super strong on the bike! Most I talked to it was their first tri. I noticed ladies passing me and they were in the first waves, which meant I somehow past them on the bike. I was bummed that I was losing time because I was slow. But I kept going, running as much as possible, and when I saw the race was nearing the end, I ran hard and about that time I entered the park and heard Shane yelling, "Go Mommy! I love you so much!" and my mother in law and littlest sister in law had come and were cheering me on! I felt great and I ran all the way to the finish where Davey and Cody were waiting.

Praise God I finished!! The time when I finished was 2 hours 24 minuets, but that is based on the FIRST wave, and I was the 7th! So if I am correct, and the waves were every 5 minuets about.. let's just say I went 30 minuets after the first wave, that means I finished in 1 hour 54 minuets! I am not positive because I didn't have a watch, and the results still are not posted, but I hope that's about right!

I loved this expirience and can't wait for another tri. One good thing about not moving to Ohio is California has many many triathlons, so I'm in no rush to do another. Davey wants to do one, so when we can afford it, he will do the next one. I am going to focus on my running, and in time I am going to try and run a whole 5K. I'll need a running schedule, and some friends have told me of some that I want to try.
I just want to mention who my thoughts were on while tri-ing.. The Lord first, and praying for strength, Davey and the boys who ARE my motivation. My grandparents, Aunt Sherry, Tori, and Lucy who sponsored me and with out them I couldn't have done it. My Mom and Dad and Mother in law for telling me how proud they are of me. Sara I thought of you often, was glad you did an organized event for your first tri. :) Kimberlynn, who I thought many women there looked like you (seriously). LOL. Turtle.. kept saying to myself while running, "Slow and Steady". And my loved Strength and Beauty ladies who were praying for me while I was racing! Thank you Denise, Jocelynn, Alex, Katrina, and Melody. And so many more people who motivate me!

I am also happy to report that I am back down 2 pounds. Yay! I am tracking again starting today and hope to be past the huge milestone I've been trying to reach by next weigh in!

Pumped

My burden is lifted. By His grace.
Well the morning was going well, boys slept in until 8:00 am. We got up, then I heard the street sweeper..... noooooo!!! I grabbed my keys, ran outside, in my pj's holding my chest (no bra on), running to my van, get in and the sweeper is literally right behind me. Ah!! I pulled into my neighbors drive way, let him pass, backed up in front of our home. We don't have a driveway, it's an old 1953 home, garage in the back. I see they already gave me a ticket.. man!! Davey's gonna be so mad at me! I called him to tell him (bad idea) and he was mad, and more mad I called because he was already having a bad morning. Opps..
I prayed and read my bible, and oh how good God is. Is my devotions this morning I read, Proverbs 24:16 "For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief." I felt like God was telling me, "Not everything will be perfect, but don't give up, get back up and keep going." I struggle with the thought of God caring about my desire to do triathlons, to lose weight, ect.. I feel like He is too busy for that. Lie from the Devil! In the other chapter I read, was this verse, Psalm 147:18-19 "The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry and save them."
God knows my desire to finish this triathlon and to do better than my last one. I will give Him all the glory when by His grace I do. I am hoping to beat my last time, but this one is a bit bigger, so as long as my pace is better, [when I see the results it tells you your swim pace, bike pace, run pace] I will be happy.
I am still sick, but I don't care. I am PUMPED!! And ready to rock this triathlon!! I am ready. And I am going to have FUN! I have several friends and family who said they are coming to watch, so that will be encouraging.
Remember I said there was an announcement I was going to make? We prayed and had a peace about the church in Ohio. We told the pastor we would accept the position if they offered it to us. But we still had a few reservations about it. We prayed that God would show the pastor His will, that if it was not God's will that he wouldn't have a peace and would not offer us the job. So, he called yesterday and said, he didn't have a peace about it. Him and the staff liked us, and I think we were all trying to make it work, but the Holy Spirit said no. I am so thankful for a pastor that would follow God's leading! Because that means God has other plans for us, and His will is perfect! We are sad, and I cried, because I want my sweet husband to be in full time ministry like he desires, and to not work construction anymore. But God is good, and has other plans. We trust Him. Well, gotta go cut Shane's hair and shower. We are all packed and ready to go! Wish me luck! =]

TRI- Checklist

I am sure this is going to be a rather boring blog to my beloved readers.. but I need to write it all down.. more than once.
Things to Do:
1. Finish laundry (does it ever end?)
2. Iron Davey's clothes for Sunday
3. Pack Davey
4. Pack boys
5. Pack me
6. Pack transition bags.
7. Return tri outfit I bought at Sports Chelet (very tri useful outfit, hard time justifying the price, especially since I charged it :/)
8. Eat and REST to get better!!
9. Pack car
10. Last but not least, PRAY!! I need HIM to help me. I can not do it on my own.
Things to Pack in gym bag:
1. Towels
2. Wetsuit
3. Fanny pack (I know, so geeky). - inside fanny pack: gels shot blocks, power bar, Immodium AD, Tums, Gas X, Ibuprofen, inhaler, chap stick, watch (if I can find it!!).
Things to pack in transition bags:
1. Shoes & Socks
2. Gatorade
3. Waters
4. Helmet
5. Sunblock
6. Hat (if I have one)
7. Sunglasses
8. Pants with bib pinned on
9. Goggles & no fog goggle spray
10. Body glide
I am sure I am forgetting something??
I am still under the weather.. this morning I felt like it was progressing into body aches, and weakness... ugh ugh and ugh again. Last night I was in tears because Davey said we can't leave at 10 am like I planned, he wants to leave at 1:30pm. That ruins everything! I was being such a brat. I really wanted to drive the bike course and feel the water.. eat at 6:30pm and get in bed by 8:30pm. Well, looks like that's not gonna happen!!!! OK enough whining. I told Davey sorry this morning, and prayed about it, and asked God to get us there around the time I was hoping for, and if not, to not have a bad attitude, and just HAVE FUN! Being sick may slow me down, but I can still have a great time. I've been getting too stressed about not training enough, not feeling well, packing, leaving on time, ect. I am going to just pray, do my best, and have a great time.
This is my kitchen, yes which has been converted into a laundry room against my will. Our dryer still doesn't work. Clothes take forever to dry! yes I have clothes lines, and my towels are on it now. This is my bathroom which is also space used to dry clothes.. =/

Running- 3 Days till Tri

I've been thinking a lot about how much I want to keep doing tri's, but unfortunately, triathlon season is just about over until April-May ish. So I decided I will really focus on my running until tri season. So many of the blogs I follow are runners, and I am inspired to run more! Last time I ran a good distance was only 1 mile, and it was probably 6 months ago.. maybe more. I walk/run, but it would be great if I could run a whole 5K.
I am very excited about Saturday! So much to do so little time! Davey worked on my bike and it feels great. I got my wetsuit and swam in it last night at the gym after all my guys were in bed. I thought no one would be there so late... WRONG!I had to get the suit on at home because I can't zip it myself (might be a problem for the tri). So here I am in a very tight wetsuit, with clothes over it, waddling to the car, out of the car to the gym. People were definitely starring. At the front desk, one of the guys looked at the other guy and gave him like a "Look at this girl" look. You could only see the neck part, but I guess it was obvious. While swimming one of those guys came in to bring clean towels and was staring at me like "Why are you wearing a wetsuit?" I wanted to be like, "Really, think about it.. I just might need practice in it!"
A few thoughts: I feel out of breath more because the suit comes up over my neck and feels like it's choking me. I am way more buoyant.. could barley get under the rope to switch lanes. But overall I think it will really help.
Today is my last day for training. I really haven't done much this week! So I am debating what to do. Should I swim, bike, and run/walk? Or should I take it easy and just bike or walk? I don't want to be sore.....
To be continued....

Hills

Here are some pictures of yesterdays hill adventure. The first time up all three hills I was pulling everything I had to get up them. Then The second time was so much easier! Amazing! It was still very hard.. and my heart rate went up a million beats, but I was faster and Davey was impressed and said I looked like I was very powerful! Yay!
I swam 600-700 meters at the gym before the hills. The water was more choppy due to more serious swimmers in the pool. It was great practice, but slowed me down. I did 400 meters in 10:30. I kept having to stop and clear my goggles from fog! I am going to get no fog goggle drops!
I planned on walking after I biked, but Davey was extremely tired and hungry, so I decided to make dinner first, (Chicken Marinara, with Mushrooms, Noodles, and Green beans). By the time we ate it was 8:30pm and I was beat. I plan to go to bed early every night, and Davey was super tired too. So I cleaned up the kitchen, changed and put the boys to bed, cleaned the living room, and Davey and I made our special picnic area on our living room floor where we watch our favorite shows on hulu.com (we don't have cable). Last night we watched the America's Got Talent Finale. I am so excited Biggest Loser starts tonight!
So anyways, I was bummed I didn't get to walk. I am feeling a little behind on the training. I knew I was getting sick though, so I decided it was fine. We went to be and I woke up at 1am with the worst sore throat and ears. Ugh!! Again at 3am to which I began to panic because of the tri being in only 4 days! I drank hot lemon water, took a Vicodin, (that's not a regular thing for me just FYI), and went back to bed. Didn't get up with Davey at 5:30am like usual, slept until 7:30am when Cody woke. I plan to go get some Airborne and rest. Please pray for me that this passes quickly! Swimming while sick is horrible!
The wetsuit didn't come yesterday, but it should be here today.. it better be! Time to start packing for our trip too.. I am such a procrastinator and refuse to do that this time. Okay enough rambling, here are the pics!
Me at the base of Hill 1 (Easy one)
Base of Hill 2 (Hard one)
Climbing Hill 2
Still climbing.
Top of hill 2.
Bottom of hill 3 (Worst hill!)Ouch, still climbing.Really tough now! Almost there! Made it! Top of Hill 3!

Weigh in & countdown-5 days until Triathlon!

Weighed in this morning. Wish I didn't! But I knew I had to face the truth. +2 pounds. :/ Grrrr. We have had such a busy week. We didn't eat well in Ohio, then my mother-in-law came into town for a few nights. Then we had a busy Saturday out door knocking, lunch with a pastor friend and his family at Chili's, then babysat friends kids, ages 2&1. Whew. Then Sunday we took a day trip to visit a church 2 hours south from us, spent all day there, had fried chicken and potato salad with ice cream. Yum! But oh boy did I feel it after 20 minuets or so. Bloated right away.

Let me back up. Thursday I biked 5.3 miles outside around my neighborhood. My goal was to do 8, but I didn't have time because we had a Strength and Beauty meeting. I didn't get to walk either. :/ My mother-in-law came while I was at the meeting.
Friday I wanted Davey to bike the hills with me. My mother-in-law came with us and played with the boys on the playground. I was so thankful because having Davey show me how to use my gears on those really tough hills, really helped. Tuesday I did cycle and body sculpt, really pushed myself and my thighs killed. Than Wednesday I went to cycle again with Sylvia and really pushed it and got super sore. Thursday I didn't rest, I rode the 5.3 miles outside (winds were very strong and my legs ached). So by Friday, my thighs we so very sore that when I sat down I felt like they couldn't support me on the way down, I needed to hold on to something.

The hills we biked were VERY steep. More steep than in my first triathlon. But I wanted to be prepared for the worst. So my very smart athletic husband showed me how to bike hills in proper gears! I always thought going up hill you needed to be in LOW gears (wear it's hard to push the pedals). Imagine me in Avia Triathlon, going up very long steep hills trying to push my pedals on the lowest gear they could go to! Yeah that's what I did. No wonder my bike wouldn't move and I just TIPPED over and had to walk! Bahahaha. I am learning so much. So Davey told me what gears to be in when going against strong winds, when going up steep hills, and when going down hills. How does he know all this you ask? I don't know!! He knows everything! It can be really annoying sometimes. lol

The first time up the hills I didn't switch gears in time and I had to get off because my bike wouldn't go, I didn't mind stopping, I was so tired already from the first short part of the hill. Remember in my first tri post when I told myself "When I think I am ready, I AM NOT!" That totally slapped me in the face this time. I realized that spin is great, and I think it really helps, but there is nothing like doing real hills outside. Anyways, so I got back on and rode in circles till I was in the right gear, highest gears possible (2 and 1) [*side note, I was so confused because I thought low gears was low numbers..1..2..3..ect..nope] then we finished the hill and I could do it! Right after that one was another even steeper one, to which I needed to catch my breathe before we did. Davey never got off his bike. :/ So I rode in circles until I caught my breath. Started in low gears to get some speed and immediately changed to 2 & 1. What a difference!!! It was actually possible to pedal. Wow. My legs burned though!! My heart rate got up so high I thought I was going to pass out. But I did it! I did it 3 more times with out getting off 2 of the times (we had a long loop we did of 3 hills and some flat too). I went to mapmyride.com and mapped it out. Ride = 3.48 miles. Davey did 4 loops, his mom wanted to try it, but couldn't figure out the gears so she came back down the hills, and Davey kept going. The right gears really make a difference!! After that I had them drop me off at the gym and I swam 500 meters while they went to Costco. When I was done they weren't there yet so I walked across the street to Big 5 to see if they had any of the things I need.

I hope to go there again today and do 9 miles at least. (If I can, I will take pictures of the hills). I have not been able to do my training schedule to the T. Today I want to swim 600 meters, get dressed at gym and go bike 9 miles there than walk/jog 2-3. If I can't do that (depends on time and Davey's schedule) I will go to gym and swim, bike, and run there. I am going to skip the weights for the rest of the week and just condition. I really don't want to be sore on race day. Tuesday I plan to do Coach's cycle class, Swim and Walk, then Wednesday just swim, probably 800 meters or more. Then take off Thursday and Friday.

My blocks and power bars came! Yay. And hopefully today my wetsuit will so I can go swim in it. That will look so funny swimming in the gym pool in a wetsuit. Oh well!

My mother-in-law said my legs looked stronger. Yippee! They are so much stronger. I can see muscle and significantly less cellulite. Yay! Just a cute little side note: When we were watching our friends kids, I put Shane and his buddy Jake down for a nap in Shane's bed. About 30 minuets later we heard giggling. We went in to find them both on Shane's bed reading little New Testament bibles!! Hahhaha. So cute.

I am getting so anxious and excited for Saturday. I am already sad it's gonna be over soon. So time to look for the next one. I am fighting a cold. All my guys had it, and I am getting it. I can not be sick for the tri! I know all I have been talking about is my triathlon. Imagine how Davey feels. lol
On a different note, we are praying and seeking God about where He wants us to serve in the ministry, and we think we have His peace about a certain place! It is so exciting. We will get counsel from a few other people than let everyone know. I am so thankful that He answered our prayers and gives us His peace. We are ready to start a new chapter in our life. And I just want to say how grateful to God I am for my husband and beautiful, hilarious boys whom my life would be so dull without.

Gear and Clothing

I am excited to announce that I have 3 sponsors already!! Whoot! That is so exciting to me. Praise the Lord! One is my Grandparents, another my aunt Sherry, and the third is Tori my dear friend from Hawaii :) Hopefully more people will help too. Davey is so sweet too, yesterday he went and recycled our recyclables, getting $23 and counted change and is giving me $13 in change. I love him!
So I was able to get a few gear items I need, I am dividing all funds into gas, gear, and Breast Cancer Fund until gas and gear are covered and then ALL goes to Breast Cancer Funds. Time was running out on renting a wetsuit. It takes 5-7 days to get here and I need to practice swimming in it. I requested these ones, hopefully they have one of them available other wise I get what they have in my size and sleeveless. I read that for 68-70 degree water I will be okay in a sleeveless wetsuit, which I think will help in my swimming too, so my arms don't feel constricted. Only $40!

I also ordered a small Bodyglide helps get wetsuit on and off and prevents chaffing. And I ordered gels [chews packed with carbs and calories for energy during the race] and power bars. I couldn't find gels anywhere other than online and I know I need them so I had to get the shipped ground 3-5 days. Hopefully they get here! Only $1.99.
So now as for gear goes, all I need is a top that I can wear under my wetsuit, so in T1 I don't need to change (besides taking off wetsuit). It isn't just a time thing for me, it is a modesty preference. I really don't want to take off the wetsuit and be in just my sports bra on top. (No one wants to see that anyways..lol) I'd feel much better if I had a compression top (dry quickly, and have added support).

My Grandma is too sweet. She asked me what I need to eat for dinner the night before and for breakfast in the morning of race. I am so glad we can stay with them! I know I need pasta the night before, so I requested pasta, yams, and carrots. Lots of healthy carbs there. I also found out that you should eat dinner no closer than 12 hours from race time so all the carbohydrates digest and are ready to be used as energy. (That's one of many mistakes I made before my first tri). Finding what to eat for breakfast was a hard task. Many triathletes like to drink their breakfast on race day (calories are easier broken down and ready to be used quicker). But then you face the hunger pains. I don't like hunger pains! So I read of you can have 1,000 calories 4 hours before race or 300-400 2 hours before race, and low fat and low fiber. So, after much research I decided I will set my alarm for 4:00 am and at 4:30 am (my wave time is 8:30am), drink 2 Ensure drinks (230 calories each, packed with carbs and vitamins) then, eat a bowl of oatmeal and a banana (280 calories, low fat, low fiber, lots of carbohydrates). You should not eat closer than two hours to race time. Hopefully I won't have hunger pains right around race time, but I know I will have pre-race tummy jitters which usually make you not hungry.

At my first tri I ate a banana right before going out... not such a good idea. The energy I needed was not digested yet. Another mistake. Then right after the swim in T1, I will have 1/2 PowerBar, a Gatorade, and gels. On the bike course I will eat gels if needed and drink Gatorade and water. In T2 I will try to be quicker, most likely I will have to use the potty, then drink a Gatorade before going out, and carry a water and my gels and sip and chew on them during the run.

I also just realized that See Jane Run is only a Sprint! Which means no long or Olympic courses. Also, I am suppose to, and hoping to race in the 25-29 category, but may be in 19-25. I don't want that because the are young and fast most likely. I feel much more prepared and pumped for this one.. Can't wait! & Already looking ahead for another tri in a couple months. =)
PS Today I am back on track tracking my points and plan to eat my points until Sunday, then increase a few points and eat mostly carbs to store the energy.