caffeine + GU

as a haver-of-a-sensitive-GI-system, i have to be careful with my caffeine intake.

the one time i'm guaranteed to ingest caffeine (other than nightshift at the hospital. i mean, c'mon) ??
DURING RACES. i wasn't sure if the boost was more psychosomatic than physiological, but either way, it seemed to work.

my caffeine intake on race days usually looks something like this: a cup of joe/espresso as soon a i wake up, a caffeinated GU 20min before my wave start, 1 caffeinated GUqhr on the bike, and 1 caffeinated GUq30min on the run. i am a frequent bathroom user, and i've never had to stop during a race to use the port-o-potty (for poop, that is.)

npr's health blog 'shots' covered the topic briefly.

do y'all use the caffeine GUs? if so, what's your strategy?

STILL fighting the sickness over here

BLARGH!

• the CTO has a sinus infection + the flu. 
• the bebe has a serious case of the snots + projectile vomit and a probable ear infection (on our way to the pedi shortly.) 
• i have had no less than 2 colds and possibly the flu in the last 4 weeks. 

so. very. over. this.

since the end of my swim focus--other than my running funtimes in Austin, and the Turkey Trot--i have been a sloth. i don't feel too bad about it from a training perspective. i.e. no huge concerns over here about losing my fitness; i know i'll get back into it when my body gives me the green light. i just MISS being active every day. i also miss being able to breathe.

seems like most of my friends, as well as people i follow/stalk on the intertron, are getting sick. maybe we're getting it from the internet...

speaking of the intertron...anyone have an awesome last-minute cyber-Monday deal they want to share with me? Infinit Nutrition had a sweet deal going on the FB, but i think it might be over now?

Gobble Gobble 4 miler

almost completely forgot about this race...oops!

initially i was going to run it with a friend. i remembered about the race at about 11pm the night before (too late, in my opinion, to call and chat about it.) she ended up coming down with a case of the snots this morning, and stayed home to chug airborne and rest (oh and prep for the ginormous turkey day dinner she hosted!)

so, i ran on my own. it was a great morning for a run: COLD, but not wet or windy. and not so cold that the water freezes at the aid stations, but just cold enough to get that really good lung burn.

since i was on my own, i decided to try and push my self a little. not a lot a little, just a little. because my track record with doing that in the cold = a long line of little aches, niggles, pains and inflammation. so i didn't take it easy and just jog, but i didn't do an all-out, collapse-at-the-end kind of effort either. more of a lung-burning, huffin-n-puffin, smiley-faced finish.

results: 4 miles in 37:12 ( a 9:18min/mile); 1258/2800 overall; and 226/592 age group.

not to shabby, considering the only run training i've done in the last 6 weeks was the 'for fun' runs i did in atx two weeks ago. nothing like starting your day with a good result, a kcal deficit, and with two turkey day parties on your calendar! makes me excited to start focusing on the run again. which i should probably start planning. soon. maybe after i come out of this food coma...

happy turkey day, y'all!

end of swim focus, texas, and the trail

the start of my 2 week trip to ATX with the bebe signified the end of my swim-focus. and i was *almost sad to see it go.

a friend hooked me up with a few 7-day passes for a local gym in case the urge to swim struck me.

it did not strike.

instead, i was bowled over by the huge Texas sky and the amazing weather and was inspired to RUN. running was the only form of exercise in which i partook during our travels. but let me tell you. it was amazing. maybe it felt good to run again because i was getting back to my roots (i started out as a runner in my athletic life via soccer and cross-country.) maybe it felt good because it was freaking 75 and sunny in NOVEMBER. or maybe it felt good to run because it was not the pool. whatever it was, it was awesome.

i ran in my parent's neighborhood. i ran in the adjacent neighborhoods. i ran at the glorious Hike-and-Bike trail, aka my Mecca. i ran farther than i have in months, with no pains or aches anywhere, other than my ego. the miles were glorious, but s-l-o-w.

next week i meet with my coach to hammer out the details of next season. a lot has been going on for me personally, and some (VERY BIG) things in my life are in flux right now. so it'll be interesting to see what coach thinks, and how he handles it. if he doesn't run screaming in the other direction, i'll let you know what we decide!

until then, happy early turkey day, y'all!

swim focus week 4

here's how last week's workouts shook out:

Mon: #hurricanesandy OFF
Tues: 1mi TT + 100 kick + 100 cd (pool PR for the mile, hooray!)
Wed: 1mi mixed drills & kick, 200 cd
Thurs: swim OFF, 1hr spin in PM
Fri: 1.2mi mixed drills & kick, 200 cd 
Sat: 200 wu, 6x25 drills, 10×50 @ sub-race pace, 1:00 rest, 100 kick, 5×100 EBEH :25 rest, 200 cd
Sun: 200 warm up (150 swim/50 kick), 6x50 :15 rest (H/E), 6 x [75 swim FAST! w/:10 rest + 25 swim easy w/:20 rest], 200 kick, 4x75 w/:20 rest (50 free/25 non-free), 200 cd

image from usantc.com

for those of you looking for variation in your swim workouts, i use this great site for inspiration. many of my workouts are variations (in distance) of those posted. each day a new workout is posted. within each day they even break the workouts down into: A (badass/olympian level); B (super awesome still fast); and C (least distance) workouts. i usually end up modifying the C workout because, well, i'm not quite trained for 2500+ yards 5x week yet. but i'm getting closer to being able to do the whole C workout as i progress through my swim focus.

i am, however, very far away from ever being able to keep up with a masters swim group! it's a healthy dose of humble each morning when i skim over the A workout.

m-dot mustache

saw this via @IRONMANtri.... i'm dying over here. must. purchase. for. CTO.

from ironmanstore.com

also saw one at IMLP that i was considering making him wear. said 'IRONWIFE' on the front :)