tri(fat)lon

It seems my obsession with fat has caught up to me.  It has been ages since I have found the time to consistently work out.  So now I am feeling far into the Athena category these days.  I went to get a holiday outfit this weekend and was grossly disappointed.  It was just gross all over.
So now I am trying to get motivated to get the obsession back on training and eating healthy.
We shall see how that goes.

where have i been?

Good question as I surely haven't been writing frantically in the blog nor have I been crossing the threshold of the gym.  So back in October we had a co-worker leave the company.  It wasnt that bad of an adjustment, just a bunch of calendar/schedule transitioning.  Not all that easy but not over the top difficult either.  Well 2 weeks ago - another co-worker left.  This time it was not expected.  This time there was no transition out.  This time it was rather poorly done and lots of work was left behind to decipher.  The calendar and tasks and all that weren't too hard to figure out.  The files on the other hand left a lot to be desired.  But we are making it through.  However, that is WITHOUT any gym time.  When you find yourself at the office for close to 12 hours each day.  Going back to the office after hours because you were at a client during regular business hours.  And just plain tired from getting it all done.  The gym is a distant memory.  I have to admit that most of the work is the same it is just trying to do some forensic work to see where the other individual had left off.  And there is an air of excitement in the efforts to get that part cleaned up and organized. 
but all in all the gym and my workouts and my weight and my cardio and my eating... all that... is somewhat on the back burner..
and then you add into that - the holidays and eating festivities...  and my mom's in town so I dont feel as flexible with going to the gym...
again pulling all that together is leaving me feel rather fat and blah...
so aren't you glad i came out to chat on that?

MMM - Night Swimming

DUH!  What else did you expect...  I am confused as to the release date of this song.  I thought it was an early REM song but get the impression that it was a re-release on the British markets...
What do I know?  It's REM.  hahahahahahah

wouldnt be a big deal

to miss one night of swimming - aahhh, just thought of my next MMM - except tomorrow is a long awaited hair cut day
not only will i get my hair cut where it will miraculously be straight for a good 12 hours..
but i am also getting color - the gray and the blonde need some help to blend a little bit better - no seriously....
so who really wants to get up early to go swimming - not me
and surely i dont want to go in the water afterwards
so tomorrow will be no workout day
unless you could cleaning the house

nothing today

today was supposed to be another swim day... but i had to get up early and out of the house early to make it to the office so i could turn around and make it to a meeting, which needed to be on time so that i could be on a conference call as well as back in the car to make it back to the office in time to make another meeting...  and to top it all off some other things were dropped into the agenda when i wasn't looking
so at 5pm when i should have been leaving to head home and get my gym bag i was actually just starting off on the things i wanted to accomplish for my day at the office...
just one of those days... and given all that commotion the stress made me feel pretty darned YUCKY and no gym happened.
the good news is no drinks after work happened either - and my body and wallet are thankful for that
and so is the dog

blood donation

i suspect i have written on this subject before...  i mean there was that one time last year when i passed out in the library while giving blood...  i know i must have written about that.  at that point i decided that all future donations would occur at the blood bank
then the next i gave blood - and it took some time for me to work up my nerve again - my blood pressure was crazy high
i know that i must had written about this.  i went out and bought a blood pressure cuff and everything.  i started taking my blood pressure regularly only to realise most of it was from the stress and fear of passing out again.
the last time was OK - even if i did break the rule of only going to the blood bank.  i went to a blood drive at my friend's church.   i had donated there before so i felt somewhat safe or at least comfortable with that venue.  and once i told them i had passed out they went totally out of their way to make sure i was OK.
i dont know why it has taken me so long to get back to the blood bank.  i guess the travel with work has been the biggest road block of sorts. 
so tonight i decide i need to go do my part...
pricked two of my fingers and determined my iron was too low...  well they actually call it something else, but ultimately it means my iron was too low to take blood.
UM - does that kind of support the fact that I have been eating like CRAP so much these days
that vegetable and protein and I are not on a regularly routine as we used to be
i need to do something about that
i have put it back on my calendar to go after the thanksgiving holiday
and in the interim i am going to load up on beef and spinach - OK maybe not - but you know me, I will google the heck out of the subject and find some things to do about it

swimming is good for the stress

and so many other things... 
and since i am in town for a while i figured i best put some motivation and focus to work
it felt so good to get some distance in the water Monday - it was good to keep that in mind to get me back in the water today
today was a little longer swim as anticipated - just a little longer
i did 13 sets of 4 - actually 3x4 breast stroke, 3x4 regular, 1x4 drills, 2@ 3x4 regular
i think i will feel the 3x4 breast stroke without a doubt tomorrow - wow, i have not swam that stroke that far in a real long time - it will surely catch up with me
but i feel great tonight... and cant wait to do it again friday
tomorrow i am going to try to give blood instead of swim

Opposite Story

Interesting to go back and look at all that data and come to the realisation that I have not been working out and running at a pace that would warrant any improvement in running.  Surprising to some degree.  But not in others. 
So it peaked my curiosity as to how I was improving - if at all - with the other aspects of triathlons.
Swimming - my favourite part - shows definite improvement.  It is hard to track the pace because of the break time in between different sets of laps.  But overall I am glad to witness the progress.
I did a really good job last year at this time to focus on increasing and improving my swimming.  And I am on that pace again.  I was SO close last year to swimming the distance of a mile.  And my longest straight swim got all the way up to 750 yards.  So that will continue to be my focus for the remainder of this year.
There is the pattern of big gaping holes in the workout plan that I want to work through and avoid in 2011.

definitely try to make that 11/11/11 a goal this year

Running sucks

My friend had a daddy son day at school this morning and they were all supposed to run a mile.  Kudos to him for showing up in running attire.  Rumor is that some dads arrived in suits with the lie that they had morning meetings and couldnt take part in it.  2 laps into the mile he realised it had been quite some time since he ran last.  From the sounds of it he wasnt properly hydrated or nurished and it made an impact on his ability to continue. 
I told him about my quest to learn how to run over the past 2 years or so.  Which in turn prompted me to take a look at my running history on the Garmin site.  I must say I am quite bummed.  FIRST in the lack of reporting capabilities and second in the averages I have been able to uncover in the reporting capabilities.  On average would you beleive that I am at a 3.6mph pace?  Really?  I thought I was at least at 4mph.  Now given the reporting options it is hard to tell all that is being counted, but still...
OK - took out a few of the zeroes in the report and arrived at an average pace of 3.7 - woo hoo - at least a little better...
The other oddity I noticed is that my average distance comes in at under 2 miles.  Really?  How crazy is that?
So I am going to have to switch this tracking thing up some to try to get a better grasp on tracking my running.
I am going to go with a clean slate as of 11/1/2010 with a goal of 11/11/11 to be able to run a 5k.  Hmm, wonder if that is too much to ask.
But I want to see better results with the running.  My goodness - this is crazy.  No wonder I am struggling with learning to run.  My consistency is non-existent.
Nothing like shedding some light on the situation.
And what I am going to do is classify the run/walks that are intentionally for training as RUNNING and the ones that are more - hey take me a walk outside and buy a rainbow sky (know the song?) - I will classify as WALKING...
And hopefully through that I will start to see actual improvement.  As of right now, I dont see any, at least with this reporting option.
And then I will go from there.  I will keep you posted.

SheRox

I almost forgot to give honorable mention to my FB friend Bev that competed in the SheRox Bermuda triathlon on Sunday.  It was nice that she picked my brain every so often about training.  Almost made me feel like I was actually a triathlete.  Almost. 
Her time was good especially the with the ocean swim and the terrain of the bike ride.  And the distances were longer
.8K (1/2 mile) Swim, 20K (12.4 mile) Bike, 5K (3.1 mile) Run
Has motivated me to get back into the swing of things and consider what race(s) I will do next year.
The HUGE Charlotte race may not happen.  The date will probably not work given the 2 weeks to Ireland in August/September.  But the Rock Hill race may be one to consider again - even with the heat.  And maybe I could do a mix gender race.  We shall see.
May try to drum up interest with some others while I am at it.
Maybe. 

Yards and Meters

I swear I had written about this before but in looking through previous entries that seems to not be the case.  The pool at the new gym is not any sort of regulation length.  I don't know why.  Maybe they ran out of space in the floorplan?  Maybe a lifeguard is required at regulation length?  Who knows.  But it is 20 meters instead of 25 yards.  There is 1.09 yards in each meter and hence 21.8 yards in each length of the pool.  I have revamped the way I track my swims because of this.  And I view them in reps of 4 instead of counting 100s.  One rep of 4 in the pool equates to 87.2 yards.  Again, definitely off the track of swimming in 100s but doable none the less.
So tonight I did 12 reps of 4.
1 breast stroke for warm up, 1 kick board drills, 1 breathing drills, then 3 sets of 4 of just swimming.
The total distance is 1046.4 yards. 
This is the longest I have swam in quite some time.  It felt good.
The other thing I like about this new pool is that it is hardly ever crowded.  That I can swim drills and not feel guilty about taking space.  Or that I have to share a lane - that sucks if you are trying to swim drills.
So I am very happy with this new gym.
My goal is still to swim a mile before the end of the year.  The yardage in a mile is 1760 although swimmers mile is shorter.  Anyways I need to work up to 20 sets of 4.  Just think I am more than half way there this evening.  So I think it is acheivable.
Tomorrow there will be no workout - work meeting instead.
And for those of you who claim that swimming "eludes" them.... consider this... I have been training now for these triathlons for a few years now.  The first time I got in the water with the intent to swim for the race was a little over 3.5 years ago.  And those first few lengths.  Those first few swims were miserable.  It has taken some time, energy and focus.  AND if you put your mind to it, you could do it too.  Something to think about.

NFL again

So over the weekend I had suggested the NFL as topic for fodder.  I dont know why I chose it given that I havent been paying that much attention this season... as I mentioned last night.  But that was the topic I chose.  It morphed into a funny story of an NFL player run in.
So today I get to add to the stories and fodder.
There was a lunch appointment lingering on the calendar that I was not 100% sure I was going to attend.  Lots of things to do.  And didn't want to risk not being in the office if there was time for something else to be done.  Hard to explain.  You just have to live it. 
It turned out that some of the topics to be discussed during the lunch meeting I needed to hear.  So off to lunch we went.  And nothing like half way on the walk to the restaurant to realise you left in a hurry and really should have gone to the ladies room.  I try to avoid excusing myself from business lunches for such matters.  Waste of time.  Would really like to get back to the office.  All that.  But today not the case.
As I was walking to the ladies room, I saw this face that looked familiar and in split second I realised - wow, she looks incredibly like Angie Harmon.  And if she is... sorry Angie.... could she be having lunch with her husband.  So I did the double take.  And there he was - Jason Sehorn.  How about that. 
I never run into famous people.  So a little addition to my NFL fodder.

MMM - Happy

Sure, I know I predominantly go down that Stereophonics, Keane, Snow Patrol, Kooks, Strokes, Oasis path....  But every once in a while or even more frequently I come across a little dance song that makes me want to tap my toe and dance along....  this time it isnt even a Kylie song...  go figure

PATS game

only watched a little bit - need to get to sleep
but hey in that first quarter - thank you tom brady for reminding me what it feels like to watch a game with a good quarter back that can complete passes
almost restores my faith in the sport - of course the pats games arent broadcast here on a regular basis

on time

i woke to the buzzing of an incoming email yesterday morning... you could say it was the difference in time zones but in reality i was sleeping in.  i have gotten into the habit of using my cell phone as my alarm for work but i have yet to work into the scenario a better weekend setting.  some saturdays i dont mind waking up early and heading out the door to get started with my day.  others not so much.  yesterday was a not so much day.   sleeping in was a great feeling.  so much so that i am contemplating going to bed as soon as this entry is done - wont be able to sleep in tomorrow so why not take advantage of it on this side.
anyways that wasnt my focus on time
it had to do with the reminder that i hadnt sync'd my garmin up in quite some time.  i had this week's work outs on it but could remember when i had used it last and what was downloaded or not...
so here is the sad news of that -- the last recorded workout on the garmin before last sunday was october 7th...  a whole month earlier...!!! i used it during my walk/runs while at a clients in wilmington.  i had some workouts since then but had not traveled with the garmin
thank goodness i got a few workouts in this week to make me feel not as bad...
i need to go back and look at the effects of the long break... mostly on my pace and heart rate on the run...  i know from today's bike ride that my pace was OK - may want to look at my heart rate however.. 
well that and i dont have the mac daddy garmin that actually tracks my pace on the bike - that is pure mathematics on my part - and it looked to be on target
but i do want to check out the running - oddly when i take a break from running i find that the initial pace when i start back up is always a little faster - before i get into the drudgery of it all and the mental game where i convince myself i dont run well
i will do that later right now i think i WILL get to bed

American football

The subjet came up over the weekend. You know I must admit my willingness to make time to watch the game has gone down incredibly.
It started 2 seasons ago when training for the first RR. I found that cycling later in the afternoon on Sunday at the Greenway was the perfect time to hit the trails. Others were still getting together in groups to watch but I added cycling to the mix.
Unfortunately there is rarely a time when that trail is quiet enough to peacefully ride 12miles.
Last year the local season was pathetic. And the Giants didn't do all that well either. I gave up on the season all together.
This year I thought I may be better scheduled to get into the games but it hasn't really happened.
Which is why or how I got myself up on the bike again today in over a month. OK that and maybe some other motivators.
I went to the little greenway and rode 10 miles. I was impressed with my pace and energy level. Hope the weather keeps up so I can try again.

Indoor track

I found myself working late last night.  There is a pattern there but I would just rather not call attention to it.  The pattern that for some reason some people dont take the time to discuss the business at hand until 430 in the afternoon.  The whole beginning of the day is spent on other things.  Almost like play time after school and waiting until almost bed time to get the homework done.  Not a good approach but who am I to point that out.
So it took some concentration on my part to make sure I took the route to get to the gym.  I was so tempted to talk myself out of it.  But somehow I managed.  My thought was to use the indoor track a bit and then maybe swim.  WELL much to my amazement when I arrived - the pool was full!  how funny.  I havent witnessed that before.  So off to the track I went first.
So the track is at the upper level of the building - 3 storeys up.  There is an elevator - which makes me smile.  And stairs.  And the stairs are made of a blue frosted glass.  By the time I got between some of the floors I was thinking, maybe that elevator isnt a bad idea.  I am not scared of heights but for some reason it was very noticeable to me.  Which carried through to the 3 storeys up over an open space to a lobby on the track.  It quickly left my mind but at first...
I did 2 miles.  Interestingly the first mile went a lot faster than the second.  Not too sure why.  Perhaps I was tired by mile 2.  I also think that my walks between my runs slow down after a while as I continue to struggle with the concept of running.  Well the bag is packed for another shot this evening.
I did swim too.  5 sets of 4.  Not much.  But combined it was a good workout.  If I threw the bike into the mix it would have been just short of the Ramblin Rose.
We'll see what tonight brings.
I may not make it for Thursday and Friday so best to keep at it today.

politics

i had a nice bantering with a friend over the course of the past 2 days about government spending.  it all started with a comment about the latest trip to India. 
and i guess i keep coming back to the thought - we need to fix ourselves before we start throwing cash at other causes
i am sure the experts on international politics have a valid argument for the trip and maybe even the cost but who knows...
i really need to get back to researching and reading up on the politicians of choice oh and that book - i watched mindless television last night instead of picking up the book

I was incorrect

So all along I thought that President Ford was Speaker of the House because he worked his way up through the ranks as a result of Watergate.  I know of Watergate as it preempted my Sesame Street time on PBS as a kid.  Evewn having read books on Ford it appears it didnt really stick as to how he got to be in the position to be in the position of President.
So reading pieces of that Newt book last night I read a stat about 40 years since majority and I was confused.  I thought - here we go - random facts that none of us have the time of desire to verify and so they feed us garbage.  But thanks to the internet I was able to correct my original assumption about Ford...  He was president of the Senate.  As noted below in the blip from his library bio site.  This sure was an interesting time in history.


Because the Republicans did not attain a majority in the House, Ford was unable to reach his ultimate political goal--to be Speaker of the House. Ironically, he did become president of the Senate. When Spiro Agnew resigned the office of Vice President of the United States late in 1973, after pleading no contest to a charge of income tax evasion, President Nixon was empowered by the 25th Amendment to appoint a new vice president. Presumably, he needed someone who could work with Congress, survive close scrutiny of his political career and private life, and be confirmed quickly. He chose Gerald R. Ford. Following the most thorough background investigation in the history of the FBI, Ford was confirmed and sworn in on December 6, 1973.

JUMP on in....

I packed up my gym bag this morning.  Or let's be honest, I just revisited the dusty, moss on the north side gym bag and realised it didnt need much packing.  So I carted it off in the car to the office.  And much to my amazement I actually left work at a reasonable hour and headed to the gym.  It was one of those moments where I didnt put much thought into it, I just got in the car and headed that way.  Some days that does work best.  And I did 9 reps of 4.
I think I have written about this before that the new gym doesnt actually have a 25 yard pool.  It is something like 24 meters or something like that.  So I am still working out the intricacy of the distances.  But since it has been over a month since I have been in the water I was please with the 25 minute workout.  I felt it for sure as I lugged the gym bag back out to the car and headed home.
I was also pleasantly surprised with the temperature of the water and the pool area.  I was a little hesitant because those first few swims the water seemed a bit chilly.  I was nervous that with the colder weather it would just be unbearable.  Thankfully that was not the case.
I rested for bit in the sauna and then came on home.  As is the case with me and swimming, I could potentially eat my way through the kitchen as a result of it.  But I learned a while back to offset that craving with some protein and milk.  So it was leftover WAHOO! asparagus and a glass of milk.  The hunger has passed and now to make sure I get the stretching and rest I need for the workout.

OH - also need to unpack and repack the gym bag to do it all again tomorrow.
Bummer is I think I am down to one bathing suit after all the swimming this summer.  Yes, it has really been that long that I have forgotten what made the cut a few weeks back and what has not.

Tomorrow maybe I'll give the indoor track a try as well.

to renew america

found the book on the shelf and was reminded why or how come i never made it through the book
every page i have some sort of thought, rebuttal, a-ha moment that i think others should pay attention to
i thought of that girl that cooked her way through the julia childs book - wonder if i could blog my way through this book - doubt it would result in a movie - but there are some good points...  and some insight into political workings that go on behind the scenes
anyways i read the chapters in which boehner was mentioned and now how myself in the midst of the implementation of the contract that gingrich was so widely promoting at that time...  they didnt keep the power for too long - i have to wonder if the concept of congress making changes isnt just a hoax - when one party or the other gets too much power it seems to freak out the voting public and a shift/switch/swing happens in the voting booths...  maybe the call should be to americans to stop relying on congress for the fix to all their woes and maybe they should start in their own back yard... 
lots to think about i suppose...  well gotta go get ready for the real world...

Monday Music Musings - Last High

listening to Pandora while out on the road I always smiles at the obscure songs that I just love pop on up...  this one comes on more often than I probably realise.  this song makes me smile in the attempt to have no vices...  the vice may be to have no vices...  and it reminds me of someone... 

onbiously not a really fast paced song to be running along to... oh well

Biking may not happen

WHOA! is it cold out.  I hadnt really given it much thought when I got dressed to beat feet.  I looked at the temp on the phone and then double checked on google.  Both said 43 but I wasnt really thinking.  I had on jog pants, jog shirt, and fleece pullover (thankfully I at least opted for that over the fleece vest).  And out I went.  It has been quite some time since I have been out there.  OK - I did the walk for my birthday party but that doesnt count.  I am trying to get back into the swing of things.
Well I forgot how the wind seems to whip right through you when it gets colder.  And how when walking into town with the sun in your face it feels so wonderful but on the way back.... WHOA COLD!  I ended up pulling my hands up into the sleeves of the fleece and wrapping my arms around my torso to fend off the chill.  I had my headset on so the wind in my ears wasnt as bad as it could but for me...  my ears can hurt when it is windy in the summer.  So I am thinking unless it is warm and sunny over the next few weekends, the bike may be out for the remainder of the winter. 

I was pretty proud of myself on the walk though.  Did a little under 2.5 miles.  I did a little over 3 on the treadmill at the hotel last Sunday.  So at least my legs still work.  And I even managed to throw a bit of a run in the mix today.  Running down hill in a few spots is not too terribly hard.  And it didnt feel too bad even though it has been AGES since I even attempted a little run. 

If i can shake this chill maybe I will go hit the pool.  It's not really on my agenda today but it could feel good once I got in the water and started moving about... we shall see...
I also need to go to the grocery store - almost expired milk and eggs are the only things in the fridge.  That wont quite carry me through the week even if I do feel like I could live off the fat of the land from all of last week's eating.  DONUTS for breakfast (which I dont even like) and lemon ice box pie for dessert at lunch...  The things I do for work.. hahahaha

but the things you learn

so surfed around some on boehner...  amazing all the stuff that's out on the internet
read some of his history...  read a new york times articles about his habit of crying...  and here i was touched by the sob the other day when i watched his speech - only to find he does it often...  learned some about his days when newt gingrich was in office as well - i guess i really need to dust that book off and finally finish it...  that opening section about the national debt and how it can be related to individual consumer debt just made my head implode the first time i started reading that book - but might be worth while to find it on the shelf and give it another try - heck i read atlas shrugged no reason why i should struggle with that book - HAH and some didnt beleive me when i said i had geek tendencies..  anyways my biggest learning from this evening was that boehner wrote PPA ?!?!  that would be the Pension Protection Act - i just cant get away from it....  i read bits and pieces of the act but unless you name it after yourself (Mr. Roth) then you dont (well at least i dont) pay too much attention to the author... i just kind of focus on what applies to what i do and will i be tested on it...  so was pleasantly surprised with that finding - not that i enjoy or am fond over all aspects of PPA....  will have to do my haley reading tomorrow i suppose - it is getting late and i am getting tired...  and i would like to get some rest to be able to work out tomorrow and take advantage of that extra hour

this may not be in my best interest

i am STILL watching this senate hearing - 2+ hours long  and to think that is the amount of time i wanted to spend at the gym today.


they are now talking about life expectancy and i dont know where they are headed with this
i guess it is coming back to social security again - it sounds like the premis of this hearing is to not extend retirement date for social security but to tax the higher paid individuals to keep it funded
as for the security of americans it just gets my goat that they never address americans inability to save - not because they do not earn enough money but because they are spending too much money...  why do they never go here?  i totally understand that there are people that are not earning very much - i spent a bunch of time with those individuals earlier this week....  so as i said this may not be in my best interest...
maybe i should go see what the others are involved in to get me off this topic...  too close to my heart and mind

so where does this political search lead me...

who knew but richard burr is on the Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions.  And while I have been typing I have been listening to the Senate hearing on Retirement (In)security in America. 
YOU KNOW THAT JUST SUCKS ME IN.
Not very pleased with the lack of knowledge on the Senators parts as to how retirement plans work.  Sounds like they are finding a way to defend Social Security.  And wow - how do they not see that we are falling short from the get go.  Hello... we have first generation investors here that do not understand math...  why dont we start there...
this could be fun or this could really just get me riled up... hey maybe it will get me out on the road working out to let off some steam
ebri dude is speaking - going back to listen to his stats....

who to follow

Well I am curious as to how Boehner will progress.  I have that interest in that Speaker of the House position ever since learning the history of President Ford...  that book I read on him from a few years back was so interesting.  So he made the cut.
I figured I would need to follow Burr as he does represent my state.
Nikki Haley just over the border as governor of SC should get some attention.
And then I am tossing back and forth Paul Rand because of the tea-party aspects or Rubio just because...  how's that for a reason...  maybe i will just keep it at 3 to keep my workload to a minimum - it would cover governor, house and senate
maybe i will be able to do this more readily than the triathlon training that is just failing at the moment...

today did not get up off the couch due to a last minute belated birthday celebration last night
my head still hurts from it - i need to get back on it...

you should start a blog

That's what a new friend told me. I guess I will have to share this address with him sometime soon. Of course the topic of blogging he and I spoke of was not triathlons, beaches and travel. Believe it or not it was with regards to politics. He was commenting that people needed to vote. And now that the election is over we all need to put campaigning aside and find solutions. I thought it was a noble thought. It hit that chord from long ago in my university days of multiple poli sci classes. I said I was thinking of following some of the newest politicians and see how they do. Hence the blog idea. Do I dare bore you all with observations on the touchy subject of politics? Well I stumbled upon a gem and I might just do it. Gonna do some more research and give it some more thought.

biking

My ambition is to get on the bike and get in the water this weekend.
I was enjoying tracking a friends progress with cycling the past few months. It was a motivator for me. But that has died off. So now I just need to motivate myself.
This nastiness I feel right about now will work.
And amazingly I have met aome others that are fond with cycling. Not that they are riding with me. Wouldn't want to hold them back. But I hope to find a way to add to my motivation.

does talking about triathlons count

We did talk about triathlons over one of the gluttonous lunches. That should count toward something. It started with a Polar HRM observation. Then moved on to the Garmin conversation. I did not yuck it with me this time. I knew better than to think I would use it. Ultimately we spoke briefly on triathlons. And then on to riding bikes on the road. I guess there is a trail near ATL that is paved that makes training safer and fun. A bit far from home for me.
It made for a good conversation away from the norm.

food for thought

Shall I recall all the crazy food I have eaten this week. I suppose it is more entertaining than my continual whining of not working out.
Sunday was within reason - salad with some steak on top. And it was all downhill from there. Lunches were variations of salads and sandwiches. Yonnis in Greenwood did good to have dessert with lunch as well... Lemon ice box cake and turtle pie. Really is it necessary to have dessert with lunch? I guess so. Dinner highlights were at Giardinas. That shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that has followed me before to Greenwood. I hit my favorites - wedge salad, broiled shrimp, spinach with ricotta. Trued some new faves too - shrimp cocktail and vanilla gelato. We did the usual Olive Garden the last night. And tonight unfortunately was a nasty burger at the airport. SO looking forward to heading home. The biggest nastiness of the week - DONUTS!!! And most of you know I don't even like donuts. But I ate them anyways.
Did I mention I can't wait to be home for a few days.
Apples and water tomorrow. And most likely some good coffee.

here i sit

Blackberry in hand. Tired as can be. The week started out well. I at least walked 3 miles on the treadmill at the hotel Sunday night. Nothing Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday night. I didn't expect to workout this evening but I sure wasn't expecting to spend 3 hours sitting in an airport this evening. The flight has been delayed an hour. So I already had some time to kill. Now it just seems over the top. And the 4 long days have finally caught up to me. We didn't do a good job of eating healthy either. I tried but let's be honest here. How healthy can you really eat while on the road in Mississippi.

For those of you that seemed to have forgotten

Which I know really isnt possible...  right?  I did celebrate a birthday in there as well.  And that didnt do well to add to the workouts either.  It was a week of quasi-celebrating my birthday.  I have yet to have the chocolate mikshake or ice cream cake that I was hoping for.  But we did go out on the town.  And boy oh boy was it fun.  It was a bit of work getting ready - as some of us did get together to eat before hand.  So there was the house cleaning and food prep - oh and CO2 detector replacement - before hand.  And the party itself did entail a mile walk between locations. 
Overall it was a lot of fun.  Everyone seems to want to do it again - with better shoes next time.
But there was a lot of sleep lost that weekend.
This past week - I was planning on getting back into the swing of things.  But that old saying to be so sound that nothing disturbs your peace of mind was out on holiday.  So the soundness wasnt there and the desire to go to the gym was missing.  Lot of changes at the office.  Lot of reminiscing.  And overall stress malaise and sadness.
So today I am packed fro MS - that always gets to me too.  I have been going there for some time now and a number of the people that I interact with are no longer in the mix of the trip...  But it will be a nice time.  And very busy. 
I have packed my workout stuffs but not sure it will be used.  Lots of early mornings and speaking engagements could make me too tired to want to try.  We shall see.
But then that's pretty much it for the rest of the year - so that gives me 8 weeks to get on top of the fitness again.  YAY!

I was doing so well

But that MKE trip just threw me for a loop of eating well and exercising.
And it seems to have been all down here from there.
I need to get back on that game plan.

From there Milwaukee

Ironically I want to post these pics to the Bermuda blog...  Mostly because the Harley Davidson Museum had a small snippit reference to scooters.  And the Mitchell Domes had a tropical section that reminded me of Bermuda.

http://bermudafuldream.blogspot.com/

Hilton Head

As mentioned I went there for a friends' wedding.  I took some pics of the beach.  Not many at the wedding.
I will have to post the HHI pics to the beach blog.
http://to-the-beach-2009.blogspot.com/

I only took a few pics as I sat on the beach and had coffee that morning.

things i have done when i havent been going to the gym...

I went to Hilton Head, Milwaukee and had a birthday celebration AND I took pictures.  I thought I would perhaps put them on my blog.  But it seems there is so much more traffic with people on FB.  And I dont think I have the time or desire to do both.  Decisions Decisions....

sooooo offfff the workout wagon

sad to admit but i had originally wanted to lose 40 pounds by yesterday - i know probably not 40 there to reasonably lose but i figured this 10 here 10 there goal wasnt working for me...  but the BHAG didnt work either... and not only is the food thing kind of out of control but so is the lack of working out...
sore still from the gardening - not good
and after work bday plans all week - went shopping last night - not a hobby of mine - it was rather nice for a change - just dont know how people do it week in week out... then out to dinner with a friend..
a good day - but no exercise
and tonight is a new moon night - which has been on the agenda since bermuda but has just been scheduled - so i am going to not see the gym again today
well maybe tomorrow ---- 

memories...

i guess if i scroll back far enough i may find an entry for last year... i remember it pretty well... 
well my birthday always reminds me of someone and then i think back over the 6 years and remember that party i had - was it really for 35? i had a new job. i had a party.  my dad made some kick ass baby back ribs...
last year my party was earlier in the month
and i found myself briefly in the office - on the way to MS - MGV and the other KP decorated my office...
i landed in JAN and they gave me a car with satelite... and i listened to Robbie Williams live at something ballroom - gosh it had a name... then i had dinner of wine and wedge salad and i beleive some fish at giardinas...  maybe too much wine
later that weekend i went to vicksburg
and the highlight of my birthday travels was being in the middle of vicksburg and gettting the news of little greyson's arrival... he will be ONE this week - which is far more exciting than my silly birthday
but hey - thanks for remembering

what does gardening count as

i havent done much gardening since the beginning of the season
i cleared the land and planted seeds and then just let them do their thing
which turned out to be a lot of things... ground cover and vines everwhere
i kind of liked it - i am sure my neighbor hated it - oh well
so earlier this month i decided yesterday would be the day to start to take it apart
i knew this would be a bit of a workout
given the continued high heat we had all summer, not only did the flowers do well, but the weeds took over too... they were coming up in between everything - the lantana, the gardenia... a bit out of control to say the least...  i had been ignoring them - which also didnt help
so yesterday - i pulled most of the weeds - i have about a quarter of the front yard that still needs weeding - i want to know WHERE is the darned mimosa tree that has created all these saplings in my front yard - eeeerrrr.... i trimmed back the gardenias and some of the lantana and most of the other flowers
next weekend will be the rest of the lantana and the weeds
then i am not too sure what i will do with the vacant land - i thought pumpkins, pansies and mums could be nice
and if i make a flat enough clear enough space i could do some inflatable holiday art come december - ok that wont happen but it's good for a laugh
and as expected the backs of my legs are a bit sore today

MMM - need to add some fish(bone) into my diet

Fishbone came up in conversation the other weekend as well.  We had a good random conversation on Lalapalooza 1993 while dancing to Just Breathe by Pearl Jam.  The conversation started innocently about can you be a fan of Pearl Jam AND Nirvana or did the grunge movement have 2 sectors.  If it did I would be in the Pearl Jam camp.  I do not own any Nirvana.  And boy oh boy do i love me some Eddie Vedder.  And the next thing you know - we are on the topic of one of my favourite bands...  So incredibly random. 



Need to add this and some others to the workout mix.  If you dont find yourself moving fast and running to this you may want to check your pulse.

oops - bad business travel

i was doing so well with working out while on the road.  that is until this last little jaunt.  oops.  i knew i was on the path of not working out the first night.  i just didnt have that go back to the hotel and use their gym motivation. and it is a nice gym.  i have used it every other time.  just didnt happen.  i did do some site-seeing however.  so will be adding pics and comments at some point about what i did instead of the workouts.

concrete pumps, power tools

Fond memories
Makes me smile
Well back to work
Thankfully not that cold here - at the moment.

That looks to be bleeding kind of bad...

SO SHOULD HAVE GONE TO THE GYM!!!  Instead I went by the Y to pick up forms to cancel my membership.  I drove right by the new gym - one of the selling points of going to the new gym.  But I kept on driving.  I still had 2 more loads of laundry to finish to finish packing.  And it just loomed over head that it would take forever and I would still be tired from the weekend if I threw a swim into the mix.
Well, the frozen lean cuisine pizza didnt have much appeal and when KP called and offered home-made potatoe soup... how could I turn that down.  I had to eat right?
Well, when I arrived the scene was a little different than anticipated.  RP1 slipped and fell somewhere between the invite and my drive time.  He was soaking wet with a gash - not better way to describe it - in his shin.  For some reason all their talk about how it wa a gash and wasnt bleeding but now was didnt do wellby me.  I mean I have had a gash in the side of my face where I could feel the layers of skin under my fingers and the blood.  I would say I did OK in that scenario.  But for some reason this one didnt do well by me.  So I had a cup of soup; listened to some debate as to what to do about the gash; and came home to the laundry piles on the floor.
Thinking about it again makes me a little queesy.  I wonder what is up with me with that?
Anyways in hindsight, I should have just gone swimming. 
I did finish my laundry, watched, some NCIS, and packed.  And if I keep true to form - I wont fret too much about the workout scenario while traveling.  I have been doing a pretty good job of keeping up with it from the road.  HECK, I may even be better at it from the road than I am from home these days.
I will keep you posted :)

Laundry, laundry, laundry, pack

So I had made notes for my intended swim/workout schedule would be over the next few weeks.  Yesterday was to be a swim day since I was home.  I never anticipated having THAT MUCH laundry to do.  So the gym did not happen.  It was just hours of laundry after work.  Shoot, I am still doing laundry this morning.  I did do a little 15 minute walk to get the blood flowing this morning. 
I am thinking I could squeeze a swim in this evening.  I really need to get in the water.  I think I have everything clean that I need to pack for the rest of the week.
I probably should plan on packing a suit with me as well.  The hotel does have a little pool.  Just to keep the limbs moving etc.
That gets me through to Saturday/Sunday.  Sunday DEFINITELY needs to be a swim/bike/run  day even if its not in that order.  I promised myself I would continue riding even when the race was over but the season was still warm.  And that it is.  So I need to do that.  And there are only a few weekends left for it so I must get to it.
Met another road biker over the weekend who yet again was selling me on the concept of upgrading my bike to a better road bike and I would enjoy it all so much more.  Maybe next season. 
Riding bikes into bodies of water - not a good idea.  That is not what they mean with the swim/bike/run combo of a triathlon.

MMM - it's not Phair

Some inspiration for this week's post...  for the boy named after the city...  why yes, there are some of us out here that know who Liz Phair is...
i tried to pull something not as cliche as this song but had trouble narrowing in on the older stuff and then was so shocked at quite the makeover ms phair has had...

what to do today...

Today is supposed to be a swim day.  Just not sure there are enough hours in my day to do it all.  I have 2 office days to getg a bunch done before I am out onthe road again.  That makes for a pretty jam packed work day (or two).  And then I need to get laundry done so I can pack....  So we shall see.
With the new gym I do have the luxury of swimming later in the evening so I may put that to work for me.  It's a shame that laundry is such a babysitted chore - you know you cant leave all that unattended. 
So we shall see.
Feeling a bit sore from the yoga today.  And a bit sore from the dancing out on the dane floor too.
It was a great weekend. 

10/10/10

nope those 6 pack abs did not happen
now working on swimming a mile before the end of the year
but first some more hotel fitness center work out - well actually first is a good night's sleep after this weekends festivities and laundry!

that was a workout!

I decided to take a leisurely walk down the beach. I thought I would see if M&L's house was in walking distance. I suspected it was under a mile so doable.
Thankfully found some sunscreen in my gym bag and headed out. As expected, it took about 20 minutes to get there. I could tell it was them as there were towels hanging on the rails and people milling about.
OH BUT the workout did not stop there. I ended taking part in an hour yoga class. We all set up on the second story balcony overlooking the ocean. It was a great class. I may even have to search out the studio where she teaches. Then walked back via the road - more of an attempt to stay in the shade than anything else.
I jumped in the pool to wash off the extra sand and sweat. BBRRRRRRrrrrrr!!!.... Think I may try that again :)
Ate a fried chicken sandwich - don't know what I was thinking there. Now drinking a beer listening to some live music at the beach bar.
AND IT IS OCTOBER!
Ah, living in the South!
Wedding is at 4 so relaxing for a bit before showering and changing.

sitting on the beach

I decided to grab a coffee and head out to the beach. Then I remembered another plus to not having a rental car... Beach chair is in the trunk. So now I am sitting on the beach listening to the waves roll in. I tried to do absolutely notthing without falling asleep. There is some zen aspect to that. I did pretty good for about an hour or so. There is a surfer on a longboard down the shore from me. There are commercial fishing boats moving further and further off the horizon. A little boy that was jogging with his mom has given up for the lure of building a sand castle. And the tide is coming in and my feet are getting bathed by the Atlantic on a little more frequent basis than an hour ago. A jog on the beach sounds appealing but going to concentrate on this concept of nothing for a bit. That and another coffee and maybe sunscreen in my gym bag. Happy Saturday.

STARS

I may have commented on this in my Bermuda blog. And I was reminded again last night. When I left last nights festivities the walk to the car got suddenly dark. Very dark. As I waited for my eyes to adjust - the instinctive voice in my head said look up. Good suggestion. Wow, will you look at all those stars. I don't get that in CLT. It is never that dark. There are never that many stars. It was beautiful

today i wake up in hilton head

So nothing in the form of exercise - unless you count the flat out 5 hour drive - was acomplished. I am here for a friends wedding. Last night they had a low country boil dinner party for everyone. It was great food, cold beer and a good opportunity to meet some people. I only really know the groom and bride. Today will warrant some beach time. YAY!

Wilmington

I was productive in Wilmington - even if my menu decisions weren't all that healthy.
I did 30 minutes on the treadmill the first night. The second night I ran through the neighborhood behind my hotel. It was a golf course community and I checked with the front desk - it was a safe venture on my part. I jogged a mile in and a mile out staying on the main road so I would not get lost :)

Only Three Times?

Yes, because I find myself on the road again. Also why I am sitting in bed in a hotel room catching up on my blogging this morning. (Please no comments from the peanut gallery on beds and hotel rooms). I left for Wilmington (aka Cape Fear) NC on Wednesday. So Monday and Tuesday were entrenched with working late and packing. Depending on my eta tomorrow I may make it to the gym.

joined a new gym

I can't recall if I had mentioned this or not. But a new gym is being built closer to my home. It is actually on the way home from the Y. So while sitting in traffic on my way home from ATL I called and joined the gym. Craziness I know. I had been considering it for a while so it surely wasn't spontaneous on my part. It was cheaper. A little closer to home. Longer hours. And has a pool. So I considered it a no brainer. I have been 3 times so far and am enjoying it.

Monday after the race

I left for ATL for work. What a crazy day that was. Some vine/plant/something had been growing in the power lines that feed power to our office. I got to the office to get some things done before heading out. It was pitch black. I ended up sitting on a friends couch and chatting for most of the morning. Thankfully I was able to get everything done in time and head on out.
That night I did 45 minutes on the treadmill. It was the first time I was on a treadmill in quite some time. It felt good to be moving after such a non productive day.
The next 3 days I also worked in ~15 minutes on the elliptical each morning. This was a major feat for me. I have always struggled with that machine. So now I consider it part of my travel mix.
In the evenings I did a loop through an office park that is just short of 2 miles. I enjoy getting out there and working that loop.
It felt like a productive outing.

day of the race

I did get out on my bike some the day of the race. I took it out for a 20 minute spin. Nothing major. When I started coughing up a lung in the midst of climbing a hill I decided my decision to sit this rae out may not have been a bad idea.

NO RACE

I have been neglectful of blogging as it would mean I would have to put the facts in writing about the last race. That would be the race I chose not to do. With the change of seasons my allergies were acting up on a regular basis. Not much of an excuse but it was really hard to motivate and move when the head is constantly pounding. It lead to some chest congestion as well and the whole cardio piece was put to the side. I had a medical procedure as well. That didn't bother me at all physically except for a short 12 to 24 hour time frame. Again in the midst of it there was mostly an overwhelming sinus and head pain. And then the stress of it all seemed to be weighing on top of me. Which is hard to explain. The stress seemed to just add to the tension. So I decided to let myself off the hook. At least for a little while. Of course 2 weeks later I still feel incredibly guilty but what can you do about that. Eventually that will fade.

been a while

have lots to say as to why it has been while but just dont have the energy or desire to sit here and type right about now...
the summary is sinus pain, sinus infection, sinus pain, travel, sinus pain, colonoscopy, sinus pain, no triathlon, sinus pain, sinus pain...  finally back into the swing of things after a few weeks of distraction...  with the cooler temps i am just hoping the sinus pain stays the heck away!

MMM - a little JT and JF

Jimmy Fallon doing a little running man while singing golddigger in a suit... impressive... i have never been able to master the running man...  i find it oh so frustrating just cant get my knees and feet and music to all coordinate...

a few days out

the next triathlon is sunday.  and i havent been on my bike in over a week.  i havent done anything in over a week.  my sinuses have gotten the best of me over the past 2 weeks.  i think it has lots to do with the crazy weather we are experiencing.  it is somewhere in the 60s in the morning and getting into the 90s by the afternoon.  there hasnt been any rain and the amount of sunshine hours is obviously decreasing... so the plants are doing some odd things.  i cant tell if some of the trees are doing their normal fall change or just dying.  and now my sinuses feel like all that is sitting in my sinus cavities from the front of my face all the way above my eyes and in my ears.  hence i havent done much exercising.  which brings me to thoughts on sunday.  i kind of want to just ignore the day.  i know i can finish but not sure that i want to make all the effort.  all of a sudden the antisocial side of me has kicked in and the notion to have to have a chip on my ankle to make it official just seem too daunting...
we'll see how much i can hack up today and keep deciding what to do next

Is It Worht It

A friend of mine has started a blog about the worth of things.  So far she has commented about books, movies, tv shows... and a man in a oversized hoodie (that one made me laugh)...
Perhaps you will find it enjoyable too.
http://isitworthit-mare.blogspot.com/

As for the hoodie comment....  ah the wrestlers in high school trying to lose weight.  That reminded me of a friend I havent talked to in a few months.  And at the risk of annoying him - he has taken the fit thing to a whole new level...  he has jumped in full force.  But I also beleive he was one of those sweat it out on the high school wrestling team as well.  Will have to give him a call.
and the awkwardness of having to witness other people's workouts..  I generally swim at the gym and take a spin class and an occassional run on the outdoor or indoor track.  I dont do much on the treadmill or elyptical.  I feel rushed and stared at.  And pick up weights - not happened in a while.  However, again another friend, and his buddies seem to monopolize their gym when they workout.  I am not sure if they toned it down for the benefit of the other members.  I know he mentioned at one point that that may be necessary. 

the f word

i know this should go on the bermuda blog but for some reason i dont feel like diverging much from this blog...  the news keeps comparing IGOR to Fabian.  I remember when Fabian hit.  I was at a different job.  And the news over the internet was pretty good but not like it is today.  I remember sitting at my desk at that job and watching projections on line but it was nothing in comparison to the stuff i have been able to watch today...  I only imagine what I will be able to see over the next 48 hours... and I kinda wish I couldn't... 
I remember still sitting at my desk on the other side of Fabian...  I remember a humourous story about being called up for regiment but not being able to get out of the neighborhood due to felled trees..  I think of that story every time I travel that stretch of road on my bike.  It still is overgrown and congested.  And kind of spooky when riding through it during a thunderstorm like I did on this last visit.
I remember the story of moving food and supplies to the home with the generator only to have ther non-generator homes not lose power.
There were the pictures along South Shore that had been washed away.  The damage to the roof of the Princess.  And those poor people that lost their lives on the Causeway. 
I visited a year later and was so shocked to see the damage that was still evident.  I recounted it frequently after Katrina because people just didnt understand how much work it really is to clean up after a hurricane.
I sit here today with my windows open and a warm dry breeze blowing  in.  I have 2 parties to go to this evening and need to motivate to wrap some presents and figure out what to wear.  But I continue to sit here and think of my friends and hope they are OK over the next 48 hours or so and the clean up that will follow.
I guess it's because I feel like my ties in some respects have gotten stronger or at least rekindled since Fabian.  I have visited 4 times since then.  Or maybe it's the 19 year mark of visits that gets me.  Or all my friend's who have toddlers at this very moment.  And of course at an older age the thought of no power or water for an extended period of time screams louder than the opportunity to have a hurricane party. 
So I suppose the F word will be replaced by I!
and all I ask is that you let me know how things are on the other side of the 500+ mile storm...

HNT - sunscreen

I think I havent posted this one yet.  I know I went back to find this a few days ago.  Well actually the search started a few weeks ago.  I had a dermatologist appointment.  It was the first one I have ever had.  Wanted a baseline etc etc to have someone else help with keeping track of my years of sun exposure.

So the doctor asked me - and do you wear sunscreen?  I said - yes.  But I have this snealing suspicion that he did not believe me.  Hence the need for a picture...  I wore sunscreen, a hat AND sat in the shade of a little "cave" on the side of the beach the day this picture was taken...

No workout today

I have been fighting a sore throat for a week or so now.  I have blamed it on the various travel and change in overall climate change of seasons.  It has been a consistent to my throat and sinuses for years.  So it doesnt surprise me.  BUT I try so hard to not let it get to me and I get so mad when I dont beat it.  That is today.
I really thought I had wokred through it.  BUT today with labored breathing (well for me at least) I realised I did not push through it.  So I spent a better part of the day drinking ice cold water and hot tea, along with the occassional citrus flavored cough drop, hot soup and toast.  I hope to be in bed soon and kick it this evening.  I should be so lucky!
I know that I overall dont feel well because I cant seem to kick the funk or stinkin' thinkin' as its called, running through my head...  mostly it is a sense of feeling overwhelmed with the upcoming test, parties, doctor's visit, race and eventual travel.  And I know that I am tired and unwell when I cant get it to shut off. 
Maybe in 2 weeks I will feel a few steps closer to settled down.  I am hoping a week from right now that most of it will have passed...
We shall see.

MMM - KoL

Figured I could at least take this Monday to promote the latest release that was played at Friday night's concert.  Did I mention how impressive the drums and bass were at the live performance?  Cant remember if I said that already or if I was recounting that to someone in person.

Bike Ride

I was struggling with the idea of riding my bike this morning.  My throat is just not cooperating.  It is very sore.  So I did a lot of mental prep for today and the week.  Realising that I need to get some hill work in I decided I would YUCK the bike over to KPs and ride around her neighborhood.  I doubt that it is the same distance as the back and forth at the park but the hills are VITAL at this point in the game.
So I ended up with 45 minutes around the neighborhood and that included the 4 main hills, 5 of the back hill and 5 of the medium hill.  So I am gald for the hill workout.  I have left my bike there to work in some hill rides the rest of the week as well... um havent quite shared that with KP yet.
BUT given the work travel schedule, leaving the bike there for Monday/Tuesday and Thursday is a good bet.
I am not sure what I will do next weekend with the bike thing.
That is a whole other story of stuff to tell.  Will share later.

Week In Recap

It has been a busy week. Leaving little time for training and even less time to blog about the little time for training.
Monday was a holiday so that gave me ample time to get a workout in.  Tuesday was a haircut day.  So who is going to go workout after spending money on having it straightened etc.  Wednesday was day trip to Syracuse.
That was a nice spontaneous approach to the day.  And it was pretty darned close to spontaneous.  I went for work.  But the nicety of it was I got a first hand tour of the city.  We didnt walk around but we did drive around to see the city and the campus.  It had an air about it that made me miss the north.  Cant explain it but it did.  I hope to have a reason to go back... although I know that it will be colder at some point but OK.
The long day trip and delayed flight (due to an oil leak - UGH!) did not lend me any time to train.
And the late arrival home on Wednesday did not turn around and result in me bounding out of bed to go running the following morning.
I suspected the client meeting on Thursday would motivate me to hit the pavement with the bike and feet.  But for some reason that did not happen.
Friday was the Kings of Leon concert.  I wonder if dancing around on the side of a hill for over an hour counts in any way towards a workout?  Probably not.  I havent been to a concert since The Police a few years back.  It was a good time.
And now we are here.  I am sitting at the computer at the dining room table.
The weather is threatening rain out there.  It looks like it could actually be spitting down just a little as I type.  My throat hurts a little.  It has all week a bit.  My left ear feels a bit clogged.  And I cant tell what the cause is...  I am conteomplating going running - dont want to ride a bike in the rain.
And then I need to get back here to hit the books.  I have a CE course I am studying for.  And just want to get that under my belt.

HNT - haircut

I have been slack on getting my haircut this summer as I have been spending so much time with the swim/bike/run thing.  Well truth be told it started over the spring with a significantly postponed appointment.  And now it worked its way through the summer.

So now today my hair seems to be longer than it has ever been.  And thanks to professionals it is straight for at least one day...

We can do "Left is Right"

But buddy...  you and your family are actually taking up all sides and the middle.  And let's not even get started on the dog with the long leash. 
These were the thoughts going through my head yesterday as I made my way down the path on the greenway.  As noted earlier in the season I have resorted to coming to the shorter less known greenway as it is generally less crowded.  Yesterday - not so much.
Now I must admit I got a late start.  I spent the morning studying some stuff and wanted to get that done before heading out.  So my ETA was a few hours later than usual and the parking lot sure did indicate as such.  Usually people are courteous on all counts - me on my bike and them with whatever mode of transportation.  But yesterday there was a guy and his kids that just were ignorant of others and were taking up the entire path.  I guess the take away is I have a good sense of balance even when I have to peddle slowly until everyone got out of the way.  I understand they have every right to be there just as I do...  But... 
There was another girl on rollerblades.  She was struggling.  I give her crfedit for making the effort.  Although I dont think her pace and her effort were quite up to the expectations of the others that were with her.  Poor girl.
AND LASTLY - I was shocked at how many people let their large dogs (I am assuming there were large based on deposits) use the middle of the path as a toilet and proceeded to NOT pick up after them.  I have a whole new view of butterflies - BTW - that seemed to be enamored with the piles of crap in the path. 
So I did 8 miles on the bike.  I did pretty good time.  I am happy to say that I have added - out of the saddle - as part of the drills at that location.
I did 2 miles on the foot - although the desire to run was very minimal.

From there went to a Labor Day cook out...  YUMMM!!!  The chicken and ribs were really good.
No run this morning.  The internal self talk and I were on different pages.
Haircut tonight!  So no workout tonight or tomorrow morning.  Gotta try to keep the hair straight for at least 24 hours :)

MMM - Inspiration

I have been enjoying the new Brandon Flowers song.  I wont give much thought to the success or future of The Killers.  I am just enjoying Crossfire.  And as always I find myself losing time on youtube looking up videos of songs I like.  I am always curious as to what concept the artists or the artistic input people will spin on a song and the video.  And sometimes - um the artists are just nice to look at...  Not that there's a pattern or anything...


This video has extra inspiration to it.  Well look who the female character is.  Since I still rally on the CZJ comment from years ago I had to ultimately find a new aspiration.  CT is definitely it.  Of course the truth of the matter is no matter how blonde my hair or how tan my arms - I am not getting any taller and will probably never meet Stewart Townsend.  But I can aspire for some kickass, ninja fighting arm muscles as displayed here.

Lone Workout

KP wasnt feeling well today and decided to sit it out to try to kick whatever it is.  I left my bike over there from yesterday so decided I may as well take advantage of their hills while I am over there.

If my pace is consistent - and it generally is.  And MMR is close to being correct - which is hard to say as not all Prescott roads are included.  It was close to a 7 mile workout.  The focal point being the hills.
OK - I know they may not be the same grade as hills others choose to ride OR have the opportunity to ride...  but there were hills none the less.  I did a series of loops...  it made me a bit dizzy on the MMR site.
And the hills got sequentially flatter as I moved my way into the neighborhood.  Four hills in all for the main part of the neighborhood... and the back hill that I mentioned yesterday was included in every loop.  It was a good workout.

From there I decided I would go for a walk.  The lack of humidity all of a sudden has been reaking havoc on my sinus and breathing.  I actually felt PARCHED when I came in from the bike ride.  So I took it easy on the run and mainly walked a mile towards town and then back again.

I figured after yesterday's workout that was sufficient.
And as a treat to myself - caesar salad, broiled shrimp in a garlic white wine sauce and  hot bath.
Tomorrow will try the 12 mile BRICK again.
Plus dinner/cookout plans with friends.

Hummus and House Cleaning...

My goal is to try to clean the house one unmotivated evening during the week so I dont have to do it over the weekend.  And I am somewhat successful.  The cleaning woman was nice that one summer but really for such a small house, one person and Bacchus it really didnt warrant the expense.  So it is back to fitting it in to my own schedule.  And like I said, for the most part, it is successful.  The only problem is my obsession with food and healthier eating - especially when I dont have to travel.
We can get on my on the road food obsession in a few weeks.  Right now I am reveling in the cook at home luxury.  Luxury?  You say.  I know most people find eating out a luxury but when I you eat out all the time for work...  home cooking is far more rewarding.
So last week's menu - and it doesnt vary much during a given week given it is only me and the pup - was shrimp boiled with Old Bay seasoning, tomato and avocado salad tossed with basil and white balsamic vinegar, green beans sauteed with onions.  The variation was dinner at a friends house and that frozen pissa previously mentioned.  I also reconsituted some dried chick peas.
So somehow after scrubbing everything down and cleaning everything up WHY OH WHY does the kitchen look a mess again??!!!  errr.... Not that someone else was in here fiddling with the food. 
Yesterday I decided to make homemade hummus from the ckickpeas.  I had eaten a good share with salad/lunch over the course of the week but wanted to do the hummus with the rest.  And so the mess began.  Garlic and red pepper roasting in the oven.  Braun hand blender grinding up chickpeas.  Olive oil.  Basil.  Cheese.  Salt.  Cayenne.  The2 varieties - pesto and roasted red pepper came out WONDERFUL!  But the kitchen - especially that darned hand blender - was showing the worse for the wear this morning.  I served with flat bread and it was tasty.  I have more cp frozen so it may be added to next week's menu as well.
This morning before I scrubbed it all down again I decided to venture into this week's menu...  PB&J and fresh strawberries are on the menu for lunch this week.  I feel like that goes hand and hand with the start of the school year and all.  Dinner will be some more shrimp - I am trying to ignore the creamy shrimp and pasta recipe in the Kraft magazine I just recieved.  Although I must admit the alternative I am toying with is scampi.  This week's biggest menu item is breakfast.... bulgar wheat and baked apples.  I slopped up the kitchen pretty good with that. 
And am glad to say - that since I am sitting here typing - it is indeed all picked up.  Just hope something else doesn't pop on the entertainment radar that warrants more messes.
I need to crack a book today.
And am waiting for KP to call to determine our course of again in today's work out.
DID I MENTION - YESTERDAY KICKED MY BUTT!?
I am going to blame it on hydration and lactic acid.  Just another thing to read about with the whole heart rate thing.

Snake in the pool

So Friday night's attempt to train did not happen.  I did manage to wash the dishes that were building up in the kitchen.  One of the downfalls of making lots of food from scratch when home for a week.  All tasty stuff however.  Scrubbed some countertops.  And vacuumed up an equivalent of a whole other pug from the house.  I have gotten somewhat obsessed with what other type of flooring I can put down that will minimize the work of collecting the pug hair.  Decided tile in the back room, hardwoods elsewhere.  A girl casn dream :)  So that was the friday workout. 
The intent was to do a mini-tri simulation this morning.  And it wa accomplished. 
It is nice to get in the water in an outside pool at 730am... Kind of peaceful.  We opted to snake the pool.  This similar to the way the race will be run.  You go up one lane and back down the next.  The best approach is to plan the switch back as soon as yo push off the wall.  Hence you swim somewhat diagnally down the lane.  And when you get to the end you push off diagnally into the other lane.  This has proved to be a major time saver in a crowded pool.  A lot of swimmers touch the wall - go under the ropes and then push off again.  This way you ensure better placement next to the ropes and easier push off bypassing those huddled at the wall.  We did this 3 times at 250 yards each.  That's the most either of us have swam in quite some time.  I will admit it has taken its toll. 
So there was no real snake in the pool - but there was a frog.  Just as an FYI.
From there we hopped on our bikes and did 30 minutes around the neighborhood.  The one hill in the neighborhood runs pretty close to parallel to the road/hill that I ride when I do my Pine Oak loop.  Last year this hill used to give me so much trouble.  Glad to say this year - not as much.  HOWEVER the hill that runs parallel to the HT loop I have yet to attempt is killing me.  I could hear myself starting to hyperventilate - well I think that's what it was.  It was rather unnerving for me.  And then I think that exasperates even more...  I start thinking about race day etc etc.  I really think it has more to do with pre-training prep than anything else.  But I left the bike there to tackle it some more over the next week.
Then we did a loop around the neighborhood on foot.  Not a great showing in a run but OK for the whole scheme of things.
Now my one ear and sinus are acting up.  Spent a good amount of time on the couch this afternoon - trying to figure out how best to get it to drain.  LOVELY I know.  Change of seasons and all.  Gonna give the sudafed a try...
Off to make some homemade hummus.  All in an effort to not go to Five Guys and eat an unreasonable burger.

night off was nice

to mentally give myself an out last night seemed to work nicely.  sure there are other nights where i dont do as much as i would like with my evenings.... but some of those nights i circle around kind of doing things and dont really relax... last night i just relaxed... i made myself a nice caesar salad and frozen pizza (I know oh so not healthy!) sat back with a glass of wine, played fetch with the little guy and watched - i think it was 3 episodes - of White Collar...  definitely relaxation...

so now to obsess about what today's list of things will amount to for the weekend...  swim, bike, run, clean, garden, study... it will make for an interesting list

motivation is just not kicking in...

i was thinking of just embracing it this evening...  lounge on the couch... eat some pizza...  drink a glass of wine...  catch up on White Collar, Covert Affairs... determine when Greys and VD will be starting up again...
just some mindless kicking back...
or maybe just celebrate what the news just called a "once in a lifetime holiday"  90210.......  where do people think up this stuff...

OK gonna go veg...

Youthanize

I know - a bad play on words but I couldnt think of anything else. 
I was near a college campus today and as I was driving through a bunch of guys ran by.  I found myself watching their form, contemplating how much longer I should continue trying to run, and wondering what sport they played.  BE called and said - hey did you see those beefcakes run by?  I dont know whether to be thankful or pathetic or both that I didnt really notice that it was shirtless guys running by.  I am thankful however that I have friends looking out for me to point it out.
So we got on the subject of making my car look more youthful when in situations like this.  Maybe I should throw the bike up on the car for such occassions - conversation point.  Maybe I could makeshift some stickers on the car that are youthful.  THEN we realised we didnt really know what those might be.  I had an OAKLEY sticker on my Nissan for a while.  Are they still around?  The plush Garfield is probably out of style, eh?  Billabong?  OP?  Local Motion? 
And then we had a good laugh at how old and out of touch we really are.  Oh well.
I turned up the radio and proceeded home.

Sugar High...

I went back and read what I rambled on about last night.  That has to be the effect of the blue bunny chocolate ice cream I ate last night.  I felt it in my sleep as well - always a contributor to some odd dreams.

This morning to work off some of the sugar I did the 530 - which really ends up at 600 - trek around the neighborhood.  It is the workout that I do just to get moving.  Try to get in a mile within 18 minutes atthe longest - hence a walking workout.

Going to try to get into the swim of things over the next 5 days.  I hope that comes together OK.

Forgot one...

A friend suggested I read Fast Food Nation just to keep me off eating too much fast food when I am on the raod for 6 weeks later this fall...  It might be a good scare tactic.

Required Reading..

Currently I am overwhelmed with my list of things to read...  At this very moment - and I mean VERY MOMENT - I should be reading chapters 8 and 9 of RPA 2.  This would be Cash Balance and Other Hybrid Retirement Plans and Retirement Plan Management...  Perhaps you understand why I am blogging at this VERY MOMENT instead.  I actually have 12 chapters to read and then study for a test in a few weeks.
So I have held off on going to the bookstore to keep my focus.
Then there are the Ireland books.  Planning a trip next year for my mom's 70th.  I want to drive it - left is right and all that.  Which also makes me in charge of coordinating.  So I need to get on that.  Ahhh but think I have enough OnePass miles at this point for free tix.
I promised myself I would read - The Girl Who Played with Fire - next.  I tried to watch the Swedish movie of the tatoo book but struggled with it.  The fire movie is here in town but I would rather read the book first.
Once I read that and watch New Moon - I know I am such a late adopter of fads - I mean how easy can I switch to "Team Edward vs. Team Jacob" when I am still pretty enthralled with "Team Louis vs. team Lestat"...  Anyways I digress into Anne Rice ramplings (get it)...  Once I do those two things I will pick up a copy of Eclipse.  I suspect I may be able read the last book before the movie actually hits theaters.  We shall see.
Then on to the last Millenium book - something about a hornets nest - which I find funny being from the Charlotte area...  I imagine her down at the old coliseum kicking the dirt...
So all well and good... but now I have a few more!!!  UGH!!! 
I would like to eventually finish reading the Total Immersion book I started over the winter.  AND actually apply the technigues.  And now a cycling book has been suggested.  Which will probably have me walking into a book store before I originally planned.  Hey if it addresses my obsession of heart rates it wont be long before I am at Borders.  And it probably be the one next to the Franklin Covey and I will be parting with cash to buy some new and improved organization insert to my dayrunner...

Or maybe all this is just the sugar kicking in from the chocolate ice cream I had earlier this evening and it will all seem minimal in the morning.  Well except for that test.

ABRA$ION?!?!?

That sounds painful.  And so technical.  Like I need to get out my first aid book or something.
Perhaps an injury - such as road rash - that one would get from cycling.
But hopefully no abrasions from swimming.
ALTHOUGH - I must admit when swimming in the pool in my friends neighborhood and the one at the hotel in KY - the shallow end does lend to scrape the knee every once in a while.  Not something that happens at the Y pool, that's for sure.  Oh and the one on race day - depending on seeding - could end up being the really deep pool.  The one they use for diving.  The one I convince myself is deep enough to hold a really large dangerous fish.  There's no chance of abrasions there...
BUT they all have that cement siding that just messes up the suit. 
Perhaps I should just resort to sitting peacefully on deck and watching others - NAAAH....

well this evening I did opt to not swim.... probably not the smartest decision...  but it was nice to have dinner with a friend and not rush through swimming....  and drying off....
swim tomorrow for sure - somehow

heart rate revisited

would be curious to read more on the science behind that
KP has a book on running that talks about it a bit more than my TRI books do
but still dont get it
most of my training is interval - at least with the run since I struggle with it...
most interval training on the bike is road made - uphill, downhill - with the occassional messing with the gear, and getting out of the saddle
spinning allows for easier interval training
swimming could but the swim fast concept and I havent found a good rhythm or routine yet
so feel free to send on more info

Fat A$$?

I wasnt really going to get into this topic but I think I discovered the culprit this evening.  I have been having issues with my bathing suit bottoms.  They keep getting picks in them.  But not the snag type of pick.  These are like mass quantity picks that ultimately shall we say make the material sheer?  Not fun.  And all the while I have been thinking to myself...  I know I am swimming a whole lot more these days but so much so that I am wearing through bathing suits?  And if I were going to wear through the bottom there should be no surprise if I wore through the tops as well.  But the tops are fine. 
So now I have 2 unmatched tops.  I know some of you would love if I went down some bottomless swimming path...  But it is really getting on my nerves.  I went to my favorite swimsuit web-site last night in hopes to find some bottoms.  Plug for the web-site:  http://www.swimoutlet.com/  And they did have a few and reasonably priced.  HAH!  But the size was too big.  And that's when it hit me...  even with all this working out maybe my a$$ is fatter than I realised.  Maybe I am buying the wrong size bottoms...  Again all the while I have been obsessed with making sure I buy the right size top.  I have been wrong all along.  What a miserable thought.  So I opted to just stick with what I have for now and look again in a few months.

AHAAAA!!!! moment....  So this evening KP and I went swimming.  I havent been in the pool much.  So this evening was just going to be a series of 100 yards to just keep moving (yesterday's venture did somewhat take its toll on me).  I did 4 sets of 100 and then 1 set of 200.  Not the stellar almost to a mile quest but I was OK with it.  Swimming in the evening in an outdoor pool that is pretty much vacant is splendid.  You can see the ripples your stroke makes in the shadows on the bottom.  The water is clear and not murky like overpopulated pools in the midst of summer can be.  The sun is still warm on your back.  It was all going at a nice pace.  And then it hit me....  When I stop a set to check my time and get a breather...  My lower back leans up against the cement siding of the pool.  I do it in every pool...  I am so conscientious to not sit on the side of the pool or the steps.  To not pick the suit.  And here I am leaning all up against the side as I check my time etc and picking the heck out of it.  Again I know this could turn into some ugly banter...  But I was so glad to come to the realisation.

Now I just have to get out of that damned leaning habit.
I am also trying to improve my turns as well.  I have been reluctant to work on the kick turn.  I used to do it as a child but never learned the proper technique.  And then when you throw a whole bunch of women in the water sharing lanes and changing lanes I decided it was a skill I did not need to master at this time.  However I do beleive I am losing time with my grasping the wall technique.  So I am working on that as well.

FOUR WEEKS to go...  I really need to get the focus on.

MMM - spice girl

This came on as I was riding yesterday.  I think she must have a whole other meaning in mind.


Love the cheesy British pop!

so what did i do this weekend

Well last week I wasnt feeling all that well.  I walked on Monday morning and I swam on Monday night.  The doctor said I should be OK to work out no big deal.  Just take the antibiotics and lots of fluids and I should be OK.  But I just didnt have the motivation.  General malaise had set in.  I was beginning to get nervous to tell you the truth.  But there is something to be said about being in a funk when you dont feel well.  Even if it isnt a headsplitting version of a sinus infection or bronchitis...  not feeling well is not feeling well...
I would say the antibiotics (second set - confirming SH's belief that all antibiotics should be taken for 10 days) started to kick in Friday night to Saturday night.  And I have noticed the general malaise feeling has dissipated for the most part.
So Sautrday I did the 6 mile loop around town.  I keep re-map-my-running the loop in hopes of finding it to be longer but that is not the case.  I was about a mile down the road when I realised I never turned on the watch.  Oopps.
Later in the day SH and I went to the park and did 4 miles.  Not at breakneck speed but a good distance to help with the muscles etc.
Today I was a bit more ambitious.
I went to the park and did 12 miles - I know 12 miles - on the bike.  This time the time was ticking but the HRM was shooting the right signals.  I completed it in about 60 minutes.  The highlight of perk of this trip was that I let myself listen to music as I peddled - in one ear.  I obviously dont do that on the street.  And I got to listen to some fun tunes.
From there I transitioned (which translates into locking the bike back on the top of the car) to a run walk.  I did 1on 1off for 10 minutes - equated to 5 minutes running - 5off - then 1on 1 off again - and another 5 - well actually until I was done.
I am gearing up now to head to bed so that when the alarm goes off tomorrow morning at 530 I will feel well rested and ready to hit the pavement with my sneaks again.
I really need to get in the water one of these here days.
Tomorrow afternoon is another doctor's appt.  fun...

heart rate

and that's when i started reviewing my understanding of my target heart rate
i wear my hrm all the time when i run and cycle
i am always surprised at how quickly my heart rate goes up on the run
it does a pretty good job on the cycle as well
guess i could take my pulse when i swim...
anyways there are different zones with heart rate and the higher you go the more calories you burn but the less fat you burn
in zones 1 and 2 - 85% of the calories burned are represented by fat calories... now you may have to do a  bit more in this area to burn a bunch of calories
in zone 3 you are burning closer to 50% of fat calories
and in zone 4 you are at 15% of fat calories
not too sure where you are at zone 5 - i suspect not much as the theory is this is pretty darned close to over your 100% target and you cant sustain that pace for very long
so i was trying to figure out the breakeven for the various zones - i look to be spending a bunch of time in the higher zones when i went back through my Garmin records

looking at my workouts on foot this weekend - since my HRM & I were chatting during my bike rides....
i did a 4 mile walk for just over an hour on saturday - according to Garmin I burned 322 calories @ 85% since it was a slower pace I burned 273 fat calories
i did 2 miles in just under 30 minutes and burned 197 calores but on average was in zone 3 so only 50% at fat burning or 98 calories
this hasme pondering... perhaps longer walks are going to be in my future after this triathlon thing
just dont know for sure

back on that athena obsession

heard something last week that got me back on that thinking with respect to the athena category and how healthy am i really just because i can finish a tiny triathlon...
of course it didnt help that i wasnt feeling well earlier in the week and went to the doctor (i know i was feeling that bad) and i had to get on the scale...  the reality that i just didnt want confirmed because i could just tell was that i had put back on a bunch (or maybe some) pounds since i was on holiday and traveling for work...
so that too got me thinking...
how do i keep myself healthy
how do i do a better job of eating when i travel
how the heck do i lose that weight...
so i have 4 weeks to the race and lots of focus on lots of things to try to hit some certain goals...
gonna give it my best
must be the antibiotics have finally kicked in and i am feeling better

no cause for alarm

Or something like that.  Because I have no idea what happened with my alarm yesterday.  If it went off, which I suspect it did, I never heard it.  AND I turned it off.  So yesterday there was no AM run/walk.  And by the time I got home last night....  Nothing in my evening either.  I do believe I had yesterday noted as my day off for the week but... 
Today the run/walk didnt happen because when the alarm went off I was so sleepy.  I felt like I was literally being sucked into the mattress I was so deep in sleep.  I could go back right now if I didnt have to get going with my day.  I havent been feeling well so I am going to say that is the cause of the tired feeling.
Going to try to motivate to get something done this evening.  FIRST - I need to motivate to get some work done.