Why I Tri

It’s been almost 3 months since I posted last. It’s been a hard 3 months. Trying to get over with being done with a disappointing race. Yes, I understand I crossed the finish line, but didn’t make the time. 8 freaking minutes.
I’m done having a pity party and  feeling sorry for my crazy life God has given me. I have a wonderful husband that is truly my best friend. Danny pushes me to be the best and we are always on a roller coaster of adventures. In the Tri groups there is a ton of talk about why people Tri (triathletes do Triathlons). I have over the last few months thought many times, why? Why me? What makes me want to get back up after I fall? Many times I have written a blog and not posted it.

Well, I Tri for - ME.

We have had “the Kid” living with us since November 2014 and this week with much emotional exhaustion we let him go back to our son. Training for me keeps me out of some dark places with the Jerry Springer train wreck we have been on. It will be nice to get back to being grandparents again and doing the best we can to help when needed.

The hardest things for both Danny & I was juggling having the “the kid” with a 6 days  of training. The team we train with is a good 45 minutes away. Trying to get off work and get to the practices have been hard. It had come to only one of us going at a time or wait till “the kid” went to see one of his parents for the weekend. I understand why most couples only have one person training at a time.

The last three months: I took a month off to have a good 30 day cry and pity party with very few days of any training. Danny was much better at staying the course. I had a week that I traveled for work and I did find time to swim and run but not much more. I came home for a 2 day work week and then off to a trip to Las Vegas. Vegas was a much needed trip for us to have a good time and try and not worry about the future. Danny signed us up for a 10k while in Vegas and even though I bitched about doing it. We had a blast and Danny came in 2nd in his age group. I was able to spend time with my sister and brother in law that I don’t see enough. Our youngest got a dream trip of a lifetime that we were blessed to give him.

Present Day: 4th of July was yesterday and we spent it with many of our teammates. The question today as I was thinking about yesterday.

 WHY DO I TRI?

I Tri because:
* I love to do this with Danny
* I love the team, we are a part of
* My dark days are less and less
* Every day I like myself more and more
* Proving just how badass I can be is pretty cool

Yesterday, while everyone else is getting their hangover on I was sitting in a hot tub planning next year races. This is what happens when you hang out with your teammates.  2016 is going to be a great year for Danny & me. I can’t wait to see what happens……. First up Redman 70.3

Ironman Galveston 70.3 recap (Pam)

 

We arrived in Houston on Friday and went straight to Galveston to pick up our packets. Pickup was a really quick 30 minutes. We attended one of the meetings, then walked around to look what the vendors had to offer. I spotted the Cryotherapy tent and got a killer deal because they were setting up. I love the cryogenic and if you haven't done it you really need to try it. All I can explain is it feels like the soreness is being pulled out of your bones.
 Friday night, we drove back to Houston to stay with family and the main reason we choose Galveston. It was incredible to have family & friends there to cheer us.
Saturday We checked into our hotel, we stayed at the Inn@ the Waterpark. Walking distance to Moody Gardens. Checking in our bikes was like walking into a candy store for Danny. Me, I really just wanted to get it done. I found my spot and racked my bike. I tried to find a marker to remember where Ursula was to find her in the morning. I briefly talked to a few ladies around me and realized a few lived close to the dfw area. When we got done with the bikes we went to walk to the swim start. The buoys were not out yet so I really could not tell where I was going to be swimming. I was really calm and was not having the butterflies like I thought I would at this point. I had come to the conclusion that I could only do my best at this point and embrace the training.
We had dinner and was in bed by 8:30pm. Right before bed, we set all our gear out. I went through it a few times and was done. I wasn't going to stress over transition. I tried to keep it really simple. I had Mary's words of wisdom ringing in my ear. I was not going to be a transition hog. That was that, I slept so sound and I got a really good night's sleep, which was so surprising.
I have several text messages and phone calls wishing us the best. This type of encouragement keep me going. Love it!
Sunday: We got up close to 4:45 am and I had a cup of coffee, half a bagel & half a banana. I really didn't feel like eating. We walked to the transition with a small crowd. Watching the rows of vehicles coming into the park at 5am was starting to make things very real. This was really going to happen. I was about to do a 70.3 ironman.
I found my bike and used the small towel we got at packet pick up. I set everything up that I needed.
Bike: helmet, glasses, shoes, socks, crustable, gels, sunscreen, water
Run: shoes, belt, visor
I placed a flowered beach towel over my bike so I could spot it in the rows of never ending bikes. This would also be used to wipe my face once I came out of the water.
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The swim this morning changed to a wetsuit optional race. I had to make a decision what to do and choose to go with my wave or wear the wetsuit and go at the end. I'm glad I choose not wet suit because 400 people went with the penalty and wore a wetsuit. Wetsuits go at the end and from what I heard was a bit of chaos.
I checked my Garmin once I got home and it recorded a 1.34 miles on the swim. I need to get better at swimming in a straight line. At one point, I was halfway way to the coast guard boat. I had salt water in my eyes and couldn't see in the swim. I knew I couldn't mess with my goggles are that would be worst. I used my legs way too much in the swim. I just keep moving.
On the bike it rained and sleeted for the first half of the bike and the wind coming back was the hardest. Humidity is no joke. I am really happy with my bike time. My great accomplishment was I took a Gatorade from a water station on the bike and didn't fall over. For some this is easy, for me this is another story. I just knew I would fall over.
I kept pedaling. I was not going to get off the bike because I knew if I did I may not get back on. Many people were drafting in groups of 4-5 riders. No official was saying anything about the drafting. A few times I thought I had a flat, but told myself "ride that baby till you reach the rim" I was not stopping. I didn't, but your mind tells you all kinds of funny stuff on that bike. Once I got done with the bike, I just didn't have it in me to run much. Once I got off the bike I was pretty much done, but was going to try.
I had to stop at an aid station because of chaffing on a leg and I peed once. I didn't try to take those spandex off just poured water on me and keep moving. There are things you do with triathlon that I never thought I could have done 6 months ago. It seems like every time I came around the loop the announcement was "here comes Pamela Mears" I was so confused like I missed the counts and did the loop one too many times.

I did the whole thing, came across the finish line. Even with a DNF because I finished less than 10 min late. I'm pretty proud of sticking it out for my first 70.3. One of the best feelings was having my coach hug me and tell me I did a good job. Not really sure why Coach Mike's acceptance is so important to me but it is. I just want to do better when I’m around him. Coach Mike does not do whining and with that Danny has started to ignore my daily complaining. Oh Well the dogs still love me. I don't get a lot of feed back just a lot of tough love from Coach. I'm good, maybe because of that is the reason I Tri.  He promised me a hug if I finished and I was NOT going to stop till I crossed that finish line.
So I now know I can do it and what to work on. Git'er done!

Thank you for all the team support. I saw everyone along my path cheering me on and asking how I was doing. I love my IronTex family. Having my sister, brother-in-love, dad and best friends from high school was amazing. We even had two dogs cheering us on the run. Knowing that I had family in North Carolina, Arizona and Houston watching online was so unreal that I felt like I was in a dream. The support of my crazy running group and BFF Tiffany, who keep everyone across the country updated. This is why I do what I do. That is going to be my next blog. WHY DO I TRI…..

ROCK & ROLL HALF MARATHON

This is a post so overdue, but training has been so exhausting that most days are training and going to bed. The Rock & Roll is in my top list of half marathons races. The weather was great with cool and cloudy. It started with packet pick up on Saturday. I ran in close to the end of pick up only to be told my bid wasn't to be found. I had to go to customer service to be issued a new number which was a bit frustrating. There are thousands of runners and tons of volunteers to pull off a major race series like the Rock & Roll. I was given a new number and yes, I was disappointed since this bib did not have my name printed on it but instead a big yellow dot sticker.  I went around and picked up my bag of goodies and grabbed my shirt. It was one of the biggest vendors show I can remember, but this was also the few times Danny wasn't able to pick up my packet for me. You had to show ID and verify you are you.

I'm apart of this group of ladies on Facebook from around the world. All walks of life, age, color, short, tall, fluffy, bean pole, southern charm to Damn Yankees, you got it we have your type. I love this group because out of 539 you find you're never alone and there are always ladies that are in the same struggles that I am at some point point. The one thing we have in common is running. Some are in the baby stages of running others old hat. One thing this group sets others apart is real life. We have our little crazies, but we are here to encourage. This race I had the opportunity to meet up with two out of our group. What a blast! It was like school friends you haven't seen in years, but pick up where you left off years earlier.

 The morning of the race Danny was our official sign holder & cheer leader . He is really getting good at this job. We started off together but I really wanted to PR and still not push myself with only a month out from 70.3. This would also be the first time without music. I was running without headphones, YIKES, which Surprisingly wasn't bad at all. I saw Danny right off the bat at mile 2. Most of the words for his sign I didn't read or comprehend. I was just so focused with this race. I guess I was moving at super fast speed. Spotting Danny was pretty easy along the race and was nice to see him. He was cracking me up because he keep asking me. "Are you OK?" I guess I looked very good for a change and not like I was dyeing. He also had for me quick updates on where my girls were at and how they were doing. This race ran along the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge which spans the Trinity River with only one hill which was really an on ramp to the freeway that we had to run down. I could definitely tell the training had help with my running. I didn't see Danny when I finished for a few minutes and later on found out why. Danny was taking a selfie with the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders at the finish line. I'm glad he had fun as much as I did. Now when we see miss cheerleader on TV he always is making jokes. The reason why our married stays together so well we laugh daily.

 Afterwards, we all meet up and had lunch & a celebration margarita. We have already signed up for next year and hoping for more ladies to join in the fun. The t-shirts are ordered for the group and we will be ready to #SNS for having too much fun.

Now this is where the crazy stuff happens. I got an email a few days afterwards saying my race pictures could be viewed. Super excited I go and look. Guess what? I've got two bib numbers and there is someone else with my first number. You hear about people stealing bib numbers for races. I can't say this person took my bib for sure because I don't know. I do know that it looks suspicious with the way that she has my name covered up in the pictures. The craziest part is we ran really close in time together. I hope she enjoyed the race as much as I did.  

 

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St. Patty's Day First Tri Race Report

Weather- prefect, a little on the chilly side but bearable.

We arrived 5:45AM. Danny & I parked and grabbed my gear. Our family had been through a stomach virus that week and poor Danny unfortunately was the last to get the bug. Due to the unfortunate invent Danny was not able to participate in the race. He was able to cheer me on and be my sherpa.

We stood in line to get me marked with my age & Bib number. Why do they put your age number on your leg? It's like saying, "look at me in going through a midlife crises in my 40's" I see a friend who is volunteer and get a hug to easy my butterflies. Danny can't go with me into the area with the bikes so I bid him farewell.

Transition area- I find my spot after a few circles in the dark. Danny has made it around the other side to talk to me over the fence. I start laying things out keeping in mind to keep things together per leg. Lay my towel down and start putting evening on top. Bike shoes have inside gel blocks, cream, glasses, hat, gloves.  Running shoes have Bib, socks, hat on top. I was feeling great, then comes my Irontex teammate, Mary. She tells me, "you're a transition HOG"   ( didn't feel so proud any more) I'm glad Mary came and checked on me. She fixed the bike and downsized my beach towel area to a hand towel. It was nice to have someone help with my first race and walk me through the process. She did keep telling me to "have fun". But  I was ready for an overnight stay not a triathlon transition.

Swim- I don't think we really understand what time I needed to put down for the swim. They line you up by your estimated swim time. I had a 551 number which was in the back of the pack. The rest of the team was close to mid 200's.  It felt like no one was really looking at numbers and I could have gone with everyone else in the group but I didn't because I have nightmares now that a referee with a red flag giving me a penalty. So I stayed with the 500 crew. After over an hour of waiting to start the swim, I get up to the pool. When I get to edge of pool the guy asked me, " are you ready?" I said "Uh, not really". He kind of surprised me and I just stood there. I think he wanted to push me in. I took a few deep breaths and jumped. The swim part is fairly easy for me and I was more frustrated with the people stopping to hang on the side or take polite turns to go to the next lane over. At one point there was 6 people trying to decide who was going to go next. I just went under and kept on going to pass them all. I don't have time for hanging on to the sides. (Danny got this on video) I think I'll do better with the open water swim because it's more hand-on-hand combat kind of swimming where you just get out there and do it.

T1- coming out in the pool I didn't want to run, because I am Just One Accident waiting to happen.( I really need to be wrapped in bubble wrap most of the time) As I come into the shoot Danny starts yelling"your left, your left" so I go LEFT. I hear him them go"your other left, my left" omg, really man. After another 360 in the transition area,  I find my bike. I felt like the T1 went well being my first. I put 2 Gel blocks in my mouth and proceeded to put my helmet on. Helmet on backwards then corrected it after it wouldn't buckle. Because it was a windy morning, I decided to put on a bike top, which was a wise choice. I got my bike down and on my way.

Bike- this is by far my weakness. I got on my bike and tried to enjoy myself, which I did. I felt good during the ride and really should have pushed myself  a bit harder. I was surprised  not see more spectators along the course. I'm used to the  running races with tons of signs, yelling, cheering & street dancers. So I made do and I talked to everyone. The police officer that was directing traffic, other bike riders and to the rider's I passed that needed a little bit of encouragement themselves. As Danny would say, I'm a flower picker. Which is true I like to enjoy the moment and have fun.  On the 2ND loop of the bike I look behind me and my heart skipped a beat. I was on my last hill coming around the corner I hear a group of riders. There was latterly 30 riders I just knew I was last and this was the patty wagon coming to get me. It wasn't but just a riding group taking advantage of the closed bike course.

T2- coming off the bike into the run was crazy. Your legs are like jelly! You have to use the bike to hold you up as you jog back to your transition spot. Once I got to my spot I went ahead and sat on the ground to put my socks & shoes. I changed my helmet for a visor. I had a water bottle full of Advocare Spark and was off to the run.

Run- coming into the run I could see our Irontex team, that was really a great feeling not feeling alone. Mary kept asking me if I was having fun. I told her not really, but it was a huge boost that I could do this.  The first .50 mile I was trying to get my legs to work. I surprised myself that after all of the other elements I set a PR for my 5k. At the mile markers, there were  water stations with Dallas Athletes coaches that cheered runners on. This was the part of the race I enjoyed the best. One coach yelled to me I had great running form. Since I am the bumblebee who likes to pick flowers once again, I  talked to everyone I passed. I was enjoying the moment. When I came back around to the water station that same coach started to run with me. Being nice, I told him my coach was flying in from New Zealand and thanked him for the encouragement. You could hear the announcer at this point calling the names of the people that had crossed the finish. Coming into that last bit seeing team members that waited around to see me finish and my sherpa husband is something words can't describe. Thank you all who made the day the hard work is paying off. And I have one of the best set of pictures.

Freak Out over Nothing

This past week has been pretty intense with our training. There was a moment on my part with a bit of a freak out thinking about an upcoming race. It just popped in my head that I didn't have anything to wear. My clothing choices are limited to one pair of bike shorts and one pair Tri shorts, this stuff adds up in cost quick. I have a full closet of running gear, but this is a whole new ballgame. I've come to like the tri shorts much better considering they don't make someone feel like you're in a big fat diaper. The padding around the lady parts is much less on the tri shorts which have been something to get used to.

Triathlon Shorts: Pros

1.Designed with all three sports in mind
2.Reduced padding allows for easier running and swimming
3.Less chaffing on runs
4.Less fluid retention in pad

When you're a healthy, full-figure women it's not fun going to a tri shop for clothing's. Regardless, I find that the shops don’t keep bigger sizes or the ladies selection is on the gloomy side. We buy most of our things online since we don't have the time and cost. Previously if I find something I like, I pretty much stick to it. Let's start with what's working for me, the curvy Bumblebee.

The bra- when your top half can knock you out in a long run, you find something that works: chop-chop. I've really come to love the moving comfort brand. I own many different styles, but the one that has worked the best is the Mina style. This bra has your regular bra then a cover over it. Perfect place to put your gel, chafing cream, pb&j. Really, I can put a ton of stuff in there. It's like a Mary Poppins bra that I don’t have a problem stuffing.

Generous coverage in an underwear style that's built as two bras in one—a well-rounded option for full-cupped women.



• Molded cups maintain shape and provide light modesty
• Back-adjustable, gel-padded straps improve fit and enhance comfort
• Underwear, supports each breast individually
• Adjustable, soft-padded back closure for proper fit and support
• Encapsulation/Compression



Top: this part sucks. Having issues already about more than enough buying tops is extremely hard. I have found most tops have built in bras. This clearly something I don't need since I have my favorite already. The sizing seems a bit off while most can be up to two sizes too small. This past weekend was why for the meltdown. The top I have at the moment I really don't like. I'm sure it is a size smaller than I need. It has the built in bra and I feel like I can't breath. I've done some major research and find most of the shirts are made this way. There is no way I can do anything remotely triathlon not breathing.


In the midst of explaining to Danny I will not have anything to wear for my first triathlon this coming week. Calmly Danny says, "what I hear you saying is you need to spend money" well, YES!

I step away and text another friend that has been doing triathlon and get some curvy girl advice. Nevertheless What I learned was it's ok to wear guy triathlon suits. Guess who had a new Tri suit he got for Christmas. Well, Danny of course. I walked back to the bedroom and put that baby on. I was so surprised that it worked great. I liked the fit and red wasn’t pink my normal choice, but it would work. Surprisingly there was tons of room in the top area. Why do guys need lots of room in the top is a question I would like to know.

I sent a picture over to my teammate and got the thumb ups back. I was in business now and someone lost his gear. Sorry, not Sorry!

Over the next few days I tried it in the water, bike & run. This thing was nice and I'm really starting to like the way it fits. The only problem is a suit is a one piece outfit or you can get a "Tri kit" which comes like shorts and a top. The world problem is if you have to pee in a tri suit it takes way too much time to take it off. I’ll cross the bridge once I get to it.

The good news is we ordered team kits and won’t be here for this race, but will be here for Galveston. The biggest reason why I or Danny did not want to spend money on something that I may only wear once.

In conclusion the lesson I learned I can wear anything I want even Danny's' threads and feel sharp in  my race.

posted from Bloggeroid

Here I go again

 Here I go again.  Now I have that goofy song in my head.

Since thanksgiving I've really been struggling with health issues. I'm not normally a sickly person, consequently it seems this year's bipolar weather is kicking my butt. I have gone from going to my doctor's office once a year to every month. I keep telling them "I don't have time for this, I have a race to train for" This week, I finally broke down and went to see a specialist.  Training, it's going acceptable, even with all the coughing and little sleep. I have surprised myself getting almost all of my training sessions done in the week. The weather has been beautiful one day 70* then change crazy low the next 30*. Today we are in the 60* and tomorrow they are calling for snow/ice. No wonder I've been sick Weekly training, we get a list of training sessions to do over the course of the week. Coach Mike has team goals & challenges that I try honestly hard to complete. The crazy thing is everything you do or don't do turns a color. Red-didn't do, Yellow- partly did, Green- great job! Learning the tough way, if you do too much it turns yellow. The goal for this week is 100% green. I am a work in progress trying to grasp that goal.  The day I went to the doctor I came home and ran 3 miles, then jumped on the bike for an hour ride. The primary thing I've learned about my strength over this year is higher than I thought. I'm just rolling to keep moving to reach my goal. I'm stronger than I ever estimated in myself.

Keep moving, ironmears 70.3.

Pamela 💋

Can't do That

Things are moving along at a pretty fast pace. I feel like we have our groove with the schedule. We both had Monday off this week and was able to get Coach Mike out to the house to look over our set up.We got a few Can’t do that. *no YouTube triathlon stuff & *no spin class at the YMCA
Two highlights for this week was spin class with the Irontex team taught by coach Mike and my bike ride by myself through the park.
SPIN CLASS On Wednesday coach Mike teaches a class at one of the local triathlon shops offered after close. You have to bring your bike with all the gear. This is a great way to have a coach watch you ride and see if there are adjustment that need to be made. Danny was working so I did this on my own, which I think really impressed coach. I get home from work and have about an hour and half to get stuff together, load truck and be at the shop across town. I have no idea how to take Ursula off her trainer or load her into the truck. One of Danny's new Christmas gifts was a bike bar for the bed of the truck. Thankful, our son was home to help me figure things out. Crazy part I keep thinking if I don't get things back together since you have to take the front wheel off I might fall over and take out the entire spin class. Oh my, front headlines: Ursula and Pamela take out spin class. Well one of the workers at the shop sees me coming in with my gear, bike wheel in hand. You have to make several trips back to the truck. I now know 5 minutes early you're late to set up. Class was good, coach is telling you: you're not pushing hard enough, fast enough, drinking enough water. He gets off his bike because I really haven’t mastered the understanding of the gears so my chain fell off. I almost took out coaches fingers by accidently spinning while he was working on the chain, OOPS. Then he gets in front of my bike and tells me "you can call me names, yell at me, curse me, but I've never had someone not finish and you're not going to be the first" Great, no pressure. Towards the end of the class I got a cramp in my calf and of course coach asked about my water intake. Keep peddling don't stop I keep telling myself. Now I'm sweating and really starting to feel the burning in my legs, which is what is supposed to happen. I keep wiping my face with my towel, but start to realize it smells. I live in a freaking zoo. Little yappy dogs do not like the cold weather. Well, I keep sweating and keep wiping thinking one of those damn dogs has pissed on my towel. Gag! well then I'm like I know it's clean I just pulled it out. Could it be my mat that the bike is on? Was it my bike? Then, oh hell no, it's my shirt? I still couldn't really figure out what it was or if it was in my head, but dang I was just praying no one else smelled it. Double check my stuff next week before I go to class. After class coach talked to me a bit and told me he was really impressed I came.{ Dude, I'm trying.} Next he asked what I thought about the class. I tell him I really wish I could have heard the music the store was playing louder. Then he says something that I'm still trying to deal with. "There is no music in triathlon" WHAT? {Input pouty face.} I run with my music. I knew I couldn't ride the bike with my iPod, but not while running either? No team training exercises can use my music. I just keep seeing the clip from " A league Of Their Own" in my head, crap. I'm sure my friend Tiffany is going to tell me "I told you years ago: no music: I was getting you ready for the BIG leagues” all this said I've had a great week of training. I feel like this is very doable and excited to cross that finish line.

So on Saturday I need to get a ride outside. Danny had to be at work so this was going to be on my own. Ursula (my bike) & I went out today for the first time by ourselves. So proud of myself for playing chicken with the local coyote. He won of course, as I waited my turn in the path. The wind was horrible, but pushed out an hour with only one mishap. My chain came off since I'm still learning how to use 1000 gears. My bad self didn't give up, but fixed it and keep riding.
All in all a great week! ☺

Good week,
Pamela 💋