• isn’t it past your bedtime?
• you’re going to turn into a werewolf if we don’t get you home!
• what time do you turn into a pumpkin?

Cute.

But is all this turning in early actually doing me any good? How much does it really affect us? Surely we each have unique amounts of sleep we need, and it changes throughout the course of our lives… but does a few hours here and there really make a difference? What about “sleep debt” – something I thought I could try to “earn” my way out of by catching a few extra hours later in the week – does that really work?

True story amigos… I don’t know!

BUT I got this sweet infographic from my old running buddy DAVE. (Old meaning former, when I + He used to run. He’s my age.) He’s currently living the sweet life in Chicago working as an Information Architect at SapientNitro, and also running/racing for our local St. Paul Run N’ Fun team! You can click on the image to get the full size and read that tiny text…

[edit: I don't know how PC buttons work, but two finger touch-click it (right click?), and open it in a new window.]

… but what I really want is to know is the Reader Q of the day:

How much do you sleep?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

You can bet that this isn’t the end to this subject. At the present time I have 4 different PubMed windows open in the background. Got some reading material for tomorrow’s bike ride! I will report back.

-E

In addition to The Triathlon Rx, I am also a writer for:

… where you can find me every Thursday, and

… where I post as often as I’m clever enough to come up with something good! (Kidding. Kinda…. )

Anywho, I try really hard not to double-dip. That is, post something both here and and also on another site I write for. However, I occasionally to suffer from transient monotony, and therefore once in a while you will see a double post. As in today…

(To see the original post, or check out my awesome Groucho Teammates, go HERE to check out the company!!)

Groucho Blogger Erika: Arctic Tundra

Well guys… I have some sad news for you.

It looks like Minnesota is going to get a winter after all… 

Unlike some of our cryophilic friends here at Groucho Sports, I would rather spend three months in a toaster oven than venture out into the sub-zero tundra of a true Minneapolis winter. Year after year, I ask myself why WHYY [insert man on knees shaking his hand towards heaven in rage] do I still live in this frozen state? But then after 3… 5… 7 months of cold… the snow eventually melts. Flowers sneak their little heads up through the ground. Easter – my favorite day of the year – comes and I find this transient sense of forgiveness for our state and its far-too-long season of frozen.

Given that we’ve been cut some slack this year – people running in shorts and biking outside in January – I felt it fair to turn down my degree of displeasure. So this winter, as my offering of thanks, I vow [/make] to do the following:

Though obviously not with my “good” bikes…

How fun would it be to come outside to ‘Mater on your windshield? Even more fun if you have a 4 year old. 

Reader Qs:

What do you do to make winter “more fun”? And how the duck do you keep your fingers warm!?!? If I had a box of Cocoa Puffs for every pair of gloves or mittens I’ve gone through to find “the one” …. I’d be coo coo, and drowning.

-E

Thought it might be a good idea to explain the changes you see around here!!

First things first: Why did the blog name change? 

If you’ve been around for a while, you know I was blogging over at Dr.TriRunner. When I bought that domain name, it was at a time in my life when I was pursuing medical school with the final goal of working as an MD in sports medicine. However, this funny thing called “life” happened… and eventually (through lots of job shadowing, research, and spending enough time as a patient in sports medicine) I realized that was not who I wanted to be! If you want a deeper explanation to that decision, feel free to shoot me an email, but long story short: over time I became aware that the life of an MD was not the life I had in mind for myself. This being the case, I felt (and had felt that way for a while) that Dr.TriRunner was no longer a proper fit for the name of my blog. But the thought of trying to change it was stressing me out!! All this website hosting/domains/subdomains/redirects thing is definitely not my forte.

LUCKLY, my beyondwonderful web hosting company, BlueHost, made the transition a piece of cake. Promise they’re not paying me to say this… but their customer service is the best I have ever experienced! (Sorry Zappos, I think even better than you.) They talked me through everything, and even taught me how to make a BACKUP!!! Something I have been wanting / needing to do for ages, but never could figure out how (despite all the “easy” tutorials online…).

So, that brings us to why “The Triathlon Rx?”

If you go way back in the archives… it’s pretty easy to tell I was strictly a runner. I might have played with a little cross training here and there, but running was my passion. It kept me grounded, it lit the fire, it helped me connect with God, helped me connect with others, allowed me to destress, allowed me to get excited… it sounds bad to say it, but it really was my life.

Until that last fateful run on September 27th, 2008. After my coach noticed I was limping and sent me for x-rays, I was put almost immediately into an MRI, a CT, and a meeting with two specialists: one in hips, and the other in tumors. Shortly thereafter I was on crutches, scheduled for surgery (#1), and diagnosed with fibrous dysplasia. Months of rehab followed – both physical and mental. Suddenly without the biggest constant in my life, I felt paralyzed by the uncertainties ahead. I felt like I had lost my identity.

It was in my first post-op meeting, after my doctor had given me a protocol for pool running and cross training, that he suggested the possibility of doing a triathlon. I had only ever participated in one before, and that was as part of a relay team. Obviously as the runner. But as I thought about my years on the Uptown Otters swim team, and my bike commuting to and from work, his words started to sink in. It was his perfect solution… his prescription… his compromise with my determination to stay an athlete and the medical need to put less impact on the neck of my femur. I started to think, Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad…

And as they say, the rest was history!! The prescription of triathlon has done more for me than I’m sure my doctor ever thought possible. Not only has it enabled me to remain an athlete, but it has connected me with such a wonderful community of people here in Minnesota, and even world wide! (HI JUANMA IN PR!) It has taught me life lessons (always carry that damn tube!). It has taught me [a little bit of] patience and discipline in training for three sports at one time, instead of always wanting to go all out in just one. Hah – it is even how I met the last two boyfriends!! This prescription has truly changed my life.

FROM

http://www.drtrirunner.com

TO

http://www.thetriathlonrx.com

Gracias, and will be back with more info about the transition soon!!

-E

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize.
- Philippians 3:13-14

Ahhh… much better.

Once again, we have reached the end of another year. The time associated with “resolutions”, rush crowds at the gym, and champaign jello shots in fancy flute glasses. Only I do New Year’s a little differently…

• The word resolutions drives me NUTS! I just feel like it cheapens the fact that you can make a conscious choice to make a change / start something new / work towards a goal at ANY time on ANY day. I do love goals, though by making goals in the last week of a December maybe I’m defeating my own point… Long story short: goals/”resolutions” = good things. Always!
• The “fresh” crowd at the gym… I think in previous years I let myself get annoyed because it meant crowded parking lots, crowded locker rooms, crowded spin class, and crowded fitness floor. Yes, there is an increase in traffic at the gym come January 1st, but that also means there is an increase in people being cognizant about their fitness and the effects that has on one’s health. Will their commitment stick? Maybe, maybe not. But everyone has to start somewhere, and if you choose to commit to your health on New Years day, more power to you. I hereby vow to let you work in, show you where the the alternate ropes/bars are, show you how to “turn on” the elliptical, and be as kind/patient/helpful as possible. To anyone in particular that I ever rolled my eyes at for doing squats with an EZ Curl bar, I am sorry.
• Champaign. Alcohol in general. Still can’t drink!! I will chose to abide by the “do not mix with alcohol” warning on my medications bottles.. and be rockin it extremely sober this NYE.

Before I get into any recent/future goals… I thought it might be fun to look at goals from the past few years, which, thanks to the blog, I have documentation for!

2008

1. Decide: transfer to NEU, or stay at the U of MN.
2. More family time.
3. More home cooked meals.
4. Strengthh train damnit!
5. GET. MORE. SLEEP.

2009

Mysteriously absent… I was two weeks post surgery [#1], home from Boston for break [and recovery], and had just realized how much I missed being home in Minneapolis. Which eventually led to my decision to transfer back to the U of MN and move back to the Twin Cities.

2010

1. Continue to work on getting more sleep. Ideally 8 hours minimum per night.
2. Make sure to keep up swimming and cycling during the brief periods that you are “cleared” to run.
3. Allow room for grey areas. Not everything in life is all or none, needs a plan, or a set schedule. Try to incorporate the practice of “go with the flow”.

2011

1. Explore new ways to deepen my faith.
2. Bandshell mass this summer!
3. Call/write/send something to both of my grandparents EVERY week.
4. Plan out training times at the beginning of the week.
5. Don’t overschedule myself!!

In terms of “progress” from last year, I can check off numbers 1, 2, 4, and 5. Number 3 was an ambitious goal that I kept up for about two months… and then sadly fell off. I do love my grandparents dearly, and would like to make sure I get as much time with them as possible. You only get one family!!!

For 2012, my list is a little more extensive. Some of them are non-negotiable: Rehab… continuing education units… renewing certifications… mass. They just need to get done. Others – keep learning Italian – are more in the would be nice category. So without further delay, here it is in writing:

2012

Quite a few of these I’ve already got a running crutching start on. Others will require quite a bit more effort/time/money/PATIENCE…

Hmmm, maybe that last one should have been on the “personal” list. Too late – it’s already written!!

Reader Qs:

What are YOU working towards this coming year/month/lifetime?

Te cuidas and ¡hasta luego!

-E

I will be honest with you – I really don’t love yoga to begin with.  But in attempts to appease my coach, I do put out my finest effort to attend class one time per week. In fact, I sought far and wide for months on end, solely to find the perfect instructor. Oh this wonderful woman, bless her heart. As this is not Acts 2 in which we are enabled to converse in many tongues, nor do we all live in Uttarakhand, she refrains from speaking in pure Sanskrit. She makes us work, because that’s what a workout typically strives to accomplish. She does not whisper for us to relax while assuming “happy baby”, because I am slightly past the infantile stage, and remember? I did come here to work out.

But today, my dear friend clad in the trousers of Aladdin, she was not here. And instead I found you. Ill-mannered, offensive, tactless – these are not atributes I like to associate with myself. So I decided to remain upon my mat of imminent doom and wait it out. You could in fact have been quite similar to my wonderful instructor who does not end every single word with –sana, or blow sweet hot breath in my ear. However, it was quickly apparent that you indeed were not.

Your opening chant – which I am quite sure carried on for roughly 37 minutes, though the studio sanctuary clock insisted only took 2 – should have been my cue to say Punardarśanāya Sucka!! But no. In fact, you seemed to be so entrhalled, so mezmorized, during that that 37 minutes sans oxygen brief hymn, that I decided to come home and translate. I was simply dying to know of this magic placed upon me. This is what I came to find:

I bow to the lotus feet of the guru
who awakens insight into the happiness of pure Being,
who is the final refuge, the jungle physician,
who eliminates the delusion caused by the poisonous
herb of samsara [conditioned existence].

I prostrate before the sage Patanjali
who has thousands of radiant, white heads
[in his form as the divine serpent, Ananta]
and who has, as far as his arms,
assumed the form of a man holding a conch shell [divine sound],
a wheel [discus of light, representing infinite time]
and a sword [discrimination].

Though not quite sure where to begin tackling this sailors knot of nonsense, I will send my regrets to the sage/serpent/man holding a seashell with many heads/swoards/arms/wheels. I will not be consuming any poisonous samsara, and he will not be receiving my bow.

When you asked me to look to the sky (while indoors) and relax my eyeballs, I wanted to ask you to relax your jaw and clock you in the face. It should be known that you must in fact contract your superior rectus in order to move your eyeball in an upwards direction. To the particle board ceiling. Sans[ana] any clouds.

I understand that it is hot in your sanctuary, which may cause you to become a tad loopy. Perhaps this is not your typical conduction of this sacred practice of breathing in through both nostrils while holding the glottis partially closed. Perhaps you don’t truly believe we are changing the world by acquiring ustrasna, for it more closely resembles a stripper than a camel. Perhaps you don’t frequently burglarize young lads by the name of Aladdin for his single pair of pants. Perhaps you simply thought – damn yo, those pants are hot! – and went to Joann Fabrics to construct a pair for yoruself.

I part from you, Yoga Instructor Wearing Aladdin Pants, with a small request: to simply notify me next time your nadi(s) – your great yogic nerves conveying the life force; Ida, Pingala and Sushumna – will be occupying this particular studio on this day at this time. I will reserve this spot in the sanctuary for one of your fellow yoginis, and kindly refrain from assuming Virabhadrasana [warrior pose] and sending an arrow in your direction.

Santi out, homeboy. Give those pants back before you go home.

-Erika

*Hopefully this goes without saying, but of course I have nothing against those who fully enjoy yoga, or practice it on a regular basis. This is not meant to offend anyone, and is intended to be taken with a grain of salt. As in the hahaha kind of salt. Mama always said you can’t be friends with everybody**, and Yoga, you and I just ain’t gonna work out.

**OK, she never really told me that. She should have though.

*** Credit to my inspiration and consistent, loyal dose of laughter. http://www.mcsweeneys.net/

Days until….

• My birthday!!: 1 day
• My new HOUSE!!!!: 2 days
• My best friend finally home from 6 months in Mérida, Venezuela: 3 days
• First two UMN gymnastics meets: 5 days, and 12 days
• I get to see my padre: 14 days
• SURGERY!! Can I get an aaaaamen?!: 15 days
• Christmas: 26 days (yikes!! better get to shoppin…)
• Post-op follow up appointment: 30 days
• Start of 2012: 33 days
• Possible last day of crutches? (hopefully earlier!!): 57 days (ayyye.)

Meanwhile… I think it’s about time to check in with my goals from 2011, and start thinking ahead to 2012!

Reader Qs:

Are you currently “counting down” to anything? How are you doing on your 2011 goals?

-E

I have a fun Train On Top scheduled to publish tomorrow morning, but I thought I’d drop just a little thought of the day for you today on this Sunday.

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

-E

Hahah my photoshop skills are improving with this free-time. Winners to be posted soon. Stay tuned!

-E

To which Mr. SwimBikeRunLive responds with:

At this point… I am actually thinking Dr.TriRunner is GONE. Gone gone. WP wont let me log in… bluehost seems like it’s written in a different language… yep. I’m %^@&#!).

.tar? .zip? I don’t know. So I made a copy of both. Or at least… I think I did? But then what? I have these two “files” that I have no clue what to do with! Wonderful.

True story. I can get “emotional” … but it is really difficult to actually elicit tears. Maybe I’m just dehydrated.

Thankfully… it never came to that. After a few hours of panic mode, the website magically reappeared. BUT only the LINKlove tab at the top was showing up, and the rest of the pages were gone. 1 out of 6 pages is not exactly a high success rate. And my RSS feed didn’t (and still doesn’t) work (or show up), which may or may not be because I don’t really know what I’m supposed to do with it. Mrs. SusanRuns was on her last morning of staying in the Dr.TriRunner house… and over coffee she made me feel slightly better that she also had no idea how to make a backup database or what .tar is or MySQL or …….!!

Anyways.

Maybe it’s a blessing. It’s about ɖɐɰπ time I updated some of those pages, and it’s always fun to freshen up a bit. Bear with me while I do this… I feel like I’m trying to speak Sanskrit. (That one’s for you Jeri!)

So TWIN CITIES MARATHON huh? 30th annual. SWEET medals this year! Sweet Marathon shirts… I’ll refrain from commenting on the 10 milers shirts.

I was hosting an elite masters runner from Florida, so she flew in on Thursday. Susan flew in on Friday morning, and Jeri arrived a little later Friday afternoon. From there it was EXPO time, which I escaped spending very little money. Success! I also ran into an old class mate who is working for the new OrangeTheoryFitness studios… interesting concept!! We were thankful to be invited to the VIP reception Friday evening, where we met Hannah who is the Communications Specialist for Twin Cities in Motion!! Hannah is training for the Richmond Marathon which is coming up soon (Nov. 12th) – go get em!! I’m stealing her picture:

Jeri // Susan // Hannah // Me

Saturday was *restful* … truthfully I don’t even remember what we did, but we ate lots of Panera. Can you get more American/predictable/delicious? I think not. Perfect pre-race food.

Sunday was RACE DAY and what a beautiful day it was. If you want to get picky, it could have been a couple degrees cooler to make it perfect, but I think it was pretty dang close to ideal conditions. The majority of my amigos were running the TC 10 Mile this year because it was the USA 10 Mile Championship. If you’ve never seen an “equalizer” in action… it’s pretty exciting! Somebody uses all their formulas and algorithms to determine how much later the men should start after the women in hopes to *just barely* catch them by the finish. There was a $10,000 prize purse to whoever (male or female) finished first. Oh hey there, motivation. Congratulations to Mo Trafeh (26) who caught the lead woman (after a 9 minute deficit) and won the 10 mile in 46:46. Janet Cherobon-Bawcom won the womans race in 45:15. You guys are amazing!

And SPEAKING of amazing was Susan – clocking a PR by a minute and 24 seconds, and running strong the entire race!! Congratulations chica – it felt like I’ve known you for years (oh wait, we kind of have…?) and I’m so glad you came to the Twin Cities for this marathon!! 

One thing I will say is that being out there on the course and at the finish was H.A.R.D.!!! Harder than I had expected. Twin Cities is definitely a race close to my heart (ETA: bhahah reading that phrase sounds so mushy. My bad.) and it made me want to be out there racing SO BADLY. If only my left hip/leg would agree. My good buddy Jason was here for the weekend from Colorado, and he told me “don’t worry… you’ll get some new pieces and be back out there in no time!” Um… I don’t just need some pieces. I need a whole new appendage. Donations?

End of story: Everyone I know running the full or the 10 miler did AMAZING (even you Mr. IendedUpInRegionsHospital… you got there because you were running FAST and HARD)… and definitely deserve big congratulations!! Twin Cities Marathon is hands down my favorite marathon, and I’d recommend it to anyone.

Reader Qs:

Have you run Twin Cities before? Any plans to do so in the future? That ad you see in Runners World ain’t lyin… it is the most beautiful urban marathon in the country!! (*slightly biased opinion*) What race is coming up next on your calendar?

-E