Gonna let the photos do the talking here – I’m pretty much all talked-out for today. Essentially, I had a less than stellar race today: I couldn’t feel my feet [...]]]> Currently: Sitting at coffee shop. With el chico. In front of fire place. Feet up. Still in desperate need of compression/recovery socks. Other-than-that, SOLID.

Gonna let the photos do the talking here – I’m pretty much all talked-out for today. Essentially, I had a less than stellar race today: I couldn’t feel my feet until 15 minutes after the race ended, and I had a T1 that leaves me hoping I won’t be disowned by my family. Or Peace Coffee Racing. Or UMN TRI. So… definitely not my A-game. But I still placed (2nd in my AG), so it’s hard to complain too much. If you want more coverage from this weekend’s action, check these out:

Manitou 2010 Official Results Online

Minnesota Tri News’ Coverage

In terms of a race REVIEW, here’s what’s up: Manitou. Is. Awesome. The course? Awesome. The swag? Awesome. The fans? Awesome. The race organization/management? Awesome. The transition being closed for 1:45 before my wave even entered the water? Not so awesome, but I’ll plan for that next year. Yeah… NEXT YEAR! I’ll be back.

And before I get to the photos, I need to do a several major mad props shoutouts.UMN (University of Minnesota) TRI is really cleaning up this summer. Andrew Turner, David Preston, Cody Stadler, Sam Janicki, Tom Kandiko, Matt Dodds, Matthew Priess, Aaron Barlow, Claire Chandler, Tracy Powell, Megan Brandes, Susanne Gabrielson (reppin’ overseas!), and hey, I’ll throw myself in, Erika Sperl-Imhoff. Look out for these names. We’re comin’ at you.

Another big up to el chico, my boyfriend, who also raced today at Trinona and finished 7th overall (!!) and 3rd in his age group! It makes me nervous to do the same race as you…!

This is an exact copy of my album on facebook. All photo credit goes to my mamacita – I am so happy and thankful you came!! You should be able to click on the image for the full size. Hope you all had a lovely weekend. Ciao!

-E

THE. END.

Until 2011.

Fell asleep by about 10:30 pm last night, and the alarm went off at 5:00 am this morning. 6.5 [...]]]> For there to actually be a race report, that means that I did indeed race!! And for there to be exclamation points following that statement, that means I “got a smile on”! Here we go…

Fell asleep by about 10:30 pm last night, and the alarm went off at 5:00 am this morning. 6.5 hours obviously isn’t isn’t ideal, but it’s pretty good for the night before a race. That, and I was telling myself my 12.5 hours from Wednesday would hold me over a little bit. I had gone over my check list (which I will post soon, along with adding it to the Train On Top files!!) and all I had left to do was load my bike in the car, grab my coffee, and GO!

Taken at 5:42 this morning.

I drove up with Tom and Cody – two guys on my UMN Tri Team. Tom was nice enough to drive (the fact that bikes fit slightly better in his Pathfinder has nothing to do with it…) so I got to his house around 6:00, made a quick transfer of items from my Accord, and we were off! We took a slight detour on the way to the race, following someone with bikes on the back of their car thinking that they obviously know where they’re going. Until they turned into their garage… FAIL! We still got there in plenty of time, and pulled into the Long Lake Park lot just as many other athletes were arriving.

Myself, sandwiched between Pretty and Muscles. Hahahahha!

Re-attached wheels… gathered bags… and suddenly a wave of terror swept over me. “My helmet is in your trunk… right?” says the ingenious redhead who checked her check list three times. “Nottttt that I’m seeing…” says fellow teammate who now must really now I’m an idiot. REALLY!?! Who forgets their helmet?!? Oh wait.. the girl who also forgot her SHOES for the marathon. Awesome. At that moment, I was seriously thinking I was not going to be racing today. People bring spare goggles, they’ll let you borrow an extra watch, they’ll even share their body glide. But NO ONE brings an extra helmet.

Except Randy, the God-sent jolly man behind Vacation Sports who was putting on the race. In fact, he had several spares, for the rest of the numskulls who forgot this critical (and mandatory!!) item. So with that taken care of, I went to go set up in Transition.

After I racked up my bike and was heading off to warm up, I hear “Dr. TriRunner?” No joke guys.. this MADE MY DAY! I know there are at least a few regular readers, but it feels so awesome to know that there are local triathletes (or at least one!!) out there reading along! And it doubly made my day that he is a he, because for whatever reason my first assumption is that most of “you” are female. Not that I have anything against the ladies – nothing at all – but since 80% of my friends are of the male variety, it’s almost comforting to know some hombres are reading too.

This is getting wayy too long, and I haven’t even gotten to the race yet, so I’m going to [try to] keep it to the facts:

Pre-Race Fuel:

Gluten free apple cinnamon granola, and dried apple rings. New combo to me (don’t try anything new on race day…? pshhhh), and it was PERFECT!!! And delicious. Along with Tanzania Peace Coffee, of course!

Race Conditions/Gear:

Cloudy, off and on sprinkles, and somewhere in the mid 60s. Virtually NO wind. AKA ideal. Wore my QRoo wetsuit, Peace Coffee tri kit, and stripped to just my homemade PCR sports bra for the run. Haha – Sarah called me an overachiever? Made this on my “sick day” on the couch. Was glad I did, because I would have felt too hot running with the tri top on. This is the first time I’ve used a shoelace as a racebelt, after seeing this amazing lady do it, and let me tell you – LOVED it. I hate the feeling of anything extra around my waist, and you can’t get much more minimal than a shoelace. And of course Gomer and Rilo were in on the action.

I did take home-ec back in the day…

The Swim:

1/2 mile. Despite starting in the front of the pack, there was lots of face kicking and breast stroking going on. >:( Maybe I need to run out farther into the water? Oh wait.. here’s a better idea. Maybe I need to be more consistent with my swimming. Ding ding ding!! We have a winner. Anyways… I could feel myself getting frustrated on the way out. And then I reminded myself – this is essentially a free workout. I had a free race certificate, and I was sick all last week. I didn’t have expectations for this race other than to shake out the race nerves and have fun, and there was no way I was going to let negative thoughts take over. So I decided to take charge and slapped myself back into reality. Today will not be wasted was the mantra of the day. (Haha, yes. I am considering Sports Psychology.) With that mindset I went ahead, and felt like things finally settled down at turn around buoy. And the 1/4 mile swim back to shore honestly felt awesome. I have this “kayak theory” but I’ll post more on that later. Passed some wave 2 and 3 swimmers (I was wave 4)… which gave me some [possibly false] hope that maybe I’m actually a decent swimmer? Orrr maybe the wave 2 and 3 people that I passed, well, swimming just isn’t their strength.

T1:

Note to self… work on taking off wet suit!!

The Bike:

14 miles. Basically, I loved the course. There were a few hills, but they were all rolling. There were two girls on the Tri Kings team that, little did they know, really helped me push myself. We were passing each other back and forth, sometimes on an uphill, sometimes going down. I also took note of some really sick bikes out there, and some really amazing athletes riding them. I talked about training with your friends and using them as inspiration… and believe me, I drew in plenty of inspiration today. Felt good and strong throughout, and I know I’m not fast. I’ve accepted that [for now], and I know where to work.

T2:

Already had my shoe-lace-race-belt on… ripped off the helmet and threw on the hat, threw on my happy-feet shoes, and bounced! Would also like to make note that I was wearing the Sof Sole socks I won, and LOVE LOVE LOVE them. Felt like my feet were on clouds.

The Run:

5k. What I was really looking forward to. Despite the steel infused shins of yester-year, I was confident that today was a better day. Not going to hide this one… I passed 53 people on the run. Yes. I counted. It gave me something to think about during the run, but honestly, if I’m going to be a slow swimmer and biker, then damnit I’m going to be proud of my run. I know my mile splits weren’t anywhere near my “just running” 5k times, but I still ran sub 7s, and I still felt strong. And with that, I’m happy.

The Finish:

1:22:?? Says my watch… I’m waiting for official results online. I didn’t want to try and dig my way through the crowd of people that always surround the print-outs, so I just went for a cool down. With this guy!!

No, he didn’t race in basketball shorts. I made him put his sweaty jersey back on for the photo.

I didn’t know that another Peace Coffee Racing teammate was going to be here, so I was super pumped when I saw Justin before the start of the race. I went on a cool-down jog with him and some of his buddies, and called it a day!

THE. END.

The greatest thing about these early morning races (well, at least when they’re this short…) is that you’re DONE and home by like 10:30, and you have the whole day ahead of you. My mom called as I was driving back to la casa and asked if I wanted to  go to CostCo, to which I replied, damn straight (I do understand why learning English is so frustrating…), and I was home, unpacked, showered, and at her house within 45 minutes. We stopped for an obligatory coffee on the way, and hit Costco, Trader Joe’s, and the local Co-Op so she could get all the ingredients for a special dinner she’s making tonight. I was just along for the ride!

The view from the shower.

Tonight I have nothing planned other than putting my feet UP, and chillaxin. The weather did eventually turn icky, but I’m giving a HUGE thanks to mother nature for waiting until the race was done. I hope THIS GIRL got her race in before conditions turned soggy too, and I can’t wait to hear her recap!!

I will most definitely be returning to race New Bri again. It was very well put on, just like all the other Vacation Sports races I’ve done. HUGE UPS to todays winners, Jenny Wilcox and Carl Shultz. Like I said, there were a lot of really outstanding finishes today! You can read all about it at Minnesota Tri News’ new website!! I was a little disappointed with my finish, and especially that I didn’t place in the top three in my age group. Thankfully my UMN teammate hit me with a dose of reality and said “you better get used to it!” 20-24 is a lot more competitive, and I have lots of work to do if I want to still have a “title” to defend.

POSTS TO COME:

Tri packing list
A…. Kayak?
Motivation
A review!!

And with that, I’m out for the night. No work, no obligations other than enjoying myself. Sounds great. Have a lovely night, and a great rest of your weekend!!

-E

p.s. I just realized how much link love is goin’ on in this post. Sorry… a little much!!

Current status: I’m only 21 minutes in to what will be 120 minutes on the X-Runner, so apologies if this gets a little lengthy! Today was officially [...]]]> “The Grab Bag” because this post contains SO much! I don’t blame you if you skip around, but photos can give you a heads up about what’s goin’ on.

Current status: I’m only 21 minutes in to what will be 120 minutes on the X-Runner, so apologies if this gets a little lengthy! Today was officially declared a no-running day, as I’ve been trying to stick to only 4 days a week, and unfortunately I already capped that this week! Will be running tomorrow anyways, riding on Saturday, and racing on Sunday! Numerous items on the agenda today, and since I have 100 more minutes ahead of me… I think I have time for a little PhotoShop love:

Well that took long enough! I’m now at 55 minutes. Good thing I still have 1:05  to go…

1. Mail Bag

I mentioned last week that my next post would be comin’ out of the mail bag — it’s a question I’ve received enough times (or at least similar enough) from readers that I figured it was time to answer on the blog.

Hi I just found your blog. First of all, you are am amazing athlete! You are such a fast runner – so inspirational.

I was wondering what your diet is like so that you have enough energy to fuel your training and develop muscles and strength while staying so lean? Do you eat smaller meals more frequently? What are you meals like?

Also, how did you start doing triathlons. Did you know how to swim before? How often do you train? Sorry for all the questions. Take your time. I know you’re a busy girl! Any advice would help. Thanks!
–
Jessica Lee

First things first – THANKS!! – I have been running for a loooong time, so success has definitely required work. But I can promise you that there are lots of faster runners out there. Given that I’ve come back from a fractured femoral neck, twice, I’ll take what I can get!

Question one: diet. This year my diet has gone under some changes because I finally have the guidance of an awesome nutrition and strength coach, Jodi, from Model Per4mance. Prior to working with MP4, I had the opportunity to work with a pretty awesome dietitian in Boston, but a lot of my “theories” or beliefs just come from trial and error. Before MP4 I was eating about the same calorie-wise, but I definitely ate more processed foods. I’m not talkin’ like Ho-Hos and a Coke for lunch, but think Kashi GoLean Rolls… microwaveable meals… etc. My current diet is a 90/10 = 90% whole, fresh, from nature foods… and 10% fun. There has to be room in your life for going out to eat with the boy, or that biga$$ cookie you know you want. If there is no “it” you crave, or if all your cravings are for healthy foods, then fine. But if you DO ever want something “unhealthy” and you’re like me, you’ll just keep eating other things until you finally squash that craving, wishing you just ate what you really wanted in the first place. It’s a lesson learned, for sure.

Frequency of meals? Would be better referred to as “frequency of food” because “meals” don’t really happen per se. I’d like to work on balancing the food out a little more evenly through out the day, but essentially I graze, or small “meals” throughout the day. It works for me. You gotta do what works for you!

“Lean” is only partially attributed to diet. I would say more of it comes from strength training.

Question two: training. Like I said, I’ve fractured my femoral neck, twice. You can read about the first time + surgery, and the second time (no surgery).  I have a genetic condition called fibrous dysplasia… a condition where a section of my hip is super soft – more like scar tissue. After surgery (December 2008) I knew that if I was running at all, I definitely wouldn’t be running as much. Enter: triathlon. It gets me off of my feet for 2/3rds of my training. So I guess I should thank my geneticFAIL hip because that’s where it all started!

Swimming was a prior activity for sure – I had been tossed in a pool since I was like 1 year old. Swam for the YWCA Uptown Otters from 5th grade through 8th, and I also swam Varsity my freshman year in high school. If you haven’t concluded yet though, it’s not exactly my favorite.

I am part of two teams – the University of Minnesota Triathlon Team, and Peace Coffee Racing, so training happens… all the time. I take a rest day when I need to. I don’t always stick to the “schedule” because I feel like when you feel good, you shouldn’t “save it” for tomorrow’s tempo or interval or long ride. [If you have time...] You should let your body dictate what it wants to do.

I think that about covers it, and WOW – I gotta move on!

2. USAT Collegiate Nationals

[ETA: Hahah.. ran out of time. Used my last 30 minutes on the stair mountain because that’s something I almost never get to do.. and want to use this “free day” to (as my boyfriend’s Sundays are declared) do what I want. True story kids… want to know where I am right now? Doin' what I want, I can tell you that!]

“]Ahem… USAT Collegiate Nationals. The race I have been building up to be THE race for the last how many months. The ultimate in team bonding… 20+ hours in a 15-passenger van with the crew. And where am I right now? At the lake.

Say whaaat?

A couple weeks ago, some family events were presented to me that I had not been previously privy to. (Fun fact of the day… “unprivy” is evidently not a word.) I don’t need to waste time on details, but they involve my Singaporean relatives and sister and B-I-L coming to Minneapolis for the 16^th/17^th/18^th … and those days only – Singaporean relatives that I have not yet had the chance to meet. If you’ve been a reader for a while now, you might remember my qualms last year about leaving Boston and transferring back home to the University of Minnesota: the basis of my whole move was that I wanted to be closer to family. I was sick of missing Thanksgiving, missing Easter, missing birthdays, state hockey tournaments, missing FAMILY. So to have this big family deal going on this one weekend, and electively chose to not be there, seemed like it was going against my values a little bit. I know… its Nationals… but there will be next year. I have no clue when the next time these guys will fly all the way from Singapore. There are a couple other contributing factors, but overall, I feel very good about my decision.

I will still be acting as “reporter” for my team, and will be in constant contact with them via phone and online. If you want to stay up to date on the University of Minnesota Triathlon team and their venture to Collegiate Nationals, please see the first installment in my post on Minnesota Tri News! There will be more to come soon!

3. Peace Coffee Racing

Because I am not in Texas this weekend… I will be doing a race that Peace Coffee is sponsoring on April 18^th. Please believe that no matter what I was going to be racing this weekend. Its early enough on Sunday morning… not going to interfere with the fam-o plans… but I am very excited to be doing it! AND it’s for a good cause – EARTH DAY! I’m down.

4. Giveaway preview

Scroll up. Study the photo. Can you guess what the next giveaway is??

Aright… This gets it’s own collage…

5. LIFE

Here is just a little bit of life lately:

Upper left photo – note not me, with the “oh-shit-how-do-i-clip-out-not-funny!” face (new to the Kilo at the time of that picture), but the P.O.S. Honda in the background. I shouldn’t say that… she’s been a good car. Many many miles on her, like all Honda’s should, and many good times. Picked up my first puppy and she threw up all over the floor in the front seat on the way home. Crazy High school memories with the girls, one in particular possibly intoxicated with way too much Patrone and her feet out the window. Changing my first tire. Getting hit by my own friend in a rain storm. Like I said, many good times. I just changed the oil today, and turns out she has about $800 worth of work needing to be done. $800 worth of money that I don’t have. Conversed with the padre on this one, and we decided that this summer would be the right time for me to get a different car. Don’t think it’s just because of these repairs – this decision is about $5,000 in repairs OVERDUE. So if you have any [used] car shopping advice for me, I would take it all with open ears.

Upper right photo – That is a man. Sleeping in a box. And that is what I will turn into (not a man, but sleeping in a box…) if I don’t figure out my housing sitch for the next year. OK… truthfully it’s not at that point. My lease isn’t up until the end of June, but I really want to have it squared away – it’s stressing me out!! It would be sick if I was living with another kines. student because we’d be working on/interested in the same stuff, but obviously that’s not a requirement of mine. Ahhh I just want to decide!

Imaginary photo – Starting work back at the restaurant this week!! Those are legit exclamation marks. I am SO excited!

Wow. Record for longest D.T.R. post? Possibly. Apologies (or not – haha you’re ready for me to be done I’m sure!) but I got to get to some real work… aka this VO2 Max lab report that I have been working on for howw long? If you stuck with this whole post, I hope you can feel my love for you!! Till next time amigos.

-E

First let’s talk anatomy. Conundrum is as follows: As many of you know, I very much love my Rilo (enough so to name my baby bicicleta). However, the original saddle that came on [...]]]> I may have completely disintegrated my ischiopubic ramus on today’s ride, but at least I’m properly fueled and hydrated….

First let’s talk anatomy. Conundrum is as follows: As many of you know, I very much love my Rilo (enough so to name my baby bicicleta). However, the original saddle that came on said Rilo does not love me. It is hard, unforgiving, and according to my boyfriend, possibly anatomically dangerous for my female parts. Although I’m not sure biomedical physicis works that way, it is pretty damn uncomfortable.

But it’s BEAUTIFUL though! At least in my eyes. The embroidered “Q Roo” across the seat in matching blue and gold puts a smile on my face every time I sit down (as long as I’m not sitting for too long…) – I just can’t change it out!! Though according to various Q.Roo Kilo reviews, I’m not the only one who finds the original saddle a little, um….

firm. solid. rigid. stiff. resistant. unbreakable. inflexible. impenetrable. unyelding. solidified. hardened. compact. compacted. dense. close-packed. compressed. steely. tough. strong. stony. rocklike. flinty. hard as stone. frozen. adamantine. (?)

¡Gracias iDiccionario!

There are two options to making your ride more comfortable:

1. Get a new saddle. (Get real.. I’m not going to change it. I am too stubborn in love.)
2. PADDING!

Today I rode 43 miles, and I wore absolutely zero padding. It’s not like I’ve never done a multi-hour ride without padded pants/shorts before, so I knew what I was getting in to before I left. Here is another dumb theory of mine: I feel like if I’m going to race in a next-to-nothing two-piece tri suit, without padding, I better get used to that feel. I have the words of my best Boston buddies shouting in my head….

H. T. F. U.

I believe there is room for compromise here. In my rides over 20 miles, I think it’s rational, logical, sensible, intelligible, commonsensical, sound, prudent, pragmatic (OK! Ok… jeeez.) that I protect my “female parts” with some proper saddle padding.

Bikesport Michigan Online is a website I initially found when looking up tri bikes, before I adopted Rilo. Not only did they have a very detailed write up of the Quintana Roo Kilo (and many other brands/models of bikes), they also have a HUGE inventory of road/tri bike equipment, gear, whatever you could want, AND tons of good articles! One of them I find rather timely to share with you today.

Three Steps to Saddle Comfort

As written by Tom Demerly in the appropriately named article, ”Three Steps to Saddle Comfort.” Article photos from BikeSport Michigan.

Although I might say it’s inability to clip out when approaching busy intersection at Lake and Hennipen, Tom Demerly would say that “Saddle discomfort is the most common complaints among cyclists.” And he’s probably right. Not everyone is as challenged as I am when it comes to NOT-clipping-out-with-the-left/stepping-down-with-the-right. From numb genitalia and saddle sores to erectile disfunction, none of the [real or hyped] after effects of an uncomfortable saddle are very pleasant. Demerly states that developing tolerable saddle comfort can be broken down into three categories:

1. Allowing enough time to adapt to your saddle (especially key for new cyclists!)
2. Wearing quality bike shorts, and wearing them correctly
3. Making sure your bike is fitted to you, and keeping good posture

Although I’m supposed to be working on a VO2 max lab right now (I have “priorities on a schedule”…) lets take a second to go into a little more detail:

1. Allow enough time to adapt to your saddle.

As I mentioned (because Mr. Demerly mentioned….) this is especially important for new cyclists. If you’re not used to sitting on a road bike for three hours, then no sh!t Sherlock, it’s going to be uncomfortable your first time out. My words, not his. Demerly states that it’s important to let your crotch and buttocks acclimate to supporting the majority of your body weight – a process known as “getting your seat.” He details that this typically happens over the course of 400 to 600 miles, and would be better done with short but more frequent rides rather than cramming all of your buttock-acclimation into a few weekend warrior rides. It takes time, it will be uncomfortable, but you know what they I say, “Toughen up, buttercup!”

2. Wear quality bike shorts, and wear them correctly.

According to Demerly, cyclists will shell out anywhere from $90 to $239 on quality bike shorts. While I find $239 to be a pretty specific price quote, I do agree that good shorts are gonna cost a pretty penny. What makes it “quality” you ask?

• precise cut patterns for better fit
• sophisticated, seamless, anti-bacterial moisture wicking pads
• highly breathable
• reduce friction
• transport moisture effectively away from tender, inflamed tissues

Once you’ve tasted TESTED (!!) the good stuff, there’s no turning back. Demerly recommends bibs (shorts with suspenders, keeping the shorts and padding in place) for longer rides, but notes that they are less convenient if you need to make a quick pit stop.

The next bit of information is written in bold, so I to, will emphasize in Demerly fashion:

Never wear any underwear with bike shorts.

(Says the article. Don’t come crying to me if you get a yeast infection…) Alright – this is something I have heard many times. Something that I’ve brushed off as, “ok… you go ahead and go commando. I like my undies right where they are.” The reason people say not to wear underwear with bike shorts is that quality shorts are supposedly designed to be worn against the skin, and underwear only traps in moisture and increases friction and chafing. I am still wary, and I promise you if I do attempt a commando ride I wont be sharing my plans on Twitter ahead of time.

Demerly also says to make sure your shorts are snug. Use a chamois lubricant. Good. To. Go.

3. Make sure your bike is fitted for YOU, and maintain good posture.

You might think you need a new saddle, but in reality, your discomfort could really be due to improper fitting of your bike, or improper posture. You could spend bucco bucks on a “comfort” oriented saddle, and still come off with a traumatized tush if your posture is no good or your bike doesn’t fit you correctly. Look to the pros, Demerly says. They don’t use saddles with ventilated “relief” slots or big gel cushions. Their seats are solid, and you know they’re out there riding for hours at a time. The angle of your saddle, the angle of your handelbars (this influences the way your weight is distributed over the saddle) and the position of your seat all contribute to a “proper fit”. A triathlete who is down on their aero bars will sit farther rotated on the nose of their saddle than road cyclist does. Moral of the story: Fit. Is. Important. A bike fitting can be done at most quality bike stores, and prices vary widely, but are well worth it.

And to end the article, Demerly summarizes with a checklist of “Good Saddle Habits”

• Get used to sitting on a bike seat with consistent, short rides over a period of weeks.
  
• Always wear form fitting bike shorts, the best you can afford.
  
• Be sure your shorts are tight enough with no wrinkles.
  
• Never wear any kind of underwear with bike shorts.
  
• Try bib style bike shorts for better fit, especially for long rides.
  
• Always wash cycling shorts between wearing.
  
• Put your shorts on right before you ride and take them off right after. Don’t stand around or drive to events in bike shorts.
  
• Always use a chamois lubricant cream to increase comfort.
  
• Use powder inside your underwear in the saddle area when wearing street clothes to keep your crotch dry and speed acclimation.
  
• Be certain your bicycle fit, position and posture are correct.
  
• Focus on the fundamentals of saddle comfort instead of giving in to to marketing claims of gimmicky saddles.

Annnnd that, my friends, is what there is to say about Saddle Comfort. I’d definitely encourage you to check out more of the training articles at BikeSport Michigan! As always, you  can find this and other training advice under the Train on Top tab at the top of the page!

Didn’t I say something about hydration? Yess. I found this situation rather comical when I realized how many hydration options were surrounding me when I sat down to my McMac this afternoon.

Left to right:

Banana Nuun (drank full bottle on ride), Lemon Lime Nuun (drank half on ride), Strawberry Apricot Sobe Life plain Water (oops! Drank that one last night. It was GOOD! drank half bottle of water before ride, half once home), Black Cherry Dragonfruit Sobe Life Water (drank full bottle once back home), Best ever amazing citrus orange heaven protein shake from God (slammed. Can you savor something and slam it at the same time?)

There will indeed be a FUELING-ON-THE-RIDE post to come in the near future! For now though, this post has been written in three installments and I am beyond ready to hit Publish. My tummy is full of PHO, my pubic bones have started to reform over the last couple of hours, and I am ready for a solid night’s sleep. That’s “recovery” time!! Rest up, find your seat, and ride on my friends.

-E

Giveaways: Erica’s got the goods. I mean.. the Gu!

This is going to be SUPER short and sweet, as it is Sunday night, and tomorrow I have a test in my Measurement & Eval. In Kinesiology class. (How’s that for a [...]]]> Greetings comrades!  (In my head, that was said in my best old-Russian-man voice, reminiscing about my favorite Anatomy & Physiology prof back in Boston…)

This is going to be SUPER short and sweet, as it is Sunday night, and tomorrow I have a test in my Measurement & Eval. In Kinesiology class. (How’s that for a mouthful? I like MEinKIN better!) I’m pretty much set to go, but I need to make sure I have all the terms down, and remember how to calculate Phi scores from a double classification tables and whatnot. Fun fun.

Anyways, I’m writing to you today for several reasons. I had my second “long run” today (first was last Sunday), and I am very aware at the moment of the times I’m running – currently and in the past. I’m definitely not the pace I “used to be”, but now it seems like “used to” is such a long time ago! And my “long run” gets quotes because what is considered “long” at the moment used to be my midweek mid-distance run! My girl Karyn asked me a while ago about Boston Marathon, remembering that I’m registered, but wondering if I’m running or not? In short, the answer is nope, and I’m actually OK with that. I have big tri plans this summer, and with racing at Nationals in April, my mind is focused on other things. But it’s been a while since I’ve done checked in medically with all the hip related business, so I just wanted to give a fair warning of what’s to come.

That’s not the only thing coming though… here’s what is on tap:

• Hip & running update, updated race calendar
• TRAIN On Top: Volume 4 – CYCLING
• My new team – Peace Coffee Racing!
• Awesome new strength & nutrition coach – Model Per4mance!
• A new superfood/hydration/delicious recipe… PROMISE!

And the last thing I want to leave you with is a passage from the bible. I’ve said before that I really am not trying to push my faith off on anyone, so hopefully if the Bible or just religion in general isn’t your thing, you can read this next passage as just a tiny part of a story with an awesome meaning. My cousin has 27-29 on the back of his hockey helmet. When I read it, I definitely thought of Erica, because I feel (especially with her upcoming running ventures) that it really fits her and the way she lives her life. Not only because she shares my name, but because she is awesome all around, you should definitely check out her blog if you’ve haven’t yet!

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. And everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore, I run in such a way, not as without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I buffet my body and make it my slave, lest possibly, after I have preached to others, I myself should be disqualified.”
(I Corinthians 9:24-27).

Hope you have a lovely night. If you have Caribou Coffee in your neck of the woods, don’t forget about their $1 Coffee Mondays!! I always brew my “first cup” at home, but it is a nice treat to make Monday’s not so rough.
-E

p.s. Jocelyn knows how to spread the cheer, and Megan’s got the goods!!

Poppin (Remix) – Christ Brown ft. Lil Wayne & Juelz Santana

Today, being a Sunday, would mean it’s a long run day. We haven’t discussed my running status [...]]]> As promised – I’m back on Sunday, my favorite day of the week! And I have a lot to give you, so I’ll get right to it!

Sunday Long “Run”

Poppin (Remix) – Christ Brown ft. Lil Wayne & Juelz Santana

Today, being a Sunday, would mean it’s a long run day. We haven’t discussed my running status much as of late, because well, there really isn’t a status. It’s been constantly changing! For the month of December, running was super minimal. (read: like 30 miles for the entire MONTH maybe?) No – its most def. not because I can’t handle the Minnesota winters – we all know I’ve got that covered. Unfortunately.. it would be the hip. Again. My next “big” Dr. appointment is February 8th. Maybe I’ll know more after that, but at this point, this is what I do know: (words of my lovely sports med doc:) “It’s not going to just break through while you’re out there – if you want to be running, and it isn’t excruciatingly painful, you might as well.”

High Definition – Lupe Fiasco ft. Snoop Dog & Pooh Bear

So since January, I’ve taken that and run with it, literally. My milage is still NOTHING like “normal”, but at least I’m running a few days a week. However, no weekend long run for me. So today’s “long run” is brought to you by my Octane Q47 (or what I refer to typically as my “xRunner”) machine… lookin a little like this:

Dirt Off Your Shoulder – Jay Z

And since I have two hours scheduled with this bad boy, I figured what a better time to give you my ellipti/run/music rundown. What you see in BOLD and PURPLE are the songs that are playing currently while I am typing. Yes. Blogging while working out is pretty much the only way I have time for this right now. And since right now I have, oh… an hour and 44 minutes left, you get lots of songs.  My iTunes is on Shuffle btw, but I’m skipping around a bit if I hit a song I don’t like.

Beggin – Madcon

As you can also see, I’m not writing a ton in between what are anywhere between 4-5 minute songs. That’s because blogging, as I’m sure all of you who have your own site know, takes mucho tiempo.

Track 7 – Grey’s Anatomy Soundtrack

(Don’t know the actual name… really not a fan of this song… but it gives you an idea of the eclectness of my iTunes.) Which brings me to the next item on my agenda…

Future Updating Schedule:

Guarantees – Atmosphere

It’s no joke that I am super busy this semester. But this blog is really important to me, and I actually really LIKE doing it! My iCal last week looked a little like this, and this is even just a four day week, with school just having started, so not a ton of homework yet. This also doesn’t show the 6 credits of online classes I have currently going on! Ayyy. Contemplating dropping Physics this semester, but that doesn’t seem like a good plan because I still need to take it at some point. All the classes I’m taking right now are ones I need to eventually take! Thank you God for inventing iCal…

This Is What It’s Made For – Usher

Because of this insanity, my posting schedule will most likely be once or twice a week. It will also probably be a bit more to the point and content driven than all this extra curricular stuff. Actually.. no, it probably wont. That’s just how I roll. If you’ve seen some of my tweets lately though, you know I got a lot going on:

• 20 credits
• 2 labs
• 2 jobs
• boyfriend
• family/friends
• the Tri team
• Dr. TriRunner
• the Tri team’s website – I just took this one on, but I’m excited about it!

There’s no blame or fingers to be pointed (other than at myself )… this is what I get myself into. Welcome to the life of a Type A (+) overscheduler. Moving on…

Real As It Gets – Jay Z ft. Young Jeezy

On Friday I promised you a gear review, and that’s what I have for you now!

Cycling & Winter Running Socks: Review

You – Atmosphere

First up, my loves of all time: SMARTWOOL. More specifically, their Ultra Light Cushion Women’s Cycling socks:

These were a gift from the boy, and damn, does he know how to pick em’! I love the way these hug my arches in just the right spot, and I don’t have to fold them over because they’re so effing big or have the “heel” be sitting at my ankle! I wear these in spin right now and they are PERFECT! They come up just high enough so my shimano shoes don’t cut into my leg, but they’re still “ankle socks.” Final Grade: A

Dirt Off Your Shoulders Vs. Bittersweet Symphony Remix – Jay Z & The Verve

Next: CRAFT Pro Warm Quarter Running Sock

Alright.. when I told you everything  you’d ever want to know about WINTER RUNNING… I told you how much my feet/hands circulation sucks. Well that post needs a revision: my feet/hand circulation SUCKS when I’m not properly prepared!!

Jesus Walks – Kanye West

This was also included in a x-mas gift from the boy (he’s winning in all corners here!) and DAYYYNG. I. Love. Keep in mind that these were not sent to me by the company – this review is solely based on my usage of said socks and happy warm toes. These. Are. FANTASTIC. On a run where my fingers were frozen solid through… think permafrost frozen… my feet were SO toasty, but not sweaty! Just happy, happy toes. Thankkk you to novio and thank you to Craft! Final Grade: A+

Real World – Match Box Twenty

(Haha! I told you it was on shuffle!)  While were on the subject of SOCKS, I will say that I am yet to wear my supafly Kayano Left and Right specific running socks that my mom gave me for Christmas. I feel like these need to be reserved for races or special occasion / monumental runs only. Q: Do you have any clothes like that? I definitely have a racing only sports bra!

Push It Remix – Camron ft. Jim Jones, Juelz, and Lil Wayne

Annnd that’s one hour down! Love it! What I don’t love is this weekend is “Open House” weekend at my gym. Read: Way super overcrowded!! Un momentitio chicos… bathroom break.

OK! Hour two.. start it off with an all time favorite:

I’ll Be Missing You – P. Diddy ft. Faith Evans

This is also where I switch to going backwards and up the resistance a bit! Annnd make sure I’m continuing to hydrate:

Baby It’s Cold Outside – James Taylor ft. Natalie Cole

(Hahaha!! Don’t judge!) Ok so I’m starting to really enjoy this live blogging thing. Pictured above (excuse the blurriness.. I took it one handed and moving) is the new LEMON LIME Powerade Zero! But not only Powerade kids.. that would be Lemon Lime PowerDew. If you haven’t done the PowerDew yet.. hop on it. And make sure to tell me what you think!!! And because we’re talking about beverages and hydrating….

Nilla’ Mint Coffee Recovery Shake:

Hotel California – The Eagles

I also told you last Friday that I had a recipe coming! I fell in love the second this cool, creamy shake of shining glory touched my lips. Not exaggerating.

Always Coming Back Home to You – Atmosphere

Thankfully that was not a 4:26 am photo! Here’s what we got goin’ on:

• Chocolate Mint Coffee, (.5 – 1 cup, depending on preference of taste and texture) cooled (a la Ghiradelli – sent to my by my absolute fave SwimBuddy Lizzy)
• 2 scoops Vanilla protein powder
• Xanthan gum
• Ice ( I use about 6 regular sized cubes)

If you tragically are not able to find this miraculous mint coffee, as I no longer am because I ran out and apparently this is a seasonal delicacy, I have moved on to using regular coffee (or espresso to be more accurate), dark coco powder, and mint extract. Place all ingredients in blender of choice, and get to town.

Say Shhh – Atmosphere

(If you’re from MN.. GET that song. Has been a favorite of mine for a lonnnng time!) Depending on the type of protein powder you choose to use, you can get upwards of 20g of protein here! Other variations: you could use chocolate flavored protein powder and nix the cocoa powder. You could do half coffee/half milk (or milk alternative). If you’re lucky enough to have any leftover Girlscout Thinmint cookies stashed in your  freezer… send them all to me one or two blended up in the drink would lead to nilla/choco/mint ecstacy. Caution.

When’s the Last Time – Clipse ft. Pharell

As you can see, I did this in my Magic Bullet and it barely fit. I’m still praying that the folks from VitaMix HQ over in Cleveland, Ohio will find this lil runner/triathlete/future doctor and realize:

Dang – this girl really needs a Vita Mix in her life. Her future depends on it. How can we help?

I have an extra kidney if any of your employees need it. We could work out a deal. KIDDING!!! Kinda…

Bout It – Yung Joc ft. 3LW (Step Up Soundtrack)

Alright – decision time: I have half an hour of this “run” left… and there are still about a billion things I have on my “to post” list. I wanna give you a GU2:10 (or Goal Update for those who haven’t mastered the Dr.TriRunner terminology…) but I think I will wait till January is over and  give you a complete one month perspective.

Maria Maria – Carlos Santana ft. Wyclef Jean

(Yes, I really did only type that much in the time it took to play all of Bout It. Not a short song.. but I’m sweating more liquid than my shower gives on a good water pressure day. Haha what an attractive mental picture..) What I think needs to happen right now, since I neglected it on Friday, is a little guilt relief. That’s right kids – sounds like a…

Sunday Friday Confessional:

What We Talkin’ Bout – Jay Z ft. Luke Steele

You know the rules of the game: there are none. Nothing is off limits. You fess up, I fess up. We all feel better. This is a practice I have very much loved ever since my very first ever Friday Confessional back in November of 2008. One year ago I was fessing up to this:

1. I’ve become rather spiteful without running. I’ve seen other people running outside or hearing them talk about running and wished they couldn’t run too. It’s like if I can’t run, no one else should. 
2. I stole my roommates pack of Cinnamon Spice gum off her desk. Sorry Laur – I owe you.
3. I ODed on Cinnamon Toast Crunch one night in the beginning of the week. I literally had FIVE bowls. Just dry. Back to back.  And I felt sick as hell afterwards/the next morning. It was completely emotional and very delicious. But I don’t need to do that again.
4. I paid $55 for unlimited group fitness at the Marino. And I’m yet to take ONE class. I signed up for abs tonight and spinning tomorrow morning.
5. I accidentally brought home a pool belt from the Y. And it is sitting under my bed. And it’s mine.

Ever The Same – Rob Thomas

Have I changed? Let’s see…
#1 – I am currently running, but nothing like “I used to.” But my thoughts on that one are much more stemming from frustration.. not “spite.” Or at least I’d like to think so.
#2 – No stealing gum. I have a plentiful stock of my Stride favorites.
#3 – No more CTC sadly – I no longer have “the caf,” and therefore no longer have open access to crack this goodness. Probably a good thing.

Nothing Ever Hurt Like You – James Morrison

#4 – $55 seems like a steal when you’re paying $68/month for a gym membership. Nuff said.
#5 – That pool belt fits me perfectly

This week I’m going to confess only one thing to you in the blog word, because a) I only have 7 minutes left and I want time to make a song wrap-up, and b) I’ve been pretty darn good this week if I do say so myself. Here we go:

Move If You Wanna – Mims

1. I have become increasingly reliant on sleep aids. Tylenol PM, Simply Sleep.. the melatonin ain’t doin jack isht. It’s at the point where if I don’t take anything, I just don’t get tired. No matter what. Friday night – took nothing. Fell “asleep” around 4 am. Was already awake when my alarm went off at 8am. I’m fessing up to this one because it’s actually a problem. I plan on talking to my doc about it at my next appointment. Which I am yet to schedule. :/

That’s all I have time for kids! This was a GOOD POST if you ask me! Sorry if I overwhelmed you with all of  this at once though. Here is the…

Long “Run” Song Wrap-up:

Encore – Jay Z (good song to end on!)
Poppin (Remix) – Christ Brown ft. Lil Wayne & Juelz Santana
High Definition – Lupe Fiasco ft. Snoop Dog & Pooh Bear
Dirt Off Your Shoulder – Jay Z
Beggin – Madcon
Track 7 – Grey’s Anatomy Soundtrack
Guarantees – Atmosphere
This Is What It’s Made For – Usher
Real As It Gets – Jay Z ft. Young Jeezy
You – Atmosphere
Dirt Off Your Shoulders Vs. Bittersweet Symphony Remix – Jay Z & The Verve
Jesus Walks – Kanye West
Real World – Match Box Twenty
Push It Remix – Camron ft. Jim Jones, Juelz, and Lil Wayne
I’ll Be Missing You – P. Diddy ft. Faith Evans
Baby It’s Cold Outside – James Taylor ft. Natalie Cole
Hotel California – The Eagles
Always Coming Back Home to You – Atmosphere
Say Shhh – Atmosphere
When’s the Last Time – Clipse ft. Pharell
Bout It – Yung Joc ft. 3LW (Step Up Soundtrack)
Maria Maria – Carlos Santana ft. Wyclef Jean
What We Talkin’ Bout – Jay Z ft. Luke Steele
Ever The Same – Rob Thomas
Nothing Ever Hurt Like You – James Morrison
Move If You Wanna – Mims

[Change of location - the workout went wonderfully! No pain, sweated my a$$ off, and feel good. At home now.] Hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did! I have two pages that should be up and running soon: music, and the return of my blogroll (finally)! There are more layout/style changes to come too. For now, if you’re looking for music (like the Reader’s Choice Ultimate Mix) just click on the “music” tag in the right column! Gotta go for now peeps – my VIKES are playing tonight!

-E