What is this world coming to?

Ok, so I have never seen anything like this in my life. Here's the background...I am in the worst grocery here in Lawrence, worst as in the people are sketchy, you always have to wait in line to checkout (that sounds snooty but there are other stores in town where you don't have to wait!) and it's not that clean...BUT it's close to the gym and I wanted to get home fast.

I am getting cheese from the deli...there is an older couple in the electric carts savoring their free samples of who knows what. For 'dessert', the woman picked up something that looked like a cross between green jello with marshmallows and cole slaw, I seriously could not figure out what it was. They are chowing down. I hate to judge, but it didn't look like these guys needed to be eating their dinner in the store in their electric carts. Here's the kicker...I look over at the lady and she has her toothpick in hand, IN THE OLIVE BAR. Enough said. So gross, I cannot stand ignorant people and this women really takes the cake...if there was a sample of one I am sure she would have. Ugh! (and you know that she can walk just fine, she wasn't hesitant at all to jump up to oogle at a baby she knew, probably spilling olive juice all over it)

Other news - TRAINING - Yup, it's now hard. We are putting in about 12-14 hrs. a week. We went to a swim/strengthening training last night. Just visualizing the muscles used while swimming really helped my swim tonight. February's schedule is about this. Swims are about 3,000 yrds x 3 times a week, biking is 1-1:15 hr. x 2 times per week, 2-2:50 hrs. on Sat. and the run is 1-1:15 hrs. x 2 times per week and 2 hrs. on Sun. Strength training 1-2 times per week. Needless to say, 2nd week in this schedule and I am ready for bed now, it's 8:30!

Back to watching the Olympics! Go USA! Go Lindsey Vonn and Shawn White!!!!

How times have changed...

Yeah, 1st 2010 1/2 marathon in the books. It was Heather a.k.a. Pandora, Patricia, Angie and myself. Woo Hoo, girls day! It was pretty cold in the am, but, I think we were all dressed perfect. The only snag before the race started was when Pandora 'lent' her 3-D glasses to 'Johnny'! The Topeka to Auburn run is a hilly course, so we all took it easy. It was a fun run AND 40 degrees at the finish! We all finished in the top 10 in our age groups! Now that's the way to start 2010!

The day after the run, Sunday, Heather and I had on our schedule, an hour an a half bike ride on the trainer and a 2500 meter swim. After my 'recovery' swim, I could only muster an hour on the trainer, it was torture! We had weights on the schedule today (I added in the Insanity - Sports Intervals...actually really fun!).

The weekend's run and following workouts made me think about my first 1/2...2005, Kansas City Waddell and Reed...time...1:54:03. I remember going to Henry T's (local sports bar and my place of employment during college) eating buffalo strips (or something very similar in fat content) and drinking either beer or Bloody Mary's after the race. GOOD TIMES! I remember telling my friend Donna, that I was not going to workout for a week, and I didn't. I fully recovered and it was great.

Ahhh, those were the days!

Here's to making new memories (minus the beer, chicken and recovery weeks)!

Guilt...it does a body good!

Guilt - is a cognitive or an emotional experience that occurs when a person realizes or believes - whether justified or not - that he or she has violated a moral standard, and is responsible for that violation. It is closely related to the concept of remorse.

I have heard you are not supposed to feel guilty if you miss a workout, because you make a conscious decision to miss the workout and you should accept the consequence and be alright with it. I believe this AND accept it.

However, it hit me this am when I attempted to tell myself that I could go back to sleep AGAIN after the alarm went off! The guilt got me out of bed so fast, you'd think there was a fire in the house. I am good with this type of guilt, the kind that keeps you moving towards your goals. And I have some moving to do!

Ah, and as my coach says...

You and you alone are the only person that stands in the way of your goals. Dig deep, find your focus and make every moment count.

Dig Deeper My Friends!

Day 12...the first day!

Ok, so the 12th day of the new year and I finally accomplished one of my 2010 goals! Yiiiippppeeee! I got up at 5:00...5:30...6:00 and actually went back to bed. Until a little voice in my head said, "you will feel like a goob if you actually lay back down when you are awake"...Thank you Tracy from Tracy.bonics for the words of wisdom! I am not a goob and don't want to be a goob, so I got up and did my Insanity - Plyometrics.

OH...MY...GOD...

Not enough swim/bike/run can prepare you for this 40 MINUTE workout.

OUCH...

I wasn't even able to keep up with the video...maybe if I keep doing it, it will get easier...maybe.

Hope everyone's goals are going as planned for 2010!

New Year, New intervals!

Ok, so I have posted that by the end of the year, I wanted 10 x 100's on 1:40...so that didn't happen by the end of the year but 5 days into it! I had a hell of a swim last night. Loving it! Walked out of the gym on cloud 9! And to top if off, I swam 2500 meters in 50 minutes...guys, that's good for me!

As far as the getting up at 5 am goal...not happened, once...My dog has been sick, poor pup, and keeping us up all night. He's getting so much better, so hopefully tomorrow is the DAY!

Hope everyone is having a great week and keeping up with 2010 goals!

This is it...

Welcome 2010, farewell 2009.

It's all getting real now. 6 months and counting to my first Ironman. This is where I start acting like a triathlete. No more, "this can wait til after the first of the year"...cause it's here. Finally...maybe, it's a relief that it's here and the excuses can stop. It's time to suck it up and be accountable for what I signed up for months ago. Not to say I haven't been training, cause I have...a bit. I am keeping the fire simmering, ready for the big flame come June. So out with the celebrations, out with the wine, out with the sleeping in, out with the excuses and bring on the getting up at 5 to get my first of 2 workouts in for the day, in with eating like an athlete, in with going to bed early, and in with Ironman!

That being said, I am holding myself accountable by posting my goals for the next year. Additionally, I am making weekly challenges for myself.

Fitness - No excuses...wake up early everyday. My goal is 5 am. This way I can either get my workout in, or even better get an extra one in. Whether it's to the gym or to the living room, this needs to be done.

Weight lifing, needs to be done more often. Let's burn some fat with muscle. Easy.

I hired a coach to get me to Coeur d'Alene. Do not skip/miss the workouts! I hired him for a reason! Oh, and I will log all of them.

Fashion - I will wear my workout clothes everyday, but not all day. I will make an effort to dress up when going out (going out this year means dinner with my hubby, or maybe a movie, not going to the bars!) I won't be that girl watching the KU game out of the house still in her workout clothes. This one will be difficult, but needs to be done.

Health - Eat for energy! Eat like an athlete. Eat to lose weight. Another reason for the weight loss is to race lighter, for every extra 10 lbs you carry, your body needs to use 6% more energy. I could use that 6% to take me to the finish line, not to carry my extra flub!

Ok, so now I am accountable...NO MORE EXCUSES!

Happy New Year Everyone!

Swimmin' 'Fast'

I seriously need to start swimming faster.

Last night I had an awesome swim…even given the fact that I had tri-camp the night before and my muscles were trashed. Claudine, my swim coach gave me intervals 5 x 100 on 1:50’s (50 of the 100 backstroke, ugh) and 5 x 100 on 1:45’s and I actually made them (well only a few and I was super close on the others, but still!).

I think I was just showing off for my friend Donna, who is the best swimmer EVER. Here’s how crazy fast she is. She’s kicking…with a kick board…no fins…no goggles…and lapping me (ok, almost lapping me)…What? I was booking it to try to keep her from lapping me while I am supposed to be swimming ‘fast’! I remember thinking to myself, holy cow, I have triceps! Where did these come from? I don’t remember feeling them while swimming before! Did I work them too much the night before?...maybe…was I working them hard during this swim?...heck yes!

I now know the secret to swimming faster…swimming FASTER! (OK, I always knew that, but don’t practice this ‘fast’ too often!). So, I am setting new interval goals (10 x 100 on 1:40’s) by the end of the year, I do want to swim ‘fast’ (steady and confident) at Coeur d’Alene right?

Here’s looking to the next pool session in the manana! Happy Friday!

Screw Training, I am getting one of these!

WOW...what a week!

So it's been a while since either H2 or I have blogged! It's been crazy busy. It starts with Halloween...

Heather as Kat Von D...at our Wednesday night training session!!!

Then it was the 30th birthday madness! Thank you to all of my friends and family. You are all wonderful people and couldn't do what I do without you!

The morning after the big surprise...

Birthday Fun!

So, it's not quite my birthday, but mom has already sent some good gifts. Check out this sweet suit from Splish.




I think this is what they mean when they say 'pirate booty'!!!!


And look at these orange wellies...I haven't been so excited for rain!

Marathon

Wow! What a day for a marathon! Kelly and I ran the Kansas City Marathon yesterday and once again, the Gunn came through strong! She had set a goal to run a four hour marathon and what did she do? She busted her goal and came in UNDER four hours!! I'm telling you, once that woman has her mind set and focused on something... WATCH OUT! she has a will and determination like no other. Kelly consistently shows that that she will finish Couer d'Alene and will finish strong and happy. Me on the other hand, just had a fun race. I didn't look at my watch once and just enjoyed the scenery and the people. In retrospect, I know I could have picked it up and ran a better marathon. Why I continue to doubt my abilities is beyond me. I think I need a serious spanking by my coach- I've been beating myself up too much lately. I really picked it up the last two miles and was feeling good when I crossed the finish line. I wonder what would have happened if I would have pushed in the middle? Funny enough- I was at mile 19 1/2 and looked over at one of the volunteers and was blown away. It was an old buddy of mine from college that I hadn't seen in about 20 years! We chatted a bit and then I remembered I was running a marathon and needed to get my rearend moving! What a crazy thing to happen!
Not only did Kelly PR but one of our sole sisters, Patricia Rosa, qualified for Boston! Way to go, P! All the hard work and focus paid off. We were all so happy, it was almost like we all qualified!
Marathon over.... what's in store now?

Octoginta 2009

So last Sunday was the 2009 Octoginta Ride here in Lawrence. It was dedicated to Dr. Bob Frederick, who was killed in a bike accident earlier this summer. His wife and a couple of his kids were at the start. It was a nice tribute to Dr. Bob.

It was freezing...well not really but it was super cold. Not very comfortable riding weather...at least for me. On my way to meet Heather downtown, I fell. Just like a NEWBIE. Super embarrassing.

During the first 20 miles or so, we both were debating whether we wanted to do the 80 or make it a bit shorter and just ride 60...I just said 'just 60'...how sick is that?! We decided to buck up and go ahead and ride the 80 miles, or so we thought...

We were ready to be done around 60-65 miles. We were thinking where we could get picked up at! 'Keep at it, we'll be done soon' we kept telling our selves. Let's pick off the miles 10 at a time. So we did. Until we get to what we thought was mile 70...'yes! 10 to go!' Oh, no. The volunteer at the aid station indicated the course was long and we had about 15 to go. This same poor guy said to Heather, 'just think of it this way, you have 6 miles until the next aid station and then another 8 or 9 until the finish, easy!' Poor guy...we now have a priceless quote from a not so happy Heather...'we don't go by 6 at a time! We go by 10 at a time!'...and another one, 'well it would have been nice to know, they should have put that on the map!' (that the course was long)

Needless to say, it was a long 15 miles to the finish. But, totally worth it. Yummy minestrone soup for the soul at the finish. AND we had completed our longest ride EVER! Woo Hoo!

Seriously, drivers...

People, quit texting, grabbing for your oversized 240 oz soda (in a styrofoam cup, mind you) and talking on the phone while you are driving. I cannot tell you how many people had to swerve to not hit me today! I was in the BIKE LANE! There is an EXTRA two plus feet for bikers and runners to use! Pay attention! And...do all non runners stare? UGH!

It turned out to be a great run regardless of the inattentive people who should not be on the road!

Happy Sat.!

Sometimes I don't want to talk about training

Ok so what I do want to talk about is my amazing son! That kid never ceases to amaze me and this morning was no exception. We are experiencing his first Homecoming and Spirit Week as a freshman at BVNW ( my tummy gets that good feeling as all the memories of my Homecomings are being lived again ( but not my senior year- that one needs to be forgotten)). It's so awesome to see the whole school get involved- I could count on my hands this morning the kids I saw that were NOT dressed up according to the theme of the day. They start every morning with short dances created by groups of boys in each class and my son, Oliver, was performing today. Two words- fabulous and hilarious! Those kiddos can dance! All those new moves- the jerking and the twitching.. I don't know what they're called but it sure beats the sprinkler for sure!!! The group of seven ended  their dance with Oliver doing a back flip- I was nervous because he was on a cement floor, not a spring floor- but he landed it and the crowd erupted with applause and wild chants of 'Freshmen, Freshmen!'. Now we're on the countdown to the big dance.... I'll be a mess.. my baby is just growing up too fast!!!

Pity Pary is Over...

So let me back up to Wednesday...I had a pity party...all the favorites were invited...wine, cookie dough ice cream... I have been having issues with my left hamstring and the doc told me on Wednesday that I had a small....tear, yes, tear (mind you, this was the second time he has told me this!). So my world came tumbling down (again). Only 3 weeks til my PR race and I go and hurt my leg (again). So after a couple of 'pick me up' emails, I picked myself back up...on Friday.

Friday night...a 3,000 yard swim
Saturday morning...22 miler with the KC girls...thanks girls for the mud run!
Sunday morning...bike ride with Donna and Rafe...thank guys for the great ride!
Sunday afternoon...lake time with Robert...thanks honey!

Ahh, feels so much better after the party is over. Bring on the week!

A Stunt Woman I was not meant to be....

It's the craziest thing- I keep falling on Saturday long runs. Not just a little trip or stumble, but a full-on, down to the ground fall. The first time was in Lawrence and as Kelly said, 'I was a bloody mess'. My arm and leg were scraped up and blood had gotten all over my shirt. Yep, pretty nasty. I was just about healed when, crash!- right on the Trolley Trail where there are of course, tons of people. How embarassing! Same side and everything. This time, I stopped the fall by jamming my elbow into my ribs and as we all know, there's nothing you can do for broken, cracked or fractured ribs but dope up on heavy pain medication. Thankfully, mine are just bruised but don't get me wrong, it's still pretty painful. I choose not to dose up on pills but instead choose sport-induced endorphins. Swimming last night with Kelly was awesome- it was fun to have someone to chat with and to remind each other, WE LOVE SWIMMING!. Tonight is Runner's Edge speed sessions so we'll see how that goes. I have a feeling I won't be leaving anyone in my dust but I'll give it my best. Let's just hope I don't fall.....

Lewis and Clark 1/2 Marathon, Sept. 13, 2009

Where to begin...Saturday afternoon, Heather, Angela, Patricia and I met at...oh yes, Trader Joe's. I am pretty sure that is the only reason the girls wanted to do this race! I have never been to Trader Joe's, so, I was not aware that chocolate covered edamame was like gold! I the four of us bought enough to feed a small army (that's about 33 containers...) Just image the shopping cart. So for those who haven't had it, yes, they are that good.

After Joe's, we went to Clayton for dinner. It was the St. Louis Art Fair, unfortunately, there was not time to browse the art. We were on a mission to eat. We found a place were we all could eat, i.e. vegetarion options, no wait, called Portabello's. We laughed, a lot, pissed off the waiter, and ate some really great food. Oh, and Patricia shared a really YUMMY secret! After dinner, it was back to the hotel to sample all of our Trader Joe goodies. Yum!

Without going into a race report, here's the recap. Patrica PR'd by two minutes, whoo hoo! Angie was right behind her and had a great race. Heather has had better races, weeks, luck etc...and wound up finishing strong. I had a good race, felt very strong and just about ready for KC Marathon...PR or the ER!



It was a great course, great weather and great friends. Thank you to my hubby for helping my parents while I had fun with the gals! I was beat and so were my pups! We all napped on the way back to Lawrence!

"That's what the sign says"

This phrase will go down in our training history.It was coined by the Gunn to some people we were riding with on Sunday who obviously couldn't follow or read signs. We had just passed a huge sign that said Highway 71 and they thought we were going the wrong way, that we needed to be on 71. Kelly let them know we were and they were just perplexed as to how she knew that. Out came the comment... OH BOY! We did have a great ride after getting warmed up and getting past the 'packs'. Even though we wouldn't consider ourselves the most experienced riders, we do know what the term, 'on your left' means and especially, 'CAR BACK'. We were holding our breath as we watched people riding four across as a car was trying to get by. Those are the people that give bikers a bad name and I was getting pretty riled up because some morons were acting so reckless. One woman even had a mirror and she couldn't see or hear me, I guess, as I gave her an 'on your left'- she didn't even budge or try to get over. Yes, frustrating. Other than those few 'moments', the rest of the ride was full of hills and laughs. More time in the seat....

Summer Breeze, August 30, 2009

So the summer breeze ride, was not so summery. The ride started at 7 am and 52 degrees. Holy cow, we were freezing! The ride was put on by the Kansas City Bike Club. Heather and I only did the 45 mile route so we didn't get to see all the SAGs. The first stop was a bit of a cluster, but the second one was the good one (see picture above). Don't get me wrong, it's wasn't margarita, jello shot, slip-n-slide good, but good. Of course we couldn't eat what they had served for lunch, but we made do. I had a cole slaw and pickle sandwich, actually it was pretty good!


After lunch, the weather started to warm up and we had a nice ride and good conversation on the way back to Longview.
Unfortunately, there was no party at the finish....what...no celebratory beer?!

Ode to our coach

Oh Benny boy- how we love and hate you so. We curse you when our legs feel like they are going to fall apart and we love you when the workout is done and we've survived. We hate you as we count lap after lap in the pool and love you when we realize we just swam almost two miles and still feel like we have energy. We hate you when our backs and crotches are on fire even when standing up on the bike and love you when it's time to clip out of our pedals and freak out knowing how far we rode. We hate you when we see the week's worth of workouts and we love you knowing the time you are putting into making us both Ironman finishers. We hate that you are a maniac and will train in any of the curves Mother Nature throws and we love you that you push us to do the same so we are completely prepared come race day.
We are both so happy you are our coach- you bring out the best in both of us, which we love! Good luck to you in Louisville on Sunday- we will be rooting for you!!! You have trained long and hard for this one and you deserve to have the race of your life!